text:
While the market continues to be driven by big picture macro considerations in the short-term, there have been a number of recent company-related activities that are worth noting, and, in at least one case, could merit action.
Here is a quick update:
Archer Daniels Midland (ADM): Two insiders used the stock's 2012 weakness to add to their positions in the company. In the past month the COO bought 3,875 shares at $25.74, and the CFO bought 4,000 shares at $24.53. While both investments are relatively modest, we give weight to buying from multiple top officers and think it is another positive data point which supports our bullish stock outlook for ADM in 2013.
Corning (GLW): Director Gordon Gund recently bought 170,000 shares at $10.76, a greater than 10% increase in his holding, bringing his total position to 1,856,160 shares. This comes on top of his 150,000 share purchase in March of this year at $12.75. In light of GLW's very depressed valuation (below book value, at 9 times 2012 earnings, a 3.2% dividend), and its favorable intermediate and long-term outlook, we believe that such insider buying could portend good things for the stock.
Vodaphone (VOD): Earnings and cash flow were in line due to strong Verizon Wireless operations, which offset a weak Europe. The regular dividend was raised by 7%, but the company will not be paying its special (extra) dividend from its VZ Wireless distribution as they did last year. Instead, they are using some of these proceeds to buy back stock. Overall, this is a modest disappointment, but we are still comfortable with the position since it sells at an attractive valuation and carries a 6% dividend.
MetLife (MET): About two weeks ago, some sell side analysts reported that the OCC had changed their website indicating that the upcoming review of MetLife's sale of its banking unit to General Electric (GE) would conclude by March 2013 rather than this December. This called into question the timing of the deal approval, which could then have negative ramifications, including MET having to file a new Stress Test for 2013; constraints on 2013 share buybacks; and limiting the upcoming dividend raise. Not surprisingly, the stock has been weak since then.
However, after speaking with the company, it appears that the OCC posting was made in error, and that they still plan on reviewing the sale of MET's bank to GE this year. While MET has been happy to discuss this with shareholders who have called in, there has been no public notice of this and we don't think this is widely known. If the deal is reviewed and approved in December as planned, we think it would give the stock an unexpected boost.
St. Jude Medical (STJ): Last Tuesday night the FDA posted its 483 inspection letters for two of STJ's manufacturing facilities. While STJ had given the Street a heads-up about some of this in their third quarter earnings call (and later posted a highly redacted version of the letter in an 8K filing), the full version had some very troubling details.
The focus of the FDA examination and issues related to the Durata lead. The most troubling issues related to documentation of product development, and to not following agreed-upon procedures in the verification of product safety. While STJ had agreed to test the product five times, they seem to be testing it only once prior to shipping.
While we continue to believe that the product is safe, last week's news calls into question the judgment of management. It also gives us a sense that the company seems to be mistakenly downplaying or misunderstanding the severity of the issues related to the FDA. It also raises the chances of some sort of punitive action by the agency in terms of a warning letter or worse.
Finally it puts a new and darker cloud over the company for a greater length of time. While Durata leads appear to be both safe and effective in their patient implants, (more than 250K have been implanted over the past six years), investors will have this overhang and will be waiting for another shoe to drop for the foreseeable future.
STJ has been a very disappointing holding and recommendation for us. And while we think the company will eventually get through this, we are no longer comfortable recommending it or holding it unless an investor has a very extended timeframe -- beyond two years -- and is willing to sit with a company replete with much higher than average headline risk and short-term downside.
We have been involved with St. Jude as an investment (off and on) since 1999. We have generally been supportive of management, but fear that the ultimate outcome of the Durata product could be far worse than management expects. The FDA filing last week and the company's response was the tipping point that changed our conviction.
For reasons stated above, we have sold our position.
As a postscript, there could be a positive wild card factor if the stock gets overly sold. It might then become a very attractive takeover candidate for the likes of JNJ or ABT. But in our view, at the moment, that's not enough reason to hold on.


text:
Why choose NUI Galway?
Why choose NUI Galway for my undergraduate course?
NUI Galway has a great deal to offer you. If you join our learning community you will be joining a great University with a distinguished reputation for teaching excellence that spans more than 160 years. You will enjoy a student experience that you will never forget at NUI Galway. Not only will we provide you with an excellent education, we also help you develop personal and social skills that will benefit you throughout your life.
Inspirational teaching
NUI Galway offers you a learning community that will inspire and challenge you:
- Lecturers working at the forefront of their subject area
- The latest ideas and discoveries in the lecture theatre
- Friendly and open professors and lecturers
- A wide range of courses with something for everyone
Exciting new and unique courses
NUI Galway offers innovative new programmes that we continually develop. We respond to your needs and the demands of the job market.
New course choices include:
- BA with Journalism
- BSc Physics (Applied, Astrophysics, Biomedical, Theoretical)
- Drama, Theatre and Performance Studies
In addition to our full range of courses we offer a range of unique programmes only available at NUI Galway:
- BA CONNECT, an innovative range of Arts programmes with opportunities to specialise
A world of opportunities
A degree from NUI Galway opens doors to a world of opportunities for you:
- Our graduates are highly sought after by employers all over the world
- 98.5% of our graduates, whose destination is known, have found employment, are travelling or have gone on to further study within six months of graduating
- Our Career Development Centre offers advice on career planning, CV writing, interviews and organising work placements both in Ireland and abroad.
The NUI Galway Student Experience
Enjoy a student experience that you will never forget here at NUI Galway.
We have over 40 active sports clubs and 83 societies at NUI Galway. Through clubs and societies you can meet new people, build friendships and improve your talents. Whatever your interests, NUI Galway is sure to have a club or society for you!
NUI Galway also runs ALIVE, our student volunteering programme. We have over 1,200 registered student volunteers with opportunities to work on community projects in Ireland or abroad. You will receive a certificate in recognition of your volunteering work which will also look great on your CV.
Play your part
Sport is central to life at NUI Galway. NUI Galway's outstanding sports facilities include a state-of-the-art Sports Centre with:
- a national basketball arena and sports hall
- a 25 metre swimming pool with movable floor
- an elite 130 piece gym
- a high-tech climbing wall.
Outdoor facilities include natural grass playing pitches, flood lit synthetic grass pitches and an athletics track. There is always dedicated support for elite sports here at NUI Galway.
Rewarding excellence
We are keen to recognise outstanding achievement and offer scholarships to exceptional students:
- Entrance Scholarships for students who achieve over 560 points in their Leaving Certificate
- Scholarships for medical students who perform exceptionally well in the Leaving Certificate
- Sports Scholarships across a range of sports
- Gaeltacht Scholarships, Roinn Oideachas Scholarships, The James Massey Keegan Scholarships (for students from Mayo) and other Irish Scholarship
Investing in your learning environment
We are constantly developing our campus to enhance your learning environment. We are currently in the middle of a €400 million capital investment programme:
- This includes a stunning new €40 million Engineering Building, opening in 2011
- Our impressive new Sports Centre, a Student Cultural Centre and an extension to our library
- Further plans include new buildings in the Medical Sciences area and a research facility for Arts students.
Why choose NUI Galway for my postgraduate studies?
You've graduated, or are getting ready to graduate. WHAT'S NEXT?
Now more than ever, you need to distinguish yourself in today's competitive job market. Your next step, therefore, could be further study. Postgraduate qualifications are increasingly recognised as a way to fast-track your career and boost your employability. At NUI Galway we have an excellent record of high quality, innovative teaching and a reputation for producing highly qualified graduates who will become the leaders of tomorrow. A postgraduate qualification from NUI Galway will help you to stand out from the crowd and will enable you to develop the specialist skills you need to succeed in your chosen field.
Reasons to consider NUI Galway:
- Our wide range of programmes: 195 Masters and Diploma courses on offer.
- International recognition: NUI Galway is ranked third of the Irish universities in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings, This places us in the top 2% of universities in the world.
- Excellent career prospects: NUI Galway is consistently one of the top Irish universities for employability: over 93% of our graduates are employed or in further study within six months of graduating.
- Increase your employability: studies show that the majority of postgraduates earn more than undergraduates over the lifetime of their careers. This is backed up by the recent European Commission's New Skills for New Jobs report.
Our award-winning courses: we had a record EIGHT courses shortlisted for the Irish Postgraduate Course of the Year Awards 2013. We won in three of the five major categories: best Business course, best Engineering course, and best Science course.
- To change career direction: NUI Galway offers a full range of Conversion Courses.Our generous Taught Masters Scholarships can benefit and incentivise you.
- Benefit from our world-leading research: our research is global in scale, with internationally-recognised expertise developed in selected priority areas.
- Inspirational teaching: we are committed to delivering top quality, and our lecturers use the very latest technology to keep their teaching practices up-to-date.
- Our ongoing campus development project: we are currently investing €0.75 million per week to provide the very best learning environment for you.
- Small class sizes: at postgraduate level, you will experience smaller class sizes (on average 15–20 intake), giving you the chance to really get to know your classmates and lecturers and participate fully in a postgraduate community.
- A rich archival collection: the Library provides rich resources for graduate study and research, housing many special collections and over 350 archives unique to NUI Galway.
- To pursue your passion—explore your personal subject area interests, and, as many of our taught courses let you select modules, you can build your own customised curriculum.
- To upskill—some professions require a postgraduate qualification as an entry requirement.
- To develop industry contacts—the work-placement aspect of some of our programmes will provide you with work experience and invaluable networking opportunities.
- To study flexibly—many of our courses are offered part-time, via online or distance learning, or in "blended learning" modes. This can enable you to experience study at NUI Galway "your way", at times that suit you.
ALSO: read why The Irish Times thinks we're "tops for postgrads".
Email email@example.com for more information.
Why choose NUI Galway for my research?
A PhD or Masters-by-research is an excellent opportunity to learn, develop skills (such as organisation, self-motivation and independent planning and execution) and decide on future career paths, without tying you down to a defined job when you have finished. If you decide towards the end of your research studies that you would like a career in a similar area, then you will also have an excellent grounding in your chosen subject and be an attractive candidate for future employment.
Reasons to consider NUI Galway:
- Our wide range of programmes: we offer a variety of Structured PhD and research masters degrees. Our intuitive, unique Find a Supervisor portal makes it easy for you to "research your research" here at NUI Galway.
- International recognition: NUI Galway is ranked third of the Irish universities in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings, This places us in the top 2% of universities in the world.
- Five-star QS rating: NUI Galway is one of only two Irish universities to receive the prestigious five-star rating for excellence from QS.
- Excellent career prospects: NUI Galway is consistently one of the top Irish universities for employability: over 93% of our graduates are employed or in further study within six months of graduating.
- Our generous Hardiman Research Scholarships can benefit and incentivise you.
- Benefit from our world-leading research: our research is global in scale, with internationally-recognised expertise developed in selected priority areas.
- Our dedicated Graduate Studies Office offers support, information, and expertise to prospective and current researchers.
- Our ongoing campus development project: we are currently investing €0.75 million per week to provide the very best learning environment for you.
- A rich archival collection: the Library provides rich resources for graduate study and research, housing many special collections and over 350 archives unique to NUI Galway.
- Postdoctoral opportunities: NUI Galway often has positions available for postdoctoral researchers. These are advertised online on our Human Resources Vacancies website (under RESEARCH tab).
Our recent achievements in terms of research and business innovation include:
Email email@example.com for more information.
Current students
Grainne Rooney
"...It was a sunny day and the place was buzzing! The city is so close to the University, it is great. NUI Galway is a really friendly place and a great place to study..."
Contact us
Drop by any time
E firstname.lastname@example.com
NUI Galway
University Road
Galway, Ireland
You can also find a contact

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Internet Explorer: Clear your cache
If you're having problems viewing your website, you can try clearing your cache and then revisiting your site.
- Click (Tools), and then click Internet options.
- In the Browsing history area, click Delete.
- Select only Temporary Internet files and website files.
Note: Selecting Cookies and website data can also help resolve some issues you might have but deleting your cookies will remove any passwords you store in your browser.
- Click Delete.
Next step
- Try viewing your website again.


text:
KDE 3.5 Based Pardus 1.0 Released
Turkish distribution Pardus, one of the first GNU/Linux distributions to feature KDE 3.5 as its desktop, has announced its first stable release. All Pardus specific desktop applications, including the installer and package manager are developed using the powerful KDE and Qt libraries. KDE was chosen to be the default desktop environment for its extendability and close integration of applications. Pardus is funded and developed by the Scientific & Technological Research Council of Turkey and expects to make some major KDE rollouts in the Turkish public sector in 2006.
Go Pardus, go!
Pardus has been a real success after a long development period. The evolutionary approach in its underlying infrastructure is interesting and promising. Starting from 1.1, we will be looking for interested developers - after documenting the major parts, i.e PiSi, ÇOMAR and YALI.
By Görkem Çetin at Fri, 2005/12/30 - 6:00am
Good News!!!
I'm so glad to hear that at least some distro is using KDE based installer and package manager.
congrats! and Happy New Year!!!
By Asif Ali Rizwaan at Fri, 2005/12/30 - 6:00am
Re: Good News!!!
hey, what about suse? yast is all Qt... :D
By superstoned at Fri, 2005/12/30 - 6:00am
Re: Good News!!!
Yep, and the KControl integration is the cherry on top of the cake. ;)
By blacksheep at Fri, 2005/12/30 - 6:00am
Re: Good News!!!
Yes, but the question is why gui administration backends cannot be unified. The only way to do it is to integrate it into KDE so vendors need to privide interfaces. YaST is open source GPL. Hope it will get fully ported to Debian.
By gerd at Fri, 2005/12/30 - 6:00am
Re: Good News!!!
> The only way to do it is to integrate it into KDE so vendors
That's false.
The thing is that the KDE libraries are under the LGPL. Therefore you CAN link closed software to them. You just need to pay Trolltech for the Qt commercial license.
By blacksheep at Sat, 2005/12/31 - 6:00am
Re: Good News!!!
Non, in contrary to what you said YaST was never closed software but has been available with sources all the time. However before it was licensed under GPL it had a clause that you may only spread it in non-commercial ways and have to get code changes back to SuSE.
By ac at Sat, 2005/12/31 - 6:00am
Re: Good News!!!
Okay. s/"close source"/"not GPL compatible"/g
By blacksheep at Sat, 2005/12/31 - 6:00am
Re: Good News!!!
...more than one year ago
...only recently
YaST was always "open Source".
Now it is GPL. Time to integrate it and ship YaST backend components with KDE as default.
We have basically three - four important Desktop Linux families
The user does not care whether configuration stuff is distribtion or desktop environment related. When I have a problem with my mouse I want to change the configuration. Both YaST and KControl modules are relevant here. We need only one module.
The Desktop Environment, here KDE, has the possibility to dictate the configuration backend. A power that has to be used because Distributors are unable to make the necessary changes on their own to get compatibility with other distributions.
By gerd at Sun, 2006/01/01 - 6:00am
Re: Good News!!!
> yast is all Qt
No. The Qt frontend is, not more.
By Anonymous at Sun, 2006/01/01 - 6:00am
By Görkem Çetin at Sat, 2005/12/31 - 6:00am
New Installer? New Package Manager?
By Anonymous Coward at Wed, 2006/01/11 - 6:00am
Great Linux
This is a very good Linux distribution. I think it deserves atleast one test by everyone.
By exe at Fri, 2006/02/17 - 6:00am


text:
Longtime Massachusetts Senator Edward Kennedy died late last night at his Hyannisport home after a 15 month battle with brain cancer.
Longtime Massachusetts Sen. Edward Kennedy died late last night at his Hyannisport home after a 15-month battle with brain cancer.
"We've lost the irreplaceable center of our family and joyous light in our lives, but the inspiration of his faith, optimism, and perseverance will live on in our hearts forever," wrote the Kennedy family in a statement dated Aug. 26.
Kennedy was diagnosed with brain cancer in May 2008. He was 77. The ailing Kennedy continued to push for his lifelong passion of healthcare reform right up until the days before his death when he requested a change in legislation to allow for a government appointment to replace his vacant seat upon his death.
"He always believed that our best days were still ahead, but it's hard to imagine any of them without him," his family wrote.
The Register


text:
Your browser is not supported. Please download Mozilla Firefox or Google Chrome browser.
Resell Course
Arkansas Class C UST Operator Training
Author: USTTraining.com
Category: Online Underground Storage Tanks Training > Class C
UST Training's New 2017 version of the Class C UST Operator Training course is a simple and effective way to learn about UST safety, hazard awareness and emergency response. What you get: Certification as a Class C Operator of an underground storage tank (UST) system. Included are five brief i...
Keywords: Arkansas Class C UST Operator Training, Arkansas, Arkansas Class C
|# Licenses
|Discounted Price
1.Introduction, 2. Equipment, 3. Deliveries, 4. Tank Monitors, 5. Emergencies, 6. Quiz.
All you need is high speed Internet and computer speakers.
Fueling Station Safety for Class C UST Operators This updated, 30-minute course explains everything a Class C UST operator needs to know to identify and respond to alarms, spills and emergencies at a UST facility.
This worksheet is required to complete your training. Download and print the document, then fill it out with your supervisor.
Download, print, and post this spill poster for spill response at your UST facility. Please check with your company response policy first as some steps may vary.
Want to learn more? Watch our popular "Tank Savvy Minute" videos on YouTube. They're quick, easy and practical. And free!
We are pioneers in UST training. Hence the name. We were the first in the nation to train Class A/B operators with state approved content on June 25, 2003, in Portland Oregon. Since then we've been the first to train in Montana, Kansas, Colorado, Nebraska, US Virgin Islands, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Puerto Rico (in Spanish), Guam and CNMI.
Our goal is to make you a better operator. Anyone can make a training course to meet certain standards but our goal is to go beyond compliance and always look for ways to make you a better operator. In all our courses we offer you hints, tips and practical advise at no extra cost.
We treat each customer as unique. Our customers come from all walks of life and have every type of UST system imaginable. We know everyone has a different situation and we strive to give each operator a personalized experience, whether you buy from us or not.
We love what we do. Folks often tell us they're surprised at our level of enthusiasm when they call. In Jim Collin's best-selling business book Good to Great, we aspire to two critical ingredients of a great company: to be the absolute best in the industry and to be unapologetically passionate about we do.
We offer free regulatory support. Call or email us anytime or send us a picture of something you don't understand. We love to troubleshoot. If your question can be answered in less than 5 minutes (98% of the time), it's free on us.
We always call you back. We try whenever possible to return calls and emails with the hour and nearly always within 24 hours.
We have loyal customers. Many of our customers are long-term UST operators who like what we offer and word gets out. So we rely on attraction rather than promotion. We're proud to have built our customer base on referrals rather than traditional marketing and advertising.


text:
LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND: IMD, a top-ranked global business school based in Switzerland, has announced the findings of its annual World Competitiveness Yearbook (WCY). The WCY rankings measure how well countries manage their economic and human resources to increase their prosperity.
1 Jun 2012
All rights reserved. Copyright © 2020. Republish permission. ADSL & Web hosting proudly provided by Afrihost. Bizcommunity.com, its sponsors, contributors and advertisers disclaim all liability for any loss, damage, injury or expense that might arise from the use of, or reliance upon, the services contained herein. Privacy policy, Terms of Use, PAIA.


text:
The grapefruit diet, the feeding tube diet, the cabbage soup diet, the baby food diet, and for the laziest of dieters, the apocryphal tapeworm diet (the parasite gains all the weight so you don't have to – a minute on your lips, a lifetime on the tapeworm's hips) … we are a culture obsessed with simple diets that promise big tricks.
Our fixation with the fast fat fix hasn't gone unnoticed by the business sector. In fact, the U.S. weight loss industry rakes in a whopping $20 billion annually on books, surgeries and all the other pills, gels, gadgets and gizmos that promise a slimmer waistline. Each year sees the arrival of the next miracle diet – the one that promises easy weight loss with the least amount of effort.
Unfortunately, the weight-loss industry is no match for the food industry, which can raze a dieter's best intentions as thoroughly as Godzilla can topple a city. Junk food, soda, fast food, and obscene portion sizes at restaurants all conspire to lure helpless dieters away from their skinny jeans and back into the realm of obesity and diabetes statistics. By some estimates, more than 80 percent of people who have lost weight regain all of it — or more — after two years.
It's easy enough to follow a diet for a short while, but as any responsible list of weight-loss tips repeatedly reminds, it must become a lifestyle change or the pounds will return. Yet making a lifestyle change out of protein-only or grapefruit-only is generally neither feasible nor advisable. If only there were a simple way to eat a nice variety of what we want, without special meals or tallying points or utterly depriving ourselves — with the result of not only losing weight, but actually keeping the pounds off as well.
Which is exactly what the new book, "The 8-Hour Diet: Watch the Pounds Disappear Without Watching What You Eat!," promises. Brought to us by Men's Health magazine Editor Peter Moore and former Editor-in-Chief David Zinczenko, the biggest selling point of the diet – aside from simplicity, deceased weight and increased health – may be that you get to eat anything you want. Yes, you heard that right, eat anything you want.
Well, that is anything you want for eight hours at a time, alternating with 16 hours of fasting.
But wait! Don't click away! If the word "fasting" brings to mind abject misery, like crawling on your hands and knees through the desert roasting in the sun without water or some other desperate scenario, that's understandable. Think of it this way: If you include your eight hours of sleep in the fasting time, it's only four hours before and after sleeping that you don't eat. Which pretty much means you don't snack after dinner, you skip breakfast, and then eat yourself silly for eight hours. Okay, in truth, eating doughnuts and bacon for eight hours isn't really going to benefit you; you do need to have some semblance of healthy eating. But the point is that this diet is conceived around when you eat, not what you eat. And it can be done as little as once a week or as frequently as every day.
"It's so flexible," Moore (pictured at left) told MNN. "Look for the amount of weight loss you need, and dial the fasting in, between one and seven days a week." And it's undeniably simple. "Look at watch; open mouth or don't open mouth," he said.
And yes, now is when all of the oft-repeated dieting 'truths' start flashing in the brain like neon signs on the Vegas strip: Don't starve your metabolism! Eat small meals throughout the day! Don't skip breakfast! But according to the authors of the book, studies show that the opposite can be true.
For instance, we all "know" that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but Moore calls into question this reverence for the morning meal. "It's so ingrained in our culture, but the fact is that the science behind the whole breakfast thing has always been kind of shaky, and when you start looking into it, you see as much science against the breakfast hypothesis as you see in favor of it, so maybe we've just been wrong all these years," he said.
Not only does the book explain that intermittent fasting isn't unhealthy, it sets out to show that not eating all the time provides some truly notable health benefits. Moore explains that when researchers look at people who are practicing intermittent fasting, they see that blood sugar metabolism is vastly improved, and triglycerides and blood cholesterol levels go down. Increase in human growth hormones is a standard benefit, as is neurogenesis.
"For a baby boomer like me, the thought that because I'm doing intermittent fasting I am growing more brain synapses every day that I do this, and as a result of that I'll be able to find my car keys. It's amazing," said Moore (pictured left), who has lost significant weight on the diet and whose enthusiasm goes beyond general author exuberance and into the realm of someone who has been graced with a serious epiphany.
"You look around and there's one study after another supporting what is indeed an ancient practice and it was like eureka time when all of a sudden I was down 10 pounds after going on the diet. You connect points a, b, c, d through z, and all of a sudden you realize we're on top of something really extraordinary and potentially important here," he said.
The book explores the science behind the concept, shatters many a fasting myth, and shows how to maximize the health benefits of the diet. It also offers recipes, eight-minute workouts to "turbo-charge" the plan, and 100 things (science-based tips) to do instead of eating. The book is holding steady in Amazon's top 100 books since its publication, and is garnering praise from readers.
"I didn't need to lose a lot of weight but I've been on a lot of diet plans because I try them out as a health editor," Moore noted. "But this is the first one that ever budged the needle for me, and to the point that I had to ramp it back because I was afraid I'd lose too much weight. That really says a lot to me about how amazingly, weirdly, magically effective this is."
In other words … a miracle?
Related diet stories on MNN:
- Americans' surprising food vows for 2013
- What is the best long-term diet plan?
- These two diet plans got a thumbs-up from U.S. News & World Report


text:
Our premier downtown multi-venue complex features four unique and versatile venues including Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Exhibition Hall, the New Holland Pavilions, and Willow Island. A top choice for expositions, banquets, conventions, meetings, concerts, sporting events and much more, the Alliant Energy Center complex is a one-stop-shop for all of your events. Ample parking, mouthwatering catering, dedicated staff, and a full range of AV and rental equipment make AEC an event planners delight!
April 23, 2020:
Alliant Energy Center COVID-19 statement - CLICK HERE
You can count on Centerplate at the Alliant Energy Center
to cater to your needs and desires whether they are
big or small. Start planning your menu today!


text:
|Silvanus Kettleburn
|Biographical information
22 November, year unknown[1]
|Blood status
|Marital status
|Physical information
|Family information
|Family members
|Magical characteristics
Professor of Care of Magical Creatures (? - 1993)
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry (formerly)
- "Professor Kettleburn survived no fewer than sixty-two periods of probation during his employment as Care of Magical Creatures teacher."
- —Albus Dumbledore[src]
Professor Silvanus Kettleburn (b. 22 November, year unknown) (fl. 1939 - 1993) was a wizard who, after graduating from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, served as professor of Care of Magical Creatures. His recklessness and the nature of his subject resulted in him losing all his limbs but one arm and half of one leg. He retired in 1993, but still made visits to dragon sanctuaries.
Early lifeEdit
Silvanus Kettleburn was born to a a wizard and a witch on one 22 November. He received magical instruction at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, in which he was Sorted into Hufflepuff,[1] and presumably achieved high marks in Care of Magical Creatures, later leading him to become a teacher in that subject.
Professor of Care of Magical CreaturesEdit
Under Headmaster Armando DippetEdit
- " [...] it was several months before the Great Hall lost its pungent aroma of wood smoke, and even longer before Professor Beery's head reassumed its normal proportions, and Professor Kettleburn was taken off probation [...]'"
- —Albus Dumbledore[src]
At some point in his life, Kettleburn became the Professor of Care of Magical Creatures at Hogwarts School under Headmaster Armando Dippet. During his time as a professor, Kettleburn amassed sixty-two periods of probations.[2] One of which was when a worm he provided for the play of The Fountain of Fair Fortune (which was in fact an Engorged Ashwinder) exploded and started a fire, also starting a duel between the girls playing Amata and Asha, in which Professor Herbert Beery, the Herbology Professor, was caught in the crossfire. Beery's head was reported to have been disfigured, and it took him a long time for it to return to normal, which led to his retirement as a professor.[2]
Under Headmaster Albus DumbledoreEdit
- "By the time I became Headmaster, however, Professor Kettleburn had mellowed considerably, although there were always those who took the cynical view that with only one and a half of his original limbs remaining to him, he was forced to take life at a quieter pace."
- —Albus Dumbledore[src]
By the time Albus Dumbledore, the Deputy Head and Transfiguration Professor, had taken over from Professor Dippet as Headmaster, Professor Kettleburn had calmed down a considerable amount, though this was likely because he only had one and a half of his original limbs left:[2] one arm and half a leg.[1]
- "As to our second new appointment: well, I am sorry to tell you that Professor Kettleburn, our Care of Magical Creatures teacher, retired at the end of last year in order to enjoy more time with his remaining limbs. However, I am delighted to say that his place will be filled by none other than Rubeus Hagrid, who has agreed to take on this teaching job in addition to his gamekeeping duties."
- —Albus Dumbledore at the 1993 Welcoming feast.[src]
Kettleburn remained teaching Care of Magical Creatures until 1993.[3] He retired to spend more time with his remaining limbs. According to Rubeus Hagrid, who succeeded him, Professor Dumbledore came straight to his hut after Kettleburn said that he had had enough.[3] As a retirement present, Kettleburn was presented a set of enchanted wooden prosthetics by Albus Dumbledore, which needed constant replacement due to his habit of visiting dragon sanctuaries.[1]
Personality and traitsEdit
- "His relations with my predecessor at Hogwarts, Professor Dippet, were always strained, Professor Dippet considering him to be somewhat reckless."
- —Albus Dumbledore[src]
Kettleburn was considered reckless by many people, including his former employer Armando Dippet.[2] One notable example of his recklessness was the The Fountain of Fair Fortune incident in the Great Hall, which resulted in a packed Hospital wing, a Great Hall smelling of burned wood and Herbert Beery's head growing out of proportion. Kettleburn had mellowed considerably by the time Dumbledore took over,[2] although he was regarded as a "loveable if eccentric man".[1]
He never married and had no children.[1]
"Silvanus" is a Roman name derived from Latin silva "wood, forest". Silvanus was the Roman god of forests. '
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Mentioned only)
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (film) (Mentioned only)
- The Tales of Beedle the Bard (Mentioned only)
- Pottermore (Mentioned only)
Notes and referencesEdit
|Professors: Silvanus Kettleburn · Rubeus Hagrid · Wilhelmina Grubbly-Plank (substitute teacher)
|Textbooks: The Monster Book of Monsters · Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
|Care of Magical Creatures at Hogwarts: Hagrid's Hut · Forbidden Forest · Care of Magical Creatures classroom
|Creatures studied: Hippogriffs · Flobberworms · Salamanders · Blast-Ended Skrewts · Nifflers · Unicorns · Thestrals · Bowtruckles · Crups · Fire crabs · Knarls · Kneazles · Porlocks


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Nasdaq tops 4,000, first time in 13 years
Nasdaq tops 4,000, first time in 13 years - San Jose Mercury NewsToday's MarketReal-time market summarySV 150 updateMore market newsThe tech-heavy Nasdaq stock index inched above 4,000 on Tuesday for the first time since September 2000, when irrational exuberance for technology companies was collapsing beneath its own weight, the victim of its own high hopes Silicon Valley-style. Yet while some veterans of the last boom and bust worry that the nosebleed valuations for Twitter and Tesla mean another tech bubble is brewing, the Nasdaq's rise feels much different this time around. "Back in the dot-com days, you could get startup funding with a business plan written on the back of an envelope," said Gartner analyst and seasoned valley watcher Van Baker. "That's not true anymore. VCs are much more prudent and rational, and the number of startups that get funded is still a small percentage of what we saw back in 1999. I'd say what's going on with Nasdaq right now just means that tech stocks are enjoying the same surge the rest of the economy is seeing."Another huge difference between then and now is the speed and ferocity with which stock prices were climbing as the last century drew to a close. The Nasdaq first closed above 4,000 on Dec. 29, 1999, less than two months after it had reached 3,000. Over the course of that year, the index had nearly doubled, gaining 85.6 percent. But it hadn't yet run out of steam: the Nasdaq took less than three months to cross 5,000, gaining 25 percent in fewer than 50 sessions and closing at an all-time high of 5,048.62 on March 10, 2000.While the Nasdaq's growth so far this year is impressive, it hasn't come close to matching its earlier, and ill-fated, performance: After Tuesday's 0.6 percent gain to 4,017.75, it's up 33.1 percent for the year."Things are much more muted today from a growth standpoint," said Brian Marshall, an analyst with ISI. "Back then, we were on a high floor, with companies projecting annual revenue growth of 20 and 30 percent forever. So when we fell, it really hurt. Today we're only on the first or second floor.''The difference between the two periods also shows in the disparate performances of recent valley IPOs. At the end of the last millennium, technology companies with questionable business models and sketchy prospects were arriving on Wall Street to huge valuations and fanfare seemingly across the board. Now, while Twitter and a host of enterprise-software companies have found resounding demand for early shares, Silicon Valley companies such as Violin Memory and Chegg have experienced far less of a welcome on Wall Street, with investors unwilling to pay close to the prices commanded in their initial public offerings. The Nasdaq, which dropped from its peak all the way to 1,108 on Oct. 10, 2002, is not the only index hitting milestones lately: The Standard & Poor's 500 index closed above 1,800 for the first time Friday, while the Dow Jones industrial average reached its first finish above 16,000 the day before. The Nasdaq's most recent gains owe a lot to the big-cap tech stocks that pushed the index late last week, along with retailers and homebuilders who on Tuesday were among the best performing sectors, thanks to stronger-than-expected earnings and robust housing market data.Still, like the last bubble, there's plenty of money being made. Shares of luxury jeweler Tiffany jumped 7 percent to $88.02 and was the S&P 500's top performer after the luxury retailer's third-quarter sales topped expectations.To Gary Bradshaw at Hodges Capital Management in Dallas, that can only mean one thing."The wealth effect," he wrote in a note to investors, "because the stock market has gone up has definitely helped the upper-end folks." Contact Jeremy C. Owens at 408-920-5876; follow him at Twitter.com/jowens510.http://www.mercurynews.com/business/ci_24607909/nasdaq-tops-4-000-first-time-13-years


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Matt Dunne talks about challenges and opportunities
copyright the Chronicle September 16, 2015
by Elizabeth Trail
WEST GLOVER — Democratic gubernatorial candidate Matt Dunne came to the Parker Pie restaurant here Sunday to listen to what people think are the biggest challenges — and opportunities — facing Vermont. Mr. Dunne wants to hold at least one community forum in every county in Vermont to help plan his campaign platform.
Over slices of what Mr. Dunne called "the best pizza in Vermont," 13 people from Orleans County brainstormed ideas for the state's future. Mr. Dunne plans to e-mail a copy of the lists the group generated back to everyone who came to the meeting. He will also compare his notes from all over the state, looking for common threads that will become the core of his platform. He hopes to become aware of issues that are unique to one area or another, he said, so that he can serve those constituents better.
Mr. Dunne, who lives in Hartland, is… To read the rest of this article, and all the Chronicle's stories, subscribe:
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The woman Tiger Woods said "acted courageously" after his much-publicized car crash last week, wife Elin Nordegren, has stayed out of the limelight since their 2004 wedding. But that wasn't always the case for Elin, who is a former model.
As the fallout over the crash continues and reports focus on the alleged "other woman" involved, Access Hollywood takes a more detailed look at the 29-year-old wife and mother and how the Swedish beauty caught Tiger's eye.
VIEW THE PHOTOS: Golf's King Of The Course — Tiger Woods!
"How's married life?" Access Hollywood's Nancy O'Dell asked Tiger in a 2004 interview.
"It's been great, it's been really great," he said just months after tying the knot. "It hasn't changed, my life and her life hasn't changed since we've gotten married, our relationship is still the same."
VIEW THE PHOTOS: Stars Who Golf
Nancy sat down with the newlywed in December 2004, just two months after he exchanged island "I do's" with his wife, Elin. Tiger revealed he knew early on during their two years of dating that marriage was in the cards.
"After a very short time in our relationship, I knew I was going to marry Elin and she was going to be in my life forever," Tiger said.
"When?" Nancy asked.
VIEW THE PHOTOS: Tiger Woods Baby Photos: Welcoming Daughter Sam
"Very early in the relationship," Tiger replied.
The Swedish bombshell, who has an identical twin sister — Josephin, was born in 1980 in the small town of Vaxholm, 50 miles north of Stockholm.
After a brief stint as a swimsuit model in 2000, the aspiring child psychologist was hired by the wife of Swedish profession golfer Jesper Parnevik to be their children's nanny. That career would bring her stateside to the Parnevik's home in Florida.
At 21, while working at the 2001 British open, Elin met her future husband — Tiger. It was a quick introduction that made a lasting impression on him, but when Tiger finally asked her out, she reportedly said no. The reason? According to a source close to the Parneviks, Tiger had a middleman ask Elin out for him and she found it "weird and pathetic."
But apparently Tiger cleaned up his game and in March 2002 they came public with their relationship. And on October 5, 2004, the two were wed in front of 200 guests at the Sandy Lane Resort in Barbados.
The couple welcomed their first child, daughter Sam Alexis, in June 2007.
The fiercely private mother debuted their little girl during the 2007 PGA Championship.
And on February 8, 2009, son Charlie was born.
While Elin rarely speaks to the media, Tiger revealed she matches him in competitiveness in his interview with Nancy.
"Does she play golf?" Nancy asked.
"She plays, yeah. She's starting to get into it a little bit," he said. "She's very competitive."
"Are you teaching her?" Nancy asked.
"I'm trying to., but that's how most divorces kind of start so… It's better that I stay away, let the instructor handle it," Tiger smiled.
Related Content from AccessHollywood.com:
PLAY IT NOW: Tiger Woods: Married Life 'Has Been Great!' (2004)
PLAY IT NOW: Tiger Woods: Teri Hatcher's Golf Skills 'Blew My Mind' (May 1, 2005)
MORE ACCESS ON THESE TOPICS: Elin Nordegren - Tiger Woods - Nancy O'Dell - Golf - Media


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Joe Manganiello Puts On His Shirtless Fireman Suit for MTV – Hunk of the Day
Elizabeth Banks got a big surprise at the 2012 MTV Movie Awards this weekend when she came up on stage to accept her win for Best On-Screen Transformation. Giving out the award were 'Magic Mike' stars Matthew McConaughey, Channing Tatum and — now here's that big surprise were talking about — a shirtless Joe Manganiello dressed up like a fireman.
The sexy 'True Blood' werewolf strutted his stuff in front of the crowd of screaming girls wielding a long pointy… axe. And Banks did what anyone of us would do in her position — milked the moment for all its worth, which included getting Manganiello to carry her off in his big, male stripper arms.
Check out all the best photos of Joe Manganiello shirtless at the 2012 MTV Movie Awards below.
And here are some more pictures of Joe Manganiello shirtless, just because.


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Munich – One city, two faces
What's your preference: a stroll through the English Garden, a skiing trip to the mountains or dancing the night away to techno beats? Munich is a village of 1.4 million – traditional and serene in many ways, and modern and cosmopolitan in many others. We take a look at both sides.
Bavarian beast
Wolpertinger – a winged rabbit with horns – is a mythical creature but can be seen in real life at the German Hunting and Fishing Museum.
Winning strategy
Munich is a Champions League player on several fronts: The Bavarian State Opera invites visitors to tour its mammoth backstage area.
Traditional snack
Café Frischhut at the Viktualienmarkt food market is known for its donut-like pastries that are stretched before they're fried. You can even watch the bakers at work!
Down by the waterside
There's a street in the city's Untergiesing neighborhood lined with pretty, gabled houses beside a rushing stream. It's been nicknamed Little Venice.
Panoramic view
The restored Monopteros in the English Garden is a great place to meet, watch the sunset or take pictures of the city skyline.
Sporting look
Enjoy a burger in a retro environment: The interior of the München '72 café recalls the Olympic Games that took place in Munich 45 years ago.
National mix
he founders of the Noh Nee fashion label combine the best of two worlds and make Bavarian dirndl dresses out of traditional African fabrics.
Unconventional design
The jewelry created by Patrik Muff on Ledererstrasse in downtown Munich features heraldic motifs, mythical creatures and animal skulls.
Luminary figure
Light designer Ingo Maurer illuminated the subway stations Münchner Freiheit and Marienplatz. Check out his showroom on Kaiserstrasse, too.
Horse-power heaven
BMW Welt is a mecca for auto fans: After admiring the legendary models, new owners can drive off into the sunset in their brand-new, pre-ordered car.
Artful location
A visit to Munich's Haus der Kunst should definitely include a stop at the award-winning Goldene Bar at the back of the museum.
Sound of the city
The Harry Klein club on Stachus square has almost become an institution, but it's still popular with big-name DJs and techno fans.
Getting there from Germany
Find out all about affordable fares to Munich and other selected Lufthansa destinations at miles-and-more.com/mileagebargain.


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The data breach of 49,500 audience usernames and hashed versions of passwords from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) website Making Australia Happy should serve as a lesson for other companies that deal with personal information, according to security industry experts.
A hacker going by the Twitter handle of Phr0zenMyst claimed ownership of the ABC attack and said it was a response to the recent appearance on ABC's Lateline program of right-wing Dutch politician Geert Wilders.
"The aim of the hack was to hurt ABC for allowing Wilders to spread hate, apologies for any harm caused to others," tweeted PhrOzenMyst this week.
Senetas CEO Andrew Wilson said the main lesson from the ABC data breach is that companies can never expect data protection to be 100 per cent effective so all sensitive data should be encrypted.
"That gives the ABC and others a defence assurance that when the inevitable happens, no harm will be done because the data is meaningless," he said.
According to Wilson, companies should use advanced encryption standard (AES) 128, which if properly implemented, could mean it would take up to 149 trillion years to decrypt data using today's most powerful computers.
"Australian TV networks also need to adopt a duty of care approach to the data rather than the traditional risk management approach," he said.
"Duty of care makes them conscious of the ongoing damage such a breach causes their viewers and not just the momentary embarrassment the media company suffers."
Trend Micro A/NZ strategic products senior manager Adam Biviano said companies such as the ABC need to carefully consider what information they are collecting from customers and apply appropriate controls.
He said that the ABC data breach exposed details including the longitude and latitude locations of viewers in Australia.
"Organisations should also do penetration tests by providing security people with the contents of the database and see what private information they can reveal," he said.
Security and the media
Wilson disagreed that the ABC attack may deter news organisations in Australia from interviewing controversial figures such as Geert Wilders and said networks should tighten their IT security instead.
"For media networks, any business initiative or story that involves a controversial figure or topic that might stir up attacks of any type should be classified as a potential security risk," he said.
Just like workplace health and safety, IT risk mitigation foundations should be set in place to manage controversial broadcasts such as additional manpower to monitor systems and use of encryption.
"People often rationalise their actions by claiming a moral high ground but those who conduct cyber crimes are just that, criminals and vandals," Wilson said.
"They potentially hurt thousands of people in their quest to hurt one organisation. In this instance, stealing of sensitive information and releasing it into the public domain."
Data breaches
According to Biviano, data breaches are "more commonplace" than people would like to admit. "With the commercial pressures to deploy online services quickly and cheaply, functionality often takes precedence to security," he said.
"Security is not seen, therefore it sometimes hard to justify its inclusion to non-technical project stakeholders, especially if it means that a service may take longer to come online or cost more."
Wilson said he was "not surprised" by the ABC data breach as employees of Senetas do not see a high adoption rate of encrypting sensitive data among commercial enterprises.
"However, there are some signs of slow change especially where the use of cloud and data centre services has grown."
"The prevalence of data breaches and business accountability means that businesses are now starting to take the issue more seriously and put better preventative measures in place."
Follow Hamish Barwick on Twitter: @HamishBarwick
Follow Computerworld Australia on Twitter: @ComputerworldAU, or take part in the Computerworld conversation on LinkedIn: Computerworld Australia


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Amanda Iacone, wtop.com
WASHINGTON – The aggressive driver honking the horn and frequently changing lanes during your all-too-long commute is more likely to be a woman.
According to a recent CareerBuilder poll, 61 percent of women reported they are prone to road rage compared to 56 percent of men.
Drivers age 55 and older reported feeling the most relaxed, while drivers ages 25 to 34 were most likely to feel road rage during their commutes.
An Esurance blog post analyzing the poll results says that some experts theorize women's aggressive driving tendencies stem from their "subconscious need to break free of society's expectations."
An unrelated study by the Sleep Council found that women are also grumpy more often and their sour moods last longer in the morning than men, who report they are not usually grumpy when they wake up.
But more than adding to the headache of other drivers' commutes, aggressive driving can be dangerous and a road rage conviction could cause a driver's car insurance to spike.
The poll also found that one in three drivers have used their cellphone to send text messages during their drive to and from work. And nearly a quarter of drivers said they have been involved in an accident during their commute — cellphones often contributed to the crash.
Workers also say the longer the drive, the more stressful their commute. About one-third of workers with a 5-minute drive say they have experience road rage. Increase the drive to just 10 minutes and about half of drivers report they have experienced road rage.
So how can you avoid becoming that grumpy, aggressive driver that makes other drivers miserable? CareerBuilder offers a few tips to get your morning off on the right foot:
- Give yourself more time in the morning. Pick your outfit and make your lunch the night before. Set your alarm 15 minutes earlier.
- Request a flexible work schedule. Ask your boss if you can start work at an off-peak time to avoid rush hour or ask if you can work from home.
- Listen to soothing music, a book on tape or your favorite (we recommend WTOP) news radio program.
- Opt for public transportation. You can finish that project for work, read, or relax.
Follow WTOP on Twitter.
(Copyright 2012 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)


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Oh, man, did you see that moment when that guy did that thing? Don't worry, we did. Read on and get the full story of Oscar's best, worst and otherest. Best Performance: Even with the slightly forced "recession Oscars" conceit, host Hugh Jackman delivered a completely winning song and dance to open the show that totally made us forget they didn't hire a comedian. Showing off both talent and a sly sense of humor, Jackman nailed it.
Best Lyric From the Opening Song: "I would swim a sea of human excrement." — Jackman crooning sweet(?)ly to Kate Winslet Worst Transition: From the goofily good opener—the techno Reader representation was more entertaining than the movie—the show bogged down with that somber bunch of Best Supporting Actresses intoning like they were going to banish the winner to the Forbidden Zone with General Zod. Best Brangelina Quip: Jackman drew our attention to Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie before saying, "I don't actually have a joke for them, I'm just contractually required to mention them five times during the show." (Not bad; it's 25 times for us.)
Best Present: Copresenters Steve Martin and Tina Fey, who've been funny together on TV and film, delivered a hilarious tribute to writers that made us want to see them make another movie together. Or, you know, read something. Best Reaction: Jolie looking totally charmed by her Kung Fu Panda costar Jack Black, who was onstage presenting with that actress from Friends.
Best Twilight Crossover: Rob Pattinson brought that undead charm of his to the Oscars, where it was familiar to Twihards and everyone who's ever had lunch with a Hollywood agent. Best On-Air Design: Whoever thought to put Daniel Craig and Sarah Jessica Parker on stage together. Best Reaction: Seth Rogen and James Franco's half-baked response to the comedies of 2008. Dude, cinematographer Jadocs Kaminsky was so high! Joke Least Likely to Reach the Billion People Around the World: Ben Stiller's crazy, bearded Joaquin Phoenix impersonation was funny, but a little inside considering how few people recognize Stiller anyway. Assault With a Medley Weapon: The top-hat-and-tails number with Beyoncé, Zac Efron and the rest totally summed up the year in movies. And that year was 1936.
Most Likely to Spawn a "Who's in Your Five?" Commercial: The Best Supporting actor nomination five-way was like a presidential debate without all the humor. Most Heartbreaking: Heath Ledger's family accepting his award. Biggest Showstopper: Wirewalker Philippe Petit, the absolutely entertaining subject of documentary Man on Wire, balancing an Oscar on his chin while a billion people watched and wondered if it would fall. But for a man who once spent 45 minutes walking between the Twin Towers, well, that's probably no big deal.
Best Commercial: Coming in just ahead of the one for the website that helps you earn $5K a month working at home, the Tom Cruise-Jimmy Kimmel bit was funny like a house on fire. Best Make-Good Decision: The loud and fast medley crammed full of action and comic book movies, because let's be honest: These were the best things that Hollywood had to offer last year, and The Dark Knight (not to mention Iron Man) got robbed. Take that, Reader. Worst Make-Good Decision: After that whole medley thing, the movie about the wrinkly old baby beat Dark Knight and Iron Man. Obviously, there is no justice…except that meted out by costumed heroes.


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Every Friday before sunset, a few hundred spectators gather around a small obscure dirt field, close to the Hyatt Recency hotel to watch a traditional Indian-Pakistani wrestling competition called Kushti.
Now going back more than 3000 years, Kushti fighters from India, Pakistan and Iran have traditionally been sticking strictly to training programs and are expected to live a pure life where diet is strictly controlled to maximize muscle; smoking, drinking alcohol and sex are banned.
As the sun starts dipping behind the neighboring Hyatt hotel in Deira, more and more mainly Pakistani expats, start gathering while organizers clear stones and other sharp objects for the upcoming action. Water is being sprayed to give the sand a harder consistency.
About one hour before sunset the competition sets off with about 6 to 8 pairs of fighters, dressed with colorful wrestling underpants taking to the sand pit. A fight only lasts a matter of minutes, with the final aim being to bring down the opponent on his back.
The referee, and older gentleman and ex-wrestler, carries a colorful pole around; remaining clearly in charge of it all!
Although we couldn't understand a word which was said, it looks like there were rounds for different weight classes.
Being the only Westerner around, both my wife and myself felt a bit like being a stranger in our own city. Having said this, we did feel very welcome with people taking selfies with us in the background.
Exactly when the Maghrib (just after sunset) prayer was heard from the first mosque nearby, was when it was all over!
Whenever my day job as an airline pilot allows me, I will definitively be back for more one of one of the next Fridays. Planning on bringing some printed copies of the images, I can already see how grateful there people will be...
Meanwhile, if you want to check out the entire gallery of my "Kushti, the Art of wrestling" gallery, click here.
If you are however interested in more of the beaten track events in the UAE, make sure to also go to the Bull butting contest in Fujeirah every Friday. Click here for more.


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From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I hope you are in the mood for something a bit different. Sandkage is the Danish version of pound cake, and the one I want to share with you is unlike those you've tasted before. There are as many ways to make this cake as there are Danish grandmothers lurking in the kitchens of memory. I had the great good fortune to have my first taste of it in the kitchen of a neighbor when I was a child. The cake I'm familiar with used almond meal rather than the cornstarch that is found in most recipes for the cake. To be honest, I am not crazy about the texture of the cornstarch version of sandkage. I much prefer the slightly grainy texture of the cake when it is made with almond meal. Back in the day, there were no processors to make easy work of grinding nuts and seeds. We used a glass milk bottle to crush nuts placed in the bottom of a wooden salad bowl. It was was an inelegant but effective way to prepare the meal needed to make a genuine sandkage. Somewhere along the way, I lost my recipe for the cake, and rather than settle, I stopped making it. You can imagine my delight when I found Barbara Bordnick's recipe in The Way We Ate. It was very close to the version I remembered and I simply had to give it a try. I must tell you that I really like this cake. It is perfect with morning coffee and it makes a wonderful base for crushed and macerated fruit. The recipe is straight forward and I do hope you give it a try. While I've taken the liberty of adding almond extract to the base recipe, it is optional and you can omit it if you wish. Here is how a real sandkage is made.
Danish Sand Cake - Sandkage...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Barbara Bordnick and The Way We Ate
1/2 pound unsalted butter
1 cup granulated sugar
4 large eggs, separated
Optional: 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 ounces finely ground almonds (about 1/2 cup)
1) Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Generously grease a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan. (I also lined the bottom of my pan with parchment paper and greased it as well.)
2) Cream butter and sugar until mixture is light and fluffy. Stir in egg yolks, one at a time, until well-blended. Add almond extract if using, then add flour, baking powder and almonds to mixture. (I actually whisked dry ingredients together before adding then to wet ingredients.)
3) In a separate bowl, beat egg whites until very stiff, then fold them carefully into batter. Transfer mixture to prepared pan.
4) Bake for about 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted near center of cake comes out clean. Cool in pan for 10 minutes, then invert onto a wire rack. Invert again and allow to cool completely before serving. Yield: 8 to 10 servings.
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Once those inspections were complete, we had the insulation company come do their thing, and we were ready for drywall.
Insulation is an interesting process to watch. Different walls have different needs, and so there is a variety of insulating materials in the house. Hopefully it will mean a snug and warm, energy-efficient space.
The main part of the house is filled with wet-sprayed cellulose, made from recycled paper. Above the walls where the vaulted ceiling is, there are R-30 fiberglass batts backed with plastic.
Every hole was filled with spray foam.
Downstairs, the rim joists were sprayed with foam, and the skinny walls with foam boards. The rest of the basement has fiberglass batts.
While the house was insulated, our well was drilled, and the water pump installed. Once those were complete, we also added a drain for our water-source heat pump. Mr. Pickup was able to use our friend's backhoe to dig the trench and pit.
The water-source heat pump is a geothermal heat pump which uses water from our well, and then sends it through the drain and pit back to the aquifer. Pretty neat, and a great way to heat and cool our house.
There is 10 yards of rock in the pit to help the water drain quickly.
While we've been working outside, the dry wall has been going up quickly. It changes how the house feels so much. Monday the drywall was delivered, and the bedrooms and hall were hung.
Yesterday, they finished most of the rest of the house, and today they'll finish up the garage.
I'm so glad we didn't have to hang the drywall on that vaulted ceiling! The pantry turned out nice, I think.
Here's the entry and part of the closet.
So that's my update. By next weekend, we'll be able to begin my favorite part...making the house look like a home. We'll begin installing the finish work, including casings, baseboard and closet shelving. Then comes paint, and cabinets, floors, and lights and plumbing...oh, and the siding outside too. The finish line is almost in view.


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All you have to do is return the item/s to us or we can arrange this on your behalf, normally within 5-7 days at a cost of £49.95.
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Saturday, March 28, 2009
Celebrate America!
Posted by Joanna at 10:24 PM 2 comments Links to this post
Labels: coming soon
April Holiday
Posted by Joanna at 10:18 PM 0 comments Links to this post
Labels: business hours
This cute quilt is for Gracie Lou's shop grandma to use with the kids who come to the shop.
Shasta wanted me to quilt a design in the grassy areas so that the farm animals they have for the kids to play with will be able to stand up, so I quilted a meander with green cotton Signature thread.
Posted by Joanna at 10:15 PM 0 comments Links to this post
Labels: Customer Quilts, quilts
I made one of my friends a duckie blanket when she had her baby. She contacted me about a month ago, asking me to make her 2 more, only in girl colors (hers was blue, yellow and white for her little boy).
I bought some really cute fabrics at Gracie Lou's, and several other large, chain fabric stores.
In the outer border I quilted loops, kind of like bubbles. In the inner border I quilted flowers.
Posted by Joanna at 9:59 PM 2 comments Links to this post
Labels: Customer Quilts, quilts
Going Bananas
This cute rag quilt for Gracie Lou's uses the cutest fabric! It has sock monkeys on it!
They fussy-cut the smallest squares to show off the cute face on the sock monkeys. I quilted approximately 1/4 inch from the seam, puffing up the center of the squares, and, for the most part, not cutting off the faces of the monkeys.
Posted by Joanna at 9:53 PM 0 comments Links to this post
Labels: Customer Quilts, quilts
Stars in a square
This quilt was brought to me by a client.
She wanted stars quilted in the smallest blocks.
Posted by Joanna at 9:51 PM 0 comments Links to this post
Labels: Customer Quilts, quilts
Baskets of Flowers
This quilt was from my client "Joy" for Gracie Lou's. It is the Baskets of Flowers by Mary Engelbreit for moda.
I quilted a large spiral in the center of each flower, and exaggerated the petals on the flowers. In the background I did a ribbon-like meander.
In the border I did a vine with leaves.
Posted by Joanna at 9:45 PM 0 comments Links to this post
Labels: Customer Quilts, quilts
One of my clients has a family member studying astrophysics, so she made him a quilt.
I quilted stars and loops in the border.
Posted by Joanna at 9:36 PM 0 comments Links to this post
Labels: Customer Quilts, quilts
Flames and Trains
These two cute quilts are for a lady who works up at Gracie Lou's.
I quilted flames.....
Posted by Joanna at 9:32 PM 0 comments Links to this post
Labels: Customer Quilts, quilts
Gypsy Rose
This quilt, made out of the Gypsy Rose line for Fig Tree, is for Gracie Lou's Quilt Shoppe.
I did an all-over loop with flowers in a peach colored thread.
Posted by Joanna at 9:21 PM 0 comments Links to this post
Labels: Customer Quilts, quilts
Thursday, March 26, 2009
I'm hoping to be able to take a day later this week and work on that.
I feel really bad I've been neglecting my blog. :(
I really have been so busy lately. Not that that is an excuse or anything. I have been going to school online in my "spare" time (when do you even have spare time as a small business owning mom, I ask you? haha), and I have been trying to get the first part of my class finished. I am almost done (hopefully in the next few weeks), so then I will be able to keep up with the uploading of pictures.
Please keep checking back for updates! And leave comments, because I like to see who's visiting us, and where ya'all are from. :D
Thanks for stopping by!
Posted by Joanna at 3:16 AM 0 comments Links to this post
Friday, March 13, 2009
T-shirts full of memories
On March 12, 2008, my sister-in-law, Angel, lost her youngest son Colton (15 at the time, 1 month shy of his 16th birthday) to complications from pneumonia and ARDS. A few weeks ago she had gone through some of his clothes and picked out a stack of t-shirts she wanted to make quilts out of for herself, and her other 3 children. She asked me to apply the fusible interfacing and cut out the t-shirts for her. She had also pieced blocks from this great guitar fabric she bought at Gracie Lou's. She wanted to have the quilts for her kids done by the 1-year anniversary, but was afraid she wouldn't make the deadline. A group of family and close friends banded together and had a sewing night to help her out.
Jenny and Angel deciding which fabrics to border the blocks with.
Carrie and Vicki (my mother-in-law) sewing the blocks and borders.
Lola chatting with the rest of us after using the iron.
The initial layout of Jase's quilt. Each quilt had 5 pieced blocks and 4 t-shirt blocks. They hurried and finished this quilt top first so that I could get it loaded onto the machine. Unfortunately, by the time it was done it was 10:30 PM, my little boy was tired and ready for bed, and my DH had just come to pick me up! I found out later that the rest of the gals stayed until around 11:30, but got the rest of the tops and backs pieced.
And under the Playdead Movement graphic I quilted "Dirty Harold", which was how Colton signed all of his text messages.
Lynsey's Quilt
The back of his quilt was this black minkee with the diamond design in it.
I finished quilting all three quilts on March 11th, and was surprised at how difficult it was for me. Angel, Lola, and Gayle bound the quilts. Between all of us helping, Angel was able to get all three quilts done for her kids in time.
Thursday was a rough day, and needless to say I didn't get much done. That night, those of us who were available, went to dinner at Los 4 Amigos, a local Mexican restaurant, in memory of Colton. We are having a bonfire at the lake on Saturday for the whole family.
We love you Colton, and miss you very much! I think Lola's post says it all. The song she posted is so beautiful, and if you get the chance, go to rhapsody.com and listen to it there (you can find it on the Weeds Season 1 Soundtrack).
Posted by Joanna at 12:23 AM 1 comments Links to this post
Labels: Customer Quilts, personal story, quilts


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Friday, January 4, 2013
New Genetic Genealogy Course from NGS
Thomas H. Shawer, MD, a physician with the National Institutes of Health, is a nationally recognized lecturer on Genetics. He serves as chairman of the NGS Genetic Genealogy Committee. In 2004, he authorized the NGS book, Unlocking Your Genetic History.
Now Shawker shares his medical expertise in the six-lesson self-paced course "Genetic Genealogy, the Basics." Topics covered in the course include:
• the structure of the DNA molecule, how it is organized, how it replicates, and how it functions;
• human chromosomes and how the Y chromosome is inherited;
• the two types of DNA markers used in genetic genealogy;
• haplotypes and haplogroups;
• evaluation of a Y chromosome surname project and a discussion on how to evaluate the test results of the participants; and
• the structure of the mitochondrial DNA molecule, how it is inherited, and how it can be used in genealogy.
The course is designed for independent study. Students check their work with an answer key that immediately follows each self-test.
"Genetic Genealogy, The Basics" is available on a PC- or MAC-compatible CD in a PDF format. The tuition is $45 for members and $70 for nonmembers. For further information, or to purchase the course, visit the NGS website and click on the Educational Courses tab. Please visit the course web page at http://www.ngsgenealogy.org/cs/genetic_genealogy for more information.
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Place all vegetables in the jar. Pour the ume vinegar, brown rice vinegar and water over the vegetables. Place the lid on the jar and shake to thoroughly mix the liquid ingredients. Remove the lid and set aside. Set the jar on the kitchen counter and cover the mouth of the jar with the sushi mat. If a sushi mat is not available, cover with a piece of cotton cheesecloth or linen. Allow to set for 24 hours. Remove the mat and place the lid on the jar. The pickles are now ready to eat. Only remove the portion you wish to eat and keep the remainder refrigerated to prevent spoilage. The pickles will keep for 1 month or more.
Pickles aid in digestion but they are salty. Therefore, only eat 1 or 2 tablespoons daily or several times per week. Rinse under cold water before eating to remove excess sodium. The brine can be used again, just add 1 tablespoon ume vinegar and 1 teaspoon rice vinegar to the brine before adding more raw vegetables.
Yields: 2 1/2 cups
Variation: other vegetables can be pickled as long as they are thinly sliced, quartered, halved or small florets. Some vegetables that can be used are broccoli florets, peeled and thinly sliced broccoli stems, peeled and sliced kohlrabi, regular carrots sliced thin, thinly sliced turnips, daikon radish, white radishes, chopped cabbage or Chinese cabbage, and even watermelon rinds to name a few.
Per serving - 5 calories, 0 g fat (8% calories from fat), 0 g protein, 1 g carbohydrate, 0 g fiber, 0 mg cholesterol, 278 mg sodium


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Reds ink Wang, nine others to minor league deals
Cincinnati, OH (SportsNetwork.com) - The Cincinnati Reds announced on Friday that they have signed 10 players to minor league contracts, including veteran pitcher Chien-Ming Wang, catcher Corky Miller and outfielder Jason Bourgeois.
Wang went 1-2 with a 7.67 ERA in six starts with the Blue Jays in 2013. He has struggled greatly and battled injuries since winning 19 games in both 2006 and 2007 for the Yankees. The Taiwanese right-hander is 62-34 with a 4.37 ERA in 136 career games (126 starts) with the Yankees, Nationals and Blue Jays.
Miller hit .257 with eight RBI in 17 games with the Reds last season. The 37- year-old is a career .193 hitter with 11 homers and 67 RBI in 216 games with the Twins, Red Sox, Braves, White Sox and Reds.
Bourgeois spent most of the 2013 season in Triple-A, where he batted .290 in 90 games. The 31-year-old has batted .259 with three homers and 29 RBI in 231 MLB games with the White Sox, Brewers, Astros, Royals and Rays.
Cincinnati also signed pitchers Jose Diaz and Lee Hyde, catchers Rossmel Perez and Max Ramirez, infielders Argenis Diaz, Reynaldo Navarro and Kristopher Negron to minor league deals.


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Microsoft Surface Pro full review
Microsoft's Surface is its own-brand tablet, but there are two models, the Surface RT and Surface Pro. So what are the differences between the two and which one is the right one for you? We take a look in our Surface Pro vs Surface RT comparison review. UPDATE: see our full Surface Pro 3 review.
On the, er, surface, both tablets seem pretty similar. While they have an almost identical design, they vary wildly in specification and come with different versions of Windows 8.
We'll compare to two Surface tablets section-by-section to highlight the differences between them.
See also: Microsoft Surface RT review.
Microsoft Surface Pro vs Surface RT: Dimensions
It's hard to tell the difference between the Surface Pro and the Surface RT since they share similar dimensions – both are 275 x 172mm. However, with a beefier spec packed in, the Surface Pro is thicker at 13.5mm compared to 9.5mm.
It's not a surprise that the Pro is also heavier at 903g while the RT is 686g.
See also: Microsoft Surface RT vs Apple iPad comparison review.
Microsoft Surface Pro vs Surface RT: Price
The Surface RT starts at £399 and goes up to £559. Microsoft has only announced US pricing for the Surface Pro which will start at $899 and launch in January 2013. See also: Microsoft Surface Pro price in the UK.
Microsoft Surface Pro vs Surface RT: Screen
Both of Microsoft's tablets use a 10.6in 'ClearType' screen, designed to be used predominantly in landscape mode. Each has an aspect ratio of 16:9 but there are a couple of differences to mention.
The main one is resolution – the Surface RT uses 1366x768-pixels while the Surface Pro has a full HD resolution of 1920x1080. This means the Pro's pixel density of 208ppi is greater than the 148ppi on offer from the RT.
Another difference is that the Surface RT supports up to 5-point multi-touch, but the Surface Pro offers double with 10-point input.
Microsoft Surface Pro vs Surface RT: Processor
Running on the tablet-specific version of Windows 8, the Surface RT has the popular nVidia Tegra 3 quad-core processor with 2GB of RAM.
However, Microsoft has given the Surface Pro the kind of hardware line-up you'd typically find in an Ultrabook laptop. It uses a third generation Intel Ivy Bridge Core i5 processors and 4GB of RAM.
See also: What is an Ultrabook?
We don't know the exact Core i5 model but at the least this will be dual-core with a clock speed of 1.7GHz and integrated Intel HD4000 graphics.
Microsoft Surface Pro vs Surface RT: Storage
Both Surface tablets come with two storage capacities to choose from. The Surface RT has 32GB or 64GB while the Surface Pro has 64GB or 128GB.
All models come with a microSDXC card slot for additional capacity and the full-size USB port on each can be used to attach an external hard drive.
Microsoft Surface Pro vs Surface RT: Cameras
There's no difference when it comes to cameras. Both the Surface Pro and Surface RT have 720p front and rear cameras. The rear camera is angled such that it's level when the tablet is on its kick stand.
Microsoft Surface Pro vs Surface RT: Connectivity
Connectivity is very close to identical between the Surface Pro and Surface RT. Both have a full-size USB, Bluetooth 4.0, headphone jack, microSDXC card slot and a 2x2 multiple input multiple output (MIMO) antennae for 802.11a/b/g/n Wi-Fi.
The differences are that the RT's USB port is version 2.0 and it has a micro-HDMI port while the Pro has USB 3.0 and Mini DisplayPort.
Microsoft Surface Pro vs Surface RT: Software
As we've mentioned, the two Surface tablets run different versions of Windows 8. You can guess which version based on the name of each Surface model.
While in the tiled Modern UI, the tablets are no different, apps for this part of Windows 8 can be downloaded from the Windows Store.
However, the desktop mode is drastically divergent. For the Surface RT it's merely a place to use Office, Internet Explorer and not much else beyond control panel and file explorer.
The Surface Pro, on the other hand, doesn't come with Office pre-installed but, importantly, you can install use regular x86 Windows 7 programs.
Microsoft Surface Pro vs Surface RT: Battery
The Surface RT has a 31.5Wh battery while the Surface Pro has a proportionately larger 42Wh battery. However, Microsoft has confirmed on Twitter that the Pro will only offer half the battery life of the RT – amounting to about 4 hours.
Follow Chris Martin and @PCAdvisor on Twitter.
Microsoft Surface Pro: Specs
- Windows 8 Pro
- 275x173x13.5mm
- 900g
- VaporMg casing
- Dark Titanium color
- Volume and Power buttons
- Storage: 64GB, 128GB
- 10.6in ClearType Full HD Display
- 1920x1080 pixels
- 16:9 (widescreen)
- 10-point multi-touch
- Pen Input
- 3rd Gen Intel Core i5 Processor with Intel HD Graphics 4000
- 4GB RAM—Dual Channel Memory
- Wi-Fi (802.11a/b/g/n)
- Bluetooth 4.0 Low Energy technology
- 42 W-h battery
- Two 720p HD LifeCams, front- and rear-facing with TruColor
- Microphone, Stereo speakers
- Full-size USB 3.0
- microSDXC card slot
- Headset jack
- Mini DisplayPort
- Cover port
- Ambient light sensor
- Accelerometer
- Gyroscope
- Compass
- 48W power supply (including 5W USB for accessory charging)
- 1-year limited hardware warranty


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A growing number of children's fitness facilities have opened to address the childhood obesity issue. However, many owners of these facilities are learning that to be profitable and retain their pint-sized members, they can't overlook the needs of parents. With kid-friendly names such as Funfit or Peekadoodle Kids Club, these facilities cater not only to the baby-toddler and grade school sets but also to busy parents leading hectic lives. Rather than sitting and waiting for their children to finish their classes, parents can squeeze in a short circuit workout, take an adult-only fitness class or exercise alongside their children at select family fitness facilities nationwide.
At movinNgroovin, a 4,500-square-foot center in Overland Park, KS, children spin the pedals on gaming bikes, shoot hoops in the youth sports court and tumble in the rainbow-colored gymnastics room during the day. On Tuesday and Wednesday nights, however, their moms work up a sweat in a cardio dance/boxing or hip-hop class in one of the center's two dance studios.
So far, about 20 women have participated in movinNgroovin's adult-only classes, which run $40 for four classes or $72 for eight classes, says David Katz, owner of movinNgroovin. He plans to expand his center's adult fitness offerings by adding a men-only class and a jazz dance class to the schedule.
"Our adult fitness classes are part of our selling point when people call us or come in for a tour," says Katz, who opened his center last year and now has 110 students enrolled in classes. "They have piqued a lot of interest."
Increasing profits and boosting retention weren't the only driving forces behind Katz's decision to shift his center's focus from child-only to family-friendly. Katz says his goal is to help everyone — from children to adults — to lead a healthy lifestyle. As the father of three children, he also understands the need for parents to have a central location for activities.
"We wanted to offer something for everyone in the family," he says. "Our motto is 'Any stage, any level, all under one roof.'"
Family Fitness
Although no organization has an exact figure for how many children-only fitness facilities exist, they make up a small percentage of the for-profit clubs, says Michael Scott Scudder, who operates MeetingZone, an online-based consulting and training service in Taos, NM. Defining a children's club has become more difficult because more club owners are adding adult programming to their facilities.
While some children's fitness facilities start out catering to kids and later add adult programming to increase profits and retention, the 10,000-square-foot Peekadoodle Kids Club, which opened in late January in San Francisco, started out focusing on families. Co-owners Ellen Park and Kayla Lee, both moms of young children, set aside 500 square feet and invested $30,000 in nine pieces of circuit-training equipment for an adult-only fitness room. The former lawyer and schoolteacher considered buying four treadmills, three bikes and two ellipticals, but in the end, they decided that a circuit-training model would work best for post-natal moms easing back into exercise.
"We had to find a balance between whether we wanted another classroom for the kids or a workout room for the moms," Park says. "One of the things I missed in my non-mom life was being able to go to yoga classes, so I wanted other parents to be able to work out."
Park concedes that moms may need a health club apart from Peekadoodle if they want a full workout. However, adults can exercise in the circuit room as well as through the facility's fitness programming while their children participate in a fitness or enrichment class. The co-owners hired Carmen Solla, the former fitness program director for the Olympic Club in San Francisco, to design the fitness programming for the center. Peekadoodle plans to offer 32 classes in the first quarter, including family yoga classes, a Baby Boot Camp, stroller exercise programs and outdoor fitness classes for moms, Solla says.
Celia Kibler, the founder and president of Funfit Inc. — and mother of a son, daughter and three stepsons — also has mixed adults and children together in her club's fitness programs. Twenty years ago, her sister and she launched the Rockville, MD-based family fitness club, which has grown into a $350,000 business with programming and centers in New York, Louisiana, Maryland, Virginia and Colorado.
From the beginning of the program, parents have actively participated in the fitness classes with their children, says Kibler, a certified personal trainer, yoga instructor and sports nutritionist. Parents of average height can work side-by-side with their children on the hydraulic circuit-training equipment and get their hearts pumping in their children's fitness classes, which are geared to give both kids and adults challenging workouts. Families can bring their children of all ages — infants through teenagers — to the facilities.
The idea must be working. The club has an 85 percent repeat customer rate and 4,000 participants. Some of the adults in Kibler's Maryland center's Tai Chi class have been regulars for three or four years straight.
While Funfit encourages parents to exercise with their children, other kids clubs are adding adult fitness without mixing adults and children. At the 3,200-square-foot PowerKidz Youth Fitness Center in Indianapolis, co-owner Dennis McGuire focuses on children's fitness between 3 p.m. and 9 p.m. Parents drop off their children and return an hour later to pick them up.
"We want it to be a place where kids feel like it's their place, and there are not adults around to intimidate them," says McGuire, who is the father of two teenagers. He started the center with a personal trainer from his health club. "During the day, when the kids are in school, however, our facility is empty, so parents have been asking for some fitness classes."
By maximizing the usage of the facility, the club has increased its profits and retention rate, McGuire says. His club charges $20 per person per session, and the participants can pay per class or per block. Currently, about 20 women are participating in the fitness classes, and he says he plans to continue having the adults and kids exercise at different times.
At movinNgroovin, the facility takes a similar approach by offering classes late at night when all the kids have already gone home for the day. Because the center does not offer a daycare room, moms need to find alternate child care arrangements when they're taking a group fitness class. So far, however, it has not caused a lot of problems, Katz says.
"Some parents want to work out and not have their kids with them," he says. "We promote it as a time to get away."
The Family Dollar
The concept of a family fitness center can work anywhere — in the suburbs, urban areas or even in rural parts of the country, Kibler says. When deciding where to locate a center, however, entrepreneurs should consider the area's demographics and average household income, Scudder says. By locating a center in an affluent area, owners can cater to families with a high level of discretionary income.
Katz says that income level doesn't matter because parents often spend more money on their kids than they do on themselves, he says.
"There is a lot of competition for the family dollar," he says. "From our experience with our kids, however, when the money gets tight, parents will sacrifice for themselves before they take it away from kids."
In Kibler's experience, the majority of child-only clubs are expensive to join. To reach a broader market, Funfit not only owns centers in Maryland and New York but also licenses its programming and offers classes in community centers, daycares, schools and health clubs. For $70 a month, a family can sign up for three classes. For example, a mom can take a Tai Chi class, her 3-year-old can register for a music class, and her preteen can sign up for Kung Fu.
"It's very affordable for a family," Kibler says. "If you took classes at various places, it would cost a lot more."
PowerKidz also tries to make the membership affordable by charging $49.95 per month for one child and $10 per month for every additional sibling. Fifteen miles away in an upper-income neighborhood, the 3,700-square-foot Fitwize 4 Kids in Carmel, IN, charges $85 to $100 a month for memberships.
In San Francisco, which has the third highest median family income in the country, Peekadoodle charges families $2,000 for an annual membership, which covers the primary member, a spouse, an extra caregiver and children ranging from newborn to 5 years old. Access to the indoor playground and fitness room is included in the membership, but parents shell out an additional $400 to $500 for eight-week child-development classes.
While high-end clubs that cater to families have the possibility for a fast return on investment with proper planning, business owners often need to invest a significant amount of capital in the beginning, Scudder says. For example, Lee, Park and their investors poured about $2 million into the launch of Peekadoodle Kidsclub.
"We're shooting for a goal of one year to cover our overhead and our expenses on a monthly basis," Park says. "When we're going to make a profit is a question mark."
McGuire plans to break even within the first year with his PowerKidz club, which opened in November 2007. He and his co-owners invested $100,000 — including $18,000 in the equipment — and plan to grow the memberships from 80 in mid-December to 500 by summer.
While the owners of Peekadoodle and PowerKidz expect to see a fast return on investment, Josh Kuklak , owner of Fitwize 4 Kids, forecasts a longer rate of return. He paid about $400,000 to launch his franchised center and expects to get a return on investment in about three or four years. Katz of movinNgroovin also thinks it will take a few years to see a return on investment at his family fitness center. He spent between $250,000 and $300,000, which includes $70,000 to $75,000 for equipment and specialized flooring for the dance studios.
Although launching a family fitness center often requires a significant investment, any fitness facility can cater to families by offering programming for babies through adults, Kibler says. As childhood obesity continues to grow by leaps and bounds, clubs need to start offering kids' programs, and fitness facilities need to find a way to allow parents and children to exercise together, she says.
"Our big belief is that in order to instill the joy of fitness and activity in the child, you should have their best role models participate in the program," she says. "By dropping your kids here or there, parents can lose their connection to their children. If a family can go to a center or class together, they can spend time communicating, enjoying each other and exercising."
One-Stop Shop
Along with getting a good workout, parents can also knock out a few errands at some family fitness centers. Parents nationwide are looking for the same thing — a one-stop shop, says Ellen Park, co-founder of Peekadoodle in San Francisco. When her partner and she designed the center, they thought about all the things they would want to have for their own kids. Their vision included not only fitness programming and child development classes but also a padded indoor playground, an organic café, a kid-friendly hair salon and a child care room.
Kidville, a New York-based center that is set to open 250 locations this year, offers an indoor playground and more than 100 classes for babies through 5-year-olds, and it also pampers moms with manicures and massages in its in-house salons.
Not all family fitness centers, however, need to offer multiple services under one roof. Sometimes, strategic placement can help business owners cater to busy parents. For example, PowerKidz is located in a strip mall with a hair salon, a nail salon, a tanning center and a Starbucks, so when parents drop their children at the club, they have somewhere close by to go where they can relax and get things done.
Five Ways to Increase Retention at Family Fitness Centers
- Keep it clean
By maintaining a clean environment , you'll keep parents and kids coming back. At Peekadoodle Kids Club in San Francisco, non-alcoholic hand sanitizer is available to members, and the staff uses green products to clean the toys and equipment.
- Offer age-appropriate programming
Design classes that are tailored for specific age groups, whether you're targeting babies, toddlers, grade schoolers, teens or adults.
- Be realistic on pricing
If you are a parent, consider how much you would be willing to spend for programming and services for your own children.
- Hire qualified staff
Employ instructors who love children and are flexible. Club owners should run their staff's fingerprints through the Federal Bureau of Investigations for extra protection, says Celia Kibler, co-owner of FunFit in Rockville, MD. To meet the needs of your adult clientele, make sure they are also experienced and qualified, she says.
- Offer flexible fitness packages
Rather than charging adults by the month for adult fitness classes, consider selling a package of classes that can be used anytime.
Spotlight on Children's Club Memberships
The International Health, Racquet and Sportsclub Association estimates that about 4.1 million children under the age of 18 have a health club membership, 24 percent of facilities offer some kind of children's programming, and children ages 6 to 17 are the second-fastest growing demographic of members. Here is how the market for child memberships has changed over the last 20 years.
Children (ages 6-17) Membership Numbers:
- 1987 (benchmark): 1.3 million
- 2000: 3.2 million
- 2002: 3.9 million
- 2003: 4.5 million
- 2004: 4.6 million
- 2005: 5.1 million
- 2006: 4.1 million
Source: IHRSA


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Packing for a trip back East a few weeks ago as I vainly tried to shove my full-length goosedown coat into a suitcase, I felt a pang of wistfulness I couldn't shake off.
Separation anxiety is supposed to peak at the age of 2 ½, so how come I'm still battling it? Honestly, it's a tad embarrassing when you and your toddler are sharing a developmental milestone.
Before I had my daughter, Daphne, I had no idea how besotted I would be by motherhood, how visceral the tug would be to bask in that still-lingering baby smell. She's now 3, and I am an utter toddler addict. The sensation makes everything else pale in comparison.
I didn't realize what a bad case I had until a business trip cast my condition into high relief. It's not just that I knew I would miss her, but that I knew it would hurt.
The maddening thing is that most working moms I know cherish the chance to take business trips, given the opportunity they afford for civilized meals at restaurants sans crayons and sippy cups, taking uninterrupted baths and shopping trips free from the siren song of Gymboree and Bounce-a-rama.
While the thought of savoring these activities filled me with glee, I still found myself dreading having to leave my 3-year-old for a few days, even with daddy and grandma at her beck and call.
For the record, she's fine with me going off to work in the daytime, but she's thoroughly peeved if I have to work a few nights in a row. Missing the bedtime ritual is unacceptable. Whenever it starts getting dark, she asks me if I have to go to the "theatuh" soon. Sometimes, she tries to come with me. Once she climbed into the car after me and explained that she was doing the driving this time. It was very cute in the moment, but later that evening, when I spotted the stuffed elephant she had left behind, I got a little misty.
On some level, it's hard for me to admit that I am so vulnerable to these feelings. Having spent most of my adult life obsessed with journalism, it never occurred to me that I might become equally riveted by parenting.
Even the temptation of a trip to New York, a mecca for theater critics, could not distract me from feelings of fear and loss. As my departure approached, I was fretful.
Some of this was simply cowardice. I've only gone on a few trips since Daphne was born. The first was excruciating, because I was still in the thick of breast-feeding. On the other hand, I remember the sheer unadulterated bliss of getting to sleep through the night for the first time in months.
The second time was easier physically but brutal emotionally, because Daphne was livid when I got home. She felt betrayed that I had left her, and she used her scathingly sharp verbal facility to calmly explain to me that she no longer loved me quite as much as before I left. Ouch. I spent a long time winning her over again.
This time, I was prepared for the worst. And that turned out to be a good strategy, because it wasn't nearly as bad as I feared. Perhaps it was because I spent a lot of time prepping her (and myself) before I took off.
Don't get me wrong. I did have my moments. I was actually jealous of the mommies wheeling their toddlers over snow banks and slush lakes. I even enjoyed the symphony of toddler meltdowns on the flight home.
Certainly, I was steeled for a doozy when I got home — but it never arrived. My little one has apparently matured a lot since the last time I traveled away from her, which is a relief. It's almost as much a relief that I have, too.
Life Stories is a rotating column by staff writers, editors and critics. Karen D'Souza is the Bay Area News Group's theater critic. Contact her at firstname.lastname@example.com or 408-271-3772. Follow her at Twitter.com/karendsouza4.


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Microwaveable S'mores Maker
Either legend or fact has it that the first written record of s'mores dates back to 1927. But chances are, they did it the old-fashioned way back in the Roaring Twenties—with a twig and a roaring fire.
Thank goodness for modern technology. This handy little gadget microwaves two perfect s'mores in 30 seconds. A water tank heats them through evenly (no more gushy marshmallow and cold, hard chocolate), and the arms hold the top graham cracker in place so there's no slip and slide. And it's dishwasher safe; although, chances are, you'll still get pretty messy.