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The Los Angeles Angels traded Mike Napoli and Juan Rivera to the Toronto Blue Jays on Jan. 21, 2011, taking back outfielder Vernon Wells and his historically bad contract.
The Angels didn't mind the risk. Manager Mike Scioscia was not a fan of Napoli, believing his below-average catching skills were a detriment to the team. Napoli resented what he thought was unwarranted criticism from Scioscia and the two did not get along well.
The Blue Jays weren't impressed with Napoli, either. They traded him to the Texas Rangers four days later for Frank Francisco, a righthanded reliever best known for throwing a folding chair at a fan in 2004 and getting arrested.
Two seasons later, Napoli is one of the centerpiece players in the free agent market and literally is touring the length and breadth of the nation collecting offers. He has had meetings with the Mariners, Red Sox, and on Tuesday the Rangers.
Napoli is in a position to secure a lucrative deal of at least three years and $30 million. Odds are it will be for more.
What happened?
Simply put, Napoli proved to be a better player than the Angels and Blue Jays thought. The 31-year-old has hit .275 with 54 home runs and 131 RBIs over 221 games the last two seasons. Among righthanded hitters, his OPS of .931 is the fifth-best in baseball since the start of the 2011 season. Only four superstar-level players — Miguel Cabrera, Jose Bautista, Ryan Braun, and Matt Kemp — are higher.
The fact that Napoli provides such offense as a catcher makes him even more valuable. He also offers the versatility of being able to play first base.
The other major element that has served to raise his stock in the eyes of baseball executives is the lack of depth in the free agent market. Napoli, Russell Martin, and A.J. Pierzynski are the only free agent catchers who were regulars last season.
If you consider Napoli as a first baseman, which the Red Sox do, the pool is a little deeper, but not much.
Nick Swisher, who has been primarily an outfielder, can play first base. Adam LaRoche is coming off a career season for the Nationals and is available, but Washington hopes to keep him and has the money to accomplish that.
Then you get to fading stars like Lance Berkman, Eric Chavez, and Kevin Youkilis.
The Rangers value Napoli but did not tender him a qualifying offer of one year and $13.3 million. That also helped to increase his value, as the team signing him will not have to forfeit a draft pick as compensation.
Add it up and Napoli may never be in a more advantageous position. Not bad for a player who has made the All-Star Game once in his seven-year career and hit .227 over 108 games last season.
The Red Sox have made Napoli one of their top targets, believing his power would mesh well with that of the lefthanded-hitting David Ortiz in the middle of their lineup. They also are attracted to his .379 on-base percentage over the last two seasons.
Napoli was in Boston over the weekend and met with Red Sox owner John Henry, general manager Ben Cherington, and manager John Farrell.
Napoli has hit particularly well against the Red Sox in his career, especially at Fenway Park. Much like Jonny Gomes, an outfielder who agreed to terms last week, Napoli has the kind of swing that should benefit from playing at Fenway.
Napoli also represents a realistic method for the Red Sox to improve, as opposed to the idea of trading lefthander Jon Lester to Kansas City for outfield prospect Wil Myers. The Royals made that overture, according to major league sources, and were turned down.
The Mariners view Napoli as a catcher, at least for 2013. With the fences being moved in at Safeco Field, they also see him as a cure for a weak offense.
Texas may be the team to beat. Napoli has been comfortable there and values his relationship with manager Ron Washington after the friction with Scioscia.
"I love playing in Texas," Napoli told ESPN Dallas after the season. "I love the atmosphere there, the clubhouse, playing for Wash, a winning ball club. I love playing there.
"I know how the Rangers clubhouse is, and it's amazing. I've never been a part of anything like that in terms of chemistry and how everyone is.
"There's been a bunch of teams that have called my agent and shown interest, and we're going to listen and see what they have to say."
Napoli missed 33 games last season with a left quad strain. When he returned in September, he had a 1.051 OPS over 16 games with 7 home runs and 16 RBIs.
With the winter meetings starting Monday in Nashville, the teams involved would like to reach a conclusion with Napoli, if only to avoid the market getting hotter.
The Red Sox also need a right fielder and a starting pitcher. Landing Napoli would be a major step forward in their offseason plan.Peter Abraham can be reached at email@example.com. Follow him on Twitter @PeteAbe.


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LAS VEGAS – John Shurna had a strong showing as a member of the Milwaukee Bucks summer league team, wrapping up play with a 14-point performance on July 19.
Shurna, a Glenbard West High School graduate and the all-time leading scorer at Northwestern University, averaged 9.4 points in five contests for the Bucks. He shot 46 percent from beyond the three-point arc, making a team-high 12 threes.
He also connected on 90 percent of his free throw attempts and added 3.4 rebounds per outing.
A year ago, Shurna played for the Atlanta Hawks summer squad before attending training camp with the New York Knicks. After being cut, the forward went on to have a successful season with Strasbourg of the top French league.

subset: commoncrawl


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LOS ANGELES — Perhaps you saw "Survive And Advance," the stirring documentary on North Carolina State's 1983 NCAA championship.
The producers were kind enough to include possibly the most entertaining game in the history of that tournament, Houston's 94-81 slam-dance over Louisville in the semifinals.
As the Cougars and Cardinals played 40 minutes in anti-gravity boots, a stunned Roger Valdiserri tuned to his cohorts on press row.
"Ladies and gentlemen," said the Notre Dame sports information director, "welcome to the 21st century."
Well, now we're well into the 21st century.
Why does it feel like the 19th?
"You'll never see that type of college basketball game again," said Dave Dickerson, the Ohio State associate coach.
We're accustomed to believe that all our sports will develop into something better. But college hoops has devolved.
It has become the equivalent of the cloth diaper and the dial-up telephone. It is much more about survival than advancement.
The 1983 N.C. State team came back from the abyss to beat teams staffed by Michael Jordan, Sam Perkins, Sidney Green, Clyde Drexler and Hakeem Olajuwon.
Today's equivalent players would be John Wall, Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins, all of whom turned pro early.
But the problem is a game-wide lack of skill. Where is it? Trapped inside a weight room or a coach's playbook? If so, no one seems to be paying the ransom.
"Shooting is at a premium now," said Dickerson, who played at Maryland in the late '80s and was an assistant when Maryland won the '02 championship.
"You have to recruit it. Take a bad shooter and make him great? It doesn't happen every day. There's an emphasis on defending, driving the ball and getting to the foul line."
Northwestern State averaged 81 points per game in the regular season, Iowa 80.7 and Indiana 80. They ranked 1-2-3 in scoring.
UCLA scored 74.8 — you know, in Ben Howland's hidebound, sclerotic offense — and led the Pac-12.
Ten seasons ago, 16 teams averaged 80 points, led by Arizona's 85.2.
In 1995, UCLA's national championship team averaged 87.3.
Division I teams averaged 76.7 points in 1991, 68.1 last year. In 1984, the year after the miracle Wolfpack, the average field-goal percentage reached a record 48.1. Last season it settled down to 43.6.
You might remember that the advent of the 3-point shot nationally (in the 1987 season) and the shot clock (1986) were supposed to promote points and make upsets impossible.
"Strange as it might sound, the 3-point line has affected it the other way," Dickerson said. "A lot of guys think they can make 3s and they aren't great shooters."
It once was considered herculean to hold a team to less than 40 percent shooting. This year Western Illinois' defense stopped opponents at exactly 40 percent. It ranked 48th in Division I.
Ohio State and VCU were the only teams to reach 88 points in the first week of the NCAA Tournament. Illinois shot 13 percent in the second half against Colorado, and won.
The slashing, basket-attacking guard now disappears into a thicket of weightlifters, or runs over a defender for a charging foul or, more likely, gets bumped off his stride without a whistle.
The NBA solved its scoring problem by calling off-the-ball fouls. The NCAA, for some reason, is reluctant.
"The physicality has changed the way we coach," Dickerson said. "We didn't have a strength coach when I played. Now we have one of the best in the country, and he travels with us everywhere.
"The play off the ball is more restricted than it used to be. Guys can't go from Point A to Point C. It's not free-flowing. And when you have that many long, athletic guys, they can make up for defensive mistakes."
The college game has also been consumed by the pick-and-roll. With restricted practice time, it's easier to teach. It requires less dexterity than the five-man motion offenses. But it also requires more oomph.
"I never played pick-and-roll," Dickerson said. "Some teams have five ways to defend it. A lot of people use it — and a lot of people aren't getting anything out of it because of the physicality."
Ohio State's average Big Ten score this year was 64.7 to 56.5 and the Buckeyes never scored more than 74 in league.
"In reality, if you can win 65-62, you're happy," Dickerson said.
"Then we played Iowa State last Sunday, and we hadn't seen a team like that. They had five guys who could shoot the 3."
That one was 78-75. Seemed almost lifelike.
College basketball has devolved over time
LOS ANGELES — Perhaps you saw "Survive And Advance," the stirring documentary on North Carolina State's 1983 NCAA championship.


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We are going to Miss Joe so much!! Just driving past the ballpark and seeing just his saying in lights, i saluted Joe and thanked him for the memories!
You knew the day was coming. It was obvious in his physical appearance, though his voice was fine. And I really expected it, but you don't prepare yourself to ever lose a grandpa. That's what he was -- every Reds fan's grandpa.
Matt, you did a great job. Thanks.
Yeah, that was an awesome tribute Matt, and thanks for sharing it on here.
I stopped on my way home from work tonight and bought a dozen roses for my wife. She was very happy (probably a little shocked as well) and understood when I said that eleven of them were for her. I plan on getting down to the football game a little early on Sunday and laying the twelfth by Joe's statue.
This thread has been very cathartic for me today. I'd visit periodically and read a few posts until I'd start to mist up, then close up my browser only to be drawn back a few hours later. I finally read through the whole thing once I got home. I also took the time to watch and listen to all of the tributes...which brought on more tears. Like most of you, it's been a rough day for me. I'm surprised by how much I've been affected by the loss of a man that I never actually met. I can only guess that that speaks to the character of the man we lost. I may have never met Joe but I certainly felt like I knew him and that I was a better person for having known him. I take some solace in knowing, or at least hoping, that Joe had some sense of just what he meant to so many people.
My wife and I went to a movie tonight, saw some friends and went to Sitwells with them. Afterward we decided to go down to GABP. We called our oldest daughter and she went with us. Very nice scene, not overflowing with stuff, which was nice. It's blurry, but here's a shot from my phone.
In the same way that a baseball season never really begins, it never really ends either. - Lonnie Wheeler, "Bleachers, A Summer in Wrigley Field"
The Baseball Emporium - Books & Things, that's Rallyonion.com
The Baseball Bookstore
I remember Joe when I was in the fourth grade, coming to our school and signing autographs for every kid in the school. Had something nice to say to every one of us, like how you doing young fella, are you gonna play for the Reds someday? Something, you know, that didn't make you feel like he was being burdened to sign all those autographs. It wasn't just a job or a chore to him, he honestly enjoyed being around us kids.
I am struck by the number of references to grandfathers in this thread. I used to love sitting around the fire at Bar K lake and listening to Joe and Marty and even Al Michaels before him with my grandfather. This is a very sad day for me.
the store for all your blade, costuming (in any regard), leather (also in any regard), and steel craft needs.www.facebook.com/tdhshop
yes, this really is how we make our living.
Good job, Matt! I really enjoyed listening to the mp3.
I've often heard "There is no crying in Baseball".
That's not so.
God Bless You Joe.
Very good job, Matt.
And thank you very much for the picture, Redsmetz.
whisper words of wisdom
I wrote a book!
My AmazonShort
My other AmazonShort
Thanks, Matt. It brought tears to my eyes.
Talent is God Given: be humble.
Fame is man given: be thankful.
Conceit is self given: be careful.
John Wooden
A thousand thanks Matt. Love having that file. Even though it is making me cry.
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Seriously, I don't think I can read much more of these. My allergies are really starting to kick up.
When I was in high school, my friends and I rescued a black lab mix puppy from a neighbor kid who had found her and some other puppies and caught her before the others ran away. He thought it was funny to give her beer and vodka, so that when we saw him playing with her, she was too drunk to walk. When he told us to watch the dog while he went to the bathroom, a friend stuffed the dog in her shirt and started to walk away. When he came out, two of us stayed behind and told him the owner came and claimed the puppy. Then we went to meet up with our other friends. Since my family didn't have a dog, I was elected to keep it overnight until we could find it a home. When my mom came home, she just couldn't resist and let me keep her. She became our family dog and was one of the most lovable and well behaved dogs ever. Fast forward 15 years. The week before my wedding I got a call from my parents. Brandy had had a stroke. My dad and my sister had taken her to the vet and had her put down. Since I was in Chicago, I was too far away to be there, and so they didn't tell me until after it was done. I still wish I could have been there to say goodbye.
Darn it. There go the allergies again.


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* Workers reached three-year wage deal on Sunday * Toyota, BMW see full production this week * Financial impact on automakers still unknown By Wendell Roelf CAPE TOWN, Oct 7 (Reuters) - BMW said on Monday the labour situation in South Africa remained "inherently unstable" and it had no plans to reverse a freeze on expansion, even after car parts makers ended a four-week strike. Car makers told Reuters they were hoping to return to full production later this week, after ...
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My 4 month old has been battling a cold for the past 10 days. Some days are better than others, but he's extremely congested to the point where he's having trouble nursing at times and is also throwing up mucus and throwing up when he coughs. At his 4 month appointment on 4/1 he was 14.5 lbs. When my hubby took him to the doctors to make sure he didn't have anything more than a cold on 4/16, he was 14.7 lbs. He had been gaining an ounce a day between 3 and 4 months. Is this a normal result of his illness or do I worry? He has had some days of slowed appetite, but is otherwise hungry and eating.
Thank you for the perspective.


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Miami Heat fans turned away by security after leaving OT game early
Update: Heat forward Chris Bosh had a message today for the fans who left game 6 early:
"For all those guys who left, don't come back for Game 7." - Chris Bosh— Ryan Wolstat (@WolstatSun) June 19, 2013
Celtics fans were likely annoyed that it was a clutch 3-pointer from Ray Allen that sent the Miami Heat into overtime against the San Antonio Spurs last night on the way to a series saving victory, but it might make them feel better to know plenty of Heat fans didn't even see it. With 30 seconds left and the Heat down by 5, some fans gave up on their team and headed to the exits. The Heat came back and won the game, and the fans rushed back to the arena only to be turned away by security.
In the last 15 years of the NBA playoffs, teams have won 98.6 percent of the time when leading by five points with between 20 and 30 seconds left, according to ESPN. These "fans" missed out on the incredible 1.4 percent to...beat traffic?
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Airtight Games started out as a small group of game developers from Microsoft Games Studios. Jim Deal, Matt Brunner, and Ed Fries had a lot of game ideas, so they created the studio in late 2003. The team recently released Quantum Conundrum.
The name widely associated with the game was Kim Swift, swiped from Valve after her work on Portal and Left 4 Dead. Given the acclaim that those two games received, Airtight was interested in working with Swift when she approached the team and formulated the idea for Quantum Conundrum.
"We invited Kim to work with us a number of years ago when we saw that she was looking for a place to set down roots and make the kinds of games she was passionate about making," Brunner said. "From the beginning, we tried to give her the space to create a team culture that supported her vision. Quantum Conundrum is a brainchild of her particular way of developing with a team where everyone has a creative voice. They found a mechanic and idea that began to sing for them and then went nuts with it. Square Enix was totally supportive of the process and let the team do their thing, full steam ahead."
Brunner said the team has learned greatly from Swift's approach to game development, an approach that has proven beneficial to development as a whole. "We've always believed that the most creative results come from teams that are totally invested, given the freedom to think creatively, and implement their ideas as friction-free as possible. This is easier with a team that is in the 15-25 range, of course. As soon as you get into a team size of 50-100, the dynamic shifts, out of necessity, to a more organizational structure. We've learned a lot from Kim's totally democratic way of working and we hope it spreads, like a pleasure virus, through all our future development. The most obvious side effect for this kind of development is that people see their ideas showing up on-screen and feel like the time they personally put into the development of an IP is not wasted. It's so simple, but hardly ever happens in this industry. The result is an amazing ecosystem for generating IP's."
Quantum Conundrum spent six months in development before Square Enix took up the publishing rights. When the game released shortly thereafter, it inevitably drew comparisons to Swift's previous project, Portal. Trying to distinguish Portal from Quantum Conundrum proved to be a major challenge for Airtight. One way in which the studio helped accomplish this goal was by making the latter more of a team-based project.
"Anytime an artist applies their aesthetic to a project, it's going to have some overlap," explained Brunner. "However, Quantum Conundrum was as much a team effort as it was an auteur-inspired creation. That naturally turned it into its own creature. Both are puzzle games that exploit physics and a quirky sense of humor. After that, the resemblance disappears. Quantum Conundrum stands out proudly as a unique take on a type of game, not as a derivation of a previous IP."
BOOM video 13175
With Quantum Conundrum behind them, Airtight has shifted their focus to mobile games, under a new Airtight Mobile banner. The first of these games, Pixld, was released in late October for iOS devices.
"Honestly, for me, it really comes down to making fun games, no matter the platform," senior animator Doug Magruder said. "We had an idea for a simple little game, then a couple of us decided to start making it to see if it was as fun as we thought it would be, and no one ever told us to stop. In fact, everyone encouraged us and helped us out whenever we asked."
With a shift in direction came a shift in scope, as Magruder spoke of the size difference and timetables for mobile projects. "In mobile, there are very few barriers to getting an idea from paper to device. You can take an idea and get it out into the world quickly. As a result, you can make a fun little game, get it out to people, and you don't need a massive team to do it. My boss can let me hang out with a programmer for a couple of months and make an awesome little game for a mobile device."
Airtight continues to work on a number of unannounced mobile projects for the future. However, they have not left their PC and console audience behind. Brunner says Airtight is working with some mid-level IPs alongside some publishing partners. There's also a large-scale console title in the works that the studio is not ready to talk about at this time. Brunner added, "For us, it's not about the platform as much, as it is about the ideas, the energy, and the game."


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LOWELL -- A 2-month-old boy who was found unconscious in his Mammoth Road home Saturday afternoon is in critical condition in a Boston trauma center, and his 22-year-old father, a veteran of the war in Afghanistan, is being held without bail.
Christopher Berry, 22, of Lowell, is being held without bail on a single count of assault and battery on a child causing substantial bodily injury. Police accuse Berry of causing his son's injuries.
"His injuries are not consistent with accidental trauma," said Stephanie Guyotte, a spokeswoman for Middlesex District Attorney Marion Ryan.
Berry, who also has a pending case for animal cruelty in Lowell District Court, has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of his service with the Army National Guard in Afghanistan in 2010 and 2011, according to his attorney in the animal-cruelty case.
Berry was in a vehicle that was blown up by a suicide bomber during his service in Afghanistan.
Berry was arrested Saturday after emergency crews were called to 215 Mammoth Road and found the 2-month-old unconscious. The infant was taken to Lowell General Hospital and then transferred to Tufts Floating Hospital for Children, where he was in critical condition Sunday night, according to Guyotte.
Berry was in Lowell District Court on the day his son was born, according to a story published in The Sun. In early March, Berry was in court for a change-of-plea hearing in connection with four criminal cases he is facing. He appeared in court wearing his military uniform, and his attorney, Elliot Savitz, told a judge that Berry appeared in court even though his fiancee gave birth to their child that morning.
On Aug. 25, 2011, Berry was arrested and charged with forcing his girlfriend out of a chair and violently shoving her out the door of their apartment.
Three days later, on Aug. 28, Barry allegedly lured a flock of pigeons into a parking lot in Billerica and then drove his car through the flock, killing six birds. That incident led to the animal-cruelty charges.
He is also charged with breaking and entering and larceny for allegedly breaking into an auto-parts store in Billerica three months later, and he is also facing larceny charges for allegedly stealing a gaming system in Tewksbury on Oct. 27, 2011.
At the change-of-plea hearing in early March, Savitz told a judge Berry suffers from PTSD due to his service in Afghanistan. Savitz said Berry continues to serve in the Army National Guard, and that he is a student at ITT Tech.
Berry and Savitz were hoping a judge would allow Berry to plea to sufficient facts without a finding, because a guilty verdict would lead to his client being kicked out of the Army National Guard.
The judge refused, and therefore Berry refused to change his not guilty plea.
The prosecutor in the animal cruelty case, Assistant District Attorney Kate Hartigan, had requested a two year jail sentence for the animal cruelty charges, with one year to serve. She described the case as "disturbing."
Berry was held without bail on the accusations he assaulted his son. He will be arraigned Monday in Lowell District Court.


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No nomination papers had been filed with Mary Boege, South Tama School Board secretary, as of mid-morning on Friday, July 12.
The deadline to file for two seats on the Sept. 10 school election ballot is Aug. 1 at 5 p.m. Papers may be obtained at the South Tama Administration Building, 1701 Harding, Tama, Monday - Friday, 7:30 a.m.-noon and 12:30 - 4:30 p.m.
Michelle Yuska, Toledo, has previously announced she will seek a third four-year term representing Director District 1.
Ron Hala, rural Toledo, District 4 director had not decided whether to also seek a third, four-year term he indicated earlier.
Candidates must live within the boundaries of the district they seek to represent. District voters vote for all school board seats.


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FRIDAY, March 4
"SUPERNATURAL" - (9:00-10:00 p.m. ET)
"And Then There Were None" (CONTENT RATING TBD) (HDTV)
SAMUEL JOINS UP WITH SAM AND DEAN - Sam (Jared Padalecki), Dean (Jensen Ackles) and Bobby (Jim Beaver) set out in search of The Mother of All's latest monster. While investigating, they run into Samuel (guest star Mitch Pileggi) and Gwen (guest star Jessica Heafey), who are also hunting the creature. Samuel and Bobby get into a heated fight about how to handle the case. Mike Rohl directed the episode written by Bret Matthews (#616).


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Free Mulch is Available
Need free mulch for your water-wise landscaping projects?
Mulch is available on a first come first serve basis. If you have a truck to fill up or just need a trash can full you can come by and get it (bring a shovel)! This is a very busy time of year for landscaping so the mulch bin may be empty.
Forestry Operations Center Location:
Take I-25 to Fontanero, Exit #144, travel east to Recreation Way, travel south on Recreation Way to 1601 Recreation Way (big metal bldg. with Forestry Operations Center sign in front and fence around it). The free mulch pile is on the WEST side of the street, across from that building and homeowners can load up what you need! (Not for commercial use or resale.)
You can drop off your own yard waste:
Drop off your leaves, tree clippings, old fence wood, etc. (NOT painted wood) at Rocky Top Resources, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays, FREE with a canned good donation for Care and Share. Rocky Top Resources is located at


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Entombed for Over 2000 Years, Warriors of China's First Emperor, Arrive in Sydney
A security guard walks about at the exhibition of "The First Emperor, China's entombed warriors" at the Art Gallery of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, Tuesday, Nov. 30, 2010. Discovered by villagers in 1974, the underground army was created to protect the first emperor of China, Qin Shihuang (259-210 BC) in readiness for the afterlife. AP Photo/Jeremy Piper.
The First Emperor: Chinas entombed warriors brings to Sydney one of the greatest archaeological discoveries of our time. Australia was the first country outside China to see these figures in the exhibition Qin Shihuang: Terracotta warriors and horses in Sydney in early 1983. It is therefore fitting that the
Art Gallery of New South Wales
should organise their return in an exhibition presenting over 120 objects, with 10 of the world-renowned warriors and horses, and significant recent finds from the First Emperors mausoleum located in the province of Xian, central China.
You think that the China of 2000 years ago is long dead and buried? Far from it. Every day, as the archaeologists toil away around the burial mound of one of the most remarkable figures in the history of China The First Emperor new finds and moments of the wealth of Chinas ancient past are revealed. This is an epic story that has begun but is far from fully told. - Edmund Capon
This exhibition explores the period of Chinese history preceding the Qin dynasty of the First Emperor, and then establishes his considerable achievements. Through a display that evokes the actual pits of the entombed warriors, visitors are given an unprecedented opportunity to examine up close the intricacies of these wondrous life-size figures. The final section of the exhibition adds to the evolving story with a number of recently discovered objects.
The First Emperor: Chinas entombed warriors is curated by the Gallerys director, Edmund Capon, a renowned authority on Chinese art and archaeology, and Dr Liu Yang, senior curator of Chinese Art. Edmund Capon was one of the first westerners to see the initial find in 1974. The exhibition is designed by Richard Johnson, architect of the Gallerys superb Asian gallery and its acclaimed exhibitions The arts of Islam (2007) and The lost Buddhas (2008).
The exhibition is drawn from institutions including the Museum of Terracotta Warriors and Horses, the Shaanxi Provincial Archaeological Institute and the Shaanxi History Museum.
What is so remarkable about the First Emperors buried army is not only its immense scale but its authenticity and realism.For here [are] images of the scale, presence and detail of real people that is totally without precedent. - Edmund Capon
There is no other individual who has so impressed himself on the unfolding drama of the history of the Middle Kingdom. From the moment Qin Shihuang (259206 BCE) ascended to the throne of the Qin State at the tender age of 13 he began to plan his burial one mans quest for immortality has created such universal fascination and an enduring a legacy.
Qin Shihuang is an almost mythical figure from Chineses ancient past, variously described as a cruel and brutal ruler, and a hero and revolutionary. Above all he is renowned as the founder of a united China. Born at a time of turmoil in Chinas history, known as the Warring States period (475221 BCE), Qin Shihuang was the founder of the short-lived Qin dynasty (221210 BCE). He transformed the seven warring states into one nation and himself from stately king to First Emperor.
The rulers of the State of Qin played their indispensable parts over centuries as they gradually expanded their domain of neighbouring states with unerring military determination, culminating in the ultimate victory of uniting a once divided empire. Qin Shihuang was the ruler to accomplish this task. The exhibition presents carefully selected objects including bronze ritual and jade artefacts, gold and silver ornaments, and palatial architectural components that illustrate the emergence of the Qin State.
The First Emperor is remembered not only as a tyrant, but also for abolishing the old system of feudal investiture and establishing a new hierarchical system of administration throughout the country. He unified the code of laws; standardised the script, measures and currency; initiated gigantic projects such as the final construction of the Great Wall; built highways to facilitate communication; and, of course constructed his final testament to his own immortality this overwhelming burial.
The Terracotta Army was discovered in 1974 approximately 1km from the Emperors tomb. Local farmers were drilling a well and discovered fragments of terracotta figures. Shortly after, Chinese archaeologists excavated three pits containing what is estimated to be more than 7000 terracotta warriors of different ranks together with horses and chariots all designed to protect the Emperor in his afterlife. These figures, created 2200 years ago, are a triumph of realism. They each have a wondrous, animated, realistic style, a radical departure from the symbolic bronzes of earlier dynasties.
The more recent discoveries in the exhibition include three exquisite bronze birds that, together with other animals and acrobats, were designed to entertain the Emperor in the afterlife. Found 900 metres from the outside wall of the tomb were 46 life-sized birds all lining the banks of an artificial watercourse, believed to be a scene of court musicians training birds in the royal park. A number of suites of armour recovered from the pit nearest the tomb are also included in the exhibition.
It is important to note that the actual tomb of Qin Shihuang remains an unopened burial mound. This, perhaps, will be the greatest discovery for the next generation. But Qin Shihuangs ideas about life after death are reflected by what we find around his tomb, a great underground palace complex a complete departure from previous tombs. His intention was nothing less than never-ending rule over the universe. He wanted to live forever and now, more than 2000 years later, some may say he has succeeded!
Art Gallery of New South Wales
The First Emperor
Qin Shihuang: Terracotta Warriors
Today's News
December 1, 2010
Entombed for Over 2000 Years, Warriors of China's First Emperor, Arrive in Sydney
Christie's to Present Important Auctions of Antiquities and Ancient Jewelry in December
Tragic Jackie Kennedy Image and Rare Marilyn Monroe Photo for Sale at Bonhams
Impressionist & Modern Art Sale at Sotheby's in Paris Includes an André Masson Masterpiece
Picture Bought for Its Frame in Devon Sells for $78,000 at Bonhams Canadian Art Sale
Kunsthaus Lempertz to Hold Contemporary Art and Photography Auction
Miami's Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden Presents Exhibition of Renowned Franch Artists
The Rockefellers and Their Astonishing Cultural Legacy Explored in New Book
Jewels & Objects Formerly in the Collection of The Duchess of Windsor Sell for Double-Estimate
Braginsky Collection of Rare Illuminated Hebrew Manuscripts Premieres at Israel Museum
Fresh Collapse of Wall at the Archaeological Site of Pompeii Sparks More Concern
Bob Dylan's Lyrics for "The Times They are A-Changin'" to Sell at Sotheby's in New York City
The Phillips Collection Releases Official Free App for iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch
Jewish Museum in London Shortlisted for Major Award
Art Gallery of New South Wales Receives Important Collection from Mollie Gowing
Drawings and Sketches that Reflect Mexico's Independence Period Published
David Bomberg Drawings Acquired by Ben Uri Gallery with Help from the Art Fund
Smithsonian Acquires Several Important Archives
Smithonian's National Portrait Gallery Removes Video After Group Complains
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New Rembrandt found after being bought at London auction
Exhibition at Fotohof focuses on groups in society who are at risk of marginalisation
John Brennan collection of Rock n Roll memorabilia offered at RR Auction
A Bob Dylan guitar fetches $495,000 at auction
Exhibition in San Francisco focuses on the latter half of René Magritte's career
'Mad' king Ludwig II of Bavaria lost gift to composer Richard Wagner gets rare show
New Royal Academy of Arts opens in celebration of its 250th anniversary
Researchers uncover Anne Frank's 'dirty jokes'in her diary
New York art sales near $3 billion in two weeks as uber-rich hunt trophies
Berlin's Ethnological Museum returns grave-plundered artefacts to Alaska
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Encrypting and transferring system email with Zeyple
Key Service
IT specialists often rely on automatic notification for status messages and logfiles by email. A Python script named Zeyple uses GPG to protect potentially sensitive messages against unauthorized viewing.
Whether you choose Logdigest [1], LogSurfer [2], your own script, or cron [3], email is a common choice for quickly updating admins about the state of the system.
The information contained in system update messages is not just informative, it's also frequently sensitive, containing details such as usernames, email addresses, and even data that is subject to data protection legislation (Figure 1).
If you send these kinds of messages unencrypted, you could be providing important clues to attackers and making it easier for surveillance agencies to monitor your activities. Securing transport with SSL/TLS is one approach to adding security. However, this method does not provide complete protection for mail content.
Once a message reaches the provider's mail transfer agent (MTA) at the other end, encryption stops, and the mail is back in cleartext. Therefore, to make email communication completely inaccessible to outsiders requires continuous encryption of the content from the sender to the receiver. Linux systems offer a relatively easy-to-use encryption method called GPG, which stands for GNU Privacy Guard. This approach, which works well for routine communications, requires a bit more preparation on a server that you want to encrypt and send without user interaction.
The most elegant method passes email from the MTA queue to a program that encrypts the messages and then puts them back in the queue. Then, the MTA routes the mail as usual to the receiver or receivers (Figure 2). This process is exactly what the Python script Zeyple [4], by Cédric Félizard, does. The tool, named Zeyple Encrypts Your Precious Log Email, a recursive acronym in the best Unix/Linux style, hooks into the MTA queue where it encrypts all email to recipients whose public GPG keys are on record.
Postfix Example
Using Postfix as an example, I'll show you how to install Zeyple and configure the SMTP server to cooperate with it. Zeyple is available for download on GitHub [4] and should also work with other MTAs that provide an appropriate queue filter mechanism, according to the developers.
install.sh script in Listing 1 sets up cooperation between Zeyple and Postfix [5]. The example is based on Debian Squeeze with Postfix version 2.7.2, but with minor adjustments, it should work just as well on other distributions. For encryption to work, the system administrator needs to generate a GPG key pair and upload the public key to a keyserver.
Listing 1
01 #!/bin/bash 02 # install.sh 03 [ ... ] 04 # Enter the internal address to which system email usually goes here 05 INT_ADDRESS= 06 # EXT_ADDRESS defines the external address of the server to which to send the encrypted system messages. Important: You need a public GPG key on the keyserver for this address ($KEYSERVER_ADDRESS, see line 9) 07 EXT_ADDRESS= 08 # The URL of the keyserver 09 KEYSERVER_ADDRESS= 10 11 # Install dependencies 12 apt-get install sudo gpg python-gpgme 13 14 # Create the system user without home directory and without login permission 15 adduser --system --no-create-home --disabled-login zeyple 16 17 # Download the Python script zeyple.py 18 wget https://github.com/infertux/zeyple/blob/master/zeyple/zeyple.py 19 # Download configuration file 20 wget https://github.com/infertux/zeyple/blob/master/zeyple/zeyple.conf.example 21 22 # Set up a directory under /etc for configuration file and key management 23 mkdir -p /etc/zeyple/keys && chmod 700 /etc/zeyple/keys && chown zeyple: /etc/zeyple/keys 24 25 # Fetch the public key from the keyserver for $EXT_ADDRESS and import with gpg 26 sudo -u zeyple gpg --homedir /etc/zeyple/keys --keyserver $KEYSERVER_ADDRESS --search $EXT_ADDRESS 27 28 # Move the example configuration file to /etc/zeyple 29 mv zeyple.conf.example /etc/zeyple/zeyple.conf 30 # Move zeyple.py to /usr/local/bin and apply user rights 31 mv zeyple.py /usr/local/bin/zeyple.py 32 chmod 744 /usr/local/bin/zeyple.py && chown zeyple: /usr/local/bin/zeyple.py 33 34 # Create logfile and set user rights 35 touch /var/log/zeyple.log && chown zeyple: /var/log/zeyple.log 36 37 # Prepare Postfix for Zeyple: expand main.cf and master.cf to include filter entries 38 cd /etc/postfix 39 40 cat >> master.cf <<END 41 zeyple unix - n n - - pipe 42 user=zeyple argv=/usr/local/bin/zeyple.py 43 44 localhost:10026 inet n - n - 10 smtpd 45 -o content_filter= 46 -o receive_override_options=no_unknown_recipient_checks,no_header_body_checks,no_milters 47 -o smtpd_helo_restrictions= 48 -o smtpd_client_restrictions= 49 -o smtpd_sender_restrictions= 50 -o smtpd_recipient_restrictions=permit_mynetworks,reject 51 -o mynetworks=127.0.0.0/8 52 -o smtpd_authorized_xforward_hosts=127.0.0.0/8 53 END 54 55 # Install the content filter in main.cf 56 cat >> main.cf <<END 57 content_filter = zeyple 58 END 59 60 # For Zeyple to assign keys correctly, it is recommended to redirect the internal email address for outgoing mail to the external address 61 cat >> recipient_canonical<<END 62 $INT_ADDRESS $EXT_ADDRESS 63 END 64 65 # Create the new Postfix database recipient 66 postmap recipient_canonical 67 # Publish database in Postfix address rewriting 68 cat >> main.cf <<END 69 recipient_canonical_maps = hash:/etc/postfix/recipient_canonical 70 END 71 # Reload Postfix configuration 72 /etc/init.d/postfix reload 73 74 exit 0
Installation Script
Lines 5 and 7 of the listing define the internal (e.g.,
root@<local.domain>) and the external (e.g.,
firstname.lastname@example.com) email addresses. Then, you need to choose an appropriate keyserver on which to store the public key for the external email addresses and add its URL to line 9.
For the installation script to work, Zeyple also needs the packages sudo, GPG, and python-gpgme (line 12). GPG is usually already installed on Debian squeeze, but not sudo or python-gpgme. Line 15 creates the user zeyple, under whose privileges the script runs. Under no circumstances should the admin run Zeyple with the privileges of the postfix or root accounts.
Line 20 loads the configuration example from GitHub, and the script creates the configuration directory and the directory for the GPG key database for Zeyple before setting up permissions.
Line 29 transports the sample configuration to
/etc/zeyple, which you can use without any changes. The next few lines move the Python script
zeyple to
/usr/local/bin and make it executable.
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SoftMaker FreeOffice 2018 for Linux
SoftMaker Software GmbH has announced FreeOffice 2018, a free of cost office suite for Linux.
A New CentOS
Latest version of the community Linux based on Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.5
Ubuntu 18.04 Released
"Bionic Beaver" comes with hardware-focused improvements and Gnome as the default shell.
Richard Stallman Calls Azure Sphere OS a Positive Step
Stallman is glad that Microsoft will respect user's freedom.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.5 Released
The latest release is focused on hybrid cloud.
Microsoft Releases a Linux-Based OS
The company is building a new IoT environment powered by Linux.
Solomon Hykes Leaves Docker
In a surprise move, Solomon Hykes, the creator of Docker has left the company.
Red Hat Celebrates 25th Anniversary with a New Code Portal
The company announces a GitHub page with links to source code for all its projects
Gnome 3.28 Released
The latest GNOME rolls out with better contact management and new features for handling virtual machines.
Install Firefox in a Snap on Linux
Mozilla has picked the Snap package system to deliver its application to Linux users.


text:
Lots of good stuff today...
Scott Ruskin (49) -A 14th-round pick by the Reds in 1981; he didn't sign but the Reds eventually got him in 1992 as part of the regrettable Wetteland trade. After his playing days he went back to college and got a degree in computer science.
Del Ennis -Soft-spoken RF for the "Whiz Kids" Phillies of the early 1950. During the years Ennis was active, only Musial drove in more runs in the NL...A Red in 1959 at the end of his career...After retiring, he ran a bowling alley and owned racing greyhounds, which he named Whiz Kid Ennis, Whiz Kid Ashburn, and Whiz Kid Roberts.
Don Robinson (55) -Pirate righty who won 109 games, but is better remembered for his hitting; he was a career .265 hitter with 13 homers. In 1984 the Pirates actually started him in left field for a game, and responded by going 1 for 3.
George Brunet -Lefty who pitched for 9 teams in 15 years. Most of the interesting stuff about him, however, happened before and after that. He was the minor league career leader in strikeouts at one point; for all I know he may still be. He's also remembered for a stretch when he was pitching for Little Rock in which he went 59 1/3 innings without his teammates scoring a run for him...After his big league career, he went to Mexico and had a long career there; he holds the Mexican League record for career shutouts even though he didn't start until he was in his mid-30s. All in all, he played professional baseball every year from 1953 to 1985.
Eddie Gaedel -Height: 3'7", jersey number: 1/8...Eddie died in 1961 after being beaten badly in a bar fight...His great-nephew was drafted by Tampa Bay in 2008. He's 6'4".
Van Lingle Mungo -Fireballing Dodger pitcher of the 1940s; now remembered mostly as the title of a great song by the wonderful jazz pianist Dave Frishberg (if you haven't heard it, you need to). When Dick Cavett had his talk show, he had Frishberg on as a guest one night, and he invited Mungo on also, just for fun. Frishberg recalls that all Mungo seemed to care about was whether he was entitled to make any money from the song. Frishberg informed him that it was highly unlikely that he would ever see a dime from the song, and the "the only way he could get even was to write a song called "Dave Frishberg" and take his chances. He said he was gonna do it, but I haven't heard it on the radio..."
Seriously, if you like that sort of thing, check out Dave Frishberg on ITunes or whatever. "Van Lingle Mungo" is great, but so is "My Attorney Bernie" and a lot of other stuff...


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"Making a Way Out of No Way" portrays the Jim Crow era, when African Americans struggled to build their own worlds within the harsh, narrow confines of segregation. At the turn of the 20th century, a steady stream of African Americans left the South, fleeing the threat of racial violence and searching for opportunities in the North and West. Leaders like Ida B. Wells, W.E.B. Du Bois, Booker T. Washington and Marcus Garvey organized, offering different strategies to further black empowerment and equality. The ascendance of black arts and culture showed that a community with a strong identity and sense of pride was taking hold in spite of Jim Crow. "The Harlem Renaissance" redefined how America saw African Americans — and how African Americans saw themselves.
African Americans: Many Rivers to Cross "Making a Way Out of No Way" (part 4) airs on Tuesday, November 12th at 7:00 p.m. on channels 3 and 3-1.


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KINGSTON >> Beginning in early August, peacocks will appear on the city's streets.
They won't be live specimens, like those fussing about at the Forsyth Nature Center off Lucas Avenue.
Still, a colorful display of the plume-bearing birds will dot city streets as part of the Junior League of Kingston's "Park Peacocks Run Wild" fundraiser to help build the new Kinderland II playground structure at Forsyth Park.
Twenty peacock sculptures, each weighing about 25 pounds, are to be spread out in the city's three business districts, Uptown, Midtown, and in Rondout, according to Tara Ryan, chairwoman of the Park Peacock Run Wild campaign.
There are six peacocks, males, and two peahens, females, at the Forsyth Nature Center. They are a featured presence at the center.
"They really are an icon of the park," Ryan said.
Ryan said organizers of the fund-raiser sought out artists to sculpt and paint ready-made peacock molds fashioned from a prototype.
The artists selected are: Katharine McKenna, Joel Iskowitz, Kristin Haber, Jennifer Schimmrich, Eric Loeffler, Dorrie Raciopp, Meghan Barwick, Mira Bowin, Elizabeth Johnson, Kara Eletto, Dinah Kiely, Cindy Lapp, Mavis Harris, Jacquiline Riedel, Michelle Moore, Nancy Jubie, Rob Corsino, Debbie Corsino, and Eric Sapanara.
"The first step I made as chair was to reach out to the artist community," Ryan said via email. "We wanted our exhibit to represent the city of Kingston with class, and we felt it important to include all of the business community in our project."
Ryan said organizers got advice from gallery owners in Kingston including Nancy Donskoj of The Storefront Gallery, Gloria Waslyn of Uptown Gallery, Eric Johnson of Kmoca, and Renee Darmstadt of Cornell Street Studios.
Artists are expected to complete their work by Aug. 1, and then the peacocks will be put on display on city sidewalks and other areas, Ryan said.
The exhibit, Ryan said, will run through late October, with an auction planned Oct. 26.
The peacock sculptures are made of polystyrene with feathered plumes of plywood. Each of the sculptures will stand about three feet tall.
The "Park Peacock Run Wild" campaign is one of 14 fundraisers being sponsored by the Junior League of Kingston to raise building money for the Kinderland II, scheduled to be erected in April 2015. The new playground will take the place of original Kinderland, which is 24 years old.
Ryan said her group expects to raise $20,000 from the peacock auction to be put toward the $175,000 new Kinderland structure. Thus far, Ryan said, about $40,000 has been raised.
Each artist will receive 25 percent of the money collected from the sale of the peacock sculptures.
Peacocks will be perched on platforms, complete with plaques indicating the artist's name as well as the individual bird names selected by the owners.
Only one peacock at the Forsyth Park Nature Center has a name. It is Sam, the one that's partly white.
Another Junior League of Kingston fundraiser event will be a "Family Fun BBQ" at Forsyth Park at 4 p.m. July 20.
To purchase tickets, call Beth Hanigan at (845) 417-4634.
Ryan urges people to visit the Kinderland II fundraising Facebook page at www.facebook.com/kingstonkinderlandII.


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Date of journey: 27/01/2008 Starting from: Bangalore Destination: Bannerghatta Crew: Maneesh, Lucky, Sujit, Deepika. Bannerghatta National park was just 14 kms. from my place but still I haven't been there, I don't know why. But on one weekend we decided to go over there. We started in our bikes and had breakfast in a restaurant on the way to Bannerghatta. … [Read more...]
Trip to Orissa: Day 2 (Part 3): Nandankanan National Park
You can read the earlier posts: Day 1, Day 2(Part 1) and Day 2(Part 2) of the Orissa trip: After Udaygiri and Khandagiri Caves our guide told that the next and the last spot of our trip would be NandanKanan National Park, which is about 20 kms from Bhubaneswar. It is a biological park established in 1960 sprawling across the Chandaka forest. The Nandankanan national park … [Read more...]


text:
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — While most people take shelter when a tornado approaches, a growing throng heads for the prairies, be they scientists hoping to protect the public from a twister's fury or amateurs armed with little more than a smartphone, a digital camera and a desire to sell 15 seconds of video to the nightly news.
But the deaths of three respected researchers near Oklahoma City have renewed questions over whether the risk of dashing off into violent storms in Tornado Alley is too great — regardless of the adrenaline rush.
"I think there will be some who will step back and say: 'Am I really doing something safe here?'" said Michael Armstrong, a meteorologist for KWTV in Oklahoma City. "I think you'll probably have others ... that just feel that invincibility that they've always felt and they'll keep doing what they're doing and basically look at it as though it was an aberration or an outlier."
Longtime storm chasers Tim Samaras, his son Paul and colleague Carl Young were killed Friday when a powerful tornado near El Reno, Okla., turned on them as they were conducting research. The National Weather Center issued a statement saying they are likely the first "storm intercept fatalities" among researchers.
Oklahoma is considered the "mecca of storm chasing," Tim Samaras told National Geographic just last month, and there are often hundreds of storm chasers lining the roads. Seasoned storm trackers provide critical field data that can't be gleaned from high-powered Doppler radar, veteran meteorologists say. But they're increasingly competing with storm-chasing tours, amateur weather enthusiasts inspired by cable TV shows and tornado paparazzi speeding from storm to storm.
Samaras' colleagues said he took numerous safety precautions, spending hours looking at weather models and developing safe escape routes and rendezvous points. All were done in case his crew would have to pull away from a tornado and use well-maintained roads that wouldn't turn into "pancake batter" in rain.
"Storm chasing isn't about what you see on TV. It's about forecasting and safety preparation," said Ben McMillan, a storm chaser from Des Moines who teamed up in 2011 with Samaras and Ed Grubb of Thornton, Colo., for the Discovery Channel show "Storm Chasers"
Samaras also usually drove a three-quarter ton truck with a reinforced lining, Grubb said, but had a smaller truck last week because he was on a three-week research trip focused mostly on lightning.
Many amateur storm chasers are looking to capture heart-pounding video of a massive, dangerous twister and cash in by selling the footage to television stations or documentary filmmakers. TV stations and other news outlets generally pay up to $500 to use certain video, and storm chasers will reach out to several different ones. Sometimes they're not even after money, but hearing their name read aloud on the air.
Lanny Dean, a 23-year veteran storm chaser from Tulsa, Okla., charges up to $3,500 to give tourists a 10-day tour during the March through June storm season. He said he's seen the industry change dramatically with the rise of TV programs documenting deadly storms.
"There are more and more people out there on the road. Many of them should not be," he said. "We're talking about individuals who are not experienced and who have no clue what they're doing. Friday's event was certainly no exception."
In the end, meteorologists, like Armstrong, believe storm trackers play an important role in keeping the public safe.


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TALLAHASSEE (AP) - Time is running out for tens of thousands of Floridians who may be eligible for claim payments as part of a national settlement with five major lenders.
People who lost their homes to foreclosure from 2008 to 2011 have until Friday to file a claim. The settlement applies to loans that were serviced by Bank of America, Wells Fargo, JP Morgan Chase, Citi or GMAC/Ally.
Florida has been one of the states hit hardest by the foreclosure crisis and recession. But so far less than half of the estimated 167,000 people in Florida eligible for claim payments have responded to mail notices.
That has prompted Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi to hire a company to make phone calls over the next two days to former homeowners. The state plans to spend up to $187,000 on the effort.
"We want every borrower who may be eligible for a cash payment under the national settlement to submit a claim," Bondi said in a statement on Wednesday.
Some critics, however, have wondered how aggressive the state has been in trying to find those who have lost their homes up until this time.
Matthew Weidner, a St. Petersburg attorney who represents homeowners involved in foreclosure cases, said as far as he knows no one reached out to defense attorneys or even judges who handle foreclosure cases.
"Both are a rich source of claims," Weidner said.
The claim payments won't go out until the middle of this year and depending on the number of people who actually apply, the final amount going out won't be that much. A Bondi spokeswoman said the average payment is expected to be $840.
The five major lenders last year reached a $25 billion settlement with attorneys general across the nation to end investigations over foreclosure abuses. Of that total, an estimated $8 billion is available to help homeowners in Florida including $170 million in payments to people who lost their homes to foreclosure.
The state is also directly receiving $334 million under the settlement. A legislative panel is expected on Thursday to approve spending the first $60 million. The money will provide counseling to homeowners dealing with foreclosure and default and help the state's court system deal with foreclosure cases. More than half of the money - $35 million - will go a program run by the Florida Housing Financing Corporation to assist first-time homebuyers, including providing them with down payment assistance.


text:
State of the Farm: "When I hold you in my arms (oh, yeah). And I feel my finger on your trigger (oh, yeah). I know nobody can do me no harm (oh, yeah). Because, (happiness) is a warm gun, mama (bang bang shoot shoot)."
Prospect rankings primer
The Top Ten
1. Travis d'Arnaud
Position: C
Height/Weight: 6'2'' 195 lbs.
Bats/Throws: R/R
Drafted/Acquired: 1st round, 2007 draft (Phillies), Lakewood High School (Lakewood, CA)
2012 Stats: .333/.380/.595 at Triple-A Las Vegas (67 games)
The Tools: 5 hit; 6 power potential; 6 arm; 5+ glove
What Happened in 2012: A knee injury ended his season before he could climb to the majors, but the 23-year-old backstop is ready to take his turn on the biggest stage.
Strengths: Balanced skill-set; shows above-average bat speed; hands/hips work well; good contact ability; ability to drive to all fields; swing characteristics for power production; good lift and leverage to swing; profiles as above-average hitter for position; quality receiver; good catch and throw skills; arm strength is 6; good body for position; makeup for success on both sides of the ball.
Weaknesses: Setup can get noisy; aggressive approach; tendency to pull-off balls on outer-third; hit tool might only play at 5; game power might play under plus; can play fast behind the plate, lose accuracy on throws, rush footwork.
Overall Future Potential: 6; first-division player
Explanation of Risk: Low risk; some injuries on resume; ready for primetime
Fantasy Future: Could develop into top-shelf bat at position, with .275-plus batting average and 17-25 HR power potential.
The Year Ahead: If fully healthy, d'Araud is ready for the major league challenge, with a mature bat and a game-ready skill-set behind the plate. His biggest hurdle will be the adjustment against major-league quality pitching, as his approach and setup both show signs of vulnerability. Some sources see d'Arnaud as future all-star, and the dearth of above-average hitters at the position could make that a reality if his tools find full utility.
Major league ETA: 2013This is Insider Level content. You must be a subscriber to read the rest. Want to read more???Click here for subscription info!(Already a member? Just log in at the top of the page.)
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text:
Earlier this month, Chinese Minister of Defense Chang Wanquan (常萬全) suggested that if the US ceased selling arms to Taiwan, China might consider making changes to its military deployment. He also suggested that task forces could address the three major obstacles to Sino-US military relations, of which the arms sales to Taiwan is one. The US declined this trade-off, and affirmed that its position vis-a-vis its commitments under the Taiwan Relations Act remain unchanged. Nevertheless, Chang's suggestions have given rise to discussion in several quarters.
The US arms sales to Taiwan issue is delicate because of three interrelated questions:
First, the US and China will continue to develop their bilateral military exchanges. Will Taiwan have the chance or the ability to have a say? Second, exactly what level of national defense capability does Taiwan need to develop for the US to support the sale of advanced military equipment, rather than second-rate, outdated weaponry that is still expensive? Third, given the peaceful and stable development of cross-strait relations, do the government and the public fully appreciate the potential changes that lie ahead, and support a major restructuring of Taiwan's national defense?
With the considerable development of the People's Liberation Army's (PLA) forces, coupled with increasingly difficult US arms sales to Taiwan, if there should be a conflict across the Strait, Taiwan could quickly lose control of the sea and the air. Therefore, given the increasingly unbalanced nature of hard and soft power between Taiwan and China, there are many calls for national defense reform. It is therefore imperative for the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) government to put aside political differences with the opposition on national defense strategy, and adopt an approach that looks to the future.
There are five things the government should do:
First, it needs to think very carefully about how to establish an effective asymmetric warfare capability, with things like littoral submarines for operations in coastal waters, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and smart mines, rather than waste our limited national defense budget on buying outdated military equipment.
Second, to increase the mobility of the armed forces, it needs to increase stocks of missiles such as the homegrown Hsiung Feng III anti-ship missile and Hsiung Feng IIE surface-to-surface cruise missile, and to continue research and development. Production and deployment of these missiles needs to be kept "under the radar" as much as possible. This work can be built upon to develop more missiles with extended ranges. This is the correct way forward.
Third, the government must ensure the army develops large-scale special warfare tactics and its field warfare capabilities.
Fourth, it needs to be mindful of young people's attitudes toward the military after the new voluntary conscription system takes effect, and encourage them to understand the nature of professional soldiering, and to inculcate a sense of patriotism. Training for reserve forces must also be a priority.
Fifth, over the past few years army recruitment advertisements have been facile and economical with the truth. New adverts — ones that are more honest about the nature of the job (that it is difficult, that one goes into it uncoerced, that it can lead to honor and glory) — should be made.
The armed forces need to attract people who are prepared to step forward and face a challenge.
Wang Jyh-perng is a reserve navy captain and an associate research fellow at the Association for Managing Defense and Strategies.
Translated by Paul Cooper


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With a couple of square inches of camouflage the critters will not be able to see you?
The most useless accessory I have spent my money on is a memory card wallet. I have NEVER used it. I'm glad it was cheap.
What have you seen for idiotic accessories or for items that were just not thought out....
I managed to capture 9 hours of sleeping cat.
Quote from: Don Haines on December 09, 2013, 01:37:00 PMI managed to capture 9 hours of sleeping cat.That would not be the worst thing I've seen posted on YouTube..........by a long shot.


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aserendipity wrote:what age level ?
What? The age of people writing term papers? or my Tits? Are you sure you're not one of Gyre's socks?
aserendipity wrote:what age level ?
Ugly Dougly wrote:You won't be the first man to pay for boobies.
And that's all I got.
ygmir wrote:HI gang!!
and I didn't set my self on fire, and am hardly bleeding now.
who's drinkin?
ygmir wrote:HI gang!!
any boobie talk, is good boobie talk!!
just in from fabricating on the Hofstove......as simple as hinges should be to hand make, it sure takes me a long time.
I'll get the latch done, the get some photos of the whole door.
and I didn't set my self on fire, and am hardly bleeding now.
it's a good day!!!
who's drinkin?
littleflower wrote:how about hardly breeding?
AntiM wrote:Mmmm, Thank you.
No bleeding or breeding here, month three of what might finally be menopause. Very exciting. No, really, I've been waiting for this for years now. Wish me luck and infertility.
Boobies and bunnies and slot tracks.... oh my.
Users browsing this forum: JohnnyA and 22 guests


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Bad Boy Coming Good
When he is not scurrying down the left wing, or supporting the strikers, he is knocking in crosses, feinting and dribbling his way into the penalty area, looking for a shot at goal. But, irrespective of the club he is with or the position he is playing, Hatem Ben Arfa never fails to hit the headlines.
He joined the youth set up at Olympique Lyon when he was just fifteen years old. Three years later he signed his first professional contract for the same club. It was a very successful period for the son of Tunisian immigrants; Lyon won the French championship four times in a row, the cup once and made several appearances in the Champions League.
Eager for a new challenge, however, Ben Arfa was transferred to Olympique Marseille in 2008 for 15 million euros. The move seemed to pay off. His new team won both the French championship and the cup in season 2009/10. But it was during his time in the south of France that Ben Arfa's temperamental problems began to show. He reported back from his summer break four kilos overweight and later absconded from the training camp.
There was more to follow: a punch-up with team mate Djibril Cissè, and a fall out with coach Eric Gerets after Ben Arfa refused to come off the bench for a substitute appearance. Training sessions under new coach, Didier Deschamps, were also less-than-peaceful affairs.
Hatem Ben Arfa made up his mind that he would leave the club, vowing never to train or play for Marseilles again. He wanted to leave, but the club, according to him, was demanding an inflated, unrealistic transfer fee. "It's finished. I have my pride and my self-respect. I am not here to fill in. Time will show that I am right. Just because we are paid does not mean we are slaves," Ben Arfa stated.
Foul tragedy
In order to bring an end to the sorry chapter for both sides, he was loaned to Newcastle United in the English Premiership in 2010. However, after just a few minutes of what was only his fourth league match, in October 2010, he found himself, tragically, on the receiving end of a brutal foul. A crunching tackle by Manchester City's Dutch international Nigel de Jong left Ben Arfa with a broken fibula and tibia. He had to be stretchered off and needed an oxygen mask. He would be out of the game for a long time.
Even at this time, however, Hatem Ben Arfa would attract press attention for the wrong reasons. Along with fellow French internationalists Frank Ribéry, Sidney Govou and Karim Benzema, he was said to have had contact with an underage prostitute at a Paris disco. No legal action was taken against the players, but the episode nevertheless left a nasty aftertaste.
During the 2-0 European Championship defeat by Sweden, Hatem Ben Arfa was substituted after 56 minutes. Afterwards in the dressing room he told coach Laurent Blanc that he could send him home if he wished, and went on to tell assembled members of the French press that other players had played worse than he had.
In spite of his pension for attracting controversy, and the lengthy injury, his club kept faith with him. In January 2011 they signed him on a contract worth six million euros. For the best part of a year his club, Newcastle United, had to make do without the services of Hatem Ben Arfa. It was not until September of that year that he was able to resume training, his first league matches coming in October.
Triumphant comeback
The confidence and patience of his club were not misplaced. From then on he was playing better than ever; darting speed and agility combined with team spirit and goal threat. The high point came in the FA Cup match against Blackburn Rovers in January 2012.
It was in this game that Ben Arfa scored a goal reminiscent of Maradona's mazy solo effort against England in the 1986 World Cup: taking the ball in the midfield, he left six opponents in his wake before thrashing the ball home under the crossbar from close range.
It was a return to the kind of display that had previously earned him rave reviews and predictions of a great career. Back in 2004 he had been part of the under-17 European Championship-winning team that also boasted Samir Nasri and Karim Benzema. In October 2007 he made his debut for the senior team, but was ignored for both the European Championship of 2008 and the World Cup of 2010.
Coach at that time, Raymond Domenech, chose not to select him. Current coach Laurent Blanc has a different opinion: "there is no doubting his talent; no one can take that away from him. He has improved and seems to have become more mature," he commented recently.
Tunisian boos
In France's first game of Euro 2012, the 1-1 draw with England, Hatem Ben Arfa came on as a substitute in the 84th minute. He did not play in the next game, the 2-0 win against Ukraine. So far, he has played only twelve times for France and scored two goals. Had he opted to play for the Tunisian national team, the country of his father, it is likely that he would have played considerably more international games.
Like so many others, however, he chose to represent the country that would give him the opportunity to play in major events such as the European Championship or the World Cup. And that happens to be France. That this choice would not endear him to everyone was something he was made very aware of in October 2008 when he played for France in a friendly against Tunisia in Paris – he was booed every time he touched the ball.
André Tucic
© Qantara.de 2012
Translated from the German by Ron Walker
Editors: Arian Fariborz, Lewis Gropp/Qantara.de


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As social media evolves, marketers realize that a social presence is no longer an option, but a necessity. Many have noticed a disconnect, however, between consumer reach provided by social media and actual, quantifiable customer acquisition
and return on investment.
Recent research by The Incyte Group provides unprecedented insight into four major consumer segments that are researching your brand online and more importantly the best ways you can reach them.
The implications of the findings are not a one size fits all solution for social engagement.
Rather, the research provides insight into four consumer segments that can have a major impact on your social strategy if you understand what motivates them.
Via maxOz, Firas Ghunaim


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By MARK ALAN LOVEWELL
Black sea bass is one of the Vineyard's best-kept secrets when it comes to good eating. The fish can't be bought in the store, but if you know a sport boat fisherman, there is a chance you can get it if you politely ask.
Black sea bass are swimming around the Vineyard in fair abundance.
This weekend, the Oak Bluffs Veterans of Foreign War Post 9261 is hosting its ninth annual fluke tournament. The post is adding a small form of recognition to the black sea bass and to the anglers who catch big ones.
Black sea bass are not striped bass. Put a black sea bass side by side with a striped bass, and it would be hard to tell what aspect of "bass" applies to either fish. They look so different, yet the only similarity between the two is that people call them local and they are tasty.
Peter Herrmann, organizer of the fluke fishing tournament, has stretched the rules a bit this year to honor the fisherman who catches the biggest black sea bass. And why not?
The post's fishing contest runs from 12:01 tomorrow morning to Sunday when the weigh-in station closes at 6 p.m. Registration is $20 for adults, and $10 for children 13 to 16 years of age and seniors. The contest is free for younger anglers.
Mr. Hermann said anglers competing in tomorrow's fishing tournament will likely catch a black sea bass. They are caught the same way as fluke. A fisherman will drop a weighted hook with some bait. Fluke and black sea bass both are bottom dwellers.
Including black sea bass in the contest is a big deal for anyone who likes to eat the fish.
Warren Doty of Chilmark used to run a wholesale fish operation out of Vineyard Haven. He shipped nearly all of the black sea bass to the mainland. A lot of ethnic communities prize black sea bass, and it is a wonder more Vineyarders don't call it the "catch of the day."
"I like to eat black sea bass," Mr. Doty said. "I like it prepared the way the Chinese do it. They steam it whole and serve it whole."
The Chinese include all kinds of garnish around the fish, like steamed scallions, stir-fried ginger and Chinese sauces.
"It is my favorite local fish," said Danny Larsen of Edgartown Seafood. "It is nice-tasting, mild and sweet. I eat a lot of it when it is available."
But because the commercial season for the fish is closed, you can't buy it now.
Anglers talk up the striped bass, the bluefish, and a host of other sport fish. But they never will talk about the time they struggled to bring in a killer, big black sea bass. They are neither as feisty as a bluefish nor as heavy as a striped bass. They are only a couple pounds in weight, rarely bigger than six pounds. The largest black sea bass ever caught in the state was eight pounds.
That means the value of a black sea bass is on the dinner table and in how it was prepared in the kitchen, not in the tales anglers tell of how it was caught.
Commercial black sea bass fishermen catch the fish early in the fishing season and late. The fishery is closely watched by the Atlantic States Marine Fishery Commission and the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council because black sea bass had been overfished and is now in recovery.
When they can harvest black sea bass, Massachusetts commercial fishermen are limited to a minimum size of 12 inches and a daily bag limit that can be as high as 500 pounds.
If you asked a local fisherman what he thought about the closed fishery, he'd say he isn't pleased. A lot of black sea bass are caught in out-of-state waters. Local fishermen feel that the fishery has been taken away from them.
The recreational season for black sea bass is open throughout the year. Recreational anglers are limited to a minimum size of 12 inches and a bag limit of 20 fish per day.
Black sea bass are a highly migratory fish. They travel the waters as far north as Cape Cod and as far south as Cape Hatteras. They spend their winters deep in water over 200 to 600 feet in depth. They spend their summers inshore. They feed on bottom-dwelling invertebrates such as crabs, hermit crabs and razor clams, and also will chase squid.
There is plenty of humor surrounding the life cycle of a black sea bass. Unlike all the other fish in local waters, which are either male or female, black sea bass are different. Black sea bass go through sex changes throughout their lives. They are also slow-growing for their size.
They are readily found near rocky bottom, old wrecks and wherever there is structure.
Autumn Derby
The 63rd annual Martha's Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby isn't that far away. The month-long contest dates have been set for a while. The contest starts on Saturday, Sept. 14, and ends on Saturday, Oct. 18. The Kids Day fishing tournament on the Oak Bluffs Steamship Authority wharf will take place on Saturday, Sept. 20.
There are few changes in this annual contest from last year.
The big shift is in the grand prize for shore fishermen. The boat, the outboard and the trailer are a bit different this year. The 21-foot skiff is made by Eastern Boats Inc. of Milton, N.H. The company is a new sponsor and replaces Boston Whaler, which used to offer a 19-foot boat. Organizers report they have put together a nice package for the top winner that also includes boat electronics. The new center console boat along with the derby announcement and other boats are featured at the company's Web site, easternboats.com.
As in past years, the winner of the boat is a shore fisherman who wins in a drawing of the biggest shore striped bass, bluefish, bonito and false albacore.
The 2008 Chevy Silverado will go to the top boat fisherman in a drawing among those who caught the largest fish in each of the four species.
This year's derby plans to give out more than $300,000 in cash and prize awards.


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Just a quick note this week….things are quite crazy right now, and I'm struggling to keep reading on my days off. It's really become a pleasure to have some set time for reading on weekdays, though.
For the next year (minus about 1.5 months now), I will read from SQL Server Books Online a little every day, and blog about it weekly. See my RTFM365 post for the full details on this project, and follow along with the series via the RTFM365 tag.
Reading this week was in SQL Server 2008 R2 Books Online unless otherwise noted. Please note: I'm exploring BOL and learning a little each day; I'm not here to read it to you or review it.
I'm keeping mostly to one section, "Elements of Transact-SQL" (DB Engine > Development > Querying and Changing Data > Accessing and Changing Database Data > Elements of Transact-SQL). Last week I read the Identifiers section; this week, Data Types (including Data Type Synonyms).
I also read Using Binary Data, and (for work): Database Mirroring (top level articles, drilldown through Overview…I left off at "Transact-SQL Settings and Database Mirroring Operating Modes")
Notes on what I read this week:
According to this article, SQL has 38 system data types. Data Type Synonyms was interesting, and I typed this up just to see how archaric it looks:
DECLARE @nvar NATIONAL CHAR VARYING(10) = 'hi'
SELECT @nvar
Happy days,
Jen McCown


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NEW YORK — Talk about a caffeine buzz: A new study says that honeybees get a shot of caffeine from certain flowers and that it perks up their memory.
That spurs them to return to the same plant, boosting its prospects for pollination and the future of the species.
Maybe it should not be a surprise that one of the flowers is the coffee plant. Its nectar offers about as much caffeine concentration as a cup of instant coffee. But some citrus plants serve caffeine too. It is found in the nectar of orange and grapefruit blossoms.
The caffeine helps a bee remember that the flower's scent promises a tasty payoff, so the bee will seek out those flowers, transferring their pollen, the researchers said.


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This is an entry into the CCCX Realistic Castle Figure Category:
Got a sick family member in your village? Who ya gonna call? The Plague doctor was the medieval version of a hazmat worker. The fabric he wore was usually leather or heavy fabric coated in wax. The beak held incense and a breathing tube in it. The long stick was used to keep the sick at arms length while traveling through sick areas.
more, larger pics here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/31157752@N04/sets/72157631975130036/with/8172343337/
Side notes: the hat was designed and painted by me, and was 3D printed by Shapeway.com. The mask is a gorilla head from the CMF series. I cut the face out and added a clay beak, then painted the whole thing. Everything else is stock LEGO pieces.
This is my first real custom in more than a year, I hope you like it!


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Israel News - Stay Informed, Pray Informed
America and the United Nations are now putting immense pressure on Israel to implement a unilateral ceasefire in Gaza in hopes that Hamas would follow suit.
By Monday evening, the Israeli government had rejected all such demands, insisting that it could not trust Hamas, and that the current war could not now be brought to an end without meeting its goals.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement decrying how America and the UN are treating Israel and Hamas as equals, and in fact proposing ceasefire deals that reward Hamas aggression with political gains.
Such a policy, Netanyahu argued, would only encourage Hamas and other terror groups to again attack Israel in the future, all but guaranteeing the next Gaza war.
Furthermore, both the American and UN proposals have largely ignored Israel's security concerns by failing to address the problem of Hamas' extensive military infrastructure.
"The [UN] Security Council Presidential Statement relates to the needs of a murderous terrorist organization that is attacking Israeli civilians and does not address Israel's security needs, including the demilitarization of the Gaza Strip according to the principle laid down in the interim agreements with the Palestinians," read Netanyahu's statement.
In a televised address to the nation later in the evening, Netanyahu said the disarmament of Gaza simply had to be part of any long-term true agreement, and insisted that in the meantime, Israel would continue to act against the Hamas threat.
PHOTO: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon and IDF Chief of Staff Gen. Benny Gantz discuss the next steps in the Gaza war.
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Morally questionable? Or the future?
My kid is desperate to bowl like a Saeed Ajmal or a Saqlain Mushtaq and as such I am pondering whether I should be teaching him how to bowl doosras. Am I risking his potential cricketing career, as eventually the English coaching system will almost certainly either dismiss him as a chucker or coach his action and his doosra out of him?
I spoke to Graeme Swann about it once and he said while he can bowl one, it hurts his wrist and he wouldn't recommend it to any youngsters!
I'm able to bowl a doosra (bowling it very slowly and inconsistently and with a discernible change in action though), but I would not call myself an expert in the intricacies and the techniques behind it. Are there any other doosra bowlers here who may be able to help? Or someone who has experienced having their action changed as they bowled a doosra?


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a4refillpad wrote:
It is worth pointing out that i've based my findings purely on my own observation, it is possible that there are variations in the production line. I too was surprised and disappointed that the newer model appears less capable in endurance and navigation. It is possible that the lidar is just as sensitive and the bumping and endurance is firmware related as it is running v3.0 rather than v2.6.


text:
Pikmin 3 adds many other subtle tweaks that improve the overall experience: from the ability to auto-direct friendly characters using the map screen on the GamePad, to the app that keeps track of stray Pikmin so they don't get eaten at the end of the day. The interface is thoughtful and intelligently designed, and it really eases the burden of directing a million Pikmin at once. Perhaps the most annoying thing about playing Pikmin on Wii U was having to balance the GamePad on my lap while playing the game with the Nunchuk and Wii Remote. While one could just play with the GamePad alone, I would much rather have the control afforded by the Wii's motion controls. It's simply more cumbersome to use the analog sticks than to "point and click." Pikmin was practically made for the Wii Remote. By far the biggest addition to Pikmin 3 is the fact that there are three characters now, rather than just one. Captain Olimar makes his presence known with research notes scattered around the planet. But this is Alph, Charlie, and Brittany's show, and each of them have a valuable part to play. For example, after rescuing Brittany and uncovering the Rock Pikmin, I had to build a bridge. The materials I needed were across a river. So using Alph, I picked up Brittany and tossed her to the other side, then tossed over a few Pikmin to help. Moments later, I had a bridge, and I was able to continue my quest. Obviously, the addition of multiple characters has huge ramifications for Pikmin's design. With three characters at your disposal, it's possible to get all kinds of things finished over the course of a day, especially if you're efficient. It also obviously affects the puzzle design, as was demonstrated with the bridge challenge. Again, it's a great idea that feels like a natural progression from Pikmin 1 and 2.
But as much as I like all these clever new ideas, all of which represent Nintendo at its creative best, it's still the setting that grabs me most. It's just so fun and different from everything else on the market right now that it can't help but capture my attention. The humorous and yet surprisingly dark setting is just the tip of the iceberg. It extends to the creatures, the design, the world... everything. And for the first time in the franchise, it's all rendered in HD. Whereas other key franchises in Nintendo's slate have begun to feel just the slightest bit stale, Pikmin still feels fresh and vibrant. Not only that, but in a landscape dominated by drab shooters and zombies, Pikmin's bright palette and quirky characters can't help but stand out. It's such a weird, fun, and creative game that fully realizes Miyamoto's vision from 2001. We need more games like that, not just from Nintendo, but everyone.
Pikmin 3 plays better when using the Wii Remote


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When British Airways and Iberia merged to form the International Airlines Group (IAG), it was clear that the effects of the combination would be felt across the various business units. But BA Engineering Director Garry Copeland does not want to rush into overambitious projects that would put its existing business at risk.
The two MRO subsidiaries within IAG, Iberia Maintenance and BA Engineering, could not be more different in some ways. BA Engineering has historically focused on serving the British Airways fleet; only 10-12% of its business is with customers outside of the group. By contrast, Iberia Maintenance has far more market exposure, with Iberia only accounting for 50% of its work and the company moving into more specialized fields, such as VIP completions, that it hopes will improve margins.
The big question is: How can such completely different companies and strategies be integrated in a sensible way? Copeland's answer is, "slowly."
As part of the overall IAG integration, the MRO businesses have been given a €65 million ($84 million) synergy target for the initial five years. "We cooperate on a host of different issues," says Copeland. For example, BA's Boeing 757s were maintained by Iberia until they were phased out. There are also joint projects in line maintenance, and the two companies often look after each other's external customers at airports where only one of the two IAG operating subsidiaries is present. "There are around 10 workstreams at any given time," says Copeland.
Beyond the initial five-year planning, "all options are open," he says, and that includes merging Iberia Maintenance and BA Engineering. "We just have not had the time yet to look at what is going to happen after five years."
However, some strategy adjustments are already happening. Copeland wants to increase the share of third-party work to around 20% from the current 12%. At 20%, he thinks BA Engineering can still deliver the same quality and even while it grows to improve its critical mass.
There are a number of ways to do this, such as through line maintenance contracts or component services, but even in the foreseeable future BA Engineering does not want to do heavy checks for other operators. "We are full with BA [aircraft]," he says.
In terms of unit costs, Copeland is confident that the company will be competitive, in spite of having its facilities in the high-cost U.K. The lower labor rates available elsewhere may not translate into lower costs overall because of productivity shortfalls. Productivity is one key element of in-house heavy maintenance and the decision not to offer it to others: Copeland believes it works even with a U.K. base, but only if there is a large common fleet that provides the organization with a consistent flow of nearly identical aircraft.
Because of that strategy, BA is not exploring joint ventures in Asia. "So far, that has proven to be a good solution," Copeland says.
Its core business promises to be exciting enough over the next few years. BA Engineering is preparing for servicing of the Boeing 787 and Airbus A380, as both models are scheduled to join the British Airways fleet in 2013. "We are using them as a catalyst to get to the generation of airplane maintenance," Copeland says.
That leads to refinements in training and the skills that are subsequently available. BA Engineering needs to prepare for composite repairs, upgraded electrical systems and issues such as health-monitoring that are present on current-generation aircraft and are being brought to the next levels on the 787 and A380.
On the other hand, the fleet renewal program means that a lot of older aircraft, such as 747s and 767s, will be phased out in the next few years. Preparing them for the next owner requires a lot of work, as well. The last 747s are expected to leave the BA fleet around 2020, while the 767s are likely to be retired earlier. Once they are no longer part of the fleet, BA Engineering will likely lose the capability of serving those types over time. "I don't see much sense in keeping them for aircraft in their declining years and in a high-cost environment," Copeland notes.
BA also has four cabin refurbishment programs upcoming, adding to the workload for its MRO subsidiary.


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1. Would you have sex with the last person you text messaged?
2. You talked to an ex today, correct?
3. Have you taken someones virginity?
4. Is trust a big issue for you?
5. Did you hang out with the person you like recently?
6. What are you excited for?
7. What happened tonight?
8. Do you think it's disgusting when girls get really wasted?
9. Is confidence cute?
10. What is the last beverage you had?
11. How many people of the opposite sex do you fully trust?
12. Do you own a pair of skinny jeans?
13. What are you gonna do Saturday night?
14. What are you going to spend money on next?
15. Are you going out with the last person you kissed?
16. Do you think you'll change in the next 3 months?
17. Who do you feel most comfortable talking to about anything?
18. The last time you felt broken?
19. Have you had sex today?
20. Are you starting to realize anything?
21. Are you in a good mood?
22. Would you ever want to swim with sharks?
23. Are your eyes the same color as your dad's?
24. What do you want right this second?
25. What would you say if the person you love/like kissed another girl/boy?
26. Is your current hair color your natural hair color?
27. Would you be able to date someone who doesn't make you laugh?
28. What was the last thing that made you laugh?
29. Do you really, truly miss someone right now?
30. Does everyone deserve a second chance?
31. Honestly, do you hate the last boy you were talking to?
32. Does the person you have feelings for right now, know you do?
33. Are you one of those people who never drinks soda?
34. Listening to?
35. Do you ever write in pencil anymore?
36. Do you know where the last person you kissed is?
37. Do you believe in love at first sight?
38. Who did you last call?
39. Who was the last person you danced with?
40. Why did you kiss the last person you kissed?
41. When was the last time you ate a cupcake?
42. Did you hug/kiss one of your parents today?
43. Ever embarrass yourself in front of a crush?
44. Do you tan in the nude?
45. If you could, would you take back your last kiss?
46. Did you talk to someone until you fell asleep last night?
47. Who was the last person to call you?
48. Do you sing in the shower?
49. Do you dance in the car?
50. Ever used a bow and arrow?
51. Last time you got a portrait taken by a photographer?
52. Do you think musicals are cheesy?
53. Is Christmas stressful?
54. Ever eat a pierogi?
55. Favorite type of fruit pie?
56. Occupations you wanted to be when you were a kid?
57. Do you believe in ghosts?
58. Ever have a Deja-vu feeling?
59. Take a vitamin daily?
60. Wear slippers?
61. Wear a bath robe?
62. What do you wear to bed?
63. First concert?
64. Wal-Mart, Target or Kmart?
65. Nike or Adidas?
66. Cheetos Or Fritos?
67. Peanuts or Sunflower seeds?
68. Favorite Taylor Swift song?
69. Ever take dance lessons?
70. Is there a profession you picture your future spouse doing?
71. Can you curl your tongue?
72. Ever won a spelling bee?
73. Have you ever cried because you were so happy?
74. What is your favorite book?
75. Do you study better with or without music?
76. Regularly burn incense?
77. Ever been in love?
78. Who would you like to see in concert?
79. What was the last concert you saw?
80. Hot tea or cold tea?
81. Tea or coffee?
82. Favorite type of cookie?
83. Can you swim well?
84. Can you hold your breath without holding your nose?
85. Are you patient?
86. DJ or band, at a wedding?
87. Ever won a contest?
88. Ever have plastic surgery?
89. Which are better black or green olives?
90. Opinions on sex before marriage?
91. Best room for a fireplace?
92. Do you want to get married?
from Tumblr http://ift.tt/ZYz1sL
via IFTTT
I will be editing this post with answers, once I return to this topic with something witty to say. Maybe.
1. Would you have sex with the last person you text messaged?


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One of Tennessee's most beautiful seasons is right around the corner and Tennessee Main Street communities are celebrating fall all across the state. Tennessee Main Street Programs are hosting multiple fall events, including fall festivals and concerts to support historic downtown business districts.
"Historic downtown districts are the heart and soul of so many Tennessee communities," Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bill Hagerty said. "Supporting our downtowns leads to increased investment and more visitors, which in turn, drives economic development and job creation."
"Autumn is the perfect time of year to 'fall' in love with Main Street," Tennessee Main Street Director Todd Morgan said. "The natural, colorful beauty of Tennessee compliments our historic downtowns and their festivals very well."
A complete listing of Main Street fall events can be found at: http://www.tn.gov/ecd/pdf/NewsReleases/FallEvents2013.pdf
Tennessee Main Street provides technical assistance and guidance for communities in developing common sense solutions to make downtowns safe, appealing, vibrant places where folks want to shop, live and make memories.
In 2012, certified Main Street communities generated more than $82 million of public/private investment and created 604 new jobs.
There are currently 25 certified Main Street communities across Tennessee: Bristol, Cleveland, Collierville, Columbia, Cookeville, Dandridge, Dayton, Dyersburg, Fayetteville,
Franklin, Gallatin, Greeneville, Jackson, Jonesborough, Leiper's Fork, Kingsport, Lawrenceburg, McMinnville, Murfreesboro, Morristown, Ripley, Rogersville, Tiptonville, Savannah, and Union City.