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Hearing Before the Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies U.S. House of Representatives
April 13, 2000
Statement by the Commissioner of Social Security on Fiscal Year 2001 Appropriation Requests
Mr. Chairman and members of the Committee, I am pleased to be here today to present the fiscal year (FY) 2001 appropriation requests of the Social Security Administration (SSA). This budget supports SSA's mission: "To promote the economic security of the nation's people through compassionate and vigilant leadership in shaping and managing America's social security programs." In FY 2001, we will continue our efforts to safeguard the public's investment in Social Security programs, improve our program management, and provide excellent customer service as we meet the challenges of the 21st century.
The President's FY 2001 budget request for administration of SSA's programs - including $7.134 billion for the Limitation on Administrative Expenses (LAE), $73 million for the Office of the Inspector General, and $30 million for research - will provide the resources for SSA to serve the public in FY 2001 and meet the growing challenges of the new century.
Before focusing on the century ahead, I want to state that the 20th century closed on a high note for us. I am excited to provide the following to you as examples:
- SSA was one of the first Federal agencies to start work on the Y2K problem[t1], and our conversion went smoothly. We worked closely with the Treasury Department, Federal Reserve, and the Postal Service to ensure that Social Security and Supplemental Security Income checks and direct deposit payments for January 2000 and beyond were paid timely and without interruption.
SSA received a "clean" opinion (meaning our financial statements are reliable) from the Inspector General for its FY 1999 financial statements. Only 11 out of 24 major Federal agencies reported on their financial statements by March 1, as required by the Chief Financial Officers Act, and received "clean" opinions on their statements. [t2]
- In the two years that Syracuse University's Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs' multi-year Government Performance Project has been underway, SSA is one of only two Federal agencies to receive an "A" [t3]for its management performance. The overall, average grade for the 20 agencies assessed was a "B-."[t4]
- As a final example, our customers also think that we are doing a pretty good job. In December 1999, the results of the American Customer Satisfaction Index, which surveyed SSA customers currently receiving retirement benefits, revealed that SSA's customer service was rated one of the highest of participating Federal government agencies and almost 10 points higher than the comparable private sector index.
Overview of SSA's Programs & Overall Budget
I would like to now take a moment to provide you with a brief overview of the programs that SSA administers and the Agency's overall budget. Because virtually all Americans have the benefit protection provided by Social Security's programs and nearly one in five receives benefits, we can say that SSA touches the lives of virtually every American. Social Security provides protection against loss of earnings due to retirement, disability and death. While it is often thought of as a retirement program, Social Security also provides benefits to disabled workers, their families, and to surviving family members of deceased workers. Social Security disability and survivors benefits are a critical source of income for workers and families during a vulnerable time in their lives. And, thanks to the strong, bipartisan effort last year on the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999, disabled beneficiaries who want to work will be able to utilize enhanced return-to-work initiatives that we will continue to implement.
SSA also administers the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program which is funded not through Social Security taxes, but from general revenues, and provides payments to financially needy individuals who are aged, blind or disabled. A new program, title VIII of the Social Security Act, that authorizes benefit payments for certain World War II veterans, also is funded from general revenues.
For FY 2001, 98 percent of the $461 billion that SSA will outlay will be paid in the form of monthly benefits to 50 million Old-Age and Survivors Insurance (OASI), Disability Insurance (DI), Federal SSI, and Black Lung beneficiaries. The remaining funds will support SSA's ability to deliver services. For example, this funding supports activities such as the following:
- On average, each workday about 100,000 people visit one of our 1,300 field offices and over 240,000 people call our 800-number;
- Each workday we process an average of 20,000 initial claims for retirement, survivors, disability or SSI benefits, and hold 2,400 hearings before Administrative Law Judges; and
It is important to note that the administrative resources required to make benefit payments and to manage the Social Security programs are part of the appropriation requests that we are asking you to support.
- Each year, we make certain that over 250 million earnings items are correctly credited to workers' accounts to ensure that future benefit payments are accurate.
Limitation on Administrative ExpensesIt is our LAE account that provides the resources to administer the OASDI programs, the SSI program, certain health insurance functions, and the new title VIII program. It supports our efforts to improve our policy, research and analysis capabilities; eliminate fraud, waste and abuse; and deliver service to all of our customers.
The President's budget request for SSA's LAE account before you today is for $7.134 billion[t5]. I can say that reductions from this funding level may lead to lower levels of service[t6]. The President's FY 2001 LAE request for $7.134 billion [t7]includes:
- $6.684 billion for basic day-to-day operating expenses, including $91 million derived from user fees paid by States for Federal administration of State supplementation of SSI payments; and
- $450 million in discretionary cap-adjusted funding to conduct additional continuing disability reviews (CDRs).
The administrative resources requested in the LAE appropriation will enable SSA to maintain level staffing and:
- Pay benefits to about 50 million people every month;
- Issue 16 million new and replacement Social Security number cards;
- Handle 57 million calls to SSA's 800-number with a 92 percent 5-minute access rate;
- Post 259 million earnings items to workers' earnings records;
- Process 1.7 million periodic CDRs;
- Complete 2.1 million SSI non-disability redeterminations of eligibility;
- Process 3.1 million retirement and survivors claims, 2.1 million initial disability claims, and 582 thousand hearings; and
- Issue 126 million Social Security Statements to covered workers.
I will now highlight some of the issues and initiatives related to SSA's FY 2001 budget request.
Strategic Management and Accountability
SSA is committed both to the concepts of the Government Performance and Results Act and to improving our ability to manage for results on a day-to-day basis at all levels of the organization. SSA has been publishing an Agency Strategic Plan since 1988. Our latest, entitled "Keeping the Promise," was SSA's first as an independent agency and was published in September 1997.
SSA issued its most recent Accountability Report in November 1999 to document the results of the Agency's performance in FY 1999. I am proud that both the Strategic Plan and the Accountability Report have been well received by the Congress. At SSA, we continue to respond to the concerns of this Committee, the Congress, our employees, and other stakeholders in communicating the overall direction of the Agency and the specific performance goals by which we will be held accountable. I am pleased to say that SSA's Annual Performance Plan (APP) for FY 2000 received from the General Accounting Office one of the highest scores among Federal agencies last year. SSA's APP for FY 2001 was delivered to Congress earlier this month.
The dawning of the 21 ST century brings with it many new challenges for SSA. Because the baby boom generation is aging, and a large number of people are in their late 40's and 50's, our current estimates indicate that new claims for all types of benefits will increase over the next 10 years by 23 percent, from 6.3 million to 7.8 million, roughly double the level of increase experienced in the 1990's. Our initial retirement claims workload will increase by roughly 21 percent by 2010, and our initial disability claims workload will increase by roughly 25 percent by 2010.
Future customer expectations, rapid change in information technology coupled with the expected workload growth created by the baby boomers, and, simultaneously, a maturing workforce and limited resources, create the compelling need for the Agency to develop a vision that looks beyond our current 5-year planning horizon. We are developing a vision that takes SSA out 10 years. This vision, called the "2010 Vision," will allow us to make better long-term investment decisions and to coordinate strategies and efforts toward long-term service goals. We can influence the direction of change only if we have a long-term vision of where we want to go. The "2010 Vision" will outline our view of service in the future, what work we will do in 2010, and how we will do it. It will describe how the Agency will respond to trends in our external environment that signal continuing rapid changes in society, particularly in the use of information technology. It will provide enough detail to shape the Agency's strategic plan, and drive our action plans and budgets to move us into the future.
Policy Development and Research
Since becoming an independent agency, we have made significant investments in our policy development and research infrastructure. For example, SSA established a separate Office of Policy, from which to design, coordinate, and effectively undertake research and policy development efforts that respond to the needs of Agency policy makers, the Congress, and the public. One of SSA's five strategic goals is, "To promote valued, strong and responsive social security programs and conduct effective policy development, research and program evaluation."
The extramural research budget that we propose for FY 2001 is $30 million (including $7 million in base research funding classified by the Office of Management and Budget as "mandatory under Appropriations Committee jurisdiction" under the Budget Enforcement Act), which will allow us to continue the efforts that we have begun over the past several years. These resources will enable SSA to continue research efforts on long-range solvency issues, the effects of demographic and economic changes on program beneficiaries, and understanding disability program growth and factors that promote self-sufficiency and return to work.
Anti-Fraud Initiatives and Program Integrity
Ensuring the integrity of our programs is an SSA priority. The public rightfully expects us to be vigilant stewards of its tax dollars. SSA is committed to improving the administration of its programs while maintaining a policy of zero tolerance for fraud and abuse.
National Anti-Fraud Committee
The Agency's wide-ranging zero tolerance effort is coordinated through the National Anti-Fraud Committee, which includes SSA senior staff, and is co-chaired by the Deputy Commissioner for Finance, Assessment, and Management and SSA's Inspector General. In addition to developing its own anti-fraud initiatives, the National Committee oversees and supports Regional Anti-Fraud Committees, which were set up to coordinate anti-fraud strategies in each of SSA's 10 regions. The Regional Committees include regional commissioners and other senior SSA and Office of Inspector General staff as well as managers of SSA district offices.
EmployeesPerhaps SSA's biggest contributors to our anti-fraud efforts are the employees in our approximately 1,300 field offices, whose commitment to maintaining the integrity of the Social Security program is unswerving. Often, it is field office and Disability Determination Services employees who are able to uncover suspicious or fraudulent schemes. These employees are our biggest assets in our fight against fraud. We will continue to train them in anti-fraud practices and seek additional tools to make their anti-fraud commitment easier and more effective.
Office of the Inspector General
Since becoming an independent agency in March 1995, we have had our own Inspector General whose mission is to protect the integrity of SSA's programs. A strong Office of the Inspector General (OIG), working together with SSA employees in local offices, is the most effective means we have to control fraud and abuse in the programs we administer. To strengthen the OIG's capacity to accomplish its mission, SSA has continued to increase the resources available to the OIG, more than doubling its staff since FY 1996. Our FY 2001 budget request for the OIG includes an increase of more than 10 percent over last year to support increased attention to deterring fraudulent activities and identifying and bringing to justice those who commit fraud, whether members of the public or employees.
Stronger Management of the SSI Program
We take very seriously the responsibility entrusted to us for managing the SSI program, and this budget focuses on several activities designed to improve our stewardship of it. These include: increasing the number of SSI non-disability redeterminations processed and improving payment accuracy through the increased use of computer matches and real-time access to key payment-related information. Fully funding our budget request will enable SSA to process more than 2 million SSI non-disability redeterminations. This will help ensure that those who receive SSI payments are meeting program requirements and are receiving the correct benefit amount. Hundreds of millions of dollars in payment changes are made as a result of the redeterminations we process.
In addition, we are increasing the use and frequency of computer matches with other Federal, State and local entities to detect overpayments earlier. For example, last year SSA began a monthly matching operation to detect nursing home admissions in all 50 States. Previously, these matches occurred on an annual basis, and the database did not contain data for all the States.
While computer matches help us detect inaccurate payments, we also will continue efforts to provide our field offices with real-time access to State databases that include wages, unemployment compensation, vehicle ownership, and other information that will help us prevent overpayments before they occur.
Safeguarding the Integrity of Disability Programs
While committed to providing timely and compassionate service to our customers, SSA is equally committed to ensuring that only those individuals who meet program eligibility requirements come onto the rolls and that only those who continue to be disabled remain on the rolls. In support of that objective, our budget plan calls for processing additional CDRs in order to ensure program integrity, to rebuild public confidence in our programs, and to carry out congressional mandates. We are confident that our CDR strategy will lead to reliable and cost-effective monitoring of the disability rolls.
I want to take this opportunity to thank the Committee for providing additional funds, through an adjustment to discretionary spending caps, for this crucial workload. We are now in our fifth year of a seven-year plan to become current in processing periodic CDRs and have made very good progress towards our goal. In FY 1996, the first year of the plan, we processed approximately .5 million CDRs. As of the end of FY 1999, we have completed roughly 46 percent of our 7-year plan. With our FY 2000 budget commitment of 1.8 million CDRs processed and our FY 2001 budget request supporting the processing of another 1.7 million, we expect to meet the commitment we made to become current by the end of FY 2002. SSA expects to obligate about $650 million in FY 2001 to process periodic CDRs. This includes $200 million base funding and an additional $450 million in "above the cap" funding. Over the course of our 7-year plan, we expect, on average, to realize lifetime program savings of at least $6 for every $1 in administrative cost.
Debt Collection
We strive to achieve high levels of payment accuracy in order to minimize the amount of program dollars paid incorrectly. However, due to the dynamics of our programs, it is inevitable that some debt will be created. SSA's debt management program currently makes use of many of the debt collection tools available under existing law, and we are in the process of implementing the remainder.
In FY 1999, SSA collected more than $1.8 billion in debt. For FYs 2000 and 2001, SSA is developing two new debt collection tools: Mandatory Cross Program Recovery and Administrative Wage Garnishment. We also plan to develop the use of remaining debt collection authorities authorized by the Foster Care Independence Act of 1999, such as extending to the SSI program all of the debt collection authorities currently available for the collection of overpayments under the OASDI program[t8].
Improving Administration of the Disability Programs
Improving administration of our Social Security and SSI disability programs continues to be a priority for this Agency. This budget builds on our efforts to improve disability program administration by continuing to implement changes to the disability adjudication process, supporting our Hearings Process Improvement initiative, and enhancing beneficiaries' opportunity to work.
Improving the Disability Adjudication Process
After testing various process improvements over the past several years and examining the results of the tests, we are prototyping the most successful features of these process changes in 10 State Disability Determination Services. The prototypes will improve the initial disability adjudication process by:
- Providing greater decisional authority to disability examiners and making more effective use of medical consultant expertise;
- Ensuring appropriate development and explanations in initial claims;
- Increasing claimant interaction with the decision maker; and
- Simplifying the appeals process by eliminating the reconsideration step.
By taking this incremental approach, we will be able to assess more effectively the operational effects of these process changes and refine subsequent process improvements before moving to national implementation.
Hearings Process Improvement Initiative
Over the past several years, the Agency has taken steps to improve the quality and timeliness of service provided during the hearing process. In fact, in FY 1999 we reduced the number of hearings pending and decreased the average number of days to receive a decision. However, I recognize that further improvements are needed. Accordingly, in August 1999, I released the Agency's Hearing Process Improvement (HPI) Plan. Its goal is to reduce hearings processing time to less than 200 days in FY 2002, by achieving administrative efficiencies, implementing group-based accountability, and improving our automation and data collection-without additional resources. HPI seeks to make hearings more timely, efficient, and customer-focused. In January 2000, HPI was initiated in 37 hearing offices in States that also were selected to prototype enhancements to the initial disability process.
Appeals Council Process Improvement Plan
The Appeals Council provides the final level of administrative review for claims under the Social Security Act. The Appeals Council is also responsible for overseeing the preparation of the administrative record filed in Federal court proceedings and for initiating further administrative actions as required by those court proceedings. As a result of its burgeoning workloads, processing times at the Appeals Council have reached unacceptably high levels.
We have just released the Appeals Council Process Improvement Plan which focuses on reducing pending workloads and processing times in the near term and developing an operational structure that can continue to deliver high-quality, timely and efficient case processing for the long term. In the meantime, we have redirected resources in FY 2000 to help deal with the Appeals Council backlog, and we have budgeted for a further increase in FY 2001.
Enhancing Beneficiaries' Opportunities to Work
Last year's passage of the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999 further supports our efforts to enhance disability beneficiaries' opportunities to work by providing a combination of incentives and supports to individuals who want to work. This budget requests $58 million in administrative funding directed to work incentive activities, including:
- Program management contracts to administer the Ticket to Work and Self-Sufficiency program;
- Establishment of a corps of SSA employment support specialists; and
- Implementation of work incentives planning, assistance and outreach program grants.
SSA is proceeding to implement the legislation this year. The President's budget for FY 2000 included some funding for work incentive activities, but additional costs for implementing the new legislation are being absorbed within the enacted appropriation for FY 2000.
Our Service Delivery Challenge
For several years, in response to a request from this Subcommittee, SSA's annual budget has included specific workload and performance commitments commensurate with the funding levels requested. I am pleased to report that, in FY 1999, we met or exceeded our commitments for 800-number service calls handled and 5-minute access rate, periodic CDRs processed, and SSI redeterminations processed. Although we did not meet all of our ambitious disability and hearings commitments, we were able to reduce hearings pending in FY 1999.
This year has been a particularly challenging one for SSA. In November 1999, the Congress passed an appropriation bill which reduced the President's request for SSA's administrative costs by more than $200 million. I strongly supported the President's veto of that legislation, which would have resulted in large disruptions in service and harm to millions of elderly and disabled Americans who depend on our programs for their support.
I was pleased that part of this reduction was restored, in part by funding some unbudgeted cost increases with unspent money from FY 1999. Still, when all was said and done, we wound up about $75 million short of what was needed to meet our promised service commitments. The FY 2000 Operating Plan, submitted to the Subcommittee in January 2000, updated our FY 2000 performance commitments to reflect the funding level appropriated as well as unbudgeted cost increases. Compared to commitments based on the FY 2000 President's budget funding level, our performance commitments for 800-number calls handled and 5-minute access rate were lowered, as were estimates of disability claims and hearings processed and SSI redeterminations completed.
The budget request before this Subcommittee provides for investment in automation and other efficiencies that will enable us to process more work in FY 2001 than in FY 2000, while maintaining most service levels in the face of growing demands. However, this challenge will create stresses and strains on all parts of the Agency as we strive to meet expectations, while managing for results.
This budget request supports several initiatives, which are key to providing world-class service and helping to shape an agency that works better and costs less. Some examples of these initiatives include:
- Telephone Service: While the Agency has, for years, been considered a leader in high-quality telephone service delivery, increasing demands have made it more and more difficult to maintain that capability. Despite budget resource limitations and expanding service demands, SSA remains committed to taking proactive steps toward responding to customer needs and expectations. This budget will support today's telephone service through technological enhancements that will allow SSA to manage call delivery better and more effectively direct calls to agents with the skills to answer the caller's questions. This budget will maintain telephone performance at the FY 2000 level in terms of the volume of calls handled and the 5-minute access rate.
- In addition, I plan to obtain a better understanding of what the private sector is doing with their telephone services. Specifically, I want to know what standards, other than access rates, private organizations are emphasizing in measuring the quality of the telephone service they provide, and what level of resources they make available for doing so.
- Expand Electronic Service Delivery: A growing number of customers want to conduct government business electronically as they become accustomed to doing commercial business in this way. To provide customer-responsive service, SSA must continue to carefully monitor the ongoing shift in our customers' preferences and prepare to steadily expand service delivery options in response to customer expectations. Recently, SSA added two new online services, an electronic newsletter that provides the latest Social Security information of public interest and a new retirement planner that allows individuals to compute estimates of their future Social Security retirement benefits. SSA will continue efforts to increase the services offered electronically to allow customers to complete their business with SSA at the initial point of contact. Consistent with appropriate privacy/security safeguards, the Agency will add online functionality incrementally. This will enable SSA to improve customer service and realize some savings by increasing access to public information and forms while developing more complex online data collection and processing functions.
- Electronic Payment Services: SSA is continuing efforts to improve benefit payment delivery services by increasing the number of benefits paid by direct deposit. As of January 2000, 78 percent of the OASDI beneficiary population participates in the direct deposit program. SSA will continue to work with the Treasury Department to encourage the use of direct deposit, or a number of alternatives for the remaining beneficiaries who are receiving Social Security and SSI checks. In addition, SSA is working to make Treasury's electronic transfer account web site available in SSA field offices to better serve recipients who inquire about their payment options.
Increasing Public Understanding
One of SSA's basic responsibilities is to ensure that the public is informed about Social Security programs. Last year, we undertook a review of our Social Security Statement and made significant revisions to provide the American public with more simplified and understandable information for use in planning for their retirement needs. In FY 2001, we will send a total of 126 million statements, including one to each covered worker aged 25 and over not currently receiving benefits.
The Commissioner's Budget Request
Pursuant to the Committee's request, I will provide information on the Commissioner's budget for FY 2001, consistent with the Independent Agency statute. In this budget, I requested $7.466 billion for SSA's administrative expenses, including $7.356 billion [t9]for the LAE account. This budget funded a moderate increase in staffing for SSA and the State Disability Determination Services (DDS), and creation of a Capital Investment Fund. The staffing increase was for reducing postentitlement backlogs, improving service levels in our field offices, hearing offices, 800-number operations, and in the DDSs; and implementing recent legislation, mainly return to work.
The President's budget is the result of months of negotiations. The President faces constraints that require him to choose among competing priorities to keep the overall Federal budget in balance pending decisions on the future of the nation's Social Security program. It is clear that the President strongly supports SSA and its mission, including the stabilized staffing reflected in his request. The President's budget was arrived at with my support.
Other FY 2001 Appropriation Requests
In addition to LAE, we have four other requests before this Committee: Office of the Inspector General, Supplemental Security Income, Special Benefits for Disabled Coal Miners, and Payments to Social Security Trust Funds. Social Security trust fund benefit payments are permanently appropriated, and therefore are not part of the budget requests before this Committee. I would like to turn now to a brief summary of these other appropriation requests for FY 2001.
Office of the Inspector General (OIG)
$73 million for OIG - These funds will cover OIG's operating expenses, including salaries for its staff and other costs such as rent and supplies. We continue to make significant investments in the OIG as we pursue our goal of zero tolerance for fraud and abuse in SSA programs. Over the period FY 1995 to FY 2000, we have increased full-time permanent staffing at the OIG from 242 to 579, more than doubling its capacity to prevent, identify, prosecute and eliminate waste, fraud and abuse. The request for FY 2001 is an increase of more than 10 percent over last year's level and will enable the OIG to maintain current service levels and expand highly-effective initiatives, including: Cooperative Disability Investigations Teams that investigate and prevent disability fraud; SSN misuse pilot projects focused on investigating allegations of identity theft; and the Fugitive Felon Project created to identify individuals illegally receiving SSI benefits.
Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
$33.2 billion for the SSI Program - The SSI program ensures a minimum monthly level of income to eligible aged, blind, and disabled individuals. An individual's income, resources, and living arrangements are evaluated in computing the actual amount of payment. This request includes almost $30.5 billion for Federal benefit payments to more than 6.4 million aged, blind and disabled beneficiaries; $2.6 billion in payments to reimburse the Social Security trust funds for SSI administrative expenses; $71 million for beneficiary services; and $30 million for research and demonstration projects.
Special Benefits for Disabled Coal Miners
$489.7 million for Special Benefits for Disabled Coal Miners - These funds cover benefit payments and administrative expenses for that portion of the Black Lung program for which SSA is responsible.
Payments to Social Security Trust Funds
$20.4 million for Payments to Social Security Trust Funds - This request will serve to reimburse the Social Security trust funds for the costs of certain benefits and administrative expenses properly charged to Federal funds.
Supplemental Request for FY 2000
Before I conclude, I would like to take this moment to voice my support for the President's $35 million FY 2000 supplemental appropriation request for SSA to fund one-time costs for implementation of the Senior Citizens' Freedom to Work Act of 2000. This legislation, signed by the President on April 7, 2000, eliminates Social Security's Retirement Earnings Test for retirees at or above normal retirement age, retroactive to January 1, 2000.[t10]
In addition, it is important that supplemental language be enacted, as proposed by the President, to repeal the provision in the "Balanced Budget Act of 1997" (BBA) that calls for the SSI benefit payment for October 2000 to be made on October 2, 2000 (FY 2001). Generally, SSI payments are made on the first of the month, unless that day falls on a Saturday, Sunday or holiday; in which case the payment reverts to the preceding Friday. The BBA altered the regular procedure for this SSI payment in order to delay it from Friday September 29, 2000 (FY 2000) to FY 2001. Restoring the regular SSI payment date for October 2000 would help prevent hardship on vulnerable SSI beneficiaries who may be depending on the regular payment date in order to meet their expenses for food and shelter. [t11]
Social Security is the most successful domestic program in the nation's history and arguably the single most effective anti-poverty program ever created. It allows millions of people, who would otherwise suffer economic devastation in old age, to live with dignity. Without Social Security, one-half of today's elderly would be living in poverty. One of the top priorities of the Administration is to continue the fiscal discipline of the past seven years to help preserve and strengthen Social Security for current and future generations.
SSA is considered by the public to be among the most responsive public service agencies in government, and the recent Syracuse University report indicates we are one of the best-managed as well. Critical successes notwithstanding, we recognize both our continuing obligation to be responsible and careful stewards of the programs we administer, and the ongoing challenges in managing for results as we push the organization to get our work accomplished.
The FY 2001 budget - including $7.134 billion for LAE, $73 million for the Inspector General, and $30 million for research - will provide the resources to help respond to these challenges. The increase in our administrative budget request will support level full-time permanent staffing and maintain most service levels in the face of growing demands, as we work to ensure continuing economic security for all Americans, improve program management, and meet the challenges of the 21st century.
Mr. Chairman, SSA's administrative budget is primarily the cost of its employees. Our employees, wherever they are located, need to be reassured that adequate resources are available to them to do their jobs completely. I believe there is no more dedicated workforce than Social Security's.
Thank you for the opportunity to present SSA's budget request to this Committee. I ask you to support this request and I welcome any questions you may have.


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Embracing a gay son or daughter as the gift they were created to be
Jane Clementi, a mother who in 2010 faced the immense devastation of losing a child to suicide, offers her powerful story and how we as parents should always embrace as children with complete love and understanding – especially if there is stigma and misunderstanding in place because of what children and parents have been taught by their church. Read more: 'Embracing the gift of a child.'
Imagine telling a 13-year-old child who is just coming to understand
that his or her sexual orientation is different from her peers or her siblings that there is something terrible and awful about the very person they were created to be. That it is so ugly and bad that they will never be treated with human dignity and respect of others. Read more: 'Do we want to hurt those we love the most?'
For the parents of faith, there perhaps isn't anything more important
than the nourishment of that faith, particularly in the lives of their children.
That is equally true for the young person, who has been reared in a home where the importance of their spiritual life has been instilled and continues to be a vital part of their lives as well as the parents and family. Continue reading. Read more: 'The spiritual harm of rejection'.
John sits across from me in the big easy chair in my office.
His arms are crossed tightly and his knees are pressed firmly together giving the impression he is trying to slip through a crack in the cushions. Next to us on the couch are John's parents. If possible, they look even more uncomfortable than their son. Read more: 'Our youth are counting on a new perspective'.
"Homosexuality is neither mental illness nor moral depravity. It is simply the way a minority of our population expresses human love and sexuality. Study after study documents the mental health of gay men and lesbians. Studies of judgment, stability, reliability, and social and vocational adaptiveness all show that gay men and lesbians function every bit as well as heterosexuals. Nor is homosexuality a matter of individual choice. Research suggests that the homosexual orientation is in place very early in the life cycle, possibly even before birth." American Psychological Association
The medical science is overwhelming and indisputable that sexual orientation has nothing to do with choice. Even leaders in conservative religious communities agree. Read more
Religious teaching has been misused to justify stigma and hostility
against Native Americans, African Americans, women, interracial couples and other religious minorities.
Misusing religious teaching to justify treating others as inferior is simply wrong. We know that to be true because of the unique harm to individuals when their very being is subjected to a moral and religious stamp of disapproval. Read more: 'An important history lesson on the misuse of religious teacing'.

subset: commoncrawl


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BOSTON — Collin Zych, a senior free safety at Harvard, wakes up on a typical autumn Sunday feeling the aftershocks of most of the hits he made in the game the day before. He carries bumps and bruises, and his shoulders tend to ache.
"Once you get back on field for practice, it all goes away," he said, sounding almost cheerful about it.
Zych (pronounced zitch), from Plano, Tex., is Harvard's 137th football captain and is considered to be an N.F.L. prospect, but he has come a long way since his senior year in high school, when he and his coach made pitches just to get Harvard to pay attention to him.
It rarely works that way, Harvard Coach Tim Murphy said. To locate candidates who are good players and who meet the university's academic requirements, Harvard sends 5,000 questionnaires to high school coaches in the United States and Canada.
"We recruit Texas hard," said Murphy, who has 11 players from the state on his team, including three from Plano, a Dallas suburb. "It's a big state, or as some people down there say, a big country."Continue reading the main story
It was not as if Zych totally eluded Harvard's attention. He heard from Harvard when he was a junior at Plano East High School, and he was so interested in attending that he took part in a football camp there before his senior year. Then it was as if Zych dropped off the radar.
No one really knows the reason. There were changes on Murphy's staff, and Zych's mother, Linda, said that the coaches might have thought that Collin, who has three siblings, did not want to attend a college that does not offer athletic scholarships.
"He really felt pretty strongly," his mother said. "Harvard was a school he really enjoyed visiting."
Zych had begun considering other Eastern programs — Columbia, Dartmouth, Holy Cross — but he wanted to give Harvard one more shot. He stopped by the office of Johnny Ringo, his coach at Plano East, and asked Ringo if he would try to nudge Harvard.
Ringo sent new game film of Zych to Harvard. Zych sent an e-mail to Murphy in which he said he still wanted to play for the Crimson. Once Murphy saw the film, and noticed how ferocious and heady Zych was, Harvard became quite interested.
"I let them know he was a can't-miss kid," Ringo said in a telephone interview. "We tried to convince him what kind of a kid he was, what kind of character he had, what kind of academic student he was. Once we did get in touch, they were great about getting him up there."
Ringo said he was only doing what he would do for other prospects. But Zych said emphatically that he might not have ended up at Harvard without Ringo's help.
Zych, who is studying economics, said he would like to pursue a career in finance when he stops playing football. He is not the first person to say that a Harvard education will probably open many doors. But it is interesting, to him, how far he has come.
"Truthfully, I had no idea Harvard had a legitimate football team," he said, smiling.
After he enrolled at Harvard as a freshman, he was given a No. 32 jersey — a duplicate number. Because the coaches needed him in case of emergency for varsity games, he did not play a single snap for the junior varsity. But the varsity did not need him, either.
Zych started nine games as a sophomore and led the Crimson in tackles as a junior. At 5 feet 11 inches and 195 pounds, he is not particularly large for a safety, but he hits hard and is considered by his coaches and his teammates to be sound fundamentally.
"He's just extraordinarily dependable, and in a big way," Murphy said. "He is always, always, where he's supposed to be when he's supposed to be there."
Zych is amiable but somewhat stoic; he was not an automatic candidate to become Harvard's captain as a senior. Players elect the captain, and there is only one for the season — and it is Harvard — so the captaincy carries an enormous amount of prestige.
He was named captain after last season, in which Harvard finished 7-3 and lost in a driving rainstorm to Pennsylvania, the eventual Ivy League champion. Zych decided almost right away to take a different approach to being a captain than some of his predecessors.
It is a Harvard tradition that the captain writes a letter on Harvard stationery to each player outlining the goals of the season. Depending on the captain's personality, the tone of these letters can be very different.
"It was the most professional, well-done letter since I've been here," Ben Graeff, a junior defensive end, said of Zych's letter. "There was no real big hoopla — or cursing, which my mom appreciated. It was all business. You felt like he was addressing you personally."
Rather than, as he said, "trying to pump people up in a very masculine way," Zych wrote that the players should be thoroughly prepared heading into the season opener against Holy Cross (which Harvard won, 34-6). That they should hold one another accountable. That there be no slackers.
Graeff said the team had taken Zych's lead.
"We've had some of the best defensive practices since I've been here," he said. "Collin is one of those players who's always up for practice."
After Harvard (2-1) lost to Brown in its Ivy League opener Sept. 25, Zych noticed a change in the way that some players prepared for the next game. It was as if they had received personal wake-up calls. They responded with a 35-10 victory against Lafayette. Harvard hosts Cornell on Saturday.
Graeff has detected a change in Zych, too, saying, "Maybe he talks a little more on the field." Graeff laughed, as if that were an accomplishment, but Zych really has come a long way since he walked into Johnny Ringo's office as a senior and asked for a little push.Continue reading the main story


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Airbag Recall - Channel 13 - Houston TexasAir Bag Recall Third major Recall By Takata. You can use these links to find out if your vin number is part of the recall. You can call NHTSAs safety hotline (1-888-327-4236) or use your cars VIN to see if youre affected by this or any other reported ...
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Houston Auto - Car Maintenance T.V. Interview Channel 11 - Winterizing Your Car - Midtown Auto Service & Repair Houston 2011How to prepare a car for winter Your car has a lot to endure during winter - cold weather, slippery roads, salt and sand on the streets. Any hidden problems your car may have will get worse during cold winter. An old battery, engine oil that hasn't bee ...
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Welcome... It's our goal at Midtown Auto Service & Repair Shop in Houston to always provide great car care services with high-quality workmanship at fair prices. You may have seen us on TV or heard us on the radio station, we are frequently featured on Channel 11 and Channel 2 on issues about car maintenance. Specifically, on Channel 2 we provided Q&A: the viewers, answers to their problems with their cars. Or maybe, heard us on the radio: nationally broadcasted on CARTALK or other Local Radio Stations around Houston. We are a leader in the knowledge of car repair, and hard to fix issues, that others cannot. Midtown Auto Service & Car Repair in Houston is a family-owned business that is specialized in providing personalized service to our customers.
One of the highest recognitions for an auto repair shop in Houston is given by the State of Texas to be a Recognized Auto Repair and Emmissions Repair Facility. In 2007, there were less than 100 automotive repair shops in Houston that had this license by the State. That is a big disproportion considering there are over 5400 auto repair shops in Houston and the surrounding areas. Another factor to being a highly recognized Houston auto repair shop is being chosen by General Motors Inc. as an independent Auto Repair Service Center for Factory AC Delco Repairs on all GM repairs in Houston. Which includes, Buicks, Cadillacs, Chevrolets, GMC, GM Daewoos, Holdens, Hummers, Oldmobiles, Opels, Saab, Saturns, all make and models of their cars and trucks.. In addition, NAPA Auto Parts also endorses our company as an Approved Napa Auto Car Care Repair Center in Houston which means that their company certifies us to do their repair warranties or any needed car service repairs. Also, our shop is an AAA Approved Auto Repair Facility that employs only ASE certified auto repair technicians. We are also considered by the BBB as a A+ rated shop, and is in good standing with the ethics of the Better Business Bureau for auto repair. Operating since 1987, we are conveniently located between the downtown & medical center, also known as Midtown.
Since 1987, Midtown Auto Service & Car Repair Shop in Houston has been committed to providing the highest quality automobile car repair service at affordable prices. We have established our auto repair business on sound ethical and moral principles. Simply put, our Houston auto repair business focuses on customer service, and your satisfaction is paramount. We want you to be pleased with our services so that you will continue to use us for your automobile repair-service needs in the future and tell your friends.
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Day of the Oprichnik
Set in a futuristic Moscow (2028 according to the jacket copy), Day of the Oprichnik is exactly that: a day in the life of Andrei Danilovich Komiaga. The oprichniki were essentially a cultish "death squad" that was set up by Tsar Ivan the Terrible back in the mid 1500s to protect his ass and slay his enemies, and in Sorokin's latest novel, they do exactly that—and in graphic detail—all in service of His Majesty, the new ruler of Russia.
As a reader jumping in blind to this book, it doesn't take long to realize that this isn't exactly the Russia we're familiar with . . . In the second paragraph, Komiaga is awoken by screams, moans, and "the death rattle" emanating from his "mobilov" and recorded by "the Secret Department, when they were torturing the Far Eastern general." Then there's reference to a "news bubble," the Far Eastern Pipeline which "will remain closed until petition from the Japanese," and his Mercedov with its "transparent roof."
It's in the last paragraph of this opening chapter that we see what direction Komiaga's day is heading:
In the rearview mirror I see my homestead receding. A good house, with a heart and soul. I've been living in it for only seven months, yet it feels as though I was born and grew up there. The property used to belong to a comrade moneychanger at the Treasury: Gorokhov, Stepan Ignatievich. When he fell into disgrace during the Great Treasury Purge and exposed himself, we took him in hand During that hot summer a good number of Treasury heads rolled. Bobrov and five of his henchmen were paraded through Moscow in an iron cage, then flogged with the rod and beheaded on Lobnoe Mesto in Red Square. Half of the Treasury was exiled from Moscow beyond the Urals. There was a lot of work . . .
Over the rest of the book—the rest of Komiaga's day—he helps destroy the home of a fallen nobleman (and rapes his wife in some surreal prose), goes to church (New Rus is ardently religious), investigates a pasquinade defaming His Majesty's son-in-law, helps pass judgement on an obscene new performance, takes a bribe, does some super-hallucinagenic mindmelding drug of Philip K. Dick proportions, tries to help repress a subversive storyteller, consults a psychic for His Majesty's wife, and participates in a oprichinki orgy, among other sordid, frequently disturbing tasks.
Since the novel's main engine, so to speak, is the attempt to describe (and satirize) an invented world, these set-pieces work exceedingly well. It's through Komiaga's experiences that we learn about the "Western Wall" that cuts New Rus off from the stinking filth of Europe, about the political issues related to taxing all the Chinese inhabitants of Siberia, about the importance of religion, the ban on hard drugs (weed and coke are totally cool), and the restrictions on swearing and obscenity. This novel operates within one of the common trappings of science-fiction novels, in which the author ends up building a plot simply in order to show you the various aspects of the world he invented.
In this case, there's no really overarching plot to speak off aside from simply seeing what happens in a typical day in the life of a member of this special group. What they're allowed to do, how their oppression works, etc. In contrast to the sci-fi book that relies on the creativeness of its inventions (social, scientific, and whatnot), the reason Sorokin's book is mostly successful is due to its satirical charms and frightening truth that, no matter what changes, there's always a secret group of oprichniki with special privileges.
It's probably my own shortcoming, but I get the sense that some of Sorokin's targets slipped by me . . . Or, to put that more positively, that Russian readers (or readers more well versed in the contemporary Russian scene), will get even more out of this. One bit that I particularly liked (which brought to mind an essay of Dubravka Ugresic's from Thank You for Not Reading and plays to my obsessions) was this bit about literature in New Rus:
Bookstands are also standardized, approved by His Majesty and approved by the Literary Chamber. Our people respect books. On the left side there's Orthodox Church literature; on the right the Russian classics; and in the middle, the latest works by contemporary writers. First I look over the prose of our country's contemporary writers: Ivan Korobov's White Birch; Nikolia Voropaevsky's Our Fathers; Isaak Epshtein's The Taming of the Tundra; Rashid Zametdinov's Russia—My Motherland; Pavel Olegov's The Nizhny Novgorod Tithe; Savvaty Sharkunov's Daily Life of the Western Wall; Irodiada Deniuzhkina's My Heart's Friend; Oksana Podrobskaya's The Mores of New Chinese Children. I know all these authors well. They're famous, distinguished. Caressed by the love of the people and His Majesty.
One of the main problems I had with this book is that it's not as humorous or biting or disturbing as I expected. Sorokin has been the figurehead for contemporary Russian literature for years now. He's been featured in major publications on several occasions (like the New York Review of Books where he was referred to as "the only real prose writer, and resident genius" of late-Soviet fiction), with the general view being that his works are the most subversive, controversial, brilliant things being written in Russia today.
For example, almost every single piece about him that I've read (or written), makes mention of the fact that the Putin Youth symbolically flushed his books down a paper-mache toilet. Or that the untranslated novel "Blue Lard" has a graphic sex scene starring Khrushchev and Stalin. All of which ended up constructing a sort of image of a punk trouble-maker, a shocking sort of explosive writer. That may be true in some contexts, but Day of the Oprichnik, for all its political concerns, isn't the fireball of controversy that I was expecting . . .
Getting that reputation out of the way allows for his work to be appreciated for other reasons though, which will benefit his reputation (in this country at least) in the future. Day of the Oprichnik isn't a bad book, in fact, it's enjoyable to read—something that sounds odd to say when it's a book featuring a sizable helping of destruction and violence. But Komiaga's voice is compelling, and he serves the reader well in leading us through this new, perplexing world.
An interesting aspect of Komiaga's voice, that happens also to be a translation question, is the use of italicized words throughout the text. Sometimes these italics imply a special new code of sorts, like when he refers to "an order to squash the innards" during "a raid," or the order to perform a "red rooster." Other times, the italics are particular phrasings emphasized to provoke a certain feeling (usually creepy), like in this bit related to the nobleman's wife:
This work is—passionate, and absolutely necessary. It gives us more strength to overcome the enemies of the Russian state. Even this succulent work requires a certain seriousness. You have to start and finish by seniority.
There are so, so many of these italicized words and phrases in the book, many of which just seem odd or distracting or emphasizing the wrong word. ("I've seen many book and manuscript bonfires—in our courtyard, and in the Secret Department.") I have every confidence in the world in Jamey Gambrell's translation (she also did Sorokin's The Queue and The Ice Trilogy, so she definitely knows his work and style), but I am curious as to how these worked in the original Russian. Sometimes punctuation and other forms of emphasis don't always translate exactly . . .
Overall, Day of the Oprichnik is an intriguing book (a 7.1 out of 10), and hopefully in combination with the recent publication of The Ice Trilogy, will help English readers have a much better understanding of Sorokin's art, and not just his reputation.


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|2012-02-05, 09:48
|Link #20962
Titans Test Team Pilot
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: The Elysium
As per Athena fanon, the machine is simply labeled as a "battle-armor" since it's built for field combat and not a sports machine like the IS.
|2012-02-05, 09:48
|Link #20963
I am no one
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Inside your head
Hey, I said she's not official yet, it's better than you use other member of Ichika's harem who's already official!
Edit: no offense to Stratos, because the process is justified and believeable
Anyway fanon time
Military I.S.
Even though Alaska Prevent the deployment of I.S. in warfare, the involved countries knew that a treaty is meaningless when there's all out conflict. Paranoid about the worst case where I.S. versus I.S. combat is inevitable, they all create a diverse but otherwise similar concept known as Military I.S.
Military I.S. often built with matured, well proven technology instead of experimental one. As the result, they tend to possess superior overall performance to that of experimental version. They also tend to have high cost, and their performance means that they require a suitably skilled pilot to operate at full capacity.
Military I.S. oven symbolized by face-obscuring combat visor. Sometimes, they have a partial or fully-enclosing armor. Those armor by no means are novelty, and intended to hold against light to medium damage, boosting overall defense. This also gave them inhuman appearance, cementing their status as Weapon of Mass Destruction as opposed to Sporting Equipment.
Last edited by ZeroXSEED; 2012-02-05 at 09:59.
|2012-02-05, 09:53
|Link #20964
Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2011
@ Senpai - I'm trying to avoid using anybody in his official harem. Kanzashi spends time with Irish, but it never goes beyond platonic and he even helps pair her with Ichika. Ditto with Laura. If she's in the harem, then I have to scrap it.
Side note - Would Kazuma go insane/nuts if he saw Ichika again?
|2012-02-05, 09:57
|Link #20965
Titans Test Team Pilot
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: The Elysium
As for the amended dialogue...
Spoiler for Cat, Out of the Bag:
|2012-02-05, 10:30
|Link #20973
I am no one
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Inside your head
152.4 cm () actually very average height for japenese male of that age. Estimation will result in Irish being 165-170 cm at the age of 20 when he strop growing (well, Irish is not normal).
If we consider all the 15-17 year old cast of the cast are normal height as opposed to anime/manga depiction (that depict Houki as huge schoolgirl... which isn't true, Ichika remarked Houki as above average height), he's actually taller than both Laura and Rin, and about the same height as Maya and Charlotte, just short of Cecilia and Houki.
Also, I'm surprised Lyon's testosterone and adrenaline not firing up, considering the sheer of a dick that other boy is.
|2012-02-05, 10:36
|Link #20975
Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2011
@ Senpai - Hm, should I make him shorter? Bing called midget while he's average height would look odd.
@ Demi - I swear that bully's gay. The face pinching I can get, btu sniffing the dude's hair? Someone's in denial.
|2012-02-05, 10:38
|Link #20977
I am no one
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Inside your head
Well, if we consider average male height of that age actually 155-158 cm (from recent survey instead of statistic), Irish is not quite midget, just below average. But then again, you said he's crouching a lot.
No offense, that's definitely homosexual in the armored closet.
|fanfic ideas, fanfiction, ff.net, harem, is fanfic, warning fanfic spoilers, wincest
|Thread Tools


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In the late 1800s, a black couple residing in Terrebonne Parish were together active in the efforts of former slaves to cultivate and extend the social equality gained by Emancipation and the Union victory ending the Civil War.
In the late 1800s, a black couple residing in Terrebonne Parish were together active in the efforts of former slaves to cultivate and extend the social equality gained by Emancipation and the Union victory ending the Civil War.
The Rev. A.E.P. Albert and his wife, Octavia, lived in Houma in the vicinity of present-day Canal and Barataria streets, where he was pastor of an African Methodist Episcopal Church, and she interviewed former slaves and wrote stories of their lives before they became freemen.
Both were well-educated. They had met as teachers together in Georgia before he was ordained.
A.E.P. — Aristides Elphonso Peter, according to historian Paul Harvey in "Through the Storm, Through the Night," — was active in Methodist church activities. By 1890, he had become editor of the Southwestern Christian Advocate, published in New Orleans, and circulated to Methodist subscribers, white and black alike.
Octavia used her time in Houma to teach former slaves and to encourage their further education. Her interaction with the freemen also acquainted her with their lives as slaves, and she produced a series of biographical histories, which were edited and published by her husband and daughter, Laura, only after her death in 1890.
A series of Photographs and Memories articles about A.E.P. and Octavia was published here in 2009, following research into an 1897 Houma Courier editorial, which supported A.E.P.'s nomination to a position as minister to Liberia.
At that time (2009), few locals were aware that a black couple with such educational, literary or social activism credentials had lived in Houma some 120 years earlier.
This year, however, Henry Wicker, a great-great-grandson, now living on the East Coast, discovered the 2009 articles during a Google search and started an email correspondence, which continues today.
He said that the family had a well-worn copy of Octavia's book, "House of Bondage," but most of his knowledge of his great-great-grandfather came from a 2005 book written by James B. Bennett, "Religion and the Rise of Jim Crow in New Orleans."
There he learned that A.E.P. had been among those who tried to slow the 1890s advance of Jim Crow racial segregation by means of Plessy v. Ferguson, which ultimately backfired with the U.S. Supreme Court sanction of "separate but equal" segregation that prevailed in the South until the mid-1900s.
Plessy had been denied equal accommodations on a train traveling out of New Orleans, and sued in protest.
According to Bennett's 2005 book, A.E.P. had encountered a similar experience aboard a train from Houston to New Orleans in 1891.
At the time, white rail passengers could choose among several levels of service, ranging from plain "coach" to private Pullman sleeping cars, while blacks found themselves in a "colored car" no matter what ticket they held.
Worse, Bennett wrote, "the colored car often doubled as the smoking car, where whites gathered to drink, curse, and engage in otherwise prohibited behavior" with no intervention by train employees.
Returning in 1891 from Houston, where he had promoted the magazine he edited, Bennett wrote, A.E.P. "purchased a ticket for a first-class seat and a berth on a sleeper car" and was assigned a berth.
"Another conductor then complained that Albert's presence on the sleeping car violated Texas state law."
A mob gathered, bent on "greeting" Albert on the platform. He maintained that he had been assigned the berth, that "he was just as much entitled to the comforts of the sleeping car as anybody else.
"Fortunately," Bennett wrote, one conductor "pleaded on Albert's behalf that 'such a dignified and cultured Christian gentleman' be shown mercy, focusing on his religious rather than his racial identity."
Albert reached New Orleans safely, but the experience helped move him toward seeking legal relief in the Plessy case.
The Courier and Daily Comet are looking for your old photographs and the memories that go with them. In order to protect your valuable photographs, do not send unsolicited photographs. Instead, contact Bill Ellzey at 876-5638 and leave a message. You may also write to him at: The Courier, P.O. Box 2717, Houma, LA 70361 or contact him at firstname.lastname@example.com.


text:
Home > News & Events > Wayland Press Release Archives > 2007 News Releases > August 2007 > Aven to be honored by WBU SIFE Team
Aven to be honored by WBU SIFE Team
PLAINVIEW – Sandra Aven will be honored as one of three Women in Business Award winners during a banquet hosted by the Students in Free Enterprise team at Wayland Baptist University on Aug. 30.
Publisher of the Plainview Daily Herald since January 2006, Aven was previously resident controller at the newspaper for ten years and served as office manager for a year prior to that. She has also worked as office manager for two other companies and as a arbitrage clerk, a commodity broker and a clerk.
Aven is a graduate of Plainview High School and is working on her bachelor's degree in business administration at Wayland. She is also a licensed commodity broker.
An active member of the community, Aven is a graduate of Leadership Plainview and a past member of the National Futures Association and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
She serves on the board of the YMCA and has held the presidency and vice presidencies of that board several times. She is also on the board of the Plainview Area United Way, the Wee Care Child Care Center and the Community Partners of the Central Plains (Rainbow Room), serving as the founding president of that group in 1999. She is a member of the Rotary Club and a past member of the Business and Professional Women's Club and Toastmasters.
Named Woman of the Year by the Plainview Chamber of Commerce in 2005, Aven is on the board of the Plainview/Hale County Industrial Foundation and the Chamber of Commerce. She also served on the SIFE Advisory Board, the Division of Business Advisory Council, Plainview Main Street, the WBU child development center and women's division of the chamber.
She was honored by the Hearst Corporation with the Eagle Award for 1996 and the President's Call to Service Award in 2004, and was named Young Careerist by the B&PW Club in 1994.
Aven and her husband Brett have a son, Chance, 15, a sophomore at Plainview High. She is a member of College Heights Baptist Church.
The SIFE Women in Business banquet is slated for 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 30 in Room 211 of the McClung University Center on the WBU campus. Tickets are $15 per person, which includes a buffet dinner and the awards presentation program, featuring Carolyn Baker, executive vice president of Hale County State Bank as keynote speaker.
Other 2007 honorees include Jan Alford, State Farm agent, and family physician Dr. Ruth Rector-Wright.
For tickets, contact the Division of Business at Wayland at 291-1020. Deadline to reserve is Monday, Aug. 27.


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text:
Culinary School: Day One
14 comments:
- Sarah @ Semi-Sweet said...
Hanging on every update - you're inspiring me to take more leaps . . . just need to figure out to where! Glad it went well!
- January 10, 2011 at 7:22 PM
- Elizabeth @ Saffron Lane said...
Although you are utterly exhausted, any day filled with "delirious excitement" is a good one in my book!
Can't wait to hear more about your fun adventures!
- January 10, 2011 at 7:33 PM
- Olga @ MangoTomato said...
wow, you are changing your life!! GO, go, go!!
Also I love knife skills. They are invaluable. You are going to be great.
- January 10, 2011 at 7:43 PM
how exciting!! Glad your first day went well! :)
- January 10, 2011 at 7:57 PM
- Alicia said...
Awesome! I can't wait til you start sharing all these tips and tricks!!
Have fun in knife skills....HIYUH!
- January 10, 2011 at 8:20 PM
I am so excited for you and cannot wait for you to try out your new found skills on us!! Enjoy every moment....that is what life is all about!! Congratulations!! :-)
- January 10, 2011 at 9:35 PM
- Megan said...
Sounds like an awesome first day! You will definitely be exhausted the whole time... and then your body will just go into autopilot. And yes, people had to remind me to eat something when I was working at Flour. It's true... you get super-immersed. Have so much fun! Can't wait to hear more about everything you are learning.
- January 10, 2011 at 10:07 PM
- A CopyCat Cooks said...
...that sounds amazing... I am very jealous.
- January 10, 2011 at 11:25 PM
- Jen said...
Can't wait to hear all about it! Glad the first day went well.
- January 11, 2011 at 8:55 AM
- Boston Food Diary said...
Woooohoooooo! Thats the kind of post I like to see! I love it! So incredibly thrilled for you...
- January 11, 2011 at 8:55 AM
- Carolyn said...
Glad to hear you are enjoying it so far and so much that you forget to eat!
- January 11, 2011 at 3:57 PM
- MichellePC said...
YAY! So glad to hear it is going so well!
- January 11, 2011 at 5:09 PM
- Elina (Healthy and Sane) said...
Yay!! So happy for you!!! Looking forward to reading more tip and other culinary school musings :)
- January 11, 2011 at 5:23 PM
- Denise said...
How exciting!! Yes, I'd love a knife skills class. That one is SUPER beneficial!
- January 12, 2011 at 1:56 AM
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There are many kinds of internet marketing software available online. Some of these tools come
in all shapes and sizes. In this article I will discuss what to look for when choosing niche
marketing software. Having the right tool will help you to investigate the many niches that are
available online. First let me answer this question.
What is niche marketing?
Niche marketing is when an internet marketer concentrates on a small market segment of a topic
with the objective of achieving dominance of that segment. Niche marketing can be very
profitable if you choose the right niche to market. Finding a profitable niche market can be a
challenge for many internet marketers. One of the problems faced by many is deciding what
niche to market and how to market it when there are several millions of other web pages doing
the same thing. Competition can be fierce!
What should I look out for when choosing niche marketing software?
There are many factors to consider when you are thinking about purchasing niche marketing
software. Apart from making sure that the software deals with your needs, it is important to
make sure that you feel comfortable using the software. You may use this software for many
things so its important that you like using it.
Some other considerations to bare in mind are –
– When you are faced with purchasing software, you will at some point through the purchasing
process sit face to face with the niche software sales letter. So its very important that
when you visit the sales letter for the software that you read everything on it. Be sure
that you know what you are getting for your money. What can it do for you? And… What can't
it not do for you? Does the software provide your needs?
– I've bought into a number of niche marketing software products in the past. I have at times
felt like I needed to pull my hair out. Why you say? Because the data that the niche
software was using was inaccurate data. The results that the software calculated was coming
from an unreliable source on the net. Sometimes I had a good search count for a particular
word, the next time I checked it was a different and sometimes lower search count. It all
got confusing and frustrating for me. So be wary and ask the product owner, where does the
keyword source come from.
– Go to your favorite search engine and look for any good and bad reviews of the product you
are looking to purchase. By doing this, it will help you make up your mind about whether or
not you should buy into this software. Look for case studies and testimonials from others to
see what they said about the product
– If and when you do decided to purchase the internet niche marketing software, be sure to
read the manual. This is important as you need to fully understand what all the functions,
terms and search results mean. By doing this you will have complete control over what you do
with the software and you will have less chance of misusing the software.
These are just a few things you need to consider when you are purchasing internet niche
marketing software. I have been using a great niche marketing software tool that helps me find
under the radar niche markets to target. I have found this software to be reliable and very
useful for my internet marketing campaigns. The product owner is also very helpful in any
queries that I have… so what I'm saying is that the product comes with good tech support.
Its reasonably priced too. Check out the link below for more info.


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I think this is kinda a cool release from Origins, the Super Spot Remover range – actually there's only 2 products but I like that. I mean I get spots but that doesn't mean I want an entire range dedicated to them.
The products – the Super Spot Remover Blemish Treatment Gel (10ml – £12) or Spot Remover BlemishTreatment Pads (60 Pads – £22).
This has come at the right time because I have a HUGE spot on my cheek, named Dennis, and I can see him when I look down.
I feel like telling people, no no! I don't usually have huge spots on my face!
The Blemish Pads and Treatment Gel contain Salicylic Acid, apple and cucumber extracts, clove and oregano essential oils and apparently not only tackle spots, but help with cleaning out the pores, leaving them visibly smaller and help with pigmentation and scars left by acne. The pads can be used twice daily.
I am excited about trying these because of Dennis and because I had a skin scan (more about this later) and I am now obsessed with keeping my nose area clean. So these pads may really help with my pore woes. We'll see!
Origins Super Spot Remover products are out on counter nationwide from July 2011.


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Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
Take a trip down the rabbit hole with Chapterhouse Theatre Company this summer as they present the classic tale of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Join Alice as she stumbles into the magical world of Wonderland and meet a whole host of colourful characters. From the unforgettable White Rabbit and the madcap Mad Hatter to the terrifying Queen of Hearts, Alice's journey couldn't be filled with more adventure.
Presented in beautiful Victorian costume and alive with song, dance and original music, this is a production to delight the entire family in some of the UK and Ireland's most stunning open-air theatre venues.
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
The Gardens at Rathmullan House, Friday 13th July at 3pm
Tickets and more information from Rathmullan House +353 74 9158188 or book online


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The Jack Ridl Visiting Writers Series at Hope College will host five distinguished writers in the fall semester, including the 2010 National Book Award winner, Jaimy Gordon.
The public is invited. All events are free.
All readings begin at 7 p.m. at the Knickerbocker Theatre in downtown Holland. Question-and-answer sessions with the writers are at 3:30 p.m. in the Herrick Room on the second floor of the DeWitt Center.
° The series will open its season on Tuesday, Sept. 27, with the Fifth Annual Tom Andrews Memorial Reading. This year's memorial reading will feature two Hope alumni: poet Chris Dowbrowski and memoirist Mira Bartok. Chris Dowbrowski, who graduated from the college in 1998, is the author of the poetry collection "By Cold Water," a finalist for "ForeWord Magazine's" "Poetry Book of the Year," and the chapbook "Fragments with Dusk in Them," by Punctilious Press. Mira Bartok, who attended Hope in the latter 1970s before attending art school in Chicago, wrote "The Memory Palace" and 28 books for children, and has been recognized as a "New York Times" bestselling author and noted in "The Best American Essays" series.
° On Thursday, Nov. 3, Jaimy Gordon will read from her recent, award-winning novel, "Lord of Misrule." "Lord of Misrule" won the 2010 National Book Award for fiction and the 2010 Dr. Tony Ryan Book Award, and was selected by the "Washington Post" and "Time" magazine as Best Book of the Year.
° On Monday, Nov. 14, Edward Hirsch and internationally renowned Polish poet Adam Zagajewski will read. Hirsh is a former MacArthur Fellow and poet. Since receiving his Ph.D. in folklore from the University of Pennsylvania, Hirsh has published several books of poems as well as numerous prose volumes. Poet, novelist and essayist Adam Zagajewski has received numerous awards for his poems and memoirs, including a fellowship from the Berliner Kunstler program, the Kurt Tucholsky Prize, a Prix de la Liberté and a Guggenheim Fellowship. Both poets will be reading from their recent work.
Founded in 1982 by faculty member Jack Ridl, the Visiting Writers Series has hosted writers ranging from emerging voices to Pulitzer Prize winners. All events - panels, readings, classes, and workshops - are free of charge. The series was renamed by Hope in 2006 to honor Ridl's creation and maturation of the series.
"The purpose of the series is to expose Hope College Students and the wider Holland community to established, nationally-known writers, allowing all to envision a life of writing and reading," explains Pablo Peschiera, assistant professor of English and current director of the series.
Additional information about the Jack Ridl Visiting Writers Series may be obtained online at www.hope.edu/vws.
A performance by a Hope jazz group will precede each reading beginning at 6:30 p.m.
The DeWitt Center is located at 141 E. 12th St., facing Columbia Avenue at 12th Street. The Knickerbocker Theatre is located in downtown Holland at 86 E. Eighth St.


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I have started remixing THE RACE using a modern dance/club style technique. The remixing on this track shoudn't take long. I would have preferred to contact YELLO themselves and gain permission so the track itself can be commercially used, but i have scoured the internet and can find no way to do so.
This forum is the closest thing i have found, so hopefully this post will provoke some sort of response.
ANNOUNCEMENT: The Race 2006 [Work in progress]
These are songs or DJ tracks that have Yello samples in them or
Yello songs that have been remixed by other artists
Yello songs that have been remixed by other artists
2 posts • Page 1 of 1
You can contact them through Jonas Warstad's Site
To contact Yello Management
To contact Yello Management
2 posts • Page 1 of 1
Return to "Yello Mixes By Other Artists"


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See on Scoop.it – creatività
Pinterest has been grabbing the headlines recently as its network approaches 20 million users per month.
In March compete.com reported that Pinterest had received 18 million unique visitors with AppData reporting that the visual social network had received a record 4.4 million daily active users on March 18.
There are reports that Pinterest's growth is slowing but just like Twitter and Facebook reports of its demise maybe slightly premature.
The Power of "Low Friction" Photo Sharing
Pinterest's value to marketers is that it provides an easy to use platform for "pinning" images, photos and videos to your Pinterest account while also posting and sharing to your networks to Facebook and Twitter in the same process.
Pinterest reduces the effort and friction to share images on the social web which crowd sources your marketing and the spreading of your brand images.
Read more: http://bit.ly/Kqlbn9
See on www.jeffbullas.com


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If you are purposing JPEGs to the internet for people to view the images on their uncalibrated and unprofiled displays, the safest way of keeping the images having any semblance of how you intend they should look is to embed sRGB colour space and make sure that Black Point Compensation is selected.
Mark, if you are converting between working RGB spaces, where black is L*0, black point compensation does not make any difference to the result when its checked. It is ok to leave it unchecked then.


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Just a couple of my favorite things. The simple act of nibbling on bits like this makes me happy, especially when you really don't feel like cooking or even heating up anything. Plus I'm so in love with this olive bread. Sooo good! All of this comes from my local bakery too!
What's your favorite food you like to nibble in times of lazy-ness??
PS. I haven't forgotten about the chocolate mini tartes recipe. I'm working on it!


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Paul McCartney closes Candlestick Park in style
SIR PAUL McCARTNEY shut down San Francisco's fabled Candlestick Park with an unforgettable hits show on Thursday night (14Aug14), returning to the stadium where the Beatles performed their last U.S. show.
The rocker closed his historic show just before midnight with a flashback to the last time he performed at Candlestick - he posted a previously unseen photograph from the Beatles' gig in 1966 on a huge screen at the back of the stage.
It was one of several Jim Marshall shots taken at the gig almost 50 years ago that was displayed as McCartney performed a cover of Little Richard's Long Tall Sally.
McCartney's Farewell To Candlestick: The Final Concert event was the last music event to be held at the park, which is set to be demolished next year (15).


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» Terms of sale
Terms of sale
General Conditions of Sale and Supply
1. General
1.1. These general conditions of sale and supply shall be binding when such have been stated as being applicable in a quotation or order confirmation of and by Gembird Europe B.V.
1.2. Orders shall only become binding upon Gembird Europe B.V. after a written or electronic confirmation of order is received.
2. Prices
2.1. The prices of Gembird Europe B.V. are in US Dollars unless the other currency is explicitly specified on the document.
2.2. All the prices are given under the terms ex-the Netherlands warehouse unless the other terms are explicitly specified on the document.
2.3. Gembird Europe B.V. reserves the right to make price adjustments to cover definite increases in costs e.g. the cost of materials, wages and shipping of goods.
3. Orders
3.1. Unless otherwise stipulated by Gembird Europe B.V. Minimum Order Value (MOV) will be no less than $1.500,00 (for Dutch companies Euro 500).
3.2. Gembird Europe B.V. sells full cartons only. Less than full cartons quantities should be discussed with the Sales personnel.
3.3. Goods on "allocation" within an order placed on the b2b system of Gembird Europe B.V. should only be placed when the client is intending to purchase the goods within the next one-two week period. No allocations for undetermined time period are permitted. If after 2 weeks the allocation order is not confirmed it will be automatically cancelled and the goods returned to free stock. It is recommended to use Quotation Request service whenever there is any uncertainty about confirmation of the order. The Sales Managers of Gembird Europe B.V. can convert Quotations into an order at any time upon request. If the allocation of a certain item is required for a longer period of time than the above mentioned two week period, it should be explicitly authorized by a Gembird Europe B.V. sales Manager.
3.4. The confirmed order having status "On-Hold" or "Released" should be shipped within one week. If the order cannot be shipped within one week (due to the late payment reason for example) the order will be cancelled and the goods returned to a free stock status. The cancellation costs (for the order picking and put-away) will be debited to the Client account. The order can be stored in the warehouse providing the Client agrees to pay the storage fee of 20 USD for each pallet per week.
4. Payment
4.1. The Clients wishing to buy on credit can send an application for credit to Gembird Europe B.V. The credit for a maximum of 30 days will be provided only if the client can be insured for the requested amount. In all other cases the full prepayment is required (by T/T).
4.2. Invoices are to be settled net on or before the invoice due date without any deductions. Clients will be charged the usual bank overdraft rate of interest in respect of overdue payments. Gembird Europe B.V. reserves the right to withdraw credit limit from the Clients defaulting on their payments.
4.3. All the goods and materials supplied shall remain the property of Gembird Europe B.V. until full payment of the debited invoice amount shall has been received. The purchaser and the holder of the goods and materials shall in addition be under a duty here under to contract insurance cover for the goods and materials.
5. Delivery and transportation.
5.1. In case the Client wishes the goods to be delivered to him Gembird Europe B.V. will calculate the freight charges and they will be shown on the order confirmation as a separate amount.
5.2. The delivery date shown on the Gembird Europe B.V. order confirmation should be understood as the date when the goods can be loaded on the forwarder truck for delivery to the Client. Normally a minimum of 24 hours is required to prepare the goods for the delivery. However the exact delivery date to the Client warehouse will depend on the forwarder effecting the shipment. Gembird Europe B.V. will inform the Client about the estimated arrival time for their cargo on basis of the forwarder information.
5.3. In case the Client requires urgent shipment the matter should be discussed with the Gembird Europe B.V. Sales Managers & Warehouse.
5.4. All deliveries shall be effected for the account and the risk of the Client. Any complaints concerning damage, loss or delay are to be reported to Gembird Europe B.V. within 8 days after the receipt of the consignment; but complaints concerning any faulty packaging shall be rendered on the same day as the receipt of the consignment.
6. Pickup of the goods
6.1. If the Client wishes to pickup his shipment himself, normally a minimum of 24 hours is required to prepare the goods for the delivery. However the exact date and time of loading (ESPECIALLY for the shipments over 10 cubic meters) should be discussed and confirmed with the Warehouse either by the Client or by his forwarder. Loading appointments must be made by E-mail.
6.2. The driver of the vehicle picking up the goods is kindly requested to register at the Warehouse office at least 5 minutes before the appointed loading time. Upon non-arrival of the truck at the appointed loading time the Warehouse reserves the right to:
- refuse to load the truck and postpone the loading to another date/time
- for large shipments (which require several hours for loading) issue a fine for the lost time for the personnel (from 50 to 200 USD depending on the actual amount of the wasted working hours).
6.3. The driver of the Client is supposed to check the goods at loading. If the driver has signed for receipt of a certain number of cartons the claim for short shipment can only be accepted if the goods are found later in the Warehouse.
6.4. If the Client has special requirements about export documents (invoice, packing list) he should inform the logistics department about that no later than 24 hours in advance of loading taking place.
7. Return of goods and materials and Warranty
7.1. Cancellation of orders shall only be possible hereunder with the written approval of Gembird Europe B.V. Any costs which might arise as a result of such cancellation shall be for the account of the Client.
7.2. The return of non-defective goods and materials shall require the written permission of Gembird Europe B.V. and may only be effected if the goods and materials are in irreproachable condition and still in their original packaging. An appropriate surcharge will be levied by Gembird Europe B.V. on the purchaser to defray the cost of any inconvenience caused.
7.3. Gembird Europe B.V. will grant a warranty for a period of 12 months from the date of delivery in respect of any evidenced faulty workmanship and materials. Damage resulting from natural wear and tear, act of God, force majeure, & non compliance with the operating instructions shall be excluded from the warranty.
7.4. The clients wishing to return the defective products should first apply for the RMA (Return Material Authorization) number via the b2b website of Gembird Europe B.V. Upon receipt of the RMA request the Gembird Europe B.V. RMA department will e-mail the RMA form to the Client. This form will contain instructions and delivery address for the goods to be returned.
7.5. Upon receipt of the RMA goods Gembird Europe B.V. reserves the right to choose between replacement of defective goods or issuing a credit note. The credit note amount will always be calculated on the basis of the current market value of the defective products.
8. Marketing support
8.1. Distributors of Gembird Europe BV are entitled to the marketing budget. The amount of the budget is calculated as 1% of the yearly turnover.
8.2. The marketing budget is supposed to be spent on the marketing and promotion activities of Gembird products.
8.3. The distributor has to produce evidence of this marketing activities to get the approval of their marketing budget.


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Sun Come Up
Sun Come Up is an ACADEMY AWARD® nominated film that shows the human face of climate change. The film follows the relocation of the Carteret Islanders, a community living on a remote island chain in the South Pacific Ocean, and now, some of the world's first environmental refugees.
When climate change threatens their survival, the islanders face a painful decision. They must leave their ancestral land in search of a new place to call home. Sun Come Up follows a group of young islanders as they search for land and build relationships in war-torn Bougainville, 50 miles across the open ocean.
Sun Come Up provokes discussion about climate change, displacement, and the rights of vulnerable communities around the globe.


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Time to start shopping!
AcorusDetails https://www.petsmart.ca/fish/decor-gravel-and-substrate/live-plants/acorus-4034431.html
This item is not available for in-store pickup. Check store availability.
product highlights
Sometimes called the Variegated Japanese Sweetflag or Variegated Japanese Dwarf Rush, the Green and White Acorus Plant has stiff, striped ribbon-like leaves. It grows slowly but is hardy enough to make it ideal for first-time aquarium owners.
- Rhizome
- Maximum size: 12"
- Green and tan ribbon-like leaves
- Tank placement: Middle ground
- Water temperature: 50-82ð F
- Can grow fully or partially submersed
- Ideal for beginners
Note:Plant availability is seasonal. State and local regulations may vary. Pricing may vary by store location. PetSmart stores cannot match the price above for this item. Ask a store associate for details.
Things to remember:
Rhizome plants:Rhizomes are simply rooting stalks. The rhizome should be buried in the gravel as deep as possible at an angle that allows most of it to be submerged, leaving the center of the rhizome exposed above the ground. Rhizome plants can also be tied to a lava stone or driftwood.
Water temperature:Rhizomes require a tropical community aquarium with water temperatures ranging between 50-82ú F. Use an aquarium heater to maintain water temperature.
Adding plants:Whether you're just starting your aquarium or introducing new plants into your tank, make sure to add only one or two plants at a time.
Lighting:Most tropical plants require sunlight each day, year round. The duration and consistency are essential for plants to thrive. Natural aquariums must be equipped with the means to provide 12 hours of simulated sunlight each day.
Plant fertilizer:Fertilizer should only be added according to the dosage instructions on the label, and only when needed (as in the case of a water change). Plants will grow best if fertilized moderately and regularly after water changes rather than given larger quantities of fertilizer on a less-regular basis.
Fish and plants:Small schooling fish are highly recommended for a natural planted aquarium; larger fish often uproot plants. The adult size and eating habitats of a fish should always be taken into consideration.
Water changes:Test water weekly to assess water quality. It is recommended that 10% of youraquarium water be changed per week. At the very least, 25% of your aquariumwater should be changed per month. For optimal health, regular water changes not only prevent the undesirable accumulation of excess nutrients, but also remove excess nitrates and waste products of the fish and plants.
Aquarium placement:Place your aquarium in a low-traffic area, away from direct sunlight and drafts.
Planting your natural aquarium:
Foreground plants: Usually stay very short and help fill in the front part of the aquarium.
Middle ground plants: These plants grow anywhereform 4-10 inches tall.
Background plants: These are the fastest-growing and tallest plants.
Things to watch for:
- Poor growth
- Brown spots on leaves
- Plants appear weak, pale green to yellow, stems have few leaves
- Plants cease to grow and die off
- Stem plants have long internodes and small leaves
If you notice any of the signs described above, check your aquariumwater quality and consult an in-store Aquatics Specialist.
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As its snowing outside today and we're all safely home and no need to go anywhere, I decided to play catch up. Nothing needs it more despairingly then this blog.
As it has been lately, time to create has been very rare. Publication has been keeping me pretty occupied. But I do get that urge to do something when I can no longer hold it off or push it to the back burner.
Here are a few things!!
Since Valentine's day is coming up, I of course felt festive to create this heart.
I have included a tutorial on how to make this heart in my January 2013 issue of Creating Vintage Charm which you can preview or purchase here: http://www.magcloud.com/browse/issue/501089
Collecting on my desk I had several papers and elements I held on to for a while so I finally decided to work on some pretty tags. Again focusing on the Valentine's theme and Love and Romance.
I decided I will sew all the elements on
{because I refused to heat my glue gun}
because I love the stitching on my tags. ;)
I used vintage book pages, sheet music, wall paper, mixed in with heart shaped paper doileys, tiny flowers, pretty seam bindings and lace from my stash. All layered on coffee stained card stock tags. Finished with stamps I have by Tim Holtz and few random others.
Two of them have images I found I held on to for a while. You may notice a romantic couple from the rococo era, a painting by Fragonard and a dictionary cut out with the definition of LOVE...
How do you like my tags?
I will be back shortly to post again with a quickie tutorial for you.
Until then...
Ciao belli!