text:
ARLINGTON, Texas — The Texas Rangers completed a Minor deal Wednesday while waiting for Shoehi Ohtani to decide where he wants to play.
A day after meeting in Los Angeles with the Japanese pitcher and outfielder, Rangers officials were back home in Texas to introduce left-hander Mike Minor after finalizing a $28 million, three-year contract.
General manager Jon Daniels described Minor as a primary target in the team's offseason pursuit to replenish and bolster its pitching staff.
"He's somebody that we've liked back in his amateur days. ... Gets to the big leagues, promising starter, had a hiccup and then dominant last year again," Daniels said of Minor, a standout reliever for Kansas City last season.
While the Rangers' interest in Ohtani has been well-known, Daniels and other team officials didn't want to talk Wednesday about the pitcher-outfielder or their visit with him.
Ohtani was put up for bid last week by the Pacific League's Nippon Ham Fighters for the maximum $20 million posting fee. The 23-year-old has until 11:59 p.m. EST on Dec. 22 to agree to a contract with an MLB team. The Rangers are among seven teams he is considering.
Meanwhile, Minor is the second pitcher the Rangers have signed in a week. He gets a $1 million signing bonus and salaries of $8 million next season and $9.5 million each in 2019 and 2020. He has a limited no-trade provision that allows him to list 10 teams each year he can't be traded to without his consent.
When the offseason began, the Rangers had only left-handers Cole Hamels and Martin Perez signed for their 2018 rotation. Right-hander Doug Fister last week agreed to a $4 million, one-year deal that could be worth up to $11.5 million over two seasons.
Minor was 6-6 with a 2.55 ERA in 77 2/3 innings over 65 relief appearances last season with Kansas City. He previously was a starter for Atlanta before missing the 2015 and 2016 seasons with shoulder issues. The Braves picked him seventh overall in the 2009 amateur draft.
"Our plans are for Mike to start for us," Daniels said. "He's done both with success in the big leagues. There is some flexibility that his past provides us."
Minor, who turns 30 the day after Christmas, became a free agent last month when he declined his $10 million player option to stay with the Royals. He was 38-36 while starting 110 of 111 games in Atlanta from 2010-14, and said he wanted to be a starter again.
"I wanted that to be an option for teams, and I felt like Texas was the only team that kind of stepped up and gave me that option," Minor said. "As everybody knows, I've always been a starter. Last year was my first year in the pen, and I was comfortable doing it. Deep down in my well, I still feel like there's something there and I feel like I can help this team being a starter."


text:
I'm a girl. When I poo, I do not wish other people to start calling my name - but my colleague did. Repeatedly. "Do you happen to be in here?"
The first time it happened, words failed me. Now I'm kinda used to it. "What?"
"The guest is having difficulties connecting to the wifi."
Rolling my eyes up, I mustered an answer. "Too bad, the guest will have to wait 15 minutes. I'm... busy."
But I couldn't finish the dump. My colleague had scared the poor poo-poos into hiding higher up my arse.
With such a mood I went off to the company's guest area. "Hi, sorry that you're unable to connect to our wif-" And like in the movies, the kind that cast Drew Barrymore, the guest lifted his d*mn handsome face. Like, super-handsome. I've never seen a company guest this handsome. Like the byproduct of a lab's crossing experiment between Andy Lau Tak-wah and Snoop Dog.
While I was half-helping the guest half-dreaming about what our kid together would look like, my tactless colleague's eyes caught mine. The one who'd patrolled bathrooms in search for me. And I realized, in horror, that she'd probably told him what she had thought I'd been doing then.
But in all fairness, I wish that the internet in my country will get better now that it's half a year to 2018. I mean c'mon, it's about time. Don't you think so?

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Over the past Christmas holiday week, when the website I work on was experiencing very low traffic, we saw several Request timed out exceptions (one on each day >> 12/26, 12/28, 12/29, and 12/30) on several pages that require user authentication. We rarely saw Request timed out exceptions prior to this very low traffic week.
We believe the timeouts were due to the database that it uses being "spun down" on the SQL Server and taking longer to spin up when a request came in.
There are 2 databases on the SQL Server (SQL Server 2005), one which is specifically for this application and the other for the public facing website and for authentication; so in the case where users were not logged into the application (which definitely could have been for several hours at a time over Christmas week) the application database probably received no requests. We think at this point SQL Server reallocated resources to the other database and then when a request came in, extra time was needed to spin up the application database and the timeout occurred.
Is there a way to tell SQL Server to give a minimum amount of resources to a database at all times?


text:
It is well known that most topological spaces can be studied via their algebra of continuous real-valued (or complex-valued) functions. For instance, in the setting of compact Hausdorff spaces, there is a complete dictionary between topological properties of the space $X$ and corresponding algebraic properties of the algebra $C(X)=C(X,\mathbb{R})$, and two such spaces $X$ and $Y$ are homeomorphic if and only if their algebras $C(X)$ and $C(Y)$ are isomorphic. A similar theory is available in the locally compact Hausdorff case, by replacing $C(X)$ with the algebra of real-valued functions on $X$ which vanish at infinity. Furthermore, these algebras are precisely all the commutative C*-algebras (at least if you take complex-valued functions). Thus if one wishes to study locally compact Hausdorff spaces, he might as well study commutative C*-algebras.
Is there an analogous algebraic approach to the theory of "nice" metric spaces (e.g. compact, locally compact, connected, etc.)? More specifically, is there a natural function space one can attach to every nice metric space which essentially contains all data about the metric space, up to isometry?
I'll welcome any references related to this question.
EDIT: Many of the answers referred me to Nik Weaver's (and others') theory of "Lipschitz algebras". I took a look at his book and while very interesting (and well written), it doesn't seem to be quite what I am looking for. More specifically, it seems that his constructions of Lipschitz algebras only characterize the metric space up to bi-Lipschitz equivalence (which he calls a quasi-isometry), while I'm looking for natural function spaces that would characterize the space up to isometry. His results in section 1.8 of the book show that two (pointed) complete metric spaces have isomorphic Lipschitz function algebras if and only if they are bi-Lipschitz equivalent, rather than isometric. He does have a characterization up to isometry (using a different Lipschitz algebra) for the class of metric spaces of diameter less than 2 (section 1.7) , but his reduction of a general metric space (say complete) to a metric space of diameter $\le 2$ is of course far from preserving isometries (rather preserving Lipschitz mappings).
So it seems that I am looking for a somewhat more "rigid" construction. Any ideas about that?


text:
I need a way to make a program work on only the first computer it is run on, it doesn't need to be very secure but it needs to work. The idea that I came up with is to have the program save the MAC Address (of the first computer it is run on) inside of its own EXE. And then from then on check to see if the MAC Address corresponds to the computer its on..
So I have a couple questions
1. How can I have a program edit its own file during execution. Is this possible? Are there workaround ways to do it?
2. How can I have the compiler tell me where, in the file, a certain piece of data was saved. I'm using GCC, though I could use Visual C++.
Thanks everybody!


text:
Songwriters Guild: Network Neutrality Means More Piracy
from the oh-really-now? deptThere has been an effort made by some to try to connect the totally unrelated issues of network neutrality and unauthorized file sharing together. There is no connection between the two, but that won't stop busy lobbyists from doing their best to drum up such a connection. Copycense points us to the news that Grover Nordquit's group has decided to push this line of nonsense by parroting claims by the Songwriter's Guild of America (SGA) that accepting net neutrality is akin to encouraging piracy. How? That's not clear, because there's really no connection at all. The best they can say is that net neutrality would prevent efforts to crack down on file sharing (except, every plan for net neutrality has explicitly had exceptions for such things). I've said it before and I'll say it again: I am not in favor of laws mandating neutrality, but the arguments made by those against it are so over-the-top ridiculous that it's actually making me wonder why. There are reasonable arguments against mandating neutrality, but these groups don't make them.
That it's the SGA making these arguments initially shouldn't come as a surprise. The group has a rather antiquated view of business models and modern technology, and its boss has declared in the past that songwriting would not occur without copyright -- an obviously incorrect statement. The SGA has become a caricature of itself in the last few years. Rather than admitting that the market is changing and working with songwriters to help them adapt, it has basically decided the only reasonable strategy is to go crying to the government for more protectionism, and greater mandatory licensing fees. This is an odd group for the anti-net neutrality types to team up with, since most of them claim their reasons for being against net neutrality is to get away from government meddling in the internet industry. And then they go and team up with the SGA, who's entire purpose is to encourage more government meddling in the music business? Politics makes strange bedfellows indeed...
Separately, it's probably worth noting that ITIF, a "think tank" in DC and which has been a huge anti-net neutrality voice, has just come out with a poorly researched, poorly argued, joke of a report on "reducing digital piracy." In it, they promote kicking people off the internet (based on accusations, not convictions) under a three strikes regime, and also that ISPs should filter and monitor their networks to try to stop infringement. Apparently, ITIF is not a big fan of your privacy... but it's own... well, just try to find out who funds ITIF? That's secret. Funny how that works. Otherwise the report repeats a bunch of sweeping claims that have no support in reality, and does not back them up. It states, repeatedly, that you can't compete with free, even as many smart businesses do that every day. The report advocates DRM, and amusingly fails to mention the massive failure of every DRM system to date, and the harm it has done to legitimate users. But, of course, it saves most of its focus on supporting "technical measures" from ISPs to inspect your content and stop you if they think you're doing anything wrong. Welcome to the big brother state. The report also supports ACTA, even though it admits it doesn't know what's included. Basically, it's "recommendations" straight from the entertainment industry, with no basis in reality. And, with a nice "net neutrality" tie-in. Those ties seem likely to get closer, which is unfortunate. Funny that those who keep claiming they want the government to "stay out" of the internet, are so keen to have them very actively involved when it comes to copyright.
Filed Under: digital content, grover nordquist, net neutrality, piracy, songwriters
Companies: itif, sga


text:
The English Pea Studio. I absolutely love it.
Here is what Alison had to say about the party-- "My little guy decided on a fire truck theme for his 3rd birthday party. Our local fire department has a gorgeous, restored vintage fire truck that graces the front lawn of one of their firehouses. I created the fire truck and fire hydrant from photographs that I took at that scene.
I wanted to create a modern twist using the chevron pattern throughout the décor. I also used small black polka dots on a white background mimicking the dots on a Dalmatian.
In keeping with a rustic, vintage theme I used burlap, old wood crates, mason jars, and old glass jars as containers. I found several lovely accessories – a hat, truck and fire hydrant you see pictured.
I carried the black and white polka dots through the food in offering chocolate covered marshmallow pops, white chocolate covered oreos, and white chocolate dipped pretzel rods. The cake was adorned with a Dalmatian and a red fire hydrant made specific for the event.
For an educational twist I used the words "stop, drop, and roll" on some of the elements and on the party favor bags – a fun way to remember a key instruction in fire safety.
We began the party with a tour of a local firehouse. The children enjoyed looking at the truck, learning about each vehicle, equipment, and the fireman's attire and living quarters. Our tour guide was informative and fun and each child left the fire house with a hat and coloring book.
We headed back to my home for the rest of the festivities where we ate and opened gifts. In addition to the hats and coloring books each child left with a favor bag – designed to echo the same patterns used in the décor. The bags were filled with "fireman's rope" (red twizzlers), "drops" (red cherry sours), and "rolls" (tootsie rolls).
The fire tour was a big hit with all the children and a fun and informative activity that was offered free to the public by our local fire department.
Fun was had by all!"
Vendor Credits:
Paper goods, invitation, toppers, favor bags, flags, liners, pennant banner: The English Pea Studio Photography: The English Pea Studio
Cupcake straws and bakers twine: Cakes and Kids Too
Cakes and Cupcakes: Sams Club
Red balloons and polka dot tissue paper: Walmart
Hat, firetruck and hydrant : Hobby Lobby
Dalmatian and fire hydrant cake topper: Cake Fancy
Crates and burlap: personal props
Cake stands: Pier 1


text:
Scram Jones (Feat. Saigon, Crooked I & Nino Bless) - 3rd Degree
video for Scram Jones' "3rd Degree" feat Saigon, Nino Bless & Crooked I off his new producer album "Beast Music" dropping in 2010. Shout out to Mr. Exclusive
Please click the "Report" button below if the video on this page is not working properly.
Comments will only be displayed by verified emails. No Spamming or Racism.


text:
As the new year begins and your clubs swell with members, two consumer publications have come out with stories that should make everyone in the industry stop and think.
The February issue of Consumer Reports features a special report that rates fitness facilities. The article is based on a survey of 10,000 Consumer Reports subscribers who have belonged to a health club in the past six months. The subscribers rated their health clubs on billing issues, classes, cleanliness, crowds, equipment, locker rooms, value and workout options. Chain clubs didn't fare too well, except for Life Time Fitness, Eden Prairie, MN, which ranked second overall just behind yoga/dance/Pilates studios. The other chain clubs included in the survey were Curves International, Waco, TX; Gold's Gym, Dallas; 24 Hour Fitness, San Ramon, CA; LA Fitness, Irvine, CA; Town Sports International, New York; and Bally Total Fitness, Chicago. Work gyms (or, as we call them, corporate fitness centers), community centers, Jewish Community Centers, school gyms and YMCAs/YWCAs ranked ahead of all the chains except for Life Time.
The biggest complaint that respondents had about the chains was that they didn't see their value, according to the article. Often, respondents said they could get similar service and equipment at nonchain locations — often at cheaper prices. It's no wonder members don't think chains offer the best value. In an era of Wal-Mart and Costco, consumers want a lot for a little. Perhaps club owners of higher-priced chains haven't done enough to show their members the added value that they get at their clubs.
However, I think the survey really shows that people want to feel like their club is interested in them. Nonchains are local, which implies to most people that their owners are interested in their members and the community because they are one of them. The impression of chain clubs (even though they are staffed by local people) is that decisions come from a distant location from people who don't know or care about the members and aren't invested in the local community.
Whether the clubs are locally owned or national chains, many consumers still see the fitness industry as a group of strangers making money off of them with no true regard for their well-being.
That perception is highlighted in a recent issue of Smart Money magazine in which an article called "10 Things Your Gym Won't Tell You" appears. The article cautions readers about some of the "dirty secrets" of the industry, such as that club owners and staff don't expect most of the January joiners to be around in April, that fitness facilities are crawling with bacteria, that trainers don't know what they are doing and that it's difficult to cancel contracts. Granted, some club owners may still operate in this way, but haven't most club owners come a lot further than that?
Regardless of how hard this industry works to change its reputation, the sins of our fathers (and mothers) continue their ripple effect today. To fight this, good club owners must work together to rid the industry of corrupt operators, promise to adhere to ethical standards themselves, and cultivate good relationships with the media and members. By doing so, the industry may one day conjure positive thoughts rather than negative ones in a country in dire need of our help.


text:
The expression "newsjacking" has been popularized by David Meerman Scott and the available material on the topic is near limitless from case studies of Oreo's Dunk in the Dark Twitter ad to missed opportunities by Poland Spring.
Related to newsjacking is the practice of leveraging popular culture references in brand messaging. Movies, music, memes and more can be deftly integrated into your social media and content marketing programs to provide an entertaining context to otherwise boring business information. Beyond attaching to something that's popular on TV, the best applications of popular culture references find creative ways to make a connection back to the brand's products or services.


text:
From inside the book
86 pages matching editions:ISBN0156935805 in this book
What people are saying - Write a review
LibraryThing ReviewUser Review - briony - LibraryThing
I enjoyed it, but not as much as I enjoyed the first book of the series. There was slightly too much science in there which swamped me a bit, but there were certainly some great scary moments in the ... Read full review
Pretty Good... ArtUser Review - Otaku Cutie - Borders
Ooooo... This is scary! No, seriously! This is has deep, frightening, well-drawn, crisp illustrations, and it is a great story. Read full review
Appendix B Fantasy upon a Gentleman
A Note on Sources and References
A Short Bibliography
Other editions - View all
Common terms and phrases
Adrian April Asham August AWD Berg Bloomsbury Cambridge Carrington Charleston Clive Common Reader criticism Dalloway December Desmond diary dinner Duncan E. M. Forster Ethel Smyth fact February feel felt finished friends Garsington George Rylands go to Monk's Gordon Square Hogarth House Hogarth Press Jacob's Room January John Lehmann Julian Bell July June Katherine Mansfield kind Lady Leonard and Virginia Leonard Woolf letter Lighthouse literary London Lytton Strachey MacCarthy March Margaret Llewelyn Davies Maynard MH/A Monk's House months morning Nelly Nessa never Nicolson night novel November October Ottoline perhaps Ralph Partridge Return to Hogarth Return to Tavistock Rodmell Roger Fry Sackville-West seemed September T. S. Eliot talk Tavistock Square things thought took Vanessa VB/VW Virginia Woolf Virginia wrote Vita VW/VB VW/VD VW/VSW wanted Waves week week-end Woolfs go Woolfs return Woolfs stay write


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BEVERLY HILLS - Former Baywatch star, Pamela Anderson recently revealed that she is a big fan of the reality show Here Comes Honey Boo Boo and of the show's little pint-sized star Alana Thompson.
Anderson said that she watches every episode and she is amazed at how much of herself she sees in Honey Boo Boo.
Pamela, who is 46, noted that when she was little she had blonde curls just like little Honey Boo Boo.
The 46-year-old Anderson also admitted that at the age of 8, she was just as chubby as Honey Boo Boo is.
But she said that just like the little beauty pageant queen, she was not shy and she felt like she could do anything that she wanted to do.
SIDENOTE: Pamela was recently asked by the producers of Here Comes Honey Boo Boo if she would like to star in one of the show's episodes. She immediately asked, "Where the heck do I sign?"


text:
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text:
(AP) — A bipartisan panel tasked with solving Illinois' multibillion-dollar pension crisis is considering a framework that would save the state about $145 billion over 30 years, largely by ending automatic 3 percent cost-of-living increases for retirees.
The Associated Press on Friday obtained an outline of ideas being considered by the 10-person committee, whose members have said they are making progress on an issue that has vexed lawmakers for years.
Sen. Kwame Raoul, a Chicago Democrat and the committee's chairman, acknowledged the outline but said the document is preliminary and the panel is not ready to issue a final recommendation.
"The committee has not come to a consensus," Raoul said. "Our work is not done."
But the outline is the most detailed information disclosed to date of what the committee is considering or how much savings any proposal on the table could achieve.
It calls for setting retirees' annual cost-of-living increases at half the rate of inflation, though it would set both floors and caps — which were not included in the outline — for what the rate would be. That formula would likely equate to smaller adjustments than the current 3 percent increases, compounded annually.
Employees would contribute 1 percent less to their own retirement, according to the document. But their annual pension benefit would be based on their salary over their career, rather than on the higher amount they're making right before they retire.
It would reduce the state's nearly $100 billion unfunded pension liability by about $18.1 billion and fully fund the retirement systems within 30 years.
Lawmakers voted in June to create the conference committee after reaching an impasse over two rival pension plans — one advanced by House Speaker Michael Madigan and the other by Senate President John Cullerton, both Chicago Democrats.
Madigan's plan would have saved Illinois about $187 billion over 30 years, while the savings in Cullerton's plan were estimated at $47 billion over the same timeframe.


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Notice: On April 23, 2014, Statalist moved from an email list to a forum, based at statalist.org.
[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]
Re: st: how to have commands in a loop (over strings) shown in log files, without using nested quotes
Nick Cox <email@example.com>
Re: st: how to have commands in a loop (over strings) shown in log files, without using nested quotes
Wed, 8 Aug 2012 00:21:40 +0100
If you need to nest quotation marks there is no alternative to doing
it correctly.
Your first form looks quite right to me so I am puzzled on why it
doesn't work. I don't have your data, but the following code works for
me and should be testable by you.
The syntax looks odd at first sight but it is perfectly logical, being
on all fours with () [] and { }. The principle is that " " " " is not
an acceptable form because it is ambiguous, but `" " " "' is fine
because it implies nesting. Given that the outer quotation marks can
only match each other, the inner ones must match too.
sysuse auto, clear
decode foreign, gen(origin)
tab origin
foreach val in Domestic Foreign {
display `" table rep78 head if origin == "`val'" "'
table rep78 head if origin == "`val'"
foreach val in "Domestic" "Foreign" {
display `" table rep78 head if origin == "`val'" "'
table rep78 headroom if origin == "`val'"
On Tue, Aug 7, 2012 at 7:23 PM, Xinjia Liu <email@example.com> wrote:
> thanks for your reply.
> I tried using...
> display `"table var1 var2 if var3 == "`val'", c(n var4)"'
> and
> display `"table var1 var2 if var3 == ""`val'"", c(n var4)"'
> the first one gave me an error message, and the second one gave me...
> table var1 var2 if var3 == a, c(n var4)
> inside the log, without the double quotes for "a", and the resulting
> table is not quite right either.
> It is very easy for me to make a mistake here, and it also takes a
> long time for me to figure out what that is and how to fix it. So I
> was just wondering if there is a way to simply avoid using nesting
> strings.
> Please advise.
> Thanks,
> Xinjia
> On Tue, Aug 7, 2012 at 12:57 PM, Maarten Buis <email@example.com> wrote:
>> On Tue, Aug 7, 2012 at 6:03 PM, Xinjia Liu wrote:
>>> I am trying to run a command with several different "if" conditions,
>>> and have both the commands and the results shown in a log file.
>> <snip>
>>> If I use a loop to avoid typing the command repeatedly...
>>> foreach val in "a" "b" "" {
>>> table var1 var2 if var3 == "`val'", c(n var4)
>>> }
>>> The problem with the loop is, only the resulting table would show in
>>> the log file, not the actual command.
>> <snip>
>>> If I try to do
>>> log using...
>>> foreach ... {
>>> display "cmd..."
>>> cmd...
>>> }
>>> log close
>>> I would need to somehow (e.g. using `"') include double quotes in the
>>> cmd string, which could very easily introduce bugs that are hard to
>>> fix.
>> The way to do that is to use compound quotes, as you suggest. So, type
>> -display `"cmd..."'- instead of -display "cmd..."-. I do not see how
>> you think that that would be buggy. The difficulty with nesting
>> strings and regular double quotes is that it becomes ambiguous which
>> quote is a closing quote and which quote is an opening quote. That is
>> solved by using compound quotes, so that is that.
* For searches and help try:
* http://www.stata.com/help.cgi?search
* http://www.stata.com/support/statalist/faq
* http://www.ats.ucla.edu/stat/stata/


text:
Western Michigan University
1903 W Michigan Ave
Kalamazoo MI 49008-5434 USA
- M.M., University of Michigan
- B.M., University of Michigan
Bradley A. Wong is director of the School of Music at Western Michigan University, and clarinetist with the Western Wind Quintet. Prior to becoming director in mid-2014, he was professor of clarinet and served as the coordinator of graduate studies from 2010 to 2014. He has received awards in recognition of both his teaching and service to the University, including the College of Fine Arts Outstanding Service Award. In addition to holding teaching positions in major universities, his students have been finalists in national and international competitions, and have been awarded positions in music festivals in this country as well as in Spain, Brazil, France, Italy and Germany. Wong holds a diploma from the Interlochen Arts Academy and received Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from the University of Michigan. His teachers have included David Shifrin, John Mohler and Fred Ormand.
The Clarinet describes Wong′s playing as "breathtaking. . .a fine, liquid tone quality." He has given solo recitals in North Carolina, Kansas, Oklahoma, throughout the Midwest as well as in Canada, Spain and the Dominican Republic. Other solo performances include appearances in Alaska, Georgia, Maryland, New York, and Texas, China and Mexico. He has presented chamber music recitals in Italy and Belgium and in many prestigious venues in the United States, including Carnegie Hall and Symphony Space in New York, and the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. As a member of the contemporary chamber ensemble Opus 21, winner of the 2006 CMA/ASCAP Adventurous Programming Award, his concerts have received critical acclaim in the New York Times and the Washington Post. Wong has performed at the Fontana Summer Music Festival and at the Chamber Music Festival of Saugatuck. He is the principal clarinetist with the Southwest Michigan Symphony and has given six solo performances with that orchestra. He has also played with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, the Grand Rapids Symphony Orchestra and the Canary Islands International Opera Festival Orchestra.
Wong is an active member of the International Clarinet Association, and has performed and coordinated events at the annual conferences, and also served as the audio review editor for the ICA journal. In recognition of his service to ICA, he was nominated for the office of president of the organization. He has written for Windplayer magazine and the journal of the National Association of College Wind and Percussion Instructors. As an adjudicator, he has judged the finals of international competitions such as the Fischoff Chamber Music Competition and the William C. Byrd Young Artist Competition.
Wong is a Yamaha performing artist.


text:
Sunday, December 11, 2011
from the BRG archives: boy do they have some kids' book ideas for you!
Calling all kids' book folks--writers, illustrators, booksellers, librarians, editors, etc. What has been the most OUT THERE story idea you've ever heard? I'm talking about those times when you're at a gathering and someone overhears that you have something to do w/kids' books. Then they immediately launch into the "I have a GREAT idea for a kids' book that I KNOW will get published soon..." and all you can do is sigh.
I'll start -- I was at a party a while back and a seemingly normal guy told me about his story idea. It was about a selfish child who loses her precious red shoes. She needs to be taught a lesson... (so far okay) and THEN things got interesting. "The girl whines that she can't find her shoes and Jesus comes in the form of a giant hand which comes from a cloud to tell her she doesn't need the shoes and she should learn her lesson..." This guy with beer in hand blabbed on and on about Jesus and shoes and even bunnies may have been involved, though I'm not sure. Then he said "So, you think you could help me with it?" "Help you?" I said. "Yeah, he replied, "help me get it published....
Originally published September 26th, 2006
Posted by Grace Lin at 9:30 AM
Labels: from the BRG archive, meghan
1 comment:
- Jaye Robin Brown said...
My mother tells me every time I go home about the picture book she wants to write called "God Is In My Bellybutton." I give her websites and book resources and say "go for it" but it remains the proverbial "picture book I'm going to write."
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


text:
Books in the Library
|LGBTQ Caregivers Focus Groups
- Program/Event:
- SAGE Central North Carolina
- Event status:
- Confirmed
- Event date:
- Sunday, August 25, 2019 2pm - 4pm
- Location:
- to be determined
- Event Contact:
- Joseph Wheeler
- Contact Phone:
- 919-349-3300
- Contact E-mail:
- email@example.com
- Sunday Aug. 4, 2019, 2 PM
for women who are lesbian, bisexual, or transgender and people who are non-binary
Umstead United Church of Christ (UCC) in the library, 8208 Brownleigh Dr, Raleigh, NC 27617
- Sunday, August 25, 2 PM
for people of any sexual orientations and gender identities
Location to be determined (TBD) based on interest from participants outside Raleigh
- Saturday, August 31, 2 PM
for men who are gay, bisexual, or transgender and people who are non-binary
St. John's MCC, 622 Maywood Avenue, Raleigh NC
As part of a national research project a series of focus groups for LGBTQ Caregivers will be held in the Triangle during August. SAGE in Raleigh has been requested by Diverse Elders Coalition and SAGE USA to organize and conduct those focus groups.
The following focus groups are scheduled:
Participants must be LGBTQ and currently providing personal (not paid) caregiving to a partner, family member, friend, or other person. The caregiver does not need to be a member of SAGE or over 50. Transgender and non-binary persons are encouraged to register.
This is an important project sponsored by the Diverse Elders Coalition and SAGE USA to determine the specific concerns and needs for LGBTQ people who are providing personal caregiving. Results will be included with results from other areas. It will also be used by SAGE to determine what needs exist in our own community and what programs might meet those needs.
Focus groups will be conducted by trained facilitators. A small stipend will be provided for those who attend. To register or receive more information, please email email@example.com and put Caregiver's Focus Group in the subject line or telephone 919.349.3300.


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Q: My husband snores really loudly, and it seems he sometimes stops breathing for a while. What causes this?
Q: My husband snores really loudly, and it seems he sometimes stops breathing for a while. What causes this?
A: Over 45 percent of adult male and 30 percent of adult female snore. However, the fact that you note your husband also seems to stop breathing raises the likelihood of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), which is what I will discuss in today's column and what you should discuss with your husband's health care provider.
The soft palate (the soft area on the roof of the mouth that can just barely be reached with the tip of the tongue) and the base of the tongue relax during sleep and potentially vibrate (particularly the soft palate), which may result in snoring. These structures can also "droop" because of this relaxation.
If airway obstruction occurs from this, the patient must increase their inspiratory breath pressure to force the airway open (sometimes causing particularly loud snoring). Inhalation can be delayed when this occurs; if there is no breath taken for 10 seconds or more this is called an obstructive sleep apnea event (the Greek word apnea means "without breath").
These events occur in most people. When there are less than five of these per hour it is considered normal. However, people who have six to 20 of these events per hour are considered to have mild OSA, 21 to 40 is considered to be moderate OSA and greater than 41 severe OSA. OSA is very common, affecting up to a quarter of males ages 30 to 60 and up to 10 percent of females in this age group.
Of most concern is if the patient's blood oxygen saturation drops during these events, called an apnea hypoxemia event. The number of these events per hour is called the Apnea Hypoxemia Index (AHI).
Having OSA events, especially apnea hypoxemia events, can cause sleep disturbances affecting the quality of sleep, possibly causing daytime drowsiness. This explains why the cardinal features of OSA are irregular respiratory patterns at night, daytime sleepiness and signs of sleep disturbances (such as snoring or the patient's bed partner noting episodes of breathing cessation).
Risk factors for developing OSA include obesity (especially if neck circumference is over 17 inches), craniofacial abnormalities, nasal congestion (especially if it is chronic, for example from allergies) and smoking.
OSA is suspected from the presence of one or more of the symptoms noted above, and is verified by monitoring the patient's respiratory status (and blood oxygen saturation) during sleep. This can be done with a home monitoring system although polysomnography -- a detailed sleep study that monitors air flow in/out, blood oxygen levels, brain waves and rapid eye movement (to detect which phase of sleep the patient is in), heart rate and breathing effort/rate -- is the gold standard for testing.
High blood pressure, stroke (it is estimated that over two thirds of stroke patients have OSA), increased insulin-resistant diabetes, heart arrhythmias/heart disease (over 30 OSA events per hour increases the risk of heart problems), as well as cognitive changes and increased motor vehicle/other accidents (these last two intuitively related to inadequate sleep) are known to be associated with OSA. This highlights why it is important to consider this often under-diagnosed condition.
Treatment of OSA depends on the severity of the symptoms. Behavior changes, such as maintaining a healthy weight and smoking cessation, are recommended. Treating nasal congestion when it is present is also indicated. Dental appliances to try to move the jaw forward during sleep (to minimize airway blockage) are also commonly considered.
Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP), utilizing a machine and a face mask to supply increased airway pressure, is considered the treatment of choice for many OSA patients. However, this type of treatment is difficult for many people to use (it can be uncomfortable and inconvenient), minimizing compliance. Even when it is regularly used, CPAP is not effective for all patients.
There are several possible surgical procedures that may be considered for select OSA patients, although not all patients benefit from them.
OSA is common and is associated with many severe conditions; hence it should be considered in anyone with symptoms suggestive of it. Treatments exist for OSA, although the efficacy and compliance with them is variable. There is active research looking for new treatment options.
Jeff Hersh, Ph.D., M.D., F.A.A.P., F.A.C.P., F.A.A.E.P., can be reached at email@example.com.


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The UN Assistance Mission to Afghanistan (UNAMA) has released its October 2011 report on "Treatment of Conflict-Related Detainees in Afghanistan" (PDF). Ten years after the US invaded Afghanistan to oust the Taliban regime, and ostensibly dismantle the Al Qaeda forces linked to the 9/11 attacks, the regime in place is not only hopelessly corrupt and unable to provide security for its citizens, Afghan security forces in the National Security Directorate (NDS) have been charged by UNAMA with "systematically" torturing "detainees for the purpose of obtaining confessions and information" at a number of provincial facilities.
The report alleges that fully 46 percent of prisoners held by security forces, and approximately one-third held by Afghan national police (ANP), are tortured. Furthermore, "[n]early all detainees tortured by NDS officials reported the abuse took place during interrogations and was aimed at obtaining a confession or information." Until last month, the U.S. routinely turned prisoners over to Afghan security forces, while NATO stopped turning over prisoners to a number of different Afghan facilities last July.
Controversies over allied forces releasing prisoners to Afghan security, where they reliably knew they would be tortured, have simmered for years now. As Marcy Wheeler highlighted in an article on the UN report today, according to UNAMA, "The US has not yet put in place a monitoring programme to track detainees it hands over to Afghan authorities."
Turning prisoners over to forces or governments that are known to commit gross human rights violations, such as torture or murder of detainees, is a violation of international law, and of the US-signed Convention Against Torture treaty.
Torture of Children
Ten percent of the prisoners examined were minors. Nearly two-thirds of the children held by the NDS and ANP (62 percent) were tortured.
UNAMA's report was statistically derived from a random sampling. Issues of possible falsification of torture evidence is addressed in the report, and the evidence was found to be credible. (Actually, the Executive Summary says the allegations have not been judged on their credibility. But the Methodology section of the report states, "In a number of cases, UNAMA interviewers observed injuries, marks and scars that appeared to be consistent with torture and ill?treatment or bandages and medical treatment for such injuries as well as instruments of torture described by detainees such as rubber hoses." The report adds that "UNAMA rigorously analysed patterns of allegations in the aggregate and at specific facilities which permitted conclusions to be drawn about abusive practices at specific facilities and suggested fabricated accounts were uncommon…"
UNAMA statisticians calculated the margin of error for the different samples they used ranged from approximately 5 to 9 percent.
Torture for Confessions
A major conclusion from the report is that much of the torture was specifically aimed at obtaining confessions from prisoners during torture. UNAMA notes, "Confessions are rarely examined at trial and rarely challenged by the judge or defence counsel as having been coerced." Hence, there's very little to constrict government prosecutors in using torture to get their confessions, and confessions are "[i]n most cases… the sole form of evidence or corroboration submitted to courts to support prosecutions." There are few procedural safeguards for defendant prisoners, and what few there are are routinely ignored.
The following is testimony from one prisoner cited specifically in the report, Detainee 371 at Kandahar, interviewed last May:
After two days [in a National Directorate of Security (NDS) facility in Kandahar] they transferred me to NDS headquarters [in Kandahar]. I spent one night on their veranda. On the following day, an official called me to their interrogation room. He asked if I knew the name of his office. I said it was "Khad" [Dari term for the former NDS]. "You should confess what you have done in the past as Taliban; even stones confess here," he said. He kept insisting that I confess for the first two days. I did not confess. After two days he tied my hands on my back and start beating me with an electric wire. He also used his hands to beat me. He used his hands to beat me on my back and used electric wire to beat me on my legs and hands. I did not confess even though he was beating me very hard. During the night on the same day, another official came and interrogated me. He said "Confess or be ready to die. I will kill you." I asked him to bring evidence against me instead of threatening to kill me. He again brought the electric wire and beat me hard on my hands. The interrogation and beating lasted for three to four hours in the night. The NDS officials abused me two more times. They asked me if I knew any Taliban commander in Kandahar. I said I did not know. During the last interrogation, they forced me to sign a paper. I did not know what they had written. They did not allow me to read it.
According to the report, forms of torture included "routine blindfolding and hooding [i.e., sensory deprivation] and denial of access to medical care," in addition to "suspension (being hung by the wrists from chains or other devices attached to the wall, ceiling, iron bars or other fixtures for lengthy periods) and beatings, especially with rubber hoses, electric cables or wires or wooden sticks and most frequently on the soles of the feet. Electric shock, twisting and wrenching of detainees' genitals, stress positions including forced standing, removal of toenails and threatened sexual abuse…"
Alibiing the Afghan Government
Strangely, after describing the "systematic" use of torture by Afghan security and police forces, UNAMA declares the Afghan government innocent of use of torture as government policy. The report cites the fact that the NDS cooperated with the investigation, concluding "the use of torture is not a de facto institutional policy directed or ordered by the highest levels of NDS leadership or the Government. This together with the fact that NDS cooperated with UNAMA's detention observation programme suggests that reform is both possible and desired by elements within the NDS."
This is a surprising assertion, and of course, the international press has highlighted this supposed reassurance about the Afghan government in its coverage of the report's conclusions. The cooperation of the NDS appears to have been equivocal at best. For one thing, as the report concedes, the NDS refused to allow UNAMA to visit its national counter-terrorism facility in Kabul, or interview prisoners there. Known as Department 90, it is where "high-value" prisoners are held. Information on Department 90 prisoners was gathered from those held elsewhere who previously had been held at the NDS Kabul facility.
Twenty-six of 28 prisoners who were determined to have been held at Department 90 were tortured, leading to a near 100 percent probability of being tortured there. One prisoner told UNAMA investigators, "When they took me to [Department] 90, I did not know where I had been taken. . . After two days, I learned that I was in 90 from my cellmates. There is so much beating at 90 that people call it Hell." Five of the six children interviewed who had been held at Department 90 were tortured.
The Afghan government has long promised they would clean up their act regarding abuse of prisoners, and US agencies have covered up for them in the past. A 2006 RAND study, prepared for George Soros's Open Society Institute, that torture and extrajudicial killings were in decline by Afghan authorities, and that US assistance had "somewhat improved" human rights practices by Afghan police. (RAND has a very stringent warning about quoting its material, or even providing links, but here's the link the New York Times gave in its article on the UNAMA report.)
One can only conclude that the US government has been more than supportive of the torture policies within Afghanistan, only withdrawing funds when it was politically expedient to do so. Most of the stories on the UNAMA report have noted UNAMA's mention of the so-called "Leahy law." According to UNAMA, "legal provisions in the US Foreign Appropriations Act and Defence Appropriations Act prohibit the US from providing funding, weapons or training to any unit of the security forces of a foreign country if the Secretary of State has credible evidence that such unit has committed gross human rights violations, unless the Secretary of State determines the concerned government is taking effective remedial measures" (emphasis added).
None of the press results and analysis thus far has noted this escape from accountability clause, wherein the Secretary of State can decide a foreign government — say, Afghanistan — which has committed "gross human rights violations," is sincerely doing the best it can to address the issue. Indeed, parts of the UNAMA report appear to be written to allow just such an interpretation by the Obama/Clinton-led State Department.
So while the Americans and their allies in the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) have as of last month, "in response to the findings in this report, "stopped transferring detainees to certain installations as a precautionary measure," the report also notes that a return to the previous transfer policy "would presumably require the US to resume transfer of detainees only when the Government of Afghanistan implements appropriate remedial measures that include bringing to justice NDS and ANP officials responsible for torture and ill?treatment."
But this doesn't speak to the funding or arming of the Afghan security and police forces. Indeed, by indicating that portions of the government, including the NDS, are sympathetic and trying to change the abuse/torture situation, it would appear that ammunition is being provided to Secretary Clinton to conclude that a good faith effort is being made, and bypass the provisions of the Leahy Law. This would seem to be the point in concluding the torture is not "institutional," and that "reform is both possible and desired by elements within the NDS."
But anyone reading this report could hardly come to this politically convenient conclusion. In fact, senior NDS officials admitted "they have investigated only two claims of torture in recent years, neither of which led to charges being pursued against the accused NDS official." Nor would NDS officials "provide UNAMA with any information on any other disciplinary or criminal action against NDS officials for torture and abuse." This doesn't sound like desired elements for reform to me.
Ten years after US and foreign forces invaded Afghanistan and installed a puppet regime, all the while jockeying for alliances among various warlord forces, has not improved the human rights situation in Afghanistan. Surely the Taliban and the various warlords cannot be counted upon to provide such improvement either. But there is one big difference. The Taliban are not foreign invaders. While such foreign invaders occupy the country, killing civilians and giving political and military support to a torture regime, no progress from within Afghanistan can take place.


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'Heres Johnny!!!'
Another instance of the ever increasing dangers in my profession. It wont be too long before one of us is killed! We need better equipment and better training. Ideally TASER along with complete body armour and shields! Unfortunately these attacks make it difficult to let your guard down and you can find your self treating each patient with suspicion and distrust. As I've said before this is becoming all too common and sooner, rather than later, one of us will die!
click link Paramedics held hostage by knife man!
Until then we will carry on without stab vests, radios that don't work and non practical 'crisis resolution training'.I personally don't like going into blocks of flats as the potential for things to go very 'Pete Tong'are great. On occasion I have had to dodge the odd TV or fridge being dropped from an upper floor balcony on approach to the lobby. Or the lifts don't work, or there are gangs of 'yoofs' hanging around. All too often these flats are inhabited by drug dealers and users.
We should be issued with some kind of protection in addition to stab vests. CS gas would be a good start…it would at least give us a chance to run instead of having to defend ourselves with an O2 bag or blanket!
This article from Tom Reynolds of 'Random Acts…' in 2007 (click on pic for story) reinforces my belief that things are getting worse. We need to protect our selves because it is not being taken seriously and that is why I can see one of my colleagues, or even myself, being killed whilst on duty. We have laws in place to protect us…but a piece of paper is not going to stop a knife, bullet or fist from hurting us. It needs sorting…NOW!


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Jonathan Benson
Natural News
Sept. 11, 2013
America's small farmers are once again under attack, this time by a new draft guidance issued by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that threatens to eliminate truly free-range and pastured poultry and eggs. Entitled "Questions and Answers Regarding the Final Rule, Prevention of Salmonella Enteritidis in Shell Eggs During Production, Storage, and Transportation," the new agency report basically suggests that all egg producers with 3,000 or more laying hens be forced to raise their birds indoors to avoid bacterial contamination, which would eliminate consumer access to chicken and eggs from birds raised naturally outdoors on pasture.
In response to a slew of illness outbreaks that have occurred in recent years, the FDA has once again sidestepped the real problem, factory chicken farms, and instead focused its attention on small-scale producers, which generally are the only farms producing truly safe and healthy eggs. Even though large-scale factory chicken farms are the ones brimming with harmful bacteria, which is a direct result of birds being crammed into tiny cages and left to wallow in their own feces and filth, the FDA is going after family-scale egg producers that allow their birds to roam around in natural sunlight and peck at worms and insects in pasture grasses.
According to the FDA's recommendation for a final ruling on "safe" hen rearing, all farmers with 3,000 or more birds will need to essentially convert their outdoor areas into indoor areas by surrounding their fields with tall fencing and covering the tops with mesh or solid roofing in order to prevent wild birds, rodents, and other creatures from entering the space. Having open, outdoor spaces for laying hens, according to the FDA, is now considered to be dangerous and a threat to public health, so it will have to be eliminated.
Never mind the fact that pasturing poultry has always been the safest way to produce food from chickens — the FDA wants all birds to be confined indoors in so-called "sanitary" spaces where they will allegedly be protected from all the soil, grass and other natural elements on which chickens have always lived. Only man-made structures that completely insulate birds from the outside world are considered appropriate for laying hens in the eyes of the FDA.
"The FDA guidance suggests that farmers must cover their outdoor pastures with either roofing or netting, or use noise cannons to scare away wild birds," explains The Alliance for Natural Health USA (ANH-USA). "FDA also advocates walls around the pasture, to prevent mice, rats, and cats from entering, and then put a roof over it. That's right — walls and roofing. In other words, they want the chickens to be kept in a building!. This completely contradicts what 'free-range' is supposed to be about: they can be cage-free, but not outdoors."
You can read the complete FDA guidance here:
Tell the FDA to go after filthy industrial producers, not free-range producers
The good news, however, is that this new FDA guidance is only a draft, which means the agency is still receiving public comments on the issue. This means that, as an advocate of natural health, you have the opportunity to help guide the process along and ensure that pasture-based egg and poultry producers are not unfairly targeted and forced to convert their methods to unscientific ones that have been concocted to reflect the interests of factory producers.
You can urge the FDA to reevaluate its position on pastured poultry and instead go after the factory-scale producers responsible for nearly all disease outbreaks by submitting a comment through the Federal Register. The FDA will accept public comments on this issue until September 23, 2013:
You can also take action through this ANH-USA comment submission portal:
Sources for this article include:
Take advantage of one of nature's most hardworking nutrients with Vasobeet now at 40% off!


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Android users who are looking to upgrade to the most badass phone that OS has to offer should take a gander at the upcoming Google Nexus 4G, which is crammed to the gills with pretty much everything you could want in a phone.
First of all, as you can tell by the name, this thing is 4G, so if you live in an area with good 4G coverage, you'll get super fast speeds. As for the guts, it'll feature a next-gen dual-core 1.2GHz or 1.5GHz CPU, 1GB of RAM, a 720p HD screen, 1080p HD video capture and playback, a 1MP front-facing camera and a 5MP rear camera. So yeah, some good stuff.
It's set to drop sometime around Thanksgiving, and it's not clear what carrier it'll be on, although rumor has it that it'll be AT&T. In any case, this is a fine addition to any early Christmas lists.
U.S. & World
News from around the country and around the globe
Via BGR


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put (oneself) in (someone's) shoes(redirected from put yourself in someone's shoes)
put (oneself) in (someone's) shoes
To imagine oneself in the situation or circumstances of another person, so as to understand or empathize with their perspective, opinion, or point of view. Before being quick to judge someone for their actions, you should always try to put yourself in their shoes. Everyone is human, after all. Put yourself in my shoes and then tell me what you would have done, Dan! It isn't as straightforward as you're making it seem!


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It's pretty hard to forget August Diehl in one of the truly great scenes of "Inglourious Basterds." Brad Pitt sure didn't.
When it came time to casting a husband for Angelina Jolie in "Salt," the star's real-life husband piped in and suggested the excellent Diehl.
"Brad had said what a strong actor he was," director Phillip Noyce tells PopcornBiz. "And we were looking for someone with no baggage. We wanted a fresh face -- to keep the audience off guard."
The careful observer will recall that there is actually some baggage. Diehl is such a menacing presence in his beer hall scene of "Basterds," that he's really hard to forget.
But he's almost unrecognizable in "Salt." Amazingly, he does a 180 degree temperament turn -- playing a sensitive, warm husband apparently truly devoted to the study of spiders and his wife. Diehl actually has very warm smile lines on his face, an expression he didn't use at all in "Basterds."
"Yes he was quite ruthless in 'Basterds,' " says Noyce. "But if you're wearing a swastika emblem that gave you a lot of power."
And in "Salt" the actor was able to portray "the innocence and temperament of the man that Salt falls in love with."
"He's just a great actor," says Noyce. We couldn't agree more.
The question is, which is the real Diehl?


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Unfortunately, that post never got underway and now today, December 15th, comes the sad news that Joe Simon has "also" passed on. I now realize what I captured last year is simply priceless.
Both creators are due their own blog posts in the future. Today I want to just show them together, two giants of the industry and the medium, both there at the very beginning and fortunate enough to live long, happy lives, seeing their creations, co-creations and their very artform flourish 70 years into a new century and beyond. Their talents have saturated popular culture, the silver screen and the very consciousness of the entertainment world.
So today I'm putting aside the data and statistics, just preferring to be an ordinary fan, thankful for what they gave us.
Some background....
Joe Simon:
The very first time I met Joe Simon was back in 1990. I was attending a Fred Greenberg show in New York and Joe was set up in the corner near the entrance with his son Jim, selling just published copies of the first printing of The Comic Book Makers.
Now I attended those shows on a monthly basis and it was rare to have any guests whatsoever at those small affairs but somehow Joe was there! I went over, introduced myself and bought a copy of the book which Joe signed to me. I then spent about 20 minutes chatting about Timely, Jack Kirby, all kinds of stuff, and noticed that for the most part, I was the only one (outside of a handful of other fans) who even realized who was in their midst!
My recollection is that Joe didn't make too many con appearances but once again I saw him at a show on April 3, 2004. Here he is at his table with Vanguard publisher and pal J. David Spurlock.
|Joe Simon with J. David Spurlock
Knowing he'd be there, and attending with Nick Caputo, I brought with me several copies of Martin Goodman's Red Circle pulps and detective magazines from 1940 and 1941 to show him. Joe was the art director on Goodman's detective magazine line for a 13 month period from cover date Nov/40 to Dec/41 and select issues sported art by Simon, Jack Kirby and other moonlighting Timely artists. [A fuller accounting will be in my upcoming book, which can be ordered here: (order here)]
|National Detective Cases Vol 1, #1 (Mar/41)
Simon & Kirby had also contributed a slew of illustrations to several pulps. I brought the Nov/40 issue of Marvel Stories and I wanted to see what Joe recalled about that period.
|Vol 2, #3 (Nov/40), cover by J.W. Scott
Here is a short video clip taken while Joe signed the pulp above:
But that wasn't all. Joe was to give a panel discussion that day moderated by Spurlock. The panel rooms were in the basement of the hotel and we made our way with Joe down the large escalator to the ground floor, looking for the elevator to the basement. Guess what? The elevator was out of order! The only way down were two very long flights of steep stairs. Folks were very angry over this development and the panel was in immediate danger of being cancelled as Joe, then about 91 years old, was not expected to walk down two long flights of stone stairs.
With chaos about to ensue, I asked Joe whether he thought he could make it down if two people helped him. Joe's answer was "Easy!", so Nick Caputo and I got on both sides of him for support and slowly we walked him down the stairs one slow step at a time. The panel was a hit with Joe telling stories and answering questions. Then we reversed the process and walked him right back upstairs!
| Joe Simon and me on April 3, 2004
Jerry Robinson:
I met Jerry Robinson for the first time in 1999. He was going to be at a New York show so I took the opportunity to photocopy every story he had ever done for Timely, secure it into a bound volume, and present it to him, hoping to glean some recollections. Jerry was very happy to see the stories and immediately called over a young woman with him at his table, Marisa Furtado, a Brazilian documentary maker visiting New York to gather interviews and background for a documentary on Jerry ultimately to be titled Jerry Robinson em Profissao Cartunista - A Vida Apos Batman, or roughly translated from Portuguese, Jerry Robinson : Professional Cartoonist - Life After Batman.
Directed by Marisa Furtado and Paulo Serran, it traces Jerry's life and career from comic books to political cartoons and beyond. Interviews seen run from Stan Lee, Carmine Infantino and Mark Evanier (filmed at the 2000 White Plains Convention, I believe) to Jules Feiffer and many, many others. Jerry is interviewed extensively and older vintage interviews are also shown as well as tons of vintage photos from comics history.
Marisa was extremely happy to see so much rare Robinson material all in one place and asked me to make cleaner copies and send them to her in Brazil. From a comic book standpoint, what I had showed her was quite literally what Jerry did "after Batman"! It's quite funny to see how she animated, yes "animated", photocopied panels from my Robinson Timely crime comics! The effect is akin to the Marvel Superhero animated cartoons of 1966. While I don't know when the documentary debuted, I did receive a copy of it from Marisa. The interviews are in English with Portuguese subtitles and the narration is in Portuguese with English sub-titles! It really is a great film filled with vintage creators, all coming together to honor Jerry.
Here below is a 4 minute clip about the documentary from Youtube. At 1:57 you can see one of my actual photocopies being animated after an intro by Stan Lee:
Which brings us to 2010. Let me set this up correctly....
On Saturday, October 9, 2010, I attended the New York Comicon with my friends Barry Pearl, Nick Caputo, John Caputo and Mike DeLisa.
|Nick Caputo, Mike Delisa, Barry Pearl
We made the usual rounds, saw and talked to Irwin Hasen, there promoting his documentary Irwin: A New York Story. I always want to pick the brain and memories of golden-age artists whenever there's a chance so I presented him with a complete set of his Ferret stories from the early issues of Marvel Mystery Comics, stories he hadn't seen in decades. Hasen related that he'd done these stories as a freelancer through the Lloyd Jacquet shop and never actually been on staff at the shop.
|Irwin Hasen (on the right)
Next I spent some time talking to Al Jaffee, promoting his new biography Al Jaffee's Mad Life.
|Al Jaffee
Syd Shores' daughter Nancy was also at the show and I introduced Nancy to Al, knowing Al was an old colleague and friend of Syd's while on the staff at Timely. Nancy and I then spent time talking to Stan Goldberg for a while, another friend of Syd's, before saying our goodbyes and parting.
|Stan Goldberg and Nancy Shores
Here is photo from 2009 of Nancy with her dad's old boss!
|A Simon & Shores reunion! (February, 2009)
I then stopped by Jerry Robinson's table and chatted a bit about his new biography, Jerry Robinson - Ambassador of Comics. I had done a small bit of Timely Comics help in both Jerry's and Jaffee's books above, and was thrilled they were finally in print.
I had one last stop to make. Across the aisle from Jerry Robinson was Joe Simon, holding court among piles of the just released Simon and Kirby Superheroes, a massive tome of some of the greatest hero comics of all time.
I spotted Harry Mendryk and we spoke a bit about the book, how great it looked and how I was looking forward to all the subsequent volumes in the series. I also commented to Harry, Nick and Barry about what a great time Joe Simon seemed to be having. He was greeting guests, shaking hands, posing for photos and signing copies of the S&K volume with the vitality of a man 30 years younger. He was then currently 97!
As the end of the show loomed, I approached Joe with my freshly purchased copy and Joe was more than happy to sign it for me. I slid the book across the table and he opened it up, uncapping a pen.
Just then there was a commotion as a small scooter approached Joe's table. It was Jerry Robinson. Jerry proceeded to get out of his conveyance and carefully made his way through a narrow space between tables, greeting Joe with a big hug.
Jerry greeting Joe
He then sat down next to Joe and they chatted as I used two hands to simultaneously photograph, videotape with a camcorder and even take video clips with a digital camera.
Below are two short video clips from that day. One captures Jerry arriving and greeting Joe. The other has them briefly chatting and comparing their relative ages! Sorry about the quality, this was not recorded in HD video.
At some point Jerry looked down at my book and asked Joe whether he was going to sign it. Joe placed his signature on the first page and passed the book over to Jerry, who added his own signature above Joe's.
Jerry watching Joe sign his name
Joe passing the pen to Jerry
Jerry looking at the page
Jerry adding his signature to the book
I was in awe. Two of the grandmasters of the medium had converged on my book and I realized that what I had witnessed was something very special.
A photo of Joe and Jerry about to sign my book can be found in Joe's recent autobiography, Joe Simon - My Life in Comics.
Fourteen months later, both have left us.
One last moment from 2008. Goodbye Jerry and Joe! Forever in our hearts.
- All photographic images (except Nancy Shores with Joe Simon and 2008 image above) and video copyright Dr. Michael J. Vassallo
- Last photo above from Allen Bellman via Nancy Shores


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jutaylor necesitaba un nuevo diseño de logotipo y lanzó un concurso de diseño en 99designs.
Un ganador ha sido elegido entre 46 diseños de 19 diseñadores freelance.
"Keeping it Real" (Real Smart Real Estate Advice)
Twenty years ago, Lucky Larson was surfing the waves of Hawaii.
Today, he's quickly riding a wave to the top of the real estate world.
In his fast-paced and informative new show, "Keeping it Real," Lucky ("The Wealthy Surfer") Larson shares his proven strategies for succeeding in the world of real estate investment.
Using real-life examples as opposed to textbook theories, Lucky isn't afraid to tell it like it is—and to call out common misconceptions.
"Even in the current mortgage market meltdown, there is money to be made from the misfortunes and bad decisions of others," Lucky says. "And I can show you how."
So dive in weekly to "Keeping it Real"--where real estate investors always get Lucky!
Real Estate Investors; Speculators; Contractors
Description – We are creating a new Web TV show called "Keeping it Real" . We need a logo
What I Want – Bold, colorful, fun designs. (See above). It needs to look good as small as 72 x72, SO PLEASE THINK THAT THROUGH.
What I Don't Want – DO NOT INCLUDE THE TAG LINE (Real Smart Real Estate Advice)
Formats - We need to have a vector file (Illustrator).
Descubre cómo funciona un concurso de diseño u obtén más información sobre nuestros servicios de diseño de logo.


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In Eye of the Forest: Conserving Biodiversity, Building Sustainable Futures
Recognizing the close communion between communities and natural resources, UNDP is supporting several initiatives in Chhattisgarh to help communities conserve traditional knowledge, build awareness on conservation-friendly gathering practices and help people, particularly women access the market to sell their produce.
The erosion of India's biodiversity and natural resources is threatening the livelihoods of millions typically dependant on the forest. Recognising the close communion between communities and natural resources, the United Nations Development Programme is supporting several initiatives in the state of Chhattisgarh to help communities conserve traditional knowledge, build awareness on conservation-friendly gathering practices and help people, particularly women access the market to sell produce. In doing so, it aims to demonstrate a model of community based natural resource management that supports a sustainable forest ecosystem for all.
- Aim is to conserve natural resources by involving communities, helping them to build on traditional knowledge, promoting sustainable use of natural resources, and improving market access for their products
- Self-help groups help women build a sustainable livelihood from forest produce
- Hundreds of villagers and members of Joint Forest Management Committees have been trained
- Project underway in 4 states across India
"When I am in the jungle I am at peace and feel at home," says Manyano, a 62-year-old resident of Badhbhad village in the Katghora forest reserve in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh. Like most of the residents in the 24,036 kilometre square of protected forests her sentiments reflect the close relationship that people share with the forests.
Since as far back as she can remember she has walked the woods collecting non timber forest products (NTFPs) to support her family. Manyano belongs to one of the most marginalised Scheduled Tribes communities who make up for the majority of the 320 million people in India who live on less than a dollar a day.
The communion between communities and natural resources is evident in the entire state of Chhattisgarh. Forty four percent of the geographical area of the state is covered by forests that provide sustenance to one-third of the population -- tribes who traditionally lag behind in most development indicators in the country.
But overexploitation of forests is fast depleting the natural resources and threatening livelihoods. Working with the government and partners, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in India is endeavouring to conserve natural resources by involving communities, helping them to build on traditional knowledge, promoting sustainable use of natural resources, and improving market access for their products.
The Katghora forest reserve is one of the locations for the project --Biodiversity Conservation through Community-Based Natural Resource Management-- that is ongoing in four states of India. The project aims at improved natural resource management by promoting sustainable livelihood practices.
To help women like Manyano build a sustainable livelihood from forest produce, the project has facilitated the creation of several self-help groups. Seven SHGs of women in Bhadbad, Haathibadi, Kathgora Pahadgaon and Sapalva, help women collectively benefit from NTFP collection such as mohul leaves and mahua flowers. Each group comprises between 12 – 15 women who pool together about Rs.20 or about 43 cents every month.
Several SHGs have started processing produce to add value and ensure higher incomes for the groups. In Bhadbad, Sushila bhai stitches together as much as 200-300 leaves daily in her house using a sewing machine provided by the project. The stitched leaves are then sold to another SHG in Kathgora which processes the produce for sale in the market. They are able to mould 20-50mahulleaf plates and bowls a day. These eco-friendly plates and bowls find their way to religious ceremonies and social events across the state and to various parts of the country. Members of these SHGs have also benefited by increased and more stable incomes that have helped tide over difficult times.
Awareness on conservation friendly practices is a critical component of efforts to support community based natural resource management. As B.P. Singh, an official in the forest department, points out: "While the forest needs to be protected against fire, grazing, and over exploitation, of equal importance is to build awareness so that the traditional knowledge can be harnessed."Chadh Devi, an SHG member who participated in a training session focused on strengthening traditional NTFP collection practices to ensure they are conservation-friendly, says: "I never gave a second thought to how I collected forest products. But at the training session I learnt that if I lit a fire on the ground to clear the area for flowers to fall, I was only destroying my future income if the fire spread to the nearby mahul plant." Members of the SHGs have been spreading the word across villages in the area and in many cases, have been instrumental in efforts to protect their environment. Also trained, as part of the project, are hundreds of villagers, members of Joint Forest Management Committees set up to protect the forests.


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ss is :
ss is used to dump socket statistics. It allows showing information similar to netstat. It can display more TCP and state informationsthan other tools.
This comes in iproute package in Fedora. So, to install this you would need to install "iproute" if not installed already.
sudo yum install iproute
Now, once you have done that you can look at the man page to check what all you can see with ss. but here are some examples:
#list all sockets ss -ant ss -art #List all listening sockets ss -anl # Show detailed information and memory for all listening sockets ss -anlme # Display all udp sockets ss -u -a
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/ Friday, May 15, 2009 / 19 Comments / Appetizers and Snacks , Malaysian , Vegetables
Kuih Keria (Sweet Potato Doughnuts)
Today, I'm posting another kuih recipe from Malaysia. This is what's typically known as "Malaysian Doughnuts" which are made with sweet potatoes. The dough is very soft and it's meant to be that way. So, if you are going to try making them, I suggest you sprinkle some extra flour on your palm while shaping the dough. I hope you will give it a try and enjoy!
Kuih Keria (Sweet Potato Doughnuts)
2 Medium Size Sweet Potato (about 500 g),skinned
100 g All Purpose Flour, sifted
30 g Glutinous Rice Flour, sifted
1/2 tsp Sea Salt
Sugar for topping
Oil for deep-frying
Extra All Purpose Flour for dusting
Boil the sweet potatoes until soft and cool completely. Mash and mix with all the flours and salt. Shape into doughnut rings and dust with some flour.
Deep fry the doughnuts over medium heat until golden brown. Drain the doughnuts and coat with some sugar. Serve immediately.
19 comments:
- EstherMay 15, 2009 at 11:40 PM
this bring back my memory when I always buy at my secondary school's canteen... yum yum... thks for sharing the recipe, will give it a try next week.ReplyDelete
o.m.g. I have never seen such a thing! How important is the rice flour in these? I'm not sure where to find that.ReplyDelete
wow, I really miss these kuih! thanks for the recipe :)ReplyDelete
Those look incredible! I'd love to try making these.ReplyDelete
These and everything else look so delicious! I'm so glad I found your blog~ReplyDelete
Those look so delicious! I must have tried them before, but I can't quite remember. Love how easy the recipe is.ReplyDelete
These look amazing!ReplyDelete
Sweet potatoes are expensive and hard to come by here in Norway, but a donut recipe with them included would totally be worth the splurge!
Thanks so much for sharing, I'll be dreaming of donuts tonight...
@TheRiggyRiggs: Ha Ha!ReplyDelete
@Esther: You're most welcome and thanks for the comment.
@LK-Healthy Delicious: The glutinous rice flour will make the doughnut softer. I'm pretty sure you can find the rice flour at your local grocers. You can just use all purpose flour and they will turn out okay too.
@Tastes of Home: You're welcome:)
@lisaiscooking: Do try to make them.ReplyDelete
@oneordinaryday: Thanks.
@Carrian: Thanks for the comment:)
@Y: Well, do try the recipe then :)
@Siri: Really? In any case, like you said "a donut recipe with sweet potatoes included would totally be worth the splurge!", then you should give it go and thanks for the comment.
Sweet Potato Doughnuts?!ReplyDelete
I don't think it gets any better than this :)
@j d: Yup! Do try making them :)ReplyDelete
quick question, do they not need a leavening, like baking powder? Are they fluffy or cake-y? They look amazing!!!ReplyDelete
@sneakpeach: No leavening needed for the recipe. The sweet potato doughnuts were soft inside and lightly crisp on the outside and lightly fluffy too.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousSeptember 24, 2009 at 5:15 AM
These look great, but how do they rise with no egg or baking powder or yeast? Can't wait to try them.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousSeptember 24, 2009 at 5:16 AM
Never mind the leavening question. I see you answered it already--Thanks!ReplyDelete
I made this yesterday, but my kuih keria looks terrible - all knobby and wonky. Yours look great.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousMay 2, 2012 at 9:48 AM
I was wondering the same about no eggs or yeast? Maybe some photos of the process might help us outReplyDelete


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Le Classique!
Marseille 2-1 Paris SG (20:03:11)
Juliet Jacques lives and breathes the Stade Vélodrome experience in Marseille for the so-called French clásico...
Olympique de Marseille vs. Paris Saint-Germain: the most heated fixture in French football. This is a battle of old and new, with L'OM, founded in 1899, casting themselves as the grand masters of French football in contrast to PSG, formed in 1970, in an attempt to create a force in the capital where there had been none; and of north and south, capital and province, intensified by the Marseillais' resentment towards perceived Parisian privilege.
They are also the nation's only two clubs to have won European trophies since former France manager and L'Equipe editor Gabriel Hanot's dream of continental competition became real. PSG secured the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1996 by beating Rapid Vienna with a single goal, three years after L'OM's famous victory over AC Milan in Munich to become the first French club to win the European Cup.
It is impossible to recall L'OM's European triumph, without considering the match-fixing scandal which soon overshadowed it. Two days after L'OM won the Champions League, they retained the Division 1 title by beating PSG 3-1 at their Stade Vélôdrome, but their joy was short lived: an investigation soon began into their last Ligue game before the European final, a routine win over struggling Valenciennes, a game which, it was proved, L'OM had attempted to fix.
The European Cup victory stood, but L'OM were stripped of their Ligue crown, ending a run of five consecutive titles, which had begun in 1989 when Franck Sauzée's last minute winner against PSG won both the match and the championship. L'OM were demoted at the end of the 1993-94 season, having finished second – to PSG, whose side featured Brazilian stars Valdo and Raï, as well as David Ginola and George Weah.
Neither club had since been champions until last season, when manager Didier Deschamps – captain of L'OM's European Cup winners – masterminded L'OM's first title since that traumatic summer of 1993, This year, Le Classique plays a significant part in deciding who rules France: L'OM and PSG have been part of a five-team title race, alongside Lyon, whose seven consecutive wins (from 2002-2008) were the envy of both clubs, and Lille and Rennes – smaller clubs who would be far more popular champions than either of those who contest Le Classique: PSG are hated by fans of many other French clubs for the same reasons as by the Marseillais, whilst L'OM are despised for their ostentatious spending and the air of corruption which has the club has not shaken off since the collapse of notorious President Bernard Tapie.
Arriving into an area that feels (and is) closer to North Africa than Paris, I meet Frédérique, a friend of a friend who has kindly offered to show me around France's second largest city. I tell her that I've come to see Le Classique. "Oh la la!" she says. "You know how much they hate each other, right?" I say yes, and ask why she thinks this is.
"It's historical, but really, I'm not sure they know any more," she tells me. "There's always violence." Football is not her thing – she is much more excited about the Moto GP in Qatar – so I have to explain to her that after Yann L, a 20-year-old PSG fan, was killed during fights between L'OM's Tribune d'Auteuil Ultras and PSG's Kop of Boulogne supporters, the French police decided to ban away supporters for these matches – 169 people have been arrested around this fixture during the last decade.
Fréd's big passion, besides motorbikes, is for ancient history: she explains to me whilst driving around the Vieux Port that Marseille was founded by the Greeks, 2600 years ago, and that the city has always refused to accept authority, either from the Italians or, when it passed into French rule, Paris. It produced one of my favourite writers, Antonin Artaud, whose disavowal of any ideology made him too radical even for the Surrealists, and two of France's most maverick footballers, Éric Cantona, whose briefly played for L'OM before falling out with Tapie – and then the French Football Federation – and the Franco-Algerian star Zinédine Zidane, who never did.
Zidane left French football after helping Girondins de Bordeaux to the UEFA Cup final in 1996: unable to secure the man who would lead France to the World Cup, L'OM, spending big on returning to Ligue 1, signed instead Nantes playmaker Reynald Pédros, whose missed penalty cost Les Bleus a place in the Euro '96 final. After that, Pédros never recaptured his form, and L'OM would not resume their place amongst the European elite.
Walking down La Canabière, where L'OM paraded their trophies in May 1993, I see how passionate this city is about football. There are L'OM fans everywhere, some already singing of their hatred for PSG. A group see me wearing a replica shirt from 1992, and immediately I discover their favourite from the team of Abedi Pelé, Chris Waddle, Dragan Stojković and others. "Papin! Papin!" they yell: I smile and wave before heading into the OM Boutique to find a souvenir. I pick up a pennant which lists all the honours from L'OM's history: the 1993 title is listed, the club refusing to accept the ruling of the Paris-based FFF.
I turn off Marseille's most famous street and find the Mémorial de la Marseillaise on la Rue Thubaneau. On the wall is the date '30 juillet 1792': the day on which the National Guard marched on Paris, singing what became known as the Marseillaise, permanently adopted as France's national anthem on the establishment of the Third Republic, after the attempts of Napoleon I, the restored monarchy and the Emperor Napoleon III to ban it.
Sadly, the gates are closed. Although the Memorial is in a building that became the Jacobin Club headquarters in 1790, hosting the most extreme revolutionary faction, Fréd tells me that the Mémorial is new: a much more recent construction, in fact, than the Memorial des Camps de la Mort, which recalls those killed in the Holocaust which (at least in Theodor W. Adorno's eyes) ended the Enlightenment that produced the Revolution of 1789.
Fréderique takes me to Marseille's most radical building, Unité d'Habitation (literally 'Housing Unit'), designed by the great Modernist architect Le Corbusier. Hugely influential on Sixties Brutalist architecture, this "machine for living in", which holds 337 apartments on 12 stories as well as medical, sporting and educational facilities, immediately becomes my favourite building. There is an exhibition in the foyer of photographs by Matthieu Parent, showing people at work: artists with their canvasses, writers at their desks, musicians in their studios. Le Corbusier aimed for his masterpiece to transform the lives of the city's proletariat: instead, it has become highly desirable for bourgeois artistes with an interest in experimental architecture, as removed from public taste as when it was built in 1952.
Fréd and I take Le Petit Train, climbing one of the many hills on which Marseille stands, up to the thirteenth century basilica at Notre Dame de la Garde. There, 162 metres above sea level, we look over the entire city, then enter the church, where people are lighting candles (Fréd jokes that the many L'OM fans light them in prayer for a home win), and see stones all over the walls thanking the Virgin Mary for various miracles.
Stepping outside, we see the bullet holes from the Second World War. The cathedral was crucial in liberating Marseille: the North African troops knew a passage into the building and up to the roof, from which the French Army could rout the surrounding Nazis. We step around the corner: we can see one stand at the Stade Vélodrome, L'OM's stadium, built in 1937 for the 1938 World Cup, the tournament overshadowed by the ascendancy of Fascism – winners Italy played their first round and semi final matches here, switching to Paris – and black shirts – for their quarter final victory over France.
Fréd leaves to watch the Qatar Moto GP, and I head to the stadium. I enter what calls itself the Musée L'OM: there are handprints belonging to a number of the club's greats. I see prints belonging to Jules Dewaquez, star of the 1926 and 1927 Coupe de France winning teams, Algerian defender Jean-Louis Hodoul and others, and a few small exhibits commemorating L'OM's back-to-back titles of 1971 and 1972, then the golden age of the late eighties and early nineties. The small 'musée' feels like a ruse to tempt me into another OM Boutique, and the exhibit celebrating the Champions League triumph is obscured by boxes of DVDs featuring L'OM's finest victories, priced at 25 euros.
I meet Frédérique's friend Laetitia three hours before kick-off: we can already see supporters stood on the Virage Nord, which hosts L'OM's feared Ultras. Drinking in a bustling crowd of fans, she says she's not optimistic about retaining the title – she expects it to go to Lille, who beat L'OM in their last home match. A win will at least knock PSG out of the race: like everyone else here, she desperately wants L'OM to transcend the disappointment of their Champions League exit and beat their hated rivals.
I take my place in the Tribune Ganay Haut, the stand I saw from the Notre Dame de la Garde. None of the terraces have roofs, and I can see some of Marseille's skyscrapers over the tops of the Virages Nord and Sud. These stands gradually fill, apart from a small section in the Nord occupied by police, where the away fans would usually be. Without the opposing support, the Ultras have nowhere to direct their anger – until PSG come out to train, when the whistles and boos are intense.
PSG's players head back down the tunnel, and the Marseillais concentrate on their own club. The Nord fly flags of Argentina, to celebrate playmaker Lucho González and former PSG defender Gabriel Heinze (who swore he'd never join L'OM but did after Manchester United blocked his desired switch to Liverpool) and Ghana, in support of Abedi Pelé's sons Jordan and André Ayew, both in the squad for Le Classique.
Just before kick-off, the Nord crowd raise placards, covering the Virage with L'OM's badge: after seventies legend Josip Skoblar joins the captains on the pitch, there is a request for a minute's silence for the Japanese earthquake and tsunami victims. It's not impeccably observed, but the Nord Ultras cover the sky blue L'OM badge with red, forming the flag of Japan – a moving, kind-hearted tribute from a group usually noted for their fierce hostility.
After an open start, L'OM's playmaker Mathieu Valbuena is fouled on the edge of PSG's area. Heinze wins the argument over who will take the free kick, and curls a perfect shot past Grégory Coupet to put the home side ahead. Nearly full, the stadium erupts: PSG hurriedly restart. The veteran Ludovic Giuly and Brazilian playmaker Nenê threaten, and after Nenê hits the post following comical L'OM defending, PSG midfielder Clement Chantôme follows up to score.
This is met with a strange silence. The PSG players pause, stare at the empty space next to the Nord's quietly furious Ultras, and then race over to embrace manager Antoine Kombouaré. L'OM press hard to restore their lead: on 37 minutes, striker André-Pierre Gignac, the player in this side whom I find most intriguing, crosses for André Ayew to head the champions into the lead. Gignac, a man proud of his Romani gypsy heritage who joined L'OM for a huge fee in the summer despite his disappointing part in France's World Cup debacle, has been struggling, but is slowly winning over the crowd after three recent goals: this is his only contribution, however, and during a goalless second half, he is substituted.
L'OM unnerve their fans with some careless defending – new acquisition Rod Fanni is especially lax at times – but they hold on for their thirtieth victory over PSG, which leaves them four points behind Lille. Jean-Paul Sartre famously said that in football, everything is complicated by the presence of an opponent: certainly for the fans and police involved with Le Classique, much is simplified by their absence. L'OM have proved repeatedly over the years that their greatest enemy is themselves, but for now, they have succeeded, and I walk away with 50,000 others, happy that the Provence has asserted itself over the capital.
Thanks to Commando Ultra '84 for the photos
You can follow both Juliet Jacques and European Football Weekends on Twitter
You can read more of Juliet's work at The Guardian.
Like this? You might also like Michael Cox from Zonal Marking on Barcelona
Like this? You might also like Michael Cox from Zonal Marking on Barcelona
- Feel free to comment below -


text:
Denninger: On Honesty
KD articulates much of the Collapse's parentage.
The only part underweighted?
Citizen complacency.
Tomorrow, try this experiment - ask five people the same two questions:
1) Who won the best actress Oscar Sunday night?
2) What is the current level of Federal government debt, according to US Treasury figures?
The only answer that matters is $14,119,807,822,019.49.
Think any of your five subjects will miss question #1?
How about question #2?


text:
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Maybe the Roadsters that were traded in? Perhaps a good question for the new Tesla Moderator BB?
Allowing people to cancel after finalizing their order? Pick one up pre-built without a wait? That would be cool.
@Captain_Zap - I agree. Roadsters bought back against new Model S purchases. As stated on numerous occasions there are no plans for Model S inventory - until people start trading them in for Model X or otherwise want to unload.
I agree that would be cool but likely with roughly 8000+ others in the queue with locked in builds, there are going to be many duplicate orders which could be fullfilled. Allows Tesla to keep the list moving and deliver more promptly to the expectations of reservation holders whom are counting the days to the best potential deliver day for their model S.
Just roughing it, and assuming Sig and its options are close off, I get almost 13,000 possible configurations. Minimum.
typo: "are closed off, ..."
mocaptain. Obviously they would get theirs first. Anyway, we'll see soon enough.
There is now a "used" black Tesla Roadster for sale at the Lone Tree Colorado store.


text:
As Eddie Sheridan prepares to return to school to get a degree in nursing, he's doing more than just taking the prerequisite classes: The 31-year-old resident of Gainesville, Florida, is
As Eddie Sheridan prepares to return to school to get a degree in nursing, he's doing more than just taking the prerequisite classes: The 31-year-old resident of Gainesville, Florida, is also working to pay off his credit card debt.
'I'm trying to get everything in order now, to pay off as much debt as possible,' he says, before he takes on new student loans.
With interest rates rising, credit card debt is getting more expensive, making now a good time to pay it off even if you don't have student loans on the horizon.
That's not an easy feat in the middle of the �holiday spending season, but it is possible. Here are tips from debt experts on just how to do it.First, set your budget
Marcus Garrett, co-host of the 'Paychecks and Balances' podcast, says he built up credit card debt in college and finally made a budget at age 27. That spending plan allowed him to get serious about paying it off.
'I just needed to be more responsible,' says Garrett, who is now 36 and lives in Austin, Texas.
Eric Tyson, author of 'Personal Finance for Dummies,' recommends starting by looking closely at monthly spending. 'A lot of people don't have a good handle on that,' he says. Once you see how much money is going toward expenses like dining out or buying clothes, it can be easier to trim, he says.Then, negotiate your way to lower payments
One way to lower your monthly credit card payments, Sheridan says, is to try to negotiate with your card issuer to lower the interest rate on your card. He says that move has been successful for him.
'You just have to be assertive and polite,' he says. If he doesn't get the answer he wants from his card issuer, then he doesn't hesitate to take his business elsewhere.
'Customers do have power; the banking industry is very competitive,' he adds.If that doesn't work, shop for a new credit card
Sheridan also uses balance transfer cards to pay off his debt. He moves his existing balances to cards with an introductory 0% APR period, which typically lasts 12 to 18 months, and then tries to pay off the balance before that rate expires.
These types of offers typically require good to excellent credit.Check the long-term interest rate
Kristin Wong, author of 'Get Money: Live the Life You Want, Not Just the Life You Can Afford,' says that while balance transfer cards can work out well as long as you pay off the balance before the introductory offer expires and make every minimum payment each month, it can create even more debt if you still have a balance after that period.
'If you don't pay off the balance within a certain time frame, you can be hit with a crazy high interest rate, which will defeat the purpose of the transfer or even end up costing you more,' she warns.Look out for fees
Now, when Garrett considers balance transfer cards to help him pay off chunks of credit card debt, he looks carefully for a balance transfer fee, which is typically 3% to 5% of the transfer balance.
'You're usually just paying off that fee in the first few months,' he notes. He looks for cards that don't have a balance transfer fee.Consider personal loans, too
In addition to balance transfer cards, consolidating credit card debt into a personal loan with monthly installment payments over time, typically two to five years, can also be a good option for people who need a longer runway to pay off debt.Limit gift-giving to minimize debt
If you're paying off credit card debt, Wong suggests being extra frugal in your gift-giving this year. Decide how much you can afford to spend, and stick to it with cost-cutting measures like suggesting a Secret Snowman exchange among friends and family instead of gifts for everyone. Wong says you might find that others are also just as happy to trim back.
One year, when Wong was in the midst of paying off student loan debt, she baked her friends holiday cookies instead of buying them presents. 'It was cheap and tasty, and helped me get in the holiday spirit,' she says.
And, she suggests, if you're comfortable doing so, you can ask your family to donate to your debt payoff goal in lieu of giving you a gift.
'It's not super exciting, but there are few better feelings than paying off your last bit of debt,' she says.
This article was written by NerdWallet and was originally published by Forbes.
More From NerdWalletBe the Holiday Host With the Most Credit Card Rewards How to Get Credit When You Have None How I Ditched Debt: Thrifty Living and Side Gigs
Kimberly Palmer is a writer at NerdWallet. Email: firstname.lastname@example.com. Twitter: @kimberlypalmer.
The article Give Yourself the Gift of a $0 Credit Card Balance originally appeared on NerdWallet.