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Ask Anything - May 2014
When It Won't Rev
Byron Bates; Bakersfield, CA: I purchased a 1973 Jeep CJ-5 with a 383 Chevy by the way of another guy's nasty divorce, so I don't have good details. I will drag race it, use it as a local daily driver, and I'd also autocross it if I could figure out a way. I'm about to swap the Jeep three-speed for an M-22 or some form of Tremec overdrive. The Jeep currently has 4:56:1 gears. The engine has great torque but really runs out of air at about 5,200. I want more cam. Currently, the engine has the ZZ Hot Cam. No specific hp or torque goals—I just want it to run stronger. I suppose one begets the other. Couple early rpm exit with the gearing, and acceleration is weak.
Jeff Smith: If you've ever seen the movie The Graduate, Dustin Hoffman is wandering around his backyard college graduation party put on by his well-meaning parents when a relative pulls him aside and tells him to remember one word: plastics. It's a classic movie vignette. The Car Craft version of this scene is we pull you aside from your garage bench-racing session and whisper, "valvesprings." The Chevrolet Performance HOT cam is an excellent street hydraulic roller with specs of 218/228 degrees of duration at 0.050-inch tappet lift with 0.492-inch of valve lift and a lobe-separation angle of 112 degrees. But let's start with the fact that the engine seems to "run out of air" at 5,200 rpm.
You didn't include specifics on the cylinder heads, but let's assume that they are decent. This is a very popular camshaft and somewhat aggressive in terms of valve lift relative to the duration. The advantage of a roller is the lift curve is generally greater than a flat-tappet version. This more aggressive lift curve demands a stronger valvespring to control the quicker valve acceleration rate. Chevrolet Performance sells a complete HOT cam and kit that includes a set of springs that are a 1.320-inch diameter (1.250 inch is stock for a small-block Chevy) with 101 pounds of load on the seat at an installed height of 1.780 inches. The rate for this spring is 332 pounds per inch. This would produce roughly 270 pounds of load at 0.500-inch valve lift. While this is Chevrolet's recommended spring, a slightly stronger spring is probably a good idea. Crane suggests valvespring seat loads of between 120 and 145 pounds for a typical street hydraulic roller camshaft. What you should do first is remove one of the valvesprings from your engine and measure its installed height. This is the distance between the spring seat in the head and the underside of the valvespring retainer with the valve closed. Next, measure the distance between the lowest portion of the retainer and the top of the valve guide. There will be a seal located on the guide, and you are measuring the distance between the seal and the bottom of the retainer. Since your engine is running OK, we will assume that this distance is at least 0.550 or 0.600 inch so the retainer clears the seal at full lift.
Next, take your valvespring to a machine shop and have them measure the load at the installed height you measured. We'll assume this distance is 1.80 inches. Let's also assume a valve lift of 0.500 inch. If the spring measures less than 100 pounds of load on the seat, then you need better springs. Let's also estimate that you measure 250 pounds or less at full valve lift. This tells us you need better springs. You don't have to buy the GM springs (PN 12551483, $127.52, Summit Racing) as there are several other opportunities for better springs. For camshafts similar to the HOT cam, Comp Cams recommends a larger, 1.430-inch-diameter dual spring (PN 986-16, $79.97, Summit Racing) that offers similar load (132 pounds installed at 1.750 with around 290 pounds at 0.500-inch lift). This spring is less expensive but will require new retainers (PN 740-16, $52.97). If your engine has aftermarket heads, it's possible that the seat diameter is large enough to accommodate these larger springs.
Of course, it's also possible that there is nothing wrong with the valvesprings and the engine is wheezing due to other problems. The best way to approach this is to eliminate all of the easy fixes first, so I would suggest looking at the throttle linkage. With the engine off, have a buddy look at the carb while you stab the throttle from inside the car. Are all four barrels opening fully? Don't laugh, because it happens all the time. Next, install a fuel-pressure gauge to ensure that fuel pressure is at least 5 psi at 5,500 rpm at WOT. If not, the problem may be something simple like a restricted fuel filter or a weak fuel pump. If the fuel pressure is not consistently at least 4 to 5 psi throughout the rpm curve, this could easily contribute to your engine's failure to rev. It's also a good idea to check ignition timing and make sure you have at least 32 to 36 degrees of total timing. Assuming the engine is in good shape and everything is working properly, your engine should rev to at least 6,000 rpm and probably as high as 6,500, although the power peak is probably at around 5,800 rpm. You didn't mention the exhaust system, but we'll assume that you are not trying to push all this exhaust out of a single 2-inch exhaust. A dual exhaust of 212 inches with free-flowing mufflers is what we would consider the bare minimum.
More Info
Chevrolet Performance; 800/450-4150; ChevroletPerformance.com
Comp Cams; 800/999-0853; CompCams.com
Crane Cams; 866/388-5120; CraneCams.com
Summit Racing; 800/230-3030; SummitRacing.com
4L80E Swap
Pierce Peck; Beaumont, Alberta, Canada: As you're the Chevelle guy, you should be able to answer my questions in your sleep. I have a 1967 Chevelle with a 540ci big-block. I'm currently running a TH400 but would like to make the switch to a 4L80E. I'm already running EFI, using a Big Stuff 3 ECM, which has the controller for the 4L80E built in, so from an electronic standpoint, I'm good. My first question is: Will I need to modify my floorpan and/or firewall to fit the bulkier transmission? Second question: What will I need to do for the trans crossmember? Can my current unit be moved back, or will it need to be modified or replaced, and if so, with what?
Other info on the car: Dart Big "M" block, 10.2:1 compression, SRP pistons, Eagle crank, Scat rods, AFR 305cc heads, Edelbrock Pro Flow XT EFI, Lemons custom 218-inch headers, 3-inch Flowmaster mufflers, X-pipe, Edelbrock 2263 hydraulic roller cam, TCI Super Street Fighter converter, 9-inch Ford rearend with 3.89:1 gears and a Detroit Locker, with 275/60R15 M/T drag radials.
The car is intended for street/strip use, with the emphasis on being a very quick street car. It will never be used as a daily driver, but I would like to be able to take it on short highway trips.
Jeff Smith: We spent a long time looking around but did find a company called Performance Automotive and Transmission Center (PATC) that offers a 4L80E crossmember called the G-Force that's designed specifically for the early 196467 Chevelles. The crossmember can be found under PN RCAE-4L80E, and it sells for $259. As you are probably well aware, the 4L80E is a much larger, heavier trans than even the TH400. We have personal experience with our 1964 Old F-85 with a TH400 that the trans will sit very close to the floor. The 4L80E will probably fit, but you might have to tweak the floor in a couple of spots to make it fit with the proper driveshaft angle. If you want to take a shot at making your own crossmember, it appears that removing the welded-on mount for a typical TH350 or TH400 can be relocated on the front side of the crossmember to clear the transmission and still bolt up to the 4L80E. Since the new trans is 57 pounds heavier than a TH400, it might be a good idea to consider strengthening the old crossmember to support the greater weight of the 4L80E. This is especially important because the 4L80E mount location is 314 inches farther to the rear than a typical TH400. This places more load on the crossmember.
The obvious advantage to the 4L80E is the Overdrive, which is 0.75:1. In Overdrive, this effectively converts those 3.89:1 gears to a 2.91:1 rear gear, which will reduce your cruise rpm by 25 percent. We've spoken to a couple of performance transmission builders, and they tell us that the 4L80E integrates many of the aftermarket TH400 upgrades in the stock configuration, so right out of the gate, the 4L80E is stronger (although heavier). As you've also noted, the trans does require electronic control. For those who may not know, the Big Stuff 3 ECU that Pierce refers to also integrates transmission control with a very sophisticated EFI system that can run as many as 24 low-impedance injectors and do so for a very reasonable price. The base EFI system that also integrates the transmission control goes for less than $2,500. If the Big Stuff 3 name is not familiar, we can tell you that the men behind this are the same Meaney brothers, John and Leo, who were the co-founders of the original Digital Fuel Injection (DFI) system created in 1988. John Meaney was also the creator of several other name EFI systems over the years before creating Big Stuff 3 in 2003. It's beyond the focus of this story to go into the Big Stuff 3 system, but just know that many big-time drag racers use Meaney's system because the system works and is affordably priced. So, Pierce, you've make a good choice with the Big Stuff 3 system since it integrates the transmission control with the fuel and spark control.
More Info
Big Stuff 3; 248/887-5636; BigStuff3.com
Performance Automotive and Transmission Center; 888/877-1008; TransmissionCenter.net
Stop the Hop
Bernard Quinlan; Oahu, HI: I have a 1979 Chevy Malibu classic 350 four-speed with a 3.73:1 locker rear with 225/60R15 tires. My problem is I cannot keep the rear wheels on the ground. The wheelhop is so bad I have to shut down or I will break something. I have a stock rear suspension with heavy-duty rear springs and air shocks. Can you please tell me what I have to do or get to make the car stay on the ground? The 350 has the power to lift the front.
Jeff Smith: I have some personal experience with my Chevelle and air shocks that dates back to my high-school days. While that was a long time ago, the physics haven't changed. I learned very quickly that jacking the back of my big-block, four-speed 1966 Chevelle with a set of air shocks resulted in violent wheelhop. Conversely, lowering the car back to nearly the stock ride height eliminated the wheelhop. I will assume that you are using the air shocks and stiff rear springs to raise the car, perhaps to clear the rear tires. But since a 225/60R15 tire isn't that big, it's possible that the backspacing on the wheels is the reason for tire-clearance issues. If this is the case, the solution is to perform some careful measurements to determine the amount of room between the inside edge of the current tire and wheel package and the closest inner fender obstruction. Let's assume you have 112 inches of clearance to the inside and an 8-inch-wide wheel with 4 inches of backspacing. We define backspacing as the distance between the wheel mounting pad surface and the inboard edge of the wheel. You can measure this easily by laying a straightedge across the back side of the wheel (not the sidewall of the tire) and measuring straight down from the straightedge to the wheel-mounting surface.
By changing to a set of wheels that increase the backspace from the original 4 inches to 5 inches, you will move the wheel inboard, allowing the outboard edge of the tire to clear the inside of the fender lip. This will then allow you to lower the ride height in the rear. With the car at rest, shoot for a ride height that will place the lower rear control arm roughly parallel with the pavement. This will change the location of the rear suspension's instant center (IC), thus eliminating the violent wheelhop.
It might also be a good idea to replace the air shocks with a quality shock absorber. For the street, you don't need expensive adjustable shocks. A quality shock like the Bilstein (PN F4BE5E250M0, rear, $62.97 each, Summit Racing) is an excellent choice that will offer great ride quality as well as improved handling. The best idea is to change the front shocks, as well (PN 24-009492, $69.97 each, Summit Racing). I would also suggest checking the upper and lower control arm bushings in both the front and rear suspensions just to make sure they are in decent shape. It's possible that after 35 years of use, these bushings have never been replaced and may be cracked, broken, or even non-existent.
If the lower rear control arm bushings are in need of replacing, consider upgrading to a pair of aftermarket control arms. Global West builds an excellent tubular lower control arm with Del-A-Lum bushings (TBC-2, $279.60, Global West) at one end and a high-quality spherical bearing in the front that allows the arm to articulate but not bind. Even with the spherical bearing, minimal road noise is transmitted through the car. The advantage is the arm will accurately locate the rear axle under the car, which will eliminate lateral movement of the body over the rear axle. This is a common problem with stock, stamped lower control arms that flex horribly and allow the tires to rub on the body. My 1965 road-race/autocross Chevelle uses an 18x9.5-inch rear wheel with a 275/35ZR18 tire with barely 12-inch of clearance to the wheelwell on the outside. Yet even under hard, 1-g cornering, my tires never rub using the Global West arms. Other companies like Hotchkis and Currie sell a similar lower control arm, although they do not use a spherical bearing. Above all, however, beware of cheap Internet rip-offs of these quality arms. There are many unscrupulous vendors out there selling fake arms as the real thing. If the price for a brand-new part looks too good to be true, it probably is. Buy Global West, Hotchkis, or Currie parts from the vendors themselves or a known source such as Jegs or Summit Racing to be sure that you're getting the right parts. I recently spoke to Doug Norrdin, owner of Global West, and he told me that these off-shore knock-off parts are a huge problem because customers often unknowingly buy these cheap parts only to have them fail. So be smart and avoid the rip-off parts.
More Info
Currie Enterprises; 714/528-6957
Global West Suspension Components; 909/890-0759; GlobalWest.net
Hotchkis Performance; 562/907-7757; HotchkisPerformance.com
Rat Tactics
John Raczka; Golden, CO: I'm looking for some direction on my 1969 Nova drag car. It has a 468ci big-block Chevy, a Comp 11-250-3 flat-tappet cam, AFR 265cc oval-port Magnum heads with roller rockers, Hooker Super Comp headers, full MSD ignition, a TH400 tranny with a 3,500-stall converter, CalTracs, a Dana 60 with 4.11:1 gears, and a spool. I have been running an Edelbrock Air Gap intake with a Holley 850 carb and 1-inch phenolic spacer. I live in the Denver area, and I run my car at Bandimere Speedway at a 5,800-foot altitude. My car is street-legal, and I had never driven a high-stall-equipped car before. I always thought the car was sluggish from a start, which I related to the stall converter. The Nova ran 12.20s at 108 mph.
I decided to try a 1050 Dominator carb and used an adapter plate approximately 212 inches tall and no other spacer. OMG! The car woke up! It is snappy and a ball to drive. I guess it wasn't the stall. I had to tweak on the CalTracs because of traction issues. I only had one chance at the track, but it ran an 11.92 at 112 mph. Now for the question: I developed an oil leak at the rear of the intake, so should I just fix the leak or is there a Dominator manifold that will work better than my Air Gap and adapter?
Jeff Smith: The question is finding an oval port, single-plane intake manifold that will also fit a Dominator flange carburetor. I think that going to a single-plane intake would certainly benefit your combination. A good single-plane intake will make more peak horsepower and probably raise the peak horsepower rpm point by roughly 200 to maybe 300 rpm. This would also complement your camshaft with its specs of 240/246 at 0.050 and 0.574/0.578 inch lift. I looked in the Edelbrock catalog, and the best manifold for your application would be the Victor Jr. 454-O, (PN 2909, $289.97, Summit Racing). This will allow you to bolt that Dominator carburetor directly to the manifold, and the oval-port configuration should be very close. Don't sweat the interface between the manifold and the heads if there is a slight mismatch. You can port-match it if you choose, but honestly there is very little to be gained by spending any time port-matching. The majority of flow occurs in the middle of the port, and if you mapped velocity, you would discover minimal flow activity near the walls. That's why nobody polishes intake ports anymore—there's no benefit. Finally, in almost all cases, a dedicated Dominator manifold will be better than a 4150 flange manifold with a Dominator adapter. One thing that might have also helped you with this is the fact that you had a 212-inch-tall spacer between the carb and the manifold. If you have underhood room with the Victor, Jr. intake, a spacer would probably also be beneficial.
Of perhaps more interest is why the larger carburetor really helps. I spoke with Westech Performance's Steve Brul, who has a ton of experience with big-block Chevys. He said that big-blocks are very responsive to bigger carburetors, and this isn't necessarily related to the engine needing more airflow. As an example, way back in the late '80s, Kenny Duttweiler was testing a normally aspirated Buick V6 engine on Edelbrock's dyno and discovered significant power increases when he adapted a 1,050-cfm Dominator carburetor to the little V6. The engine didn't need the additional airflow, but it did respond positively to the larger carburetor, which reduced the air velocity exiting the carburetor. This allowed the heavier fuel traveling at a slower speed to make the transition from vertical flow out of the carburetor to horizontal flow into the intake ports.
Following that theory, your engine probably responded both because of reduced air speed out of the carburetor and perhaps also to a change in air/fuel ratio. I noticed you mentioned that you race at Bandimere Speedway, which is in the mountains just outside Denver at 5,800 feet of altitude. This means the air is a lot thinner where you race. This also means that it would be very easy to make an engine run a very rich air/fuel ratio because of the greater elevation. I'll assume that the Dominator was already tuned for use at your higher altitude, but it is something you may want to look into a little closer. Further tuning with the carburetor or possibly using a tapered carb spacer might just deliver even better performance.
More Info
Edelbrock; 310/781-2222; Edelbrock.com
Ask Anything— We've Got Solutions!
Car Craft Mag
831 S. Douglas St.
El Segundo, CA 90245


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Item # THU0287Item # THU0287
Easy, convenient bike transportation.
Get your bikes out of the car trunk and carry them securely with the Thule Passage 2 Bike Strap Rack. This rack attaches securely to your trunk with six adjustable nylon straps; vinyl-coated buckles at the end of the straps hold the carrier firmly to your car without scratching it. Once have the rack secured to your car, use the patented FitDial to perfect the fit.
- Narrow cradle arms hold a wider range of bike frames, including small child bike-frames
- SoftCushion pads protect trunk and hatch, while padded rubber cradles cushion the bike frame and hold it securely
- Arms fold down when not in use
- Thule part number 910XT
- Attaches with six adjustable nylon straps with vinyl-coated buckles
- FitDial system
- SoftCushion pads
- Narrow cradle arms fit a wide range of bikes
- Arms fold down when they're not in use
View more Rear Mount Racks
Reviews & Community
Would you suggest getting this rack, or another of Thule's range, for carbon framed bikes? Unsure how forgiving the cradles are on this model.
Will this rack fit a 2017 Toyota Highlander?
Hey Alan,
This rack is going to be best suited for sedans with a traditional trunk. You would be better suited with ideally a hitch style rack or a roof rack if you don't have a hitch.
If you have any other questions feel free to reach out to me directly at firstname.lastname@example.com
Will any Thule products adaptable for a 2014 JeepCherokee?
Not compatible with Thule Frame Adapter
- Familiarity: I returned this product before using it
The rack seemed to be a very good one, however I needed to use the Thule Frame Adapters and they did not seat securely in to the rack channels.
Works well
I bought this for my hatchback car, and it fits great even though my car doesn't have a very standard shape. My bike always feels secure and it'd easy to use, durable, and is a great value for the price
Will the Thule Passage 2 Bike Strap Rack w/ Cradles One Color, 2 work on a 2003 Honda Accord coupe and will fit a Electra Townie Original 21D - Women's bike?
Thank you
Hi Jeneane! Thanks for the question. This rack will fit on your Honda.
As for the Electra Townie Original 21D, I'm going to send you an email to find out what specific frame that you have.
will this bike rack fit my 2010 Nissan Murano?
Hey Jen- Thanks for the question! This rack is indeed compatible with your Nissan Murano.
Let me know if you want to place an order for one today! I'd love to be able to help you out.
I am looking at the Thule Raceway Pro Rack for my 2014 Honda Accord. Will it work on my Accord?
Hey Randy!
Thanks for the question. Sorry we are just getting back to you. So I took a look at the Raceway compatibility with your car and it will indeed fit. I use the Pro Rack on my car and I love it. Its worked out really well for myself and hauling trail bikes as well as DH bikes. Let me know if you have any more questions or if you want to give the rack a go. I'd love to be able to help you out.
Will is rack fit my 2010 Subaru Impreza? It's a hatchback.
Hey Jen! Sorry we are just getting to your question. So this rack is indeed compatible with your hatchback!
Let me know if you have any additional questions.
Fits on almost anything!
- Familiarity: I've put it through the wringer
I bought this for my hatchback and love it. It's really easy to get set up and conveniently stores in the back of my car. It also can be adjusted to fit almost any of my friends cars! Super handy and great price! I've had it for about a year and the rubber has held up fine, even in the Texas heat.
I've used it around town and on 200+ mile car trips with no problems.
will this fit my ford focus hatchback 2014
Hi Denise- My apologizes on just getting to your question. This rack will indeed fit your Ford Focus. Let me know if you have any questions or if I could help in anyway.
Hi, will this rack fit for my infinity qx50 (ex25 or ex37)? Thanks.
Passage 2 on 03 Forester
- Familiarity: I've used it several times
Recently made the drive from Jackson to Vermont and back with one bike and this rack on my 03 Forester with no complications. I've been told a roof rack is sturdier, but I wanted a setup on my hatch so if I need to move I can have the ski rack up top and bikes on the back. The setup is quick and painless and it only takes a moment to mount or dismount the bike. I was a little nervous about the straps coming loose over the drive but it turned out to be a non issue. It is Thule's lowest price point model, it won't be quite as sturdy as their higher end models, but it gets the job done.
My only complaint so far is that the metal hooks slide around the edge of my hatch and scratched it up a bit, but nothing severe (and my Subi has enough scratches and dings already that I'm not upset about it). I haven't tested it out with two bikes yet, or with heavier mountain bikes, just my cruiser.
I would say that if you are planning on consistently hauling a pair of heavier bikes, and have a shiny new ride where a scratch or two would be a big deal to you (although I don't know if other models may have the same issue), invest in a higher end model. If you're just looking for a basic rack at a good price point go with the Passage. Overall I've been happy with my purchase.
Great for what it is
- Familiarity: I've used it several times
This rack is good for the price. Not nearly the quality of the hitch and roof mounted racks I have borrowed previously from friends, but it's easy to use and has held up well so far. I took it on a long trip and it worked well though the bike and rack slid around a bit from their initial positions.
Will this rack fit on a 2012 Volkswagen...
Will this rack fit on a 2012 Volkswagen GTI?
Hey Raven,
This rack will fit your GTI.
Also, I strongly suggest you change your profile name to anything other than your email address. This community is a public forum and posting personal info is no different than leaving your home address on a bus seat. We cannot control who may contact you with this information since it can been seen by anybody with an internet connection.
Thank you!
Will this rack carry a womens trek Cali...
Will this rack carry a womens trek Cali bike?
Hi there,
If the bike has a women's style step-through top tube, than you will need a top tube adapter that Thule also sells. It is a clamp on bar that attaches to the frame where a traditional top tube would be so you can use this or other style bike racks. I hope this helps. If you have any additional questions, feel free to ask.
Jaron is right. I've included a link to the Thule Frame adapter below.
Will this fit a 2012 Scion xB?
Will this fit a 2012 Scion xB?
Hey Amy W,
Thanks for your question.
Yes, this bike rack will fit the trunk of your 2012 Scion xB just fine. I hope this helps.
Great Quality Rack for the Price
- Familiarity: I've put it through the wringer
Ok I gave it 5 star but maybe it deserves 4. So after reading the instructions installing is really simple. It takes less than 5 min to install the rack and put 2 bikes on it. We traveled over 5 hours with them and no problem. Only thing is left and right hooks feels/sounds like they can't scratch the paint when you tightening. Although nothing as of yet. Definitely a cheaper alternative to other more expensive racks.
I drive a '13 Subaru Impreza Sport Premium
Great rack...once you put it together...
- Familiarity: I've put it through the wringer
I love this rack I've had it before and I sadly lost it while moving. It's super user friendly and really easy to load. BUT....(there is always one of those) assembling the rack was rather difficult. Putting the arms on the body of the rack was a pain in the A**. However it is worth it when you finally get it all put together. Putting it on the car was a breeze and like I said before super user friendly. My boyfriend (Guru Grant K) and I love using it to take the bikes on our trips. The rubber straps to lock your bike into the cradles are easy to adjust if need bee and release when you are ready to bike. I have a Toyota RAV 4 2014 and it fits the hatch really well.

subset: commoncrawl


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Wesleyan Student Assembly (WSA)
190 High St.
The Wesleyan Student Assembly (WSA) is the legislative and deliberative body of the Wesleyan College Body. The WSA is composed of 37 members divided amongst eight standing committees:
Student Affairs Committee (SAC)
Educational Policy Committee (EPC)
Finance and Facilities Committee (FIFAC)
Community Outreach Committee (COCo)
Student Budget Committee (SBC)
Independent Project Committee (IPC)
Coordinating Committee (CC)
The Executive Committee (EC) is composed of the President of the WSA and the seven chairs of the other committees. The assembly meets as a whole every Sunday night at seven o' clock in PAC 002 and is open to all members of the Wesleyan community. Each committee also meets independently during the week The WSA maintains its offices at 190 High St.
For more information, please visit the WSA web site at: http://www.wesleyan.edu/wsa/


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SOUTH BERWICK, Maine — The Marshwood High School cheerleaders spent much of the winter supporting the boys and girls varsity basketball teams. Now the cheers are for them.
The Hawks finished second at the New England championships last Saturday in Lawrence, Mass. It was the first time a competition squad from Marshwood had ever placed at New Englands.
"There was (excitement)," said coach Erica Stevens, "but they stayed very humble. They've been a successful team the last few years so they know what it's like to come close and not win."
The Hawks qualified for New Englands by finishing second at the Maine state championships after winning the Class A regional and the SMAA.
Marshwood also won four invitational competitions during the season. The Hawks finished second in the two major meets to Class A rival Lewiston. According to Stevens, it was the first time teams from Maine finished one-two.
"It was a great representation of Maine cheerleading," she said. "We beat them twice at invitationals and they beat us twice. It was great to have that competition. I think we pushed them and they pushed us."
The team benefited from the leadership of senior captains Anna Byrne, Heather Hanson, Gabrielle Gosselin, Emily Peele and Janay Wright.
"I definitely wanted to stand out to the team as a senior and help the team reach our goals," Hanson said. "We wanted to win states and we did all we could to get there. We hit our routine at states. It was in the judges' hands at that point.
"We were a little disappointed at first," Hanson added of finishing second, "but when you go back and look at it, it was great to be in the top two."
Overall, Marshwood finished first in five competitions and placed second in the other two.
Many of the Hawks are multi-sport athletes, and that helped contribute to their success in a physically demanding activity. They were also mentally prepared and steadfast in their approach.
"One of the things about this team is that they were really focused," Stevens said. "From one competition to the next they were focused on being better than the week before, and that allowed us to do as well as we have. It took a lot of hard work and a lot of teamwork. It wasn't about one person or one individual."
"We definitely had more people working for the same goals," Hanson said. "This year everyone worked as hard as everyone else. It wasn't one or two individuals carrying the team. It makes it easier to reach our goals when everyone is striving for the same things."
The Hawks never became satisfied or complacent, despite their accomplishments.
"They really did make improvements," Stevens said. "Every single week we changed some aspect of our routine. That's very difficult. In cheerleading what you do at the beginning of the routine affects what you do at the end. Everything has to mesh together."
Team members — who number 20 with two alternates — never looked too far ahead.
"We didn't focus on a particular competition until the week before it," Hanson said. "That can get into your head, and then you won't focus on the task at hand. It can overwhelm you for the future."
Indeed the Hawks concentrated on staying in the moment during their remarkable run. They also had good camaraderie.
"I think this year we tried hard to work together," Byrne said. "We're all good friends and we push each other to be better. We also tried hard to make sure everyone had a positive attitude in practice. One girl in a bad mood makes the whole atmosphere unproductive."
Coming off a third-place finish at states last year, the Hawks were optimistic going into this season.
"My expectations were to be the best team we can be," Stevens said. "If we do that we can go as far as possible. They exceeded what I thought they might do. I always hope for the best. They accomplished almost everything they wanted to accomplish."
"I think we all had high goals and high expectations," Byrne said. "It feels really great to be a part of this team and all the success that we've had."
According to Stevens, the Hawks remained "humble, dedicated and focused." And driven to excel during each performance.
"They never said that was good enough," she said, "because that's the type of team they were."


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Part of the temporary span of the Skagit River Bridge was moved into place about midday Monday.
That doesn't mean it's open for traffic yet. It will take some time to finish the work and make sure it's ready for the volume of traffic (about 71,000 vehicles per day) that usually travels over it.
The reopening is at least a week away, state Department of Transportation officials said in a press release.
The first of two temporary sections was moved across the gap between the north and south sides of the Skagit River Bridge on Monday. Next, they get it positioned over the concrete supports and start working on the second temporary span, according to a press release.
Crews expect to work in around-the-clock shifts as much as possible until the temporary span is complete. DOT plans to finish construction on the temporary span and reopen I-5 to traffic sometime next week, the press release states.
"Getting to this point hasn't been easy," said Jay Drye, DOT assistant regional administrator. "Each step of removing and replacing the damaged bridge span has to be carefully choreographed to maximize efficiency, speed and safety."
A span of the Skagit River Bridge collapsed into the river on May 23. Three people were injured, but none seriously. Meanwhile, traffic has been detoured through Burlington and Mount Vernon since then.
Officials expect the permanent replacement span will be completed by early fall.


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Former NSA Boss: This Leak Teaches The World That America Can't Keep Secrets
from the no,-actually,-the-opposite deptWe've been trying to understand why the NSA and its supporters are both trying to play down the seriousness of the leak, while also claiming that it's incredibly dangerous, and I think we may finally have an explanation from former NSA and CIA boss Michael Hayden, who has given the most bizarre explanation yet:
"It informs our adversaries. It puts American companies at risk internationally for simply complying with our laws," said Mike Hayden, a former director of the NSA and a former director of the CIA. "It teaches practically everyone in the world—sources, liaison services—that America can't keep secrets."Actually, I think it teaches the exact opposite. It teaches everyone that the US does keep secrets -- massive, privacy-destroying secrets that certainly appear to be in conflict with the basic principles of the 4th Amendment. And, the idea that it puts American companies at risk for "simply complying with our laws" is ludicrous. If they were simply complying with our laws, then there would be no cause for concern when the details were revealed. Laws and compliance with laws shouldn't be a secret. The problem is that because the interpretation of the laws were mostly secret, most people did not believe that this level of surveillance was really happening. So, yes, it puts American companies at risk, but the reason is because of the broad overreach of our government and the intelligence community (including the time when Hayden was in charge of large sections of it).
Separately, that same report notes that within the NSA, people are freaking out:
The impact of the leak inside the NSA has been enormous. "There is complete freakout mode at the agency right now," one former intelligence officer tells The Daily Beast.If this was no big deal and just the revelation of a basic internal government computer system to deal with statutorily authorized data collection, then why would they be freaking out so much?
Filed Under: edward snowden, michael hayden, nsa, nsa leak, nsa surveillance, secrets


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Desktop Matchmaking in Linux Land
Jul 5, 2012 5:00 AM PT
Well it's been a few years since Linux Girl has had the pleasure of writing about dating in the Linux world -- always one of her favorite topics! -- but recently the topic came up again, albeit with a slight twist.
Specifically, in a recent article over at Datamation, it wasn't so much human-to-human matchmaking being discussed as it was pairing of the human-to-desktop kind.
Yes, that's right -- "Linux Desktops and Linux Personalities: What's Your Perfect Match?" is the title of the article by Bruce Byfield that has drawn several comparisons with the world of amour.
For example: "Finding your perfect match with a Linux desktop environment can be worse than using an online dating site," the story reads.
'It's Why I Use Xfce'
With such an intriguing premise, it's no wonder Linux bloggers' interest was immediately piqued.
Is there such thing as a "Linux personality"? What's the best way to help someone find the right desktop for them? Those questions and more have been on the tips of bloggers' tongues.
"My personality? 'The guy who wants his computer to do things,'" began consultant and Slashdot blogger Gerhard Mack. "It's why I use Xfce."
'Just Enough to Make It Easy'
Xfce "uses built-in OS functions rather than replicate half the OS with a HAL," Mack explained. "It detects when I insert media and lets me mount without using the command line. Add Wicd and I never have to worry about managing wireless -- it just works."
In short, "it has just enough effects to make it easy to see what I'm doing but not so much that my entire desktop slows down," he added.
That concept, in fact, seems to have gotten lost amid today's commonly held "throw everything out and start from scratch" mentality, Mack suggested.
'A Total Disaster'
"Is it that hard to understand that I want my CPU and GPU for apps and games rather than the OS?" he mused. "Don't even get me started on the 'one app at a time' crowd -- have they never had to read info from one window and enter data into another?"
The last time Mack used Unity "it was a total disaster," he told Linux Girl. "I was stuck because I needed two separate terminal windows for something I wanted to do and for the life of me, I couldn't figure out how to do it. That's BAD.
"If I can't figure it out quickly, how do they expect someone less technical to do it?" he wondered.
Bottom line: "At this point I'm convinced that the Gnome and KDE teams should find everyone who has made UI decisions and ban them from making any more decisions," Mack concluded. "Then wander out and find a bunch of people who actually have to do real work with a computer, and see what they say."
'All Options Are Pretty Good'
Hyperlogos blogger Martin Espinoza uses Unity "because it's simple and it works," he told Linux Girl.
"In the past I've used many other solutions of increased complexity, but I'm really not finding it holding me back," Espinoza explained. "If you want to do everything with a mouse then it might not be the optimal solution, but if you tend to use the keyboard to perform some operations and the mouse for some others, then it's really no less efficient than any other solution."
In fact, "since you can run any desktop on any credible distribution, I'd suggest using what comes with the default and just trying it, and then changing to something else that seems to fit your needs better if you're dissatisfied," he advised. "Starting out by comparing desktop environments is just looking for something to complain about."
Moreover, "users today can take heart in knowing that all the options are 'pretty good,' especially compared to what we used to have," Espinoza concluded.
'The Inevitable Software Migration'
Mobile Raptor blogger Roberto Lim took a similar view.
"Explaining to a user that there are various desktop options available will simply make the entire process sound too difficult and fosters the notion that Linux is too complicated to use," opined Lim, who uses the Gnome 3 shell himself.
"I think it is best to recommend a distribution, let them run it with whatever desktop it installs by default, and if the new entrants to the Linux world were the type to customize the desktop when they were Windows users, sooner or later those persons would discover and experiment with the different Linux desktop on their own," Lim told Linux Girl.
In the end, "the Linux desktops I have used all work well enough for the average user," he concluded. "The main sticking point in convincing someone to try Linux is not the desktop user interface but the inevitable software migration that comes with it."
'Get Out There and Try'
Indeed, "I think one mistake many people make is simply reading reviews and then selecting a desktop to use," agreed Thoughts on Technology blogger and Bodhi Linux lead developer Jeff Hoogland.
"I always recommend users get out there and try some of the various desktops first hand before selecting the one that is right for them," Hoogland advised. "For me the perfect desktop needs to be customizable, lightweight, and look nice," he added. "With all these, the only choice for me is some Enlightenment."
'Trying to Reinvent the Wheel'
Speaking of Enlightenment, "Mr. Byfield did not mention one of my favorites: E-17," noted Google+ blogger Alessandro Ebersol.
"The rest of the article is right on spot: KDE and Gnome/Unity are trying to reinvent the wheel and bringing things users don't need to the desktop," Ebersol added.
E-17 "hits where KDE 4 and Gnome 3 (and Unity, for that matter) missed," he concluded. "It is, at the same time, innovative and conservative. A really nice DE."
'My Bread-and-Butter Is KDE'
Google+ blogger Kevin O'Brien had a different favorite.
"I have been playing with Unity a little because I think there is genuine innovation going on there, and I like to keep up with these things," O'Brien began. "But my bread-and-butter for everyday use is KDE."
O'Brien started with KDE "back in the days of Mandrake," he explained, "and I've stayed with it ever since.
"I tried Gnome, but got frustrated very quickly because it seemed difficult to do what I wanted to do," he added. "I like KDE because it is so configurable. If I can think of something I want to do, chances are there is a way to do it."
'Reason Enough to Adopt GNU/Linux'
Blogger Robert Pogson also started off with KDE "complete with icons with an insensitive 'hole-in-the-middle,'" he told Linux Girl. "It was fun. It worked without crashing even if an application froze. That was reason enough to adopt GNU/Linux."
Today, however, "life is much better," Pogson added. "GNU/Linux offers huge advantages to OEMs, retailers, users, and system administrators. The fact that with all the advantages one can still have a choice of user interface is wonderful."
KDE and GNOME were both "standards for a long time, but both have lost their way seeking new paradigms," Pogson opined. "Unfortunately, a PC or a network of PCs still remains fundamentally the same: a collection of processes and data-structures with which a user needs to interact or to ignore. The new paradigms appear to make it easier to ignore processes, which is good, but they also seem to make it harder to interact with processes."
'That Is a Huge Waste of Time'
In fact, "one has to search for stuff one knows is running out there somewhere," he explained. "That is a huge waste of time. The user knows what he/she is doing and can point and click on visible icons for those processes with which the user wants to interact."
Fortunately, "there are tried and true display and window managers that do allow users to customize the desktop the way they conceive of it rather than with some abstraction above and beyond the icon," he added. "I use xdm and Xfce4 because it allows me to clutter my huge monitor the way I want.
"Debian GNU/Linux offers choices," Pogson concluded. "When a distro makes choices difficult, it's time to change distros. That's why we have hundreds of them."
'A Shallower Learning Curve'
Chris Travers, a Slashdot blogger who works on the LedgerSMB project, would like to try Cinnamon, but currently he is "slowly getting used to Gnome 3," he told Linux Girl. "While on the whole I am coming to like the changes, I don't think they are suitable for many users."
In general, "Gnome 2 and friends were very well optimized for use of a mouse as the primary communication with the computer," Travers explained. "Gnome 3 and others tend to be best if you are happier to use a keyboard. They may be better for professional users who are very keyboard-centric, but for those who are mouse-centric, I remain unconvinced."
In the end, "I think most users would do better with a classic desktop rather than a more keyboard-centric one like Gnome 3 or Unity," Travers opined. "A classic desktop has an inherently shallower learning curve, even for someone unfamiliar with the software."
'We Can Do Better Than This'
Last but not least, Slashdot blogger hairyfeet thinks it's time for a new desktop altogether to emerge.
"KDE is an ersatz Windows and Gnome an ersatz mac UI -- what does that say to your potential customers?" hairyfeet explained. "That the best you can do is a cheap knockoff of the other guy; when they see a knockoff, they are automatically gonna start looking for the differences."
So, "maybe now that MSFT is about to shoot itself in the face by trying to turn Windows into a 'supergigantic smartphone,' this would be a perfect time for a new Linux DE, one that instead of saying 'Me too!' says, 'We can do better than this' and comes up with the next new UI design," hairyfeet suggested.
In other words, "now is the time for a truly new and fresh idea to move us beyond the desktop metaphor," he concluded.


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The Heart Truth 2011
It's Fashion Week in Toronto. And The Heart Truth Fashion Show is always one of the highlights. The Heart Truth campaign encourages women to identify risks and warning signs for heart disease and stroke, providing women with the tools they need to take charge of their heart health. This is especially relevant for women 40 – 60 years old. I'm 3 years away from that. Balls!
To show your support for The Heart Truth, please purchase and wear a red dress pin, available by donation at local Heart & Stroke Foundation offices. All proceeds will be reinvested into women and heart disease initiatives. Click here for more information.
As for the show last night – here's a selection of photos:
Megan Follows in David Dixon and, um, so what if I watched the Anne of Green Gables miniseries maybe 45 times…?
Gabrielle Miller from Corner Gas, who's now moved to LA and I miss her in Vancouver, wearing Eugenia.
Isabelle Brasseur wearing Marie Saint Pierre for the figure skating nerds, like me, who still remember Brasseur and Eisler before he hooked up with the Original Buffy and became a huge douche.
And finally…
Elisha Cuthbert who used to be almost married to Justin Timberlake's bff Trace Ayala, then moved on to Sean Avery, and is now dating Dion Phaneuf of the Toronto Maple Leafs which, well, I'll spare you my hockey commentary but, you know, he's no Duncan Keith. By far.
For more about last night's event, click here.
Photos from Wenn.com


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(visited by Joseph Kerski)
18-May-2007 -- As I had just completed a successful photo session at Douglas Pass, a confluence visit seemed like the perfect way to cap off the trip. The photo session and GPS collection was in preparation for a GIS-based analysis of landslides and pipelines that I was creating lessons for with Mesa State College. Having grown up in Grand Junction, not far away, I was looking forward to a drive and a hike in the desert, and I knew that this confluence would provide exactly that.
I finished my Douglas Pass work about 9:30am, and by 10:00am I was traveling slowly through Rangely, a small but tenacious town that is home to Colorado Norhwestern Community College. It is not far from Dinosaur National Park and at the edge of the Piceance Basin, known for its natural gas and oil shale deposits. I drove west on State Highway 64 and then west along Rio Blanco County Road 2 at the edge of town. Rangely was not incorporated until 1947 and the first paved roads did not reach here for another decade. The town, now home to over 2,000 people, still lives up to its motto, "slightly off the beaten path".
County Road 2 follows the White River's riparian area, and its green trees were in stark contrast to the deep blue sky and the nearly white cliffs. This indeed lives up to the old slogan for the state, "Colorful Colorado!" The pavement ended, and after a while I turned south into Cottonwood Canyon at nearly the road's end, where I noticed a series of small signs spaced about 7 meters apart, spelling out, "Please Don't Litter, because for the next 13 miles in Cottonwood Canyon, we picked it all up!" The last sign indicated that the responsible folks were a crew of an energy consulting company. I liked the fact that at least they had done something to benefit the environment. It's really a shame that people have to litter this wonderful landscape.
I drove south for about 15 minutes on the Cottonwood Canyon road, which fortunately did not require four-wheel drive in this dry weather. There were a few spots where the middle of the road was higher than the ruts, so I straddled these as best I could. My aerial photograph was out of date and didn't match what I was driving on, but I found an embankment to park on near the mouth of the canyon entering Cottonwood from the west. I donned sunblock, hat, and took GPS, camera, and batteries, and set off under a nearly cloudless sky.
After skirting the dry riverbed in the bottom of the canyon, I found a way to descend the 6 meter high walls, and then journeyed up the side canyon, my footfalls making wonderful clinking noises on the slate that was everywhere. After a few hundred meters, I exited the canyon, crossed a relatively flat area, and then hiked straight up the canyon wall, which came close to a 45-degree angle before I reached the particular ledge where the confluence was located. It was perhaps halfway up the canyon. I hiked about 40 meters past the rim and arrived at 40 North 109 West. Not surprisingly, I had no trouble zeroing out the unit with the lack of tree cover and wide open spaces.
The confluence lies on land sloping 10 degrees to the south, dotted with yucca, Mormon Tea, and other plants. About 1/3 of the land near the confluence was bare soil. I saw a few crows and hawks, but no snakes or any other ground animals. The best views from the confluence are to the south and west, but if one walks to the canyon rims just 40 meters east and south, the views up and down Cottonwood Canyon are really magnificent. I could see my vehicle, far below. I took photographs and a video, spending about 25 minutes at the site. I really didn't want to leave. The temperature was 75 F (24 C) and it was starkly beautiful out there in the desert. All of the hills and mountains here have horizontal sedimentary strata, and again, are some of the whitest landforms I've ever seen.
I had been to 40 North several times, in California, Colorado, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey, but this was only my 3rd time on the 109th meridian, having stood on it in Colorado and Montana. The 109th meridian was supposed to be the Colorado-Utah boundary, but that was still a few kilometers off to the west. I was last in the area just 1 degree east of here at 40 North 108 West. This was in January, when I hiked for an hour through a meter of snow. What a difference the change of seasons makes!
Those who know me won't be surprised to hear that I descended a different way, as I truly enjoy looping hikes. I hiked southeast down a different face of the mountain, seeing some blue lichen and then some red lichen along the way. I entered the side canyon at the point where it joins Cottonwood Canyon's wash. I arrived at the vehicle in just under an hour from when I had left. I drove back the way I came, taking photographs this time of the signs documenting the litter pickup in the canyon. I drove back to Rangely, arriving just before noon, making the confluence journey just under 3 hours. I then struck out to the north on Highway 1 and east on US 40, to Craig, hoping to make a visit to 40 North 107 West that afternoon. Once again, a confluence trek proved to be a magnificent way to "get off the beaten path".


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I'm well and truly on vacation and have been all week. And, for the first time ever, I'm taking two weeks of vacation in a row. That's right. I was on vacation this week, and I'll also be on vacation next week. Hard to fathom, I know, but it's true.
It's not a vacation where I'm doing anything special. I'm mostly sitting on the couch, reading (I have a supply of fiction and a whole stack of New Yorker magazines to read), petting the kitty, watching episodes of Rosemary & Thyme on DVD, and generally being a slug. Today I even took a nap (not one of my talents, and not something I'd planned on doing, but something that ended up being really nice). And you know what? After a full work week spent not working, I'm starting to feel a little bit more like myself again! Maybe this means that next week I'll have my brains back enough to start my Japanese lessons back up.
Oh! And I'm really excited to learn that we'll be getting clickers for our library classroom! I'll have to read up on Knowledge Surveys and see if I can combine what I've learned about clicker pedagogy with that kind of assessment. The ideas are bubbling!
Which reminds me, I still need to write about Knowledge Surveys, which I heard discussed very compellingly at the NITLE Moodle meeting I went to earlier this month. Hmmm…. and that reminds me that I still haven't written much about Moodle and the crossroads I think it's reached, and there are one or two other topics I haven't covered yet from last month's conferences. Maybe next week will be a week of blogging as well as Japanese lessons. Maybe. If I'm not too busy being a slug.
(Image credit: "Hammock" by Listen Missy shared under Creative Commons)


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If Norman Rockwell had painted a picture of the American family on Christmas morning (which he didn't - I checked), I imagine it would show kids in their pajamas around a Christmas tree. There would be a little girl with ringlets playing with her dollies (how's that for 1950s speak?) and her big brother playing with a train set. There would be tired but contented parents, sipping their steaming morning coffee as they watch their progeny with pride.
You can almost see the scene develop. The kids would eat a hearty breakfast, dress in their winter clothes, and wave happily back toward the house as they go outside. They would almost certainly pass the snowman they'd made in the yard complete with coal for eyes and a carrot for the nose. And then, surrounded by snow-laden conifers, they'd go sledding on their new red Radio Flyer sled.
This Christmas fantasy belongs to a whole genre of images about childhood that folks my age are apt to carry around. It's a genre that harkens to a time when many things were different, not the least of which, is play. In my memory, at least, play was grounded in freedom and creativity. It was what kids did that, unbeknownst to them, prepared them for the adult world that awaited them.
Today, not all play - but much of it - appears prescribed, leaving little room for creativity. Ironically, it seems constrained by the creativity of others, like the inventor of the latest electronic gadget or the programmer of the latest video game. These are the folks who create much of the world in which our kids play - a world that leaves little room for their own imagination and creativity. Is the world for which this play prepares our kids the world we want? Perhaps it is. But I wonder.
In the Gospel of Matthew Jesus says, "... unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." I wonder how we adults are to make ourselves childlike without becoming childish.
Might play and play's companion, art, be the key for some of us? When we engage in play and when we give ourselves to the practice of an art, we are for the moment freed from the tyranny of time. We enter a state of unselfconsciousness - like children. And we are opened to feel connections that perhaps we have never felt before and see those connections with wonder and surprise. It is out of that sort of state that creativity can arise. And without creativity, there is no new creation, perhaps not even the creation of God's reign.
Meister Ekhart, a 13th century Christian mystic, wrote that, "some people do not bear fruit because they are so busy clinging to their egotistical attachments and so afraid of letting go and letting be that they have no trust either in God or in themselves." Children in play, the artist in creating are not afraid of letting go.
Some artists will seek an ideal, but some will throw caution to the wind and follow where the creative spirit leads. Children often go out of their way to experience ecstatic highs. They hang upside down or climb to the highest swaying branches of trees or spin around until they literally fall down. At least, children used to do these things. And then an all-adult, often male world invented video games. These often focus on blowing up things, people and entire worlds, and redefined play.
At the same time, we began to over-schedule life, right down to our kids' lives. Dave Goetz writes that "To play is to take a stand against efficiency, rampant scheduling, and a control-obsessed culture. To play is to create holiness in time, when, for a morning or afternoon, there is no reason or utility for the activity - only for the pure joy of it."
In the coming season of the Incarnation (Christ's birth) a child features prominently both in our religious iconography (picture the Nativity scene) as well as in our cultural fixation on providing the "perfect" Christmas for our kids. I'm not so naïve as to believe dollies and Radio Flyers will be the Christmas gifts of choice this year. I do suspect, though, that many of us in our heart of hearts long for the peace and simplicity of a Norman Rockwell Christmas. Art and play could be one way for us to be faithful to the Christ who, especially in this season, calls us to become like little children.
Leigh Waggoner is priest at St. Barnabas Episcopal Church. She can be reached at 565-7865, or email@example.com.


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17 April 2012 at 3.30pm | Comment on this article
Over the last five months we've been working with East London Dance on a project based on Othello, and this Saturday will see a triple bill of their own choreography and composition they've created. Street Stories: Trails Be-Trayals has involved 45 young performers aged between 14-21 and is a completely new dance piece, created with support from experienced choreographers.
You can watch a clip from a Street Stories workshop that was filmed during Royal Ballet Live:
Using Shakespeare's Othello as a starting point, the young dancers have been mentored by choreographer Kerry Nicholls and composer Paul Griffiths as they've devised the new work. As well as workshops from choreographers and composers, the group have also experienced taster sessions with professional artists who work in the world of film-making, spoken word, costume and set design.
The students have also been creating trailers for their work:
If you're interested to see a fresh take on a story that will be performed later in the year - when Verdi's Otello comes to the Royal Opera House main stage - there are still some tickets available for Saturday's premiere. Although not part of this year's World Shakespeare Festival, Trails Be Trayals shows the power of the Bard to continue inspiring young people.


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Home to around 54 million people and an economy that is opening up to the world, Myanmar is on the fast track for development. Although the economy is growing, the need is very high, particularly as urban centres grow, and rural communities risk being left behind.
The need in the country is great, but the potential of its people is greater. People like Myint Myint, a widowed weaver in Mandalay, who was struggling to feed her young son after the death of her husband. After hearing about VisionFund, Myint Myint took out a loan to buy a weaving machine. Watch this video to hear how her story ends.
Please sit back and enjoy 'THREADS':
'THREADS' is also available in Burmese.
To learn about how you can contribute to VisionFund's microfinance efforts in Myanmar, please click:
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CMH Health Compass is a quarterly journal of wellness and good healthcare. The Winter 2017 issue of the CMH Health Compass includes:
Read the Winter 2017 CMH Health Compass.
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25 Times Liam Hemsworth Made Hearts Skip A Beat With His Hotness
Liam Hemsworth is going through a tough time following his split from wife Miley Cyrus. However, he's brought us joy way too many times for us not to try and bring some light to this situation. So with that being said, we bring you the 25 times the Australian heartthrob made hearts skip a beat with nothing but a photo of his hot self.
Scroll down to see our favorite Liam moments, brought to you by his Instagram, all below!
1. When he oh-so-casually road right into our hearts on just two wheels.
2. When he wore nothing but #freeswag, which meant the world got to see him with #nopants.
3. When his piercing eyes and perfect-looking tongue said all that needed to be said.
4. When he took this selfie as a thank you to Zurich Film Festival, but we thanked him instead.
5. When he made me go vegetarian for a month just by taking a bite of a veggie burger.
6. When he posed for GQ Australia and hit us with a smize even Tyra Banks' would be proud of.
7. When he wore an all-black YSL suit. (Yes, that's all it took)
8. When he was just a man with a mug in his hand.
9. I mean, this shot explains itself.
10. When he said he was "bringing sexy back" as a joke and didn't realize he actually did.
11. When he made neon shorts look hot. #ATrueSkill
12. When he spoke about saving and investing in the planet, so I started to save and invest in the planet
13. When he made me wish St. Patrick's Day was every da*n day!
14. When he made me wonder if he could also hold me in his arms while I fall asleep?
15. When he made me jealous of a dog… again.
16. And again.
17. When he made a rainy Monday morning look this good.
18. When he risked his life to take this selfie to make sure I was still saving and investing in the planet.
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#WorldOceansDay I almost died taking this photo on the side of a cliff in hurricane type weather but that's how much I love and care about the ocean. Today is about celebrating one of the most important resources on our planet. We must work together to protect it for future generations. #ItsNotOk #WorldOceansDay #100islandsprotected
19. When he said he lived for donuts, but this video gave me life.
20. When he left me speechless with an off-camera stare.
21. When his smile made me smile.
22. When he meant to spotlight his cool uber driver, but stole the show with his tinted shades.
23. When he made a onesie the hottest outfit to ever appear on daytime TV.
24. When he was just a man showing love to his awesome mama.
25. And last, but certainly not least, when he posted this TOO HOT FOR WORDS shot of him getting tatted up and thought I actually cared about the actual tattoo.
Photo: Getty Images


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One last thought about group fitness and the deconditioned. I recently ventured into my first step class, something I had avoided for years due to my lack of coordination and my low tolerance for embarrassing situations. However, one evening I had an inexplicable urge to finally step foot into a step class. After grabbing a step, I scurried to the back row (who wants to look foolish in the front row?) and positioned myself beside two women who also looked new to step. How could I tell? Well, they were both rather heavy, and they were standing uncomfortably in the back row while the 25 regular participants chatted amiably and eagerly awaited the instructor's arrival.
As I looked around trying not to feel self-conscious, I spotted myself in the mirror at the front of the room, and I envisioned a huge "beginner" sign on my forehead. I figured my two "neighbors" and I would bungle our way through the class together. Then, the instructor bounded into the room, and not long into the throbbing beat of the music, my suspicion was confirmed: This was not a class for beginners or people with no rhythm. The regulars had the steps down pat. Of course, to make myself feel better about my lack of ability, I decided that the regulars had been on their high school drill teams — yes, even the lone 50-year-old guy in his yellow T-shirt, black shorts, black socks and black tennis shoes.
I turned to my two "friends" for support. Unfortunately, my would-be compadres in "bungleness" were having even more difficulty than I was. Obviously, neither of them had been on their high school drill teams either. One of them kept stopping, putting her hands on her hips and looking at her friend. The other woman would shrug her shoulders each time and meekly continue. About 15 minutes into the 60-minute class, the shrugging friend could no longer deny her friend's discomfort or her own. They slipped out of the class.
I had an urge to follow them, but I didn't. Instead, I continued to try to keep up with the fast pace of the class, the T-kicks, the A-kicks (or whatever they're called), walking around the step with a turn and most especially, the step turns on top of the step. I tried not to look too foolish when the routine led the class to turn to the back of the room, where they inevitably found me staring back at them because I never did figure out that turn step. How many times can you blush and smile apologetically during a step class?
I kept thinking about the two women who left. It must have taken a lot of courage for them to come into this class, even as a pair. I was certain they had determined that step class — and possibly group fitness — was not for them.
I wish my club had a beginner step class for the sake of these two women and others like them (and for my sake, too). Maybe club owners should start attending their own classes and observe the participants, particularly the beginners. These people already feel inadequate in the gym. They don't need a class to make them feel even more inadequate.
Something is definitely wrong when it seems that classes are only geared to the already fit. Do we really want the overweight and obese in our group fitness classes? Sometimes I wonder.


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National Instruments Simplifies Advanced Motion Control
AUSTIN, Texas, Aug. 5, 2009, 2009 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX News Network/ -- NIWeek -- National Instruments (Nasdaq: NATI) today announced the new LabVIEW NI SoftMotion Module, which simplifies the development of advanced single- and multi-axis motion applications, and new NI C Series modules, which expand the connectivity of the NI CompactRIO programmable automation controller (PAC) platform to hundreds of servo and stepper drives from NI and third-party vendors. These two additions to the NI family of motion products combine the ease of use and I/O capabilities of NI LabVIEW graphical programming with the customization and synchronization benefits of field-programmable gate array (FPGA)-based CompactRIO hardware to deliver an ideal platform for developing advanced motion applications.
LabVIEW NI SoftMotion offers the convenience of programming motion profiles with a high-level, function block API based on the Motion Control Library defined by PLCopen. It includes function blocks for straight line, arc and contoured move types as well as function blocks for advanced operations such as electronic gearing and camming. The module also features advanced functions for designing custom motion applications including trajectory generation, spline interpolation, position and velocity control and encoder implementation. Because the module is an extension of LabVIEW, engineers and scientists easily can synchronize their motion applications with I/O and measurements in a single development environment.
LabVIEW NI SoftMotion seamlessly integrates with CompactRIO to deliver an ideal solution for advanced motion control applications. Using the new C Series drive interface modules, engineers and scientists can take advantage of a CompactRIO feature that automates FPGA programming to easily integrate FPGA benefits such as reliable, high-speed control and synchronization into their applications. Additionally, LabVIEW NI SoftMotion works with customized axes for engineers and scientists who want to use third-party hardware.
With direct connectivity to hundreds of servo and stepper drives, the new C Series drive interface modules make it easy to incorporate new or existing motors and drives into motion systems. The NI 9512 module connects to stepper drives and motors, while the NI 9514 and NI 9516 modules feature single- and dual-encoder feedback, respectively, and interface with servo drives and motors. Because motion applications tend to be processing-intensive, the drive interface modules perform onboard processing to free up processing power and increase performance. Additionally, the drive interface modules work with the NI 9144 deterministic Ethernet expansion chassis, which features two Ethernet ports that make it possible to daisy-chain multiple chassis from a CompactRIO, the NI 3100 industrial controller or a real-time PXI controller to create distributed motion applications.
Readers can visit www.ni.com/motion to learn about NI motion control products as well as read case studies and download white papers on how NI technology can be used for motion applications.
About National Instruments
National Instruments (www.ni.com) is transforming the way engineers and scientists design, prototype and deploy systems for measurement, automation and embedded applications. NI empowers customers with off-the-shelf software such as NI LabVIEW and modular cost-effective hardware, and sells to a broad base of more than 30,000 different companies worldwide, with no one customer representing more than 3 percent of revenue and no one industry representing more than 15 percent of revenue. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, NI has more than 5,000 employees and direct operations in more than 40 countries. For the past 10 years, FORTUNE magazine has named NI one of the 100 best companies to work for in America. Readers can obtain investment information from the company's investor relations department by calling (512) 683-5090, e-mailing email@example.com or visiting www.ni.com/nati. (NATI-G)
Pricing and Contact Information LabVIEW NI SoftMotion Module 11500 N Mopac Expwy, Austin, Texas 78759-3504 Priced* from $1,799; euro 1,649; 237,000 yen Tel: (800) 258-7022, NI 9512 drive interface module for stepper Fax: (512) 683-9300 motors E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com Priced* from $699; euro 649; 92,000 yen NI 9514 drive interface module for servo drives and motors Priced* from $749; euro 699; 99,000 yen NI 9516 drive interface module for servo drives and motors Priced* from $799; euro 749; 105,000 yen Web: www.ni.com/motion * All prices are subject to change without notice.
CompactRIO, LabVIEW, National Instruments, NI, ni.com, NI SoftMotion and NIWeek are trademarks of National Instruments. Other product and company names listed are trademarks or trade names of their respective companies.
Editor Contact: Hilary Marchbanks, (512) 683-5937 Reader Contact: Ernest Martinez, (800) 258-7022
SOURCE National Instruments
Copyright (C) 2009 PR Newswire. All rights reserved


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Q : Which colours do you like best? Why?
A : My favorite colours are red and black . I think they're nice . But my parents say that these are the sad colours and They never allow me to buy black / red stuff , Because they think these colours will distract teenagers from school ! Actually , I study a lot and I've never noticed any distraction in my lessons ! That's tough , isn't it ?


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I've fired up Metallica for this one. Not a bit of Metallica – I've cued up the entire 80's and 90's discography onto my iPod , but am focusing on the particularly nostalgic And Justice For All and the Black Album. Probably a few of you will remember a great and bloody pleasure that had younger versions of ourselves hacking at monsters back in the 90's. Yes, you have it – Golden Axe has been released at the App Store. This is the Golden Axe that with the sweeping arcs of a lethal blade, dispelled cartoon-esque hero/villian games that dominated the beat 'em up scene nigh on twenty years ago.
Sega, Golden Axe, 4.99$, 2.1MB


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Yes Bank recommends name of Brahm Dutt for post of chairman
Updated : December 19, 2018 06:17 AM IST
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Dawn Green
Dawn began working for the School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation as a student while working on her Bachelor's Degree in English Language and Literature. After graduating in 2002, she joined the staff full-time as the Business Manager.
As Business Manager, Dawn is responsible for accounts payable and receivable, supply orders, and travel reimbursements.
BA English Language and Literature - University of Maryland, College Park 2002


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Solid State Drives Guide
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Kingston Aims to Capture Mainstream SSD Market
** Updated on 18th December 2009 **
The article has been updated with more thorough testing results using a retail drive that has shown improved performance. Now with a more substantial conclusion, the original preview article has been updated to a full review.
Capturing the Mainstream SSD Market
Sometime ago we covered five of the fastest solid state drives (SSD) available to assess just how far SSDs have progressed and we kind of like the way things are progressing. Finally SSDs are outperforming their mechanical hard drive ancestors by a significant degree. To add on, Intel's second generation X25-M drives have managed to strike an appealing balance in price-performance to heat up the competition, though the cost per gigabyte unit of storage is still comparatively high (against hard drives).
While those are what we like about SSD drives, there's still much room to improve with regards to maintaining a SSD's performance edge after continued usage. Thankfully most of the latest drives have something in the works to address the growing concern of performance degradation over time. This performance dip occurs once all the flash cells on the SSD unit have been occupied once and require extra processing cycles to copy, delete and re-write new content, thus reducing throughput.
We'll dwell more on that topic in another article, but suffice to say the situation is getting better now that Windows 7 has arrived along with an updated drive protocol to support TRIM functionality. This should put the performance degradation issue a thing of the past as long as SSD drives have an appropriate firmware support. Let's turn our attention to assess Kingston's value oriented SSD unit and how it stacks up.
Meet the new SSDNow V+ series from Kingston, not to be confused with the original V series launched in Computex. As the acronym of the series name hints, the V series is part of Kingston's new value series lineup targeted at the mainstream DIY and upgrade market to tease the crowd with a decently fast drive at affordable prices. Its read/write speeds are advertised for 100MB/s and 80MB/s respectively and comes in 64GB and 128GB capacity points only.
The newer V+ series we're reviewing today boasts better specifications such as 220MB/s for sequential read speeds and up to 140MB/s write speeds for the 64GB edition. It also comes in capacities up to 256GB and has lower idle power draw than the original V series. Both are basically MLC-flash equipped drives but as we prodded Kingston for more information, they revealed that the V series uses the jointly developed controllers from JMicron and Toshiba, whereas the V+ series uses a Samsung controller. Another highlight point for the V+ series is its huge 128MB cache memory that should definitely distinguish it from the normal V series that has none.
An important point to take note for the techies is its current firmware, version 1801Q, doesn't support the Self-Healing function from Samsung's controller or otherwise also commonly referred to as Garbage Collection. However we've contacted Kingston about it and they are currently qualifying version 18C1Q which will support Self-Healing. So if you are interested in this drive, just remember to flash the drive's firmware when the new firmware is available. Our review drive unfortunately still had the older firmware and Kingston didn't have a newer version for trial when we were testing it out.
Both the V and V+ series will still be retailing together as they address different price points. Also, take note that the V series is region specific in availability whereas the newer V+ model is set for a much wider availability. Similar to our previous tests, we've settled for the 64GB version of the SSDNow V+ Series SSD as that capacity is turning out to be the next sweet spot for SSD acquisition. So here's how all the SSD drives stack up in basic tech specs:-
|Flash Memory Type
|Onboard Cache
|Advertised Sequential Read/Write Speeds
|Kingston SSDNow V+ Series 64GB
|Intel X25-M 80GB
|Kingston SSDNow E Series 64GB
|Mtron PRO 7500 64GB
|OCZ Vertex 60GB
|Indilinx 'Barefoot'
|Patriot Torqx 64GB
|Indilinx 'Barefoot'
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Thursday, November 4 on Syfy, Joe Maddalena Hunts Down Lost Hollywood Treasure In Hunting Hollywood at 9PM (ET/PT) and Hit Series Fact Or Faked: Paranormal Files Returns With All-New Episodes at 10PM (ET/PT)
Los Angeles, California - July 30, 2010 - Continuing to build the next generation of its successful reality programming, Syfy premieres new reality series Hunting Hollywood and orders six additional episodes of its reality hit Fact or Faked: Paranormal Files. Hunting Hollywood debuts on Thursday, November 4 at 9PM (ET/PT), followed by an all-new episode of Fact or Faked: Paranormal Files at 10PM (ET/PT). The announcement was made today by Mark Stern, Executive Vice President, Original Content for Syfy/Co-Head, Original Content for Universal Cable Productions.
After only 2 airings on Syfy's newly launched Thursday night of originals and compared to the time period average in the 2nd quarter for the year, Fact or Faked: Paranormal Files has delivered double-digit growth in both key demos and total viewers (+28% in Adults 18-49, +22% in Adults 25-54 and +33% in total viewers (857,000)).
Hunting Hollywood is a one-hour, weekly documentary-reality series that delves into the intricate world of collecting of showbiz and pop culture memorabilia, including science fiction and fantasy props and costumes. The series follows Joe Maddalena, owner of Profiles in History and the world's largest auctioneer of original movie, television and pop culture collectibles.
Each episode follows Joe and his crew as they travel the globe searching for the most compelling, rare, and sought-after Hollywood memorabilia. Sometimes combing through basements and attics to uncover lost Hollywood treasure, and other times meeting with celebrities to view their personal keepsakes, Joe tracks leads and does whatever it takes to seal the deal for a piece of Hollywood history. From the Wicked Witch of the West hat to the vintage Chitty Chitty Bang Bang car to the Mary Poppins carpet bag, Maddalena will stop at nothing to hunt down some of Hollywood's most legendary and mythical items. Episodes culminate with Joe presiding over a world-class auction, where all of the collectibles are sold to fans and collectors from around the world.
Hunting Hollywood is produced by Shevick*Zupon Entertainment. Jerry Shevick, Mark Zupon and Bruce Toms are Executive Producers, and Co-Executive Producer is Steve Longo.
Investigative series Fact or Faked: Paranormal Files continues with its mission to uncover the truth behind some of the most compelling, mystifying and seemingly unexplainable images caught on camera and posted on the Internet. The series features former FBI Special Agent Ben Hansen, lead scientist Bill Murphy, effects specialist Larry Caughlin, journalist Jael De Pardo, photography expert Chi-Lan Lieu, and stunt expert Austin Porter.
Whether it's the Ghost Car of Garden City with its nearly 4 million views on YouTube or the presumed extraterrestrial lights over Phoenix, Arizona, the team first analyzes incidents uploaded by �eyewitnesses� from all over the world, and then seeks to validate or disprove the clips' authenticity via a series of experiments. Their quarry is comprised of all unnatural phenomena including ghosts, poltergeist activity, UFOs, strange creature sightings, and unknown energy anomalies.
Fact or Faked: Paranormal Files is executive produced by John Brenkus and Mickey Stern for BASE Productions, and is a co-production with Universal Networks International.
Syfy is a media destination for imagination-based entertainment. With year round acclaimed original series, events, blockbuster movies, classic science fiction and fantasy programming, a dynamic Web site (www.Syfy.com), and a portfolio of adjacent business (Syfy Ventures), Syfy is a passport to limitless possibilities. Originally launched in 1992 as SCI FI Channel, and currently in more than 96 million homes, Syfy is a network of NBC Universal, one of the world's leading media and entertainment companies. (Syfy. Imagine greater.)


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TCampbell wrote:DudeMyDadOwnsADealership wrote:TCampbell wrote:Alice Macher wrote:Did Lisa end up majoring in Linguistics?
Bet her parents were sooooo proud. Hope being the Masked Meme'er pays the rent.
Eh, it's not the least monetizable major. If you do it with some eye toward employment, it can prepare you for a career in marketing or web design, or you can just jump into a seemingly unrelated field (communication skills help in many careers). I know a couple of people who've done that.
Cool. As long as the Degree itself wasn't what was supposed to open doors. Entrepeneurship isn't something everyone is about, and Lisa always struck me as far more about her social life than career prospects. University College isn't cheap, and neither is private school. Fortunately, I can picture her being cool with a more frugal lifestyle than what her parents provided her growing up, unlike more than a few of her classmates from Belleville.


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Fab Kitchen With Soaring Ceiling
A greenhouse-style ceiling inspired this Westport, Connecticut kitchen
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Soaring glass ceilings at the British Museum in London and the Passage Verdeau in Paris captured the imagination of interior designer Joan Nemirow. So when she and her husband, Bruce, began building a new house in Westport, Connecticut, a greenhouse-style ceiling topped Joan's wish list for architects McKee Patterson and Kathleen Poirier.
As a serious cook and baker (this is a woman who packed 16 suitcases with cakes for her daughter's wedding in the Dominican Republic), Joan found the kitchen to be the natural place for this heavenly feature.
"I didn't want a true greenhouse because I knew it would be very hot, and I didn't want to be preparing meals and cooking in that heat," Joan says. "But I was intrigued with the idea of a space within a space, and that's how the greenhouse ceiling evolved."
What the architects designed is a barrel-arched glass ceiling enclosed in a finished attic space. "We ran three steel trusses across the middle of the space and then we bent the framework over the trusses," Patterson explains. Frosted glass panes were installed individually into the rectangular openings. "We needed Spiderman to work on it," Joan jokes.
The attic above the glass ceiling has two dormers to capture natural light. The walls were painted a high-gloss bright white to "bounce around that light," Patterson says. Spotlights on tracks in the attic point up to reflect off the painted walls and illuminate the kitchen area at night.
"In the evening, the whole ceiling kind of glows," the architect adds. Several spotlights and four large lanterns suspended from the ceiling's framework provide ambient and task light for the kitchen.
The glass ceiling crowns the working area of the kitchen, which is anchored on one wall by a black, brass-trimmed La Cornue range. The architects fashioned a canopy-style hood that echoes the shape of the ceiling and repeats the range's details.
Joan designed the kitchen's impressive island, a nearly 5x10-foot walnut cabinet inspired by 18th- and 19th-century English furniture styles. Introducing furniture gives the space a more period feel, Joan says. "It was a process of trying to get the styling right and also make this a functional piece," Joan explains. "I would have loved using a Jacobean-style leg, but that was too ornate and would not have given me enough drawer space."
Burled walnut veneers for the cabinet were hand-selected by Joan and Poirier, the project architect. Inside, the island is all business, with drawers for china and a built-in paper towel holder.
A hutch she admired (by contemporary furnituremaker Elijah Slocum) was the inspiration for Joan's design of an antique-style English oak coffee bar for the breakfast room. A slab of black granite with a slightly pebbled surface was inset in the hutch top to give the piece a furniture look while providing a durable work surface. "We have coffee every morning, and I wanted to have a place where we could have everything close at hand," Joan says. Refrigerator drawers for milk and juice are camouflaged with wood drawer fronts, and a small sink is set into one end of the hutch for quick cleanups.
Gracie, their Cavalier King Charles spaniel, factored into the design, too, with her own feeding station under the bar sink-accessible but not underfoot.
In the main kitchen, built-in cabinets are painted off-white, creating a clean and simple backdrop for the kitchen's dramatic ceiling, range wall, and island. Tall windows with transoms combined with cabinets that reach to the crown molding enhance a sense of verticality and balance the room's high ceiling.
A copper backsplash and twin mercury-mirrored corner cabinets bring a playful lightness to the kitchen and add to the room's personality. "I like to use layers of colors and textures," Joan says. "It makes a space timeless and more interesting."
A walnut-base island, La Cornue range, and Alhambra lanterns from Vaughan add age and character to the new kitchen. "I wanted the space to have a sense of history," says homeowner-designer Joan Nemirow.
Photography: John Bessler
Produced by Stacy Kunstel
Architect: McKee Patterson; senior project architect, Kathleen Poirier, Austin Patterson Disston Architects, 376 Pequot Ave., Southport, CT 06890; 203/255-4031, apdarchitects.com. New address for Kathleen Poirier: Kathleen Poirier Architects, 203/210-5199, kparchitects.com. Interior designer: Joan Nemirow, Joan Nemirow Designs LLC, 54 Lyons Plains Rd., Westport, CT 06880; 203/222-7504.
Builder: Michael Greenberg & Assoc., 292 Post Rd. E., Westport, CT 06880; 203/226-7958, michaelgreenberg-assoc.com.
White cabinetry (custom, cherry plywood with cherry plank drawer boxes; soft maple plywood panel doors and soft maple plank stiles and rails; cherry plywood shelves with solid cherry edges); island cabinetry (custom, designed by Joan Nemirow and Kathy Poirier, solid walnut with burled walnut); flooring (reclaimed oak and chestnut): Good Earth Millworks, 204/544-0049, goodearthmillworks.com.
Island finishing: Stephen Gamble, Historic Floors, 203/866-0892, historicfloorsinc.com.
Floor finishing (stain and tung oil): Silk Wood Floors, 888/745-5966.
Cabinetry hardware (combination of T-Pull and Drawer Pull, large): Urban Archaeology, 212/431-4646, urbanarchaeology.com.
Ceiling (custom): Jon Pompea, Creative Metal Fab, 203/323-4090, cmfmetals.com.
Colorist: Donald Kaufman, Donald Kaufman Color, 212/594-2608.
Painting: Signature Paint and Paper, 203/622-3111.
Windows: Dynamic Architectural Windows & Doors, 800/661-8111, dynamicwindows.com.
Main sink ("Lakefield Undercounter" #K5924-5U): Kohler, 800/456-4537, kohler.com.
Main faucet ("Rohl Countryside Lever Pull-Out Faucet with Metal Lever" #R7903LM): Rohl, 800/777-9762, rohlhome.com.
Countertops: custom-cut Vermont Imperial Danby marble.
Ivy topiaries on either side of sink: Diane James Home, 877/434-2635, dianejameshome.com.
Green dishes on countertop ("Berry & Thread" Scallop Charger and Scallop Tea Plate/Garden Green): Juliska, 888/414-8448, juliska.com.
Island faucet ("For Loft Kitchen Faucet with Lever Handles, #P23040-LV, by Michael S Smith): Kallista, 888/452-5547, kallista.com.
Hanging lanterns ("Alhambra Lantern"/Brass #CL51): Vaughan Designs, 212/319-7070, vaughandesigns.com.
Range: La Cornue, through Purcell Murray Inc., 800/457-1356, lacornueusa.com.
Hood (custom): Jon Pompea, Creative Metal Fab, 203/323-4090, cmfmetals.com.
A closer look at one of the Alhambra lantern suspended from the greenhouse-style ceiling.
Hanging lanterns ("Alhambra Lantern"/Brass #CL51): Vaughan Designs, 212/319-7070, vaughandesigns.com.
Joan designed the walnut island with its teak top. A polished copper backsplash reflects the light and complements the copper pans hanging above the range.
Island countertop: teak.
Three-level glass and antique nickel stand on island ("Etagère Bistro Stand"): McKee & Co., 949/493-3100, mckeeco.com.
Refrigerator and freezer: Sub-Zero Inc., 800/222-7820, subzero.com. Refrigerator hardware, backplate (custom, in polished nickel): Classic Brass, 800/869-3173, classic-brass.com.
Steamer: Miele, 800/843-7231, mieleusa.com.
Ovens: Wolf, 800/332-9513, subzero-wolf.com.
Copper backsplash: Danbury Sheet Metal, 203/743-4443.
Basket in front of copper backsplash: Lillian August, 203/847-1596, lillianaugust.com.
Cakestands: DBO Home, 860/364-6008, dbohome.com
Polished nickel exterior door hardware by Baldwin was adapted for freezer and refrigerator door handles. The backplate was modified to fit the wood door trim on the appliances.
Refrigerator hardware, handles ("Springfield Door Pull"/Polished Nickel #2617.140): Baldwin Hardware, 800/566-1986, baldwinhardware.com.
Burled walnut and decorative veneers, curved stretchers, and the fluted legs of the island were inspired by William and Mary and other early English designs.
The custom-made island has multiple deep drawers with adjustable pegs for safe china storage. The teak top and stainless sink provide practical work space.
A collection of copper kettles hangs on a raw, uncoated brass pot rack from La Cornue. "I like unfinished metals. I like things to show wear and history," Joan says.
Copper pots (Mauviel Copperware): Williams-Sonoma, 800/541-2233, williams-sonoma.com.
Designed by Joan and custom-built, the hutch, including the wall-hung shelves above it, supplies everything the Nemirows-and their dog, Gracie-need for breakfast. Two built-in refrigerator drawers from U-Line can also be used as freezer drawers for ice when the Nemirows entertain.
Cabinetry (custom, by Joan Nemirow and Kathy Poirier, antique English oak): Good Earth Millworks, 204/544-0049, goodearthmillworks.com.
Cabinetry finishing: Stephen Gamble, Historic Floors, 203/866-0892, historicfloorsinc.com.
Wall color (custom): Donald Kaufman Color, 212/594-2608, donaldkaufmancolor.com.
Sink: Elkay, 630/574-8484, elkayusa.com.
Faucets ("De Dion" #4101): Herbeau, 800/547-1608, herbeau.com.
Refrigerator and freezer drawers (English oak): U-Line, 800/779-2547, u-line.com.
Green dishes ("Berry & Thread"): Juliska, 888/414-8448, juliska.com.
Armchairs from Swaim surround an oak pedestal table. Built-in bookshelves store cookbooks and visually separate the breakfast room from the kitchen.
Table ("60-inch Pedestal Base Dining Table in Oak"): Leonards New England, 877/898-7031 and 203/222-7031, leonardsdirect.com.
Dining armchairs (#C290-1, discontinued): Swaim Inc., 336/884-1912, swaim-inc.com.
Fabric: Romo, 800/338-2783, romo.com.
Chandelier ("De Leon 8-Light Tole Chandelier" #MC108/8): Lamplight Designs Inc., 800/862-3525, lamplightdesigns.com.
Wall color (custom); trim color (custom): Donald Kaufman Color, 212/594-2608, donaldkaufmancolor.com.
Floral dinnerware ("Petite Fleur"): Villeroy & Boch,609/860-9961, villeroyboch.com.
Cranberry glasses: Marston & Langinger, marston-and-langinger.com.
Fruit bowl (antique); spoon dish (antique); flatware (family heirloom): owner's collection.
Vase: Pottery Barn, 800/922-5507, potterybarn.com.
Another view of the kitchen showcases its lovely light.
Flowers and fruit add color to the breakfast table setting.
Baked goodies on display plus a copper backsplash equals warmth.
Joan Nemirow with her husband, Bruce, and their dog Gracie.
Gracie keeps watch over her treats.


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Man's five-story fall at Winter Park Resort was accidental
WINTER PARK — The fall of a Minnesota man out of a condo at the Zephyr Mountain Lodge at Winter Park Resort has been deemed accidental, following a police investigation.
Andrew Engebretson, 44, of Orono, Minn., died immediately from a five-story fall from the balcony of a privately owned condo. The incident took place around 4 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 19.
"All indications from the evidence at the scene indicate that this was a tragic accident where he slipped and fell," said Fraser-Winter Park Police Chief Glen Trainor.
Engebretson was on vacation with his parents, his two children, his brother, and his brother's daughter, who were all staying in rooms at the Zephyr Mountain Lodge. The group was reported to have arrived on Sunday afternoon.
It is undetermined whether alcohol was involved in the incident as toxicology reports from the autopsy are still not complete, according to Trainor.
Reid Tulley can be reached at 970-887-3334
Start a dialogue, stay on topic and be civil.
If you don't follow the rules, your comment may be deleted.


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Wow. I mean, I should be deducting points for them cosplaying as terrible new Transformers, but I can't. This is just too impressive.
The photographer responsible is LJinto, who was featured in our "Best in Cosplay" series earlier in the year. Those Transformers? They're from Cybertron, so they don't have websites.
(though if anyone knows who they are, drop a comment below).
LJinto [Flickr, via Fashionably Geek]


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Tandoori Spiced Chicken Breast with Grilled Tomato Jam and Herbed Yoghurt Sauce
- 2 tablespoons onion powder
- 2 tablespoons garlic powder
- 2 tablespoons ground ginger
- 2 tablespoons ground coriander
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon ground cayenne
- 1 tablespoon ground turmeric
- 1 tablespoon ground white pepper
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 3 (8-ounce) boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 4 pitta breads, warmed on the grill
- Tomato Jam, recipe follows
- Herbed Yoghurt, recipe follows
- For the Grilled Tomato Jam
- 5 plum tomatoes
- 1 large red chilli
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, plus more for grilling
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
- 1 small Spanish onion, chopped
- 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- Pinch saffron
- For the Herbed Yoghurt
- 1 cup Greek yoghurt
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh mint leaves
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh coriander leaves
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
Heat grill to medium-high. Combine all spices and the oil in a medium bowl to make a paste. Rub a thin layer of the spice paste onto 1 side of each chicken breast. Grill for 3 to 4 minutes on each side or until slightly charred and just cooked through. Remove from the grill, let rest 5 minutes, and cut lengthwise into 1/2-inch thick slices. Serve openface on pitas: the chicken slices, a few dollops of Tomato Jam, and a drizzle of Herbed Yoghurt.
Grilled Tomato Jam: Heat grill to high. Brush tomatoes and chilli with oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill tomatoes and serrano on all sides until charred. Remove from the grill and coarsely chop.
Heat oil in a medium saucepan on the grates of the grill or on the side burners. Add the onion and cook until soft. Add the tomatoes, chilli, balsamic vinegar, and saffron and cook until thickened. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a bowl and let cool to room temperature before serving.
Herbed Yoghurt: Place all ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Refrigerate if not using immediately.