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A case study in exploitation
Monday, April 5, 2004
Attorney profited, but his clients lost
By Ken Armstrong, Florangela Davila and Justin Mayo
Last year, Grant County public defender Thomas J. Earl handled 413 a staggering figure that eviscerated the chances of a vigorous defense.
At that rate, Earl could devote an average of only four hours per case, according to a formula used by the defenders association.
Or, to use another measure: When Earl lost his job two months ago, judges drafted 49 lawyers in a desperate scramble to fill the vacuum.
But as daunting as his caseload was, Earl didn't complain. Indeed, he invited the work and the money it paid.
As administrator of a public-defense contract for the past three years, Earl determined caseloads and compensation for public defenders in Grant County Superior Court. The more cases he kept for himself, the fewer he had to dole out. And the fewer he doled out, the more money he kept.
That accounts only for his public-defense work. Earl also maintained a private practice.
And on top of that, according to allegations by the Washington State Bar Association, Earl solicited money from court-appointed clients he was supposed to represent for free.
At a disciplinary hearing last year, an attorney for the bar picked up a green marker and drew a dollar sign. "Mr. Earl," she said, "put a price tag on the administration of justice."
The bar described how Earl received a crush of court-appointed cases; how he got paid the same for those cases, no matter how hard he worked; and how he was allowed to keep a private practice on the side. The hearing officer concluded that Grant County's system invites conflict and abuse and that Tom Earl accepted that invitation.
Similar systems can be found throughout Washington, where local governments have placed themselves and countless indigent defendants at the mercy of attorneys working under fixed-fee contracts, hoping personal integrity prevails where financial motivation fails.
In 1996, John W. Jackson stood trial in Grant County Superior Court, accused of selling drugs.
Nicknamed "Cabbie" because he used to drive a taxicab, Jackson was 59, poor, and had a prior criminal record, including drug arrests.
The state's case hinged on two witnesses: a confidential informant who said he bought cocaine from Jackson, and an undercover cop who said he saw the deal go down.
To defend Jackson, an attorney would need to scrutinize the state's case and dig around to determine if the prosecution's witnesses were credible.
But when Tom Earl received the Jackson case in November 1995, his felony caseload for the year had already topped 300 and was growing. The time he had to devote to any single case was minimal.
So was his financial incentive.
On Jan. 1, 1996, the law firm of Earl & Earl took over the public-defense contract for Grant County Superior Court. (The firm's members included Earl's relatives, but not Tom Earl himself.) The firm hired Tom Earl to handle 40 percent of the court-appointed cases, and paid him $156,000 a year, no matter how much time he spent on those cases.
Tom Earl's agreement also allowed him to keep a private practice. So the more time he spent on court-appointed clients, the less time he would have for paying ones. And at the time, he was facing extreme financial pressure: The Internal Revenue Service had recently ordered him to pay more than $100,000 in back taxes.
With so little time to spare, Earl's preparation in Jackson's case was so minimal that he went to trial without even interviewing the state's star witness, James Allen Anderson.
Police in Grant County knew him as "The Plate." This was a clever play on words: Anderson has a steel plate concealed in his lower leg, but police used the name to conceal Anderson's identity as a confidential drug informant.
Others in Grant County knew Anderson by other names: "Crazy Jimmy." "Shaky Jimmy." "Jimmy the Weasel." The Anderson they knew couldn't differentiate fact from fantasy.
In an interview with The Seattle Times, Anderson said he solved the Oklahoma City bombing, the JonBenet Ramsey murder and countless other crimes all before they happened. Asked how, he pointed to his head.
"This," he said. "You think with your mind, you put the cases together, and you put it down on paper."
Anderson said he received assignments directly from presidents John F. Kennedy and Jimmy Carter, that he had a Marine Corps command at Camp Pendleton and that he's worked as a government secret agent for 44 years.
Anderson is 51 years old.
John Jackson's case went to trial on June 11, 1996.
On that same day, the Washington Court of Appeals ruled that Tom Earl had done such a lousy job defending a previous client that it vacated the man's rape conviction and ordered a new trial. Earl didn't conduct an adequate investigation, the court found. When potential witnesses tried to offer evidence that might help his client, Earl didn't even return their calls.
History was about to repeat itself.
In the opening moments of his trial, Jackson complained to the judge that his defense attorney had done nothing to prepare.
"What would you have Mr. Earl do?" the judge asked.
"I would have him at least talk to me," Jackson said.
The prosecution put three people on the stand, including the undercover police officer and Anderson, the confidential informant. Earl's cross-examination of Anderson failed to disclose any hint of mental illness.
The defense called no witnesses. Jackson was convicted of selling cocaine and sentenced to six years and four months in prison.
From his prison cell, Jackson appealed. Five years later, Anderson was back on the stand. This time he was questioned by Nancy Tenney, an assistant federal public defender who had investigated his background and who proceeded to shred the case against Jackson.
Tenney asked Anderson how he came to be a police informant.
Anderson replied that in 1993 or 1994, he had called Bryan Pratt, a Grant County sheriff's deputy, and offered to direct him to about seven ounces of white powder. The two met the next day.
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Our Price: £343.50
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PFS Parts Ltd. is registered for VAT in the United Kingdom, VAT no: GB809914994

subset: commoncrawl


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Are Karadzic and Mladic about to surrender?
/ fugitive / psychologists /
According to an Athens News Agency Report from Zagreb (here in Greek from in.gr), the Croatian newspaper Globus claims that Bosnian Serb reputed war criminals Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic are in Belgrade (at least according to the Croatian intelligence service). It is expected - says the report - that it is a matter of time before they are delivered to the International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia... Supposedly European governments have been notified of these events, and the surrender of the two wanted Bosnian Serb leaders, will be arranged in such a way as to minimize reactions from K&M's local supporters. Bosnian Serbs are divided right in the middle on the question of extradition for the two "warlords"...
Now this is far from the first time such rumors are heard - and more theatrical situations have been arranged in the past. Not to mention that Karadzic is never supposed to surrender. Yet I mention this rumour because it seems to have a "history", though of course this by itself does not make the rumour likely - just worth considering:
On the 11th of November Serbia & Montenegro, were given a warning to bring K&M to the Hague by the end of the year or face Euro-Atlantic "excommunication". Bosnian Serb leaders thus prepare and then publish a statement calling for the duo's surrender. On the 16th of November, rumours are published that Kostunica is negotiating Mladic's surrender, which are promptly denied, later emphatically enough to suggest the possible way that such a surrender is going to be served.
Anyway this promises to be interesting - possibly being in that crazy fervour of his, Karadzic could do just about anything - including surrendering?
Meanwhile in another part of the Galaxy (the part where K & M might be heading for), the headline is that "UN's war crime court jails first Kosovo Albanian", or equivalently, that "UN tribunal acquits Kosovo rebels", depending on the way one sees the exact same event. The latter story title has, quite understandably pissed off pretty much all of the Serbs who noted that percentage of acquittals in the ICTY might be perceived to correlate with lobbying money invested in PR. This while other big fish are soon to be judged in the Hague...
[post crossposted at Eurotrib]


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Who says Economic Development Directors don't have a heart? This weekend our Economic Development Director (Dan Smith) proved otherwise by arranging for a ceremonial send off for the old red diner, aka Jerry's Diner, downtown. I know the newspaper picked up the story but I wanted to mention it here again and share a few old time photo's that came in as a result of the walk down memory lane.
As the latest owner in a long line of owners of the old red diner, the City wanted to honor all the memories that the old diner provided for folks over the last 60 years. So Dan Smith arranged for an early lunch following the homecoming parade for anyone that wanted to say goodbye to the diner in a modern version of the last supper. I don't know if Dan qualifies for the lead role in that story but he certainly earned some points with the old timers that came to pay their last respects and chat up a few good stories of the diner.
There's no question that the diner is an icon in downtown Kent and if the walls could talk I'm sure we could be entertained for weeks. But alas all good things come to an end and unfortunately over the last decade the once proud diner fell into disrepair after a fire gutted the place. The interior damage was enough to keep it closed for good and rather than letting it sit any longer as an eyesore the City is preparing to send it off to greener pastures and clear the lot for something new in it's place.
Being the good public steward that he is, Dan was able to arrange for food donations without needing any public dollars for the picnic and he's seeing if someone might actually buy the old diner at an auction that we're currently in the process of advertising. Bidders will have to put up a $1,000 performance bond (meaning that can't say they want it and then leave it there for another 10 years) and they'll have 2 weeks to get it removed from the site. I've seen the stuff people buy and sell on ebay so who knows maybe the old diner can be a revenue source for the City.
I suppose there's some cruel irony in the fact that what made the diner great was also its undoing in the end — greasy food. There's probably some message about too much of a good thing can be bad that we can all take away from the diner's demise but putting aside the morality lesson of the diner we've had a chance to hear a lot of stories about the sentimental value of the diner to students and residents alike.
We came across an old post card about the diner that had my favorite write up of what the diner was during its peak: Jerry's Diner – where philosophers, poets, artists, folksingers and others of dubious repute often gather.
That's how the diner should be remembered and while the names have changed over the years, Kent still prides itself for all its interesting characters of dubious repute.
Jerry's Diner September 2008
Jerry's Diner 1975
Inside Jerry's Diner 1952


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Give the gift of combat fitnessPurchase Gift Card »
At Krav Maga Seattle™, our community is inclusive and supportive. We welcome members from all backgrounds and experiences. Krav Maga is not a competitive sport... more


text: Are you tired of spending the time and money to maintain your lawn but don't like the look of fake grass? Artificial Turf and Backyard Putting greens are an eco-friendly, low-cost and low-maintenance alternative to natural grass and foliage. Artificial turf not only remains beautifully lush all year-round, it saves in...Read more


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Vesta, Inc. has been issued a Three-Year CARF accreditation based on a recent survey.
This accreditation extends through November 30, 2019; and it applies to the following programs:
• Community Housing: Mental Health (Adults)
• Community Integration: Psychosocial Rehabilitation (Adults)
• Outpatient Treatment: Mental Health (Adults, Children and Adolescents)
• Supported Living: Mental Health (Adults)
This significant achievement is an indication of Vesta, Inc. organization's dedication and commitment to improving the quality of the lives of the persons served.
Providing Mental Health Services Since 1982
Vesta, Inc. © 2000 - 2019 Disclaimer Website by Seesaw-Designs Graphic Design by Lorna Turner


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Help Pages
...click on folder, ask a question or search the keywords...
Free Knowledge Base
free newsletter comming in May!!!!
This link will take you to my Travel
pages and my computer art
Most often you will see me helping others
If you have a computer / design question I would be glad to answer. e-mail
Please use the links on the left to visit my friends who put together a very helpful and fun site. make sure you log on to the Tropics main page, lots of interesting stuff is going on in our Hood! Be part of it and join our team! We do all kinds of fun things together.
Signing of my Guest Book takes place here
You can View my Guest Book from here
Anyway, you can always write me a message


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Without further chitchat, I'm starting with some of the ribbon winners. Best of Show was won by Christmas Celebrations, pieced by Debra Shepard of Wells ME and professionally quilted by Susan Foster. It was supposed to have been a tree skirt but she couldn't bear to cut out the center, so she calls it her first round quilt. It is 59" in diameter and it is a Judy Niemeyer design.
Another Judy Niemeyer design, Bali Wedding Star by Donna Crawford of Lewiston ME is 106" square. It took her 8 months to complete, is paper pieced and was professionally quilted by Alice Koroski. It won an Honorable Mention ribbon.
Mariner's Compass by Samantha Rugan of Casco ME is also a Judy Niemeyer design. It is paper pieced, professionally quilted by Alice Koroski, and sported a third place ribbon. Beautiful!
Always A Way by Dan Perkins, Rangeley ME, is an original design. Also a first place winner, it is machine pieced, and machine quilted by his wife Carol Perkins.
Luckily I got to see the back as well, which really shows off the quilting. I wonder how many hours this took?
First place winner in the wallhangings category, Eli, Cross Country by Sarah Ann Smith of Hope, ME was drawing lots of attention from viewers. It is an original design, and portrays her son Eli on a cross country trail at Camden Hills. Her machine quilting was so very well done.
That's all for now folks. I have to run. We're off to a friend's cottage for the day to escape the heat.....
To be continued.....
August is like the Sunday of summer.


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ACTION-437: Check with Opera that it is ok not to treat the root element as a BFC
Check with Opera that it is ok not to treat the root element as a BFC
- State:
- closed
- Person:
- Florian Rivoal
- Due on:
- February 15, 2012
- Created on:
- February 8, 2012
- Associated Product:
- Related emails:
- [CSSWG] Minutes and Resolutions Paris F2F 2012-02-08 Wed AM I: (from email@example.com on 2012-02-12)
Related notes:
I though we treated the root element as an abspos, but that was mistaken. We treat it as an ordinary block, so it does not establish a BFC.
The outermost BFC is established by a dummy element tied to the viewport, which acts as the parent of the root element.
Display change log.


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Hei ! Tervetuloa blogiini! Esittelen täällä lähinnä korttejani, neuleitani ja joskus jotain muutakin elämääni liittyvää !
Oh your card is so adorable and gorgeous too.
Absolutely beautiful!VastaaPoista
Ooh this is gorgeous! what a delightful image and I love the pretty paper and embellishments… it's a stunning card! :-)
Thanks for joining us at Divas by Design this week!
Hugs Sue B xx
Oh my... feels so christmas :)
Love the colours choise, dear.
Thanks for sharing this at Crafty Sentiments. Hope to see you again soon :)
Hugs, Mikha
Love your Christmas Fairy. Great colouring and great take on this week's Photo Inspiration Challenge at ATSM. Thanks for joining the fun. MonikaVastaaPoista
Kyllä on kaunis!VastaaPoista
your card is such a masterpiece!
thank you so much for playing along with us at ruby's rainbow challenges!
hugs and kisses from germany,
silvi xoxo
Wonderful card
Thanks for sharing with us at crafty sentiments
Hugs Kelly
Such a cute card. Thanks for joining us at http://7kidschallengeblog.blogspot.com/
A beautiful card. Thank you for playing along in our http://www.7kidscollegefund.com/ challenge.VastaaPoista
So pretty! Love the embossed ivy. Thanks for joining us at Ruby's Rainbow Challenges.VastaaPoista
This is stunning! Beautiful job! Thank you so much for playing along with us at Crafty Sentiments Designs this week! We hope you will play along with us again soon!VastaaPoista
Such a fabulous card! Love this adorable image and your coloring! Beautiful design! Thanks for sharing with us at 7 Kids College Fund Challenge!
What a gorgeous card and so full of joy! Thanks so much for joining us this week at ATSM.VastaaPoista


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Don't be shy – come to a QS Show&Tell meetup!
Say you've been reading this blog for a while. You've watched some self-tracking Show&Tell videos, read about some of the experiments people are doing, and now you're thinking of coming out to a physical meetup. Great, this post is for you!
Here is a schedule of upcoming Quantified Self Show&Tell meetups around the world, in chronological order – for newcomers and regulars too:
Boston's 3rd QS Show&Tell – August 10 at MIT Media Lab.
SF Bay Area's 15th QS Show&Tell – August 11 with Gordon Bell as a guest speaker. It looks like we will blow past our previous record of 100 people attending, so we're in the process of finding a larger location. The new location will be emailed to all members of the meetup group.
New York City's 8th QS Show&Tell – sometime in August. Sign up on the meetup group to stay informed.
September – Quantified Self Comes to Europe!
Amsterdam, Netherlands' 1st QS Show&Tell – September 20, location TBD.
London, UK's 1st QS Show&Tell – September 23 at GfK NOP.
Washington DC's 1st QS Show&Tell – November 8 or 9 as part of the mHealth Summit. More details to come in a future post.
Other groups getting underway are in Sydney, Seattle, San Diego, and Chicago, and here is some advice if you want to start your own group.
I hope you'll join us at one of these events, to share what you've learned from your self-tracking project or to meet other enthusiasts. We look forward to meeting you!


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Listen to or Download it directly HERE
More Information…
Owners: Bruce Ewert Family and Staff
Farm Type: Organic Winery
Address: 310 Slayter Road, Wolfville, NS
County: Kings
Directions to the Farm: From Hwy. 101 take Exit 9 or 11 and follow grape signs. From Exit 9, go around the rotary and follow the signs to Gaspereau (this will take you over Hwy. 101). Turn right and go 7.3 km along Gaspereau River Road. Turn left on Slayter Road. We are 0.5 km on the left. Visit website for a map – www.lacadievineyards.ca
Hours: 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Activities: The first and only organic winery in Nova Scotia! Visit our wineshop to learn about traditional methods champagne wine production from our staff while enjoying a complimentary tasting of organic wine. View our organic vineyard.


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South London's Silicon Valley
31/05/2018 20:35:00......Posted by Scott Roche
This evening I attended the 'South London's Silicon Valley' event, which was hosted by Sussex Innovation Centre, in No.1 Croydon tower:
As well as appreciating the wonderful views from the 11th floor, it was also an excellent opportunity to hear and engage with some of the local Tech businesses that have chosen to make Croydon their home.
As a life long Croydon resident, I am always going to be naturally proud of this wonderful borough. However, it was amazing to see the same level of passion expressed from the local entrepreneurs and businesses that attended this event, many passionate individuals want to help make Croydon 'the place' to be in London!
The increasing number of successful Tech businesses based in Croydon, is helping our borough to be known as "South London's Silicon Valley", long may it continue, and grow!
It was very exciting and interesting to hear from some of the successful start-up firms, also from some of the more established Tech brands based in the borough.
They all had the same vision and philosophy, to collectively help our local community thrive, and as a locally elected Croydon councillor, I want to be a part of that process, and help however I can!
Aladdin Pantomime - Ticket proceeds raised for Spring Park Neighbourhood Watch
09/01/2019 23:34:00.......Posted by Scott Roche
I have just come back from a very enjoyable evening watching an Aladdin Pantomime, at Wickham Hall, Sussex Road!
Dianna Fraser, who is the chair of the Spring Park Neighbourhood Watch, kindly invited me, together with Shirley North colleague Gareth Streeter, and Conservative Parliamentary Candidate for Croydon Central Mario Creatura, for a very fun evening of pantomime!
I never need an excuse to go and watch some panto, and the 'West Wickham Pantomime Society' did not disappoint! They brilliantly showcased some of the amazing local talent, am-dram at its finest! This organisation has been bringing pleasure and laughter to the local community through pantomime for over 70 years, I cannot wait to see what they have installed for us next year!
You still have a chance to go and watch them perform 'Aladdin', at Wickham Hall, but only until the 12th January 2019, you will need to hurry, tickets are selling fast…
You can book your seats at:
They support local charities with the ticket proceeds, which is an excellent way of raising funds for good causes, in addition giving some of the very talented local community an opportunity to shine in the spotlight, and all whilst you're having a fun evening!
Thanks to the kindness of the 'West Wickham Pantomime Society', half of this evenings ticket proceeds, went to support the brilliant work the team undertake at Spring Park Neighbourhood watch! Over 90 members of our amazing Shirley community came this evening to support Dianna Fraser, and all the hard work she and her team do within the Spring Park Neighbourhood Watch, all whilst having a lovely fun evening!
Once again, thank you Dianna for inviting me to attend this evening, and of course well done to the team at 'West Wickham Pantomime Society', for putting on such a good show!
See you next year!
Reclaim the Wilderness Project - MHA Wilderness, Shirley Church Road
02/01/2019 16:36:00.......Posted by Scott Roche
Today I was kindly invited by Alice Henry, Head Gardner for MHA Wilderness, to attend and view the site of the very exciting upcoming 'Reclaim the Wilderness' Project. The beautiful wilderness site is located behind the MHA Hall Grange Residential & Dementia Care Home on Shirley Church Road and was created by Rev Wilks on his retirement.
Through a Heritage Lottery funding grant, MHA have managed to secure 3 years of funding, to enable the group to transform one of our very important heritage green spaces within Shirley. As a National Trust and English Heritage member, I am naturally very excited about this project!
It was brilliant to learn about the ambitious plans for the site, this project will not only transform the lives of the Dementia care patients within the care home, but also give the residents of Shirley and beyond even more reasons to be proud of our wonderful borough, as this heritage wilderness site will be open to the public from Summer 2019!
This heritage site is steeped with history and is of course the location where the iconic 'Shirley Poppy' was created by Reverend William Wilks around 1880. For full details about the project please visit link:
Alternatively, you can also follow the team on Twitter: @MHA_Wilderness
If you're interested in reading further history associated with the Shirley Poppy, you might want to visit this link also:
Alice and the team will soon be looking for volunteers, to help transform this beautiful heritage wilderness site, with a tentative date opening to the public in July 2019! I for one will most definitely be putting my name forward to assist however I can, I hope you will be as well!
If you would like to be involved and help with this exciting project, please contact Alice Henry at MHA Wilderness directly:
Email: email@example.com
or call 07966 232359
Merry Christmas from the Shirley South Team!
19/12/2018 15:23:00.......Posted by Scott Roche
As Christmas is fast approaching, I wanted to take the opportuntiy to wish you all a very Happy Christmas and Prosperous New Year, from the Shirley South Team!
I hope you all enjoy the festive period, and take time to relax, and enjoy time with loved ones!
Changes to waste collections over Christmas holidays
17/12/2018 16:37:00.......Posted by Jason Cummings
Please see below the changes to waste collections over the Christmas holidays. These are what the council is saying will happen. I make no guarantee that this is what will actually happen!
Fingers crossed!
~~Changes to litter collections over festive period
Collections of household recycling and waste will be changing for three weeks over the Christmas period.Collections between Tuesday 25 December and Friday 11 January will take place either one or two days later than the usual collection days. Extra waste produced during the change will also be collected.This Christmas it is easier to recycle more than ever before thanks to a new recycling system introduced across the borough.You can recycle card and paper packaging but please remember shiny wrapping paper cannot be recycled.If you have a real Christmas tree you can have it collected for recycling alongside your usual waste collection from Monday 14 January, just remove any decorations and pots or plant holders and leave it by the kerbside.Councillor Stuart Collins, cabinet member for clean, green Croydon, said: "We want to make Croydon the greenest borough in London but we need your help to do it."New bins have already been introduced across the entire borough to help boost recycling rates to more than 50% over the next two years."Most households will produce more waste over the festive period so please remember to recycle as much as you can."If you need to double check your collection day or what you can recycle you can look online."Usual collection date followed by Revised collection dateMonday 24 December - UnchangedTuesday 25 December - Thursday 27 DecemberWednesday 26 December - Friday 28 DecemberThursday 27 December - Saturday 29 DecemberFriday 28 December - Monday 31 DecemberMonday 31 December - Wednesday 2 JanuaryTuesday 1 January - Thursday 3 JanuaryWednesday 2 January - Friday 4 JanuaryThursday 3 January - Saturday 5 JanuaryFriday 4 January - Monday 7 JanuaryMonday 7 January - Tuesday 8 JanuaryTuesday 8 January - Wednesday 9 JanuaryWednesday 9 January - Thursday 10 JanuaryThursday 10 January - Friday 11 JanuaryFriday 11 January - Saturday 12 January
Shirley South Ward Councillors Surgery - West Wickham Shirley Baptist Church
01/12/2018 10:08:00.......Posted by Scott Roche
The Shirley South ward Councillor team are here this morning to hear any concerns and offer our assistance, at the West Wickham Shirley Baptist Church, Wickham Rd, Croydon CR0 8EB, we will be here until 11:00 this morning.
If you need help with anything, but you're unable to attend this morning, please contact us directly by email:
Cllr Scott Roche - email@example.com
Cllr Jason Cummings - email@example.com
Our next ward surgery will be taking place on the 2nd February 2019, 10:00 at: West Wickham Shirley Baptist Church, Wickham Rd, Croydon CR0 8EB.
Residents Association SPD2 Engagement Meeting
13/11/2018 22:45:00.......Posted by Scott Roche
This evening I attended the Residents Association Engagement meeting, which was held by the Planning team in the council, regarding feedback on the SPD2 for Croydon. With such an important topic, it was no surprise that the meeting was attended by such huge numbers, the room was at near capacity, with extra chairs needed to accommodate everyone.
The general feeling within the room, was unfortunately the labour lead council was not listening to Resident association's real concerns. The council claimed to be in listening mode, but it was very clear from sitting in this meeting, this is most certainly not the case!
There was a Question and Answer session,
Q: Are the Residents of Croydon concerned with the proposed building/planning intensification within our community?
A: Yes they most certainly are!
The Shirley South ward Councillor Team will be keeping a very close eye on the planning applications being proposed within our community. Shirley has been earmarked as one of the intensification zones within the borough, but rest assured we will stand up for the residents of Shirley throughout.
If you have any questions please do contact us directly:
Remembrance Sunday Service - 100 Years since end of WW1
11/11/2018 15:24:00.......Posted by Scott Roche
This morning I attended the very moving service held at Croydon Minster, together with council colleagues, ex services personnel, and various community organisations.
It was a very beautiful, and humbling service, with a procession taking place outside the Croydon Town hall after the minister service had finished, marking 100 years since the end of World War One.
We are forever in their debt, they will never be forgotten!
Friends of Millers Pond Committee Meeting
06/11/2018 22:14:00.......Posted by Scott Roche
I was invited to attend the 'Friends of Millers Pond' committee meeting this evening.
This is another example of passionate residents standing up for their community, giving up their free time to help protect some of the very precious green and wildlife spaces we have within Shirley.
The team were planning the priorities for the next cleaning morning session, taking place on Saturday 24th November 2018 at 10:00, hopefully I will see some of you there! They hold regular cleaning sessions, usually on the last Saturday of each month.
If you wish to assist the team, or join the Friends of Millers Pond committee, please do let me know, and I will forward you the full list of scheduled dates which are in the diary for 2019, or the details of how to join the committee.
Shirley South Ward Councillors Surgery - Shrublands Advice and Coffee Shop
03/11/2018 10:16:00.......Posted by Scott Roche
The Shirley South ward Councillor team are here this morning to hear any concerns and offer our assistance, at the Shrublands Advice and Coffee Shop, 7 Broom Road, CR0 8NG, we will be here until 11:00 this morning.
Cllr Scott Roche - firstname.lastname@example.com
Cllr Jason Cummings - firstname.lastname@example.com
Our next ward surgery will be taking place on the 1st December 2018, 10:00 at: West Wickham Shirley Baptist Church, Wickham Rd, Croydon CR0 8EB.
Shrublands Walkabout
30/10/2018 16:50:00.......Posted by Jason Cummings
Just finished a walkabout around the Shrublands estate with Cllr Alison Butler, Cabinet Member for Homes and Gateway Services and Beverley Warner, Chair of Shrublands Residents Association.
We looked at flooding issues across the estate, particularly where they relate to the new build sites on Shrublands Avenue. Also a number of places where the sewerage system is backing up and overflowing. I will monitor developments in this area and hopefully we will see some improvements.
We also looked at some issues being experienced by residents with damp in their flats and this has been reported to maintenance to sort out.
Several fly tips have been reported and these are due to be collected.
A number of other maintenance issues were spotted and reported so overall a very worthwhile walk around.
Please do get in touch with any other problems.
See older blog posts


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Main Contents & Search
A Native of Winby
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Information about the Byfleet Poor-house.
Robert Weidknecht of Holliston, Massachusetts believes that the Byfleet Poor-house in "The Flight of Betsey Lane," is modeled after the South Berwick Poor Farm. The farm and remaining buildings are now owned by his sister.
Below is a photograph taken in 1978.
Following the photograph are details about the current site supplied by Mr. Weidknecht.
This view is from Knights Pond Road looking North; the Pond is over the hill behind the house.
Selections from notes supplied by Mr. Weidknecht.
I don't know how big the farm was initially; it is intact since my sister purchased it in about 1976. It fronts on Knights Pond Road, rises up a hill and then slopes down to Knight's Pond. The trees have grown up since I lived there in the 1980's, so you don't get the clear view of the pond that Jewett describes. Practically all woods in New England were cleared in the 1800's. The open views are now being closed in by successional forest. The railroad is gone, but the railbed is still intact. My sister owns the property going down to the railbed and a small piece on the other side.
[Norma Keim and Wendy Pirsig of the Old Berwick Historical Society add that the nearest train station would have been the Agamenticus Station which is was a rural stop northeast of the village of South Berwick on Agamenticus Road.]
Shed Chamber - I believe that the shed chamber may have gone out the back of the house toward the north. It was gone before my sister bought the house but I have seen evidence of a filled-in foundation toward the north.
Dandelions - There are still plenty.
Winding Sandy Road - now called Knights Pond Road ...only sandy in the winter.
Barn - The barn was gone before my sister bought the house. It may have been on the rise where her vegetable garden is now. Years ago I found old locks and barn items while turning over the soil.
Foot of the stair that led up from the shed - There remains an enclosed stair on the back of the house (north side). It is very steep and rickety. If it is the former stair from the shed, the elderly must have been rugged. I always avoided using those stairs.
Long table in the kitchen - When my sister bought the house there were two kitchens, upstairs and downstairs.
Young Maples and Walnut Trees - I don't remember any walnut trees. They are long gone. My sister has one of the largest maple trees in the area though.
Great nut tree on the boundary - Long gone.
Woods about the fields and their (deciduous) leaves - Most of the woods to the north toward the pond are mature pines now.
Stairs creaking - They still creak.
Station about two miles away - I don't know where the station is or whether it still exists.
Low shore and the fresh mown grass - The shore around the pond is almost entirely wooded now. Another owner has a field up to the pond.
Dark Pine woods - They are still there and very mature.
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A Native of Winby


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Valentine's Day is coming soon!
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#1 Son!
He goes to an Indian or 'Native American' casino and wins $1,500! He sits down the first time in his life at a slot machine, and he wins!
Like me, he was expecting Sitting Bull to be behind one of the tables, maybe Geronimo making change.
I've decided I'm Native American.
I was born here. The "Native Americans" were born here. Their ancestors came from somewhere else, like maybe China. Mine came from Italy. TLW's (The Little Woman's) came from Ireland.
I understand the U.S. Government sets up programs to help Native Americans. Where do I get in line?
I can attest to the fact that I AM a Native American. My Mother used to yell at me all the time. "STOP RUNNING AROUND LIKE AN INDIAN."
Mom, didn't use a tomahawk to discipline me, she used a wooden spoon. That worked out pretty well, it kept me line for the moment and I got to taste what she was cooking that day! Of course, it would have helped if I didn't say: "Needs salt!"
Well, the old reservation needs me.
Keep my pals Joan and Anita in your thoughts and prayers.


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VU to investigate deep brain stimulation for depression
Vanderbilt University Medical Center is one of approximately 20 centers in a nationwide clinical study investigating the use of deep brain stimulation (DBS) as an intervention for patients with major depression.
BROADEN (BROdmann Area 25 DEep brain Neuromodulation) is the first randomized clinical research study to investigate DBS as an intervention for patients diagnosed with unipolar major depressive disorder (excluding bipolar disorder) who have not improved after multiple treatments.
DBS is a therapy that uses mild pulses of current to regulate specific areas of the brain, much like a pacemaker uses pulses of current to regulate the heart.
In this study, stimulation is being delivered to an area of the brain known as Brodmann Area 25, which is believed to function differently in people with major depression and appears to be overactive when people are profoundly sad and depressed.
Vanderbilt was chosen to participate in this study, which builds on the work of a research team from the University of Toronto led by Helen Mayberg and Andres Lozano, because of its extensive experience with various forms of neuromodulation and in treating psychiatric illness.
Patients enrolling in the study must be willing to transfer psychiatric care to Ronald Salomon, M.D., associate professor of Psychiatry and the principal investigator for the study at Vanderbilt, during the course of the 14-month study.
Once the study has been completed, patients will have the option to either participate in a long-term follow-up study, return to the care of their referring psychiatrist while maintaining DBS programming-related care with a BROADEN study center, or have the DBS system removed.
Participants must be between 21 and 70 years old, with the onset of the first episode before age 45, and currently be diagnosed with major depressive disorder.


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Jaxon stayed with my mom for the night we were gone (we had a one night anniversary vacation). He did great with her.
We stayed at La Costa Resort for our two year anniversary all thanks to my childhood friend, Anta. She got us into the spa area for free with free drinks! She was such a huge part to making this special for us.
We did start missing Jax by the second day. Nothing we couldn't handle but I think if it was a lot longer then I would have wanted to go home to him. One night was perfect. We got our much needed sleep and got to relax but when alls said and done, I love coming back to that smiling face. He was SO exited to see me. He kept getting all gidy when I was holding him and he would come in close like he was giving me a hug. Man I love this kid.


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Roses And Carnations For All! 2-16-17 Podcast
Connie found an adorable story today about a high school senior who purchased a rose for every girl in the entire school on Valentine's Day. This got us to thinking about when we were in school and the "Carnation Day" where students could purchase carnations for other students. Steve remembers buying a bunch of girls carnations and not receiving any in return. Poor Steve... Also on the show, Curtis gives us an One Direction update, Connie accidently impersonates Chewbacca, and we talk tax returns. All of that, Curtis' Whatever, and much more on today's show!