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Division II committees are attempting to establish a safer approach to student-athlete strength and conditioning activities, and members are finding the solution is far from clear-cut.
After considerable discussion and feedback, the Division II Legislation Committee decided to recommend sponsorship of a proposal for the 2015 Convention that would require national certification for any individual designated by a member institution as the school's strength and conditioning coach. The Management Council will consider the recommendation during its July 21-22 meeting in Indianapolis, as will the Presidents Council at its August meeting.
The recommendation continues a discussion that began in 2012, when the Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports recommended as part of a broader sport safety package that all three divisions establish a rule requiring national certification for strength and conditioning coaches.
Division II delegates passed two proposals in the safety package, but the Division II Presidents Council referred one of the proposals back to CSMAS last summer because the language of the proposal was too broad and would require anyone who was overseeing and conducting strength and conditioning workouts to be certified – not just coaches with a strength and conditioning title. That concern prompted the current recommendation to require certification only of designated strength and conditioning coaches.
CSMAS restated at its June meeting its position that anyone overseeing strength and conditioning workouts should be certified, while at the same time acknowledging it could burden Division II schools, which often operate with smaller staffs. The Legislation Committee believes the current recommendation is a first step toward addressing the standard CSMAS advocates. The division will continue to monitor the rule and work with CSMAS on changes, if needed.
The certification is estimated to cost between $400 and $600, with a small annual fee for continuing education.
Unlimited Meals and Snacks
After Division I passed legislation in the spring permitting unlimited meals and snacks for student-athletes in conjunction with their athletics participation, the question arose – over and over – whether the change applied for Division II. The answer was always "no."
The Legislation Committee hopes that will soon change.
Committee members agreed student-athletes should have access to meals and snacks in conjunction with practice and competition and predicted athletics department budgets would prevent schools from providing anything exorbitant. In addition, the committee noted that loosening the rules would ease the burden on the division's compliance offices, which are typically small.
The group recommended that the Management Council and Presidents Council consider sponsoring a 2015 convention proposal that mirrors the Division I legislation. The councils will discuss the topic at their upcoming meetings.
Publicity Surrounding Student-Athlete Signings
The Legislation Committee also recommended a proposal that would loosen certain regulations limiting the way institutions can publicize signings of student-athletes. Schools are currently not allowed to host a press conference, reception, dinner or other celebratory event to announce prospective student-athletes who have signed a written commitment with the institution. The current legislation has confused some members, which becomes clear each year around the National Letter of Intent signing periods.
As a result, the committee expressed the need for deregulation that would permit schools to host public events after a prospective student-athlete has signed. Committee members agreed that the division could benefit from the extra publicity. And, according to Student-Athlete Advisory Committee representative Spencer Dodd, so would the student-athletes. "Any opportunity to tell the public that you signed your NLI is a good thing," said Dodd, a former member of the Saint Martin's baseball team.
Some members of the committee expressed concerns regarding a piece of the recommendation that would allow a signed prospective student-athlete to attend the celebratory event to announce signings. Dodd will solicit feedback from the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee before the issue heads to the Management Council and Presidents Council for consideration.


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subset: commoncrawl


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by Janet Gilmore
There I was on Saturday, Dec. 7, in a Chestnut Hill House Tour house close to our own. It was enormous, beautiful and decorated to the point where there was no room to set anything down on any horizontal surface. Even the birdbath was filled with Christmas balls. The owner was home when I arrived but quickly left to have lunch with friends as lots of strangers put on blue paper booties over their shoes. They tracked into her house, ready to ooh and aah and get some ideas for beautifying their own houses. My job: stand in a corner in the dining room and make sure no one stole or damaged anything.
"Suppose someone takes something?" I asked the woman in charge. "What do I do?"
"I don't really know," she said.
I decided, though, not to tangle with someone stuffing silverware or Christmas ornaments into his/her pocket in a huge house with lots of people streaming through.
Whoever organized this particular house did something brilliant: Fred Ortega and Chip Roman of Tradestone Confections (soon coming to Chestnut Hill) were in the kitchen cooking homemade chocolates and selling packages of same! Truffles, nut bark, caramels. The house smelled like candy, and they were giving out free samples! The large kitchen was filled with samplers. My post was just outside the kitchen. Everyone who filed by me had a mouthful of chocolate and was smiling.
I was told that not only was there warm fresh chocolate for giveaway but that the kitchen floor was radiant-heated. I admit that I left my post several times to check out the rumor for myself. I couldn't tell about the floor because I had been standing for almost two hours and couldn't really feel my feet any more except for the sore toes.
A woman came into the dining room, looked around, saw me and confided, "Oh, no; that's no good!"
"Look at that! That breakfront is much too small for this room. You'd think they could afford a bigger breakfront!" And then, in a version of a Rolling Stones song, she told me, "You can have anything you want in life, but it helps to have money."
"Have you tried some of the chocolate samples in the kitchen?" I asked her.
She did a 180-degree turn on her paper booties and headed for the kitchen. I hope she found happiness there.
The word "cute" came up 54 times on my shift. The pink and brown dining room was decorated with a mushroom, moss, pine cone owl and butterfly motif. Folks admired the little burlap reindeers on their bed of moss, but they LOVED the chandelier, which was decorated with — you guessed it — some kind of hanging greens, pine cone owls and butterflies. And glass teardrops.
"Look at that! That is SO cute! Can I take pictures?" a woman asked me.
"It's okay with me," I said. I'm easy.
"THEY ARE NOT ALLOWED TO TAKE PICTURES!" a nearby man asserted forcefully. I think his rank-of-the day was House Captain, but his day job could easily have been an assistant principal or Marine drill instructor. He had the right attitude.
"You can't believe how fast people are, especially with those Smart phones. They just whip 'em out of their pockets and click! They take pictures!"
"Why aren't people allowed to take pictures?" I asked. After all, folks were there to look around someone else's home and get ideas and buy stuff to put in their own homes. That's why I was there, too.
"Why can't people take pictures? Because it says so on the instruction sheet! Didn't you read it?"
Of course I hadn't.
This gig wasn't as much fun as I thought it would be. And, as my husband, Hugh, says in art museums, beauty hurts the feet.
My two hours were almost up. I limped back into the kitchen for one last mouthful of chocolate, then left, too tired to take off my booties.
When I got home, Hugh looked at me, looked at the booties and said, "Too tired to take them off?"
I nodded yes.
He removed them for me and said, "Come here, I know what you need."
We've been married for a long time. We don't always need words to communicate.
He got a blanket from the closet and waved it at me like a matador.
"Am I right?" he asked.
I nodded again and lay down on the sofa. Hugh put the blanket over me, and that was all she wrote until much later in the afternoon.


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Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze Trailer: The Adventure Launches
The launch trailer for Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze has arrived and it's looking pretty epic.
The Snomads have run amok and it's up to DK and the crew to retake their home and drive out the frost-happy fiends. Thankfully, DK has the whole family in tow and even Cranky Kong has stepped up to the plate for the first time.
This trailer gives us just a brief peek at all of the crazy platforming we'll see in Tropical Freeze and even a few of the boss fights. It's no exaggeration when we say that this Donkey Kong adventure looks to be one of the most epic ones yet. What's even better than watching all of the crazy gameplay footage in the trailer is hearing that amazing background music. The Donkey Kong games have always had great backgrounds tracks (looking at you, "Stickerbrush Symphony"), but this song in the trailer makes everything that much more intense.
You can catch DK and the gang when Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze hits stores on Feb. 21 for the Wii U.


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Well, as like so much else in life, I peaked early and fell over half way. Ah well...
Challenger was made with the following:
Bass - Yamaha CS-15
All Brass - Roland Juno-60
Strings - Ensoniq Mirage
Arpeg in middle section - Oberheim Matrix 6R
Drums - LinnDrum
I also used a gated 'verb on the Alesis Microverb IV for the kick, snare and toms, and accidentally put the arpeg through as well but didn't notice till I was realingning everything for another piece afterwards... the reverb on the Juno brass was Lexicon MPX1.
Glad a few of you liked it; I know it wasn't entirely cop-ish, but I was thinking along the lines of mid-80s vehicle/technology-based crimefighter, and wanted to tell a story in the music - general character-introduction at first, shots of the regulars - then an action sequence cut to show sopme bad guys getting down to business - then the last part has the good guys dragging the bad guys into jail accompanied by cheesy smiles and back-slapping.
And yes, if only I'd called it "Donald P Bellesario's Challenger", it would have made so much more sense...
Congrats to the winners though - and to those who didn't win, because there's some fun stuff here.


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Advanced Scientific Computing Research (ASCR)
The evolution of the ASCR program will enable the U.S. to take advantage of the changes in computer hardware technology and deliver computers and networks that are a thousand-fold more energy efficient than today, drive unprecedented improvements in the scientific understanding of areas critical to the future of the Country, and secure a competitiveness advantage in high-tech and information technology industries.
Because computer-based simulation is so important to research programs across SC and the Nation, in addition to its core research program, ASCR invests in partnerships to advance use of high end computing in a wide array of disciplines important to DOE and operates the Leadership Computing Facilities as open user facilities with access determined by merit evaluation of proposals. The next generation of ASCR partnerships will drive unprecedented scientific advances for SC and the Nation. Some examples of applications that rely on both ASCR facilities and research efforts and have important benefits to science and society at large include:
In addition to these benefits, establishing SC Leadership Computing Facilities has required partnerships with hardware vendors to develop the most appropriate architectures for scientific discovery and the software necessary to effectively use these powerful systems. These industrial partnerships benefit many sectors of the economy from high-tech industry and academic research to software development and engineering. Finally, ASCR's support of researchers and students (the next generation of researchers) is a benefit to the national research and development workforce.
Finally, through ASCR allocation mechanisms, including INCITE and the ASCR Leadership Computing Challenge (ALCC), industry researchers have used the leadership computing resources to conduct both proof of concept and validation simulations to advance fundamental understanding in their research and development efforts. These users have praised government support for such cutting edge resources and state that their results have helped them gain a competitive advantage by demonstrating the benefits of high performance computing to their companies. Industry applications are held to the same peer review and readiness criteria as academic and national laboratory applications and have come from Boeing, Corning, DreamWorks Animation, Fluent/ANSYS, inc., Ford, Gene Networks Systems, GE Global Research, General Atomics, General Motors Research and Development Center, IBM Research, Pratt and Whitney, Procter & Gamble and Smart Truck/BMI.
The Office of Science (SC) is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States.


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|alcohol liver damage
Mar 28, 2008
Do you ever do a liver biopsy on people with suspected liver damage? Thank you so much for your time!
Response from Dr. McGovern
Yes - to determine the amount of scarring.
test for hiv hcv and other std
Hepatitis B
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text:
Inflation really isn't rearing its ugly head — at least not yet — despite another alarming report on wholesale prices.
The producer price index surged in April for the second-straight month, the government reported Wednesday. And the level of wholesale inflation over the past 12 months jumped to the highest point in two years, the index showed.
That is, if you believe the government's new-fangled method of calculating the PPI. Virtually no economist does.
"It's ridiculous," said Joshua Shapiro, chief economist at MFR Inc. "The Labor Department is doing everyone a disservice by releasing distorted, unreliable monthly seasonally adjusted data."
The PPI was overhauled in January for the first time since 1978, largely to include services such as retail, health care and financial advice. Previously the index only looked at the price of goods — food, energy, housing and the like.
The makeover did make sense. After all, the economy has changed dramatically over the past few decades and the price of services absorbs a much bigger chunk of household income than it used to.
Yet the fresh-look PPI has also been extremely up and down in the first four months of its existence and economists aren't sure what to make of it. A big reason is the inclusion of so-called trade margins.
The trade margin is a relatively simple concept: It's the difference in price between what a wholesaler or retailer pays for something, say a pair of jeans, and what it sells the very same product for.
These prices may smooth out over time, but in the short term they can be extremely jumpy. Consider the last five months. Trade margins have been down 1%, up 0.4%, down 1%, up 1.4% and up 1.4%. The spikes in March and April explain why the PPI itself has surged.
Just as bad, the government has virtually no history of trade margins since it only began collecting the data a few years ago. So its process for making seasonal adjustments probably involves a fair amount of guesswork.
As a result, it's darn near impossible to figure out how accurate the new PPI is in predicting actual trends in wholesale inflation.
For now it's probably best that investors ignore the PPI and focus on the more relevant consumer price index. The CPI is a more comprehensive report that offers a much better idea of what Americans actually pay for goods and services. Over the past year the CPI has risen a mild 1.5%.
And that's just as well. Changes in producer prices appear to have very little influence on the direction of consumer inflation. "Most empirical research indicates fairly limited pass through from producer prices to consumer prices," said Neil Dutta, head of economics at Renaissance Macro Research.
– Jeffry Bartash
Follow Jeffry on Twitter @jbartash.
Follow Capitol Report on Twitter @capitolreport.
More must-reads from MarketWatch:
10-year Treasury yield sinks to six-month low
Bear market won't come until the yield curve says so: Kleintop


text:
Restores iodine and sulfur to the skin, needed by the bodyto make healthy skin cells and collagen, which are necessary for skin injury repair. Read More
This product is currently unavailable for purchase.
Featured Advice from Our Experts
Itching and Scratching and Flakes, Oh My!
Anyone who has ever shared their life with a pet with skin issues knows the frustration of, not only fixing the problem, but trying to figure out just what is actually causing the "itchy" skin. Allergies are a very common cause. Our pets can be allergic to everything from foods to fleas to their environment. A common misconception among owners of "itchy" dogs is that more bathing will help... READ MORE
ISP Wonder Ointment restores iodine and sulfur to the skin, needed by the body to make healthy skin cells and collagen, which are necessary for skin injury repair. The essential peppermint oil, organic cocoa butter and pharmaceutical grade white petrolatum nourishes, hydrates and protects the skin. Use for damaged tissue, cuts, scrapes, sores, bites and abscesses. People can use it for lip care, dry itchy skin, cracked fingers & feet, acne boils and chaffed areas.
See actual photos of our own Equine Specialist, Kim Cahill's horse, Gus, after a serious accident. You can see the progress and read her testimonial regarding ISP Ointment.
ISP Wonder Ointment is FDA-regulated, safe and effective.View manufacturer and/or label information
Reviews (13)
"Isp ointment "
Fabulous! Awesome! Never want to b w/o it 4 myself & animals!
"ISP Ointment "
I started using this many many yrs ago after talking to man that made it at Quarter Horse Congress for a filly that scrapped top layer of skin off leg unable to see & just would crust over & break open. After 48hr use of this I thought someone switched horses on me! Her leg was better & so was the cracked skin on my hands! I was panicked when my LG stash ran out & I couldn't reach the maker anymore. I was ecstatic to find this again.
I was panic stricken when I called to reorder Garvins great product,I had 1 left,franiclly found it thank you Jeffers,Back to basics,natural.pet professional
"face laceration"
"This is a ""must have"" product for all horse owners in the barn and in the first aid box for the trailer! Having worked for a number of years as a large animal tech and a farrier I am skeptical about new products and tend to be traditional in my treatments having been in the horse business for over twenty years. I had seen Jeffers reviews on this product and decided to use it on a facial laceration as it was close to the eye; a three inch gash through several layers directly beneath the eye and behind the bone....a truly nasty cut that would have warranted stitches if not in such a tricky spot and if too much time had not elapsed before i found it. I decided to try wonder ointment two times a day after first lightly spraying the wound with hydrogen peroxide. In just two weeks the wound is almost completely healed with NO proud flesh and will only leave a small scar ......I am certainly surprised and excited to find such a natural, all around product! Absolutely awesome....thanks! "
"ISP ointment is awesome "
I have used ISP oint for many yes. I had a hard time finding it again. I was treating what I had left like gold. I was so happy to see Jeffers must have bought Garvinsisp out. I used it on animals & humans. It is AWESOME! I've given some to others & it made them believers also!
"Good Stuff"
I have Eczema. Some Very bad patches. Itchy ,Red- flaky- sore. This is a great Ointment !!! Calms the itch and smooths the skin. Some of my patches are gone . It's the best relief I have found !! I apply it daily and massage it in to my very patchy sore areas and it REALLY Helps !!
"Fast Healing Ointment!"
I looked this product over for several months before purchasing it. I have ten horses, all pastured, and they are constantly getting little nicks and cuts, along with the occasional more serious injury. ISP a is little pricey compared to my usual brand, so I wasn't sure if it was worth the extra money. Well it is! I immediately noticed a faster rate of healing and it also helps prevent infection, making ISP the better bargain. Not to mention, ISP is safe for horses as well as their owners. I am ordering my second jar and will continue to purchase this product.
"Best All Purpose Balm Ever!"
I have a very rambunctious, playful, accident prone gelding who can find the one stick in the pasture and manage to sling it in the air and injure himself on it! He's also very sensitive to rain rot / muck itch. Because of this, I've tried just about everything to try to heal his constant scrapes and scabs as quickly as possible. After reading the great reviews of ISP, I decided to try it. I'm so impressed that this is the VERY FIRST review I've ever taken the time to write on a horse product! This stuff is amazing!! Because it's thick, it keeps the wounds soft so that scabs don't form and they can heal more quickly. And, because it contains both iodine and sulfur, it works for both bacterial and fungal infections! And unlike all of the other products I've used, it even smells good!! Finally, just using it to apply to scrapes, etc. to my guys, it has made my hands incredibly soft--even after all the mucking, washing, etc. that usually keeps my hands very, very dry. I LOVE this stuff and will be purchasing some to use at home and for my dad who has super, cracking hands. Well done!!
"Happy user!"
I bought a jar of ISP a few days ago. I am in love with it and I haven't even used it on the animals yet. It works great on itchy rashes. My husband also works with tile. After installing some glass blocks yesterday I had him try ISP before he went to bed. This morning he said his hands felt great. I will recommend this product to all of my friends.
"Great for horse and rider"
This ointment helped heal stitches and a bad tear in the rear leg of my Quarter horse. I also use it myself for small skin abrasions and they heal overnight. Great product.
"Good stuff"
This product is terrific. I used this before it was approved for humans. I used this on my surgical scar. It minimized it a great deal.
"best all-around"
"best all-around product for wounds, skin & hoof problems"
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text:
Shipping and Fulfillment 101
Your shipping strategy is an integral part of your overall business profitability and brand. This guide will show you step-by-step how to get your products from you to your customers in a way that creates a great experience for them and maintains a profitable business for you.Start reading
9 chapters
1. Introduction1 min
Shipping strategy and packaging can help foster repeat business and even help acquire new customers through powerful word-of-mouth marketing.
2. Shipping Fundamentals2 min
It's important to understand how your business is going to be shipping packages to customers, whether it's from your home or a 3rd party warehouse.
3. Charging Customers6 min
When presented correctly, shipping fees charged to customers can act as a marketing tool to entice visitors to finish their purchase.
4. Packaging19 min
Packaging options range from basic to branded, small to massive. The unboxing experience your customer goes through is a vital part of the brand experience too.
5. Shipping Your Package10 min
How to ship a package with USPS, FedEx, UPS or other shipping suppliers. Understand everything from shipping insurance to customs to duties.
6. Scaling Your Shipping Strategy2 min
As your business grows, your shipping operations will too. Learn more about fulfillment warehouses and other 3rd party shipping suppliers.
7. Conclusion1 min
The many variables involved in shipping a product from point A to point B means every businesses shipping strategy will be unique.
8. BONUS: Shipping Resource Roundup4 min
From fancy packaging to shipping forms, get information on packaging merchants need to know. All the resources you need on how to ship a package.
9. About the Author1 min
Follow Richard Lazazzera on Twitter
Join 446,005 entrepreneurs who already have a head start.
Get free online marketing tips and resources delivered directly to your inbox.


text:
Georgia Southwestern men's golfer Craig Gibson was named to the NCAA Division II PING All-Region Southeast Team on Thursday afternoon by the Golf Coaches Association of America. He becomes the first student-athlete in GSW history to receive an NCAA All-Region award.
Gibson was a 2010 Peach Belt All-Conference first team selection and South/Southeast Super Regional qualifier.
The All-Region distinction caps a tremendous sophomore campaign for Gibson. He was the individual medalist at the 21-team, 105 player, Aflac/Cougar Invitational in the fall behind a second round 65 – the Peach Belt's second-lowest round of the year. Following the victory, he was named the PBC Golfer of the Week on October 9, 2009, becoming only the second GSW golfer to receive the weekly award.
He followed his win with a third place finish at the 17-team Queens Invitational held October 12-13.
The Brooks, Alberta, Canada native recorded three top-five finishes in nine tournaments and finished no worse than 25th in the 2009-10 regular season.
Overall, Gibson finished the year with the sixth-lowest scoring average in the Peach Belt at 73.2.
Of the 23 rounds played in 2009-10, he finished under par eight times.
Gibson and the Hurricanes made school history in March when they received votes for the first time in the NCAA Division II Golf World/Nike coaches' poll.
A total of 105 players across eight regions - East, Atlantic, Southeast, South, Midwest, South Central, Central and West - earned PING All-Region honors for 2010.
Division II PING All-Region Team
Francisco Bide, Georgia College
Chris Bray, Flagler
Brad Caldwell, North Greenville
Craig Gibson, Georgia Southwestern
Charlie Hoyle, Lander
Niclas Johansson, Georgia College
Eric Kennedy, Lincoln Memorial
Ben Lasso, Queens
Davis Lee, Lander
Jacob Murphy, Coker
Tom Muto Jr., Barton
Roberto Nasalli Roca, Lander
Billy Shida, Georgia College
Daniel Stanley, Newberry
Stephen Swanepoel, Columbus State
Peter Tarver Jones, Belmont Abbey
Jordan Walor, UNC-Pembroke
Joe Young, Georgia College


text:
Revival Revival services will be held May 3, 4 and 5, at
Independent Bible Church, Stoneybreak Road, Warfordsburg. Speaker will be Pastor William Swope. Music will be held May 4 and 5 by the Old Fashion Gospel Singers.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, located in Penn's Village Shopping Center, will hold a family home evening Monday, April 30, at 6 p.m. More information may be obtained by calling 485-1119.
Contemporary worship services at St. Paul's United Church of Christ will be held Sunday, May 6, at 11 a.m. It will be an informal service with love modern music and children's message. Nursery provided. The church is located at 228 N. Second Street in McConnellsburg. Call 717- 485-5554 or visit www.uccmccbg.weekly.com for more information.
Come celebrate the blessing of young people May 6, at 9 a.m., April 29, at Dublin Mills Community Church. Explore the diverse contrast between "The Wise Man" and "The Fool's Man" utilizing drama, singing, ventriloquism, a musical saw and Bible teaching. Each young person will be recognized with a gift and a picnic on the grounds. More information may be obtained by calling 814-685-3910.
Treasured Trials Ministries with Kerby and Kelli Campbell will hold services at 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. at Dublin Mills Community Church. Are the storms in your life weighing you down? Brother Campbell suffers from a physical condition that causes severe pain daily with no medical care. Utilizing personal experience, he wants to help you give God honor through your trials and realize they are treasures from God. More information may be obtained by calling 814- 685-3910.
A Christian crisis counseling/prayer phone line is now available. Caring and compassionate Christian volunteers are available from 7:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. daily to listen, pray with you and help to find solutions for the challenges you are facing. Help is just a phone call away. Call 717- 325-4200.
A free old-fashioned card party will be held at McConnellsburg Alumni Building Saturday, April 28, starting at 6 p.m. Please bring a covered dish to be enjoyed by all. A variety of card games will be played. Contact 485-0221 or 377-3643 for more information.
Hustontown Fire Co. will sponsor an open stage Saturday, April 28, at 6 p.m. Kitchen will open at 5 p.m. Admission is free.
Backcountry Bad Boys team presents Night Of The Opry with Chris Woodward and Shindiggin along with Zack Miller May 12 at the American Legion, Mc- Connellsburg. Doors open at 6 p.m. Cash bar starts at 6:30 p.m and concert starts at 7 p.m. Small games of chances and dancing. All ticket sales go to Relay For Life. Price is $10 per person or $15 at the door. More information may be obtained by calling Bonnie at 717-485-5529.
A poker run will be held Saturday, May 12. Registration starts at 11 a.m. and ride begins at noon. Preregister by April 28 - single rider is $15; couple is $25; after April 28 - single rider is $20; and couple is $30. Departs McConnellsburg High School parking lot at noon stopping at Lake View Bar and Grill, Hot Point Inn, Mountain House and ending at Legion picnic grounds. All proceeds support Sarah Hollinshead's educational trip overseas. More information may be obtained by calling 717-485-3951 or firstname.lastname@example.com.
Knobsville United Methodist Church, Waterfall Road, will hold an indoor game day Sunday, May 20, from 3:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. Everyone is invited to bring their favorite board game or card game and participate in this day of fun and fellowship. Hot dogs, pizza and beverages will be served. Contact Nova Boyer at 485-3539 for more information.
Pony League is open for anyone who is 13-14 years of age as of April 30, 2012. Traveling team, but all home games are played at McConnellsburg Lions Club Park. Planning on tournament participation throughout the season. Pick up a registration form and waiver at middle/high school office and return by March 23 to Steve "Gup" Truax or Garry Miller. Cost is $30 at time of registration. Fee includes shirt and hat. Checks payable to Fulton County Pony Baseball. More information may be obtained by calling Steve at 717-404-0054 or Garry at 717-552-1222.
Fulton County Line Dance Club will hold line dance sessions every Wednesday (except the first Wednesday of the month) beginning at 7 p.m. at VFW Post 655, Poplar Street, McConnellsburg. All are welcome. Come and learn some new steps. A $2 donation is appreciated.
The private piano students of Cathy Richards will perform in a piano recital at the United Methodist Church in McConnellsburg Friday, April 27. The recital is at 7 p.m. and all are welcome to attend.
McConnellsburg Elementary School will present its elementary spring concert Wednesday, May 9. The concert begins at 7 p.m .and will be held in the high school auditorium. The concert will showcase the fourth- and fifthgrade band students as well as the fifth grade chorus. The groups are under the direction of Cathy Richards and Amy Conner. The concert is free to attend, however, donations are greatly appreciated.
Love's Clost turns one. Everyone is invited to an anniversary celebration with games, prizes, food and more Saturday, April 28, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 117 West Market Street, in the alley behind McConnellsburg UMC. Clothing, shoes, household items, cleaning supplies, oiletries, toys and more absolutely free. Ribbon cutting will be held at 9 a.m.
McConnellsburg Senior Center activities for the month of May are as follows: nickel bingo, 9:30 a.m. - May 2, 4, 7, 9, 14, 16, 18, 21, 23 and 24; Altoona Logan Valley Mall and lunch at Hoss's, 8 a.m. - May 3; blood pressure screening, 11 a.m. - May 3; couch potato exercises, 11 a.m. - May 3, 17, 24 and 31; yard sale - May 10 and 11; nutrition class for seniors, 10 a.m. - May 15; Belleville Trip, 7 a.m. - May 16; Bedford shopping, 8 a.m. - May 24; dime bingo, 9:30 a.m. - May 30. Closed May 28.
Teen night will be held at Fulton County Library Friday, April 27, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Free and all teens are welcome. Wii, board games, craft, movies, books and music available. Enter through community room door.
The fifth annual Fulton County Chamber of Commerce & Tourism spring fever golf tournament will be held Friday, April 27, at Great Cove Golf Club. Shotgun start at 1 p.m. Entry deadline is April 20. For more information, contact 717-485-4064.
Fulton County Parks and Recreation will sponsor a family friendly hike Sunday, May 20, at 2 p.m. Meet at the Oregon Camp parking area, Rt. 30 west to Rt. 915 north to Oregon Road. DCNR's Shawn Lynn will guide the approximately two-mile, two-hour hike over relatively flat terrain. The hike will feature the history of the CCC Camp, old turnpike tunnel, railroad bed and arch. Water provided. Questions or for more information, call 485-6767, Ext. 205, or 717-377-5882.
Great Cove Golf Course & Recreation Club will offer American Red Cross swimming lessons. The following sessions will be offered during the 2012 summer season: session #1 – June 18-29; session #2 – July 9-20th; session #3 – July 30 – Aug. 10. To register call Kathy J. Kendall at 485- 0221 or 377-3643.
Fulton County Library Teen Advisory Board and Fulton County Conservation District will be doing a cleanup of Cove Creek on Sunday, May 20, from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Meet at Clevenger's Beverage Connection in Mc- Connellsburg.
May 1 at 3 p.m. is the deadline to apply for the John and Merle Keefer Scholarship and the Preceptor Gamma Pi Scholarship. If planning on further education in business, teaching or the arts, don't pass up these scholarships. Turn in as soon as possible.
A rabies clinic will be held at Butterfly Gardens on Cito Road, Saturday, May 19, from noon to 2 p.m. Cost is $10 per dog or cat, sponsored by Friends of Better Days Animal League, Fulton County. Please call 717-987-3774 to preregister by May 9.
Anyone wanting to become a pesticide applicator, private or commercial, there will be an exam given on May 16, at 8:30 a.m., in McConnellsburg High School FFA room. This exam will be monitored by the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture. If you have any questions, feel free to contact the Penn State Extension Office in McConnellsburg, 717-485-4111, and ask for Greg. Registration deadline is May 9.
McConnellsburg Senior Center, 100 Woodside Drive (off Cito Road), will hold a yard sale inside the building May 10 ad 11, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Donations are being accepted prior to May 10 between the hours of 8 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. Monday thru Friday.
Forbes Road Class of 2014 is having a flamingo flocking fundraiser from April 13 to May 13. The students will pick yards to be "flocked." This means that they will put a flock of flamingos in someone's yard. Then those people will pay $15 to remove the flock. You also have the option to flock someone else's yard for $10. If you don't want to be flocked at all, there is a fee for $20 pre-insurance that needs to be turned in to the school or a classmate by April 11. More information may be obtained by calling 717- 552-3517.
Pleasant Grove Christian Church, will hold its seventh annuals spring auction May 26, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Lawn mower races will be held at 5 p.m. and yard sale begins at 9 a.m. Bring the whole family for a fun-filled day.
Due to limited staffing, Fulton County FSA office, located in McConnellsburg, will be closed on the following dates: May 4; May 18; June 1; June 15; June 29. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact the Fulton County office at 717-485-3231, Ext. 2; the Franklin County Office at 717-264- 8074, Ext. 2; or Don Delp, district director, at 717-645-6065.
Video tapes of the 1936, 1950, 1961 and 1986 celebrations and parades have been transferred to DVDs as a fundraiser for the jail renovation by the Fulton County Historical Society. The two-disc set has nearly 3-1/2 hours of viewing time of these historical treasures. They can be obtained locally at the treasurer's office and the library for $20 or by mail add $2.50 for postage. Send to PO Box 115, Mc- Connellsburg, PA 17233.
Spring fling will be held at McConnellsburg United Methodist Church April 28, from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m., starting with a potato and salad bar, followed by a town auction at 6 p.m. outside the church. All are welcome to attend and enjoy the fellowship.
Fairview United Methodist Church will hold a chicken barbecue Saturday, May 19, beginning at 4 p.m. The church is located four miles north of Hustontown on North Hess Road. Dinners will include half a barbecue chicken, baked beans, applesauce, dinner roll, cake, coffee, iced team, punch or lemonade. Eat in or takeouts. All are welcome.
Three Springs Historical Society will have its annual dinner Saturday, May 5, at Three Springs Firehall at 6 p.m. Dr. Jonathan Burns will be the speaker. He will present the latest finding of the Penn State Archeological Field Study at Fort Shirley in Shirleysburg. Reservations can be made by calling 814-448-3890 or 814-448- 3764. Cost is $10 donation.
St. Paul Lutheran Church at 220 North Third Street, McConnellsburg, will serve a free meal the second Tuesday of each month from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Come and enjoy good food and fellowship.
Community Wellness/Silver Sneakers/Prime will be held Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, from 6 a.m. to 7 a.m. and 1 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. and Wednesday and Friday, 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., at Fulton County Medical Center cardiopulmonary rehab gym. The cost is based on insurance. Call Kim or Patti at 717-485-6149 to see if insurance provider is accepted. Community Wellness is $40/month/person or $70/month/couple.
Reaching Wellness yoga classes will be held for all ages every Wednesday, 4:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m., at Community State Bank. Call for cost and to register at 717-485- 4492.
Reaching Wellness Zumba fitness class will be held for all ages every Friday, from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. at Mc- Connellsburg Alumni & Friends building. More information may be obtained by calling 717-253-7599 or at firstname.lastname@example.com.
Fulton County nutrition awareness classes are held at Warfordsburg Senior Center on the third Monday of every month. When the third Monday is a holiday, it is held the fourth Monday from 10:00 a.m. to noon. To register or sign up for lunch call 717-294-6020.
The McConnellsburg Chapter of Alcoholics Anonymous will meet on Wednesdays at 7 p.m. every week at the alumni building basement, McConnellsburg.
Free blood pressure screenings will be given at the following locations: McConnellsburg Senior Center the first Thursday of every month from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.; Hann's Apartments the second Monday of every month from 11 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.; Warfordsburg Senior Center the third Wednesday of every month from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.; and Hustontown Senior Center the third Thursday of every month from 11:15 a.m. to 11:45 a.m.
Fulton County Nutrition Awareness Program and SADD present the Magic of Nutrition Wednesday, May 2, in McConnellsburg High School auditorium at 7 p.m. Doors open at 6 p.m. Admission is free. Monetary donations or donations of canned goods will be accepted to benefit the Fulton County Food Basket. The Magic of Nutrition teaches the importance of good nutrition and staying active using magic and illusion to create an educational and unforgettable learning experience.
Reaching Wellness Zumba classes will be held for all ages Tuesdays at 6:30 p.m., at Celebrations Unlimited. Call for cost and register at 814-259-3667.
A basket bingo will be held Saturday, April 28, at Breezewood Firehall to benefit Breezewood Lighthouse Assembly of God Church mission team travelling to Zimbabwe, Africa, to work at the Montgomery Heights Children's Orphanage. Doors open at 3 p.m. and games start at 5 p.m. The cost is 420 for 24 games. All baskets will be filled. There will be raffles, King Tut and door prizes. There will also be homemade food for sale. Tickets can be purchased by caling 814-735-4550 or will be available at the door.
A basket bingo will be held to benefit Bi- Valley girls goftball fields Sunday, April 29, at the alumni building. Cost is $20. Pre-purchase ticket for extra specials card. Doors open at noon and games begin at 1:30 p.m. Lunch, snacks and drinks available for purchase. Contact 717-372-5922 or 717-372-6549 for tickets or information.
Pure Roman bingo with Chelsea Pittman will be held Saturday, May 12, at Needmore Fire Co. social hall. Doors and kitchen open at 5 p.m. Games start at 6 p.m. $25 covers 20 regular games and four specials. Reserve seats early by contacting 240-520-2062 and get extra pack of specials. Proceeds benefit NVFC EMS. Must be 18 or older to attend.
Great Cove Golf Course & Recreational Club will hold a pool benefit basket bingo Saturday, May 5, at McConnellsburg American Legion. Advance ticket purchase receives a bonus pack. Doors open at 11 a.m. and games start at 1 p.m.
Fulton County Society of Farm Women will meet May 5, at the Save-A-Lot at 8:30 a.m. The program will be breakfast and tour greenhouse in Spring Run.
Boy Scouts of America Troop 43 meets every Friday night from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m., at the VFW, 518 Lincoln Way East, McConnellsburg. It is open to all boys 11-18 years of age. Monetary donations and help will be accepted. More information may be obtained by contacting Scoutmaster Martin Seylar at 717-485-4093.
The annual business meeting of the directors and lot holders of Union Cemetery Co. will be held Tuesday, May 8, at 6:30 p.m., at the Union Cemetery church. Anyone who is still one of the few lot holders who pays "annual lot care" payments of $5 per lot are now due. Please consider having perpetual care on the lot.
American Legion Post 561 active members regular meeting is the first Tuesday of every month at 7 p.m. Auxiliary members meet the second Wednesday of each month at 7 p.m. Members of both organizations are urged to attend.
Pennsylvania Association of Retired StateEmployees(PARSE)hasa9a.m.breakfastmeetingon the second Wednesday of every month at McConnellsburg FOVA (VFW). If roads are snow-covered, meeting will be cancelled. All retired state employees and spouses are invited to attend. For additional information, call 717-294-3861.
The Fulton County Democratic Club meets the second Tuesday of each month at 7 p.m. in the Democratic Headquarters building at 123 South Second Street in McConnellsburg. Meetings are open to the public, light refreshments are provided and all are welcome. More information may be obtained by calling 485 3386.
McConnellsburg High School Class of 1992 will hold its 20-year class reunion. Any classmates interested in participating or helping to plan, please e- mail firstname.lastname@example.com or call Julie Elvey Dovey at 717-485- 5923.


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Anna Nicole Smith's ex Larry Birkhead gave their 6-year-old daughter permission to model like her mom because it's the only connection she has to the tragic star.
Dannielynn recently shot a series of ads for the kids collection of Guess, the same clothing firm that launched the busty blonde's career 20 years ago, and images from the campaign were released this week.
The pictures led gossips to worry the child will end up like her troubled mother if she follows in the same career path, but now Birkhead has assured fans Dannielynn, who was just five months old when Anne Nicole died of an accidental overdose in 2007, is just trying to forge a posthumous relationship with the parent she never got to know.
He tells "Good Morning America," "Dannielynn has always looked up to her mom's image and said that her mom's an angel, and I think this is kind of Dannielynn's way of paying tribute to her mom in her own special way. To see her mom's picture next to hers as a Guess girl and say, 'Hey, I was a Guess kids girl and my mom was a Guess girl' – that might be her only connection with her mom."
And her dad insists the modeling stint was just a one-time gig: "My goal for her is to be a child and just do what all kids do."


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Amazon: $2.15 (Reg. $19.45) Magnetic Wristband for holding screws!
Disclosure: Affiliate links may be used at no extra cost to you. I may receive a commission if you purchase via the link. Qpanion is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Thank You for the support.


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|Send News. Want a reply? Read this. More in the FAQ. News Forum - All Forums - Mobile - PDA - RSS Headlines Twitter
Is the Half-Life 2 EULA illegal? on the Inquirer (thanks Ant) describes possible legal issues surrounding the End-User License Agreement for Half-Life 2 and the Steam service. Here are a couple of hefty excerpts:
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The Glee star "had an open-faced quality that revealed ... whatever emotion he was feeling at the moment," PEOPLE critic Tom Gliatto says
Cory Monteith arrived in our homes in 2009 in a happy burst of music, color and youth called Glee.
The news of his death in a Vancouver hotel room comes with the shock of someone dying at only age 31 (he seemed more like 22) – and also with the realization that he takes with him that music, color and youth.
Monteith was Finn Hudson, tall, handsome in a clean, square way. He looked like an old-fashioned teenage dreamboat dropped down in a school so up-to-the-minute in its heterogeneous mix he might have seemed out of place – like Ronald Reagan turning up in his brown suit to audition for the annual musical (Rent, say).
PHOTOS: Cory Monteith's Hollywood Life
But Monteith had an open-faced quality that revealed, or betrayed, whatever emotion he was feeling (or singing) at the moment. He had an earnestness, an awkwardness, a sincerity that gave him a certain rawness – and an enduring sweetness.
The other performers on Glee tend to have the shiny, expert confidence that we want (and need) of a show that expects its characters to burst into song. Monteith never had quite that same edge: His definition was softer. He moved through the corridors of McKinley High at a slightly different lope, and that all lingers in the mind.
At least that s how Monteith strikes me now – perhaps I d already begun to adjust my ideas about him after he entered rehab earlier this year for substance abuse. These shadows filter into your perceptions, especially your perceptions of an actor still so early in his career – and associated with a show as bright as Glee.
Miss him already.
Fans of Monteith's may make donations in his name to three charities that were especially important to him: Project Limelight Society, which exposes youth living in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside to the arts; Virgin Unite, founded to support entrepreneurial efforts to better the world; and Chrysalis, which helps homeless and low-income individuals find employment.
PHOTOS: Cory & Lea: Their Love Story
RELATED: Lea Michele: This Is a 'Devastating Time'
RELATED: A shocked Hollywood reacts to Cory Monteith's death
EARLIER: Cory Monteith, 31, Found Dead in Hotel Room
FLASHBACK: Watch His Glee Audition Tape
Cory Monteith's 11 Best Glee Performances


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Heavy duty connections were originally developed to be used on reclaimed cable. The heavy duty connections use a larger size connection cavity in the mold and a larger size welding material than the equivalent standard duty connection.
The larger size welding material supplies extra BTU's to melt the heavy oxide coating on the conductor and to overcome some severe field conditions. Heavy duty connections eliminate cutting the run conductor on certain types of connections, reduce cable cleaning requirements for old or reclaimed cable, and increase reliability under adverse field conditions.
Heavy duty connections are increasingly being specified for copper-coated steel conductor connections.
nVent, nVent CADDY, nVent ERICO, nVent ERIFLEX, and nVent LENTON are owned by nVent or its global affiliates. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. nVent reserves the right to change specifications without prior notice.
nVent products shall be installed and used only as indicated in nVent's product instruction sheets and training materials. Instruction sheets are available at www.erico.com and from your nVent customer service representative. Improper installation, misuse, misapplication or other failure to completely follow nVent's instructions and warnings may cause product malfunction, property damage, serious bodily injury and death and/or void your warranty.


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I don't set goals lightly. Yet to show up in Austin with the goal of simply making it to the finish without damaging myself is of no interest to me. If I go, it's to qualify for Boston. If I can't do that, I don't go.
I can't be disappointed with my running experience this year. I went from nothing to having some really solid races. I haven't reached my goal of a 40-minute 10km, but maybe I can still do that now that I've given up on the marathon goal. It all comes down to how I feel, how quickly I get my health back.
The Laos trip was interesting, for sure, but it's taken a big cost. Of course, I couldn't anticipate the unprecedented problem with sickness. I've felt healthy and non-jet lagged maybe three days in the last four weeks. Traveling is inherently risky on health, but by any standard I had bad luck here. I had a bad feeling when we showed up on the tour and one of the members was barely able to walk from his cold. It's not fair to hold it against the guy, but emotionally it's hard not to. And then when I let my guard down in Vientiane and drank two street smoothies with ice, from different vendors just to maximize my risk exposure, that turned out to be another nail in the coffin.
So it's regroup, retarget, rebuild. Sigh.


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It's Friday night and that means it's party time in #whitenoise!
Actually, it's always party time in #whitenoise. There are a bunch of great folks in there constantly and they're bound to keep you laughing, so don't be afraid to stop in and say hello.
Oh, and if you're still confused about how all these tag pages work there's a neat guide here and a more general introduction to commenting here.


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It takes a long time to get to Dutch Harbor, Alaska, unless maybe you start in Akutan or Cold Bay, and even then, you never really know. The weather can be foggy or rainy, windy or snowy, or your flight might be sidetracked for some non-weather-related reason. You might be able to catch a ride on a freighter or a fishing boat, and if you've brought your seasickness pills that might be all right.
I started my trip in New York City and flew from there to Seattle a day before my flight to Alaska. The folks at the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute planned it that way: If we caught the 6:10 a.m. flight from Seattle to Anchorage, they reasoned, the chances of us making it to Dutch Harbor on the same day were pretty good.
A direct flight from Anchorage to "Dutch," as the locals call it (others call it "Oh, you mean that place where Deadliest Catch is filmed!"), is about three hours. Ours was supposed to be direct, but someone needed to get several hundred pounds of salmon to a community called, appropriately enough, King Salmon. So we went there first, minus some of our luggage, which was bumped to make room for the fish. That was followed by a delay in Cold Bay, which from what I could tell was nothing but a snow-covered runway next to what might have been a warehouse (Wikipedia tells me it has a population of 108).
Apparently, the overcast weather made the likelihood of a quick and successful landing on the Dutch Harbor runway, which is sandwiched between a mountain and the frigid Bering Sea, questionable, so our captain determined that refuelling in Cold Bay was in order.
That was fine with me.
His skidding during takeoff from Cold Bay was not fine with me — I'm not afraid of flying in airplanes, but I do not like skidding in them — but he didn't ask. It was a small skid, and everyone on the plane accepted it with neither squeal nor scream, but subsequent conversationsn with my fellow passengers indicated that everyone noticed it.
Because you notice when your plane skids.
Landing in Dutch Harbor about six hours after leaving Anchorage and about 40 hours after leaving New York, I wondered why I thought this visit would be a good idea.
But I did it for you, reader, so that I could tell you about Alaska's most prolific seafood product.
It's not the salmon everyone loves so much, or the king crab whose captors have been made famous by Deadliest Catch.
It's pollock. Here's a picture of a lot of pollock being loaded onto conveyor belts at the Trident processing plant — the largest of its kind in North America — on the nearby island of Akutan.
Pollock is the working horse of Alaska's fishing industry: 1.8 billion pounds of the fish are pulled out of the state's waters annually — mostly from the Bering Sea, which is the large body of water between the Aleutian Islands and the Bering Strait, and connected bodies of water such as the Yukon-Kuskokwim delta.
At the beginning of each of the three legs of our flight between Anchorage and Dutch Harbor, our flight attendant gave us the safety demonstration that federal law apparently requires before any flight, regardless of whether the same passengers have already seen the demonstration twice in the past couple of hours. Her explanations of what to do during a water landing bemused me, because if your body splashes into the Bering Sea in February, you freeze to death in a few minutes. That light on your life vest isn't going to help much.
Except for Akutan, Dutch Harbor is probably the remotest place I've ever been, and I've been to Iceland. I've been to the Moluccas. I've been to Toraja, an inland part of the Indonesian island of Sulawesi where, although the people are austensibly Chrisitan, the most important aspect of their religion is that they slaughter as many water buffalo as possible at their loved ones' funerals.
Nonetheless, Dutch Harbor's the largest seafood port, in terms of volume, in North America (Akutan's No. 2), and for that reason, it hosts captains of industry. Japanese seafood magnates are frequent visitors — they should be, since they own much of the production facilities and buy a lot of what's produced there (so does McDonald's, which recently started promoting the fact that its Filet-O-Fish is made from Alaska Pollock, but that has been the case for years — more about that later).
Because of Dutch Harbor's wealthy, powerful and esteemed visitors, so it was explained to me, it has the sort of delicious food that has come to be expected at international ports of call.
That certainly was true at The Grand Aleutian, where we stayed. It had a hell of a wine list, too. Our first night there I picked a nice little French red wine from Cahors and a Spanish Albariño for us to drink with the food at the moderate-sized but high-quality buffet stocked with different preparations of Alaska halibut, cod, salmon and crab. There was prime rib and salad, too, if you were into that sort of thing. It was all made with an attention to detail and focus on freshness that I don't expect at a hotel buffet.
I like a place where food and wine are a priority, but Internet connectivity is not.
When we checked in we asked if they had in-room wifi.
"Sort of," the receptionist said, in the homey but worldly way that I've found many Alaskans have, as he handed us instructions for in-room connectivity.
The slow loading time in my room gave me a perfect excuse to check out Cape Cheerful, the aptly named bar in the Grand Aleutian, where I drank delicious IPA and chatted with the bartender, who was originally from Queens, and a traveling telecommunications equipment repairman who was in Dutch Harbor to repair telecommunications equipment.
They explained the challenge of getting to Akutan.
There used to be regular flights via goose, a type of eight-seat ambhibious airplane. But that was discontinued in favor of a hovercraft that took passengers to a landing strip and a larger airplane. The problem was that the weather had to be appropriate both for air and sea travel for that scheme to work, and that didn't happen very often.
Why, you might be wondering, are these facilities located on inaccessible rocks in the middle of the North Pacific?
Because that's where the fish are.
Alaska pollock is the United States' largest fishery in terms of sheer tonnage pulled out of the water, and it's the largest one in the world to be certified as sustainable by the Marine Stewardship Council.
Alaska takes sustainability seriously. Its state constitution requires that its fisheries be maintained according to the "sustained yield principal." In fact, I'm told a major reason why Alaska sought statehood in the 1950s (it got it in 1959) was because its people didn't like the way the federal government was exploiting their natural resources.
Perhaps a result, in part, of this philosophy, is the widespread presence of bald eagles, pictured here lounging on a fishing vessel's nets at Akutan.
Alaska's fisheries earn more than $1 billion each year, which is more than $1,300 for every one of Alaska's 700,000 some-odd people.
Of course, a lot of it doesn't go to Alaskans. Although the fishing fleet is now all American (it was mostly foreign in the 1970s and '80s), Japanese companies and American firms from other states own the processing facilties.
But it's still a lot of money, and the industry is the state's largest private employer.
The annual pollock catch was valued at $363 million in 2010, making it the second most valuable fishery, after salmon, whose five species brought in about $600 million that year.
The most valueable part of the pollock is its roe. I'm told that when they can be harvested in their sacks, with both lobes intact, the Japanese consider them to be excellent and prestigious gifts to give to people, who use it as a condiment.
We visited a Unisea facility in Dutch Harbor during our first day there, and the next day we got up early to catch a 6am freighter to Akutan.
We boarded the ship via basket, illustrated here, which with the possible exception of helicopter is now my favorite way to travel.
I took that picture after our four-hour trip, obviously; it's still dark in Alaska at 6am in February, especially in the Aleutians, which once had their own time zone, an hour ealier than Anchorage.
I'm told the trip was possibly the smoothest on record, which I believe although I slept through most of it — a result of the 5am wakeup call, the motion of the ocean, the anti-seasickness pills and the fact that I was wearing the down jacket I'd bought for the trip that made me feel like I was wrapped in a sleeping bag.
And then, after being outfitted in rain gear to avoid being drenched in fish splatter, and with headphones with speakers so we could hear our tour guides over the factory's din (we already had been outfitted in Xtratuf boots), we visited the factory, which could process up to 3.5 million pounds of pollock a day.
Here's a short video of to give you an idea of what that's like.
The plant is run by 1,200 employees, who come to Akutan from all over the world to work. That's pretty much all there is to do on Akutan, so they work shifts of at least 12 hours, starting at minimum wage plus overtime, room and board. Since there's nothing to do but work, you can save a lot of money there, which is why people do it.
Not that Akutan completely lacks charm. It's pretty in a bleak sort of way.
Here's what the harbor looks like.
And the Trident plant is a safe place to work: It currently has an accident record of 1.9 "incidents" per year. That can mean anything from a nicked finger to a complete tragedy. With 1,200 employees and so many moving parts, that seems remarkable to me.
Most of the pollock that comes into either Akutan or Dutch Harbor is processed into fillets, which are then layered in rectangles and frozen in large blocks. That's what McDonald's uses. Specifically, it uses a deep-skin fillet block, which is to say all of the skin is removed, leaving the sort of very light-colored very consistent block that you would expect in a Filet-O-Fish.
So it's whole fillets that are frozen into blocks and then cut into Filet-O-Fish shaped rectangles, breaded and fried.
About 36 percent of the pollock is further processed into surimi, which you might know better as "sea legs," or, and boy does the pollock industry regret this, "immitation crab."
Surimi is pollock that's washed and puréed and washed and puréed over and over again until it's a gleeming white slurry. It's then mixed with starches and other binders, phosphates and other things (although it's still mostly pollock), and then extruded into long thin strips. It looks sort of like fish paper at that point. Then it's rolled and colored and cut into whatever shapes Trident or Unisea's customers want. It's what you're very likely to eat in a California roll. In Europe it's sliced into deli meat, and in Japan it's practically everywhere, and with good reason. It's an inexpensive source of lean protein — 100 grams of it has 15 grams of protein and about double the amount of heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids you need in a day.
You won't find it in school lunches, though. That's because of the immitation crab thing.
They way the pollock people explain in it, surimi was first introduced to the United States at a time when crab prices were extraordinarily high, so its marketers decided it would make for an acceptable crab substitute, which of course it does not. I mean, I like surimi; I ate a fair amount of it as a kid. But it's not crab.
But it's also not fake. It's real pollock (mostly, with the starches and so on that I just mentioned).
But as far as the U.S. Department of Agricultue is concerned, it's not protein. It's "other."
Such are the vicissitudes of food and government.
After our tour, we were fed lunch in the sumptuous office penthouse — fried halibut, steamed snow crab, tempura vegetables and so on — and then waited while our keepers determined how to get us back to Dutch Harbor.
With such beautiful weather, the hovercraft-to-airstrip-to-airplane-to-Dutch-Harbor option seemed to be the way to go, but the fog came in before the hovercraft did, so instead we hitched a ride on a fishing vessel named The Dominator.
This is The Dominator.
It was manned by very friendly fisherman, who set up a DVD for us to watch and made caramel corn, and told us not to be embarrassed if we threw up, because that happened sometimes (it didn't this time).
I mostly napped again, although we all spoke briefly with The Dominator's observor.
Every pollock fishing vessel has an observor to monitor bycatch and in general make sure everything is done according to regulations.
Then I took this picture of the fishermen untangling their nets, and took another nap.
We returned to the Grand Aleutian, and I ordered a Rioja and a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc for dinner, enjoying the fact that wine-ordering duties had been given to me for the trip.
There's more to say — our education about the crab fishery, the mostly uneventful return to Anchorage, the remarkable restaurant at the Dutch Harbor airport that had everything from pork banh mi to meat loaf to sushi — but this blog entry's alredy unreadably long, and I have other stories to write.
February 25: This blog entry has been updated to correct several typographical errors.


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The Bonhams Camera department holds a dedicated camera auction once a year in Hong Kong as well as offering cameras twice a year in London as part of the Science & Technology Auctions.
We offer predominately Leica cameras in Hong Kong while in London we include the whole range of prestigious makers such as Nikon, Rollei, Contax and Hasselblad and specific types such as detective and disguised cameras, tropical, SLR and sub miniature examples.
We also occasionally include a section devoted to associated optical pre-cinema apparatus including magic lanterns and slides, optical toys such as zoetropes and praxinoscopes and posters and literature relating to cameras.


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Selected other credits
Television work
- Charmed
- Chuck
- Homeland
- In the Heat of the Night
- Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman
- Out of Time (TV movie)
- Pacific Blue
- The Bold and the Beautiful
- Iron Man 3 (2013)
- Iron Man (2008)
- Crash (2004)
- Stigmata (1999)
- Out to Sea (1997)
- Broken Arrow (1996)
- Bad Boys (1995)
- Hot Shots! Part Deux (1993)
Biographical information
Personal life
Toub, who is of Persian Jewish background, was born in Tehran, Iran, and raised in Manchester, England; his family left Iran before the 1979 revolution. At the age of fourteen, he moved to Switzerland and after a two year stay, he crossed the Atlantic to Nashua, New Hampshire, to finish his last year of high school. His high school yearbook notes: "The Funniest guy in school and the most likely to succeed in the entertainment world." After two years of college in Massachusetts, Toub transferred to University of Southern California.
Toub is active in the Iranian Jewish community. Through various charity events and public speaking engagements, he inspires the community to embrace the arts. He has been a recipient of the Sephard award at the Los Angeles Sephardic Film Festival. Toub currently resides in Los Angeles.
Toub broke into the Hollywood scene through a chance encounter with an astute talent agent. He has received accolades for several of his appearances in over one hundred television episodes including Seinfeld, The Sopranos, ER, Just Shoot Me, Sliders, Nash Bridges, JAG, The Bold and the Beautiful, Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, Married... with Children, Lost, and various movies made for television.
His filmography includes his memorable performance in Michael Bay's Bad Boys with Will Smith and Martin Lawrence, John Woo's Broken Arrow with John Travolta and Christian Slater, Mick Jackson's Live from Baghdad, and Path to Paradise. His performance as Farhad in Paul Haggis' Oscar-winning film Crash, a critical and surprise box office hit, received positive reviews. He also played the role of Rahim Khan in The Kite Runner and appeared in the Marvel Comics adaptation Iron Man as Yinsen.
|This page uses Creative Commons Licensed content from Wikipedia (view authors).


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Welcome to the official U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) website, where international travelers can apply for Trusted Traveler Programs. These programs allow for expedited processing into the United States. To be a Trusted Traveler you must be pre-approved and determined to be low risk.
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Depending on where you are in the application process, the following options may be available. You will need to have a Login.gov account before you can complete your transaction. If you don't have one, you will be directed to Login.gov to create an account first.
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T-Mobile's Legere Sputters Over FTC's Cramming Accusations
Jul 2, 2014 2:40 PM PT
T-Mobile's efforts to market itself as the un-carrier that puts customers first may be impacted by the United States Federal Trade Commission's allegations that it has engaged in "cramming" -- charging consumers for services offered by third-party companies without the consumers' knowledge or authorization.
"We're asking the court for an order both to provide refunds to consumers and to also prevent T-Mobile from engaging in any kind of cramming in the future," FTC spokesperson Jay Mayfield told the E-Commerce Times.
T-Mobile's fiery CEO, John Legere, dismissed the FTC complaint as "unfounded and without merit," pointing out that the company stopped the practice last year and is offering full refunds to customers who were charged for something they did not want.
Verizon in 2012 settled a class-action lawsuit over cramming and refunded victims 100 percent of the charges. AT&T, Sprint T-Mobile also agreed to stop passing on cramming charges.
"Turning over a new leaf still leaves T-Mobile liable for previous overcharges," T. Barton Carter, professor of communication and law at Boston University, told the E-Commerce Times.
The FTC's Claims Against the Big T
The FTC's complaint, filed in U.S. district court in the Western District of Washington, alleges that until at least December 2013, T-Mobile had charged many consumers US$10 monthly for subscriptions to services offered by third-party merchants including ringtones, wallpaper, and text messages providing horoscopes, flirting tips and celebrity gossip.
The charges continued after customers complained, and industry auditor alerts, legal actions and news articles indicated the third-party merchants were not getting valid authorization from victims for the charges, the FTC asserted.
T-Mobile made "hundreds of millions of dollars" by retaining 35-40 percent of the revenue from those unauthorized subscriptions, the FTC said.
The company's ads and its sales reps do not discuss purported third-party services with consumers, and its contracts bury information about such services in lengthy terms and conditions, the FTC said.
The FTC called T-Mobile's billing practices for these charges into question and alleged, in essence, that the company mishandled requests for refunds in various ways.
"I echo the words of FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez, who states it's wrong for a company like T-Mobile to profit from scams against its customers when there were clear warning signs the charges it was imposing were fraudulent," Mark Weinstein, founder and CEO of Sgrouples.com, told the E-Commerce Times.
The Once and (Maybe) Future Un-Carrier?
T-Mobile's image "will definitely be negatively impacted" by the charges, Kathryn Winsted, an associate professor of marketing at Pace University, told the E-Commerce Times.
The "sensational and accusatory language" in Legere's response will make it seem T-Mobile is "more concerned with who should be blamed" than with the impact on its customers, Winsted pointed out.
It's possible that the FTC charges will jumpstart settlement negotiations, and "there is a good chance this never gets to trial," Boston U's Carter pointed out.
Picking on the Weak?
"If cramming is really as widespread as the FTC has alleged, why did [it] single out for punishment a smaller vendor that has already voluntarily taken corrective action?" asked Charles King, principal analyst at Pund-IT.
T-Mobile is leading the way in efforts to address restitution for cramming, insisted Legere, who called on the industry to follow suit.
Still, "as with speeding on the highway, the one caught cannot avoid scrutiny because others are not caught," technology and IP attorney Raymond Van Dyke told the E-Commerce Times.
On the other hand, "I've been with T-Mobile since at least 2002 and have never seen any unexplained charges, Jennifer Jacobson, founder of Jacobson Communication, told the E-Commerce Times.
The FTC has filed suits over cramming "roughly quarterly over the past two years," and this "seems oddly fragmented for a practice the agency claims is so widespread," King told the E-Commerce Times. "If T-Mobile can successfully paint these actions as an exercise in self-serving PR, it could put the FTC on the defensive."
The FTC's Mayfield declined comment when asked if the agency was pursuing other carriers.


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For nine years, subscribers to Amazon Prime service have been able to get almost everything they order delivered in two days for free by paying an annual fee of $79. And as a bonus, those subscribers also get access to Amazon\'s Prime Instant video service and its library of 150,00o movies and TV episodes.
Nine years is a long time for anything to remain the same price. Costs go up, for example, and Amazon is no stranger to costs, due to its heavy reliance on building huge distribution centers and having to pay for fuel and other items in order to ensure timely delivery of its products. Those rising costs are the main reason why Amazon Chief Financial Officer Tom Szkutak said on the company\'s fourth-quarter earnings call that Amazon was likely to soon raise its Prime subscription fee by $20 to$40 a year.
Talk of a Prime price increase immediately led to questions of whether customers would drop the service. And those concerns were one of the main reasons why UBS analyst Eric Sheridan on Wednesday cut his rating on Amazon\'s stock to neutral from buy, and lowered his price target on the stock to $375 a share from $450.
Sheridan said he was \"negatively surprised\" by the results of a survey of Amazon customers that UBS ran with Consumer Intelligence Research Partners [CIRP] from Feb. 4-7. The key finding Sheridan said was that as the price increase went higher, the percentage of respondents likely to keep Amazon Prime dropped.
Sheridan said that at Prime\'s current $79 annual rate, 94% of subscribers said they \"definitely will renew\" or \"probably will renew\" their memberships. However, with a price increase of $20 a year, just 58% said they were likely to renew, and that number dropped to 24% if an increase of $40 were to be implemented.
\"$99 appears to be the limit,\" Sheridan said of the price most Prime customers are willing to pay. \"We see little ability based on our survey work for Amazon to raise Prime fees above $99 annually in the medium term.\"
Sheridan added that Amazon needs to tread lightly with whatever price increase it chooses, and go out of its way to sell customers on the idea that they will get more out of their higher subscription fees while also realizing such moves could hit it earnings for a while.
\"Such a fee increase might need to be accompanied by either a higher level of value in the service offering and/or an increased level of marketing around the perceived value of Prime to the general public,\" Sheridan said. \"[And] either or both of these trends would have a negative impact on operating margins.\"
Amazon shares fell almost 3.5% Wednesday, to $349.25.
–Rex Crum
Follow Rex Crum @mktwcrum
Follow the Tell @thetellblog
More Tech news from MarketWatch:
Will Cisco spook Wall Street again?
Rackspace\'s CEO shuffle is like an old Who song


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"Incredibles 2" has a "triumphantly feminist message," according to Holly Hunter.
Everyone's favorite superhero family is back in action, 14 years after Disney Pixar first introduced the Parr clan to moviegoers.
Hunter, Craig T. Nelson and Samuel L. Jackson are among the voice actors reprising their roles for the second installment of writer/director Brad Bird's franchise, which Hunter says boasts a girl power message.
"To see a very powerful woman kicking a** on screen and still retaining her femaleness? People are finding that so thrilling and so fulfilling," Hunter, who voices matriarch Helen Parr/Elastigirl, told British newspaper Metro. "She's not pretending to be a man. She is a woman. I don't know if it was part of Brad Bird's mission to make this a triumphantly feminist message movie but I kind of do feel that's a byproduct."
Joining the second movie are "Better Call Saul" stars Bob Odenkirk and Jonathan Banks, while Bird is back voicing diminutive superhero costume designer Edna Mode.
The film has been 10 years in the making, with Hunter explaining to Digital Spy that Bird held out until he thought of a story good enough to share with fans of "The Incredibles."
"Brad Bird wanted to make a sequel when he felt they had a worthy story," she stated. "When he felt he was captivated by the story himself, and so he came up with this idea and what he did, we all said, 'Aye aye, captain.'"
"Incredibles 2" began hitting cinemas in June and reaches U.K. theaters on Friday.


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At a time when a number of newspapers and magazines of all kinds across the country have stopped publishing, opting for an online presence only, comes word that the Pittsburgh Catholic is debuting a new free quarterly magazine, in addition to everything else it publishes.
A May 28 announcement from Bill Cone, editor of the diocesan newspaper of the Pittsburgh Diocese, said the debut issue, arriving at parishes this weekend, will feature articles focusing on family life. Each issue will have "a definite focus," Cone said, from teaching children about the Catholic faith to making a happy marriage to dealing with loss.
"The goal of all our products is to spread the good news of Jesus Christ to the ends of the earth starting with our corner of the world in southwestern Pennsylvania," Cone said. "Our Catholic faith is the driving force behind what we do."