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The Christmas shopping season starts earlier each year. I have listened to continuous Christmas music for weeks. Merchants are disgruntled with our spending habits and the traffic is worse than ever before. UPS and Fed-X trucks rule the neighborhoods. You would think finding the perfect Christmas gift is getting easier each year. In reality is it not.
If you are still searching for that perfect gift perhaps I can offer some advice. That gift may be much closer than you think. It may be as close as your own back yard. It can bring years of enjoyment with not much effort or expense. It may one day be the best gift as others are re-gifted or go out of style.
I know the names of all plants that in my landscape. I also know the nursery they came from. However, it is not the darlings of the horticultural world that I cherish the most. It is those that have a special memory connected with them. I call them my pass-a-long plants. They originated from family members, special friends, or places in my life.
Warren Steeds from Candor, NC gave us the �Steeds� hollies that frame our house. He taught me a lot about the nursery business as a young county agent in Montgomery County. In the same county lived James Cagle owner of Greenthumb Nursery. Both were pioneers in the budding North Carolina nursery business in the 60s and 70s. They were known throughout the state. James was recognized for his work in the propagation of Japanese maples. I have 2 of his trees planted in our yard.
Our daylilies were gifts from two dear friends, Barbara and Lacy Hall of Burlington. Both were known for their love of daylilies and their massive displays they grew at their home. I am reminded of their generosity towards me and to this community each spring when they burst forth in flower.
Years ago it was a badge of honor to have the landscaper Mike Pace design and maintain your landscape in the Burlington community. He was an excellent plantsman. He turned away many potential customers if their views differed from his. His landscape skills are still evident today. We were friends because our interest in plants went beyond landscaping. One day a �Bloodgood� Japanese maple was appeared in my drive as a testimony to our friendship. It is a standout both in the spring and fall.
The peonies in our perennial garden are from my wife�s childhood home. We dug them up when her mother�s house was sold. The woodland phlox that fills our natural area came from my childhood home. I took them up when my mother sold her house and moved closer to my sister. Those phlox grew over the grave of my dog and best companion. We played together in fields and creeks for 17 years.
Growing among our yellow daffodils are some very simple white ones. They have no special floral attributes. These bulbs bloom wild on woodland property that I own near Mt. Gilead, NC. They grow around the plantation home that stood there from 1858 through 1964. I have walked and hunted the adjoining fields and forests for almost 50 years. When these daffodils bloom in my backyard I am reminded of the good times I shared with friends, family members, and ones now gone.
During this Christmas season you may find that you have some plants to share with loved ones. Digging up bulbs from a family member is the perfect place to start. If not, go to a garden center and start with a tree or other perennial plants. There is no better time of the year to plant than during the Christmas season. It is one of best ways I know to relive special times and old friendships.
Rett Davis is a retired Alamance County Extension Director. You can email your questions or suggestions to firstname.lastname@example.com


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Technology is quickly taking over the world and we need to embrace it. Would you get rid of your schedule book, paper bills, alarm clock, and even your camera to trade up for one small device?
Technology is quickly taking over the world and we need to embrace it. Would you get rid of your schedule book, paper bills, alarm clock, and even your camera to trade up for one small device?
Cell phones, in particular, have come a long way over the past decade. Remember when the Blackberry PDA phone was the coolest thing you could have?
Now we have Apple and Android smart phones with applications (apps) to watch television, pay bills, shop online, edit pictures and even order a pizza in the palm of your hand. Each phone is customizable to their owner making it easier to do the things you want to do.
Tablets are another handy device currently taking over the computer world. They are a lightweight portable screen that have apps like a smart phone. Imagine bringing your fancy new tablet to show off your family vacation pictures instead of lugging the photo album that took you an hour to put together. What if you're on your way to the lake and need something to keep the kids or husband happy? Put on a movie and strap it to the back of the headrest for some peace and quiet.
Another newer technology that is widespread is Bluetooth. Most people know about Bluetooth and what it can do for phone calls. What some people might not know is that Bluetooth is hidden in other electronics like your newer home stereo or even your shower.
Wouldn't cleaning be more fun if you could listen to your own music while doing it? Simply "pair up" your mp3 player or cell phone with your home stereo and clean away. Or maybe you want to start practicing again for your upcoming singing career? There are shower heads or hanging shower devices that have Bluetooth inside letting you play your favorites without leaving the bathroom.
Smart watches are also a recent technology that uses Bluetooth. These watches connect with your smart phone and send notifications for calls, text messages, emails, and social media updates. For those of you that love keeping up with what is going on in the day, but want to be discreet during work hours the smart watch might be for you.
Think of all the fun things you can do with advancing technology these days. In the next five years, it could all be different again. So get out there and learn some things with a new device.

subset: commoncrawl


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Which Cars Have You Test Driven?
Can you tell us which cars you have recently test driven and given us a brief rating and description of what you thought about the cars?
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Drives: 2011 Z4 35is Melbourne Red
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: Portland, OR
Garage List
2011 Z4 35is [5.00]
2011 BMW Z4 35is. Picking it up tomorrow. lol. Very fun car.
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Lieutenant Colonel
Drives: SLK55 AMG
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Honolulu, HI
Garage List
2007 Mercedes Benz ... [0.00]
I literally tested every possible option this year when picking my next car. Obviously, I ended up choosing the 135, which is what I thought I wanted from the beginning. Get ready for a long list!
I'll try to keep the cars together in terms of categories
Volkswagen GTi - Drove this because I wanted to see an option that would save me money and hopefully still be fun.
I didn't like this car. The suspension was too stiff, the styling wasn't my style, and it just felt slow and boring. I didn't feel that I would enjoy owning it. It felt like an economy car, not a sports car.Volvo C30 - The dealership was next to the VW dealership and I like the looks of the C30 better than the GTi
I honestly liked the C30 better than the GTi. The power is similar, but the C30 looks much better to my eyes. Being a Volvo, though, it was also quite boring. If I were looking for a commuter, I would easily choose the C30 over the GTi, but since I wanted a performance car, pass.Mazda MX-5 - The definitive budget sports car
It was fun to drive for sure. Very confidence inspiring since it's so light and underpowered you can just toss it around without any fears. It's just too impractical and underpowered for me.
Chevrolet Camaro SS - Also cheaper than the 135i, but big American muscle
The interior was a complete turn off. The steering wheel felt weird, the gauges looked dumb, there was cheap glossy plastic everywhere and the windows were so tiny you couldn't see anything. The torque was nice and the car sounded good, but it was just way too heavy to be a fun car to drive.Chevrolet Corvette C6 - I've always wanted to drive one...
I honestly loved the Corvette. You sit very low to the ground and the windshield is equally low and big. You could see the road well and everything, it felt like being in a race car. The engine is amazing, the power, the sound, the acceleration, the handling was good too. The interior was equally cheap, but in the Corvette, I didn't care. It was a great driving car. Had the price been a bit lower, I might have bought one.Nissan 370z - Equal power to the 135, good reviews and good price
I liked the 370z, sort of. The 6MT that automatically rev matched downshifts was interesting. Even though I'm only 22, I was a bit scared of the attention a Japanese sports car would get. I don't like people pulling up next to me wanting to race. The noise inside was a bit loud for just cruising on the highway and the interior was hideous. Leasing a 370z was also terrible with their rates, bad enough that it made the G37s Coupe cheaper, so...Infiniti G37s Coupe - 370z's more fancy sister, with a much better lease rate
This car was just plain boring. The interior was vanilla, the styling was vanilla, the drive was vanilla. Too much luxury, too little sportiness. It wasn't exciting to drive and the acceleration didn't feel very strong at all. Didn't like this car, the 370 drove better.Mitsubishi Evo X MR Touring - Again, similar power, often praised handling
I wanted the MR Touring because I wanted the DCT transmission available only in the MR and spoiler delete option only with the Touring. That put the price tag at 40-42k. The handling was great. The salesman took me to an empty parking lot and told me to enjoy. It was a lot of fun to drive this car. The main downfall for this car is it's every day practicality. It took 3 lanes to do a u-turn. The turning radius was horrible. Also, while on the test drive, 2 different Subaru STi's pulled up next to me and tried to get me to race. Again, I don't want that kind of attention.Porsche Cayman PDK - Amazing car. Period.
The steering was properly heavy with good road feel, the seats were good, the transmission was great and the car felt very good. Even though it wasn't a Cayman S (again, I'm 22, I can't afford a 70k Cayman S) I really liked this car. It was a bit slower than a 135, but the handling was great, the styling is good, and it's a Porsche. Problem is, the only one the local dealership had was a Macadamia Brown color on Beige interior... with no other cars coming in for 6+ months.
The top 3 cars for me were the 135, Cayman and C6 Corvette. Both the Cayman and Corvette were 10k+ more than the 135 and both were less practical. The 135 gave me the performance off the Cayman with back seats and a roof rack for my surfboard. The decision was a no brainer for me.
2007 SLK55 AMG - Black on Gray/Black - AMG 030 Performance Package
2011 135i - Traded
///M-Sport - Dual Clutch - Harman Kardon - Bluetooth - iPod - Shadowline Kidney Grill - 225/255 Star Specs - Hotchkis Front Sway
Last edited by MarkR171; 09-02-2010 at 03:25 PM.
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Major General
Drives: ????????????
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: BMW M3 will get a V6TT
F10 535i
Very good car indeed, but needs the right rim/suspension combination to be so. When equipped with 19" and adaptive suspension it not only ride and handles extremely well (read better than a Jag XF) but it also steers well if a little light. Best interior in class and a very pretty car to look at.
Personally I think this is the best 5er in years but it's the first time in years that the E-class is up to the task of offering stiff competition. Tricky choice.
F10 530d
Read above, only with an engine which I reckon suits the character of the car even better.
Jaguar XJ 3.0d
Lord where do I start with this one. It's exterior is very elegant and extremely well design with lovely details everywhere. Pictures don't do it justice but it does suit darker shades. Now to the interior, lordy, lordy, this is without doubt my favourite interior, build is top class and combines traditional British/Italian flair with the latest gizmos beautifully, it's B&W stereo needs to be heard to be believed, this is 'the' best OEM stereo you will ever hear .... period.
Next the driving experience, it's the first in class that gives the impression that neither sportiness or luxury has compromised the other as is the case with the others. Overall an amazing machine.
Porsche Cayenne S, Diesel & Hybrid
The new Cayenne is not only the best SUV on the Market but it could be described as one best overall cars to drive. How the hell Porsche makes this thing corner is beyond me, it's sportscar good from something weighing over 2 ton and with a CoG that physically shouldn't be possible. It steers great, offers near luxury ride quality with comfort setting or remarkably level cornering in sports mode, the 8sp Auto is very quick witted and silky smooth.
Then there's the looks, this has to be the first time anyone has described a Cayenne as pretty but genuinely this is a very good looking SUV, right up there with the best. Then there's the interior, giving it a Panamera dash/centre consule has given the Cayenne the best interior in class bar none. With full leather it's glorious and luxurious.
S model is quick but thirsty, the Hybrid is a non starter in my opinion, which leaves the Diesel the best in range, excluding the turbo of course but at near double the price I think it's in a different league for most people.
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Brigadier General
Drives: Jerez E90 M3
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Westchester, NY / Fort Lauderdale, FL
iTrader: (4)
11' E90 M3 6MT | Jerez Black | Black Ext./Carbon | ZCP | ZCW | ZPP | ZTP | 302 | 403 | 507 | 5AC | 655 | 6FL | 752 |
15' F80 M3 6MT | Black Saphire | Black Full | ZEC | ZLP | 2VF | 2VZ | 5DL | 688 |
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First Lieutenant
Drives: 07 Space 335i
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: SBizzle
Ill add some descriptions later when i have more time but here it goes
2007 RS4/2006 25th aniv s4/2010 s4 w/ sport dif/Several W211 E55's/CLS55/C6 z06/c5 z06/several e92 335i's/2 e46 m3's/2 e60 m5's/e39 m5/sti long time ago/04 cobra/ and i think that may be it as far as test drives
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Major General
Drives: ????????????
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: BMW M3 will get a V6TT
If I can get the wife into something bigger than her GTI then I might return to a sportscar/coupe, at which point I will revisit the TT-RS and 1M coupe. As both models appeal to me.
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Corvette C6 Grand Sport - a great vehicle, which is actually a great value, a serious contender for my soon to be fun car, but I'm also a Corvette addict!
BMW e92 M3 - All I can say is wow... I have dreamt about owning an M3 since I saw my first red on black leather e30 M3 back in the 90s. Finally got to try one decked out in Melbourne Red with the Black extended Novillo Leather it was a great car, the CF roof is really cool, and it handles even better than I could have dreamt. Power was great and I live the look of the e92!
CTS 3.6DI Coupe - was really disappointed. At this price point, the interior could have been better sorted. It is full of the cheap plastic finishes that I had in my last SAAB, and those maintained their finish for a few months. The seats are too wide for my liking (and I'm not a small guy by any stretch). It was too quiet for my liking couldn't really even tell it was running... the other two were nice and loud, you definately knew there was something under the bonnet. They assured me that the V is a beast but none were to be had so... I'm likely just going to cross CTS off the list... The other issue is that the angular styling doesn't do it for my. I like more fluid styling.
I also tried out a Nissan Altima for the gf, was really disappointed, for a car that is marketed as a sporty coupe, it was certainly a snore, the CVT really killed what could have otherwise been a great car. The steering was numb and the suspension was a bit too soft even with the sport pack... But she liked that burgundy colour, this one isn't my choice so we'll see... if it was me a FWD car would not make the cut.
Last edited by fwmcb; 09-08-2010 at 06:12 PM.
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Drives: fast
Join Date: May 2010
Location: CA
Forgot about the G37S I test drove.
great car, looks great in my opinion, handles fairly well for its size.
bottom line : too many people have one... So i bailed on the extra comfort and luxury to go down to the basics of handling and raw driving. Happy with my choice. Although the infiniti exhaust = sexy.
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Porsche Panamera 4S/4 -- phenomenal car; I doubt anything with 4 doors is as dynamically capable or as reliable/prestigious for that price. Overall package is very attractive and v-6 is plenty for the older buyers who don't need racing power.
Ford Mustang 4.0 -- a lot of people on the board were pushing this car; its complete rubbish...the manual is slow, and the engine is unresponsive, not smooth -- It just feels like a boat, really not agile at all. Power is decent at 400 hp...its power actually feels a lot like the 335i. But the BMW is a much better car. And its pricey too
BMW 750iL M sport - rubbish car...dynamically probably was the best before the Panamera came out. Problems: ugly and depressing interior, it even feels cheap...no real sense of occasion. Passengers don't have much here, even with the nice massaging seats and what not...it just didn't feel special. Looks very nice though. Twin turbo engine has lagginess like the 335i's....just doesn't have the sense of occasion the Mercedes S class has or the badge and dynamics the Panamera has
Mercedes S550 4matic - fabulous car though very ugly. Dyanmically not very strong, but has a sense of luxury and occasion second to none. It is the ultimate chariot...and I think its pretty reliable according to JDPower...good build quality. Problem: every second tom dick and harry owns a C-class...why spend 120 on an S class when the badge has no value???
Mercedes E350 4matic - completely rubbish car....better off with a c class. The interior is very cheap and depressing, it really has no sense of occasion. Dynamically it is very competent; so much so, that the ride is way too harsh...harsher than the 5 series. Somehow though dynamically, it has lost its identity, tries to be sporty and luxurious, and achieves none. Sells only because of the three point star.
BMW 535i - As a driver's car its ok... the engine is somehow not as fast as it feels in the 335i. Handling is ok, nothing special, certainly disconnected...dyanmically very good thought. Passengers will feel short changed, but honestly its probably the best car in the mid-luxury segment class.
porsche carrera 911 - The best car I have ever driven...except the weight balance is not 50/50 and you can feel it. amazing car....very strong naturally aspirated engine and power train. Fabulous car....probleM: Engine in the wrong spot unless you're an expert.
Yea I've been on a few test drives this summer.
Last edited by TheRox; 09-07-2010 at 01:53 PM.
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Car Junkie
Drives: 335is / R8
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: PA
iTrader: (1)
Garage List
2012 Porsche Cayman R [0.00]
2011 Audi R8 V10 [3.67]
[quote=TheRox;7958772]Porsche Panamera 4S/4 -- phenomenal car; I doubt anything with 4 doors is as dynamically capable or as reliable/prestigious for that price. Overall package is very attractive and v-6 is plenty for the older buyers who don't need racing power.
I agree with the car for that price, it was a great drive. Its just very ugly from the rear imo. The Aston was awesome too, but the price is killer!
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Drives: py/kiwi e46 m3
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: toronto
i'm surprise you still haven't driven the new m3 with that much test drives. hate it or something? hehe
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1. Its suspension and steering should and probably would be way more taught and responsive than the sluggish 335 xdrive i have
2. no turbo lag...i completely dislike turbo engines...they are not a pure driving experience (from all my reading, the GT3 seems like my kind of thing)...I like pure, connectedness...no turbo, no clutch delay valve...direct connection to the road
--overall I think i'd love that car...I don't need much torque down low in the city, i don't mind downshifting....i like turbo's torque on the highway though...but V8 should be able to deliver that even if naturally aspirated.
1. V-8: inline 6 is smoother and more balanced...I think I would like the engine on the old m3
2. none...maybe the ride is harsh in some areas, but you can't win them all
Yea those test drives, esp of the upper luxury segments vehicles (the BMW and Benz were actually requested, with the S550 being taken out of the showroom)...these were not for me, but for family purchase.
Panamera obviously won out and is being ordered.
also test drove and didn't include (some of these were a summer ago, some this summer);
bmw X5 lci - I don't do SUVs, which is why i didin't include it in my last post. I threw it around a corner, it handles it well...but its an SUV...I can't comment anymore...it was big, like a boat, with little road feel.
Lexus LS 460 - Test driven this car 4 or 5 times!!! Amazing car for reliability and it completely isolates you from the road; not my thing, but if you want to cruise like an S class...this is the ultimate S class copycat (typical Japanese) -- it is 90% of what the S class is minus the class, panache and sense of occasion. No road presence either.
For this money, you're better off with an S550; still I respect the LS 460 for what it is, and its reliability for those who can't afford to keep an S550 running for 10 years
Lexus GS 350 AWD - This isn't a bad car...somehow its just out of place; its not as good as a 5-series bmw...and i'm not sure about its reliability; again, it has that lexus ZERO road presence....so its a decent car, handles quite well for a japanese car; it is still disconnected from the road; has beautiful engine and good brakes that I tested thoroughly on the 401 in Toronto -- just feels out of place, not sure why you'd buy one with the 5 series right there
Audi S4 - HOnestly, the badge is cheap...its a VW. As a car, its not the driver's car BMW is...but is the next best thing, good supercharged engine (and I dislike forced induction), I drove the autobox. Looks bland, audis will always be out of style (except R8) in a few years....they simply don't have much road presence. Overall, if you have BMW, why buy Audi? Plus their reliability is horrible.
Above all -- the S4's steering was horrible, it really did lack feel, that is probably the biggest complaint relative to BMW
interior - i dislike depressing hues of grey and black, so I wasn't pleased...I prefer BMW's browns and beige
Audi A4 - This is complete rubbish; laggy 4 cylinder engine, cheap feeling interior with thin metal doors....it was really really really bad; I mean for this money, get a C class or 3 series with AWD for the winter states. A4 is really pathetic piece of automotive engineering. Really does feel like a cheap VW. Plus no road presence. I will concede it does draw that halfway point between BMW and Mercedes when it comes to driver involvement/luxury; it cushions you a bit, but does give you some road feedback -- I guess this is why AUdi sells...its a halfway point between BMW and Mercedes, and that is fair.
BMW 3 series 328i 6mt - one of the BEST cars I have EVER driven. period. Not sure why I got the 335 over this...I guess I wanted the power the 328 couldn't give me...but the 328 is much more PURE driving experience with 6mt...no turbo lag, and that means SO much!
Also my greatest test drive, the guy I was with was about to leave the dealership (I didn't know this)...so I blasted the car around the city -- I drove it like I stole it and he said it was the best test drive he'd ever been on.
He left the dealership the next week or something like that.
mazda 3 - economy car, nice steering. that is all.
honda civic - not what they used to be, big and bulky, slow 4 cyl engine
honda accord - nothing like the 1992 beauty I had; now they are fat, slow and unrepsonsive...they used to shoot out of the blocks b/c they were featherweight
Infiniti G37 coupe 6mt and AT - AT was useless. The 6 MT was damn fun!!! It felt like a track car, so raw...so raw...so raw, it gave my passenger a headache by the time I was finished blasting around the city on the test drive. The shifting wasn't so bad, handling very sharp....but here is the key: its not a LUXURY car...the G37 is a PERFORMANCE car...it simply isn't refined and I cannot live with it day to day...I need luxury.
Dynamically though, very very sound car. Engine was good...I prefer naturally aspirated because its purer, so I'm gonna say it was a very good engine.
Mercedes Benz E-Class coupe - Based on the current C class platform (not the new E); it was rubbish; but DAMNNNNN luxurious...not a timeless style either on the outside; insulated ride; old engine, but powerful, naturally aspirated meant it was responsive
not a bad car...for those looking for more insulation, its actually quite nice with great status and presence
Mercedes C350 4matic - honestly BEnz (S class aside) is not my thing; but for entry level luxury, C class isn't bad for the driver who wants to be isolated. Engine is decent, though old; it is isolated from teh road; but i assume the buyer wants that; has tons of creature comfort
one thing -- please don't get this car in the depressing black colour scheme...feel like slitting your wrist moment you get in; still best interior in class and looks nice
not a driver's car in any way
Problem with C class: A benz this small is just a joke...we have the B-class here in Canada...somehow a small Mercedes-Benz just doesn't compute...it looks like you cheaped out and couldn't afford the E (which is an inferior car) or the S (which is the best large luxury sedan in the world)
Lexus IS 250 manual 6mt - this was the biggest joke of them all...decent japanese toy-like interior; but the ride, pathetic - weight balance is NOT 50/50, the rear end was swaying on the highway; the gear shift was pathetic, with the bite too high and the shifts insulated
steering lacked road feel and the car had no power.
looks kinda cute though in a girly way
not a fan...lexus truly are copycats, and copycats only get so far.
Lexus ES350 - pathetic car based on the camry platform; steering was so poor you could turn a little left and right, and the car still tracks straight. really bad car for that kind of cash.
Lexus RX 350 new model - again, not an SUV person. Seemed kinda soft on the inside; I really don't know what to say. Handling was better than the ES 350, even though they are both based on camry's platform...but thast it. I'm sure a Mercedes SUV could do better.
BMW 525i 6 MT - YES I drove a 5 series 525 with manual! It was off lease. It was...kinda fun, beautiful naturally aspirated engine...but not enough power, I got smoked by some north american boat on the test drive...still not bad. Interior nothing great, dynamically pretty decent, but not as good as the 3 series.
I can't remember my other test drives. I did a lot of these while looking for my car (ended up with 335xi 6mt) and for family car, some like mustang where just for fun.
Overall most memorable cars I ever driven, in order:
1. Porsche carerra 911 - Just wow...wasn't even the S variant, powertrain is so strong; the connection to the road is so true; this is the next step as driver; I recommend everyone test drive a 911!
2. Porsche Panamera 4S and 4 - Wow...not as WOW as the 911, but a little close. The steering the steering the steering...the handling of this car is beyond words for something with 4 doors! And two engines are naturally aspirated...which seems to be going the way of the dodo.
Those who understand Porsche, know that Porsche is not about power but about handling...it is about driving finesse. You don't need to be going fast to enjoy a Porsche (or a BMW, which is considered entry level Porsche). And that handling is on display with this 4 door Panamera.
2. BMW 328i/335i - 328 with its naturally aspirated engine and 6MT and RWD still stands out as a pure car; very pure driving experience; 335i was good too, I have one...not as pure, but nice power and torque.
Honourable mentions
1. Mercedes S class -- you are the king in this!
2. Lexus LS -- not a bad car if it cost 1/2 its asking price; it is simply a copycat car, and doesn't do everything the S class, doesn't have a sense of occasion; but you could do a million miles in this while listening to music. This car is very very easy to drive. Despite the isolation, the copycat pretensions, and the lack of presence and panache...there is something attractive and soothing about this thing.
Last edited by TheRox; 09-13-2010 at 06:01 PM.
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Conclusion again: turbos are the death of the pure driving experience.
Wish they put the old M3 engine in the 335i.
Cars I want to test drive:
1. Audi R8...I still haven't settled the R8 v. 911 debate, including which is tougher, looks better, purer driving experience (most important)...and weight distribution - mid engine is the place to be
3. Chevy Corvette -- Whats the hype about?
4. Porsche Cayman -- maybe the best value sports car in the world with a mid engine layout; but doesn't have the status of the 911...and that is a problem.
After that, and these cars I'm not sure I could buy in the future:
1. Ferrari 458 Italia - no 6MT but probably the best car in the world
2. Lambhoghini - any of them
These two are the tops, Porsche is one step below them. BMW one step below that.
Last edited by TheRox; 09-13-2010 at 06:03 PM.
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RWD only.
Drives: 2015 S550 GT
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: St. Pete, FL
Past:'08 E92 335i|ZPP|ZSP|6AT|four (4) HPFPs
Present:'15 Mustang GT|401A|PP|6MT|Recaros
Sig pic unrelated. I like to go sideways and stuff.
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Major General
Drives: ????????????
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: BMW M3 will get a V6TT
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Brigadier General
Drives: TBM F82
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Milwaukee/Chicago
iTrader: (6)
Test drove an '11 Mustang GT before getting my M3. It had the California Special package and the 3.55 rear end. It definitely felt faster than my old modded 335i and had a nice exhaust note, but as I was exploring my way around the interior, I kind of took for granted how well BMW's are put together. In the Mustang, there were interior pieces that wiggled around a bit that weren't supposed to (like the center console cover). The clutch pedal was annoyingly soft. It had the Shaker 500 stereo (not the optional 1000), and it sounded kinda crappy TBH. However, the options and packages I desired weren't on the car (Nav, heated sport seats, backup camera, etc), and I was hopeful they would change my mind about the car for the better, so I put a deposit down and created an order for one which would have been ready by the end of the year.
In the mean time, I was still looking at M3's because deep down I wanted to get back into a BMW (but didn't want the lovely fuel pump drama of the N54). I test drove an e92 I was interested in, and the interior was soooo much better. The ergonomics and quality of materials far surpassed the Mustang's. The drive... the sound.... Everything felt right. So I cancelled the Mustang order and picked up the M. Couldn't be happier
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Ambergate Football Club is looking for a goalkeeper to play regular Saturday afternoon matches in the Derbyshire area as they compete in the Midlands Regional Alliance Division Two.
Due to injuries and availability, they have had a number of different goalkeepers over the past few months but no-one has been able to fully commit to the club.
So if you are interested, please contact either Matt on 07912 044276 or Dave 07816 211802.


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Look at these two films of London. The first from 1903, the second from 1913. What changes do you you notice?
What happenned to all the horses?
Did you notice how almost everyone is wearing a hat? By 1927 there were a few hatless men.
In 2008 practically none.
Monday, 31 January 2011
London changes through the years
Look at these two films of London. The first from 1903, the second from 1913. What changes do you you notice?
2 comments:
- James said...
Two things I notice about 1903: pedestrians intermingled with carriages and wagons as part of the normal traffic. Clearly the slower pace of horse-drawn vehicles posed less of a danger to those on foot than motorized vehicles would a mere ten years later. It is utterly amazing that only ten years brought such a transformation from the horse-drawn carriage to the horseless carriage. This must have been a time of relative affluence.
The other aspect of 1903 city life I notice, in some shots, is the piles of horse manure throughout the street. Perhaps that alone was cause enough to move to motorized vehicles, replacing one substantive form of exhaust for another more ephemeral one.
- 31 January, 2011 01:25
- Caroline Gurney said...
Thank you for sharing these wonderful old films. I was amazed at how busy the rush hour traffic was in 1903. I noticed that there were very few women in the footage filmed in the City - a few on top of the omnibuses but none as pedestrians. The 1913 "riot" seemed incredibly peaceful and decorous by today's standards. There were still quite a few horse drawn vehicles on London Bridge in the 1927 film.
- 31 January, 2011 11:56


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We missed last week's Midweek Madness and today's was a little late, but I think we have prize that most Android geeks will love. I was at CES 2011 when the mobile computing revolution began and I scored some memorabilia to share with our audience.
While I was at NVIDIA's booth they gave us a handful of Tegra 2 keychains. The monetary value of one of these keychains is probably only a couple bucks, but five years from now I wouldn't be surprised to see one of these in a museum.
How to enter the contest
Leave a comment and tell us why you want a dual-core Tegra 2 phone. We have several keychains to give away, but only one is up for grabs this week. There are no rules for this contest and I'll ship it to anywhere in the world. This contest will be open for 24 hours and I will announce the winner tomorrow night on this post.
Update: And the winner is… Maxwell. I want a Tegra 2 phone because "two brains are better than one".


text: Seller: mix_salon (1,629) 100%, Location: BeiJing, Ships to: Worldwide, Item: 163267992889 Store category Sign Up Now ! You may also like Chinese QiJia Culture Style Sacrificial Ceremony Two Holes Stone Axe-JR12732 Product Description Dimension: Size:11.71.014.2 cm(1 cm = 0.3937 Inch) Weight : 287g Description: Qijia culture is centered on China's northwest Gansu Province, late Neolithic Chalcolithic Age culture. Qijia culture unique jade, rich in content and variety, is an important feature of primitive culture in Northwest China. especially in a variety of sacrificial ritual vessels and Mosaic turquoise jade carving is known. Northwest China has rich jade deposits such as QingHai jade and HeTian jade(nephrite),Since ancient times is known for the high quality nephrite. Jade and stone axe are neolithic human use of production tools, used to cut down trees, processing repair other tools. Jade axe effect is the same as the stone axe,number of jade axe scarce,due to the particularity of its material, gradually evolved from the use of tools into ceremonial,sacrifice objects, it is many of the jade ritual vessels, the evolution of the original shape. Please note:not include base Service Tips: 1.Weight of the Dimension is net weight,does not include the packing, the freight is calculated weight after packaging. 2.Calculate shipping cost by weight of all item,by combining the freight,if purchase more than 2 item +$6/500g(after packing) 3.Under normal circumstances, parcel shipping time based on different regions and modes of transport, need 7-14 days. In a few cases, because of some special reasons may be delays. We will provide package tracking number and follow the parcel status. If a problem arises, we will promptly communicate with the buyer and propose solutions. Payment Delivery details Terms of sales About us Contact us Payment International buyers ONLY payment method accepted is PayPal, the fast, easy, and secure way to pay online. Payment must be received within 4 days of the end of the auction or after the invoice is issued. Please let us know if there is any delay in payment. Import duties, taxes and charges are not included in the item price or shipping charges. These charges are specific to each country and are the buyerˇs responsibility. Please check with your country customs office to determine what these additional costs will be prior to bidding/buying. Delivery details We ship internationally (worldwide) We use free shipping on most of our items,every order shipments within in 2 business days. All items are expertly packed, double boxed used when necessary. All purchases will be shipped by China Post and tracked, The specific mode of transportation, please refer to merchandise Description. We do combine shipping whenever possible and when it is safe to do so. If any more questions,please ask before bidding! Terms of sales When buyer receive goods within 30 days, we accept return. Whether for whatever reason, are not satisfied with what they buy, we will try my best to solve this problem.If buyer choose to return the item, we will full refund to you, including buyer pay the freight. Return of the freight shall be borne by the buyer, If buyer want to return, please contact us and ensure the goods not damaged and stained. About us Welcome to our eBay online store! we are Professional management Snuff bottles, Jadewares and many goods with Chinese elements.Our products are 100% real manual photography,(Please note: some pictures of our product using the flash light,the color could be a little different from the original items.) Details of the pictures make sure you can be more comprehensive understanding of the goods. Our aim is to use the best service, the most reasonable price, the most accurate description to provide the best quality goods. Believe that we will never let you down, if you have any questions, please feel free to send us, We will reply in time. Contact us Country/Region of Manufacture: China, Type: Sacrificial Vessel, Primary Material: Stone, Age: Unknown, Region of Origin: China, Color: Gray


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Hardcastle Crags - National Trust
Beautiful wooded valley with 19th-century Gibson mill at its heart, an exemplar of sustainable energy:
* Woodland Pennine valley, a rich habitat for flora and fauna
* Home to the Northern hairy wood ant
* Guided-walks and orienteering courses available
* Recently conserved Gibson Mill offering education and conference facilities, tours and refreshments
Venue Type:
Industrial heritage site, Garden, parklands or rural site
Please check the National Trust website before visiting.
Gibson Mill: £3, child £1.50, family £7.50. Groups £2, child £1.20.
Reduced rate when arriving by public transport
- National Trust
Additional info
Visitors are encouraged to come on foot, by cycle or public transport. Car parking and cycle racks available at Clough Hole car park on Widdop Road and Midgehole car park on Midgehole Road. During busy times limited car parking leads to heavy congestion. There are steep drops and water hazards throughout the property. Gibson Mill has narrow and low doorways and uneven floors. There is a possibility that Gibson Mill will be closed if there is insufficient power. WC not always available. WCs at Gibson Mill, closed at 6.
Hardcastle Crags - National Trust
Estate Office
Hollin Hall
Crimsworth Dean
Hebden Bridge
West Yorkshire


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Reel World
Angry Film—Self-proclaimed "angry filmmaker" Kelley Baker will be at the Guild Cinema on Thursday, Feb. 17, to screen his latest DV feature Kicking Bird. Baker has toured the country for the last two years conducting filmmaking workshops, screening his films, giving guest lectures and otherwise preaching the gospel of nonHollywood cinema. In addition to his own work, he's served as a sound designer on films like Good Will Hunting, To Die For, Far from Heaven and more. Kicking Bird tells the story of a 17-year-old white trash kid who finds his only escape in running and the manipulative high school track coach who sees a use for our foot-pounding protagonist. The screening starts at 9 p.m. Tickets are $6 for everyone.
Film Review
Comic book gets graphic in devilish horror flick
Given the evidence at hand, there's no discernible reason why Constantine should do anything other than suck quietly in its own forgotten little corner of the cineplex. It's based on a comic book, a genre of filmmaking that occasionally gives us memorable entertainment such as Spider-Man, but is far more likely to result in brain-rotting eye-candy like Catwoman and Elektra. It's a horror movie coming out in the middle of one of the worst strings of horror flicks Hollywood has ever inflicted upon us (White Noise, Hide and Seek, Alone in the Dark, Boogeyman). Finally, it stars Keanu Reeves, an actor for whom I normally reserve my most clever insults.
Film Review
Son of the Mask
The Mask is back, and, baby, is it silly!
Some films just beg for a sequel (Raiders of the Lost Ark, Godfather, Star Wars). I'm not so sure The Mask is one of those movies. Although it raked in $119 million at the box office, it didn't make a particularly lasting impression on our culture. When you think about it, what did the film really have going for it? It had Cameron Diaz looking cute. It had Jim Carrey acting wacky in green makeup. But can you even recall the story? I can't and I get paid for this kinda stuff. ... So, 11 years after the fact, it's a little odd to be confronted with Son of the Mask.
Idiot Box
Toy Story
"Robot Chicken" on Cartoon Network
Apparently, actor Seth Green (star of the Austin Powers movies, among others) is a big toy collector. At some point in his life, he met up with Matthew Senreich, a writer for "ToyFare" magazine. The two became fast friends and, over the course of one drunken evening (I'm only guessing at this point), they came up with the concept for a particularly warped sketch comedy cartoon called "Robot Chicken." The folks at Cartoon Network, being drunken weirdoes themselves (again, only speculating), snapped at the idea and are now airing the amusingly bizarre results in their Adult Swim block.
Week in Sloth
The Week in Sloth
"Survivor: Palau" (KRQE-13 7 p.m.) In any other context, dumping 20 strangers on a deserted island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean would be irresponsible and criminal. Capture it on videotape, however, and you've got a new season of reality TV.
"AKC National Agility Championship" (Animal Planet 9 p.m.) Ever sit at home on your sofa watching professional sports and start to realize how old and pathetic you are? Well, try watching dogs perform assorted feats of athletic prowess. If I could run through a tunnel and catch a Frisbee like these mutts, I wouldn't need to drive to the mailbox.


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|START Conference Manager
ASIST 2012 Annual Meeting
Baltimore, MD, October 26-30, 2012
Dual Roles in Information Mediation at Work: Analysis of Advice-receiving and Advice-providing Diary Surveys
Ji Yeon Yang and Soo Young Rieh
Monday, 6:30pm
This poster presents preliminary results from a multi-method study on information mediation at work. In everyday work, people often turn to their colleagues for information. Those colleagues play the role of information mediators by intervening in the information seeking and use of others. This study investigates how people initiate the information mediation process, how they influence one another's subsequent information behavior, and how they benefit from the process, from the perspectives of both the information seeker and the information mediator. To examine the dynamics of the information mediation process, an online diary survey was conducted in a real-world workplace setting, followed by in-depth interviews. This paper reports on a preliminary analysis of 450 diary entries in which participants reported the work tasks that required advice from colleagues as well as the extent of the advice provided. Analysis of the diary data revealed the types of tasks, types of advice, and relationship between task and advice types. The results show that whether someone is an information seeker or mediator influences their perception of task types, while individuals tend to agree on advice types regardless of their role in the information mediation process. These typologies serve as a basis for further analyzing reciprocal influences between information seekers and mediators. Next steps of data analysis will provide insights into how information-seeking trajectories are guided and shaped by colleagues in everyday work.


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Friday, November 02, 2007
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lovely black
Wow! That is an amazing look! Love all about it!
Great photo!
Gorgeous all around. I love the color and fit of the jacket and skirt on her.
I was at 798 this summer and nobody I saw looked like this.
Just started looking at your site...really cool stuff !! Love the genuineness, if that's even a word, of your photos.
This is a very cute outfit. I love her skirt, and that hat fits her so well. Nice boots, too. A very innocent and charming look.
this look is a little too English country-bumpkin for my liking.
it's absolutely perfect! the smile completes it, of course
Fantastic photo! Great outfit, fits her beautifully. Great legs too!
I think she looks so perky. The outfit becomes her and like the colorful background
I really liked this, until I looked more closely. I don't like the fact that she is low-riding the skirt. She should have bought a smaller size that actually fits her at her waist. The skirt is obviously way too big on her.
Totally love! That's my kind of style--a little classic mixed with a little prep mixed with a little sassiness.
Somehow ,by looking at her closely,I´d say that she is only half Asian.It doesn´t matter at all,but her height,something about the outlines of her pretty face,whatever.I like her choice of clothes,really refreshing.
I like how that skirt is low on her waist: the outfit is now not only smart, but sexy.
She is absolutely gorgeous in that hat, and this is such a vibrant photo, but I agree...it looks like the skirt is too big in the waist.
What kind of weird eugenicist feels the need to comment on this girl's ethnicity? Who cares? She looks cute, though I'm in agreement with the person who noted that her skirt is too big on her. I kind of like the Mad Hatter vibe she's giving off.
She's adorable, just adorable! Beijing really and finally coughed up some real style...street style, that is.
The dropped waist has a 1920s-slightly equestrian look to it..it actually reminds me of something that I saw a pic of Coco Chanel wearing in that era.
The cloche type hat finishes the look to perfection.
that skirt is a very akward length.. yet it looks so good on her!
is it cold enough in beijing to be wearing this?!
very cute girl and cheerful picture, but the clothes look too conventional (plus the skirt looks cheap)
I think the low-slung skirt is intentional, however it would be cuter if it were higher, and therefore shorter. The length of the skirt is neither here nor there. But she's so adorable, who cares?
she looks great in black but the skirt looks wrong, I think it would have been more chic sitting at her waist and not hips.
To 4:03 PM-For crying out loud-You are taking this commenting way too seriously.The girl´s ethnicity whatever it may be,doesn´t really matter.Merely pointed it out as an observation! As a matter of fact I find this girl really attractive , perhaps just because of her ethnicity.I just was surprised to see someone like her in a Beijing picture.Come on,cool down.There are more serious things to worry about. 3:02 PM
Such a quirky and fun combination. The hat is genius.
She looks a lot like the model in your previous post, Du Juan. Plaid is very in, and not a lot of ppl wear it nicely, and she does :)
Great shot! I like how the leaves frame the picture from the top, how they are scattered on the floor, and the black and white stands out against the colorful background.. Perfect!
I'm part Asian, it does not bother me if someone makes such an observation. So what? She doesn't look "mestiza" to me though, just tall.
I love the low skirt. It's just a little sexy, where a higher skirt would just be ordinary. You have to be that age to get away with it :) but let young people be young.
The hat really makes the look.
I love the flat boots - they look great!
Is this the best on the street pic you took? BJ is more of a backwater than I thought it was.
Discouraging that the whole world is marred by graffiti.
I think she looks nice
This girl looks cute, but kind of in the same way that everyone in China does. Granted, not everyone matches as well as she does (this morning on the metro I sat by a woman wearing a cream-colored brocade jacket and lime green sweatpants with bronze stripes on the side) but basically every woman in China is wearing almost the same outfit in different colors and patterns.
Even though I'm complaining, which I apologize for, I'm sad that we're not seeing more China pictures. I guess I understand though, I tried to have a China fashion blog and had to quit because everyone kept turning me down and running away, even in Chinese. Some people thought it was a scam of some kind!


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Agriculture & Food Industry
*All summaries from Amazon.com unless otherwise stated.
The End of Food by Paul Roberts
Salmonella-tainted tomatoes, riots, and skyrocketing prices are only the latest in a series of food-related crises that have illuminated the failures of the modern food system. In The End of Food, Paul Roberts investigates this system and presents a startling truth—how we make, market, and transport our food is no longer compatible with the billions of consumers the system was built to serve. The emergence of large-scale and efficient food production forever changed our relationship with food and ultimately left a vulnerable and paradoxical system in place. High-volume factory systems create new risks for food-borne illness; high-yield crops generate grain, produce, and meat of declining nutritional quality; and while nearly a billion people are overweight, roughly as many people are starving. In this vivid narrative, Roberts presents clear, stark visions of the future and helps us prepare to make the necessary decisions to survive the demise of food production as we know it.
Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser
On any given day, one out of four Americans opts for a quick and cheap meal at a fast-food restaurant, without giving either its speed or its thriftiness a second thought. Fast food is so ubiquitous that it now seems as American, and harmless, as apple pie. But the industry's drive for consolidation, homogenization, and speed has radically transformed America's diet, landscape, economy, and workforce, often in insidiously destructive ways. Eric Schlosser, an award-winning journalist, opens his ambitious and ultimately devastating exposé with an introduction to the iconoclasts and high school dropouts, such as Harlan Sanders and the McDonald brothers, who first applied the principles of a factory assembly line to a commercial kitchen. Quickly, however, he moves behind the counter with the overworked and underpaid teenage workers, onto the factory farms where the potatoes and beef are grown, and into the slaughterhouses run by giant meatpacking corporations. Schlosser wants you to know why those French fries taste so good (with a visit to the world's largest flavor company) and "what really lurks between those sesame-seed buns."
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver
Author Barbara Kingsolver and her family abandoned the industrial-food pipeline to live a rural life—vowing that, for one year, they'd only buy food raised in their own neighborhood, grow it themselves, or learn to live without it. Part memoir, part journalistic investigation, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle is an enthralling narrative that will open your eyes in a hundred new ways to an old truth: You are what you eat.
In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan
Food. There's plenty of it around, and we all love to eat it. So why should anyone need to defend it? Because in the so-called Western diet, food has been replaced by nutrients, and common sense by confusion--most of what we're consuming today is longer the product of nature but of food science. The result is what Michael Pollan calls the American Paradox: The more we worry about nutrition, the less healthy we see to become. With In Defense of Food, Pollan proposes a new (and very old) answer to the question of what we should eat that comes down to seven simple but liberating words: "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." Pollan's bracing and eloquent manifesto shows us how we can start making thoughtful food choices that will enrich our lives, enlarge our sense of what it means to be healthy, and bring pleasure back to eating.
The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan
Today, buffeted by one food fad after another, America is suffering from what can only be described as a national eating disorder. Will it be fast food tonight, or something organic? Or perhaps something we grew ourselves? The question of what to have for dinner has confronted us since man discovered fire. But as Michael Pollan explains in this revolutionary book, how we answer it now, as the dawn of the twenty-first century, may determine our survival as a species. Packed with profound surprises, The Omnivore's Dilemma is changing the way Americans thing about the politics, perils, and pleasures of eating.
This Organic Life by Joan Dye Gussow
Joan Dye Gussow is an extraordinarily ordinary woman. She lives in a home not unlike the average home in a neighborhood that is, more or less, typically suburban. What sets her apart from the rest of us is that she thinks more deeply--and in more eloquent detail--about food. In sharing her ponderings, she sets a delightful example for those of us who seek the healthiest, most pleasurable lifestyle within an environment determined to propel us in the opposite direction. Joan is a suburbanite with a green thumb, with a feisty, defiant spirit and a relentlessly positive outlook.
The Art of Simple Food by Alice Waters
With an essential repertoire of timeless, approachable recipes chosen to enhance and showcase great ingredients, The Art of Simple Food is an indispensable resource for home cooks. Here you will find Alice's philosophy on everything from stocking your kitchen, to mastering fundamentals and preparing delicious, seasonal inspired meals all year long. Always true to her philosophy that a perfect meal is one that's balanced in texture, color, and flavor, Waters helps us embrace the seasons' bounty and make the best choices when selecting ingredients. Fill your market basket with pristine produce, healthful grains, and responsibly raised meat, poultry, and seafood, then embark on a voyage of culinary rediscovery that reminds us that the most gratifying dish is often the least complex.
Plenty by Alisa Smith and J.B. MacKinnon
Like many great adventures, the 100-mile diet began with a memorable feast. Stranded in their off-the-grid summer cottage in the Canadian wilderness with unexpected guests, Alisa Smith and J.B. MacKinnon turned to the land around them. They caught a trout, picked mushrooms, and mulled apples from an abandoned orchard with rose hips in wine. The meal was truly satisfying; every ingredient had a story, a direct line they could trace from the soil to their forks. The experience raised a question: Was it possible to eat this way in their everyday lives? Back in the city, they began to research the origins of the items that stocked the shelves of their local supermarket. They were shocked to discover that a typical ingredient in a North American meal travels roughly the distance between Boulder, Colorado, and New York City before it reaches the plate. Like so many people, Smith and MacKinnon were trying to live more lightly on the planet; meanwhile, their "SUV diet" was producing greenhouse gases and smog at an unparalleled rate. So they decided on an experiment: For one year they would eat only food produced within 100 miles of their Vancouver home.
Slow Food Nation by Carlo Petrini
By now most of us are aware of the threats looming in the food world. The best-selling Fast Food Nation and other recent books have alerted us to such dangers as genetically modified organisms, food-borne diseases, and industrial farming. Now it is time for answers, and Slow Food Nation steps up to the challenge. Here the charismatic leader of the Slow Food movement, Carlo Petrini, outlines many different routes by which we may take back control of our food. The three central principles of the Slow Food plan are these: food must be sustainably produced in ways that are sensitive to the environment, those who produce the food must be fairly treated, and the food must be healthful and delicious. In his travels around the world as ambassador for Slow Food, Petrini has witnessed firsthand the many ways that native peoples are feeding themselves without making use of the harmful methods of the industrial complex.
Coming Home to Eat by Gary Paul Nabhan
In the tradition of M. F. K. Fisher and Henry David Thoreau, Gary Paul Nabhan relates how his experience with food permeates his life as an avid gardener and forager, as an ethno-botanist and farmland conservation advocate, and as an activist devoted to recovering place-based heritage foods. Nabhan spent a year trying to eat only foods grown, fished, or gathered within 220 miles of his home—with surprising results.
How to Pick a Peach by Russ Parsons
In How to Pick a Peach, Parsons takes on one of the hottest food topics today. Good cooking starts with the right ingredients, and nowhere is that more true than with produce. Should we refrigerate that peach? How do we cook that artichoke? And what are those different varieties of pears? Most of us aren't sure. Parsons helps the cook sort through the produce in the market by illuminating the issues surrounding it, revealing intriguing facts about vegetables and fruits in individual profiles about them, and providing instructions on how to choose, store, and prepare these items.
The Way We Eat by Peter Singer
In The Way We Eat, Singer and Mason examine the eating habits of three American families with very different diets. They track down the sources of each family's food to probe the ethical issues involved in its production and marketing. What kinds of meat are most humane to eat? Is "organic" always better? Wild fish or farmed? Recognizing that not all of us will become vegetarians, Singer and Mason offer ways to make the best food choices. As they point out: "You can be ethical without being fanatical."
Stolen Harvest by Vandana Shiva
In Stolen Harvest, Vandana Shiva charts the impacts of globalized, corporate agriculture on small farmers, the environment, and the quality of the food we eat. With chapters on genetically engineered seeds, patents on life, mad cows and sacred cows, and the debate on shrimp farming, this is an impassioned and inspiring book that will shape the debate about genetic engineering and commercial agriculture for years to come. Summary from book jacket.
Hope's Edge by Frances Moore Lappe & Anna Lappe
Thirty years ago, Frances Moore Lappé started a revolution in the way Americans think about food and hunger. Now Frances and her daughter, Anna, pick up where Diet for a Small Planet left off. Together they set out on an around-the-world journey to explore the greatest challenges we face in the new millennium. Traveling to Asia, Africa, Latin America, and Europe, they discovered answers to one of the most urgent issues of our time: whether we can transcend the rampant consumerism and capitalism to find the paths that each of us can follow to heal our lives as well as the planet.
Kitchen Literacy by Ann Vileisis
Ask children where food comes from, and they'll probably answer: 'the supermarket'. Ask most adults, and their replies may not be much different. Where our foods are raised and what happens to them between farm and supermarket shelf have become mysteries. How did we become so disconnected from the sources of our breads, beef, cheeses, cereal, apples, and countless other foods that nourish us every day? Ann Vileisis' answer is a sensory-rich journey through the history of making dinner. "Kitchen Literacy" takes us from an eighteenth-century garden to today's sleek supermarket aisles, and eventually to farmer's markets that are now enjoying a resurgence. Vileisis chronicles profound changes in how American cooks have considered their foods over two centuries and delivers a powerful statement: what we don't know could hurt us.
The Botany of Desire by Michael Pollan
Every schoolchild learns about the mutually beneficial dance of honeybees and flowers: The bee collects nectar and pollen to make honey and, in the process, spreads the flowers' genes far and wide. In The Botany of Desire, Michael Pollan ingeniously demonstrates how people and domesticated plants have formed a similarly reciprocal relationship. He masterfully links four fundamental human desires—sweetness, beauty, intoxication, and control—with the plants that satisfy them: the apple, the tulip, marijuana, and the potato. In telling the stories of four familiar species, Pollan illustrates how the plants have evolved to satisfy humankind's most basic yearnings. And just as we've benefited from these plants, we have also done well by them. So who is really domesticating whom?
Silent Spring by Rachel Carson
First published by Houghton Mifflin in 1962, Silent Spring alerted a large audience to the environmental and human dangers of indiscriminate use of pesticides, spurring revolutionary changes in the laws affecting our air, land, and water.
World Food Programme (WFP)
WFP is the food aid arm of the United Nations system. Food aid is one of the many instruments that can help to promote food security, which is defined as access of all people at all times to the food needed for an active and healthy life. The policies governing the use of World Food Programme food aid must be oriented towards the objective of eradicating hunger and poverty. The ultimate objective of food aid should be the elimination of the need for food aid. www.wfp.org
Laura Masterson, The 47th Avenue Farm


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Bayer HealthCare's oncology franchise has received a boost with regulatory approval of Nexavar, a drug that treats an advanced and potentially fatal form of thyroid cancer.
The Food and Drug Administration last week approved the new indication for Nexavar, which is already approved to treat liver and kidney cancer. The partners submitted the application this summer.
Nexavar, co-marketed with Bayer and Calif.-based Onyx Pharmaceuticals Inc., targets a late-stage form of the disease — called advanced differentiated thyroid cancer — that does not respond well to radioactive iodine therapy, the standard treatment effective in most cases.
Nexavar's label expansion marks the fourth approval in 14 months for the oncology franchise of Bayer, a company historically known for making aspirin. The German pharmaceutical with New Jersey operations branched into cancer treating drugs in 2005.
Bayer expects the approval will lead to the further growth of Nexavar, which reported third-quarter sales of $277 million.
"We don't speculate on revenue but clearly there is a tremendous amount of momentum with the oncology business at Bayer," said Shannon Campbell, vice president and general manager of the company's oncology business.
Thyroid cancer is a cancerous growth of the thyroid gland in the neck. Nexavar works by inhibiting multiple proteins in cancer cells, limiting cell growth and division.
Campbell said about 60,000 news cases of thyroid cancer are diagnosed in the United States each year but most respond well to radioactive iodine therapy. Nexavar targets the 3,000 to 4,000 of cases that do not, she said.
"An unmet medical need exists for this type of thyroid cancer, underscoring the need for new therapies," Gary Bloom, executive director of Thyroid Cancer Survivors' Association Inc., said in a statement.
The new use was approved after clinical studies of 417 patients with advanced differentiated thyroid cancer.
The FDA said Nexavar increased the length of time patients lived without the cancer progressing by 41 percent compared with those receiving a placebo. Half of patients receiving Nexavar lived without cancer progression for at least 10.8 months compared to at least 5.8 months for participants receiving a placebo, the FDA said.
"Nexavar is the first and only FDA approved therapy for this type of thyroid cancer and is a positive development for patients who previously had limited treatment options," said Dr. Pamela Cyrus, vice president and head of U.S. Medical Affairs at Bayer HealthCare.
About 213,000 new cases of thyroid cancer are diagnosed globally each year, resulting in about 35,000 deaths annually, the company said.
Bayer HealthCare earlier this year centralized its New Jersey and New York operations to one location in the Whippany section of Hanover.


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Don't click the link, it just gives them ad money... but for those who don't believe someone actually wrote this...
http://www.goldcoast.com.au/article/201 ... inion.html
MEERS: Time to curb pedal power
THE time has come to declare war on cyclists.
They should be forced to register their bicycles, have insurance and be subject to breath tests.
Book them when they hog half the road and motorists can't get past. Book them when they cut motorists off at roundabouts. Book them if they are outside the bike lanes and book them for having a pack mentality.
Enough is enough. They are running the roads and it is downright dangerous.
Police and the State Government love giving themselves pats on the back for statewide traffic operations. Stopping speeding and drink-driving and lowering the road toll, but nobody ever mentions a word about cyclists.
Have your say on the feedback form below
They are a law unto themselves and they know it.
Their arrogance on the road can't even be measured.
As a journalist, I often get asked what politicians, sports stars and celebrities are "really like".
Nobody, I repeat, nobody shares the arrogance that cyclists have.
Each morning I go running. OK, some of the power walkers overtake me running, but I still run.
I meet a friend at her place every morning which is about a 3km drive from my home.
It takes me a good five minutes to get there.
Because at 5am the streets of Broadbeach and Surfers Paradise are filled with cyclists. They ride in packs, big packs of 20 and they take up the whole road in their lycra gear.
I'm stuck sitting on 30km while they ride.
They know I'm behind them, yet they make no attempt to move.
A couple of times you consider passing them, but it's too risky.
If I was to knock one over it would be my fault.
Why do they do it?
Because they damn well can.
Authorities let it happen.
The two-wheeled, arrogant, lycra-clad people look at motorists as if they are invading their territory. It's plain wrong.
There's a rogue peloton of cyclists abusing fellow road users and screaming to wake sleeping residents as it barrels through Surfers Paradise every morning at 5.
Woken residents who return fire with yells of "shadup!" are subjected to tirades of abuse from riders as they blast along narrow Garfield Terrace.
"It's like something out of Lord of the Flies," said one resident.
The above story is a daily occurrence on our streets and nobody seems to care.
Police need to start cycling operations. Make them too scared to do anything wrong.
Now, the cyclists will argue there aren't enough bike lanes on the Gold Coast. Council and government don't provide them with the facilities to ride.
There's a reason for that -- you wouldn't use them anyway.
It would be a waste of money building more cycling lanes because cyclists think they should be running the roads.
If the police did their job and cracked down on the cyclists for a while motorists might get the roads back to themselves; after all, they were invented for cars.
Bicycles are just as big a danger to road safety as some of the other driving crimes which contribute to serious accidents.
Driving on a busy road trying to dodge cyclists when cars are coming in the opposite direction is one of the most dangerous things you could do on a road.
Yet police do nothing about it. Start an operation and if it doesn't work, ban bikes full stop.
Enough is enough. Motorists need to start manning up and being vocal about the issue.
Roads are for cars, not bikes.
Make some noise people, win the roads back before something really bad happens.
And believe me, it will.


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WASHINGTON, D.C. – History was made Friday night as Gallaudet University stunned Catholic University of America with a 47-27 victory before a crowd of 1,243 at Cardinal Stadium. The win is the first for the Bison over the Cardinals in the 106-year history of the rivalry between the two D.C. schools.
"It was nice to see a full team effort tonight as our offense, defense and special teams came together to play as a complete unit. A lot of players stepped up in key moments," said Gallaudet coach Chuck Goldstein after the victory. "We had terrific support from our administration, faculty, staff and students who made the short trip to attend the game tonight. Not many schools can say their President, Provost, Vice-President, Dean of Student Affairs and Athletic Director travel for a big game like this. It was terrific to deliver our program's first win with them and our fans in attendance."
Freshman quarterback Todd Bonheyo (Frederick, Md.) completed 6-of-15 passes for two touchdowns and ran in two touchdowns from a yard out in the third quarter to give the Bison (1-1) a 35-14 lead. Freshman running back BJ Flores (Raymondville, Texas) put the game away in the fourth with two touchdown runs as GU led 47-21, its largest margin in the game, with five minutes left in regulation.
Gallaudet's defense forced five turnovers (four interceptions) as the Bison harassed and swarmed around Catholic quarterback Greg Cordivari (19-for-38, 115 yards, three touchdowns, four interceptions) and caused problems in the secondary. Senior cornerback Tony Tatum (Gardendale, Ala.) had a stellar game as he picked off Cordivari twice and made an acrobatic 10-yard touchdown reception in the second quarter to give GU the lead for good. Tatum's first interception helped to set up his touchdown reception when he tipped Cordivari's pass up and while falling to the ground corralled the ball in for the pick. Eleven plays later he celebrated his first touchdown of the season.
Read the rest of the story here:


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May revenue of $970 million gives HTC its best month of 2013
HTC has reported its unaudited revenue for May 2013, announcing that last month it brought in NT$29 billion ($970 million). This brings total revenue for the year so far to NT$91.4 billion ($3.06 billion), and revenue for the quarter so far to NT$48.6 billion ($1.62 billion). The numbers indicate that May was HTC's best month of 2013, putting it within striking distance of its expected Q2 revenue of NT$70 billion ($2.34 billion). The last time the Taiwanese phone-maker brought in this much cash in a single month was June 2012.
The increase in revenue follows the launch of the HTC One, the company's much-hyped flagship handset. HTC had endured lackluster revenues in recent months following delays to that handset brought on by component shortages. In recent weeks the company has also recently lost several high-profile executives. The resolution of these supply problems and the crucial U.S. HTC One likely contributed to the higher May numbers, and it was recently reported that HTC had sold around five million HTC One handsets as of mid-May. HTC will be hoping for continued strong sales in June and beyond, despite increasing competition from rival Samsung.
Source: HTC


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WIPO Celebrates Chinese Patent Explosion, Pretends That It's Innovation
from the patents-do-not-equal-innovation dept
China received 526,412 applications compared to 503,582 for the United States and 342,610 for Japan, according to the latest report from the Geneva-based World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).Now, some might wonder why this is happening -- or even look to some of those earlier examples where China has used the patent system specifically to hold back foreign competition and wonder if this is actually something worth celebrating.
But not WIPO.
It thinks that patents are good, so more patents must be excellent:
"Sustained growth in IP filings indicates that companies continue to innovate despite weak economic conditions," said WIPO's Director General, Francis Gurry. "This is good news, as it lays the foundation for the world economy to generate growth and prosperity in the future."Except almost nothing that Gurry says there is even close to accurate. It assumes -- without proof -- that increased patent filings have something to do with innovation. They don't. Increased patent filings only show people are filing for more patents. That is not the same thing as suggesting that they are innovating, because research has shown that patent numbers do not correlate well with innovation. Furthermore, a massive growth in patent applications does not "lay the foundation for the world economy to generate growth and prosperity." Again, the reality is almost entirely opposite. It lays the foundation for a massive hindrance on innovation, increasing the amount of patent trolling, protectionism and general holding back of true innovation. And this doesn't even touch on the fact that China's numbers are propped up by the crazy incentives it's been giving to people to file for patents.
This is a massive problem with groups like WIPO. They never seem to recognize that "more patents" or "more copyright" aren't automatic good things. They simply assume -- despite a total lack of evidence -- that it must be so. Considering the harm that over-protection can do to any market, it's a really ridiculous stance to take, and it makes WIPO and the UN lose nearly all credibility on the subject of patents and innovation.


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2018 Ram 5500 Crew Cab DRW 4x4, Cab Chassis (Stock #JG304317)
Vehicle Notes
Chassis Details
|Call For Pricing
Pricing Details
|Dealer Discount
|- $9,367
|Total Savings
|Additional Upfit Cost
Contact Red River Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram of Heber Springs for more info.(501) 238-8384
Vehicle available NOW in Heber Springs, AR
Mid-model-year manufacturing changes, as well as dealer-added accessories on the actual vehicle may differ from the options and features shown. MSRP is provided by the manufacturer for informational purposes only. Actual pricing and vehicle information must be verified by us at the time of purchase.
Images shown may not necessarily represent the configurable options selected or available on the vehicle.
©2013 Chrysler Group LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, RAM, SRT, Mopar, Pentastar, On The Job and BusinessLink logos are registered trademarks of Chrysler Group LLC.
FIAT is a registered trademark of Fiat Group Marketing & Corporate Communication S.p.A, used under license of Chrysler Group LLC.
Chrysler 200, Chrysler 300C, Grand Caravan, HEMI, Imported From Detroit, Journey, Journey Crew, Latitude, Liberty Jet, ParkSense, ParkView, Pentastar, RamBox, RAM Jam, RAM 1500 Express, Uconnect and Viper are registered trademarks and Keyless Enter 'n Go, Mopar Vehicle Protection and Tigershark are trademarks of Chrysler Group LLC.
FIAT 500 Pop and FIAT 500 Lounge are registered trademarks of Fiat Group Marketing & Corporate Communications S.p.A., used under license by Chrysler Group LLC.
BLUE&ME and eco:Drive are trademarks of Fiat Group Automobile, S.p.A., used under license by Chrysler Group LLC.
MultiAir is a registered trademark of C.R.F. Società Consortile per Azioni, used under license by Chrysler Group LLC.
The trademarks Beats by Dr. Dre, Beats, Beats Audio, and the b logo are the property of Beats Electronics, LLC.


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All Purpose Cleaner, Bedding, Bird Foods, Birdseed, Carpet Cleaner, Cat Beds, Cat Food, Cat Litter, Cat Treats, Cotton Sheets, Dish Soap, Dishwasher Detergent, Dog Beds, Dog Food, Dog Treats, Fertilizer, Furniture Polish, Latex Mattresses, Laundry Detergent, Lawn Care Products, Mattresses, Pet Beds, Pet Food, Pet Treats, Pillowcases, Root Stimulator
Health and Community info
This is a great way to eat more organic food in your daily life.
A food forest is a permaculture design element consisting of seven layers from the canopy and shrubs on down past the soil layer.
Following are some options for your Iowa food forest. All of these plants are routinely available in areas where they thrive.
The red mulberry is Native to IA. It requires precipitation between 35 and 60 inches of rain annually.
The red mulberry (Morus rubra) is in the Mulberry family. It's drought tolerance is Medium and requires a minimum temperature of -33°F.
The red mulberry is propogated by Bare root, Container, Cuttings, Seed. With a bloom period in Early Spring, the fruit/seed period begins in Spring and ends in Summer.
While a plant species may generally thrive and fruit in Iowa, you may be in a climate that isn't optimal.
Consult your local garden supplier or continue researching in order to find plants, shrubs and ground cover that match your specific hardiness zone, rainfall and direct sun.
We hope you enjoy creating your food forest! Submit a picture and your garden could be featured on this site!


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News Service
NPR's Michele Norris to present ISCORE, Mary Louise Smith Chair lecture March 6
Michele Norris, an award-winning journalist and co-host of National Public Radio's "All Things Considered," will speak at Iowa State on Friday, March 6, serving as both the keynote speaker at the 10th annual Iowa State Conference on Race and Ethnicity (ISCORE) and the Carrie Chapman Catt Center's Spring 2009 Mary Louise Smith Chair. Norris will deliver a free, public talk titled "Race, Gender and the Future of Leadership in America," at 4 p.m. in the Great Hall of the Memorial Union.
Civil rights activist and scholar Berry to speak at ISU March 3
Mary Frances Berry, former chair of the U.S. Civil Rights Commission and a founder of the 1980s' Free South Africa Movement, will speak on "Gender and Race After the 2008 Campaign,"at 8 p.m. Tuesday, March 3, in the Memorial Union Sun Room. It is free and open to the public. Berry, the Geraldine R. Segal Professor of American Social Thought at the University of Pennsylvania, is the author of seven books, a former assistant secretary for education and the recipient of 32 honorary doctoral degrees.
Iowa State career experts say jobs are still there for spring grads, provide helpful tips
In spite of the nation's rising unemployment, five ISU career placement professionals report that they continue to see consistent entry-level employment opportunities for their graduates. They have some tips on how future grads can land jobs amid a more saturated applicant pool.
Governor Culver appoints ISU's Mary Swander as new Poet Laureate
Governor Chet Culver today appointed Mary Swander, an ISU Distinguished Professor of English, as Iowa's new Poet Laureate. Swander will serve a two-year appointment as the state's symbolic leader of poetry.
Iowa State, Iowa professors awarded $4.8 million grant to improve science literacy
A new four-year, $4.8 million U.S. Department of Education Institute of Education Sciences grant to improve science literacy among elementary students in Iowa has been awarded to a research team that includes Mack Shelley, an Iowa State political science and statistics professor; and Brian Hand and William Therrien, two University of Iowa College of Education professors.
Pruetz Presidential Lecture explores human evolution through savanna chimps
Jill Pruetz, an associate professor of anthropology, will present the Spring 2009 Presidential University Lecture "Savanna Chimpanzees and Our Understanding of Human Evolution," on Monday, March 2, at 8 p.m. in the Memorial Union Sun Room.
Iowa Power Fund advances researcher's long quest for efficient solar power
Vikram Dalal and a team of Iowa State University researchers are trying to improve thin film solar cells. A $1.69 million grant from the Iowa Power Fund is allowing the researchers to look for efficiencies in new materials, new structures and organic semiconductors.
ISU researcher: Iowa has lower-quality topsoil than 50 years ago
Topsoil depth has remained the same over 50 years, but the quality of the soil has decreased.
Iowa State researchers talk chemistry education at major science meeting
Two Iowa State University chemistry professors talked about improving science education during this year's annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Thomas Greenbowe studies how labs and animations can improve chemistry education. Tom Holme coordinates development of standardized, norm-referenced chemistry tests.
'Be Comfortable in Your Genes, Rock Your Body' spotlights eating disorders
Although eating disorders can affect anyone at any age, 10 percent of all college-age students have a diagnosed eating disorder. As part of National Eating Disorders Awareness Week (Feb. 22-28), ISU Student Counseling Services will present a series of events, "Be Comfortable in Your Genes, Rock Your Body." Events include a documentary film on America's obsession with beauty and physical perfection and Q and A with the filmmaker and eating disorder experts, and a multimedia presentation on the objectification of men and women, which can lead to eating disorders and low self-esteem.
Fish health, boaters, anglers are focus of new Web site
A new Web site is focused on explaining how outdoors enthusiasts can help minimize the chances of spreading the disease Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia (VHS).
Four finalists named in search for ISU design dean
Four finalists have been named in the search for the next dean of the College of Design. They are Luis Rico-Gutierrez, associate dean of the College of Fine Arts and David Lewis Director of the Remaking Cities Institute, Carnegie Mellon University; Kate Schwennsen, associate dean of the College of Design; David Edelman, director of the School of Planning, University of Cincinnati; and Christine Theodoropoulos, head of the architecture department, University of Oregon. Candidate will visit campus during the next three weeks.
Iowa State astronomer to study stars with data from NASA's Kepler mission
Steve Kawaler, an Iowa State University professor of physics and astronomy, plans to witness the launch of NASA's Kepler mission in early March. The mission's space telescope will advance Kawaler's studies of the interiors of stars. And it could find dozens of earth-like planets in our galaxy.
Chimp reunited with mom
Iowa State anthropologist Jill Pruetz recently helped reunite a 9-month-old chimpanzee who'd been taken by hunters with her mother in Senegal. The captors of baby Aimee planned to sell the chimp, but Pruetz' field assistant Johnny Kante talked them into giving her back. Pruetz, Kante and field assistant Michel Keita reintroduced Aimee to the community of savanna chimpanzees at the Fongoli research site -- producing a reunion with her mother Tia. The event was captured on video (courtesy of National Geographic) by Pruetz, who tells the story here.
In the news
Shaky economy shakes up retailers in Perry, Iowa
USA Today
As in many small Iowa towns, Perry's population of 7,600 is aging, and competition from nearby big cities draws customers, said Liesl Eathington, an assistant economics researcher at Iowa State University.


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I invite your attention the Full HD project – Flash Logo.
This project can be used as a promo of your company, screensaver, etc.
Just type texts, put your logo and you'll be ready to render!
> ! This project uses a third-party plug-ins: – optical flares 1.0.108
You can easily change the color. The project may be to use your logo or your text.
In text layers foreign font:
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> Project characteristics: Duration – 00:11 sec Resolution – 1920?1080 px Frame rate – 29.97 fps Color Depth – 16 bits
Please rate this project if you like it.


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Farmingdale State 16
Baruch College 4
Farmingdale State improved their record to 2-5 overall this afternoon with a 16-4 win over Baruch College (0-3) in a non-conference baseball game in Farmingdale, NY. Freshman Jon Kishanuk (Hicksville, NY/Hicksville) pitched four innings for the win and is now 1-0 after his first start of the season. Freshman Luis Feliciano (Bronx, NY/Park West) scored the first run of the game for Farmingdale, taking a lead-off walk and coming in off a Bill Jansen (Westhampton Beach, NY/Westhampton Beach) RBI single. The Rams would then score five runs in the second, four in the third and three in the fourth to take a commanding 12-2 lead into the fifth inning.
Senior captain Anthony Scali (Massapequa Park, NY/Massapequa) had two hits for Farmingdale, bringing in four runs and scoring twice. Feliciano had two walks and two hits in four at-bats, and now leads the team in on-base percentage. Sophomore Nick Barone finished with three hits and three runs batted in.
Farmingdale State will travel to Manhattanville College for a Skyline Conference double-header on Saturday, April 9th starting at noon.


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Ireland Lane had used an ethyl alcohol-based hand sanitizer at Oregon Health & Science University's Doernbecher Children's Hospital, Fire Marshal Mark Wallace said. The girl's father, Stephen Lane, has said she also likely wiped the sanitizer on her T-shirt and wiped her bedside table with it.
Olive oil on Ireland's T-shirt and hair compounded the severity of the Feb. 2 fire, Wallace said. Olive oil is sometimes used to remove the glue that holds electrodes to the scalp for an EEG exam.
The girl, who turns 12 Thursday, had recently learned about static electricity and apparently was trying to create static sparks in her bed by scuffing her feet and rubbing the bed linens. Wallace said a static charge likely ignited fumes from the hand sanitizer and burned Ireland's olive oil-saturated cotton shirt.
"This was a very unusual combined set of circumstances that resulted in this young girl getting burned," the fire marshal said.
The Klamath Falls child suffered second- and third-degree burns to about 18 percent of her body, The Oregonian has reported. Ireland has already undergone one skin graft surgery and a second surgery was scheduled for Thursday.
The hospital, which supplied the hand sanitizer, immediately announced changes in its protocols.
Patients sometimes use olive oil to remove the glue that holds electrodes to the scalp for an EEG exam if the patient is allergic to the common compound that is used, a hospital spokesman told The Oregonian.
"We are no longer suggesting the use of olive oil for patients who have an allergic reaction to EEG gel remover," Dr. Stacy Nicholson, hospital physician-in-chief, said after the findings were announced. "In addition, while our placement and use of hand sanitizer meets industry standards, we plan to review our procedures to see if there are any additional adjustments we can make to promote safety."
Wallace said alcohol-based hand sanitizers are safe when used according to instructions.
"OHSU, as all medical facilities in Oregon, are very safe places," he said. "There is no reason to believe that anyone at OHSU or any other medical facility is in danger based on this highly unusual event."
A survivor of a rare childhood kidney cancer, Ireland had been was admitted to the hospital initially because she hit her head at school and lost consciousness. She was due to leave the hospital the day of the fire.


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Employees protest over many things: higher wages, better benefits, safer working conditions in their jobs. What's far more unusual, if not unprecedented, is to see workers, organized by senior managers, stage a rebellion to help their CEO get his job back.
Yet that's just what been happening recently at a 71-store grocery chain based in the Northeast. Thousands of employees of Market Basket, which has locations in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine, have held rallies over the exit of their chief executive, Arthur T. Demoulas. "Artie T.," or "ATD," as he's called by employees, was ousted in June by a board that's controlled by his cousin, the similarly named Arthur S. Demoulas. For decades, the company has been embroiled in a family feud that has spilled over into not only an unusual battle aligning management and rank-and-file employees against the board, but a public relations crisis and an election year topic for local politicians.
The events of recent days included a mass rally on Friday that drew an estimated 2,500 people, many of them Market Basket employees, to protest the ouster of Demoulas. Employees, who held signs at the rallies with Arthur T.'s picture that read "I Believe," are concerned the board and the new co-chief executives, who were brought in from the outside, will make changes to the company's culture and business model. Market Basket is known for offering low prices and high levels of customer service, thanks in part to its above-average compensation and benefits.
Then on Monday, employees held an even larger rally for Arthur T.'s return, this time with estimates of 5,000 or more people in attendance, after eight senior Market Basket employees who had helped organize protests were reportedly fired on Sunday. Monday evening, the former CEO issued a public statement urging the reinstatement of the managers who had lost their jobs. Employees are planning more protests, local politicians have weighed in with boycotts and statements of support, and photos of empty store shelves left barren from employees' walkouts are being shared around social media.
"It's quite remarkable," says Ashley McCown, president of the Boston-based communications firm Solomon McCown & Co. The momentum that's built around the story, she says, hasn't "just been a one day thing," she says. "It's been going on well over a week. It's one for the crisis playbook. Any of the commentary I've heard form lawyers and academics and labor experts is that this is unique."
(An e-mail to the company was not immediately returned and a call to the company's headquarters was answered with a recording saying the switchboard was not operating. In a statement that was previously reported, the two new co-CEOs said "the direction of the company has not changed" and re-confirmed their commitment to paying bonuses and profit-sharing contributions.)
What would inspire such loyalty, especially in a world where CEOs are increasingly viewed as an out-of-touch group of 1 percent-ers and the corporate social contract feels as if it's all but disappeared? A CEO that has a track record of paying above-average pay and benefits, for one. But in speeches, blog posts and media reports, employees spoke of the former CEO's integrity, accessibility and generosity. He was known for attending the weddings and funerals of employees' families. "He's George Bailey," says Tom Trainor, a 41-year veteran of the company who was a district manager of 37 stores before he was fired Sunday, comparing Arthur T. to the fictional savings-and-loan manager from the film "It's a Wonderful Life." "He cares more about people than he does about money."
Trainor, who says the protests are a completely grass-roots effort, described Arthur T. as being more comfortable walking his stores, talking with employees and customers, than he was in the office. On the first day the company opened its first store in Maine, "it took him 4.5 hours just to get in the building because there was a line of customers and employees out there. He took time to speak with every one."
Daniel Korschun, a professor of marketing and fellow at Drexel University's Center for Corporate Reputation who has been studying Market Basket for a case study, attended the rally on Monday. He heard employees talk of Arthur T.'s visits to employee family members in the hospital. "He seemed to be fairly involved in people's lives, and I think he was a big believer in being a low cost provider to communities."
Korschun became interested in studying the company for the uniqueness of its story. "The employees and the customers -- they see themselves as the organization," he says. "The board and the new CEOs are seen as the outsider. It's the exact opposite of what you usually see." In reputation management, he says, the effort is usually on protecting the image of the company and the brand. But in this case, the reputation damage "is not to the company. It's to the board and the new co-CEOs. Market Basket's brand itself is really quite strong right now."
Still, however successful the protesting employees have been so far at generating public goodwill, they will need to be careful, says John Carroll, a mass communication professor at Boston University. If they overplay their hand, this could become "a classic example of destroying the village to save it," he says. Saying things like "we are going to shut this company down" has the potential to backfire. "If this is about justice, the public will support that," he says. "But if this is about vengeance, that could end up leaving a bad taste in the public's mouth."
Trainor says their rallies are about justice, and he doesn't seem concerned about the long-term impact the campaign could have on customer loyalty. Even though store shelves are increasingly empty, thinned of basic items like produce and seafood due to slowed deliveries, "the customers are going to come back," he says. "Our customer support is phenomenal."
Read also:
The least narcissistic American CEOs
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