text:
- Group Stories : Limo Love
Limo Love
I was sitting in the sun at an outside table in my favourite Soho café the other day. I was using my laptop computer, writing a new submission to Literotica, when a couple of young guys sat down at the table next to me.
After a while one of them interrupted my train of thought, asking me what kind of processor my laptop had.
"I'm sorry, I don't know," I said, shutting the lid. "My wife bought this for me. I'm a bit of an ignoramus when it comes to technology."
After a while we got talking. The conversation ranged from computers, to marriage and fidelity, to the weather, and of course football.
When they learned that I was writing an erotic story they exchanged glances.
"Hey, we've got a story for you. It's a true one. It happened last week. Wanna hear it?"
"Sure," I said, unenthusiastically, expecting some pretty mundane bullshit. I mean what do a couple of kids know about stories, or sex for that matter?
Well, I was wrong! After a few minutes I completely lost track of time while they told me the story of ?
# # # # # # # # #
It was Carl's stag night.
Carl didn't have any idea about the Limo we'd ordered for him, right up to the moment it pulled up outside the club.
Up till then he kind of enjoyed himself, on what was his last weekend of bachelorhood. We all got a bit drunk, toasted his health. But me and the others could see he was just a bit disappointed. That was part of our plan. We kept saying things like "Well, mate, I think we should call it a night and go home, some of us have got work tomorrow". So he's a bit deflated with the evening.
Then this HUGE white stretch limo pulls up right next to us. Before he knows what's going on we all say to him, "Night night Carl," and pretty much throw him into the back of it!
Then it speeds off with a screech, leaving us standing on the sidewalk.
So we only know the rest of this story from what Carl told us. But if you knew Carl, you'd know he's not a bullshitter. He never exaggerates. Really. Anyway, this is what he told us:
Carl gets up off the floor of the limo and finds these three GORGEOUS ladies all sitting in a row on the back seat. I mean SUPERMODELS.
On the left is TINA. She's blond and tall, with long, long legs ending with a pair of six-inch stilettos. Besides the shoes, all she's wearing is the tiniest red thong. That's it. Just a fucking thong! Her tits are to die for ? big, perfect, with the juiciest little red nipples. Her hair's tied in a ponytail.
In the middle is LENA. She's black, with long straightened hair. She's also tall. She's wearing even less ? just a pair of thigh-length black boots so tight they look painted on. Her legs are crossed, hiding her poonanny. But Carl can see she's shaved down there. She has big, dark brown lips. Her eyes are covered with wraparound shades. Her tits are also perfect ? big round, with huge, flat nipples ? four or five inches in diameter.
On the right is GINA, a redhead. She's wearing black fishnets, no panties underneath. And no shoes. She has a black lace brassiere that emphasises her beautiful cleavage ? not that it needs any emphasis. Her freckled face has a naughty-girl look.
Carl's jaw hangs open. Tina turns to Lena and says, "this one's not too shabby, Lene, I'll give him a 9".
Lena looks Carl up and down and replies in a husky voice, "Yes, he's quite promising, but I'm afraid he might not think that much of us girls yet. Maybe we ought to help him make up his mind."
Gina pouts and asks Carl, "Is that right Carl, aren't you happy with us?" she pushes her tits together and gyrates on the leather seat.
Lena slides off the seat to her knees on the floor of the limo and gently guides Carl, still speechless, into her seat between the two girls. She sits on the floor at his knees.
Tina undoes her hair. Her perfume wafts over him. She grabs his hand and places it on her tit.
Gina, to his left, does the same. Lena opens Carl's legs and feels his crotch through his pants, rubbing slowly. Carl's already hard. "Well, I'd hazard a guess and say he seems quite satisfied with us, girls."
Tina and Gina lean towards him. They help him off with his sweatshirt.
Lena, inscrutable behind her sunglasses, kneads away at his crotch while they kiss and nibble at his shoulders and neck, and slowly down his front, to his belly. Their hair tickles his chest. Carl starts to writhe.
Lena, who acts a little like she's the other girls' boss, says, "Ok girls, he's getting a bit excited. I think we might need to slow him down a little."
They back off, and leave him alone on the seat while they move down towards the limo's built-in bar.
This gives Carl a chance to check out their rear ends.
Three perfect asses.
Three filthy, magnificent, sluts. He whispers to himself, "Thank you, I love you guys," referring to us, 'cos he realises it was us who set it all up for him.
He can't choose his favourite.
Maybe Lena. That beautiful black bottom, so smooth and shiny! But Gina makes him really horny. She's like a kid sister. What a tease?but then again Tina, she's got EVERYTHING?
As if reading his thoughts, Tina asks him which of them he likes best so far. Carl says, honestly he can't decide.
"Oh, don't decide yet," she laughs. "Now. Lena has something for you. Come on, off with those pants!"
Carl strips. He's proud of his nice, firm, big hard-on. He's well endowed. The girls break into applause. Lena takes off her shades to get a better look. "My, my, my, we ARE going to have some fun tonight!"
She hands him a drink and couple of Viagra pills to take with it. She explains that this is for later on, "because you're going to be using that beauty just a BIT more than usual tonight."
With her cool long-fingered hands she rubs some white powder onto his helmet, almost making him come then and there. When she's done this, she holds her finger and thumb under her nose and sniffs up some of the white powder. "A little coke on the cock, Carl. That's a trick to slow you down a bit. All for OUR pleasure as much as yours, you understand."
Finally Tina, brushing away her long hair, sticks a condom on him. She rolls it slowly and expertly down his shaft. Once it's on she gives him a full, slow, 10-second kiss, holding his cheeks gently. "Aren't you a sweetie-pie," she whispers.
So there's Carl, sitting there, drunk as fuck, with a Viagra-maintained stiffie, on the back seat of a stretch limo, cruising around London with the three sexiest women he's ever seen on-screen or off. Then they all start playing Blind Date!
Carl makes up a question: "I'd like to shag a woman up the ass, but I'm scared, and have never done it. If I choose you, Tina, how would you help me conquer my fear?"
For answer, Tina stands in front of him, facing away, bending to show him her round bottom. She sways it teasingly in front of his face. She grabs her tiny thong and pushes it to one side, so he can see her starfish. He leans forward and licks around it. He can see the tiny blond hairs on her buttocks. She rocks gently, pushing his face cheeks against her bum-cheeks.
She keeps this up until Gina shouts, "HEY, come on Teen, my turn!"
So Carls asks Gina the same question.
"Carl," she says, "I think a picture is worth a thousand words, don't you? So why not take a look at THIS pretty picture and make up your mind!"
Gina pushes down her fishnets. One of her bum cheeks is tattooed with an arrow pointing towards her asshole, with some Chinese symbols on it.
"That tattoo says 'This is the Road to Heaven', Carl, and if you choose me, you'll be able to find out that it's not a lie."
Carl looks. He grabs Gina's hips and pulls them towards him. He pushes his tongue into her bum-hole.
She laughs. "Oh, doesn't that taste good?" She sits down next to him on his left.
She strokes his inside leg with her red-nailed fingers.
Next he looks up at Lena. "Now the same question for you, Lena."
"Well, Carl, I think there's only one way I can answer that?" She gets up and without any ado, sits on his lap. She lifts herself a little, grabs his shaft and sits back down, this time squeezing him into her "tradesman's entrance".
Carl, who really HASN'T ever done a girl up the shitter before, catches his breath. She's so TIGHT! Lena rotates her hips slowly. Carl's head lolls back again the headrest. He's suddenly realising that these girls will DO ANYTHING!
After a minute or so, while Carl is in pure ecstasy, Lena stops.
Carl watches his cock slowly emerge from Lena's asshole as she smoothly rises to get off him, sighing. He shudders as his bell-end pops out. She flops down next him on his right, resting her booted leg over his, swinging it.
Carl gets his breath back. The cocaine on his cock has stopped him coming, the Viagra has kicked in, keeping his woody as firm as ever.
"Ok, question number two. You can tell a lot about a girl by watching her wank. If she enjoys doing it to herself, you KNOW she likes sex. Gina: Show me how you get your rocks off when you're by yourself."
Lena, smiling, says, "You know she COULD show you, but seeing as she's NOT actually by herself, don't you think she could get a little 'audience participation?'
So they kind of gang-bang Gina. She lies on the floor, while Lena pins her arms to the floor with her knees. Carl straddles her waist, facing Lena. Tina is given the task of licking her out.
Gina struggles vainly. Carl and Lena look into each other eyes, almost like lovers, both of them prodding and tweaking Gina's nipples until they're sore. As Gina starts to moan and say they're hurting her, Lena stifles her by pushing down on her face with her bottom.
Tina, busy down in Gina's lower regions, pushes her thumb in and out of her starfish while she flicks her tongue rapidly back and forth over her little clit.
They hold her like this until her cries of pleasure and pain, muffled by Lena's shiny and sweaty ass, start changing into cries of orgasm.
At her climax, Lena grabs Carl's hard-on and tugs at it rhythmically, leaning forwards and kissing him sensually on his mouth with her big, warm slippery lips. He feels he is coming. But he remains hard, and the condom stays tight.
Tina, Carl and Lena crawl back to the back seat, leaving Gina to recover on the floor. They look down at her.
"She's pretty, isn't she, " says Tina to Carl.
"She's FUCKING BEAUTIFUL," Carl corrects her.
"She wants more, you know", says Lena.
"She wants a good FUCKING," says Tina.
"Isn't that right Gine," calls Lena to the still swooning Gina. "Don't you want a nice big cock inside you now?"
"Must?have?cock?must?have?cock", giggles Gina, still with her eyes closed.
Carl gets down on top of her and starts fucking her like a good'un.
His cock's big, and her pussy is small and tight. She likes the way he fits. She likes it big, hard and deep. He thrusts inside her, she just lies there. She doesn't move a muscle, and she's driving him crazy!
Meanwhile the other two are keeping up a running commentary, like they're soccer commentators.
"Nice move there, great foot action, spreading her legs there?"
"I must say I haven't see an ass like his since the 1998 World Cup?"
"Yes Lena, great to see young asses in action?"
"I see he's playing the old 'Missionary' position?"
"Well it still works for me, Teene?"
Carl and Gina come simultaneously with a massive shudder, Gina digging her nails into his back. He sucks her chin as the orgasm abates. Finally they relax.
"And it's a GOAL! And that looks like it's all over for Gina's 2002 hopes?"
Carl rolls over onto the floor. He and Gina lie on their backs.
Tina puts her hand on Lena's leg and says to her, "look, they're all shagged out after all that work. Let's you and me do it a bit, and they can watch.
Gina and Carl climb to the back seat. Carl lies across the seat, his head on Gina's warm lap.
Lena walks to the bar, pours a quadruple Tequila. Tina sits down on the floor. Lena grabs Tina's face, forcing her mouth open, and pours it down her mouth. Then she makes her lie face down, with her head towards the front of the car. She pushes her legs apart. Carl and Gina have a good view of her pussy.
Out of her boot Lena pulls a small leather whip. She runs it thoughtfully along Tina's back, from the nape of her neck slowly down until it nestles in her bum-crack.
She sits on her, facing back towards Carl and Gina, and looks at them.
"Isn't she a darling? Just look. Carl. It seems a shame to make her SUFFER so much."
At the word SUFFER she pushes the crop up her ass. Tina yelps. Carl is a bit appalled, but his cock gets even harder, if that's possible. He never knew about this side of him!
So Lena gives Tina the full treatment, poking away with the whip. All the time she carries on talking, telling her how it's for her own good, she's a naughty girl and must be punished.
"Now, Tina, Carl here says I'm not doing it hard enough. He's going to show you how it's really done. Carl?"
Carl slides off the seat and lunges on top of Tina, his cock ramming her ass hard. She lies there, passive. Carl shouts, "You naughty little bitch. Tell me you like it."
"I like it. Ow."
"You want more, don't you? You want it harder don't you?"
"Yes, please, I'm a naughty Tina. Please, master, please master?"
Well, all good things must come to an end, and suddenly there's a knock from the driver's partition and it slides open. The driver calls back, "Five minutes, ladies?"
Lena says, "Well Carl. You heard. Just time for one little blowjob. I'm afraid you'll have to choose just one of us. Unless we're quick."
Carl looks at the three of them and said "ladies, fight it out among yourselves". He sprawls on the back seat waiting, hands along the rear window-shelf.
The girls whisper.
Tina comes forward. "Carl, you LUCKY thing? you've got the best for last."
She kneels and bends over him, and puts her lips around his dick. Her hands rest on the seat either side of him. She licks him with a tongue that feels raspy as a cat's.
Then she suddenly goes down so low on him that his entire eight inches disappears in her mouth! He feels her lips on his balls. He looks up at Lena. "Oh, my GOD, How the HELL does she DO that??"
Lena laughs and says, "She used to be a circus sword-swallower."
She uses her teeth. She uses her tongue. She drives him totally fucking INSANE!
The car pulls up outside his home and he gets out. They wave goodbye and blow him kisses as the car rushes off, probably to their next customer.
# # # # # # #
"Well", I said to the guys as they finished the story. "I think that one's worth writing up. Do you mind?"
"Be our guest. Just change the names. Ok?"
"Ok! And thanks!"
As they left, I had a thought, and called after them. "Hey, what happened next week, after Carl got married?"
One of he guys called back, "He didn't. Called it off at the last minute. Can't think why!"


text:
In discussing the life of Kami Nichols these days, the operative word is "expansion."
In discussing the life of Kami Nichols these days, the operative word is "expansion."
Spin City Laundry, the chain she started with her husband, Matt, in 2010, just opened its third store in Silver Springs Shores. A fourth location on West State Road 200, near On Top of the World, is slated to follow in six to eight months, with another two stores in the planning stages.
However, her young entrepreneurial empire isn't the only thing that's expanding: Nichols, 38, is expecting her ninth child in February. Meanwhile, the couple homeschool their children and Matt Nichols, 39, is a commercial airline pilot whose flying with Southwest Airlines takes him out of town several days a week.
"How they manage to do all that, I do not know," says Bartow McDonald IV, a friend of the family. "I marvel."
Actually, the formula behind the growth of Spin City Laundry is pretty straightforward. Kami and Matt Nichols got into the coin-operated laundry business in 2010 after the economic downturn.
"I was looking for something to do on the side that would work with the number of kids we have," Kami says. "We went into an existing laundromat on Jacksonville Road that had been there forever, went in, gutted the place, redid it and it's been a whirlwind ever since."
The Nicholses discovered space and equipment came cheap after coin-operated laundries failed in the recession. Meanwhile, the couple hit the road and did their homework, visiting laundry after laundry in Marion County and obsessing over the operation and customer service experience of each.
"My wife would notice a store's layout," Matt Nichols recalls. "That the aisles were too close and the flow was choppy and the customers weren't moving right. We'd debate things like this over and over and over. If you take out some machines to have a better layout, you might be limiting your potential revenue, but if customers have to squeeze through the aisles, they probably won't come back."
After seeing success with the first location and developing what Kami calls a system to keep the operation "low-maintenance," Spin City opened a second location on College Road before the recent opening in the Shores.
"There are a lot of how-to books out there, but there's nothing on a laundromat," Kami said. "How your machines turn. What kind of layout to have. It literally takes trial and error."
Kami's focus on the customer's point of view has been a key part of the Spin City story. Store employees hand out free laundry soap to their customers. When Kami makes the rounds to check on each location, she'll often give free cans of pop to customers as well.
"It's the little things that people appreciate," Kami said. "It doesn't cost us a whole lot to do that and we're building goodwill."
Each Spin City Laundry is open 24 hours, is painted in bold colors and has cable TV on flat-panel screens as well as free Wi-Fi. Each store has an attendant for daytime hours and is monitored around the clock by video surveillance cameras.
"A lot of people told us we were crazy to stay open 24 hours because of risk of being vandalized," Matt said. "They told us we were crazy to put up the TVs, but we thought if we offered a good cable package with "Monday Night Football" on, a husband might come out with his wife and they'd do the laundry together, maybe bring the whole family."
"If you take care of your customers, you get the same treatment back," Kami said. "We've found our customers also willing to keep an eye on things. If they're in here and they see anything (wrong), they let us know."
They market everything from their coin-operated machines to "drop-off" laundry services to niche products like laundering of horse blankets via their website, coupon magazines, newspaper ads and billboards.
"The Nicholses are a classic story of the American spirit of entrepreneurship," sayid McDonald, who is also a commercial real estate broker and managing director of Sperry Van Ness in Ocala.
"They're taking a well-established service business model and creating fresh value by doing things in a different way," said McDonald, who notes the Nichols are not clients. "It's compelling and it's working."
Matt Nichols, a fourth-generation Ocalan, met his future wife when he was flying out of Grand Island, Neb., for a commuter airline and Kami worked as an operations manager. The two married and moved to Ocala.
The couple have had an entrepreneurial streak throughout their marriage, fixing up rent homes, among other activities. When they started looking into other business opportunities, the laundry business seemed like a good fit.
"This works so well for me and my family because I don't have to be in here on a day-to-day basis," Kami said. "This isn't something I put 40 hours a week into. We have the video surveillance that I watch from home. It's on my phone. Everything is monitored and recorded. I've got great girls working for me as attendants."
Matt said he makes a good enough living from flying that the couple can "reinvest every penny" back into Spin City. He says he pays the bills and coordinates expansion plans with contractors, while Kami focuses on day-to-day operations.
"I'd say the partnership's about 80/20 and she's the 80," he said.
The couple are forging ahead with expansion plans.
"Economic conditions allow us to do that," Matt said. "We can go in and negotiate the lease we want and lock it in for 20 to 25 years to make it affordable. We're able to buy a lot of equipment that's in foreclosure or has to be sold."
Kami said she and her husband are studying potential locations for two more stores, but won't say where exactly.
In the meantime, with a family of eight and counting, the couple are passing along lessons of entrepreneurship to the next generation: Three of their children, ages 9, 11 and 13, have bought gumball and toy vending machines they keep in the laundries.
"Once a month we go and restock," Matt said. "They can tell you what's selling and what isn't."

subset: commoncrawl


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Saturday, April 7, 2012
90 Adams Street, A Very Special Place
7 comments:
- Becky Jamison said...
What an adventure, Barbara. Thank you for sharing your story. I love your pictures!
- April 7, 2012 at 9:58 PM
- Carol said...
What a great article. And, what a beautiful home.
- April 7, 2012 at 10:10 PM
- Barbara Poole said...
Thanks Becky and Carol for your comments. Only wish I had done it years ago, like with so many things. Wish too, the owners were home, would have loved seeing the inside!
- April 8, 2012 at 9:40 AM
- Barbara Poole said...
- This comment has been removed by the author.
- April 8, 2012 at 9:40 AM
- Michelle Goodrum said...
What a great story! I love the house and hope someday you get to see the interior.
- April 8, 2012 at 1:05 PM
- Susan Clark said...
Time so well spent! Thanks for sharing your adventure with us. It's a beautiful house.
- April 8, 2012 at 9:16 PM
- Nancy said...
I think that home is absolutely beautiful! It's great that you finally sought it out and photographed it. I wonder if the owners would have let you see the inside if you'd told them your association with it. (The daughter of the original owners of our house came and introduced herself a few years ago. We invited her in and asked lots of questions.) How fun to know that your grandfather designed the house.
- April 18, 2012 at 1:23 AM


text:
Microwave Popcorn Makers Vow To Remove Diacetyl
The nation's 4 largest makers of microwave popcorn have all decided to remove diacetyl, the flavoring ingredient that causes "popcorn lung" in workers, from the vast majority of their products, says the AP.
ConAgra Foods of Omaha, Neb.; General Mills of Golden Valley, Minn.; and American Pop Corn Co., of Sioux City, Iowa, all promised in September to change their recipes. They sell Orville Redenbacher, Act II, Pop Secret and Jolly Time brands.
"We want to assure our consumers they can continue to enjoy their favorite popcorn with complete confidence," said Stan Jacot, who oversees popcorn marketing for ConAgra.
Although there has been one consumer case of "popcorn lung," there's no real danger to consumers who don't eat microwave popcorn several times a day. The real concern is for those people who work in popcorn plants. Soon, however, you'll be able to eat your popcorn totally guilt-free. We'd hate to see that nifty "popcorn" button go unused on your microwave.
Popcorn makers removing chemical [IndyStar]
(Photo:Mish Bradley)
Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.


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Hey everyone. Here's a thread for those of us requesting bootlegs from any of you who were so brave to record them. If you're reading this, please PM me if you have bootlegs of any of the following 2009 performances...
Antony + the Johnsons
The Presets
Sebastian Tellier
Lykke Li
Throbbing Gristle


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NOTE: Updated by Publication ANJ-23, Parking, Storing, Garaging Motor Vehicles & New Jersey Sales Tax
Pursuant to N.J.S.A. 5:12-173.2, a charge shall be imposed for the use of a parking space for the purpose of parking, garaging or storing a motor vehicle in a parking facility or property owned or leased by a casino hotel or by any person on behalf of a casino hotel. The minimum amount of such charge is currently $3.00 per day. The charge imposed pursuant to such section, including any charges over and above the minimum charge, is subject to the 6.875% sales tax because it is not a receipt subject to tax pursuant to any other law or ordinance. N.J.S.A. 54:32B-3 (i). The sales tax must be reported and remitted on the casino hotels sales and use tax returns.
The New Jersey sales tax is not imposed on parking for employees of the casino hotel, if the parking is provided by the casino hotel or at a facility owned or operated by the casino. N.J.S.A. 54:32B-3 (i).
NOTE: Effective July 1, 2007, the law was amended to exclude the $3 minimum fee from the receipt subject to tax. There is also an exclusion for parking charges or fees imposed pursuant to an agreement between the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority (CRDA) and a casino operator which was in effect as of June 28, 2007. Any amount collected over and above these fees remains subject to sales tax. Between October 1, 2006 and June 30, 2007, the $3 Atlantic City parking fee was subject to the sales tax.
Forms relating to filing and payment of this tax are sent directly to subject taxpayers. There are no blank forms available on the Division's site at this time.


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Coaches Sharpen Training for Mid-Season
NEW HAVEN, Conn. – The Bulldogs will travel to Amherst, Mass., on Saturday to compete in the UMass Nine-Way Meet. After driving through the start of the outdoor season with two very strong meets, head coach David Shoehalter said the team will have a more conservative meet this weekend. Nevertheless, many Bulldogs are going into the meet with some of the top spots on the performance list.
"We've been training really hard for the past three weeks since break, so we're definitely minimizing how much they're going to compete this weekend," Shoehalter said.
The throws are looking solid with freshman Mike Levine's strong showing in the discus with a win at William & Mary and a second-place finish at Princeton and senior David Smith's fifth-place finish in the shot put at Princeton; Levine also enters with the top seed in the discus. Senior Eric DePalo, who has the highest mark in the pole vault, has already matched his season best from the indoor season at the first outdoor meet. In the triple jump, both junior Samba Binagi and sophomore Yifan Chen recently made new PRs and look strong at this point in the season. The Bulldogs will also look to senior Reynolds Holmes and freshman Tommy Winger in the long jump.
In the sprints, senior David Soiles placed ninth in the 400-meter dash last week and should also provide strength to the sprint relays. The Bulldogs' other middle sprinters, junior Marty Evans and sophomore Matt Bieszard, dropped down to the 100-meter dash at Princeton, but still performed well in the shorter sprints; Evans and Bieszard took fifth and eighth, respectively. Evans and Bieszard also went sixth and eighth in the 200-meter dash. The two are seeded second and third in the 200-meter dash and third and fourth in the 400-meter dash. The Bulldogs will also look for big performances from senior Ted Galligan, who enters with the fastest time in the 400-meter hurdles. In the 100-meter dash, Holmes, junior Nathan Molina and freshman Josh Fuller are all seeded in the top 10.
The Bulldogs should prove competitive in the 4x100-meter relay with the top seed along with Boston College and a close second-place finish behind Princeton last week. The 4x400 meter relay team is also seeded first with Albany and should place well this weekend.
The distance runners will not be competing this weekend.
Even though the Bulldogs are trimming down the number events each athlete competes in at UMass, their goal is to put on even stronger performances in postseason.
"It's all in the training, it's less about what happens in the meets," Shoehalter said.
The men's competition will start at 11:30 a.m. Other teams competing are Albany, Amherst, Central Connecticut State, Boston College, Fairfield, Holy Cross, Hartford, Trinity and Williams. Results will be posted on Yalebulldogs.com after the meet.
Report by Miriam Cho '13, Yale Sports Publicity


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Over the years, I've covered some heartwarming, grass-roots efforts in the Charleston area offering health-related programing to children.
And many of those children are less likely to be exposed to starting life on a healthy track.
From Louie's Kids and Junior Girls Day Out Community Project to the Charleston Area Children's Garden Project, the efforts endure even as many are run on shoestring budgets and rely on volunteers and local business sponsors to make them work.
As the school year winds down, three efforts came to my attention that are among the growing outreach to make the entire community healthier. All offer opportunities for locals to get involved by giving donations or volunteering.
A growing trend in the nation and in local schools is establishing school running clubs, which stress participation, not competition.
Upon arriving at Meeting Street Academy last October as special program director, Lori LaFevre started a running club for the children from kindergarten to third grade.
LaFevre started the running club because of the multiple benefits it provides the children, not only establishing running as a healthy, inexpensive and fun activity for life, but teaching them about teamwork and goal-setting, as well as burning off extra energy.
"The goal is to give these students the knowledge and confidence of running so they can continue a healthy life filled with positive activity," LaFevre says. "Our job is not just to educate our students in the classroom but to encompass their entire well-being."
After LaFevre asked for help from members of the Charleston Running Club, Amy and Chris Minkel, owners of the new Fleet Feet running store in Mount Pleasant, stepped up months before the store opened in March.
For kids who joined and stuck with the program, the Minkels offered incentives: new running shoes, team shirts and a chance to par-ticipate in the RiverDogs Run Forrest Run 5K on May 25.
That helped participation swell from eight children to 61, or most of the 76 children in kindergarten through the third grade at the school.
"That's huge participation," LaFevre says. "The whole point of Fleet Feet being behind us is that the kids are earning their shoes, not getting these shoes."
Amy Minkel says they were eager to help after moving from Winston-Salem, N.C., where many schools have running clubs. They were surprised the trend was not as widespread in the Charleston area.
"This (helping the academy) was a great opportunity for us to do what we wanted to do: give back to the community," Minkel says. "We're hoping what's going to happen with this running club is that it will continue to thrive and get bigger and move to sister schools and inspire schools in other parts of the community to do the same thing."
On Monday, those who have earned 10 stars will receive a new pair of running shoes and a team shirt.
Now, LaFevre and the Minkels need volunteers to accompany the students by running and likely walking — possibly mostly walking — with a student during Run Forrest Run.
To sign up, contact LaFevre at email@example.com.
In the past two years, the city of Charleston aquatics program has offered a program for children ages 5-17 designed to bridge the gap between rudimentary swimming lessons and the highly proficient swimming of its Southern Marlins Racing Team with an intramural league swimming team.
Much like school running clubs, the effort focuses on regular participation over competition and on urban youths, though all children can participate. Teams will be based at the city's three pools: Martin Luther King Jr., Herbert Hasell and W.L. Stephens.
Aquatics Manager Byron Rounds says the swimming lessons often just cover the basics, possibly just enough to keep their head above water in an emergency.
"The main purpose of the intramural league is to build on the basics," says Rounds, adding that the intramural league is a rebirth of a league that used to be called the Charleston Aquatic Team.
"The intramural league is a different concept. We want to keep it fun and in-house. No high-pressure stuff."
And yet those who stick with it have moved on to bigger swimming goals, joining the swim team and becoming a lifeguard.
Regarding the latter, Rounds noted that swimming offers opportunities for jobs, from seasonal lifeguards to even a career in aquatics.
Parents must register their children at the Hasell pool by May 27. A mandatory clinic will be held 5-7 p.m. May 29 and 31, and June 3, 5 and 7 at Hasell.
To qualify for the team, youths must be able to swim 25 yards without stopping. The fee for those who qualify is $40 for city residents and $55 for nonresidents with discounts for additional children who participate.
A limited number of scholarships provided by the Logan Rutledge Foundation from proceeds from the Lowcountry Splash, are available for those who qualify. The team also is in need of adult volunteers who want to help the coaching staff.
For information, call 795-5756.
A much more involved program, potentially involving hundreds of girls ages 7-12, is the Junior Girls Day Out Community Project in the Charleston area.
The program will feature clinics and competitions for 10 sports and activities: gymnastics, cheerleading, swimming, volleyball, ten- nis, track and field, basketball, soccer, golf and jump rope.
The effort is getting help from some locally based experts, including former Olympic Training Center Director Dr. John Smyth and University of South Carolina track and field sprints and hurdles coach Curtis Frye, among others.
"We don't want to focus on competition but enrichment," says Kathy Jackson, director of Junior Girls in Charleston.
The program, which holds a Launch Party 3-4 p.m. June 9 at the Charleston County Main Library at 68 Calhoun St., will culminate with an Olympic-style event Sept. 21-22 at Bishop England High School on Daniel Island.
Visit juniorgirlsdayout.wordpress.com
Reach David Quick at 937-5516 or dquick@postand courier.com.


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jQuery Calx is powerful yet easy to use jQuery plugin for building calculation forms or calculation tables. It parses provided formulae and performs calculations, scans for form changes and updates results automatically, and formats plain numbers into currency format, ordinal numbers, etc. It is suitable for both simple ($A+$B) formulae and complex ones such as ($I*$P*((1 + $I)^$N)) / (1 - ((1 + $I)^$N)).
crackxls2003 breaks the encryption on Microsoft Excel and Word 97/2000/XP/2002/2003 files which have been encrypted using the RC4 method. These files are encrypted using a 40-bit-long key. It will not work on files encrypted using versions later than 2007 or versions 95 or earlier, or if a non-default encryption method was used.
Aspose.Cells for SharePoint is a flexible solution for converting Excel documents into multiple document formats within Microsoft SharePoint applications. It lets you easily convert documents right from the SharePoint document library into popular formats like XLS, XLSX, CSV, HTML, ODS, PDF, XML, and TXT without using MS Excel for document generation. It is designed to be used with Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 (WSS) and MS Office SharePoint Server 2007 (MOSS) standard and enterprise editions.
ExportSpreadsheets is a class that can be used to create an Excel spreadsheet from data in a MySQL table. It performs a query to a given MySQL table and creates an Excel spreadsheet file using the PEAR Spreadsheet_Excel_Writer package. The class can export multiple worksheets to a single Excel file. Several parameters may be used to configure details like which table fields map to which spreadsheet columns, field sorting, etc.
KeyValue is a cross-platform library for making C++ objects accessible through LibreOffice Calc, Excel, and other front-ends. This can enhance the experience of spreadsheet users by providing an object model and a handy key-value based interface. Actually, KeyValue does more than just help creating spreadsheet functions. The object model allows end-users to build C++ objects through the front-ends. These objects are stored in a repository for later use at the user's request. Additionally, KeyValue provides a set of services to effectively use these objects. The library is named after one of its main features: the key-value based interface. Parameters are passed to functions (or, more precisely, processors) through key-value pairs, in contrast to the standard positional interfaces of LibreOffice Calc, Excel, C/C++, etc.
A cloud storage toolkit.
A Web server log analyzer and interactive viewer.


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Tuesday, March 14, 2006
The Devil Speaks: CURSED?
I have a confession to make. The loss at the Alamo Bowl was all my fault. Yep, me. First, I was there and that just tempted fate a little too much. Second, I wore The Jersey to the game. I questioned whether or not I should, but finally gave in and wore it. What was the result? Another blown lead in the fourth quarter. The worst officiating in all of human history. Jason Avant fumbles. Tyler Ecker is unable to see that Steve Breaston is just a few steps behind him. It's all because of The Jersey. What is The Jersey? Let me explain. You see, The Jersey is cursed.
I'm hesitant to show it here. Maybe you folks will turn to stone or maybe the curse will somehow rub off on you. But, it should be shown; it's the REAL reason behind Michigan's recent struggles. Maybe some of you have similar items of apparell that are similarly cursed. Anyway, here it is:
It's a little old. The silk-screening for the numbers is all cracked and I have no idea whose jersey it was supposed to be. The ubiquitous Nike logo is in a spot from jerseys several styles ago. Its oldness and uniqueness are what I like about. I've even played actual football in it, in freezing rain that would have led to hypothermia had I not downed several pitchers of Killian's Red with my teammates immediately after the game was finished.
Still, this damned thing is cursed. I'm not really sure why or how, but The Jersey is indeed a damned thing.
The Curse goes back to the 2000 season. This was the year Drew Henson was finally going to be the starting quarterback. Until he broke a bone in his foot just before the start of the season. In comes backup John Navarre and Michigan easily crushes its first--admittedly cupcake--opponents. Then, it was time to head to Los Angeles with a number three ranking to play UCLA.
Since the game wasn't one of the regional games shown on ABC in ACC basketball loving North Carolina, I headed to a local sports bar to watch it on satellite. I wore The Jersey and we all know what happened. It was the first glimpse of what would become the John Navarre Experience. It was not his fault though, it was The Jersey's fault.
After that, I noticed that whenever I was really psyched up for a game and wanted to be a total dork about it and wear The Jersey around the house on a Saturday, Michigan lost. Each season I'd vow not to wear it any more and Michigan would improve. Then the next year, I'd bring The Jersey out again and again, Michigan would lose. Of course, big games for me are against Notre Dame and Ohio State. Do you now see why Michigan keeps losing those games?
This year, I fell into the trap again and wore The Jersey for the Notre Dame game. Again, we all know what happened. Chad Henne had the worst game of his career--and let's hope it stays that way--Mike Hart is hurt--please God, heal those indomitable little legs of his--and Michigan loses.
Again, I vowed not to wear The Jersey again. Michigan continued to struggle into the season. When the Penn State game came--a game I believed Michigan could actually win due to Michigan's ownage of Joe Paterno--I refused to wear The Jersey. I didn't dare risk it. And Michigan actually won. The pattern was clear, wear The Jersey, Michigan will lose; don't wear The Jersey, Michigan can win.
Still, The Curse isn't foolproof. I wore The Jersey during the 2005 Indiana game and Michigan won. Apparently, Indiana is so bad not even The Curse can help them. I suspected this before the game and figured I could safely wear The Jersey. Still, Indiana did score fairly easily on their opening drive; maybe that was from The Curse?
Now, the Ohio State game's not my fault. I still didn't trust The Jersey and refused to wear it that day. That one was all on the coaches and players.
So along comes the Alamo Bowl. I brought The Jersey with me to San Antonio, although I was unsure about wearing it to the game. I also brought The Hat. The Hat is definitely NOT cursed; I wore it in Afghanistan and left there with ten fingers and ten toes. For added luck, The Hat still has Afghanistan's talcum-fine dust embedded in the fabric. But, to me, hats are for outside and daylight. And, a hat just doesn't make the same statement as a jersey. Hats are too subtle and I wanted to make a statement.
The afternoon of the Alamo Bowl, I debated the pros and cons of wearing The Jersey. I'm sure I looked a bit like Cameron Frye in "Ferris Beuller's Day Off" sitting in his piece of shit car arguing with himself. The Curse filled me with anxiety, but it just seemed lame to go to a game and NOT loudly display where my allegiance is. Like Cameron, I gave in and went with The Jersey. Besides, this was a Nebraska team that went 7-4 against a weak schedule that included a Division IAA opponent. And, Bill Callahan's the coach. I had a good feeling about this game--no, really, I actually did; never underestimate the power of denial--and it seemed like the Indiana Corollary to The Curse might apply here.
Wrong. Wrong.
No point in going over the horror again. The only news here is that the result of that game was because of The Jersey and The Curse. So, once again, I'm vowing never to wear The Jersey for another Michigan game.
The great thing about sports is that there's always a fresh start next season. There's been changes to the coaching staff, there appears to be a new focus on defense, players will have matured, injuries will have healed, and there will be lessons learned all the way around. There are reasons for hope.
Maybe The Curse will be lifted? Maybe Michigan can win those games that have bedeviled Lloyd Carr these last few years? Maybe the defense will hold firm in the fourth quarter? Oh, to see a goal line stand or an interception returned for a touchdown! Maybe I'll be able to swagger around in The Jersey AFTER a game for once?
Who knows?
19 comments:
hey... you can't expect a jersey to just show up on gameday and be able to pull out the victory without warming up...
if you're serious about putting the jersey in the game, you've got to get him some reps in spring ball... keep him fresh all summer, and then start him all season long so he gels with the rest of the team.
I know some people claim college football is a game played on saturdays, but the reality is the outcome of the game depends on how you practice all week long.
You may not be able to wear your jersey to work, and that's understandable, but after work, you should slip on the jersey for a couple rounds of the victors before retiring it for the evening, to keep it loose and prepared for when it will be called upon.
If you follow my advice, I have no doubt the jersey can turn around this string of bad luck, and lead us to a national championship. I might even go so far as to say the jersey could have a shot at the coveted heisman trophy.
- March 14, 2006 10:55 AM
you and your jersey are the bane of my 2005 existence, do not attempt to sabotage next season w/ your jersey. I can live w/ the hat. If you must proclaim loudly w/ a jersey, please do me a favor and go buy a new one and start a new trend. Perhaps the curse can be lifted if you wear a #2 jersey and invoke the spirit of Woodson, and to a lesser extent, Cato June.
- March 14, 2006 12:47 PM
Holy crap, and all this time I thought it was MY fault!
- March 14, 2006 1:59 PM
- BaggyPantsDevil said...
You're on to something there. I've been too focused on the game and not enough on all the preparation and practice that leads up to it. Sun Tzu did say, "a victorious army first obtains conditions for victory, then seeks to do battle." I need to start setting The Jersey up for success by actually playing some football in it.
As much as I cherish the memory of Charles Woodson, a #2 Michigan jersey strikes me as a little too obvious. Kind of like all the #5 USC jerseys that are probably balled up on the floor in closets across the country whose owners are no longer USC fans. I did once see a #98 Throwback jersey once, but it looked like it was made of wool and more suitable for wear while ice fishing than playing football.
I have a feeling many fans feel we've somehow done something that's responsible for the current state of affairs.
- March 14, 2006 4:00 PM
- Yost said...
"I have a feeling many fans feel we've somehow done something that's responsible for the current state of affairs."
Yeah, like not kidnap Jim Herrmann years ago.
- March 14, 2006 4:02 PM
- IC said...
Typically, I find curse theories to be a big bag of crap. However, clearly we can't take a chance on another 7-5 season and I assume you are unwilling to simply burn The Jersey.
So what should be done? I think one way to go might be to understand more about The Jersey itself. Realize that it's not simply an article of clothing. It has a background, a history.
I thought you buried the lede a bit when you noted: "...and I have no idea whose jersey it was supposed to be." I did a little research on your #33 game day top. Based on the Nike swoosh, it's too new to be a Russell Davis jersey (fullback 76-78). 90s-era running backs Che Foster and Clarence "Housecat" Williams fit the time period, but they were not significant enough contributors to have their replica jersey sold in stores. Therefore, I'm pretty sure The Jersey is from the "Leroy Hoard Collection."
As you'll recall Hoard was a pretty good ball player. He was the MVP in Michigan's 1989 Rose Bowl victory over USC and he later enjoyed a solid NFL career with the Browns and Vikings.
Unfortunately, his career quickly petered out following an arrest in Miami for possession of Ecstasy during the Vikings 1999 bye week (Hoard claimed the pills were painkillers and charges were later dropped.)
It seems there are two things that can learned from all this:
1) Don't do drugs.
2) Don't even think about pulling that Goddamn #33 jersey over your head anytime from September through January ever again.
- March 14, 2006 4:11 PM
- BaggyPantsDevil said...
Good research, I never bothered to go back that far looking for someone notable.
I'm not familiar enough with the sports apparel industry to know exactly when the great leaps forward occurred in the evolution of the replica football jersey, but the sequence seems to go something like this: first there was the "generic team in blue that doesn't look like any particular team" jersey, then the "totally unauthentic looking kiddie" jersey, followed by the "authentic looking but randomly numbered" jersey, and finally the "we sure hope this guy can avoid the sophomore slump" jersey. I may have just gotten a ranomly numbered one.
As for not wearing The Jersey, I'll need lots of support and possibly soothing music, tomato and mushroom soup, ice cream, vitamins, mouthwash, pornography, and several buckets to accomplish it.
Not wearing The Jersey may indeed be a lot like not doing drugs.
- March 14, 2006 5:19 PM
- surrounded in columbus said...
never under estimate the soothing power of getting rid of a cursed object. you should consider exorcising yourself of the "33"/rolling rock jersey before this season starts. fire pits are nice (important to really see it die, just to make sure) or a cliff, if convenient.
in '93, a long time friend of mine wore his new hat to the ND game- we lost. next time back in town- the Illinois game (Ricky Powers' fumble while running out the clock) and we lost. road game to madison (stampede game)- we lost (another fumble by powers).
in a well earned snit, he burned his hat on the grill before we drove home. we won out the season, thus scientifically proving this works.
so, do us all a favor, burn this one and get a new jersey. if replacement costs are a problem, maybe we could contact the onepeat crowd and set up a fundraiser, something like "www.buybpdanuncursedjerseyorjustfirelloyd.com"?
couldn't hurt!
- March 14, 2006 5:55 PM
- Kirbdaddy said...
SIC's right, burn that sucker and let's start a collection to get you a new, untainted jersey. How about a nice 86 for Super Mario (or 1 if they give it to him)?
- March 14, 2006 7:51 PM
I respectfully disagree on who you attest The Jersey "honors". Looking at the picture, that is almost certainly a circa-1996 Clarence Williams #33. Clarence was annoited to become UM's feature back following the early departure of Tim Biakabituka after the 1995 season. #33 was sold in all the A2 stores heading into 1996 and into 1997 (before the emergence of Chris Howard and Anthony Thomas pushed Williams down the depth chart).
So now you know, and knowing is half the battle.
- March 15, 2006 12:33 AM
- IC said...
I think we're going to need to appeal to Baggy on this one (though the more I think about it you may be right; I'm not sure we had the Nike swoosh in the 80s...)
Baggy: do you remember when you got The Jersey? Was it late 80's (Hoard) or mid 90s (Williams.)
- March 15, 2006 1:42 AM
- BaggyPantsDevil said...
Brad, IC,
It's definitely from the 90's. I bought it at a PX in Korea in 1997. At the time, the whole reason I got it was to PLAY football in it with friends (I had to wear a buddy's Mark Rypien Redskins jersey the first time). Since PX's don't have the greatest selection, I was super happy to see a Michigan jersey. It could have been a leftover from the previous year considering it's the PX and it's an overseas.
For the un-cursed 1997 season, I wore The Jersey on Saturdays to play football, but it was still Friday in Ann Arbor when we played. By the time the games were shown in Korea--and they were live, amazingly enough--it was actually very early Sunday morning local time and I had showered, changed, and drank large quantities of vile Korean soju. By then, The Jersey was a rank, wet ball on my friends floor.
I did some checeking, and that's definitely a 96-97 era jersey, based on the Nike logo. In 1998, the the jersey was changed and the Swoosh became smaller and was centered on the collar.
- March 15, 2006 9:13 AM
- clemsontiger said...
Does the BaggyPantsDevil live in ACC country now? If so welcome to the self-proclaimed home of college hoops, North Carolina. Besing a Clemson guy I hate Carolina (North and South) but it's better than having to go to say, I don't know, Free Shoes University (FSU).
- March 15, 2006 10:21 AM
- BaggyPantsDevil said...
Nope, not anymore. I spent the nearly the entire 90's in North Carolina, but have been in Arizona--kind of, sort of PAC-10 country--since the end of 2003.
Although college football is the only sport I have a sustained interest in, I seem to be always near college basketball powerhouses.
- March 15, 2006 10:48 AM
- Jeremie said...
Soju is the devil, you know. I once spilled some soju on my dashboard and it ate a chemical hole straight through the dash, the floor, the undercarraige of the car and then went into the ground. When I went back to that spot a week later you could see clear through the ground to the other side of the planet.
I concluded that soju can only be safely contained by two substances: glass (the bottle) and the human digestive system (those fools silly enough to drink that crap). I tried it once and thought I was going to die.
The devil I tell you, the devil.
- March 15, 2006 10:50 AM
- BaggyPantsDevil said...
It is most definitely one of the most evil drinks ever concocted. Even worse is that we generally drank it in "kettle" form. So, in addition to all the toxic impurities already existing in the soju, there's the syrupy sweet cherry or grape or orange flavored mixer in there, too. I've done my fair share of drinking in my life and nothing has ever given me a more painful hangover than soju.
You're probably familiar with the place we played football at, the baseball diamond on Yongsan South at the T intersection.
- March 15, 2006 11:04 AM
i think i have the solution for bpd's jersey curse. you need to go out and get a tosu jersey and put it on either someone you don't like or a mannequin. Wear the 33 jersey and proceed to tackle and beat the piss out of tosu jersey. Then urinate on the evil tosu jersey and stand on it w/ one foot and proclaim loudly "I AM THE LAW!" while driving a spear thru the jersey. then, only then will you be free.
or just buy a new one.
- March 15, 2006 11:07 AM
The Jersey is indeed a #33 Clarence Williams jersey, most likely from 1996. I remember fondly wanting to buy one because I was sure he was going to be the next Great One. I remember my uncle and I running after him in the tunnel of Michigan Stadium after the Victors Club luncheon prior to that season to make sure I got his autograph, which he inked next to Charles Woodson's sig on the front page of my 1996 Media Guide.
Needless to say, he never really panned out. Nor did Scott Dreisbach, whose #12 jersey I purchased instead of the #33...
The Nike sponsorship started in, what, 1995?
- March 15, 2006 12:57 PM
- Jeremie said...
I don't know Yongsan all that well, I only spent a combined six weeks there visiting my parents for two Christmas's and one summer. I was there long enough to learn a few things though:
soju is the devil
those cheap ass oakley knock-offs bought in itae-won break real easy
i look like a stud in my custom-tailored suits from "New York Tailor"
- March 17, 2006 9:37 PM


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Singer Katy Perry's fortress-like compound in Hollywood Hills West is for sale at $6.925 million.
The double-gated Mediterranean-style house, built in 1925, sits on nearly 3 acres with a caretaker's apartment/carriage house and a guesthouse.
Called Park Hill, the house features a baronial stone foyer with a sweeping staircase, a two-story living room, stained-glass windows and a carved fireplace mantel in the living room, a pub, a study and a media room. Including a four-room master suite, two guest suites and staff quarters, there are seven bedrooms, nine bathrooms and 8,835 square feet of living space.
Perry, 28, will be releasing a new album this summer. Among her previous albums are "One of the Boys" (2008) and "Teenage Dream" (2010), which included five No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 list.
She bought the property in 2011 with then-husband Russell Brand for $6.5 million, but never occupied it. They divorced last year.


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SHIRLEY -- In presenting the Ayer-Shirley Regional School Committee with a preliminary draft of the district's fiscal year 2015 budget, Superintendent Carl Mock stated that the needs of the school district are growing compared with what the two communities can afford.
"There is never a good budget season," he said, quoting former Ayer School District Superintendent George Frost, "but this is as different a one as I have ever experienced, because it is a similar story to the previous two years, which is a little frustrating."
"The regionalization, without a doubt, gave you the opportunity to provide a quality education," he said, "but is it sustainable? Are you able to actually somehow meet the need on an ongoing basis?"
Mock told the committee that the details of the budget draft had been put together over the last several weeks, but that he and school district Finance Director Evan Katz had been discussing the budget since last fall.
The fundamental question in developing the preliminary fiscal 2015 budget, he said, became which should be given greater priority, the ability of the towns to pay their assessment, or the needs of the district, including the need for the district to make some progress toward fulfilling its chronic lack of resources.
The budget he and Katz presented, he explained, is based upon the needs of the district, but does not include all of those needs.
The district's leadership team's requests for additional resources, based upon what the school principals said they need above and beyond what they have, totaled approximately $1.8 million, with slightly less than $600,000 of that amount included in the preliminary budget.
The unmet requests, Mock said, total $1.2 million, which is $800,000 and $600,000 more, respectively, than at the beginnings of fiscal 2013 and 2014.
"The writing is on the wall for the school district and the towns, as well," he said. "The fundamental question in presenting the preliminary budget is the ability of the towns to pay their assessment, and we have had discussions with officials in Shirley and know what number they are looking for, but we must weigh that against the need.
"Last year we took the tack of being more realistic about what the communities can afford, but we are back this year working from the aspect of the school district's need."
Those needs include increasing the full time equivalents (FTEs) of English Language Learner (ELL) teachers at the high school from 2.5 to 3.0; hiring a facilities coordinator; adding a .56 FTE evening custodial staff position; increasing facilities automation time and support; increasing summer secretarial support; adding a special-education teacher at the high school; adding a teacher position at Page Hilltop Elementary School; and hiring an assistant principal for Lura A. White Elementary School.
Those additions equal 4.92 FTEs, at a cost of $502,000. That amount plus the $80,450 carried in the fiscal year 2015 program budget total $1,798,235 in requests.
Program budget items include picking up part of the cost of a Lura White Title I reading teacher, due to reduced Title I funding; keeping a therapeutic class paraprofessional at Page Hilltop; foreign language texts at the high school; instructional software; and, ELL supplies and materials.
The next fiscal year will be the first year the full impact of principal and interest payments on the high-school renovation project will be reflected in the assessments for the towns of Ayer and Shirley. The assessments related to those payments, which are excluded capital debt for the purposes of Proposition 2 1/2, total $1,393,475 between the two towns. The breakdown is $1,015,018 for Ayer, and $378,457 for Shirley. Shirley's assessment, said Mock, may be offset by stabilization funds set aside for that purpose.
According to Mock, the budgetary impacts of the proposed operating expenses come to percent increases of 5.5 in the general fund, 5.0 in all funds, and 8.1 in the assessment, as compared with fiscal year 2014. Of those percentage increases, 3.3, 3.1, and 4.9 percent, respectively, are needed just to maintain and support the district's current levels of programming and staffing.
The biggest estimated cost increases are in salaries of personnel, health insurance costs and school choice.
Areas of significant savings total about $81,500; however, next year's revenue from nonassessment sources is estimated to be approximately $16,000 less than the current year's revenue, based partially on reduced charter-tuition reimbursement and $20,000 less in Regional Incentive Aid.
Medical insurance, special education and facilities are areas that, over the coming weeks and months, could significantly impact the proposed budget, either positively or negatively, Mock said. Those estimated costs must be finalized by the time the budget is certified in March.
With undesignated reserves of only about $493,000, plus anticipated excess and deficiency of $90,000, "We have very thin reserves considering the size of our budget," Mock stated.
The harsh reality
"Shirley is facing the dynamic of having to make up ground over a five-year period at a time that it is trying to get its finances in order, and even when you get to the point where the need had been addressed, just to maintain what you are doing from year to year, I cannot foresee that you can continue without an approximately $700,000 (two-town) increase," he said.
"Even with Shirley's makeup and going forward, if the student population continues the way they are trending now, to make up that on an annual basis, we will end up with a $400,000 increased assessment for Ayer, and $300,000 increased assessment for Shirley. That is all the current taxing authority the community has, plus its new growth on an annual basis. How is that sustainable? It is going to be a real challenge, but I think that is the kind of thing we have to be thinking about."
"With the limitations of the region and assessment formula," Mock continued, "the communities will have to be forced sooner, rather than later, to address an override, which the communities cannot avoid to do some catch-up," so long as the assessment formula is on a per pupil basis.
"Property values in the two towns are within a couple thousand dollars of each other in the two communities. If the two towns were to use the same change in the tax rate for those average tax rates, Ayer can raise 75 percent more per kid than Shirley. So long as the assessment formula is based on a per-pupil apportionment and not the ability to pay, then it will be difficult to maintain sustainability, in my opinion," he concluded. "It is a serious issue and a limiting factor in trying to address some of the issues I am talking about."
A word from Shirley
"What I see is more than double what I am budgeting," noted Shirley Town Administrator Patrice Garvin. "We have 2.5 percent to work with; I really don't see where the town of Shirley is going to get the additional revenue for the assessment ... We talk about sustainability, but I don't see how Shirley can sustain over the next year, let alone the next five years."
"We have to try and spend some time trying to figure out how we are going to solve the problem," said School Committee Chairman Pat Kelly, who suggested the committee meet with the two towns' boards of selectmen and finance committees.
Mock reiterated Ayer town officials' concern about Shirley's finances, and said Garvin and the selectmen were "trying to make some ground, which is a good place to start with."


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7. Rent extra glasses.
Town & Country's Brenda Collosi suggests three glasses per person because guests tend to drink different wines or lose track of their glass. (Face it, those wineglass charms don't work once the party starts rolling.) Yes, you could buy cheap glassware from Ikea, but then what? Renting gives you the option of one all-purpose glass or different sizes and shapes for red wine, white wine, Champagne or water. The breakage fee for a wine glass is usually about $2.50. The rent-extras rule also applies to place settings. "It's better to have extras for people who might stop by," Collosi said.
Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times
Copyright © 2018, Daily Press


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StockFlix is an online service that selects stocks based on advanced pattern recognition algorithms, which the company developed by itself from the ground up. The website is best suited for traders who do not have time to perform their own technical analysis, who would like a second opinion on their decisions or who are simply looking for new ideas. In essence, StockFlix simplifies the difficult process of technical analysis for its users.
StockFlix posts its stock picks before every trading day in the "Today's Picks" tab. There are four categories: Reverse to positive, Reverse to negative, Continue to positive and Continue to negative. Stocks in the Reverse to positive section have sold off recently and StockFlix expects a rally, whereas stocks in the Reverse to negative section have rallied and the website expects a sell-off. StockFlix expects stocks in the Continue to positive or negative sections to continue their current trends (i.e., rally or sell-off). Selecting a stock from the list will open its chart, which illustrates the pattern behind the expectation and displays the reversal and continuation statistical probabilities in an elegant and easy-to-follow format.
In the Forecast tab, users can search for almost any stock and see its chart and pattern. The only difference between the information on this tab and on the tab previously mentioned is that here the user gets to search for his own investments.
The most interesting feature on StockFlix resides in the Search tab. Here users can draw their own patterns and search for stocks that are currently displaying them or use classic patterns such as Head & Shoulders and Upward Break. Investments that match the pattern are presented near the bottom of the page. Time Machine is another interesting feature in the Search tab, as it allows users to identify historical patterns in almost any stock. The website will also load other companies that displayed a similar pattern.
Nevertheless, the potential use is to look up the pattern of stocks that recently experienced a rally, save the pattern and use it as a predictor of rallies in other investments. Aside from the problem of seeing patterns everywhere, the service also overlooks some key strategies in technical analysis. That is, StockFlix seems to rely on the short-term pattern, while discarding concepts such as support and resistance. One stock may rally because it is following a pattern, while another may just be hitting support.
StockFlix provides users with three options to access its service. As a guest, the user is anonymous, can only see four of the day's picks and is only able to analyze one stock. As a free registered user (no credit card required), the user can see eight of the day's picks, analyze stocks and search with classic patterns. The premium plan gives the user full access for $12 per month on an annual plan.
Price: Free with and without registration; premium use for $12 per month on an annual plan


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The announcement came during Sony's Game Developers Conference event today, with the company also demonstrating various games.
The PlayStation Move will be available in various forms, including a "starter kit" that includes the device, the required PlayStation Eye camera, and a game. Exact pricing wasn't disclosed, though Sony hopes the "starter kit" will be under $100.
The PlayStation Move and its Sub-Controller
The device will also be available separately and bundled with the PlayStation 3 console itself. As previously reported, the PlayStation Move works in conjunction with the PlayStation Eye camera peripheral to deliver 1:1 motion-tracking.
Also revealed was a wireless "PlayStation Move Sub-Controller." Similar to the Wii's Nunchuk, it features an analog stick to enable Move support in more traditional games. For example, SOCOM 4 will be fully playable with the PlayStation Move and its Sub-Controller, allowing gamers to move via Sub-Controller and aim with the Move.
Among the demonstrated titles was a mini-game compilation called "Sports Champion," which includes a gladiator game where players dual-wield two PlayStation Moves--one representing their shield, the other their swords--and table-tennis.
Another game, "Move Party," combined the PlayStation Eye's video feed with the PlayStation Move to actually players and their surrounding environment into the game. For example, a mini-game in which players must smash the virtual bugs in their real-life playing area. Other "Move Party" mini-games shown during the event included shape-tracing, hair cutting, and one where players bounce falling baby chicks into a nest.
Sports Champions and Move Party!
A Move-enhanced version of LittleBigPlanet was shown, with one player using the Move to manipulate environmental objects--removing obstacles, placing and moving objects to assist jumps--while the other controlled LBP's Sackboy with a regular controller.
Another on-stage demonstration showed a fighting game, "Motion Fighters," in which players dual-wield two Moves to punch, put opponents in headlocks, and so forth.
Various publishers, including Capcom (Resident Evil 5) and Electronic Arts (Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11), have already vowed to support the device when it arrives this fall--the same timeframe Microsoft's motion-sensitive Xbox 360 add-on Project Natal is due.


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In this last but not least Battle of the Books entry, we have a novel about spying, lying and boys.
Cammie Morgan attends the Gallager Academy for Exceptional Young Women. But this private boarding school is like no other – this is where all promising female spies learn the tricks of the trade. But no matter how many languages they learn or how much hacking they've done, the one subject the students at Gallager have not learned about is boys. After a chance meeting at a fair, Cammie has the chance to learn more – but how do you become an ordinary girl in a relationship with an ordinary boy when they can never know the truth?
Okay, I admit it. I'm only half way through this one but, having said that, it's pretty great. I wasn't sure about it at first because the story sounds a bit fluffy, but Cammie and her friends, Bex and Liz, are great characters. They had me laughing pretty quickly. And the best part is – the story only gets better from there. I don't want to give too much away, but I will add that the story isn't all fun and games. Some more serious issues are mentioned and handled but I'm sure that as I keep reading, I'll encounter laughter, drama, and spying at its best.
Have YOU read it? Tell us what you thought.


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I used to luv it,but now,i don't really play it much.
Started by babygotchi , Apr 28 2007 11:04 PM
Started28 Apr 2007
Last Post29 Apr 2007
Posted 29 April 2007 - 12:14 AM ( #2 )
Are you talking about the Nintendo 64 Super Smash Bros? Speaking of it I just played Super Smash Bros. Melee earlier. I hope to get the new one Super Smash Bros. Dojo (I think).


text:
That is true- however some people might be reading the book, and we don't want to spoil things for them.
Either way is fine by me.
EDIT: Actually, now that I think about it, having the threads done by topic means scrapping all the current threads. (Or, they'll die as the new topic threads get more hits.) Also, just how many topics per book will we need? What would constitute a topic worthy of a thread? We already jump around several threads talking about a topic- wouldn't be much of a change, in my opinion.


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Don't have much time to contribute today. I was surprised by John Harbaugh's candor yesterday, but it was a refreshing change of pace. I still think he needs to cool down on being so rough around the edges. I know it seems trivial, but I truly believe uptight coaches tend to not handle adversity quite as well.
But good for Harbs for taking responsibility for the team's struggles, emphatically stating that HE needed to improve, and admitting that he screwed up in making the comments he made about Dallas and Philadelphia.
Now he just has to figure the football part out. No problem, right?
Let's see what everyone else has to say….
Best of Monday's WNST Blogs:
Nestor Aparicio says Ravens 'exposed' in Queen City
Glenn Clark says Harbaugh had no update on Fabian Washington, Ngata
Drew Forrester gets feeling Ravens will bring in Mike Nugent or another kicker this week
Glenn Clark doesn't understand Cam Cameron's jump ball calls
Drew Forrester believes Ravens' biggest offseason mistake not acquiring better CB
Glenn Clark says Ray Rice best Raven in Cincinnati game, Drew Forrester picked Lardarius Webb
Bob Haynie now taking score picks for Monday Night Football game
Glenn Clark wishes John Harbaugh would stop trying to be Andy Reid
Derek Arnold says Ray Rice only offensive player who showed up against Cincy
Keith Melchior particularly critical of Frank Walker, Hauschka, Chris Carr, Terrell Suggs, Dawan Landry, Domonique Foxworth at midway point of season
Drew Forrester says Gabino could be O's next Jeremy Guthrie
Glenn Clark says Blast home opener against Rockford Rampage Jacksons amongst highlights of non-football week
Ed Frankovic says Ovechkin skated, but will miss Islanders game for Caps
The Official Site's John Eisenberg says Leon Hall, Jonathan Joseph biggest difference between Ravens, Bengals
The Official Site's Mike Duffy says Ngata felt like he could play Sunday in Cincinnati with sprained ankle
The Official Site's Mike Duffy says Harbaugh vague on Hauschka's future
The Official Site's Mike Duffy says Harbs accepted blame for team's struggles
The Official Site says Harbaugh 'disappointed' by comments he made about Cowboys, reached out to Jerry Jones to make amends
Browns Official Site's Zac Jackson says LB Marcus Bernard promoted from practice squad to active roster
Browns Official Site says Mangini will make QB decision Wednesday
The Sun's Jamison Hensley says NFL history suggests Ravens still very alive for postseason at 4-4
The Sun's Ken Murray says Harbaugh doesn't believe Ed Reed 'playing hurt'
The Sun's Mike Preston says Marvin Lewis took Derrick Mason, Kelley Washington out of game
The Sun's Ken Murray says despite bad game, Reed still had 5 tackles, forced Ochocinco fumble in loss
The Sun's Jamison Hensley says Hauschka 'struggling' to replace Matt Stover
The Sun's Ken Murray says NBC's Rodney Harrison thinks Ravens on 'life support'
Carroll County Times' Aaron Wilson says Todd Heap knows 'every game huge' rest of season
Carroll County Times' Aaron Wilson says Flacco had worst game of season against Bengals
The AP says schedule still includes Colts, Packers, Steelers twice as Ravens try to battle for playoff spot
Cleveland Plain Dealer's Mary Kay Cabot says Mangini already made decision between Derek Anderson, Brady Quinn; but hadn't informed QB yet
Akron Beacon Journal's Marla Ridenour says 3-4,000 tickets left for Monday night's game at Cleveland Browns Stadium against Ravens
USA Today's Sean Leahy says Browns could be blacked out for first time since return to NFL
Sporting News' Clifton Brown has Ravens 13th in power rankings
Sporting News' Vinnie Iyer says Ravens 'out of contention' in AFC North
NFL.com's Pat Kirwan says Ravens defense 'lost mojo'
CBS Sports' Pete Prisco gives Ravens C- for performance against Bengals
NBC Sports' Mike Florio has Ravens 13th in power rankings
ESPN.com's James Walker still thinks Ravens alive
ESPN.com's James Walker expects Brady Quinn to start Monday night
The Official Site's Spencer Fordin says Birds claimed RHP Armando Gabino from Twins
MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez says Jones, Markakis hoping to win Gold Glove Awards
The Sun says Gabino went 6-4 at Rochester last season
The Sun's Dean Jones Jr. says Brandon Snyder doubled for Phoenix Desert Dogs in Arizona Fall League action
The Official Site previews Saturday's contest with Virginia Tech
The Official Site offers complete Terps-Hokies release (pdf)
Virginia Tech Official Site offers complete MD-Va Tech release (pdf)
Virginia Tech Official Site says Hokies will wear new Nike Pro Combat uniforms
The Sun's Jeff Barker says Chris Turner questionable for VT game
The Sun's Jeff Barker says Terps strangely similar to Redskins
The Sun's Matt Bracken says future Terp Devin Burns had big weekend for Carver (Georgia)
The Diamondback's Adi Joseph says Jamarr Robinson had 'up and down' performance against NC State
The Diamondback's Michael Lemaire has Terps 12th in ACC power rankings
Washington Post's Eric Prisbell says Florida State will be without Christian Ponder when they play Maryland
Washington Times' Patrick Stevens says no TV time announced for game against Seminoles
Washington Times' Patrick Stevens says Torrey Smith honored by ACC
Washington Times' Patrick Stevens says Hokies wearing white to contrast Maryland's black
Sporting News' Matt Hayes has Terps 12th in ACC power rankings
Terrapin Times' Mark Clem says future Terp Tyler Smith can become Pennsylvania's all-time leading passer shortly (must subscribe)
Terrapin Times' Mark Clem says Atholton commit Matt Robinson could be diamond in rough for Maryland (must subscribe)
Examiner Matthew Bouchard says Athletic Department changed student ticket policy before season opener against Charleston Southern
The Diamondback's Michael Katz says Terps will need James Padgett to be 'reliable option' if Dino Gregory remains suspended
Fox Sports' Jeff Goodman says having Greivis Vasquez back should help Gary Williams' push to another NCAA Tournament
Terrapin Times' Dan Painter says St. Anthony prospect Ashton Pankey nearing decision (must subscribe)
The Official Site previews Saturday's Senior Day contest against Delaware
The Official Site offers complete Midshipmen-Blue Hens release (pdf)
The Official Site's Bob Socci says Pospisil has family history in Annapolis
The Official Site says Paul Johnson, George Welsh, Wayne Hardin best coaches in Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium history
Annapolis Capital's Bill Wagner says Niumatalolo expects Eric Douglass to start at center again
Washington Post's Camille Powell says Weis now 3-2 against Navy, 5-3 against service academies
Washington Examiner's Kevin Dunleavy says Mids 25th best team in country
Go Mids breaks down win over Notre Dame (must subscribe)
The Official Site says Tigers DT Ibia honored for academics
The Official Site says Devin Hewlett, Andrew Kase honored by Centennial Conference
Inside Lacrosse's Sean Burns says Rabil, Kyle Harrison amongst best players of decade
Frederick News-Post's Stan Goldberg says Jeremy Goode has been a nice 'fit' for Mountaineers
The Official Site says Regents Cup game against Frostburg Saturday pushed back to 4pm start
The Official Site says AIFA team signed former Flacco college teammate Kheon Hendricks
Daily Racing Form's Jay Privman says Zenyatta, Rachel Alexandra in fight for Horse of the Year
Thoroughbred Times' Mike Curry says Breeders' Cup Classic winner Zenyatta, Preakness winner Rachel Alexandra each have impressive credentials in debate
The AP says Michael Phelps missed two finals in World Cup event in Stockholm
The AP says Garrett County's Darvin Moon fell to Joe Cada in finals of World Series of Poker
-Maryland is just as well to have Jamarr Robinson start Saturday. Not because he'll be any better than Chris Turner, but hopefully his wheels will at least keep him alive.
Talk to you tomorrow.


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When local country music station WKLB launched nearly 20 years ago, music director Ginny Rogers had a very difficult job.
"I remember back in the '90s trying to get George Strait to play up here and his booking agent said, 'Well, there aren't that many country music fans in the Boston and New England area, so we don't like to come up there too often,' " she recalls. "And I was scratching my head and saying, 'You're wrong, they're here. We need the acts to come up because we know our listeners are out there.' "
They certainly are. In the most recent Arbitron ratings, WKLB-FM (102.5) ranked third in listeners behind WXKS-FM (KISS 108) and WMJX-FM (Magic 106.7). The station has consistently ranked in the top five since 2010. That is a marked contrast, says program director Mike Brophey, to a decade ago when "we used to pray to be in the top 10 once in a while."
Thanks in part to those listeners, earlier this month Rogers and Brophey — who are married — were on hand at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville to accept the trophy for the major market radio station of the year during the telecast of the 46th annual CMA (Country Music Association) Awards on ABC.
It's been a boom time for country music in Boston. The same week WKLB was notified of its CMA win, country star Jason Aldean bested the likes of the Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, and Boston's own Aerosmith by selling out Fenway Park in just seven minutes. Aldean, who recently hit number one on the Billboard album chart with his latest release, "Night Train," quickly added a second show at the historic ballyard, which sold out in 45 minutes. Shortly thereafter, Taylor Swift — who replaced Aldean at the top of the Billboard album chart — announced a July 27 show at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, where the pop-country thrush has entertained three previous sell-out crowds herself; and Kenny Chesney just announced his annual Gillette appearance on Aug. 24.
While country music, both of the mainstream and alternative varieties, has always been popular in New England and Massachusetts —
Artists like Lady Antebellum, the Zac Brown Band, and Miranda Lambert have played at the Agganis Arena and Bank of America Pavilion. Keith Urban, Tim McGraw, and Faith Hill have lit up the TD Garden. Rising stars like Randy Houser and Jamey Johnson logged time on the stage at the Paradise. The Boston Pops have increasingly invited country stars like Toby Keith and Rascal Flatts to take part in the annual Fourth of July celebration at the DCR Hatch Shell. And this is all in addition to the perennial parade of country stars that play at the Comcast Center in Mansfield like Keith, Rascal Flatts, and Brad Paisley.
Additionally, the CMA has begun hosting its prestigious songwriters series at Royale in the Theatre District, attracting major country stars like Carrie Underwood this past summer and Chesney last year. "We want to keep Boston in the loop," says CMA CEO Steve Moore. "It has always been a good market, but I have seen it over the last several years just continue to get more robust."
While the country format has risen to a higher visibility nationwide over the last few years thanks to a musical evolution that finds artists like Swift, Aldean, and Lady Antebellum incorporating more Top 40 pop and rock sounds into the genre — which is the number one radio format in the US — industry observers say that in Boston and New England, access and promotion have been equally important.
"WKLB is the factor that has changed the scene here in Boston," says Dave Marsden, senior vice president of booking at Live Nation New England. "The job they've done is astounding. Before 'KLB you couldn't effectively promote country music anywhere in this market," he says, recalling a disappointing turnout for a Comcast Center (then Great Woods) show by superstar Garth Brooks in the pre-KLB era.
A station in Boston winning a CMA Award, which are peer-voted and judged on airchecks, ratings history, community involvement, and format leadership, is significant for several reasons, says the CMA's Moore.
"The conventional wisdom is there aren't many country music fans in the upper Northeast," he says. "You and I both know that's simply not true; there's really some of the most ardent fans in the country. It is such a vibrant market for country music and the station has been a big part of that number one. Number two, [the winners are] voted by their peers, so other radio station executives and participants across the country get to select who they think has made the most impact."
Chesney, who has sold out nine shows at Gillette Stadium over the last seven years, concurred when speaking to the Globe this summer. "The fans up there, shoot, they're more than fans, they're family. I mean that. This thing we've built with them over the years — even when we were playing the small clubs and the amphitheaters, it was just a passionate bunch of people."
That passion was something Rogers and Brophey identified early and have slowly convinced the country booking agents and artists exists.
"We gave them a comfort level," says Rogers. "As they saw the ratings grow they realized, 'We do need to play up there more often.' "
The station also brought budding artists into the city to play its acoustic "Rockin' Country Music" series at the Hard Rock Cafe over the last four years, including now-big names like "The Voice" star Blake Shelton. "I think the promoters and the artists realize that it is cool to play downtown Boston, and the people that live in the city do listen to country music and it's not just the suburbs," Rogers says.
When calculating the surge in local popularity, all concede the fact that country music is closer than ever to pop music is a major element.
"The music is better than it ever has been before," says Brophey. "I've been involved in country since 1984 and the early '90s was a heyday with Garth Brooks, Reba McEntire, and Brooks and Dunn, and that was huge. But it's also more varied than it's ever been."
"Country music has evolved into a really great blend of the music people [the current artists'] age have grown up on," says Rogers, of contemporary country acts who were reared on rock and top 40 as well as country. "So those rock people have come over because they're a little disenfranchised. Pop people have come over because we're easier to listen to. We try to make a mix where everyone of all ages are satisfied."
"Maybe it's more defined now because of the stark differences of the artists," says Moore. "If you look at the country music spectrum you can find just about every flavor. But clearly the newer acts lean more heavily pop and rock than some of the more traditional fare and that's led to some making the tent bigger."
That bigger tent also helped welcome New Englanders with outmoded images in their heads about the genre.
"We think that people were afraid they were going to have to go out and buy boots and a cowboy hat and learn line-dancing to be part of the format, when nothing could be further from the truth," says Rogers. "When people reference bull riding and hay bales that's so not us. We've spent 20 years trying to cast aside those stereotypes."
"It really is America's pop music now," says Marsden.Sarah Rodman can be reached at email@example.com. Follow her on Twitter @GlobeRodman.