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Software Company necesitaba un nuevo diseño de página web y lanzó un concurso de diseño en 99designs.
Un ganador ha sido elegido entre 28 diseños de 11 diseñadores freelance.
Software Company
Software Company is the new name of our existing company VBVB Business Solutions (http://www.vbvbbs.nl).
We want to totally rebrand our company to become really outstanding in our business. For that we need a new approach, which will be our new blog style website.
We do:
- Automation of financial processes
- online CRM
- online survey's
- application hosting
- fixed fee services (monthly payments)
We are a small company and our culture is informal. We are a 'no tie' company and want to present ourselves like that.
We operate mainly in the greater Amsterdam (NL) area.
We want to be in the avantgarde in new webconcepts and the usage of social media. Because we are also advising our customers about what new software solutions can do for their businesses.
We will reward the price as soon as we found 'the' winning design. Which means that you could win even after one day if the result is perfect.
Our buyers can choose from a lot of potential suppliers. Most of them are 'standard Web1.0 IT-companies' with boring names and boring logo's (www.asc.nl, http://www.databas.nl, http://www.eserviceware.nl).
We would like to provide them a refreshing alternative to choose from.
There are two steriotype buyers, mainly from the creative sector in Amsterdam:
1. The financial professional (or CFO) who is looking for new financial (bookkeeping) software for the company. He/she is typically 45 years old and cost driven. He has to be sure that the solution (and partner) he chooses are the right choice for the company.
2. The entrepreneur or owner. 35 years old. Sees the advantages that IT-solutions can bring for his company. He is typically a buyer that looks further then only the financial part. So upselling to him is easier as short term costs are less important compared to the long term savings he will have.
So we have to address both financial managers (more business like) and creative professionals (less business like).
What we need:
We are looking for a clean and open design for our Homepage based on our already (on 99designs) designed logo. We need a design that consists of the following:
Basic requirements:
- 990-995 pixels wide
- Bright design
- Nice photographs / images / icons
- We would like to use the logo attached and the colors from the logo
- We want a recognizable font for titles (at the moment that is not determined yet)
What we don't want:
- Pictures of people shaking hands (too obvious business like)
- Pictures of people wearing ties
- Pictures of computers
- Standard clipart
- Too obvious stockphoto images
Our conversion targets are:
1. Contact by phone or e-mail
2. Newsletter subscription
3. Quote request
4. Whitepaper download
5. Twitter follower
This is how we see it, but please feel free to choose another layout if you think that could improve the user experience...
1. Header:
- Logo at the left
- 'Bel ons: 020 8200 700' (Call us, make it stand out)
- 'E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com'
- Search box, Sign in link
- Slider with the following contents
a. Ik wil luisteren naar mijn klant. Hoe doe ik dat?
b. Ik wil meer uit mijn administratie halen. Wat kan ik verbeteren?
c. Ik wil een fixed fee voor mijn software en support.
d. .... and one or two more...
- Call to action (order infobox for new customers):
'Nieuw bij SC? Vraag ons informatiepakket aan."
- Menu: Home, Producten, Klanten, Wie is SC?, Contact
- Buttons for RSS, Twitter, Newsletter
2. Body:
- Two colums, one blog section one extra info column
- Breadcrumbs
- Blog section should contain:
a. 5 to 7 intro's of most recent blogposts
b. 150x150 pixel illustration for each blogpost
c. 'Lees meer' (read more) and 'Reageer' link and links to all associated tags for that blogpost
d. retweet button and Share button (share social media) for that blogpost
e. pagination at the bottom after the 7 blogposts
- Extra info colums should contain:
a. 'Vraag offerte aan'-button (get a quote)
b. Customer testimonial (1x)
c. 'Gratis tips & tricks via e-mail'-button (free tips n tricks)
d. 'U kunt bij ons terecht voor:' and then 7 links under that text
e. 'Download gratis whitepaper'-button
f. Twitter updates frame
g. Tag cloud
3. Footer
a. Contact details
b. Sitemap
c. Social media icons
d. Blog categories (5x)
e. Link to disclamer and linke to privacy statement
It's a static site. There is no call to action. We like the fact that we are trying to be differtent from our competitors, but this could be enhanced.


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There are a number of ways you can monitor the progress of your Grails build: using the Hudson / Jenkins web app; or leveraging the API: from your IDE, bespoke API clients or even your enterprise monitoring client. We'll look at all of them here and build a simple Grails taglib to display build status in the 'Application Status' panel.
This is the 5th installment in the series, but the first since the announcement of the new project name of Jenkins (see Kohsuke's post here).
Note: The particular Hudson instance I'll be using for this post was set up with a single job for my presentation at the London GGUG and has the Green Balls plugin.
Hudson / Jenkins View Plugins
There are several plugins that provide 'information radiators' which make very useful wall displays for agile teams.
radiator view
IDE plugins
For developers, being able to see the build status within the IDE can be very useful (e.g. if deciding whether to check out the HEAD revision on a large project). For Eclipse/STS users they can install the hudson-eclipse plugin from the update site.
The configuration (Window > Preferences > Hudson) is quite straight forward, in this case just the URL, but there is the option to set credentials, polling interval etc.
The plugin adds a build health icon to the status bar and there is also the following view (you can trigger builds too if you have the correct permissions):
The Hudson / Jenkins Jobs API
This is the basis for the examples that follow - we'll primarily be looking at the restful GET methods that return JSON data.
If you get "http://localhost:8081/api/json" (replacing the hostname & port as appropriate), the JSON response includes a list of jobs e.g.
Note that the 'blue' color denotes a successful build - even if you've got the 'Green balls' plugin installed.
If you get "http://localhost:8081/job/GGUG_trunk/api/json" (replacing hostname, port & job name as appropriate), the JSON response includes:
The API has built in documentation see e.g. http://localhost:8081/api/? and http://localhost:8081/job/GGUG_trunk/api/?
Groovy scripts
Now we've had a quick introduction to the API, let's look at two simple cases for a Groovy script: status of all jobs and more information on a specific job.
For simplicity we'll use the Groovy helper getText() method on java.net.URL - if you'll need authentication I'd recommend using Apache Commons HTTP Client instead.
Gives the output: GGUG_trunk - blue
We get the output: GGUG_trunk #33 - blue
Grails taglib
Building on what we've just achieved (but replacing json.simple with the Grails helper classes), we can display this information in our Grails application (again see caveat about authentication).
This can now be included in the grails-app/views/index.gsp

Application Status

App version: <g:meta name="app.version"></g:meta>

Latest CI build: <g:buildInfo server="http://localhost:8081" job="GGUG_trunk"/>

Grails version: <g:meta name="app.grails.version"></g:meta>

And in action:
Monitoring tools
You may also want to incorporate your application build status into your enterprise monitoring so you can have a view across the whole piece, i.e. live, staging, test & development.
Opsview has a service check that I contributed to allow monitoring of Hudson / Jenkins jobs as part of the centralised enterprise monitoring. The Opsview team use this to monitor their own jobs that test the Opsview check ins.
check_hudson_job is a Perl script that uses the JSON job API, the necessary service check arguments are URL, job name, username, password.
Output is provided in standard Nagios plugin format, but the unknown status code is returned if a build is in progress (e.g. the color contains 'blinking').
That concludes this series of Grails & Hudson (Jenkins) posts for the time being - hopefully you've found it useful as we've covered enough to get your Grails projects nicely automated:
Part 1 - CodeNarc integration
Part 2 - back to basics with setting up Hudson / Jenkins for Grails
Part 3 - automated testing of your Grails build
Part 4 - automated deployment of war files

subset: commoncrawl


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DoomMerchant wrote:Ted Hughes wrote:
Nasri worked hard. He hasn't hit form again since he was kicked out of action but he keeps putting in a shift. Yaya was fucked & really struggling, not just running but also with his touch. He struggles playing several games close together imo.
Zabba may be struggling because of too many games also. But whatever the reason, Sagna was on another level entirely today. Totally outclassed Zabba.
Perhaps he had something to prove contractually?
He didn't do himself any harm in getting a deal from either team with his performance there. His crossing has always been on another level to Zabba but he also caused problems in the air & put in a good shift defensively.
Zabba is really struggling due to the lack of cover from Micah imo. He has always been pretty useless in the oppo penalty area but this season he had made a big improvement under Von Krolock. Most of the time now, even if he's in 10 yards of free space in their box, he can't find a shot or cross or pass, just finds a way to fuck up the attack. He was much better earlier season.
That's down to mental as well as physical tiredness imo. He is running his balls off week in week out with no break. If Sagna had been playing for City yesterday, & put clean through like Zabba was on so many occasions, the game would have been over by half time. But perhaps it would have been the same if Zabba was upto full sharpness.
The Count spotted it though, mentioned the wasted positions. So we can expect he will be trying to fix that during the week.


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Escape from the Planet of the Apes
Once you can get past the absurdity of the set-up of Escape from the Planet of the Apes, the movie turns out to be the best of the sequels to the original brilliant sci-fi film Planet of the Apes. To recap, in that first film, an American astronaut, Taylor (Charlton Heston) traveled through space and returned to earth deep into the planet's future where apes ruled and humans were just stinky wild mutes. In the less exciting but still watchable first sequel, Beneath The Planet of Apes, another astronaut, Brent (James Franciscus) follows Taylor into the future as ape hostility towards man is growing. Brent and Taylor finally meet up in an underground city where humanoids worship an atom bomb. Eventually apes attack and a dying Heston sets off the bomb, destroying earth and seemingly putting an end to the franchise. But, like Rocky III, the third film found a fresh take on the story and turns out to have a lot of fun on its own terms.
In this one, to the shock of the world, three apes in space suits land on present-day Earth (a very groovy early 1970s) in Taylor's spacecraft. It turns out it's archaeologist Cornelius (Roddy McDowall) and his wife, animal (human) psychologist Zira (Kim Hunter), the two apes who risked their careers to help Taylor in the first film, along with the brilliant Dr. Milo (Rebel Without a Cause's Sal Mineo). (Okay, so get over the set-up.) The three apes somehow salvaged Taylor's ship from the bottom of a lake, managed to re-blast-off, and while watching the earth's destruction from the sky, were sent into a time warp back to modern day. Silly. But now the fun starts....Continue Reading


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NBC is pulling the drama series "Do No Harm" after two low-rated episodes.
The show is a take on the story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and stars Steven Pasquale of "Rescue Me." He plays a respected neurosurgeon who turns into a dangerous alter ego each night. Other cast members include Alana De La Garza and Phylicia Rashad.
"Do No Harm" started with a historically small audience for a major network debut and then dropped further in its second Thursday airing.
NBC will replace "Do No Harm" with reruns of "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" for the next two weeks.


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I'm proud to announce that an illustration depicting the physiological effects of cold-stunning in sea turtles, was recently awarded an honorable mention in the 2013 International Science and Engineering Visualization Challenge! The illustration, which was the result of a collaborative relationship between the National Aquarium and the Johns Hopkins Department of Art as Applied to Medicine, was drafted by student Katelyn McDonald.
The illustration depicts the physical and physiological (affecting the function of organs, tissues, and cells) effects of a cold stunning on sea turtles.
Sea turtles are cold-blooded, meaning their body temperature relies on the temperature of their environment. Cold-stunning is essentially hypothermia (low body temperature) for sea turtles. Cold-stunning events in the northeast region cause chronic illnesses for turtles, which must undergo months of rehabilitation. While the turtles may not appear sick externally, the illustration demonstrates the multitude of internal illnesses and complications that result from chronic low body temperature.
Founded in 1911, the Johns Hopkins Department of Art as Applied to Medicine was the first of its kind in the world. This intense two-year graduate program has trained medical illustrators to advance medical and scientific knowledge using illustration.
For more than 20 years, students from this program have worked with our Vice President of Biological Programs, Dr. Brent Whitaker, and staff as part of their training. The illustrations produced from this collaborative relationship have been published in books, journal articles, pamphlets, and training manuals and have been used for a variety of other purposes.
We're excited that Science Magazine and the National Science Foundation have chosen the cold-stun piece as an Honorable Mention for the 2013 Visualization Challenge. Congratulations to Katelyn on this tremendous accomplishment!


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Sandstone was a common building material during the early years of Washington, D.C., because it could be found locally in a government-owned quarry and was easy to cut to shape. Builders originally used sandstone for the exterior of the U.S. Capitol as well as for interior floors, walls and other elements. Because sandstone is a soft material, the exterior eventually wore down and most was either covered over or replaced with harder stone; the interior features remain visible.
Sandstone is a sedimentary stone formed by the consolidation of individual grains of sand, which are usually comprised of quartz or feldspar. The most common method of consolidation is the saturation of a sand bed by other materials, such as clay or calcite, but sometimes it results from pressure that develops as newer geological layers are deposited on the top of the bed. Sandstone can be found in a variety of colors, which are determined by its mineral composition; the most common are tan, brown, yellow, red, gray, green and white.
Sandstone has been used since prehistoric times to construct buildings ranging from homes to cathedrals. Its domestic and artistic uses include lamps, vessels, grindstones, statues and fountains. Different types vary in their hardness, but, in general, it is softer, and therefore much easier to quarry and shape, than many other stones. This characteristic also makes it vulnerable to erosion, and many sandstone formations around the world have been "sculpted" by wind and water into spectacular shapes. Unfortunately, the exterior surfaces of sandstone buildings and other objects are also soon affected by the same forces, and spalling (the breaking off of chips or slabs) is not uncommon.
The U.S. Capitol's builders knew that sandstone was not an ideal building material, but when construction began few alternatives were available in the new federal city. Sandstone from a newly acquired quarry in Aquia Creek, Virginia, was used for floors, walls, columns, and the exterior cladding of the building. By the time that the Capitol's House and Senate extensions were constructed in the mid-18th century, marble took the place of sandstone. For the mid-20th-century extension of the east central front, the sandstone façade was replicated in marble. The old walls were left in place to become a part of the interior wall; the exterior columns were removed and now stand at the National Arboretum.
During the 1980s, the U.S. Capitol's original sandstone west front was restored in a project that included replacing 40 percent of the sandstone with limestone. Today, the largest expanse of the building's original sandstone can be seen in the Rotunda walls, which support the cast-iron dome. The U.S. Capitol Visitor Center built in the 2000s has walls and columns faced in sandstone chosen for its resemblance to the Rotunda walls.


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John Keats
John Keats (31 October 1795 – 23 February 1821 / London, England)
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Sonnet Viii. To My Brothers
Small, busy flames play through the fresh laid coals,
And their faint cracklings o'er our silence creep
Like whispers of the household gods that keep
A gentle empire o'er fraternal souls.
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MANGAPURUA TRACK — To avoid panicking, I focused on maintaining my balance and freeing my legs, which had disappeared up to my knees in mud. I gripped the handlebars and tugged fiercely as my bike's rear wheel slipped toward an abrupt edge beyond which was a 200-foot drop to the meandering Mangapurua Stream. A limestone cliff, called Battleship Bluff, loomed overhead. One by one my fellow bikers and I attempted to walk our bikes across a fresh 20-foot-long mudslide, politely called a "slip" in this part of the world.
We were biking along the Mountains to Sea Trail on New Zealand's North Island, in an area so dense, hilly, and remote that the native Maori never bothered settling here. Giant tree ferns, moss-covered beech trees, supplejack vines, and towering rimu trees created walls of vegetation so thick we couldn't see a big valley or river until we were upon it.
The 200-mile trail starts on the slopes of a volcano, passes through two national parks (Tongariro and Whanganui), includes a jet-boat ride down a placid river, and ends at the Tasman Sea on the southwest coast. The trail has been designated one of the country's Great Rides, similar to its famous multiday Great Walks like the Milford Track or the nearby Tongariro Circuit, which takes hikers past alpine lakes, up volcanoes, and along the lip of a steaming crater (including Mount Ngauruhoe, which starred as Mount Doom in "The Lord of the Rings").
The Mountains to Sea route also forms part of Nga Haerenga, the New Zealand Cycle Trail, a new bike-path network that will eventually include 18 so-called Great Rides, mostly off-road trails stretching from Cape Reinga on the North Island's northernmost point to Bluff, the South Island's southernmost town. Once the cycle trail is completed, by the end of this year, bikers can explore more than 1,500 miles of paths that cut through some of the country's most stunning landscapes.
With our time limited, four of us signed up to do a 22-mile section that included the Mangapurua Track and the Bridge to Nowhere extension. The Mangapurua Track had only recently opened to mountain bikers when we tackled it in November, having until then served mainly as an access trail for hunters. Even our guide had only cycled it once before, and he approached it from the opposite direction.
Our group of New Zealanders and overseas visitors included mostly intermediate riders. I recommend having a significant amount of confidence on a mountain bike before attempting this challenging route. One woman in our group, a Kiwi, was a first-time mountain biker, but she was strong and athletic and ran a sheep and cattle station with her husband, so she understood the wild landscape and how to navigate it.
Our plan was to drive an hour south of National Park Village, the main "town" for the Tongariro and Whanganui parks, to a remote access point 19 miles down Ruatiti Road. This one-lane, twisting gravel road had treacherous drops and no guardrails, and was not designed for those with vertigo or motion issues. We would then bike 22 miles through the wilderness to a boat landing on the Whanganui River. Here, we would meet Richard, a local farmer who would whisk us by jet boat more than an hour up river to Blue Duck Station, a remote farm and conservation area where we would find hot showers, a home-cooked dinner, and cozy beds in our own private lodge. The trick: We had to meet Richard by 4 o'clock in order to make it back by dark; in these parts, you can't see a thing on the river at night.
The ride started with a one-hour uphill grind until we reached a sign marking the entrance to Whanganui, the country's newest national park, established in 1986. It was all downhill from there, as the trail cut through virgin rain forest and abandoned farmland that had been settled by returning servicemen after World War I. The government leased pieces of land to these men, nearly 40 in all, who set off with their backpacks and high hopes to make a go of it in the bush, building homes and farming the wild terrain. Most walked away within the first few years. By 1943, all had left.
We biked by old chimney stacks, fences, and hedges that stood as reminders of those hardy souls. Wooden markers listed the family name of each pioneer who had homesteaded there. We also passed a quarry and an old explosives cave near Mangapurua Trig, the trail's highest point at 2,175 feet. Take a short detour to this overlook on a clear day for dynamite views of Tongariro National Park (the country's first national park, established in 1887, and now a World Heritage area) to the east and the perfect cone-shaped volcano, Mount Taranaki, to the west.
Stewart Barclay, owner of Adrift Guided Outdoor Adventures and our guide that day, was right when he had warned us that, "It will be a dirty, slimy, slippery, mucky ride."
The area had just received 11 inches of rain in a few short days, so the rivers looked chocolate-brown from all the runoff, the trail disappeared under several inches of water in open fields, and we had mud caked on us from the eyelets on our soggy shoes to our eyelashes. The views of the waterfalls plunging off the hillsides, the limestone bluffs, and the stunning valleys were well worth the mess. Even the dozens of wooden bridges were fun to navigate.
The trail narrowed to singletrack and the landscape opened up as we made our way south, giving us sweeping views of the Mangapurua Valley, the stream a couple of hundred feet below and, one by one, the towering bluffs. With a healthy fear of heights, I was happy to learn it is required for bikers to dismount and walk several hundred feet along the limestone cliffs, because of the extremely narrow and, in some places, unstable ground. A fence and a sign at the start and end of each cliff let bikers know when to dismount and remount.
The path skirting the first couple of bluffs had dirt-packed surfaces and proved easy to cross. Even the dropoff to the river proved only moderately fear-inducing. Then we came upon the dramatic "slip" on Battleship Bluff.
If we retreated, we would face a 20-mile, mainly uphill ride back over rough, muddy terrain to reach the closest road, mostly in the dark. If we successfully traversed the slide, we would have less than a 2-mile ride down to the famous Bridge to Nowhere, a beautiful cement bridge built by the settlers that looked overly grand for its location, and the Whanganui River where Richard would be waiting for us.
My knees felt wobbly and tired, as my bike's back tire slid toward the trail's precarious edge. I managed to dislodge my left foot from the cement-like mud and take a step, using forward momentum to yank the bike's tire back up onto the trail. Each step took full-body effort, and staying upright while one foot or the other was sucked into the muck was not easy. I eventually tugged and lunged my way across the slide, dragging my bike dragging behind me like a resistant child. I waited for the last two bikers to follow. Safely across, we rolled down to the river.
Richard loaded our bikes onto his jet boat and delivered us to Blue Duck Station in Whakahoro, a settlement with a historic old farm from the Bridge to Nowhere era that still had authentic settlers' cabins on site.
That night, station owner Dan Steele and his wife, Sandy, served us a delicious goat curry, venison sausages, and quinoa salad, all made with ingredients fresh from their farm. Over dinner, we learned that Steele had bought a small patch of land here just six years earlier. He started farming the land, raising livestock, restoring the old cabins, and purchasing more land in the valley. He also developed a project to eradicate the area's nonnative pests, such as stoats and possums, so native species such as the endangered kiwis and blue ducks could survive and thrive.
By the time we met Steele, he owned 5,200 acres, had a successful sheep and cattle station, ran four lodges and a cafe, and had a crew of people working with him on his ambitious conservation project. He had taken a wild and neglected swath of land and turned it into a self-sustaining homestead and a thriving business.
This was a perfect way to end our epic biking adventure: enjoying a wonderful feast in a cozy lodge, and hanging out with a modern-day pioneer.
Kari Bodnarchuk can be reached at travelwriter@karib


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Succotash with a spicy kick - and vegan!
Preparation Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 30 mins
Yield: 8 x 1 cup servings
In a frying pan, sauté onion and garlic in olive oil until cooked. Put onion-garlic in 3-quart saucepan and cover with water; bring to a boil. Stir in lima beans, corn and celery; bring to a boil. Mix in thyme, parsley, seasoning and hot sauce. Reduce to low heat and simmer 5 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Can add bell pepper. Serve dish with good quality white rice.
If desired, accompany this dish with a glass of wine or beer. Follow the Cajun rule: drink the wine you like - red, white, whatever!
Serving suggestions are not included in the nutritional analysis.


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Picture of the Day: Tiffanie hand bra
Here's a great hand bra shot of Tiffanie as she shows off her impressive boobs as she's wearing only her lacy pink panties. There are tons of great shots of this curvy blonde model in her Bullz-Eye shoot as she's not shy about showing off her body!
You can follow us on Twitter and Facebook for content updates. Also, sign up for our email list for weekly updates and check us out on Google+ as well.
Tags: beautiful women, big boobs, big tits, Bullz-Eye original photography, curvy blonde model, daily babe, daily babe photo, daily model, daily photo, glamour models, hand bra, hot babes, hot chicks, hot models, model in lacy panties, model in pink panties, model in sexy panties, nice boobs, picture of the day, pretty women, sexy models, Tiffanie


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With the news of AO selling I've heard some pretty weird stories. Some of which came from some AO members, some came from either former members. I don't have the log, but one person said it was being shut down by the gocernment, somone else said The FBI told JP to shut it down, and I've heard that JP dosn't want to sell, someone is forcing him to. Here is what I think...
Jp is selling becasue of what JP told us. He want to do more research. Nothing else. Please don't make up stuff. Please might think it's true. I'd just like to put in my 0.02 before I go to bed.
PS, JP, good luck.


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Modern Geometric Place Cards
Laser cut wedding place cards
Modern Geometric Wedding Collection
Geometric pattern design place cards.
Modern Geometric Wedding Collection
Geometric pattern design place cards.
Please email or add a message with your order stating the initials you'd like to be cut the reverse of the place card. Along with your chosen card stock colour.
For sample orders please add up to six additional card colour swatches.
A-frame design, personalised with initials cut to the back.
Place cards delivered flat in same card colour. No glue required.
If adding ribbon to your order - this will be suplied by the roll (single colour choice) in 10mm double sided satin.
All our place cards are designed and made to order in our studio.
Please be advised that due to the intricate designs created by the laser cutting process, burn marks and slight variations will occur.
For a personalised price list or to set up a custom order, simply tell us your details and we'll get in touch with a quotation specific to your wedding.
We have a minimum order of ten for our personalised place cards, however specific quantities above this are more than welcome. If you'd like to request a custom order on the quantity or would like an amount larger than 100 please just drop us an email.
With over 90 colours available across three distinct card finishes, matching a scheme or creating your own style is effortless.
If you'd like a little assistance with coordinating colours please let us know and we'll pull together a swatch set based on your wedding colour palette.
Card stock thickness/weight and colours may vary depending on the finish and colour. Ranging between 240gsm and 300gsm.
As we custom make all our products, production times will vary based on the quantities.
Samples: Please allow up to 3 weeks
Orders: Approx 4 - 8 weeks
Please drop us an email if you need your order by a specific date and we will do our very best to accommodate.


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Recent article about Mario Lemieux being let go from hospital for atrial fib. It can happen to anyone. Now his heart muscle function is probably OK so aspirin anticoagulation might be OK, but man, those hockey fights would be IMPRESSIVE if he were on coumadin! :)
Our thoughts and prayers go out to him.
Thursday, December 08, 2005
Lemieux with Afib
2 comments:
- Andrea said...
How do I find a good cardiac doctor in Pittsburgh? I don't know where to start. I have an appointment today with one at UPMC but I don't have any faith in her. I have had A Fib for about 2 years and take beta blocker and I am on warfarin. I have had a lot of problems in the last few weeks and I would like to consult an another doctor.
- Fri Nov 02, 12:26:00 PM CDT
- DrWes said...
Consider going to the Heart Rhythm Society's Find a Doctor webpage and enter "Pittsburgh" for the city and "Pennsylvania" for the state fields. It will show their medical school training site with their numbers and addresses - most are members of HRS and likely Board Certified (although I'd check).
Hope this helps -
- Fri Nov 02, 02:17:00 PM CDT
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Holmes Reef is the closest Coral Sea Reef to Cairns and often visited on special expeditions to the Northern Coral Sea. The reef is actually split into two sections, known as East Holmes and West Holmes, and both have large lagoons with safe anchorages.
Walls and pinnacles are the big attraction at Holmes Reef, with both featuring great corals and marine life. Popular wall dives include Golden Wall, The Cathedral and The Abyss, with each of these sites having walls dropping into one kilometre of water. Decorating these walls are large soft corals and gorgonians, and patrolling the blue are pelagic fish, turtles, eagle rays and reef sharks.
Two giant pinnacles at Turbo and Nonki are also must dos at Holmes Reef, with these towers of coral rising from 35 metres. Each of these pinnacles is covered in beautiful soft corals and home to a great range of reef fish. Also common are reef sharks, schools of trevally and barracuda, stingrays, tawny nurse sharks and turtles.
Note: Information on listed products and services are provided by the operator and were correct at the time of publishing. Rates are indicative based on the minimum and maximum available prices of products and services. Please visit the operator's website for further information. All prices quoted are in Australian dollars (AUD).


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Whilst there are many DIY options to fix a holey clothing piece, UK based business Vintage-Patch offer an easy solution; iron on cotton print elbow, knee and other types of patches and appliques, ideal for adding an unusual accent to a remodelled garment or knitwear.
A clever, quick fix solution to holey clothes, or just to add a bit of interest to your boring pieces. Vintage-Patch patches are very easy to apply, simply iron on, although additional hand / machine stitching would be recommended for machine washable clothing.
Jnr RF has a pair of jeans that fit him so well, but, as with most 4yr old boys that climb and fall over, his jeans have finally given way at the knee.
I've used a Vintage-Patch skull and crossbones kid sized patch to iron onto the holey knee, and there we go, a pair of no-longer-holey jeans, with a funky new look.
The additional little star patch included in the pack, is just the right size to cover up the hole in my cardigan; the cardigan that started the holey clothing conversation!
With pretty floral ovals, heart patches and retro prints, in both child and adult sizing, there are many options to adorn a sweater elbow, jeans, or leggings knees.
I have three patch sets (one matching pair in a set) to giveaway to three Recycled Fashion readers.
To enter the competition, simply leave a comment below with your preference of colour, and where you'd apply your patch. Also pop on over to Vintage Patch on facebook to 'like' their page. The giveaway is open to worldwide readers, and will be live for two weeks. Winners will be drawn on Friday 30th November.
*UPDATE* Giveaway now over, winners announced here.


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New Arrivals
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PC gaming is in something of an odd period at the moment. The stagnation of consoles' graphical abilities and their investment in motion controlled tech (Kinect, Move) means that the PC has almost become a third wheel in the games market. Almost.
On the other hand, great things often grow from muddy waters. Take a look at the The Ball which uses the standard Unreal Engine 3 but does something genuinely interesting with it. Bethesda's Brink is based on the six-year-old Doom 3 engine, but still manages to look fresh and vibrant, because of extensive customisation and its distinctive art style.
New PC technology isn't going untapped, too, and there are plenty of games that take advantage of the latest hardware. DirectX 11 may not seem like the grand shift that was DirectX 9, but its incremental tessellated goodness makes games look a gazillion times better than they ever would on a console. And that's scientific fact.
There's also a big push to take advantage of those multiple cores in your PC, too, so you can finally justify spending £654 on a Core i7 Extreme Edition. We've focussed on new games and sequels in our list of titles to look out for in 2011, but there's also a whole host of expansion packs and DLCs coming our way.
Fallout: New Vegas' first DLC, Dead Money, is coming to the Xbox 360 first, but we're certain it'll find its way onto the PC soon. There's also the excellent-looking and supposedly final Dawn of War II expansion, Retribution.
2011 is set to feature some top PC games, and it looks like there's a big drive to make sure we don't miss out on any of the action thumb-twiddlers like to indulge in. Our games look better, too. Why do people buy consoles again?
Read on for our pick of the best PC games to play this year.
The Old Republic
Release date: Who knows?
Admittedly, we've had our doubts about The Old Republic. The seemingly interminable development cycle combined with unconfirmed reports that the budget's spiralling out of control had an air of the APB about it. As it stands at the moment, it's probably not going to be the disaster that Realtime World's folly was, and it could actually compete with – dare we say it – WoW.
Of course, BioWare isn't Realtime Worlds, and all its (space worm) eggs aren't in this (space) basket: it has Mass Effect and Dragon Age to fall back on.
The new PvE quest we played introduced the new Jedi classes, and we were given the choice between the pugnacious Ewan McGregor Obi-Wan, or the dignified Alec Guinness Obi-Wan. From here, we had to slaughter herds of Flesh Eaters, which are flabby terrestrial hammerheaded lunk types. It seems they're under the control of a rogue, unlicensed Jedi (apply to your local council).
It starts out MMO-ey enough, and the cartoony Clone Wars-style graphics are simplistic enough to make you believe this is less than an ageing engine. But it has a charm of its own, and we soon warmed to it, which is pretty critical.
We – understandably – couldn't get into the long game, but initial impressions are favourable. The only concern we have is combat, which feels just a tad disconnected with its number button mashing. Otherwise, though, the force is strong in this one.
Dragon Age 2
Release date: Quarter 1 2011
Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk, those lovable chaps from Bioware, seem to spend most of their lives somewhere above the Atlantic. They've just made yet another trip across the pond to promote Dragon Age II, the sequel to last year's RPG blockbuster, but they don't seem to be suffering from any form of jetlag. They must have invested in some pretty decent power-ups.
One of Dragon Age's biggest boons for PC gamers was that, despite console co-development, it looked and felt like a proper, fullblown PC game.
Dragon Age II looks set to continue Bioware's dedication to the platform: "We had to make some changes in the way the camera works and the interface," says Muzyka. "But in every one of our games we always strive to make a sort of handcrafted approach to the interface design, so each one is designed from the ground up to work ideally on that platform. That's what we're striving for. So, we're co-developing on the different platforms, trying to optimise it for the mouse and keyboard so people can enjoy it more on PC."
Dragon Age II starts in parallel with Origins, beginning about a third before the end of the original. It sees you take the role of Hawke, a human character who finds himself caught up in the DarkSpawn's continuing crusade. From what we played so far, it's shaping up to be every bit as involving and mature as its progenitor, and might even better it.
Bullet Storm
Release date: Quarter 1 2011
Last year's Just Cause 2 with it's huge Southeast Asia open world proved that games can still have a lot of fun and not get bogged down in violent pontification.
Bulletstorm looks set to continue the trend; like Just Cause 2, it provides combat fun in the form of a short length of rope which can tether people and fling them through the air. Who would have thought that the simple addition of a length of technological whip-like material could make games so much fun.
Unlike Just Cause 2, Bulletstorm is a far more linear experience, powered by ye olde Unreal Engine 3, and overseen by Epic's Design Director, Cliff Bleszinski. As a result, it's a step – okay, more of a slight ledge – above your standard Unreal fare. But it's a stupid amount of amusement, too.
Enemies just seem to be waiting to be skewered, or decapitated, or gibbed, in a variety of amusing ways. You can pull them out of helicopters and kick them onto rather vicious cacti. You can wrap a pair of grenades around their necks and explode their noggins.
There's no jumping, and no crouching in this game, although the player character can perform momentum-defying power-slides. Thankfully, there's also no stupid sticky cover system too.
The Xbox 360 build we played was graphically competent and easy to get to grips with, but it's a game that we believe is likely to prove just as at home on the PC as on the consoles. It's also being developed by Painkiller's People Can Fly, so it already has a high pedigree of mentalism and FPS nouse.
Crysis 2
Release date: Quarter 1 2011
As it stands, Crysis 2 is in something of a weird position. Its prequel shook up PC gaming, and probably made enough money to line developer Crytek's pockets for the next few millennia. But Crytek needed more Euros to make more astonishing games engines, and decided to release Crysis 2 on the PC and consoles.
Despite our initial jaw-dropping reaction to Crysis 2 on consoles, the multiplayer Xbox 360 build didn't actually look all that good. In fact Crysis – which has just celebrated its third birthday – looks better.
It's not necessarily Crytek's fault: the limited hardware of the 360 resulted in a apparent lack of anti-aliasing, and the intensely detailed levels simply became busy, jagged messes. The multiplayer gameplay was also generic as hell, a team-based affair differentiated only by the fact that you could jump quite high, and go invisible from time to time.
No one bought Crysis to actually play the game, though. PC gamers bought it to push their rigs as far and hard as they could, to justify the £400 they just spent on a new graphics card. We've yet to see the PC build, but a number of co-developed console games (Just Cause 2, AvP, Lost Planet 2) have actually proved to be rather punishing to our desktops. Here's hoping Crysis 2 pushes it just that little further.
Shift 2
Release date: Quarter 2011 sometime
"According to professional drivers, night driving is scary as F**K," says Marcus Nillson, senior producer at DICE.
Need for Speed: Shift 2 is also scary as f**k, going for much-needed realism in a series that so far is defined by slightly cartoony and chavtastic motoring. The (ignition) key to playing Shift 2 is to get out of the floaty third-person perspective and seat yourself firmly in the cockpit.
Here, it's a different game, every bit as stomach churning as being behind the wheel in a real race. Your vision is permanently letterboxed by the claustrophobic confines of your helmet, and the dashboard shines when the headlights of a pursuer hit it.
It's a game where you can't afford to make mistakes. Accidentally ram a barrier on the first corner and your bonnet juts up, obscuring your vision of your opponents and the track. It's frantic, terrifying stuff, and a nice move for the franchise.
The presence of Nillson, who has established himself on DICE's Battlefield series make sense, too, and hopefully his understanding of tense online battles will shine through in Shift 2's multiplayer. Our only slight concern is a lack of support for the Track IR head movement gizmo, which is surely designed for games like this.
Dead Space 2
Release date: Quarter 2 2011
One thing sorely missed in Dead Space's vacuous setting was multiplayer. This time around a team-based multiplayer element has been added and in true Left 4 Dead style, you get to play as humans or hideous necromorphs. The humans have weapons, the monsters have unique attacks.
Play as The Pack, for example, and you're a hideous baby thing able to pounce on humans and chomp away. The necromorphs also have a unique X-ray sight system, whereby they can see the human's nerves and eyeballs as they panic. The biggest problem is Dead Space's slightly clunky, slow controls remain; particularly when playing as a human.
The controls were fine in the claustrophobic confines of the USG Ishimura, where a slow-turning speed meant you couldn't quickly respond to an enemy attack. But in multiplayer, it feels awkward and clumsy. Admittedly, we played the PS3 build; hopefully mouse and keyboard will make the multiplayer a must-play.


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Monday, June 01, 2020
This is the personal image gallery of Michael Hills
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See on Scoop.it – Aspiring Outliers
Today, businesses define social media marketing in many different ways. Some businesses see it as an extension of offline and online advertising.
Others use social media as a way to interact with current customers. But no matter how your business uses social media, there is one thing you should remember: social media is a place to be social.
If your business has a presence on social media, but is not actively communicating with consumers, you could be missing out on reaching potential customers and boosting customer loyalty with those who already follow you on social media. This infographic illustrates 21 social media marketing tips your business should remember in order to get the most out of your social media efforts, and give the most to your fans and followers…
See on www.business2community.com


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STRAFFORD — Area students recently received a powerful message about bullying and the irreversible consequences it can have.
"Anti Bullying Day," which was held at Strafford School, highlighted an increasingly important national issue in an era of computers and smart phones — the cyber bully. The event helped to educate victims, bystanders, parents, bullies and school personnel about the serious psychological impacts of bullying, as well as what can be done about it.
John Halligan, whose 13-year old son Ryan committed suicide in 2003 after years of tormenting at school and online, spoke to students. Halligan gave up a 23-year career at IBM to travel internationally and speak on the subject. He has visited over 750 schools throughout the U.S., Mexico, Latin America, Canada and Columbia.
"I lost count of how many kids have contacted me (after seeing the presentation)," Halligan said.
One of the students who contacted him, according to Halligan, was a suicidal girl who decided not to follow through on her thoughts after learning of Ryan's Story.
Strafford Guidance Counselor Rick Kaufman noted that the presentation and associated discussions were aimed at older students due to the serious nature of the subject.
"John has made it his mission to tell this story again and again and again, with the hope that kids will come to realize the possible tragic consequences that can occur from cumulative bullying behavior," Kaufman said. "He presents the story of what happened (to his son) in a way that really draws the kids in …. Even kids who are often goof-offs pay attention."
For an hour and a half, Halligan presented "Ryan's Story," to more than 300 students, including Strafford, Northwood and Nottingham sixth to eighth graders and Coe Brown students as well.
Along with photos and home movies, Halligan told the story of Ryan's life and the factors that led up to his son's suicide. Ryan, who received special education when he was younger, eventually began to study on grade level, but he wasn't as strong academically as most of his classmates. In fifth grade, the bullying started to become a problem. By eighth grade, Ryan had endured years of taunting, both at school and online. The bullying, combined with depression, drove the 13-year old to take his own life.
Halligan's program, which included a question and answer period for the students, offered solutions to help prevent further teen suicide, including encouragement for bystanders to get involved.
Following the assembly, members of Strafford School's "Kids Against Bullying" group, as well as visiting students took part in a workshop with Halligan and Kaufman.
"I think at this age, you take your parents' love for granted," Halligan told the group. "Don't ever underestimate the love they have for you, and your brothers and sisters."
"That was what sent me over the edge of crying," said Amy Duderewicz, a senior at Coe Brown. "That we were loved."
Halligan spoke of recent laws that allow school officials to get involved in cases of cyberbullying, that weren't present when his son committed suicide. Halligan was a driving force behind a 2004 bullying prevention law being passed in Vermont, where his family lived at the time.
"It can happen to anybody," Kyle Stevens, a Coe Brown junior, said of Ryan Halligan's bullying and eventual suicide. "It's weird to think about someone you know, it happening to them."
Halligan admitted that he and his wife missed signs of their son's problems.
"We were in denial that he would ever harm himself," he said. "We're hoping to help adults to be more informed."
Halligan noted that cyber bullying is far different from what most adults remember from childhood. With the advent of websites like YouTube, bullying incidents have the potential to be seen for years by millions of people, wreaking unimaginable torment on the victims. The Internet also allows a degree of anonymity, making it easier to bully someone without having to stare that person in the face.
"I think it's insane to let very young kids onto Facebook," Halligan said. "I regret not looking."
Strafford students in "Kids Against Bullying," showed Halligan a video they had made called "Bystanders Can Make a Difference." The short movie recently won second place an the international competition put on by "HeyUgly." The $100 prize money was used to purchase black "Ryan's Story Wristbands," handed out during Bullying Day. Halligan made a link to the video on his website, www.ryanpatrickhalligan.org.
Strafford School hosted Halligan for an evening adult seminar. He outlined ways for parents and school staff to help prevent cases from escalating to the severity his family experienced.
Halligan and Ryan's Story have been featured on popular shows including: CBS Early Morning Show, CNN's Anderson Cooper 360, Good Morning America, BBC World Radio, PrimeTime with Diane Sawyer, PBS Frontline, and The Oprah Winfrey Show.
"It has been therapeutic to give (Ryan's) life more meaning," Halligan said.


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San Diego Mayor Bob Filner raised eyebrows on Friday when, instead of announcing his resignation, he told the press that he will check himself in for two weeks of intensive therapy amid allegations of inappropriate workplace behavior.
Filner, however, is not the first politician whose clumsy mea culpa made headlines in recent history. He is currently in good company with New York City mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner, who is on the other side of the country trying to sidestep his own sex scandal. Weiner confessed to sexting more women after he resigned from Congress in 2011.
Here is a look back at other awkward press conferences by politicians embroiled in sex scandals:
U.S. & World
Weinergate Part 1
Anthony Weiner's first sexting scandal began in May 2011 when, during his tenure in Congress, he sent a sexually suggestive photo to a woman through Twitter. Although the embattled politician eventually confessed to his bad behavior, he at first denied that he posted the photo and blamed the tweet on hackers.
Larry Craig
The former Senator from Idaho was arrested on June 11, 2007 for lewd behavior after he solicited sexual activity from an undercover police officer at a Minnesota airport restroom. At the press conference following his guilty plea, he gave an awkward and robotic speech where he said he regretted his confession. "I am not gay. I never have been gay," he said. "In June, I overreacted and made a poor decision. I chose to plead guilty to a lesser charge in hopes of making it go away."
Jim McGreevey
The former New Jersey state senator outted himself and resigned on August 12, 2004 amid threats of a sexual harassment lawsuit from his gubernatorial campaign aide Golan Cipel. "I am a gay American," McGreevey said at the news event. He also confessed that he had "engaged in an adult consensual affair with another man," who many suspected was Cipel.
Mark Sanford
The former South Carolina governor admitted in a news conference in June 2009 that he had an extramarital affair with a woman in Argentina after his whereabouts became the source of national attention. During his disappearance, one of his aides said he was hiking on the Appalachian Trail. The news conference began rather oddly with Sanford talking on about his "love for the Appalachian Trail" and his need to get away from the public eye. After rambling on for several minutes, he issued apologies to his family and staff for his indiscretion and lies.
Bill Clinton
After the story broke that Bill Clinton had engaged in an affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky, the former president attempted to squash the scandal by speaking out about it at a press conference about -- of all topics -- his education initiatives. His adamant denial became one of the most well-known soundbites in his presidency. "I did not have sexual relations with that women," Clinton said.


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Make FastPass+ selections at popular attractions, such as Dumbo the Flying Elephant, as early as 30 days before you arrive.
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The Welsch sisters, 10 and 12, are controversial endurance all stars
Kaytlynn Welsch is 12 years old. Her sister, Heather, is 10. They are both very, very fast, and they like to run very long distances. That in itself is enough to send many fellow endurance athletes into a lather.
As it turns out, a number of people are very upset that the Welsch sisters are allowed to compete in endurance events, for fear that doing so is damaging their young bodies and their prospects for future success. As reported in this terrific feature by the New York Times, the Welsch sisters combined have competed in more than 160 endurance races in less than two years. At the same time, the sisters have maintained high grades in school, with both seventh-grader Kaytlynn and fifth-grader Heather required to keep at least a 93 average in all subjects to continue their racing pursuits.
Continuing racing is certainly something the Alvin, Texas, natives want to do, and winning has become almost as much a part of their routine as lining up at the starting line. In August, Kaytlynn won the women's division of a grueling 13-mile XTerra cross country race in Waco, Texas. Her sister finished third.
Those honors were the start of an athletic controversy that has festered ever since, with detractors finding fault with the Welsch parents for pushing their daughters to complete daunting events at such a young age. Both sisters have excelled in triathlons, distance bike rides and particularly in long running events, where they both prefer trail races because of the variety in the scenery. In the months since winning in Waco, Kaytlynn also completed the Houston Marathon, her first 26.2-mile pursuit.
For Kaytlynn, running provides more than fitness in a form that is seemingly more safe for a 4-foot-7 middle schooler than a contact sport like soccer or basketball.
"For some reason, running is really fun, even though it hurts sometimes," Kaytlynn told the Times. "I enjoy it. I can go on and on without getting tired. It makes a purpose in my life."
Still, many runners have expressed concern about the Welsch sisters' long-term health, even if their personal doctors have yet to sound any alarm about their endurance participation. Other doctors have also given the sisters' participation approval, even if it is a more tepid variety.
"In general, kids should stick to kids distances and then race at adult distances when they are adults," Dr. Douglas Hiller, who has been the chief medical officer for the triathlon at the Olympics, told the Times. "[The distances run by the Welsches] sounds excessive. But if these kids feel it's a mission to do this and they aren't having adverse effects, I guess it's OK."
If they stay healthy, the sky could be the limit for both sisters, provided they remain interested in endurance sports. So far their parents claim that the girls can quit whenever they want, though there would be some concern about Kaytlynn walking away for fear of wasting a fantastic talent, as her father, Rodney Welsch, told the Times.
If the girls wanted to quit, "that'd be O.K.," Niki Welsch said without hesitation.
Rodney did not seem so sure. "Kaytlynn has too much talent to quit," he said. Besides, the girls say one thing one day and another thing the next.
"Kaytlynn said she wanted to quit the triathlon, and I said, 'You're not quitting, you need to stay with it,' " Rodney recalled. "Two months later, after she gets a new bike, she says, 'I love the triathlon now.' "
Want more on the best stories in high school sports? Visit RivalsHigh or connect with Prep Rally on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
More sports news from the Yahoo! Sports Minute:
Other popular content on the Yahoo! network:
• Imposter's elaborate prep football identity scam
• Fourteen-year-old golfer changes face of the Masters
• Y! News: Dog owners re-create photos with their pets years later


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I can't help but laugh when he's called out...he always snaps and calls me names, as if I'M in the wrong for keeping my cool and not freaking out like a twelve year old girl on her period when things get a little dicey. "*** clown, little bitch with blinders, yada, yada, yada".
Good stuff!


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Remarks by Angel Gurría, OECD Secretary-General, delivered at Salzburg Global Seminar, the Volcker Alliance
23 September 2013, Salzburg, Austria
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is a great pleasure to participate in the Salzburg Global Seminar, dedicated to: "Restoring the Public's Trust by Delivering on Public Policy Goals." Congratulations to the Volcker Alliance for organising this event.
Public trust is one of the most precious assets that a country can have; it is the cornerstone of effective governance, the main ingredient to promote economic growth and social progress. Like never before, our countries are running dry of this precious asset. Like never before, our citizens have doubts about their government's capacities to make the right decisions. And like never before, we need to take the necessary measures to recover that confidence. This is why this meeting is so important.
A Crisis of Trust
The global financial and economic crisis has had a terrible impact on public trust in governments. Indeed, it highlighted serious governance and regulatory failures, limited enforcement, revolving doors, regulatory capture, plain corruption and conflict of interest. This feeling of mistrust is heightened by concerns about fairness in fiscal consolidation and in the sacrifices required for structural adjustment. This has resulted in plummeting levels of trust in governments.
According to Gallup World Poll, the average confidence in national government in OECD countries stood at 40% in 2012 (down from 45% in 2007). This means that the majority of the population in OECD countries doesn't trust governments. And we need to understand the historic importance of this failure.
These numbers are not just a statistical variation or temporary slump. I think these numbers reveal a major fracture in our social contract, to such an extent that it questions, in the mind of an increasing number of people, the legitimacy of the authority of the State over individuals. This is the size of this risk. And this is why we need a major policy debate on rebuilding trust.
Without trust in government no policy, no reform, will be ambitious or effective enough to reactivate our economies and leave the crisis behind. Rebuilding trust has become strategic for the global recovery but, even worse, for the viability of the State.
This is why we think that a quick fix won't do. Governments need to think big. What our nations need is a national Strategy for Trust! At the OECD we believe this is possible and urgent. And we recommend that any such Strategy for Trust should be built on three strong pillars: integrity, transparency and engagement.
The First Pillar: Integrity
Integrity is key to restoring trust. There is a high number of citizens who believe that corruption in government is widespread: it's three-quarters of the population in the US, and almost 90% in Italy, Greece, and Portugal. The distrust between citizens and the political process is also alarming. According to the 2011 Transparency International Europe Barometer, almost 50% of respondents view their political parties as corrupt or extremely corrupt.
At the OECD, we help countries to strengthen trust in the policy making process by turning knowledge into guidelines and principles in high-risk areas. These include for instance, public procurement, which accounts for 13% of GDP on average in OECD countries. It also includes lobbying: spending on this more than doubled over the past 15 years, increasing from USD 1.44 billion to USD 3.30 billion.
It is also about time to attack the problem of political finance regulation! Many OECD countries have national regulations in place to promote fair competition between political parties and/or candidates by balancing sources of funding, introducing bans and limits on certain types of donations, and introducing reporting and transparency requirements. But our data suggests that we are far from solving the problem of what I call "financing democracy" – in practice the measures are not proving effective: in the past years we have seen major political figures trashed in disgrace due to bad practices in this domain; electoral campaigns have taken over the steering wheel of democracy, confusing the means with the end.
The Second Pillar: Transparency
Transparency is crucial across so many domains, including for budget and tax transparency. Citizens want to know how their money is being spent. This is only fair. Governments must be held accountable for their budget spending in a transparent and comprehensible way. This means publishing and communicating easily digestible budget data.
Transparency of the tax system is critical to building trust in policies and policy outcomes. Our societies want to feel that they are paying a "fair share" of the tax bill. In today's world – wrong or right – there is a perceived unfairness of tax policy outcomes, which needs to be tackled to build back trust.
For example, there is a growing realisation that multinational enterprises (MNEs) are getting out of paying what they owe by shifting profits to locations with favourable tax treatment. Base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) constitutes a serious risk to tax fairness, tax sovereignty and tax revenues for countries around the globe. The OECD is partnering with the G20 to lead the charge on tackling BEPS through the OECD/G20 BEPS Action Plan, which puts forth 15 ambitious actions that should result in fundamental changes to international tax rules. There is also a G20/OECD sponsored move towards automatic exchanges of information on taxes, eventually involving all relevant countries and jurisdictions to fight against tax avoidance by individuals. "Nowhere to hide" is the goal.
Our regulatory and supervisory structures have failed us in many important ways. This is resulting in a degradation of the idea of the State as that strong institutional framework that guaranteed our safety, our prosperity, our right to succeed, through a system of checks and balances inspired in a crucial principle: accountability. Our governments now need to make a major effort to restore this certainty and with it the respectability, the credibility, of the State. The OECD is supporting these efforts, with different tools: like our recently updated Principles on Regulatory Quality, the OECD Working Group on Bribery; the Annual High-Level Anticorruption Conference for G20 Governments and Business; and the CleanGovBiz Initiative, to name but a few.
The Third Pillar: Engagement
Finally, the third strong pillar is Engagement. What do we mean? Well, that we need to get serious about Open Government as an interactive process that promotes inclusive and responsive policy making through real engagement with citizens. Trust is not only about tackling corruption and putting government data on websites, it is also about giving citizens a voice in the process, and ensuring that public services are well adapted to people's needs. I'm talking about recovering faith in democracy as an effective system to improve our lives.
Like never before, our governments have access to a myriad of techniques and tools to involve people in governmental action. The OECD Observatory of Public Sector Innovation is gathering examples of good practice from across the globe to support governments in identifying innovative ways to deliver public services and reach out to communities. Australia, for example, has launched the Next Step online community to better assist parents going back to work after years out of the workforce. Small steps like these go a long way in promoting public engagement and rebuilding trust.
These are the three pillars of our proposal for a Strategy for Trust. If governments implement measures to make progress on these three objectives they will gradually start rebuilding the confidence that makes our economies work, our societies progress and our dreams grow.
Ladies and Gentlemen:
"Our distrust is very expensive". May these words of Ralph Waldo Emerson serve as a warning. Because there is too much at stake in this crisis of trust. Our lack of trust in public policy has huge economic and social costs because it is delaying our own recovery, postponing job creation, scaring investments away. But beyond these important economic implications, there lies a bigger risk: the degradation of our confidence on the State as a moral entity; our lack of enthusiasm for the political system that we have built throughout hundreds of years of Western civilisation: It is democracy itself that is at stake.
I am sure that this Seminar can make a valuable contribution to rebuild trust in governments and public policies. The OECD stands ready to keep collaborating with the Volker Alliance in this and other future endeavours.
Thank you very much.
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ISOBUS Task Controller function connects Farm Management systems
The EASY on-board app now offers the TC BAS documentation function with any AEF-certified field maps. Job data are exchanged by email in ISO-XML file format. So now a scheduled job file can be imported into the app or a completed order exported to the Farm Management system for further processing. The TC BAS function in the EASY on-board app is AEF-certified, which means that it is compatible with any AEF-certified Farm Management software. Compatibility can be checked in the AEF ISOBUS database (www.aef-isobus-database.org).
Convenient documentation with 365FarmNet
An extended range of functions is available when the EASY on-board app is linked to 365FarmNet. Data are exchanged directly via the Internet, eliminating the need to send email attachments. This makes it possible to create jobs in 365FarmNet, then access and process them in the app. Alternatively, new jobs can be created, processed and saved in the app, then viewed in 365FarmNet. So less time is spent on documentation and it can be done straight from the machine.


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Manual of woody landscape plants: their identification, ornamental characteristics, culture, propagation and uses
Stipes Pub., Aug 1, 2009 - Gardening - 1325 pages
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LibraryThing ReviewUser Review - janetaileen - LibraryThing
As a horticulturist, this is my bible. The first place I go to find information about any woody landscape plant...which variety to use, exposure, culture, growth habit, size, possible diseases, etc. My treasured copy has been used for years and was signed by Michael Dirr after a hort lecture. Read full review
Manual of Woody Landscape PlantsUser Review - phllgstr - Overstock.com
This is a must book for anyone serious about trees & bushes. The information is on a college levelextremely detailed. Line drawings of leavesno pictures. An invaluable tool. Read full review
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Manual of Woody Landscape Plants: Their Identification, Ornamental ..., Part 4
Michael Dirr,Bonnie Dirr
No preview available - 2009
Common terms and phrases
Acer acuminate ADDITIONAL NOTES Arnold Arboretum Athens bark beautiful beneath Botanical Garden bracts branches bright brown BUDS China clone cold hardy compact corymbs Cotoneaster cultivars cultivation CULTURE cuneate cuttings dark green foliage dark green leaves dense develop diameter DISEASES AND INSECTS drupe early evergreen fall color flowers fragrant full sun Georgia trials germination glabrous green in summer growing growth habit HABITAT handsome high and wide Hillier hybrid Hydrangea inflorescences Introduced JC Raulston Arboretum LANDSCAPE VALUE late LEAF COLOR leaflets lenticels listed lobes lustrous dark green male Maple margins maturity medium Minnesota Landscape Arboretum moist Morton Arboretum NATIVE HABITAT Nursery introduction obovate observed orange ovate panicles petals pink plant PROPAGATION pruning pubescent racemes red fall color red fruits reddish purple root rounded seed seedlings seen selection sepals serrate shoots shrub small tree soil specimen spreading spring stems TEXTURE tolerant transplanted upright variegated vigorous well-drained white flowers winter Zone


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My first visit to the United Nations turned out to be a memorable one. It was the location of the 2014 Social Innovation Summit along with the JP Morgan Chase Building. The Summit represented the convergence of corporations, nonprofits, and the philanthropic community coming together to bring about social change while addressing some of the world's most complex, yet basic issues. It truly represented the endless possibilities and results of when Business Innovation meets Social Transformation.
Over 500 participants from around the world met for two days in New York City to network and share ideas to drive innovation and garner the necessary funding to execute critical programs. There were some amazing ideas discussed, but here are a few that I would like to highlight.
The Science of Philanthropy – This further confirmed my belief that nonprofit organizations (NGOs) that understand and use data to drive their fundraising activities are, and will continue to be, the most successful ones. Countless examples were given how organizations used data to understand and appropriately cultivate the "right" potential donors. Many organizations waste a lot of time and resources cultivating the "wrong" potential donors only to end in disappointment for all involved. Also, it is key to find the right balance between the art and the science of fundraising. Numbers often do not tell the whole story. Remember the human factor. People are very passionate about "their" cause. They give from the heart and not the head. Another point made was that smaller NGOs should collaborate to achieve scale. Often groups may be more successful in obtaining funding because of the greater impact of the collective. Obviously, there must be mission alignment.
Reviving a Community One Brownie at a Time – The story of Greyston and the impact that this company is having on the community of Yonkers, NY, was beyond inspirational. The notion that a for profit company using nonprofit ideals to bring about social change and strengthen families and communities provides a blueprint for success that should strongly be considered by others. Greyston, known for their wonderful brownies, uses an Open Hiring Policy. You do not need a resume, application, pass a background check, or any other traditional hiring prerequisites. Simply show up, put your name on a list and complete an internal training program. This policy has resulted in over 50% of the workforce being former inmates. The impact this has had on their lives and the community is immeasurable. Dion Drew, lead operator and former inmate himself, talk openly about the impact on his life they Greyston has had. Working meant being able to provide for his family and decreasing significantly the likelihood that he and others like him would return to a life of crime. The community is stronger and Greyston's profits are soaring.
(At right, MedShare CEO Charles Redding with Make A Stand Lemon-Aid's founder Vivienne Harr.)
Life Is A Fleeting Story, Tell It – It is difficult to explain the feeling that came over me as I listen to Vivienne Harr, a 10 year-old San Francisco Bay Area girl who took a stand when she was 8 years old to free 500 kids from slavery by selling lemonade for 365 days. This meant that she would have to raise $100,000. What started as an idea to address an issue is now an official social purpose corporation. Her company, Make A Stand Lemon-Aid, gives half its profits to antislavery organizations. The key breakthrough for her and the ability to reach her goal was when she removed the price and asked people to give from the heart. This and many other successful stories follow a distinct flow – People, Places, Plot, and Purpose.
- People – the fact that an 8 year-old girl wanted to help other children is what captured the attention of people willing to listen and then help.
- Places – knowing that the issue was global (including the U.S.) resonated with a very wide group of people. The issue was real. "It was in my backyard."
- Plot – Children, slavery, say no more. Kids being sold into slavery and forced to carry rocks and perform other atrocious acts, pierces the heart of anyone with a soul.
- Purpose – Finally, the reason for doing this – raise $100,000 to free 500 kids from slavery. The impact of doing this is much greater after you understand more about the People involved, the Places that this is occurring, and the current situation.
Many nonprofits are so proud of their mission that they do not take the time to "tell the story." Who are the people that are impacted? Where are they located? What is the current situation and how can we help? Thank you, Vivienne for Making A Stand. I was able to get a photo with Vivienne and the book, Make a Stand, chronicling her journey. I highly recommend it to anyone that has ever asked the question, "Why not?"
These are a few of the fascinating topics discussed, which included everything from genome sequencing to address health and environmental issues to using gaming methodology to teach young, at-risk kids how to solve complex linear equations.
The conference closed with a very inspirational story of how Victor Cruz, wide-receiver for the New York Giants, overcame personal tragedies and setbacks to rise to the top of his game. He now gives back to the community, especially the Boys and Girls Clubs, to ensure greater opportunities and positive outcomes for youth. Actress Jessica Alba shared her passion for starting her company, Honest Company, which focuses on making amazing products without harming people or the planet. She also gives a significant amount of her products and profits to those in need. There are so many companies that understand that it is okay to do well and to do good.
Companies present included Microsoft, Google, HP, Intel, JP Morgan Chase, and Panera Bread. My sincere thank you to Ashley Lenz and Henry Schein for inviting me to represent MedShare at such a thought-provoking, solution-minded event. The networking opportunities were incredible. I am energized and my resolve renewed. MedShare can and will be a driving force in strengthening communities locally and globally. If an 8 year-old girl can make a stand, what will MedShare and other like-minded organizations do?


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Claire Fitts Georges
Claire Fitts Georges is the owner of Butterfly Bakery of Vermont, a mom of two wee ones, and a recipe developer in Montpelier. Her popular hot sauce line includes Maple Wood Smoked Onion, a star on Season 7 of the food show "The Hot Ones".
Set the Table with Local Meat for a Crowd
Claire Fitts Georges | August 19, 2013 | Fall '13 | Issue twenty-six
When you're committed to eating humanely raised, local meat and you're getting some friends together for some good eats, chances are you're not going to throw 15 $20 steaks on your backyard barbecue. We all might like to pretend that we just won the lottery, but it's no easy feat to blow a whole paycheck serving humane, sustainable food to our nearest and dearest.
Set the Table with Garlic Scapes
Claire Fitts Georges | July 03, 2013 | Set the Table
Garlic scapes are one of those totally edible and delicious things that most people don't even know exist. Every spring, hardneck varieties of garlic (having overwintered but not ready to harvest until July) send up a curlycue stem with a bulbil up top. The bulbil is sort of a mini bulb that can grow new garlic in a couple years or just be eaten like garlic right now.
- Time: 20 minutes prep; 20 bake minutes
- Complexity: medium
Garlic Scape Meatballs
I have made many variations on the meatball theme, of which this is one of my favorites. Original recipe by Claire Fitts.
- Time: 20 minutes prep
- Complexity: easy
Mustard Butter
Use this butter as a bread spread, in potato dishes, on fish, or in any savory butter place. Original recipe by Claire Fitts.
- Time: 20 minutes prep; 2 hours rise
- Complexity: medium
Garlic Scape English Muffins
When toasted these muffins fill the kitchen with a lovely mellow garlic scent. Original recipe by Claire Fitts.
- Time: 10 minutes prep
- Complexity: very easy
Scape Sauce
My favorite use for large quantities of scapes is scape sauce. This is just like hot sauce, but with all of the flavor and none of the heat. The vinegar means that this keeps for ages, so you can mason jar this goodness and use it all winter. I love to put it on my eggs, in my potato salad, in salad dressing, or just anywhere I would put hot sauce. Original recipe by Claire Fitts.
- Time: 30 minutes prep; 25 minutes to bake
- Complexity: medium
Blue Cheese Jalapeño Cornmeal Scone
The first recipe I wanted to work on was a cornmeal scone. The scone I make at Butterfly Bakery is made with rough-cut rolled oats and I always thought that cornmeal would work well in its stead.
The Development of a Recipe
and a Recipe Developer
Claire Fitts Georges | April 10, 2013 | Summer '12 | Issue twenty-one
When I entered college I planned on being a computer programmer, but by the time graduation rolled around, plans had changed. My baking hobby was fast becoming a professional interest, and while it might not seem like a clear path from computer science and applied math major to choosing a career in baking and recipe development, both interests make good use of my logical brain that likes to play. I spent a couple of years working in other kitchens before I got the nerve to start Butterfly Bakery of Vermont, and I love the repetitive day in, day out of the wholesale baking gig. But my recipe development gives me some room to play without having to create and maintain whole new product lines for stores.
Set the Table with Maple Mixed Drinks
Claire Fitts Georges | April 03, 2013 | Set the Table
- Time: 30 minutes prep
- Complexity: medium
Hot Fennel Potato Salad
- Time: 30 minutes prep; 30 minutes to cook
- Complexity: medium
Fennel Onion Soup
Truth is, there are few savory dishes that wouldn't improve with the right part of the fennel plant added at the right stage.
- Time: 5 minutes prep
- Complexity: easy
Fennel Frond Miso Salad Dressing
Here's a delightfull recipe for salad dressing. Have fun and experiment and you'll surely create something delicious.
- Time: 30 minutes prep; 60 minutes to bake
- Complexity: medium
Fennel Bread
- Time: 30 minutes prep; 60 minutes to bake
- Complexity: medium
Maple, Ginger, and Peach Cake
For those astute vegan observers who noticed that the cake is vegan and the frosting is not, I would recommend a sweet potato frosting.
Set the Table with Fennel
Claire Fitts Georges | June 01, 2012 | Spring '12 | Issue twenty
One of my favorite things about fennel is how there are so many different edible parts of the plant and how tasty they all seem to be. The bulb is what most folks think of when they think of cooking with fennel, but the seeds (which, interestingly, aren't actually seeds, but dried up little fruits) are used around the world. Europeans, who first cultivated the fennel plant, include the seeds in Italian sausage. Middle Easterners use it in dukkah (a spice blend seasoning). Indians will often use it in chai. And Chinese five-spice powder is used across the nation (theirs and ours).
- Time: 30 minutes prep; 30 minutes to cook
- Complexity: medium
Pork Tenderloin with a Cassis & Soy Sauce Reduction
- Time: 30 minutes prep; 30 minutes to cook
- Complexity: medium
Maple Lime Cranberry Wine Jelly
- Time: 30 minutes prep; 20 minutes to cook
- Complexity: very easy
Tomatillo Serrano Salsa
Serranos look like slender jalapenos and can be used in many of the same ways. They have an extra little flavor punch that pairs them well with flavors like lime and tomatillo.
- Time: 30 minutes prep; 30 minutes to cook
- Complexity: very easy
Jalapeno Lime Hot Sauce
Jalapenos are the most popular hot pepper grown in the U.S. Like a bell pepper, the green variety of a jalapeno is the unripe variety. Red jalapenos are hard to find, but they are sweet, spicy, and delicious.
- Time: 30 minutes prep; 30 minutes to cook
- Complexity: very easy
Habanero Mustard Hot Sauce
The hottest pepper commonly grown in the U.S. (and long thought to be the hottest pepper in the world until it was surpassed by the Indian ghost pepper), the tiny habanero packs a punch. If you can taste beyond the heat, it has a wonderfully sweet and tropical flavor. They can be red, orange, or yellow.
- Time: 30 minutes prep; 30 minutes to cook
- Complexity: very easy
Vermont Sriracha
Cayennes are long, red peppers that are strikingly beautiful and often used for decorative purposes. Besides the heat, their flavor is mild, so they go well in places where pure heat is needed to let other flavors shine.
Set the Table with Hot Sauce
Claire Fitts Georges | June 01, 2011 | 2011
Vermont is known for many things, but spicy food is not one of them. Fortunately for the spice lovers among us, many local farmers have bucked the trend and have been cultivating delicious, spicy chilis for us to enjoy. Hot peppers need heat to grow, but with a good dose of sunlight and perhaps some black plastic over the soil, peppers can thrive in Vermont's warm summers.


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by Lou Mancinelli
In the 1950s and 1960s, at a time when women were demeaned as performers in the world of orchestras, Elaine Shaffer was one of the most prominent flutists in the world.
"I can't hire you because you are a woman," she was once told by world-renowned conductor of opera and orchestral music, Fritz Reiner, after an audition.
"Angel in Black: A Musical Life In Letters, 1925-1973" (2011, Trafford Publishing) is a new book by former 16-year Chestnut Hill resident, Beverly Shaffer Gast, the sister of Elaine Shaffer, who was raised in central Pennsylvania.
The book follows Shaffer's life as a student on scholarship to the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia in the 1940s, where she studied under William Kincaid, principle flutist with the Philadelphia Orchestra. Through the presentation of letters and Gast's own commentary, the book travels with Shaffer through Russia, Israel, South Africa, Europe, Japan, etc. The letters reveal the isolation and struggle Shaffer faced as a young women breaking into an art form dominated by males. The tales include names of friends and those she performed with, some of the most respected classical musicians and conductors of the 20th century, like Yehudi Menuhin, Nicora Zabaleta and Aaron Copland.
"I felt like going and jumping off a bridge," Shaffer once wrote to her mother. Shaffer suffered from a sexist climate where conductors acknowledged that she was the best they had ever heard, but confessed the fact that she was a woman kept them from bestowing upon her the honor of first chair, designated for the best player of each instrument, the pedigree that her playing warranted.
Gast wrote the outline for the book six years ago after friends and others tried to persuade her for years that her sister's life would make a compelling and heart-rending story. Gast owned several hundred letters and other material from her sister's life and career. She stayed at a bed-and-breakfast in Frisco, Colorado, about an hour away from her son's home, to work on the outline.
"I needed time to go away and consider this project," said Gast.
Around that same time an unexpected comment made by a fellow member of St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Chestnut Hill generated another convincing reason for Gast to write the book. She was having a conversation with Olive Young when Young remarked that she had once, in Saanen, Switzerland, heard a flutist who played "as if it was coming from heaven."
More conversation revealed that it was Gast's sister whom the woman was speaking about. As Young aged into her 90s, she continued to urge Gast to write the book. Gast finished the book last September. She published it through Trafford Publishing, an online independent self-publishing press.
After earning her first job with the Kansas City Philharmonic in the late 1940s, and a summer with the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra under Eugene Ormandy, who then also conducted the Philadelphia Orchestra, Shaffer performed as the principal flutist with the Houston Symphony from 1948 to 1953. Two years later she married Efrem Kurtz, the symphony's director, who also directed Shaffer in Kansas City.
Next, Shaffer decided to offer her sound to the world as a concert flutist. She debuted in London in 1953. The press did not know what to make of her. It reported what she wore and commented on her physical beauty. According to Gast, one reviewer wrote "I heard a princess of angels play the flute. Her dress was black and had a swath of white down the side."
The Associated Press ran the headline "Angel in Black." Her career was launched. Two decades later, tragedy struck and the woman who was friends with Herman Hesse, the woman who relaxed at Marc Chagall's beach cabana in the French Riveria, where her flute playing is rumored to have brought the painter to tears, was robbed of life.
"I wanted to write it because I knew it was an amazing story," said Gast. "Every time I would relate bits and pieces of it, people told me they had a sense that this had to be told. There was so much substance to it."
Gast, 84, moved to Philadelphia in 1954 with her husband, a Presbyterian minister (she is no longer married), after teaching elementary school in Scotland. Before that, she earned her bachelor's degree in education from Wheaton College in Illinois in 1949. She has lived in numerous locales around the Philadelphia suburban area, including Chestnut Hill from 1984 through 2000.
In the late 70s, Gast started The Schoolhouse in Flourtown. She began the nursery school with five students, and within seven years the school had expanded to a size where its enrollment included a waiting list of applicants. She had earned a master's degree in early childhood education from Arcadia (then Beaver College) University. The model of her school was based on a paper she wrote during her master's studies, which she says she undertook for therapeutic reasons, about the need for a school where teachers knew they were dealing with students whose mothers were often not home and therefore needed a specific type of care. She later was appointed executive director at the Jenkintown Day Nursery School, where she remained for nine years before retiring.
These days, Gast, a mother of three and grandmother of seven, lives at The Hill at Whitemarsh, a retirement community. While she did not ever play musical instruments, her sister always urged her to learn so the two could play music together.
"Angel in Black: A Musical Life In Letters, 1925-1973," is available online through Amazon and other outlets. Gast will host a presentation that will feature some of Elaine Shaffer's recordings as well as readings from the book, on Sunday, March 11, 5 p.m. at St. Paul's Episcopal Church, 22 E. Chestnut Hill Ave. For more information, call St. Paul's at 215-242-2055.


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Q I just read about the Los Angeles area transponders and am wondering if we can exchange one of our Bay Area FasTrak transponders for the new, L.A. version that can list the number of people in a car. We have one for each of three cars but I drive one of those in the L.A, area once or twice a month. Does that mean I need to delete it here and set up a separate account?
Kathleen Owen
Los Altos Hills
A Keep your Bay Area transponders but open a separate FasTrak account to obtain a Metro Express Lanes (SoCal) FasTrak tag. Then you can use the Metro Express Lanes tag in the vehicle used in L.A. You can use it here in the Bay Area, too, but I recommend keeping your existing account for Bay Area bridges and express lanes.
Q When the Highway 87/Alma Avenue offramp was reconfigured, Lelong Street was torn up by the construction vehicles and traffic. Now here we are more than a year later and the street is nearly impassable due to the potholes and patches. Drivers coming from Willow Street to the onramp regularly cross the yellow line in order to avoid placing their tires on radically different pavement and bottoming out. Even the Valley Transportation Authority buses cross over the line sometimes. Is there any hope that this tiny road will get any love from the city?
Sara Tavernise
San Jose
A The city knows that Lelong is a problem that has gotten worse with the recent rains, but says the fix is not as easy as resurfacing the street. The soil in this area is prone to settling, as it is close to the creek. Residents often complain, as do VTA bus drivers.
The city will soon re-stripe Lelong for a temporary fix and redirect traffic to what one official called the "less worse" part of Lelong. In addition, signs warning traffic to slow down will be posted.
The best approach would be an extensive resurfacing that would last five to 10 years, but that has to be coordinated with the water district in light of the city's budget situation. Stay tuned.
Q I had a question about the Caltrain railroad crossing at Rengstorff Avenue in Mountain View. Can I treat the "Stop Here on Red" sign as a stop sign (which is about 100 feet before the light) and then proceed all the way across the tracks up to the intersection if it is safe to do so? The railroad crossing light is a blinking red. People seem to have different interpretations of what to do, but people at least do not stop in the "keep clear/do not block" section.
Q Yes, you can treat the "Stop Here on Red" sign as a stop sign and proceed when safe to do so. Greg-the-Traffic-Cop takes over on one of the more confusing intersections I hear about:
"This reader is referring to the intersection of northbound Rengstorff Avenue and Crisanto Avenue. This is a different intersection because there is extra room past the 'Keep Clear' area the reader mentioned and extra room between Central Expressway and the railroad tracks. The 'Stop Here on Red' signs are posted south of the intersection to stop drivers from overcrowding the 'Keep Clear' area, prevent anyone from stopping on the tracks and keep the intersection clear for the other directions of traffic while the light on Rengstorff at Central Expressway cycles.
"Unless you are making a right turn onto Crisanto, these signs mean exactly what they say: Stop Here on Red. We regularly enforce a bucket full of violations at this intersection because the impatience of many drivers creates extra backups and delays when these signs and others are not obeyed.
"This is a very well-engineered intersection and even with the delays from the train crossing, flow patterns are generous in all directions. Please encourage your readers to follow the rules, obey the signs, be patient and polite to each other."
He adds that drivers need to stop at all three control devices when the light at Central is red.
Q I have been traveling south on Interstate 680 to I-580 in rush hour since I moved to Benicia about seven years ago, and I do not understand why the diamond or carpool lane is disrupted between North Main and Livorna Road in the Walnut Creek area. There does not seem to be any real reason for this as the left lane is virtually continuous and doglegs only on the Livorna end. California stresses safety and energy conservation, and discontinuing the carpool lane for about five miles does not help either cause.
Drivers in the right lanes try to get into the extra lane to gain some time at North Main. Meanwhile, cars in the left lane slow to a crawl and are at risk from the rush of late lane-jumpers. Drivers who do have a passenger get reduced benefit both in time and gasoline savings due to this.
I have written several letters to Caltrans asking about this and the usual comment is that "we are studying this." Caltrans has spent a gazillion dollars on both I-680 and I-580 to add carpool lanes in other areas. The cost to do it in the Walnut Creek area would be very low by comparison and could be done in a very short time. Do you have any better information about this?
Ken Trosien
A Caltrans is now conducting preliminary environmental studies but has not yet earmarked money for construction. The state says this segment may appear ready to continue the carpool lane, but the lane will have to be widened and repaved and drainage installed first. The design work will be completed by 2015 and if money is found, construction would start about then.
Q Do you have any information about something I encounter close to home? I usually drive most of my commute on San Pablo Avenue in the El Cerrito area, and for months now we hapless drivers have encountered a lane closure near the Home Depot. It appears to be related to all that work being done underneath the BART tracks.
But it doesn't look like there's been any work in that spot for the longest time. It bugs me that the lane is still closed but no work is taking place. If there's no work taking place why keep the lane closed? Is this a permanent closure?
Sarah R.
El Cerrito
A No, it's not permanent. This is part of BART's earthquake safety program, and the lane closure on San Pablo will last until the end this month. However, BART says it will need to close other lanes through this spring to retrofit all the columns in that area.
Q A reader named Norm McRae asked if there ever would be an offramp for northbound Highway 101 onto 85 in South San Jose and you replied someday, perhaps, but there are no plans for one anytime soon. But northbound 101 has offramps to 85 in south San Jose. Could Norm have been referring to an onramp for northbound 101 from southbound 85?
Derek Person
A Yes.
Q I got it. You were just testing to see who didn't celebrate too wildly on New Year's Eve.
Derek Person
A That's my excuse and I'm sticking with it.
Q I am 78 years old, retired and driving about 40 miles a day. I can't remember my last accident (yes, I had a few in my younger days) or ticket. Oh, never mind: I got a ticket two years ago for parking on the wrong side of the street in front of my house!
Pierre Messerli
A Life can be truly unfair sometimes.
Follow Gary Richards at Twitter.com/mrroadshow, look for him at Facebook.com/mr.roadshow or contact him at email@example.com or 408-920-5335. The fax number is 408-288-8060.