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Walk in Your Customer's Shoes
Wendy Beecham is the Managing Director of Executive Education at UC Davis. She has over 25 years of leadership experience, and has coached c-level business leaders on executive performance.
Last week, I attended the annual UNICON (University Executive Education Consortium) conference hosted by University of British Columbia, Sauder School of Business Executive Education in beautiful Vancouver. I had the pleasure of being exposed to several presentations that made me think differently about how to evaluate customer satisfaction.
Walking in Our Customer's Shoes
One presentation by Dr. Darren Dahl posed the question, "How often do we think about walking in our customer's shoes?" We have all been exposed to surveys or evaluations from retailers, conference providers, or your favorite Executive Education providers asking questions about how we perceived the speaker, the venue, the food, and other service attributes. But if we were to actually "Map the Experience" of what a customer goes through when they call our customer service lines, walk into our offices, or attend one of our events, we'd have a much richer evaluation of how we are really doing.
When was the last time you called that contact number that you leave for customers who want more information? When you call, how long do you wait before the phone is answered? How difficult was it to speak with a live person? Did all your questions get answered, or were you left wondering if the person on the other end of the line was an intern at their first week on the job? Dr. Dahl shared the experience of calling a contact number, only to be given ANOTHER number to call. Time to update the website!
But more importantly, what happens when a customer comes to your place of business? How are they greeted? How easy is it for them to find where they need to go? What is the environment they're faced with?
Creating Meaningful Touch Points and Layered Experiences for Customers
As a Canadian, I was thrilled to be treated to a presentation by Mark Raham, Creative Director of the Vancouver Canucks Hockey Team. His speech built on Dr. Dahl's comments by sharing a concept called "Layered Experiences," which has led to a sold out stadium for 400 + hockey games.
What is the brand story for your organization, and how do the touch points you create for your customer reinforce that brand? For the Canucks audience, the experience begins as they walk up to the stadium and are greeted by lights with the team colors, sounds of crowds cheering, and large banners with star hockey players lining the stadium – the excitement of being there begins to build.
Inside the stadium, visitors are greeted by a special "museum" that documents the history of the team along with bios of past and present stars, and team successes. The food vendors also try to create special food that links to the team brand.
Inside the arena, before the players are introduced, the audience is exposed to a show akin to Cirque du Soleil on ice. Holograms superimposed on the ice turn the rink into a boiling ocean or a cracked ice flow, building to a crescendo that crests as the team appears on the ice.
When game begins, the audience participates by sending their reactions via social media. Whenever there is a game, the Vancouver Canucks' Twitter feed often tops out at number one as fans all over the world participate in the game.
I was struck once again by what my customers experience as they come into an Executive Education program that I offer. How cohesive are all the elements from the pre-session communication, to the arrival and "get settled" experience, and through the program? How can I make the evaluation process more dynamic to truly understand what the customer's layered experience was?
Employee Empowerment
Christine Day, the CEO of Lululemon, a fitness wear company with very loyal customers spoke about her company's success. They published a Manifesto, which lists the values the company lives by.
When a new employee is hired they are asked to state their personal vision for the next 5 or 10 years and declare what goals they have to reach them. This process mirrors how company goals are set and therefore helps the employee tie their personal goals to the company's.
There is a high degree of pride placed in employee empowerment. The store managers each determine how best to run their store, and they are treated as experts who know the local areas best. They are encouraged to gather local ambassadors who hold yoga or Pilates classes or other events in the store so shoppers can experience Lululemon close up. Their store clerks are called "Educators" and have the key role of explaining the technical attributes of the clothes rather than "selling" them to a customer. The clothes will sell themselves if a customer understands the best fit for their sport, their style and their body type.
When customers enter the store, they are always greeted but there is a 13 second rule in holding conversation. The role of the "Educator" is to be there to answer your questions when the shopper is ready to ask – and to not be sold to while they're trying to browse.
Create Unexpected Surprises for the Customer
At the end of the UNICON conference, the organizers ended with an improv performance where initially the actors were part of the audience and began asking some very "penetrating" questions. It exemplified alternative methods for creating educational experiences that was highly relevant for those in the Executive Education field.
A Rich Experience
So, I left this year's conference focused on how to make our customer's experience richer. And thankful once again for the connections I made while learning something new–a model we try to emulate with all of our Executive Education programs.
To learn more about executive education programs at the UC Davis Graduate School of Management contact Wendy Beecham today.


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Home > Clothing & Accessories > Women > Costumes & Accessories > Hats & Headgear > White Cat Cosplay Set Paw Claw Gloves Ear Hairclip Tail Bow Tie Costume
Product Details
- Four in one set cat girl costume
- With a hot look,sure to make you the most popular at any party
- Perfect for plays, theatrical productions, or as a unique Christmas or Halloween costume
- Great gifts for anyone special or treat yourself
- Material:Plush
- Main Color: White
- Gloves Measurement: Approx. 9 inch / 22.8cm in length and 7 inch / 17.7cm at the widest part
- Length of Tail: Approx. 22 inch / 55.8cm
Package Included:
- 2 x Gloves
- 1 x Ear Hairclip
- 1 x Bow Tie
- 1 x Tail
Note: Please be reminded that due to lighting effects, monitor's brightness / contrast settings etc, there could be some slight differences in the color tone of the pictures and the actual item.

subset: commoncrawl


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After a long break I picked up the Erlang book again and my appetite for writing some erlang code was soon kindled.
A small Python component I produced at work seemed like a good candidate for my (sequential) erlang exercises. It is a fairly simple component that removes user/password data embedded in URLs.
Just so you know where I am coming from:
- my main/favourite programming language is Python
- my exercises are mainly about sequential, non-distributed and non-telecoms-related problems whereas erlang's main strength and appeal lies in the area of parallel/distributed telecoms/networking systems
- I have played with erlang a little bit before (ring benchmark, XML parsing) and liked it in general although IMHO it lacks severely when it comes to the availability and quality of standard library components.
Now that my particular set of preconceptions is clear and in the open, let's look at the stuff below 🙂
File processing with erlang's regexp module
The initial implementation of the URL filter in erlang used its regexp library.
1 -module(regex). 2 -export([main/1]). 3 4 isalphanum(C) when C > 47, C < 58; C > 64, C < 91; C > 96, C < 123 -> true; 5 isalphanum(_) -> false. 6 7 %% Generate a temporary file name of length N 8 genname(0, L) -> L; 9 genname(N, L) -> 10 R = random:uniform(123), 11 case isalphanum(R) of 12 true -> genname(N-1, [R|L]); 13 false -> genname(N, L) 14 end. 15 16 %% Returns a randomly generated temporary file path where the basename is 17 %% of length N 18 mktemppath(Prefix, N) -> Prefix ++ "/" ++ genname(N, []). 19
Please note how I had to implement functionality absent from the standard library above.
20 %% Removes passwords embedded in URLs from a log file. 21 scrub_file(Tmpdir, F) -> 22 %% make a temporary directory if it does not exist yet. 23 case file:make_dir(Tmpdir) of 24 ok -> ok; 25 {error,eexist} -> ok; 26 _ -> exit({error, failed_to_make_tmpdir}) 27 end, 28 29 %% Move the original file out of the way. 30 T = mktemppath(Tmpdir, 16), 31 case file:rename(F, T) of 32 ok -> ok; 33 _ -> exit({error, failed_to_move_file}) 34 end, 35 36 %% Now open it for reading. 37 {_, In} = file:open([T], read), 38 %% Open the original path for writing. 39 {_, Out} = file:open([F], write), 40 41 %% Call the function that will scrub the lines. 42 scrub_lines(In, Out), 43 44 %% Close the file handles and return the path to the original file. 45 file:close(Out), 46 file:close(In), 47 T. 48
The code that scrubs the URLs is below, the
scrub_lines() function is tail recursive.
49 %% This is where the log file is actually read linewise and where 50 %% the scrubbing function is invoked for lines that contain URLs. 51 scrub_lines(In, Out) -> 52 L = io:get_line(In, ''), 53 case L of 54 eof -> ok; 55 _ -> 56 %% Does the line contain URLs? 57 case string:str(L, "://") of 58 0 -> io:format(Out, "~s", [L]); 59 _ -> 60 case regexp:gsub(L, "://[^:]+:[^@]+@", "://") of 61 {ok, S, _} -> io:format(Out, "~s", [S]); 62 {R, S, _} -> io:format("Failed: {~p,~p}", [R,S]) 63 end 64 end, 65 %% Continue with next line. 66 scrub_lines(In, Out) 67 end. 68 69 %% Main function. 70 main([A]) -> 71 {A1,A2,A3} = now(), 72 random:seed(A1, A2, A3), 73 74 %% A single argument (the name of the file to be scrubbed) is expected. 75 F = atom_to_list(A), 76 T = scrub_file("tmp", F), 77 78 %% The scrubbed file content will be written to a new file that's 79 %% in the place of the original file. Where was the latter moved to? 80 io:format("~s~n", [T]), 81 82 init:stop().
The cursory benchmarks performed (on log files of varying size) using the python and the erlang code confirmed other people's experiences with erlang's regex performance (but see also this interesting "rebuttal").
|Log file size
|Python times
|Erlang times
The do-it-yourself construction
Curious to learn whether the performance can be improved by abstaining from regular expressions I came up with an alternative implementation that does not use
As you can see below the do-it-yourself construction is indeed performing slightly better at the expense of being very specialized and requiring 60% more code.
|Log file size
|Python times
|Erlang regexp
|Erlang do-it-yourself
In conclusion
Every couple of months or so I develop a euphoria towards erlang which is consistently dampened by using the language to tackle problems for which the language admittedly was not designed in first place.
I guess most people start using a language for simple programming exercises first as opposed to building something like a Jabber/XMPP instant messaging server straightaway.
I hate to repeat myself but improving the standard library (by adding common functionality and making sure it performs decently) would do a lot to attract fresh talent to the erlang community and I hear that a certain rate of influx of "fresh blood" is a necessary prerequisite for success.
Ah, and no, you were not supposed to grok the sentence above unless you read it three times 🙂


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In my plugin's options page, I'd like to have custom GET parameters. WordPress already has a
?page=<slug> GET parameter, so simply linking to something like
?myparameter=value won't work.
I though of reading the
page parameter, and then linking to something like:
?page=<slug>&myparameter=value. This seems workable, but I don't know if its the best practice. The complexity of my plugin really doesn't warrant sub-pages for now.
So is this the best practice or am I missing something?


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If you're looking to do some serious online shopping this holiday season (Cyber Monday, anyone?), LastPass helps reduce the frenzy, so you can easily pay for the items in your cart and move on to other things on your TO-DO list. Our "Form Fill" feature simplifies the shopping process by filling registration, shipping, and billing forms with one click!
In this post we'll take you through setting up profiles for maximum efficiency, including how to use the mix & match option for simplified autofilling.
Set Up a Fill Form Profile
Let's get started by setting up a form fill profile, such as a profile for your shipping address. Click on your LastPass Icon, select "Fill Forms" from the menu, and choose "Add Profile".
A dialog will open, where we can enter our name, address, birth date, and other information we might be required to enter in a shipping form when checking out online. Name the profile something memorable so you know when to use it, like "Bob Home Shipping".
Create a profile for each combination of name and shipping or billing address, labeling them as you go. You may want a "Work Shipping", "Home Shipping", and more, depending on your needs. If some of the information overlaps, you can copy a Form Fill profile by selecting your LastPass Icon, then "Fill Forms", selecting a specific profile, and choosing "Copy". A new profile dialog will be opened with information from the profile already filled in – this reduces the amount of duplicate information you'll need to enter when creating your profiles.
Add a Credit Card Profile
You'll notice there's a credit card tab in the profile dialog as well, but unless you always use the same profile with the same credit card, consider adding a separate profile for each of your credit or debit cards that you use when online shopping.
Click on your LastPass Icon, select "Fill Forms", and choose "Add Credit Card".
Here you can enter your name, credit card number, start and expiration dates, and other data you may be required to enter when filling out a checkout form. You may have a profiles for a "Debit Card" or "Corporate Credit Card" – whatever will cover the range of your online shopping needs.
Fill a Form!
Ok so now that you're all set up, it's time to get down to business. Let's head to Amazon.com to purchase the items in our cart. When we get to the shipping page and click on one of the fields, LastPass gives me a notification for Form Fill. We can click "Fill Form" and choose the profile we want to use for our shipping address – then LastPass autofills the data!
With that data entered, I can proceed to the billing information, where I use my credit card profile to autofill the form:
Done! Now we're ready for to complete the transaction.
Note that if LastPass does not prompt you with your form fill profiles, you can click your LastPass Icon, choose "Fill Forms", and select a profile to autofill your data.
Mix & Match
If you're on a registration or checkout form where the shipping and billing information are shown all at once (as opposed to separate pages like Amazon), our Mix & Match option allows you to quickly pair up two profiles and autofill your data.
Click your LastPass Icon, choose "Fill Forms", and select "Choose Profile and Credit Card". In the dialog, you can choose a profile from the left-hand side, and a credit card from the right-hand side.
LastPass will then autopopulate the corresponding fields with the data stored in each profile.
More Tips for Online Shopping with LastPass
Here are a few other helpful tips from our team:
- If you create new accounts as you shop, use LastPass to generate strong, unique passwords
- Consider enabling a multifactor authentication (such as the newly-supported Google Authenticator) for increased security
- Use the "Share" feature in LastPass instead of emailing, IM-ing, or texting passwords to friends & family who need access to shared accounts
- Beware of phishing attempts. Use LastPass to launch your sites rather than clicking on links in untrusted emails to reduce the risk of compromised logins
Happy shopping, everyone!
And Happy Thanksgiving,
The LastPass Team


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For years, the mortgage industry has been living off refinancings, which have often accounted for more than 70% of mortgage applications. Now the refi rage is fading, as rising rates make it harder to save money by replacing an old loan with a new one.
But homeowners should not give up too quickly. Saving a little isn't as good as saving a lot, but better than saving nothing. Those who can still refinance to trim their monthly payments would be wise to start hunting for a deal now, as the remaining opportunities will slip away if rates keep going up.
"The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 64% of total applications, the lowest level since May 2011, from 67% the previous week," the Mortgage Bankers Association reported last week.
"Mortgage rates reached their highest point in two years," said the MBA's vice president of research and economics, Mike Fratantoni. "At these rates, many fewer homeowners have an incentive to refinance, and refinance application volume declined more than 15%. With this decline in volume, the refinance share dropped to its lowest level in more than two years."
The average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage now charges about 4.5%, according to the BankingMyWay.com survey. The rate was 3.6% in early May.
Few experts think the rate will fall significantly in the months ahead, as markets anticipate the rising interest rates that typically accompany strengthening economies. So there's little reason to postpone a refinancing. After all, today's rates are still low by historical standards. The 30-year fixed loan often goes for 6% or 7%, or more.
To make a refinancing pay, the homeowner must keep the new loan long enough for its lower monthly payment to offset the refinancing fees. That obviously means that a small reduction in mortgage rate takes longer to pay off than a large one, one reason the recent jump in rates has reduced the number of refinancing applications.
But a number of lenders offer mortgages with very low fees or none at all, according to HSH Associates, the mortgage-data firm. That can make a refinancing pay off fairly fast even if the rate reduction is small.
But borrowers should assess these deals carefully, as the great fee deal may be offset by a higher loan rate. Use the Refinance Breakeven Calculator to figure which loan would provide the largest savings over the period you expect to have the mortgage.
Some lenders have eased their standards for approving applicants, HSH adds. If you worried that a less-than-perfect credit history would keep you from getting a new loan, your chances may now be better than you think.
Another factor making loans easier to get is the recent rise in home values. In recent years, most lenders have required borrowers to have at least 20%, allowing them to borrow only 80% of the home's value. When home values were falling, many who had started with plenty of equity found they no longer met this minimum. Now many of them do.
And some lenders will accept applicants with only 10% equity or less, if they have good credit histories and enough dependable income.
So if you are paying 5%,6% or 7% — typical rates in the latter years of the past decade — it could pay to look into a refinancing today. It's not likely the deals will get much better.
The author of this article is: Jeff Brown
See the original post at: http://homes.yahoo.com/news/why-you-need-to-refinance-your-mortgage-immediately-194527154.html


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July 12, 2012
"Both drivers finish in top ten in all classes of competition"
After competing at the Jet Karting Rotax Summer Shootout a week prior, it was back to the Michiana Raceway Park facility in South Bend, Indiana for the fourth round of the World Karting Association Manufacturer's Cup program. On a weekend that saw record temperatures and multiple drivers and crew members suffering from heat exhaustion, Michael and Nicholas took everything in stride and gained valuable points in the chase for the end of the year title.
Competing in the Yamaha Rookie class, the youngest DRC Inc. pilot Nicholas, would start his Saturday off on the right foot by qualifying in the second position. Falling backwards in the prefinal, Nicholas would end the day in the eighth position but would look to improve in Sunday's wheel-to-wheel competition.
Michael d'Orlando would see action in the Cadet Junior Sportsman and Yamaha Junior Sportsman divisions on Saturday. After turning the sixth quickest time in the morning qualifying run, Michael would be relegated to the tail of the field after failing post session weigh-in. Forced to start 28th, Michael improved to 18th in the prefinal and gained another eight spots in a hard fought main event to come home tenth.
Back on track in the Yamaha Junior Sportsman class, Michael would qualify his Fleming Race Engines powered Kosmic Kart in the third position before claiming the fourth spot in the heat race. Suffering from heat exhaustion in the afternoon, Michael struggled in the main event but managed to squeak out a sixth place result on route to the fastest lap of the race, before heading back to the hotel to recover.
"Saturday was a really challenging day for us," expressed Sherri d'Orlando. "Though both boys had good results, the heat was almost unbearable as both Michael and Nicholas struggled to keep cool. I am proud that they soldiered on and continued to compete at their highest level throughout the weekend."
Back to the track on Sunday, Nicholas did not have the start to the day that he was hoping for. Qualifying in the 19th position, Nicholas improved throughout the prefinal to cross the stripe in 12th. Running consistent laps in the main event, Nicholas managed to break into the top ten before the checkered flag flew.
Turning some heads in the Yamaha Junior Sportsman class on Sunday, Michael turned the fifth quickest time in the morning qualifying session and steadily improved throughout the day. Coming home third in the prefinal, Michael was engaged in an epic battle for the main event win that started with five karts battling for the point. When the dust had settled, d'Orlando came up just short finishing in the second position, more than four seconds ahead of the third place competitor.
Just as he did in the Yamaha event, Michael would end the Cadet Junior Sportsman event on Sunday in the second position. Qualifying ninth and claiming the eighth position in the prefinal, Michael showed his heart and determination in the main event to battle to the front. Claiming his second podium result of the weekend, Michael and Nicholas finished in the top ten in all five main events on the weekend.
D'Orlando continued, "This was Michael's best showing on the national level to date. We are looking to carry this momentum into the Rotax Grand Nationals."
DRC Inc. would like to thank the race team at J3 Competition including Justin Stefani and David Dodson, and tuner Adam Johnson, for all of their continued hard work. Additional thanks to Doug Fleming of Fleming Race Engines for his trackside service and support.
For more information on Michael or Nicholas d'Orlando, along with partnership opportunities, please visit www.dorlandoracing.com. Be sure to follow Michael and Nicholas on Facebook (Michael d'Orlando Racing or Nicholas d'Orlando Racing) and Twitter (@dorlandoracing) to stay up to date on news, information, photos and results.
For information on press releases or other media services offered by Race Tech Development, please contact Mike Maurini via e-mail at firstname.lastname@example.com or 317.270.8723. Race Tech Development can also be found on Twitter at @RaceTechDvlp as well as Facebook at their Race Tech Development Fan Page.


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Prince Harry - who is expected to make an appearance at the paralympic games next week - was naked for a "long time" at the party that landed him in hot water, according to one of the women who was in the room that night.
"He was naked for a long time at the party… He didn't seem to care what he did," a woman at the bash told US Weekly.
The 27-year-old prince reportedly "had two things in his sights: vodka and women," fellow Vegas party-goer Melissa Vagner added to the publication.
Meanwhile, staff at the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas have been warned to keep quiet about the scandal. Steve Wynn personally notified employers at the luxury hotel that anyone caught talking to media about the prince would be fired.
"Staff members at the Wynn have been reminded once more to keep their mouths shut about anything Prince Harry related," a source told Radar Online. "It's against hotel policy to discuss guests normally, but Steve thought it was best to let staff know that anyone caught talking about what happened that night will be reprimanded.
"He's warned them they will lose their jobs if they are suspected of blabbing to the press and he will make sure they never work in Vegas again."


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I was so excited when I found a slim metallic gold Christmas tree for our office this year. I decided to decorate it white and gold but I was unable to find a good tree topper anywhere. I knew that I wanted something different so I decided to make one with supplies I had in my craft room. Let me show you what I came up with....
Here is what I used to make this simple and inexpensive Frosty Hat topper.
Cardboard Hat (In Christmas craft section at Michael's)
Mod Podge
Paint Brush
White Acrylic Paint (Not Shown)
Bag of Artificial Snow
Bling (I used Rhinestones and Ornaments)
Strip of Gold Vinyl or Craft Paper
The first thing you need to do is cut a strip of metallic gold vinyl (or craft paper) and wrap it around the base of the hat...
The next step (which was an after thought and I am glad I did this step....Don't Skip) is to paint a coat of white acrylic paint all over the hat. This will make the base of it white instead of brown which could have shown through when I started gluing the artificial snow to it...
After the paint dried, start on the top and spread a liberal amount of mod podge all over...
Pour the artificial snow on top of the mod podge and press it in. I found that pressing it into the mod podge helped it stick....
Repeat the same steps as above until the whole hat is completely covered in the artificial snow...
Let it sit overnight and then add your bling to it. I put the rhinestones around the gold strip and then hot glued three little white ornaments and two white sprigs to the side...
I love how it turned out and how it is so different....
Thanks for stopping by....
Have a great week!!
Linking to:


text: Hayward Pro-Grid Vertical Hayward Pro-Grid Vertical Grids DE Filter 48 sq.ft P/N: DE4820 Description: Pro-Grid vertical grid D.E. filters provide superior water clarity, efficient flow and large cleaning capacity for pools and spas of all types and sizes. Constructed with high-strength reinforced thermoplastic, Pro-Grid combines high-technology features and "service-ease" design for an unparalleled filtration value for both new pool and aftermarket installations. In addition, Pro-Grid delivers low maintenance and dependable operationrids DE Filter 48 sq.ft DE4820


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Pujols' greatness once again on display for all to see
Slugger revitalized, healthy, and looking dangerous at plate in 2014
WASHINGTON -- Tuesday night at Nationals Park, Albert Pujols left an unmistakable impression on baseball history. It was not the impression of a man in the twilight of his career.
With two home runs against the Washington Nationals, Pujols became the 26th man in baseball history to hit 500 homers in his career. But what resounded here was not only that Pujols had reached a landmark career achievement. This was a man demonstrating, clearly, that his career was definitely not in irreversible decline.
Fittingly, the two home runs carried the Angels to a 7-2 victory. Both homers were majestic shots, both off Washington's Taylor Jordan; a three-run shot to left in the first inning, then a two-run drive to left-center in the fifth, a ball that soared over the Angels' bullpen on its way into history.
The Washington crowd gave Pujols a suitably respectful ovation while the rest of the Angels mobbed him as soon as he finished rounding the bases.
And Pujols, 34 years and 96 days old, became the third-youngest player to reach this lofty level. Only Alex Rodriguez and Jimmie Foxx were younger when they reached 500 homers.
And the point is, Pujols doesn't appear to be anywhere near the finish line. His teammates see that, probably more clearly than anyone else.
"What an unbelievable teammate," Mike Trout, the star of the next generation, said. "He's been having a great year, and he's got a bunch of years left."
"He's healthy and he looks great," said veteran outfielder Raul Ibanez. "He's hitting the ball hard, he's locked in on pitches. He's hitting stuff that's hard, stuff that's soft. He looks fantastic.
"He's just the model of consistency, when you look at his career numbers, everything that he's done and the level of excellence he's maintained over such a long period of time. When he walks up to the plate, it's not like they don't know who he is and what he's capable of, and still, to be able to perform at that level for so many years is just extraordinary.
"He looks confident. He's got great presence again."
Last season, Pujols was hobbled. Coming off knee surgery, he also had a partial tear of the left plantar fascia and was limited to 99 games. It was the first time in his remarkable career that he had played fewer than 147 games in a season.
The criticism came in multimedia form. You could read, hear and see the criticism. What were the Angels thinking giving the guy that 10-year, $240 million contract? How were they going to cope with eight more years of aging Albert?
As we speak, the Angels are feeling extremely happy about having Mr. Pujols safely in their employment.
He is driving the ball again. Eight home runs, 19 RBIs over 20 games. His career slash line before this season was .321/.410/.599. In this season, it is .274/.337/.619. He said Tuesday night that he has not felt this good since before he was injured in 2012.
People are not speaking about Pujols in the past tense. Nationals manager Matt Williams says that Pujols' greatness lies not only in the home runs, but in the all-around hitting ability.
"It's not the homers," Williams says. "Five hundred homers and beyond, whatever he gets to, is not what sticks out to me. It's his ability to hit. I would refer to him as a well-over-.300 hitter with power. Those guys are unique, really unique.
"Generally, your sluggers, the guys who have the ability to hit the ball over the fence, are more free swingers. Albert, since the day he got to the big leagues, has been the consummate hitter, first and foremost.
"Albert is one of the great hitters of this generation. The ability to not only hit home runs, but hit .330 and drive in 100-plus very single year, that's saying something. That's the ultimate guy you want on your team, because he provides it all, not to mention Gold Glove-caliber first-base defense."
Ah, the Gold Glove defense. Monday night Pujols made a terrific play on a chopper to first to cut down a runner at the plate. It was a tricky hop, he was on the move, a bare-handed grab was required, and then a quick, strong throw to the plate. Pujols delivered the whole package on this play, reminding you, that yes indeed he had been a Gold Glove first baseman. And maybe he could be again.
"There's no doubt that where his health is right now that he's playing first base at the Gold Glove-caliber that you would expect," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. "We'll monitor him, and if he needs a day to refresh, we'll give it to him. He's DHed three times this year. We have that option. But he's moving very well, and he feels good."
In the post-500 media session, Pujols thanked "the Lord Jesus Christ," his wife, his five children, his father, his mother, numerous relatives, Angels ownership, various people in the Cardinals' organization -- where he spent his formative years -- and many, many more.
"We're probably going to be here until tomorrow if I start dropping names," Pujols said with a smile.
There can be a lot of credit to hand out for a career that has been this great. Tuesday night, Albert Pujols reminded the baseball world that this greatness was not just a thing of the past.


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Now that Black Friday is thankfully a thing of the past, for this year at least, we can get back to regular old holiday shopping. Yet as the digital age has firmly established its influence on our habits, gift shopping for many happens at the Mac, not the mall. Shopping online is clearly more convenient (and some say greener), and if you know what you want and don't require the touching-smelling-seeing part of selecting a gift, it can be great; but it often comes with the added expense of shipping.
But as any savvy shopper knows, many of the larger retailers offer free shipping. Yet as any savvy shopper also knows, the fine print may betray the offer; minimum spending requirements and annual fees can sometimes be part of the deal. In the end, is it really worth it?
Amazon.com was the first large retailer to create a free-shipping system with its Amazon Prime program. After that, other retailers were compelled to follow suit — even though retailers with a brick-and-mortar presence risk the loss of impulse purchases when they entice shoppers to buy online rather than at their stores.
Nonetheless, in 2010 Walmart dropped its minimum-purchase requirement for free shipping on holiday shopping, vowing not to raise prices to offset shipping and not to strong-arm shippers to absorb the costs; and most other giant stores have made similar concessions. That said, the big stores already have low-price contracts with shippers, and with multiple distribution centers across the country, shipping distances and costs are already reduced. In fact, according to a story in The New York Times, air shipping prices for big retailers are about 70 percent less than what a small company would pay. Even so, money is still spent for free shipping, either by the retailer or by the shopper. Here's how it breaks down.
Amazon Prime
The granddaddy of free shipping, Amazon broke away from the pack when it debuted Amazon Prime. Although the company had previously offered free standard shipping on purchases of more than $25 of eligible merchandise, those enrolled in Amazon Prime get free two-day shipping on eligible items with no minimum purchase (members also get free Prime Instant Video, and the Kindle Owner's Lending Library) – all for an annual fee of $79. Does it pay to enroll? It depends on how often you shop at Amazon. Shipping prices vary by department, but for shipping in the contiguous United States, they run from $5.99 to $12.49 per shipment, plus a per-item charge of .59 per pound to 2.99 per item, according to the website. If only some of the items you select are eligible for Prime, you still have to pay for shipping of those items, and some items may only be entitled to standard shipping because of their size, weight or other shipping characteristics. That said, up to four additional family members living at the same address can use the same Prime account, which may provide significant savings if you have an active shopping, video-viewing, or Kindle-reading household. (Read more: Is Amazon Prime eco-friendly or wasteful?)
Minimum purchase promotions
"Free shipping with a minimum purchase of ..." is the subtle twist that retailers use to entice shoppers to buy more than they may have planned on. Human nature makes it hard to spend, say, $8.99 on shipping when another $10.99 item would make it free. But that can be a slippery slope, and it adds up quickly. You can avoid the trap of constantly upspending by consolidating your shopping to fewer retailers and/or fewer orders.
Amazon minimum purchase
In October 2013, the minimum purchase for free shipping at Amazon was bumped to $35, an increase of $10 over the minimum the company has offered for more than a decade. Unlike Prime's two-day shipping, the minimum-purchase shipping is standard and will be delivered in five to eight business days, after all of your items are available to ship. The minimum purchase must be met with qualifying merchandise, must exclude gift wrap and taxes, and items that are shipped by individual sellers and not fulfilled by Amazon aren't eligible.
Walmart minimum purchase
Walmart offers free shipping with a $35 to $50 minimum on eligible orders, depending on whether or not they are running a promotion; it includes "value" shipping which takes six to nine days, but you can upgrade to standard shipping (three to five days) for $2.97. As well, they sometimes offer a special shipping rate of $0.97 on some items.
Target minimum purchase and cards
The minimum purchase requirement at Target it $50, based on the subtotal of eligible items and does not include non-eligible items, GiftCards, eGiftCards, gift wrap, tax, or shipping and handling charges.
Target also offers free shipping if you use one of the company's credit cards, which include the REDCard (Target Credit Card, Target Visa Credit Card or Target Debit Card); and while there is no annual fee for these cards, they pack a hefty APR and potential late fees.
Sears and K-Mart: Shop Your Way Max
Similar to Amazon Prime, the Shop Your Way Max is an annual membership ($39 per year) in which members receive free standard shipping on many items, free two-day shipping on qualifying items, and cheap shipping upgrades, all without minimum purchase. Members also earn points for purchases. If you don't want to join, many items throughout the sites come with free shipping without a minimum-purchase requirement.
Overstock.com minimum purchase and Club O
Overstock.com offers free standard shipping everyday on orders of more than $50 sent to the lower 48 states; orders less that $50 cost $2.95 for shipping.
Overstock.com also offers free shipping for its Club O members, and the cost of an annual membership is $19.95. The membership is a rewards program that gives Club O Dollars with each purchase, and if you fail to earn enough Club O Dollars during the year to cover the annual fee, the company will reimburse you the difference; the only catch is that the difference won't be credited until you have paid for your Club O Membership for the following year.
The Gap, Banana Republic, Old Navy, Athleta, Piperlime
The giant Gap, Inc. family offers free holiday shipping with a minimum $50 purchase, except for Piperlime, which has no minimum.
Williams-Sonoma, Pottery Barn, West Elm
Williams-Sonoma, Inc. and its spawn have various promotions offering free shipping on certain items throughout the year. And shoppers can also always have free shipping at the Williams-Sonoma site when using the Williams-Sonoma Visa Card; the card has no annual fee and does acrue reward points, but as with all credit cards, you incur the risk of overspending, interest fees, and late charges if you aren't careful.
The online shoe mega-store offers free shipping and free returns all the time, on all domestic orders.
Independent stores
It would be impossible here to list all of everyone's smaller independent stores, but that's not to say they don't have free shipping offers of their own. In a bid to compete with the big guys, many have special holiday offers for free shipping. Check with your favorite small retailer and see what's available.
And of course don't forget, if you visit a mom-and-pop in person, shipping charges won't even be a consideration. The same goes with handmade presents and awesome offbeat charity gifts.
Related stories on MNN:
- Maximize your holiday shopping dollars [Infographic]
- Lighten your carbon footprint when shipping a package
- 10 holiday budgeting tips


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This week things really pick up for us. Hockey season has started and even though they don't have the teams picked yet, they are heavy into evaluations. Right now Jon has at least 2 evaluations this week (Monday & Tuesday nights) and Hannah has ice skating on Wednesday night. Looks like I better break out the gloves, scarf and parka, huh? I hate being cold. Don't get me started on the temperature in the ice rink. Yes, I know they are trying to keep a large piece of ice from melting, but what about us poor Moms (and Dads and siblings) that spend countless hours watching our precious offspring slam into each other there? At least the location where most of Jon's (and all of Hannah's) practices & games take place, has a mezzanine that is enclosed & somewhat heated.
Anyway, dinners this week must be quick, easy and/or be able to be made in advance. Not a lot of time for baking either. Cheryl at Gluten-Free Goodness is hosting Menu Plan Monday and has selected Pears as the featured ingredient. Thanks Cheryl! We received a gift basket from Harry & David's last week that had 5 pears in it, so this will be part of dessert or snacks for us this week. 🙂
Sunday ~ Homemade Pizza (I am going to make the dough as soon as I post this); mine will probably be pesto, kids marinara, steamed veggies & spinach salad.
Monday ~ Spaghetti with meat sauce (I will have spaghetti squash), steamed green beans, spinach salad. Dessert will be vanilla ice cream with pear slices & caramel sauce.
Tuesday ~ Sweet & Sour Chicken (recipe from Carrie ~ Ginger Lemon Girl's blog), brown rice and broccoli
Wednesday ~ Cheeseburger in Paradise (Hope to have the turkey burger if I can verify it is GF; the GF menu does not specify the alternative burgers (veggie & turkey)).
Thursday ~ Hamburgers on GF Buns, sweet potato fries, veggies and salad.
Friday ~ Chicken Broccoli Cheese Casserole, salad & foccacia bread.
Saturday ~ Breakfast for dinner (omlettes & pancakes, bacon, toast and fruit salad with pears, bananas, mandarin oranges & grapes)
Baked Goods ~ Jon has been begging for a coffee cake, so I really need to make one. I think Snickerdoodle Cookies are a must for this week too.
Off to get that pizza dough started.
Don't forget to check out Orgjunkie for more fun weekly menu plans.
Filed under: Family, Gluten-Free | Tagged: gluten free menu plan, menu plan weekly |


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Since KD Highlight had so many pages, thought it was only fair so let's add some here :)Same place to chat or post videos
121 comments on "KDF 2"
Annyeong everyone.Hi softy.This whole ep 7 and 8 Scent is going to drive me nuts.I am going shopping instead of making myself crazy.
Like you I am giddy with delight they have feelings for each other.My heart however is dying when he finds out she is sick.Why why why are they so adorable together and Wookie has such expressive eyes 😦
Ok, spazzing the tango scene!! XD Of the drama Scent of a woman!!
Loved it….
Thanks for sharing, love them so much.
YFFM preview! SOFTY!! What is wrong with Shin???????????
oh no Shin is sick with ????? hope not his dad sickness 😦
They never say how he hurt his hand cuz he says it's no big deal. It doesn't look that bad cuz it wasnt wrapped in a cast or anything
It starts with a guy's voice asking them to record an album with K singing lead vocals. She agrees till her GP barges in and asks what she is doing and drags her out. She tells someone she can't do the album. Then S gives her his dad's album and tells her to keep it and return it to him when she becomes an impressive guitarist and makes an album of her own.
Thank you Softy! Also, sorry if it seemed like I was demanding a translation. I was having a Heartstrings heart attack!
The best thing about the preview is that it sounds like we'll get an OTP duet. That's really the only thing I'm dying to get before the show ends.
Hey Fanderay, you didnt sound demanding at all so dont worry about it 🙂
oh man you guys made me watch PTB and now I am liking a drama I fast fowarded on the first night it aired -still don't know any names at all- I love how his dad beats him up all the time but turns around and beats up all the other guys who hurt his son. I loved what she said in her interview too and then how he got her to put medicine on her face was so cute. I am going to marathon the rest tonight so I will be caught up. One question tho – what condition does he have besides OCD? xenophobia? cuz it cant be agoraphobia since he goes outside.
I think he could still be called agoraphobic. Agoraphobia encompasses some different types of anxiety attacks, and I think a fear of being outdoors is just one of them. In his case it seems to be crowds and public speaking. I'm sure there's a specific term for just a fear of public speaking, but he seems to have a slightly bigger ball of issues. I love that when someone sarcastically asks Eun Seul if he's a kid, her response is basically "yep, pretty much."
I still can't believe how well Ji Sung sells his anxiety, considering how wacky his character is. I practically start crying every time it happens to him.
My KP post from last night is about PTB 4 so don't read it until you're done watching (assuming you haven't already) It's not super spoilery, but it'll probably ruin some of the humor for you.
OMG i love PTB!! what is your blog name? i want to google and read everything about PTB!!!
Her blog is called Kolorful Palette and it's on the right on my blogroll – you are gonna love it 🙂 don't forget to bookmark it cuz she adds new stuff all the time – more often than me sometimes.
Thank you. i visited her site. very beautifully done.
Holy Cow! Han Ye Seul ran away to LA – Usa, without explaning why to anyone and won't come back, the staff of Spy myung wol will replace her too another actress!!!!!!!!!
I'm so socked… this never happened before… (not with the lead actress!!)
I feel so bad for the entire cast. She just ruined her career!!!!!!
Oh my goodness @_@ *dumbfounded*
I read all about that on DB so tonight I am actually going to watch cuz I never saw a drama before where the female lead drops out and they still air the show without her -this is like unheard of 🙂 she really knows how to draw attention doesn't she?
read recent news that she promised she'll be coming back and finish the drama, but KBS still hasnt given any response.
I'm a bit worried now about the movie she did with Song Joong Ki. It's finished filming, so hopefully it'll still get released! I was excited to see SJK in a leading role 😦
Yay and YES YOU LIKE PTB!!! I like everyone relationship! I like the grandmother with the father, the father with his son, the lead actress with her friend, her with her boss and it started with trust first and all. EVERYTHING! Can't get enough of it. Sigh. Only one thing, I still can't figure out Cha Mo Woon's (I think his name? Jaejoong's character) intention.
Watch it all, and let me know what you think, softy. It's getting better and better. ^^
double Yay that softy likes PTB!!! softy, does that mean that you'll pick up PTB after YFFM…I wonder..? no pressure, you need your rest and some drama to enjoy without typing! I think this one is a great show and a good one for the laughs 🙂
same here nikesma….love all the relationships and interactions between all the characters in this show! Love grandma and J's dad…he's the only one who can beat up his son senselessly! Ji Sung's character, Ji Heon(hope I get his name right) reminds me of Monk, if any of you watched that show. So many things he's afraid of and learning of others fears also become his!! J's no total loser tho since he sees right through his cousin's pretty smile accusing him of possible tax fraud and the like.. I think the cousin, Mo Woon was taught by his mom that they've been wronged, that his father should have been the president instead of Ji Heon's father. Or something of the sort but hopefully we'll learn more about his evil plan if he has one brewing!
so sad that YFFM is ending this week but I'm looking forward to what the finale has for us!
Ok I just finished watching E4 of PTB. it's adorable- loved the sleeping in a fetal position scene. The odd things is I realized it's the only drama I enjoyed where I didnt have a crush on either lead guys. It sort of freaks me out cuz that rarely happens. Does anyone else think that the boss guy resembles the guy from Iris (lee byun something) but a younger version? Their smiles are similar minus the perm of course. The bad news is there are a lot of office scenes,but I have no idea what business they are in so I don't think I can recap this cuz I don't understand enough of it – plus I will have missed 6 eps by the time YFFM wraps up. That's starting too late in the game to memorize all these new names don't you think? Will keep watching it tho cuz now I like it – thank you everyone for encouraging me to watch it 🙂
Now that you mention it, I just realized that I'm not shipping either guy, and it doesn't even matter because I still love watching them and find them endearing. I don't even care if if they're interacting with Eun Seol or not since since all the characters play of all the other characters in unique and funny ways. It's like a kaleidoscope of awesomeness.
For there record, the main names are Ji Heon, Eun Seol, Mu Won, and Na Yoon (I learned them all last night for my post, so may as well share!). I'm not telling you the names so you'll recap; I just though it might be handy 🙂
It would have never occurred to me, but Ji Sung does resemble LBH a bit. Every time Ji Sung smiles I'm practically hypnotized by his perfect teeth.
I'm so glad that you conquered over the monster that is Ji Heon's hair and like PTB now. It would be sad if you only had SoaW to watch!
EP 5 preview of PTB
Ok now MW and ES definitely look like they're dating!! Oh poor JH. Since it looks like MW is suddenly trying really hard, I can't help but wonder if he's officially pursuing her now, but as part of plan to take down JH. Not that it ultimately matters, since he's going to end up loving her anyways.
Also, is that sidekick guy getting in a fight with JH? I don't think he's been in this show yet, but he's a side character in pretty much every other drama.
Haha I know – he is on EVERY good drama, but his best role was MGIAG as dae woong's best friend. Thanks for all the names – guess I need to learn them now too. Are subs out the next day for PTB? I was going to check out choi Ji woo's new drama first to see if I liked it or not – but now I am tempted to do highlights for PTB – just the gist of each episode on KDF3 or something. I think I have to make a new page tm cuz this one is loading more slowly.
Yep, subs are actually up same day for me (but it airs around 6am here, so that's not surprising). Highlights would be great, but be careful! There aren't many boring scenes in PTB, and highlights might end up being the entire episode 😛 I still feel guilty about all the scenes I didn't mention in my episode 4 post, and I'm not even doing recaps!
Now that I rewatch ep4 of PTB with full subs by viki, remember the drunk scene in the taxi? He said in a complex way that he likes her, right? She searches the internet what he actually means, and she sort of denying it saying I think I know what he means but she doesn't want to know or to think further.
Yeah…it sort of seemed like a vague confession to me…like not love or anything, but more that he depends on her and cares for her (I can't really remember what he said though). I think I assumed she was looking up ways to help him with his presentation when she was on the computer, but if anything his ridiculous jealousy should be an indicator that he's crazy about her. ES's attempt at lunch with MW was freaking hilarious, and there are a million great nuances in that scene.
It's more like 'like' to me. He said an alien rock has enter this part of his brain, which he recite the name of that brain part.And last line he said, something like you're a rock.
At first, she looks up the part of the brain that he talked about, and she reads this part of brain which process emotionally and feelings or something like that and said to herself, no way, that can't be and let's not think about it. You really should download the softsub released by viki, because they're the most reliable now. I wish WITHS2 picking this up, but no, I dont see PTB anywhere in their list.
I actually just stream it on viki 🙂
Btw, I should clarify that even though I think that he "like" likes her and that's what he meant, I didn't feel like she had a concrete reaction to it, and could interpret it in a vaguer way. Thanks for clarifying about what she was googling though. When I watched that episode the subs were only at 95% or so, and I think that was one of the bits that wasn't finished.
Just wanted to say – I saw that spy drama tonight and omg the dialogue was like "don't forgive me" and they had her character lose CFs and other product endorsements and RUN OFF so no one could find her – it's like the writers were getting ready with a "just in case" option so they set it up that way. Her absence on this episode was really noticeable. I feel really bad for that staff – it will be hard for them to remain professional cuz they are only human and will want to hold a grudge.
I'm not watching it until it's finished airing now. I can't handle the rollercoaster that show has become!
I have to say thanks. I had a rough July and then vacation in August. Have only last week gotten back to real life at home. Missed many of K-dramas and endings I was watching. Also missed the beginning of some of the Dramas I wanted to watch.
Thanks to you, I was able to stay a little caught up and felt like I missed nothing. I will of coarse catch up on YFFM, and CH, which I missed dearly. I started The Spy Show decided I would wait till all episodes are finished. I watched the first ep of SoaW, for reasons mentioned about July I thought it would be to hard to watch. From reading your caps on the main page, I am going watch, with boxes of kleenex.
It seems to me, we pretty much have the same tastes. So I will take your word for it, that SoaW is a show worth seeing.
As always thanks for your time, hard work, with all the subs. 😀
On another note. I think Protect the Boss is one of the funniest and best dramas yet. I love that they have totally made fun of the male leads especially as a "Cheabol" and the fact the female lead is totally 100% her own woman and takes crap from no one. I am however only on ep 6 and have watched parts of 7 and 8.
The whole ice cream scene at the amusement park, was a favorite between ES and NY. Of course when ES kicks the can in NY's face. When JH tapes up ES's cardboard face. When JH's dad outs the grandmother. I think ep 4 was the most hilarious. I could keep going, because I am enjoying the show so much. Like you we have the streaming limit. CRAZY !!!!


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There's no sure-fire way to capture the beauty of Christmas lights in a photograph. But, there are a few tips that might help. Here are five things to try when photographing the lights come Christmas.
Take a lot of Pictures. Often, the trick to getting a few beautiful shots is to take several attemps and to simply get rid of the weird ones. Especially with using a digital camera, it's very reasonable to take a hundred shots so that you can get five pictures that you really like. If at first you don't succeed, try, try, again.
Zoom In. To get those stunning images that light right up off the page, you may want to try zooming in the camera. Photographers are able to capture perfect micro shots from physically standing still but, with the camera, zooming way in. That way, you can still position yourself where the lighting is best but capture precious details that would otherwise go unnoticed.
Try Your Motion Settings. Depending on the great Christmas displays you're trying to photograph, there may be some motion involved that you have to overcome, i.e., lighted star with various twinkles, a lighted deer that rocks back and forth, and so on. Many cameras have a motion or action setting to help you nab the perfect shot regardless that your subject is currently moving. Experiment with the setting to see if it can't help with your photographic goals this winter.
Try Various Angles. Another experimental aspect that may end up giving a great shot is just rotating the angles at which you approach your target. Christmas lights will have various glares as you move around; trying to capture the same scene from different angles , with various heights, with various tilts of the camera. Even the best photographers can luck into the right shot.
Play around and see what works for you. As long as you're happy with the results, you can chalk the experience up as a success.


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Ashlee Catlin
|Alma, MI (Alma High School)
2006-2007: Opened fall season with a tie for 73rd with a 247 (82-80-85) at the Draper Valley Invitational (9/12/06) in Draper, Va. ...Finished 100th with 168 (82-86) in Great Smokies Collegiate (10/2/06). ...Tied for team lead with 30th place finish with 236 (75-83-78) in Lady Indians Classic (10/10/06) in Jonesboro, Ark. ...Placed 58th with a 178 (88-90) in the APSU Intercollegiate (10/25/06). ...Tied for 48th with a 159 (77-82) in the Troy Invitational (10/31/06) at Arrowhead Country Club in Montgomery, Ala. ...Tied for 42nd in the Ann Rhoads/Birmingham-Southern Shootout (2/27/07) with a 161 (82-79). ...Tied for seventh place with a 158 (85-73) at the Belmont Invitational (3/10/07). ...Finished tied for 32nd place with a 237 (83-75-80) in the Samford Intercollegiate Invitational (3/30/07). ...Top finisher for Lady Bisons in Atlantic Sun Golf Championships (4/12/07) with a tie for 23rd with a score of 240 (80-79-81) at Keith Hills Country Club in Buies Creek, N.C.
High School:No. 1 on team all four years, in golf. ... All-State as a senior. ...All-State honorable mention as a junior. ...Medalled at all tournaments. ...Team MVP all four years. ...Won Regionals junior and senior year. ...Won four out of five tournaments her senior year. ...Won Mohawk Invitational three years in a row (sophomore, junior and senior). ...5th in state her senior year, with birdie on final hole. ...Served as captain junior and senior year. ...Holds several women's golf records at her high school. ...Conference winner her sophomore year.
Personal: Parents are Terri and Kip Catlin. ...Two sisters, Megan and Mary. ...Planned major is Biology.


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Bay Citizen Becomes First Start-Up News Website to Organize
By: Press Release | Pacific Media Workers Guild
San Francisco, July 20, 2011 – Journalists at the nonprofit news website The Bay Citizen have voted to affiliate with the Pacific Media Workers Guild, Local 39521 of The Newspaper Guild-Communications Workers of America.
"We believe The Bay Citizen, as one of the pioneering exponents of new civic journalism, should also be a leading example in the area of workplace democracy," The Bay Citizen's editorial staff wrote in a letter to TBC President and CEO Lisa Frazier ahead of filing cards with the National Labor Relations Board.
The majority of the organization's editorial staff signed union cards seeking to be represented by the Guild on May 26th, the one-year anniversary of The Bay Citizen's launch. Voting was conducted June 27 at The Bay Citizen's San Francisco headquarters and by mail-in ballot. NLRB officials counted the votes on Tuesday, July 12.
Two votes out of the 14 cast are being challenged. The remaining ballot count resulted in a 7-5 win to form the union. The two challenged votes have not been opened, however the Guild is certain that whether these two voters are included in the unit or not, the concluding tally will remain in favor of forming a unit. The Guild is asking the NLRB to count all votes cast.
Bernie Lunzer, international president of The Newspaper Guild in Washington, D.C., said the result marks an historic advance for media workers, as traditional newsrooms shrink and the industry struggles to find new models to stay competitive in the online era.
"The future of quality journalism depends on reporters and editors shaping the vision of innovative new media organizations. By voting to be represented by the Guild, employees at The Bay Citizen have given themselves this voice," Lunzer said.
Support came from unionized journalists at The New York Times and KGO radio, which have agreements to obtain local news content from The Bay Citizen.
"For more than a year, journalists from The Bay Citizen have provided important coverage for the pages and website of The New York Times, and these talented journalists are an asset to the Guild at an important time, " wrote Grant Glickson, New York Times Staff Assistant and Unit Chairperson.
Bay Citizen staff members are committed to the success of the organization and expect their new Guild unit to work in partnership with management to create a contract appropriate for their nonprofit startup.
The Bay Citizen was founded in 2010 as a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization dedicated to fact-based, independent reporting on civic and community issues in the San Francisco Bay Area. Its newsroom of award-winning journalists covers Bay Area civic and cultural news topics that are under-reported today. TBC also partners widely with independent media organizations and produces the Bay Area pages of the The New York Times.
The Bay Citizen unit joins one of the premier affiliates of TNG-CWA. Formed after a series of recent mergers, the San Francisco-based Pacific Media Workers Guild (known as the California Media Workers Guild until a name change in January) represents about 2,000 news workers, freelancers, court interpreters and union staffs throughout California and Hawaii. News units include the San Francisco Chronicle, San Jose Mercury News, Bay Area News Group-East Bay, Bay City News Service, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, Sacramento Bee, Fresno Bee, Modesto Bee, Honolulu Star-Advertiser, Hawaii Herald-Tribune and Maui News. The Guild also includes the California Federation of Interpreters, print shops and union staffs at AFSCME Local 3299, the ILWU and California Labor Federation.


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Dublin is a city that everyone raves about. Displaced locals get all misty-eyed about the pubs, the hilarious, friendly people they left behind. It is a modern, hard-working, affluent centre of commerce and industry as well as a cultural capital and it is home to some of Europe's most renowned artists. It is a city that deserves to be taken seriously. And, for those who do, it is a richly rewarding, fascinating place with its incredible beautifully preserved mansions and castles, meticulously curated museums, churches, cathedrals, and parks.
Euro, 1€ = 100 cent
Police, Fire&Rescue, Ambulance: 999 or 112
Irish Times
Irish Independent
Evening Herald
Shops are generally open 9:00 - 17:00 Monday -Saturday and open late to 20:00 on Thursday. Larger chains also open 12:00 - 18:00 on Sunday.
1.8 million
Extreme Ireland
Tourism Office,
37 College Green
Dublin 2
Mobile: +353 86 3169788
Landline: +353 1 4100700
Email: email@example.com
Dublin boasts a cracking zoo, the 11th-century Christ Church Cathedral, and a plethora of literary pubs befitting its status as one of just five UNESCO Cities of Literature on the planet. You can raise a pint to writers like James Joyce and Bram Stoker, or explore the life and works of poet WB Yeats at the National Library.
City footwork:
Dublin is a great city to explore on foot. From the gracious city parks of Merrion Square and Iveagh Gardens, to the grand Georgian architecture and alfresco café culture of South William and Drury Streets, there's a lot to divert your attention. And don't forget Temple Bar – a cobblestoned cultural enclave of galleries, restaurants, hopping pubs and the lively Meeting House Square.
Dublin's streets are a busy mix of past and present. This city has always inspired writers, visitors and political firebrands alike. Walk these streets and you'll be taking a journey through history, from the city's Viking roots by the banks of the river Liffey, to its atmospheric medieval churches with their mummified remains and holy relics, along gracious Georgian streets and past grand buildings, as well as museums, theatres and several parks where to take a rest from the city life.
EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum
Book of Kells
Guinness Storehouse
The Little Museum of Dublin
Iveagh Gardens
The National Gallery
Kilmainham Gaol
Dublin Bay Cruises
Dublin Zoo
National Museum of Ireland-Archaeology
Malahide Castle
Glasnevin Cemetery Museum
Dublin Castle
Irish Museum of Modern Art
Christ Church Cathedral
Chester Beatty Library
Croke Park Skyline Tour
Dublin has an exciting food scene – there's naturally lots of good Irish grub, in both traditional and modern forms, but you'll also find a tasty selection of ethnic eateries spanning most global cuisines.
Mulligan Grocer
Da Mimmo
Chapter One
Fade Street Social
Fallon & Byrne
Coppinger Row
The Exchequer
Bow Lane
Dax Restaurant
Le Bon Crubeen
BANG Restaurant
Il Vicoletto
Pearl Brasserie
The pub is a place dear to the heart of every Dubliner but you'll find that cafés, coffee shops and tea shops come in a very close second! There are hundreds of cafés in Dublin offering the finest coffees and teas from around the world along with a wide selection of delicious food and sweet cakes to accompany them.
Dolce Sicily
Network Cafe
Stage Door Cafe
The Cake Cafe
Queen of Tarts
Brother Hubbard
Murphys Ice Cream
Bewley's Oriental Café
Silk Road Café
The Pepper Pot
The Decent Cigar Emporium
Dublin's pubs are slices of our living culture. So much could be said about the fascinating atmosphere, culture and history of Dublin pubs but really, there's no substitute for experience. Choose among 1000 pubs to spend some time in with your friends or family.
The International Bar (The Comedy Cellar)
O' Donohugues
Dublin Literary Pub Crawl
The Stag's Head
The Cobblestone
Palace Bar
Library Bar
The Bernard Shaw
The Long Hall
The Bank on College Green
Whether you're after Waterford crystal, jewellery by a local contemporary designer or handmade stationary, the options are exciting and vast in Dublin. The two main shopping districts in Dublin are located either side of the Liffey and have a wealth of high street shopping interspersed with expansive department stores and open air markets. If you want to intersperse your shopping with a look at some of the city's landmarks then taking a stroll down Grafton Street or stop by The Spire that overlooks Henry Street to enjoy the sightseeing before hitting the shops.
Kildare Village
John Farrington Antiques
Dundrum Town Centre
Celtic Whiskey Shop
Grafton Street
Henry Street
George's Street Arcade
Dublin Markets
Passport / Visa
Ireland's passport and visa requirements vary for different nationalities: if you are a UK citizen, you can just use official photo identification, whereas if you are an EU citizen, you just need a national identity card. Visitors from EU countries (including Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein), USA, Australia, Canada and New Zealand, don't need a visa to visit the Republic or Northern Ireland. South African visitors can visit the Republic of Ireland visa-free, but they need a UK visa in order to enter Northern Ireland. If you're not sure whether or not to apply for a visa, we recommend you to contact the embassy or consulate in your country.
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The Dublin Central Airport is located 10km north of Dublin, in Collinstown (Fingal) with access to a large number of buses, coaches and taxis all allowing you to easily get to/from the city center.
Dublin Bus offers many routes throughout Dublin from the Airport, including the 16 to Ballinteer, the 41 to Lower Abbey Street and the 102 to Sutton Station. Aircoach operates regular services from Dublin Airport to the city centre and to Cork and Belfast.
Address: Dublin Airport Switchboard
Email: email@example.com
Phone: +353 1814 1111
Website: www.dublinairport.com
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Best Time to Visit
The best time to visit Dublin is during the summertime (May to August) when the weather is warmer than the rest of the year and you can enjoy numerous festivals. Unfortunately summer season is also the most expensive time to visit. So, if you're planning a vacation to Dublin but you don't want to spend a fortune, Spring and Fall make for a happy medium with moderate temperatures, less crowded street and lower prices.
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Public Transport
Dublin has an extensive bus network but only a few rail and tram lines.
Most of buses are operated by Dublin Bus with some smaller companies operating other routes, most usefully an express service to Dublin Airport operated by Aircoach. If you plan to use buses more than a few times in Dublin, it's well worth getting some type of prepaid ticket or pass, many of which are also valid on rail and/or tram services, such as the Leap Card.
While the rail service is not extensive, a nice way to see Dublin Bay is to take a trip on the DART (Dublin Area Rapid Transit) suburban train and to travel from the city centre as far as Bray. It's not particularly expensive and you get to see some spectacular views of Dublin Bay.
LUAS trams began service in 2004. The Red Line connects the two main railway stations of Heuston and Connolly whici is also the route of the most popular points of interest for tourists.
Website: www.transportforireland.ie
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All taxis in Ireland have a large yellow and blue roof-sign and door signage. Taxis may be hailed on the street, picked up at a taxi rank or ordered by phone.
Phone: +353 6772 222
Website: www.nrc.ie
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The General Post Office in Dublin is located at O'Connell Street.
Address: O'Connell St. 56, Dublin
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Phone: +353 1705 7000
Website: anpost.ie
More Information: Closed on Sunday.
Hickeys Pharmacy
O'Connell Street Lower 55, Dublin
+353 1873 0427
Monday - Friday: 8:30 - 22:00. Saturday 10:00 - 22:00.
Pure Pharmacy
Collins Av. E 38, Dublin
Monday - Friday 9:00 - 18:30. Saturday 10.00 - 17.00.
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Country Code: +353
Zone Code: 01
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230 V/50 Hz.
G Type power sockets.
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What's New
Better animations and to improve the look on the iPhone 5
App Description
Covers Grades 2 thru 5. Not just another quiz or worksheet app, this learning tool TEACHES the Common Core State Standards skills required for your child to excel in Place Value and Rounding! Three distinct teaching modes encourage comprehensive conceptual understanding of these skills in a fun and easy to understand style.
✔ Full app is included with no in-app upgrades
✔ No advertising
✔ One purchase will load on your iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch
Place Value and Rounding – Beginning with the Ones period, the animated lessons cover Whole Numbers, Digits, Place Value System, Value, Period and Place Value Models. Progressing from there, other chapters cover Thousands, Millions and even Billions period. We work with Word Form, Expanded Form and Place Value Form of representing numbers. PVR also teaches rounding for beginners and progresses to more complex levels. The Rounding Coach interactive module walks the student thru the process of rounding and can be set to 3 places or 6 places. AppTutor PVR covers all Common Core Skills required for Place Value and Rounding.
★★★★★ Great for use in classroom or tutoring environments ★★★★★
App includes:
✔ Five skill-based animated Learn Lesson videos which utilize both visual and auditory learning styles to reinforce comprehension. Specific Place Value and Rounding Common Core skills are introduced in each of these lessons:
• Place Value - Ones
• Place Value - Thousands
• Place Value - Millions
• Place Value - Billions
• Rounding
✔ Five fun, interactive Try Modules to practice & reinforce Common Core skills presented in the Learn Lessons utilizing a kinesthetic learning style:
• Rounding Coach – Fun interactive way to learn rounding – user can set to 3 or 6 places
• Position Value – Identify place values up to hundred thousands – user can set to 3 or 6 places
• Word Form – Expanded Form and Place Value Form – user can set to 3 or 6 places
• Ultimate Rounding – Test you skills – user can set to 3 or 6 places
• AppTutor Quick Challenge timed recollection tool gets kids competing for high scores
✔ Place Value and Rounding Section verifies skill-by-skill conceptual understanding of every Common Core skill addressed.
✔ The Test challenges the student on all the skills covered and is the final step is conquering the AppTutor Certificate of Achievement.
★★★★★ Additional Place Value and Rounding Addition Features ★★★★★
✔ Full functionality in iPad, iPhone and iPod devices
✔ Supports three named students plus a guest user
✔ Tracking includes independent progress status for each user
✔ Design fully supports the Common Core State Standards Initiative (CCSSI).
✔ One-click detailed audio instruction available throughout
✔ Always available Scratch Pad encourages counting and creative reasoning
✔ Hint Sheet for handy reference, emailing and printing
✔ 26 pages of targeted-skills Worksheets covering over 200 unique questions for extra practice with answer key
✔ Comprehensive skill-based testing to verify conceptual understanding of all Common Core skills addressed
✔ Intra-test wrong answer feedback to enhance recollection of key concepts
✔ Random test question generation ensures equal testing and grading for all Common Core skills addressed
✔ Printable Certificate of Achievement upon completion in both AirPrint and email format
✔ Over 1,400 unique problems throughout the app
App Changes
- October 11, 2012 Initial release
- October 31, 2012 New version 1.1
- November 28, 2012 Price decrease: $3.99 -> FREE!
- November 30, 2012 Price increase: FREE! -> $3.99
- January 14, 2013 Price increase: $3.99 -> $4.99
- January 24, 2013 Price increase: $4.99 -> $6.99
- January 26, 2013 Price decrease: $6.99 -> $4.99
- August 12, 2013 Price decrease: $4.99 -> $3.99
- August 14, 2013 Price increase: $3.99 -> $4.99


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in the doorway
beneath a hood
an arcade
or a roof
if of paper or
if of plastic
When there is
a shadow, a body
must be there.
Homeless guy on Yonge Street: photo by Andy Burgess, December 20, 2009
Dear Tom,
Two great poems here, I hear "All I wanna do" (photo of man beside that grey 'depression' juxtaposed with red of Trailways-- color comes into the world again!
I hope this will add something to something you'll 'get'. . . .
pale orange of sky on horizon above still
black trees, white of moon beside branch
in foreground, sound of wave in channel
inscribed in graphite verso
lower right, obscured
next to one another, others
opposite, pointing to
silver of sunlight reflected in channel,
shadowed canyon of ridge across from it
I noted in Jim Dine's new book of drawings of his own face (Old Me, Now), he spoke of "correcting and erasing" over and over again until his image became "a field of form and chatter...a vast forest or a limestone quarry".
Your graphite seems to give way wonderfully (as if erased) to reveal colors and sounds, the sound of the wave in the silver of sunlight, the white of the moon against the orange of the sky, the black trees and the shadowed canyon.
A short note on Jim D.'s book of drawings.
Sometimes all I wanna do is go back to the stark land of buffalo wallows where the wind rarely stops, too. Thanks for that one, and thanks for "Vagrant." In the winters when I worked in downtown Washington, D.C., I would see the homeless men and women huddled on grates where steam came up near the Corcoran Art Gallery. Today, I can only hope someone has helped find them shelter from the depths of heavy snow.
Thanks for coming, always lovely to talk with you. And you know those buffalo wallows as well as any poet does.
This particular winter has been a long and difficult one for the vulnerable and exposed. This is fact beyond sentimentalization, dismissal, or even pity. The only thing that would now surprise me about it would be someone (obviously I don't mean you) belatedly noticing and evincing surprise or even stranger, suggesting that what is happening in the streets is not related to what is happening at the higher reaches of the tottering structure.
Beautiful, Tom —
or as someone else once put it:
"Character is like a tree and reputation like a shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing."—Abraham Lincoln
words in stone
or let float away on a leaf
Wise words from the woods. Where is the ghost of Honest Abe, now that we need him so?
We've been reading Phil Whalen's notebooks of the 50s and 60s, testament of an indigent artist's mendicant life.
Here is his entry of July 15, 1958:
"If nothing else, we must submit ourselves
to the charitable impulses of our friends
Give them a crack at being bodhisattvas"
Of course, it helps to have generous and enlightened friends. Few of those on the street these days have that kind of luck.
Thanks for that note/thought, "erasing and correcting over and over," adjustments, revisionings, beginning again and again -- no ridge to see out there at least now, birds going on. . . .
I noted in Jim Dine's new book of drawings of his own face (Old Me, Now), he spoke of "correcting and erasing" over and over again until his image became "a field of form and chatter...a vast forest or a limestone quarry".
grey light in fog in front of invisible
ridge, motionless shadowed green leaves
in foreground, sound of wave in channel
that memories by themselves,
present which then is
that has, of other movement
sometime, ahead of it
grey-white of sky reflected in channel,
tree-lined green top of ridge above it
walk on by
drive on by
step over
look the other way
not notice
the crux of it by
John Lennon...."Imagine
all the people" vs "We'd
all love to see the plan"
a new book from Spuyten Duyval
Crossing Borders
drawings,and poems
by Lenny Silverberg and Steve
Kowit....gets to the concept
of "interchangeable suffering"
among the homeless, the refugee.
Quite after the heart of Tom Clark
I might add.
Art and poetry just a start
moving help from the heart
in real terms
Thanks as always for the light.
Thanks as always for the heart.
I've made a small start, I hope, with The New World.
What juxtapositions Tom ! Another of your late night street walks I believe. I believe you have such a beautiful sense of co relating subjects.
In the day, the shadows on the streets remain.
Dissected by the traffic. Of the day. And it's shadows rotating around a center. Looking for the center.
Escaping the upshoots of smokes and sirens around them. Escaping out of void volitions.
At night these shadows remain.


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Rubber-like non-slip protective cover for rear cargo compartment
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