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Two calls for proposals were issued in 2007: The first targeted proposal was to support research aimed at improving therapy for seizures in individuals with Angelman syndrome. Highest priority was given to pilot projects to test new ideas about the pathogenesis of, therapy for and best practices in treating seizures in individuals with Angelman syndrome.
Therapeutic effectiveness of levodopa in the treatment of seizures and motor defects using the Angelman Syndrome mouse model
Dr. Edwin J. Weeber, PhD, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida
This grant supported a trial of levodopa-carbidopa treatment on AS mice. Levodopa is a dopamine precursor that is converted to dopamine in the brain and is commonly used as a treatment for Parkinson disease. AS mice and normal controls were treated with two different dosages of levodopa-carbidopa or placebo and subjected to tests of motor and cognitive abilities, anxiety and seizure susceptibility. Brain regions were analyzed for Dopamine and other monoamine neurotransmitter levels. Alterations in CAMKII phosphorylation (something that was discovered to be abnormal in the AS mouse model) was also examined. Behavior testing showed an improvement in motor function dependent on treatment, but did not normalize cerebellar-mediated licking behavior. Low-dose levodopa treatment partially rescued motor function but did not completely rescue AS mouse behavioral phenotypes.
Explore the therapeutic potential of levodopa to treat Angelman syndrome in mouse model
Dr. Yong-Hui Jiang, MD, PhD, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas
There is a small amount of anecdotal experience and some neuroscience studies suggesting that levodopa might have therapeutic effect on the symptoms of AS. The Angelman mouse model is an ideal way to study this before developing any human clinical trials and that was the reason for ASF funding this project. The investigator was able to use Angelman mice to investigate effects of levodopa supplementation and in some areas no effect was demonstrated (such as on a type of synaptic activity called long-term potentiation) but in other areas, such as assessment of mouse EEG patterns, an effect was noted. The results did not reveal dramatic effects from levodopa supplementation but did identify areas worthy of further study.
Low Glycemic Index Therapy for the Treatment of Epilepsy in Angelman Syndrome
Dr. Ronald L. Thibert, DO, MSPH, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts
ASF has supported varied initiatives to improve treatment of seizures in AS and this grant aimed at exploring alternatives to the use of the very restrictive ketogenic diet. In the low glycemic diet, the extremely high lipid content of the ketogenic diet is avoided and more carbohydrates are provided, particularly ones that are more likely to be absorbed at a slower and more stable rate. The hypothesis is that this dietary strategy will allow more stable blood glucose levels and thus improve the control of seizures. This grant has enrolled individuals under 18 years of age in an ongoing clinical study that is providing data on strategies for use of the diet in AS.
Seizure Survey
Elizabeth Thiele, Massachusetts General Hospital
Funding for this grant enabled the largest survey ever to be conducted on AS regarding anticonvulsant drug use. This was an extensive questionnaire survey of families within and outside the United States and the results provided important information to families and physicians who seek treatment information about single anticonvulsant drugs and combination drug use for treatment of the seizure problem in AS.
See the findings of this study.
A rigorous test in the mouse of whether increased DNA methylation can activate neuronal expression of the paternal Ube3a allele
Dr. Arthur Beaudet, MD, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas
The mouse model provides an ideal way to evaluate therapeutic attempts to increase UBE3A function on the otherwise silenced paternally-derived mouse chromosome. Using novel genetic engineering methods, Dr. Beaudet and his lab were able to develop a engineered mouse with genetic tags on both the paternally and maternally expressed genes, thus enabling a way of detecting more precisely whether drugs or agents are capable of improving activity of the otherwise silenced UBE3A gene. This is part of a number of studies aimed at developing novel treatment strategies for AS.
Brain potentials of cognition and emotion in individuals with Angelman Syndrome
Dr. Margaret Bradley, PhD – University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida
We know that individuals with AS have a propensity for a happy demeanor and often have excessive laughter. We also know that they have pro-social behaviors that are distinctive from other types of genetic conditions. This study evaluated older individuals with Angelman who could cooperate in an experiment whereby subtle regional EEG patterns were studied after certain visual cues were presented. These cues involved pictures of individuals' faces that were happy, sad or showed other types of visual cues.
The ubiquitin ligase E6-AP/UBE3A targets the polycomb repressive complex proteins Ring 1B and Bmi1 to ubiquitination and subsequent degradation: Structural and functional implications, and possible relationship to the pathogenesis of Angelman syndrome
Dr. Aaron Ciechanover, MD, DSc – Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
ASF foundation was proud to sponsor this research by Nobel Laureate Aaron Ciechanover who has been instrumental in characterizing the ubiquitin protein degradation system, a fundamental component of how neurons degrade or adjust proteins in order to function normally. This research focused on the DNA structure and surrounding protein regions of DNA and UBE3A in an attempt to understand how the gene is regulated and what might serve to turn on or repress activity of the gene. Dr. Ciechanover found that indeed Ring1B is a target of UBE3A. How the disruption of Ring1B ubiquitination leads to symptoms in AS is still poorly understood and more work does need to be done in this area.
Ube3a and altered neuronal trafficking in Angelman syndrome
Dr. Michael D. Ehlers, MD, PhD – Duke University Medical Center, Durham North Carolina
It is known that UBE3A is important inside brain neurons especially at their membrane surfaces where the synapse facilitates communication between neurons. It has also been recognized that other cellular problems develop when UBE3A is defective and this laboratory identified problems in a protein synthesis and transport system called the Golgi apparatus. Inside the cells of Angelman mice, the Golgi are abnormal and swollen and the work of these investigators provided new insight into UBE3A's relationship to other proteins in the cell.
Redesigning the ubiquitin pathway to identify the substrates of E6AP
Dr. Brian Kuhlman, PhD – University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
UBE3A function in the cell has remained elusive especially in terms of how UBE3A protein action relates to other proteins. Thus, researchers have been trying to identify "targets" (meaning proteins) that UBE3A is acting upon in order to either regulate their concentration or cause their degradation. This grant funded a unique method of providing intracellular protein tagging in hopes of identifying UBE3A targets and we learned from this project how difficult it is to identify such targets. This grant and others are part of an effort by ASF to identify UBE3A targets, increase understanding about UBE3A and promote new molecular therapeutic strategies.
Neuroimaging studies in Angelman syndrome
Dr. Sarika U. Peters, PhD – Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas
It is known from brain MRI study that there are no obvious malformations associated with AS. However, it is not known if there are more subtle differences in brain development that might provide clues to the action of UBE3A or provide clues as to how some of the behavioral and other intellectual deficiencies might be related to microscopic changes in brain development. This grant involved detailed study of many aspects of brain shape and size, including study of the white matter nerve tracts by use of state-of-the-art MRI imaging. A group of individuals with AS were compared to a group of typically developing individuals. The results indicated presumptive areas of volume changes and white matter abnormalities that are deserving of further study. The investigators presented hypotheses correlating certain behavioral attributes with abnormalities observed from the brain imaging studies.
Importance of UBE3A for experience-dependent modifications of cortical synapses
Dr. Benjamin D. Philpot, PhD – University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
One way to understand brain abnormalities in those with AS is to actually study individual neurons using state-of-the-art micro-testing methods, for example, measure directly the electrical activities associated with function of the synapse in a single neuron. This technique requires great technical skill and that is the basis of this grant to Dr. Philpot and his colleagues who have experience in understanding and measuring electrical activity of neurons. Studies from this grant provided direct evidence of how neurons can change based on experience (e.g., show neuronal plasticity) and these studies have set the stage for more important work demonstrating in the living Angelman mouse how neurons undergo developmental changes in response to different environmental changes.
The role of UBE3A in development of excitatory-inhibitory balance in neocortex
Dr. Michael P. Stryker, PhD – University of California San Francisco School of Medicine, San Francisco, California
The work in this grant extended our knowledge of brain regions that are affected when UBE3A is disrupted. Using the mouse model and studying the visual and brain cortex responses of each eye, this investigator and his laboratory were able to demonstrate how neurons in the visual cortex respond to the imprinting signals of UBE3A and adapt under different circumstances of eye closure and opening. This work, and the work of Dr. Philpot, expands our knowledge of UBE3A's action in the brain and how neurons adjust to changing circumstances and it demonstrates how UBE3A is involved in neural plasticity, a process so important to the acquisition of learning.
Developing an assessment battery to study learning, memory and motor performance in children with Angelman syndrome
Dr. Jane Summers, PhD – McMaster Children's Hospital, Hamilton, Ontario Canada
The work related to this grant extended the long term interest of Dr. Summers in studying how individuals with AS learn and how their behaviors change based on carefully designed behavioral analysis methods in a structured environment. Most importantly, her work has led to development of a standardized and easy to implement assessment battery, specific to AS, which will help to further study and understand learning ability in AS.
Identifying potential therapeutic strategies for the treatment of Angelman syndrome
Dr. Edwin J. Weeber, PhD – University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida
Dr. Weeber has performed crucial genetic and therapeutic studies on the AS mouse model and was instrumental in conducting one of the first experiments that rescued many of the neurophysiological and behavioral problems of the Angelman mouse. To help build upon this work, ASF provided grant funding to explore a number of potential therapeutic strategies using the Angelman mouse model. These strategies included novel attempts at gene therapy and experiments to explore new protein regulators of UBE3A function. His lab studied neurophysiological properties of hippocampal neurons and also evaluated more global brain regions to evaluate results of these studies. Work from this grant, as well as evidence from other lines of research, show that imprinting of UBE3A in neurons in the mouse brain is quite widespread if not globally distributed.


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It's that time of the year again where there are many events to attend if you are in Lagos. The first quarter of the year and who is the best to usher us in than KENNIS MUSIC. This year's 14th Annual Kennis Music Easter Festival promises to be BIGGER AND BOLDER with a whooping 72hrs of NON-STOP entertainment. No need to look for something to do for Easter, KENNIS MUSIC has you covered.
Music would be provided by the hottest music artistes in Nigeria today, think of a name and they'll be there to give you all they have – Chocolate City, Kennis Music All-Stars, EME music All-stars, Tiwa Savage, STORM music All-Stars, Trybe Records All-Stars, DJ Zeez, Sound Sultan,Terry G, Vector, Samklef, Flavour just to mention a few as the list is endless.
The DJs on the decks are from legendary DJ Shy Shy Shylon to DJ Jimmy Jatt, to DJ Humility, to DJ Exclusive, DJ Obi, DJ Tommy, DJ X, DJ Bombastic and many many more.
A list of who is who of Nigerian Comedy would also be there to cheer you up at intervals from Osi, Shine Beho to Basketmouth, Gbenga Adeyinka the First, to the one and only Alli Baba is the Chief Host of the event as well as Julius the Genius Agwu.
The festival is divided into 2 parts, one for those who would prefer a much more serene environment and the other for those who would really apprecite the essence of a FESTIVAL.
Part 1: Good Friday, 6th of April 2012 @ GET ARENA LEKKI, LAGOS.
Red Carpet: Live on A.I.T by 8PM.
Tickets: 3,000NGN (Regular), 5,000NGN(VIP)
Then its off to Elegushi Beach Lekki for PART 2 for the MOTHER of all FESTIVAL weekends
Dates: 7th, 8th and 9th of April 2012 (Easter Saturday, Easter Sunday and Easter Monday respectively).
Time: 12NOON.
Tickets: 2,000NGN
Here is a video advert to give you an idea of what you should be expecting. The list of music stars is ENDLESS. All your favourites would be in attendance.
DON'T MISS THE 14TH ANNUAL KENNIS MUSIC EASTER FESTIVAL THIS YEAR. You owe it to yourself to attend.

subset: commoncrawl


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I got a wild urge the other day to dig out my BigZ XL Pennant die and try to work up a festive holiday banner for my mantle and this is what I ended up with! I had no idea what I wanted to say, the colors I wanted to use, or anything else other than that I wanted to use those cute little clothespins that I'd picked up at Michaels.
I cut the Pennants out of Always Artichoke card stock, then cut the border scallops out of Cherry Cobbler and layered them behind the Always Artichoke pennant. I ran some Tombo adhesive around the scallops and coated them with red glitter. I also added a piece of Sticky Strip across the top of each pennant and coated with more red glitter.
Paper: Always Artichoke, Cherry Cobbler, Vanilla, Chocolate Chip, Holiday Treasures dsp
Ink: Always Artichoke
Accessories: Big Shot, BigZ XL Pennant die, BigZ Circles Scallop #2 die, Northern Frost decorative strip, BigZ Alphabet Simple Letters dies, Martha Stewart red tinsel glitter, mini-clothespins, natural cord. Dazzling Diamonds glitter, Sticky Strip, Dimensionals


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Archive for November, 2009
Aging and Selective Sampling
In several recent posts, I have discussed my study of how baseball players age. It's a study that I embarked upon with no prior expectations other than that I should observe a pattern of improvement and decline among players. But the fact that my estimates of where the typical aging function reaches its peak differs from the established Sabermetric standard has brought a strong negative response.
Phil Birnbaum has rejected my estimate of peak age for various reasons. In his latest post, he takes issue with my sample (again), which he has concluded is biasing the peak age estimates upwards. Such upward bias is possible and ought to be avoided, which is why I already addressed it in the paper and in follow-ups; however, Birnbaum continues his objection on new grounds.
I begin by focusing on his attempted replication of my model. He admits that it is not a perfect replication, but his deviations are important. I use two common panel estimators for estimating aging, random and fixed effects. What Birnbaum appears to have done is estimated a quasi-fixed effects model by including dummy variables for each player using OLS. It's not necessarily a bad approach (indeed his results find a peak not far below my estimates), but it's not equivalent to what I did, and I believe his method leaves out important information, especially the park and league effects.
The bigger issue is that the model, as he defines it, is impossible to estimate. He cannot have done what he claims to have done. Including the mean career performance and player dummies creates linear dependence as a player's career performance does not change over time, which means separate coefficients cannot be calculated for both the dummies and career performance. My initial thought was that the mean was dropped from the estimation and he didn't realize it (econometrics packages sometimes do this without much warning), but he does report a coefficient for the mean. Maybe the player dummies do not uniquely identify individuals, I don't know. Something is going on here, but I'm not sure what it is.
Regardless of whatever the estimation problem is, I want to focus on to his analysis of the sample, which is the heart of his critique. For my study, I used players with more than 5,000 career plate appearances and at least 10 years in the majors. He has already identified that including good players with long careers may as a potential source of bias, and I responded why I used the cutoffs that I did.
Including a list of players who played 10 years or more allows for the smoothing of random fluctuations over time, because we don't have to worry about players being dropped in and out of the sample. More importantly, it allows for identifying a career baseline for each player from which we can observe how he progresses. It certainly shouldn't perform worse than the average-yearly-change method. I did not make this choice lightly. My cutoffs were chosen because they fit with cutoffs used by other researchers and I tested the models for sensitivity to cutoff decisions.
The cutoffs were introduced to combat bias induced by non-random entry and exit into and from the league. I find it interesting that Bill James (1982 Abstract) was the one to notice the problem of players dropping out of the sample making it difficult to observe aging. He referred to the unfinished careers of player dropouts as "white space."
I think that any successful statistical analysis of aging must find, and none of us has yet, some way to deal with "the white space." The white space is the area of measurable production insufficient to support continued activity….
In the Palmer study [observing average performance by age], all the players within the white space are not counted; in the VAM study [observing total performance by age] all players in the white space are counted at zero. Neither is correct….
I am trying to write about when a ballplayer is at his peak. I am trying not to write about how one can study these things. But sabermetrics is young, and someday some smart guy will figure out a way to solve the problem. [Emphasis original (pp.196 — 197)]
In order to measure aging without having white space bias the results you have to have a sample to observe both young and old performance. All players have young performance, but not all players have old performance. Typically, early exits are caused by unpredictable injuries that can strike a player of any age or a player just cannot cut it and got to play at an early age due to roster shortages or bad talent assessments. The latter results in a team giving up on a prospect it felt was more promising or a player deciding to move on to something else—something quite common in my 86-year sample when big money was not paid to players. The big problem isn't measuring all the young guys who play baseball, but measuring the production of old guys who don't.
Still, in order to alleviate Birnbaum's fear that the high standards for inclusion are biasing peak age upward, I estimated the impact of age after dropping the sample to 1,000 and eliminating 10-years of play requirement, and I found that the peak age remained at 29. The sample cutoffs do not bias the estimates, and I explained why the estimation procedure does not generate bias. I also showed examples of skills that peaked earlier and later then 29 in the sample. In Birnbaum's own estimates, he finds extending the samples has only a small effect on the estimated peak; however, he then makes the following claim, "the way the study is structured, that small difference is really a big difference."
Birnbaum thinks expanding the sample as I did isn't the proper way to handle to potential aging effects. Instead, he believes it's necessary to use separate samples of players who have career minimums and maximums. He looks at two sub-groups: players with 1,000 — 3,000 plate appearances, and players with 3,000 — 5,000 plate appearances, and finds that they have peaks earlier than the more-inclusive sample. How should we view information drawn from these samples?
Let's consider a member of the latter group, Marcus Giles, who had 3,340 plate appearances in his career. What happened to Giles? He started off playing well, making the All-Star team at 25, but was out of the league by 29. What caused Giles to decline? Maybe he had some good luck early on, maybe his performance-enhancing drugs were taken away, or possibly several bizarre injuries took their toll on his body. It's not really relevant, but I think of Giles's career as quite odd, and I imagine that many players who play between 3,000 — 5,000 plate appearances (or less) have similar declines in their performances that cause them to leave the league. I've never heard anyone argue that what happened to Giles was aging.
The Giles example reveals why Birnbaum's separate samples of players with shorter careers show earlier peaks. They don't have the opportunity to show enough change over the course of a career. Some players will enter and progress normally, and then suddenly get knocked out by an injury. Others may jump in and perform at the extreme top of their abilities and earn further playing time, but eventually they will lose time and eventually be cut, or they get hurt and don't get a chance to demonstrate improvement. We're not seeing aging but fluctuations around a true-talent level in a small sample. Guys who perform above their abilities get the chance to stick around and stink up the joint, while those who perform below it get less of an opportunity to prove they are better players. The reason why players with longer careers need to be included and players with short careers don't have to be included is that there are plenty of players who try (or are tried) but can't cut it; but, players who don't try but make it later don't exist. Thus, if we want to make sure we are capturing the information by extending the sample beyond my preferred sample we need to keep the long careers in the sample, not look at the short-career guys all by themselves and conclude peak age is 27.
But Birnbaum takes his analysis one step further. Rather than arguing that players with short careers have earlier peaks—you could make that argument, but I don't know how you identify the short from the long when in-career roster decisions must be made—he believes that the short-career estimates need to be heavily weighted to generate an average for all players. He believes that the long careers of players cause their high peaks to be overweighted when estimating an average peak because they are counted more with more career observations.
If a player has a 15-year career, with a peak at age 29, he gets fifteen "29" entries in the database. If another player has a 3-year career with a peak of 27, he gets only three "27" entries. So instead of the result working out to 28, which is truly the average peak of the two players, it works out to 28.7.
That's not how it works. His belief is based on a misunderstanding of how least-squares generates the estimates to calculate the peak. There is no average calculated from each player, and especially not from counting multiple observations for players who play more. The procedure selects weights to minimize prediction error across the sample of observations. The additional observations add more information about how players age at older ages and does not generate additional "entries in the database" from which an average peak is calculated. We're not drawing peaks from a sample of peaks that includes repeated observations of players, as Birnbaum implies. The expanded sample provides more information from which the procedure estimates the impact of the weights. If anything, the large number of short-career players included in the expanded sample (like Marcus Giles) pulls the estimated peak downward. If we were to take a weighted average, we would do so to reduce, not increase, the impact of players with short careers. Yet still, even with many more players holding short careers, the procedure estimates that players continue to peak in their late-20s.
Birnbaum's misunderstanding causes him to try to correct for a bias that isn't there by taking the weighted average of each sub-group by the number of players, which pulls the estimated peak age downward. Taking a weighted average of age groups that gives more weight to a biased sub-sample isn't proper. Basically, he's using a sample of early-exiters to estimate general aging effects for all players. These samples don't remove selection bias; they suffer from it more than the larger sample. To use this calculation to conclude that the average player peak is 27 incorrect.
In conclusion, I find human aging to be a fascinating subject to study, and I have enjoyed reading the large academic and sabermetric literature on the topic. I plan continue my research in this area beyond baseball. It really doesn't matter to me where peak age for baseball players is. I looked at the data using standard empirical methods to answer the question and I am merely reporting what I found. I have addressed all criticisms raised, but if you are not satisfied with my responses then feel free to continue holding your belief.
— — —
Also, in a preceding post, Birnbaum gets a few things wrong about my study. I want to correct his errors.
— He interprets the aging function as treating all players as identical.
What Bradbury's model does is take both curves, put them in a blender, and come out with two curves that look exactly the same, peaking in the late 20s.
What I did was estimate an aging function using changes in player performances over time. It's the same approach used in every single study of aging that I have ever seen. Human beings do differ in many respects; how much they differ when it comes to aging is a question that is difficult to study because of significant noise. So, the best we can do is to pull out the aging information from a large sample of players, which I did. It's the exact same idea employed by the delta, mode, total value models that have previously been employed to measure aging. I'm just using a different estimator to pick up this effect, and it's an estimator that allows me to control for many relevant outside factors that have previously not been taken into account. Some players peak early, others late: from this combined information I am estimating an average aging effect. If what I have done is inappropriate, then you have to throw out all previous studies on aging. We can't say peak age is 27; we have to throw our hands and the air and say "who knows?"
— He states that my estimates are in absolute numbers.
A consequence of the curves having the same shape is that declines are denominated in absolute numbers, rather than percentages of a player's level. If the model says you lose 5 home runs between age X and age Y, then it assumes *everyone* loses 5 home runs, everyone from Barry Bonds to Juan Pierre — even if Juan Pierre didn't have 5 home runs a year to lose!
That's incorrect. I'm estimating home-run rates, not raw home runs. All other stats are estimated as rates except linear weights. This is stated in the paper.
UPDATE (12/11/2009): Phil Birnbaum replies. I have nothing more to offer, you are free to reach your own conclusions.
Friday Links
— My latest Huffington Post column is now up. I discuss why Wins shouldn't be used to evaluate pitchers.
So, kudos to Law and Carroll for using the right criteria for making their Cy Young picks. It's fine to disagree with their choices, but the reasoning behind their decisions is much more sound than the reasoning used the chorus of sportswriters who are condemning them.
— Rob Neyer disagrees with most of my Hot Stove Myths.
Here is a list of links that expand on my original post.
The number of free agents at a position affects the price of free agents at a position
Every trade has a winner and a loser
Players peak at 27 and old players are worthless (Follow-ups here and here)
Cubs Sign Grabow
According to the Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times, the Cubs have agreed to a contract extension with John Grabow. It's being reported to be for two years and for a total of "at least $7 million."
I've got him worth about $4 million over that span. I have to give this deal the thumbs down.
On Other Methods for Estimating Aging
My recent posts on my aging study have received a fair amount of criticism. There is no doubt that my study is imperfect, but all empirical researchers must make tradeoffs when selecting samples or choosing estimators. Small samples are sometimes preferred over large samples for expediency. Complicated models are sometimes necessary when simple methods mask biases. The goal of any researcher is to settle on a sample and method that has the greatest net benefits, because there is no such thing as a perfect study; and I'm satisfied with what I have found. I didn't want the peak estimate to be 29 any more than I want it to be 27, but that is the outcome of a study that I feel was well designed.
But while I've presented and defended my study, I've said very little about why I selected the method I did over other methods. So, I want to discuss a few problems with alternative methods commonly employed to study aging that I was trying to avoid. These problems don't necessarily doom these methods—they too have their own benefits and costs, and it would be wrong to pick on one side of the ledger—but, the fact that I could avoid these problems was a plus. So, I want to discuss three methods that are sometimes used to measure aging: the annual-change or "delta" method, the bucket method, and the mode method. I also discuss the importance of controlling for the run environment when estimating age effects.
The Annual-Change Method: This method takes a sample of players and averages how much players tend to change as they increase in age every season. For example, we look at players who played consecutive seasons and see how their performance changed. For some it will go up, some will go down. The data will have significant noise, but averaging all players changes reports a general trend. But, this method is subject to a bias in sample selection from who gets to play.
Playing time is a function of present performance and past performance. Because of this, past performance affects the sample in a way that highlights declines. Managers are trying to identify the best players to play. A good performance in the past will keep you in the lineup even if you slump through the short term. Bad performance in the past will prevent playing in the future. To have a two-year sample you have to reach the playing-time minimum in both seasons. To keep this simple, let's assume that players can have two types of seasons (good and bad), generating the following combinations of seasons in a two year sample: good-good, good-bad, bad-good, and bad-bad. We'll get plenty of the first two types of seasons, but the latter two will happen less. The draws from year1 and year2 talent pools are not random, because the lucky-good can go from good to bad, but the lucky-bad don't get the opportunity to go bad to good. I'll call this phenomena the survivor effect (Fair (2005) notes something similar).
Imagine we have two players who are both true .750 OPS hitters. PlayerA hits .775 in Year1, and PlayerB hits .725 in Year1, because of normal random fluctuations. PlayerB doesn't get the opportunity to have a Year2 to have a corresponding upward rebound. PlayerA gets to play in Year2 and his performance falls to .725. Possibly in the next round, his Year2 and Year3 won't be recorded because he's deemed incapable of playing (unless you're the Braves and you build an advertising campaign around him). Thus, when we average in the change, we will be averaging in more declines than is reflected by aging.
So why do we see any positive improvement up to the mid-20s at all (26 is where Nate Silver finds that it ends)? The survival effect ought to be less relevant when players are younger, because the aging function is steeper at this point (meaning improvements are larger and likely to overcome bad luck) and managers expect improvement and will be more tolerant of one bad year ("Tough year, kid. Hang in there.") For older players the effect is the opposite. Being PlayerB at 36 may cause teams to disallow a bounce-back year because they observe may be a sign that his career is over. [Republished from my comments where it was not particularly visible.]
The Bucket Method: This method involves looking at player performances and organizing them into age "buckets." After doing so, we can compare which buckets have the highest level of performance. This the main method used by Bill James in his initial study of aging in his 1982 Abstract.
The problem with the bucket method depends on what you're dropping into buckets. If it's total performance, then the buckets will be filled at younger ages by players who are not necessarily good. If they don't cut it they will leave the game and replaced by more young players. Therefore, the bucket totals are full from sheer numbers, not difference in performance by players of those ages. And this is biased towards the young, because while many players drop out of baseball, they almost never drop in. A player in his mid-to-late 20s who hasn't made it will leave the game to start building his human capital for his non-baseball life or the team may give up on him. Older players rarely stick around for the chance to get a few at-bats in their 30s.
If you are looking at average rate performance by age bucket, so as to avoid the summation problem, you have a new issue. Baseball players have to meet a minimum threshold of performance to play. If you meet that, you normally get to stick around, young and old. 20-year-olds, 30-year-olds, and 40-year-olds who can play, will; thus, their average performances will look quite similar. What's happening is that good players enter early and leave late, making their buckets appear more productive than they are. In his original aging article, James criticizes Pete Palmer for a study that uses such a method and finds very little aging effect at all. James points out that Palmer can't measure the "white space"—there is not performance to measure, just white space—where players who have declined don't get a chance to perform. Aging in the white space what I am trying to capture by using multiple regression analysis to control for player quality.
The Mode Method: This method uses the most common age at which players typically have their best season to identify peaks. This method is used not only in sabermetrics but in academic studies of aging. For example, researchers of looked at the most common age at which track and field athletes set world records. An interesting finding from these studies is that while records tend to fall over time, the age at which the athletes break the records does not.
The mode method is imperfect as well, with estimated peak ages biased downward. The reason for this is that there are two main factors that cause players to decline: aging and random non-aging-related injuries. An example of the former is when a player's reflexes slow and he can't get around on a fastball. An example of the latter is when a player blows out his ACL sliding hard into a base and he never heals to reach his original potential. Players decline and leave the sport for both reasons, but the latter is definitely not aging. When we look at the mode, we are not differentiating from the cause of deterioration. Because of non-aging attrition, more players will have an opportunity to have peak ages earlier than later. The thing is, it isn't predictable who will suffer these injuries (though some injuries are associated with age). The attrition isn't aging, and players who avoid injuries should improve beyond the mode best season. In my study, I identified the mode being less than the mean and median for all players even for those who stayed in the sample. The reason for this is likely unpredictable injury shocks, because plenty of players have good seasons after their 30th birthdays. The mode method is also not very helpful for measuring aging rates: we can find peaks, but can't track the path to and from them.
Another Important Factor: Aside from the problems with methods above, any study of aging using players over time must account for changes in the environment in which players perform. Baseball's run environment can shift quite dramatically over the course of a player's career. Colin Wyers provides an example of how not accounting for changes in run environment can lead to erroneous conclusions about aging.
Wyers looks at all players in 2008 who were 29 and sees how their performance differs from 2006, when they were 27. He finds that players the players had OPS 0.014 lower at 29 than at 27, and declares "That's not what we should expect to see if the average peak age is in fact 29." It's a cherry-picked sample from which no one should draw any conclusions, but the data doesn't reveal what Wyers thinks it does. In fact, it reveals the exact opposite of what he claims. The run environments were vastly different in 2008 and 2006. In 2006, the league-average OPS was 0.768; in 2009, league-average OPS was 0.749. Thus on average, if players didn't age at all we would expect their OPS to decline by 0.019. That the sample only declined by 0.014 means that they improved, not declined. The improvement is also consistent with the aging estimates listed in my paper (about a 0.65% difference from the peak). Wyers also argues that from 1997–2008 the general trend was a decline from 27 to 29, but the trend of runs was also declining during this period.
But I would also like to point out that no matter what you think the true peak might be, the real finding here is the flatness of aging. Good players tend to remain good and bad players tend to remain bad over a range, and will perform slightly better and worse than expected from their late-20s to early-30s. I find that hitters play within two percent of their peaks from age 26 — 32; for an .800 OPS peak player that's a range from about .780 to .800 for about seven years. I find it interesting that James ends his own study that started it all with a statement with which I agree:
Good hitters stay around, weak hitters don't. Most players are declining by age 30; all players are declining by age 33. There are difference in rates of decline, but those differences are far less significant for the assessment of future value than are the differing levels of ability.
It's best not to get caught up in thinking about exact peaks; instead, focus on peak range, which is flat over many years. A player hitting his 27th birthday isn't starting on the downside of his career, he's approaching his peak and will be there for many years. A guy who's thirty may still be playing his best baseball, too. But the most important factor to consider when evaluating a player is the innate talent of the player himself.
More on Player Aging
Phil Birnbaum has a new theory as to why I'm wrong (I suspect it won't be his last), and he links to others who think I've made the same mistake.
This time, my sample is the problem. By choosing a sample of players from 24 — 35 with a minimum of 10 seasons played and 5,000 plate appearances, this "biases" the estimates because I've chosen a sample that excludes people with short careers. To demonstrate this, Birnbaum simulates a new world to show that sample choice can affect estimated average peaks. This is irrelevant to what I have done, and shows a serious lack of understanding of the technique I employed. I'm not taking mean of the sample to calculate a peak, I'm estimating an aging function using a common-yet-sophisticated technique designed to see how changing factors of many units over time affect an outcome. Because of the way the technique works, the sample won't bias a peak estimate as suggested.
This fact is easily seen in the graphs presented in the paper. Below, I post the aging functions for strikeouts per nine innings and walks per nine innings for pitchers on a single graph. The functions have their peaks (denoted by vertical dotted lines) at the opposite ends of the sample—9 years apart. This is a curious finding that I discuss in the paper.
Why didn't they center around the middle of the sample, or why weren't strikeouts biased upwards due to the career requirements? Just because the sample is pared down doesn't mean that the technique will be biased one way or the other. The people in the sample still age like normal human beings. The technique captures how these individuals age in accordance with the aging process by looking at how players' performances change. Strikeouts are shown to peak early because the players in the sample strike out fewer batters as they age—the function actually peaks outside the sample range at 23.56. All of this confusion could be cleared up with an introductory econometrics course.
In any case, it's always possible that estimates might be sensitive to sample selection. These critiques tend to focus on what could be rather than what is. In the paper, I explain the reasoning for my sample choice by highlighting potential selection bias problems. As I said in the comments: "Including a list of players who played 10 years or more allows for the smoothing of random fluctuations over time, because we don't have to worry about players being dropped in and out of the sample. More importantly, it allows for identifying a career baseline for each player from which we can observe how he progresses. It certainly shouldn't perform worse than the average-yearly-change method." I did not make this choice lightly. My cutoffs were chosen because they fit with cutoffs used by other researchers and I tested the models for sensitivity to cutoff decisions.
If you're not convinced, why don't we move from the hypothetical to reality. The graph below maps the aging function estimated on the low threshold of 1000 career plate appearance and 300 plate appearances in a season. No more age range, no career-length limit, and a vastly-reduced history of performance. And guess what? Peak age is 29.
How Do Players Age?
The last hot stove myth that I previously wrote about has to do with player aging.
Players peak at 27 and old players are worthless — Players peak at 29 — 30. And just because a guy is past his peak doesn't mean he's not valuable. The aging process is gradual, more like the Minneapolis Metrodome than an Egyptian pyramid. If a guy was good last year, even if he's in his mid-30s, he'll probably be good next year. Now, the older he gets the more dangerous long-run contracts get, but one- and two-year deals are fine.
This may not seem like much of a myth, as the conventional wisdom has long been that baseball players peak around 30. This, it turns out, is a myth of sabermetrics. Many methods have been used, aggregating performance into age-buckets, identifying the most-common (or mode) age at which players have their best season, and calculating average changes in performance from age to age. These methodologies suffer from various problems that could induce bias; therefore, I set out to conducted my own study in away that might satisfy my concerns.
I gathered a sample of major-league baseball players over 86 seasons who had significant career lengths to track performance over time. Without a career, there is no trajectory to follow. I tracked their performances over ages 24 — 35, throwing out younger and older years when only the best players typically play. Following individual players over time allowed me to set baselines for each player according to his ability, while controlling for changes in playing environments which may fluctuate quite a bit over the course of a player's career. For example, a hitter who started his career in the mid-1980s and finished in the late-1990s might have appeared to have continuously improved, when in fact his higher offensive statistics reflected a jump in league offense. I used z-scores to measure player performance in terms of standard deviations from the league average to measure performance relative to one another.
I poked, prodded, and tortured the data, and it screamed that peak performance occurs around age 29 since the early-1920s, possibly 30 for more-recent players, not matter what changes I made. Some aspects of performance peak earlier while others peak later, but overall players tended to gradually improve until 29 and slowly declined after that. I think it's particularly interesting that the average pitcher in the sample continues to reduce his walks until his 32nd birthday, while strikeouts peak at 24. Batters also improve in their ability to draw walks into their early-thirties, even after their hitting and power have declined. It appears that players continue improve mentally even after their physical skills are eroding. Maybe there is something to veteran know-how.
Age is often used as a reason to chastise GMs for picking up players past their prime. Though old players may not be what they once were, the evidence indicates they can still be valuable. According to my estimates, a hitter who has a .900 OPS at his peak would be expected to post around an .850 OPS at 35; a pitcher with a peak 3.5 ERA is expected to post around a 3.75 ERA at 35. Yes, age saps athletic skill, but the stock of skill being diminished is also important.
I should also note that previously, Phil Birnbaum argued that the quadratic shape of my estimated aging function could bias the peak. Certainly, this could happen. I looked into the possibility using polynomials of higher magnitudes and fractional polynomial methods that do not require symmetry. The results still hold, so I went with the more parsimonious functional form.
Update: Birnbaum offers a new critique, and I respond.
Defending Hakes and Sauer
It seems that I have upset a few people with one of my interview answers at Chop-n-Change, involving a paper by Jahn Hakes and Skip Sauer. Here's a brief response that covers the criticism the paper has received (cross-posted in the comments).
— —
1) The goal of Hakes and Sauer was to test the Moneyball hypothesis that OBP was undervalued relative to SLG; hence, the title of the paper.
2) This test must include OBP and SLG in the model. The concept can be broken down and testing further, which they did, but what is interesting is if this central tenet of Moneyball is true. The exercise is not about designing the perfect model for predicting salaries. I vividly recall discussing this fact with the authors at the time the paper was written when I asked them about alternate specifications of the model. They responded that they had done this and this analysis would be a part of another paper, which it was, but were focused on Moneyball itself for this exercise. This then creates the problem of adjusting for playing time. This could be controlled for in ways other than plate appearances (e.g., interaction terms), but the authors ultimately decided the parsimony of their specification made it the right choice. Adding in the impact of all sectors of the labor market is another tough issue. Ideally, you would like to separate the labor classifications, but they are trying to estimate the market price for the entire labor market—reserved and arbitration-eligible players are a part of that market. So, they include dummies to act as a control. Again, interaction terms or some other correction could have been used, but they felt that their final specification was best. And they were able to convince many other economists (colleagues, editors, and referees) at different levels of review that what they produced was the best choice.
3) The goal of the study was to identify if the market was out of whack at the time the book was written. The findings indicate the pre-Moneyball models don't predict as well as the post-Moneyball sample based on what we would expect them to be. That is a point in favor of the paper, not an objection. Furthermore, in 2001 the labor market was especially out of whack, and I find it odd that it was the specification chosen for close examination. The regression equation was designed to pick up information from real-world data, the values are not something presupposed by the authors. The coefficient on OBP is negative—higher OBP lowers your salary. You don't need to plug in any values to see that this is counter-intuitive. Part of the reason why the salaries remain so stable when Tangotiger adjusts the inputs is that the higher value for OBP cuts into the impact of SLG. As Hakes and Sauer acknowledge in the text, the coefficients on OBP are not even statistically significant—the market appeared to be ignoring the relevance of OBP at the time. That's their argument.
4) So, the Hakes and Sauer papers may be imperfect, joining the ranks of every other empirical study ever written. If you think you can do better, here is a solution. Take the freely available data and run alternate specifications. As it stands, the critique is that the perfect is the enemy of the good. If further testing reveals the labor market was not out of whack, then we have an argument.
— My radio interview on minor-league sports (softball and soccer) in Atlanta on WABE.
— Alex Remington has posted an interview at Chop-n-Change where we discuss, what I've been up to, GM myopia, the Braves, and sabermetrics versus Sabermetrics.
— My latest Huffington Post article on the importance of Gerald Scully's model for valuing players.
Tim Hudson's Hometown Discount
The long-awaited announcement of Tim Hudson's new contract with the Braves has finally come. The terms guarantee Hudson $9 million a year over the next three seasons, plus a $1 million buyout of a team option for a fourth year. The fourth-year option also pays out $9 million, so the total value that could be paid out is $36 million over four years. The contract voids a $12 million option for 2010, that the Braves were likely going to buy out for $1 million.
Hudson is an interesting player. He's ranged from good to dominant. He was really pitching some of his best baseball as a Brave right before his injury. The good news is that he pitched well in his return through 42 innings. With a full offseason to recover, I think there is good reason to believe that he will be back to normal; however, the injury risk may have reduced his value somewhat. I proceed to my valuation with this caveat.
If Hudson pitches as he did in 2007 and 2008 over the course of a full season, then he'll be worth about $12.5 million per year over the next three seasons. Thus, it appears that Hudson is giving the hometown discount that he promised—smart move by Frank Wren and the Braves. This allows the Braves to trade one of its other starters (who will it be?) and still have pitching stability going into the future.
If you see Hudson out and about in the Atlanta area, be sure to say "thanks"—but, please, don't pester him. Or, maybe throw a little support to the Hudson Family Foundation. He wants to be in Atlanta, and he has strengthened his club by doing so. It's nice to have you on board for the long haul, Tim.
Huffington Post Sports
If you read The Huffington Post, you know that one of its deficiencies has been its lack of a sports section. Well, they agreed and have just launched one. I am excited to be a part of this venture and will be posting columns there.
My first column is up (a reprint of my earlier blog post on hot stove myths). You can look for my columns in the future on my author page. Some of my columns will be cross-posted, others will be new material—I haven't quite figured out how I'm going to do this—but I will make it known when a new column is up.


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St. Louis A/V Master Nabs Top Place for 'Outdoor Living' Setting
After 8 months, dozens of photos, hours of ohhing-and-awwwing, and a multitude of patient participants, SunBriteTV – the leader in outdoor television – has selected the grand prize winner of our first-ever Backyard of the Year – 2013 photo contest. Kevin Burnley – President & Owner, Creative Audio Video and Automation, St. Louis, MO – takes year's best for his "ultimate pool area" photo of a 32″ SunBriteTV Signature Series sweet custom installation. Burnley is an authorized SunBriteTV dealer/installer. He wins either a vibrant weatherproof 55″ 5565HD or a spectacular – king of all outdoor TVs – 65″ 6560HD LED … along with the TV's weatherproof, rustproof mount.
The home owner of that lovely pool setting in Burnley's photo also wins. The home owner will receive their choice of either an amazing Lynx grill or top-notch Lynx outdoor appliance, such as an outdoor refrigerator, wine cooler or oven/stove. They also will receive two outdoor gas heaters and two SoundCast Outcast outdoor speakers.
There's more. Due to the overwhelming amount of quality entries – a sign that outdoor living and outdoor entertaining is a growing trend – SunBriteTV selected two Backyard of the Year – 2013 runners-up.
For those of you who ask, "Where should I place my outdoor TV?"…
Digital Home Technologies, Palatine, IL submitted a series of jaw-dropping photos of a patio TV setting fit for a movie star. John Goldenne and his team are responsible for the custom integration of outdoor TV tech with backyard mother nature.
Take another look. Now, that's a great outside entertaining area …
Another photo entry shows off THE biggest trend in outdoor creative-space use — the outdoor kitchen. Innovative Environments of Ferndale, MI installed a SunBriteTV over this customized kitchen. A great place to grill and saute while keeping up with "the game" or latest news on all-weather HDTV. Congrats to Russ Wolfe and team for their spectacular work and photo!
Backyard of the Year photo contest runners-up receive an outdoor SoundCast Melody speaker.
SunBriteTV thanks all who entered. We're impressed with the amount of creative ideas and talent between installer and home owner in their combined quest for unique, backyard living areas.


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Incognito is the brainchild of wig mastermind Henry Margu. Since 1951, they have provided the world with some of the most trend-setting wig styles and cutting-edge colorations.
Now, with years of expertise, they have created Incognito to offer fun, fashionable styles with superior craftsmanship and affordable pricing to give anyone the ability to look flirtatious or funky for a midnight rendezvous or a marvelous masquerade.
Whether it's Naughty or Nice, Sexy or Shy, the variety of styles and diversity of colors will help Incognito indulge your fantasy.
It's all about the hair!


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|Bundle Degradation Behaviour in the Phebus FP Tests Derived from their Post Irradiation Examination (PIE)
|BOTTOMLEY Paul; SCHLUTIG S.; BREMIER Stephan; BARRACHIN M.; DE BREMAECKER A.; WALKER Clive; GLATZ Jean-Paul; PAPAIOANNOU Dimitrios; ARNOULT Jean-Luc; BAUDOT Denis; SIMONDI-TEISSEIRE Beatrice; RESTANI R.; GAVILLET D.
|The Nuclear Fuels and Structural Materials for the Next Generation Nuclear Reactors 2008 International Congress on Advances in Nuclear Power Plants (ICAPP '08) vol. 98 p. 274-275
|American Nuclear Society
|Publication Year:
|Articles in periodicals and books
|The Phébus FP project is an international project examining the release and behaviour of fission products from irradiated fuel. It is led and being carried out by the Institut de Radioprotection et de Sûreté Nuclèaire (IRSN) at Cadarache in collaboration with the European Commission and the EU national research institutes as well as USA, Canada, Korea, Japan and Switzerland [1,2]. ITU & PSI have undertaken the post irradiation examination (PIE) of the bundles. The first test FPT0 used trace irradiated fuel and acted as a reference. FPTI examined bundle degradation and release under steam atmospheres while FPT2 was carried out under steamlimited conditions. FPT3 was carried out with reduced steam flow conditions but also using a B4C absorber rod. The latter test is still undergoing examination.
|JRC Directorate:
|Nuclear Safety and Security
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Are Rent to Own Homes More Expensive?
September 25, 2017 by Marty Orefice | Real Estate, Rent to Own
There's a big misconception about whether rent to own homes are more expensive than the alternative. The confusion stems because the answer is different for different situations.
In this post, we will go over the three scenarios. When rent to own is more expensive, the same price and less expensive.
Are Rent to Own Homes More Expensive?
Rent to own homes are more expensive than outright buying a home. However, people who can buy a home in cash or who qualify for a mortgage and have enough money for a down payment should not rent to own for extended periods of time. Renting to own should be reserved for rare situations, like if you will be purchasing a home once it gets out of probate, but need to move into it now.
Rent to own is truly beneficial for people who are saving up for a down payment or who are working to qualify for a mortgage.
It's more expensive for those who could purchase because they're paying for rent before they purchase the home. If you can afford to purchase a home, you should not pay for rent longer than you need to. However, if you cannot afford to purchase a home, and you would be paying rent anyway you are not paying more than you otherwise would have.
Rent to own is more expensive than renting a home if you do not purchase the home. When you rent to own, you always pay an option fee. The option fee gives you the option to purchase the home. If you purchase the home, you get the option fee back. Most people use the money toward their down payment. However, if you do not purchase the home, the seller keeps the option fee. Since the option fee is something extra you paid to be able to rent to own, you have paid more than you would have if you'd just rented the home. Therefore, you should only rent to own if you actually intend to buy the home.
In addition to losing the option payment, you and the seller may have worked out a rent premium situation. In a rent premium situation, you pay a little bit extra every month for rent and when you buy the house, that extra money goes towards a credit off your down payment. In some cases, the seller makes a matching contribution to the escrow account each month. If you do not buy the home, not only does the seller not make the matching contribution, but you lose the extra money that you paid. This, too, costs more than you would typically pay in rent, as you are paying fair market rent plus the premium payment. Therefore, if you do pay a rent premium and you do not purchase the home, rent to own is more expensive than regular renting.
There is a third situation in which renting to own a home is more expensive than the alternative of renting a home and then buying a different one. In some rent to own contracts, the seller and buyer specify the purchase price of the home in the contract. While sometimes price determination is deferred until the purchase is made, it is not always the case. You and the seller need to agree on what the purchase price of the home will be at the beginning of the lease term – long before the purchase is actually made; however, that is merely speculation. If you speculate that the house will be worth more than it is when you purchase the home, you will end up paying more to buy your rent to own home than you would have to buy any other home at that point.
That is not to say that you should purchase another cheaper home instead. What it does say is that you need to weigh your options. If the option fee and premium payments are worth less than the extra money you are paying for the home, it might be cheaper to cut your losses and buy another home. However, if the option payment and premium payments are greater than what you would save buying another home, it is better to purchase the home you have been renting to own. If the difference between the price of your rent to own home and the price of another home for sale is equal to the money you would lose from the option payment and any rent credits, pick the home that you like best.
Are Rent to Own Homes the Same Price?
Rent to own homes are the same price as regular homes if everything goes perfectly. If you are financially not able to purchase a home right now, your only other option is to rent a home and then buy one when you are ready. The only difference between that and rent to own is that, with rent to own, you are renting the home you intend to buy. Additionally, you pay extra upfront in the form of the option fee, but you get it all back when you buy the house.
If you successfully rent to own a home, it is the exact same price as renting a home and then buying one.
Are Rent to Own Homes Less Expensive
When you are not financially able to purchase a home, rent to own is an option that could save you money through two scenarios: rent credits and home appreciation.
Rent credits are a fantastic opportunity for buyers. Sellers know that the more money a buyer has on the line for a rent to own home, the more likely the buyer will follow through and buy their home. Most sellers who opt to allow someone to rent to own ultimately want their home sold. Rent to own is usually not a seller's first choice. It's a path to selling a home in a market where homes are not selling.
Rent credits are a way for sellers to increase a buyer's stake in the home. Rent credits are detailed within the rent to own contract and agreed upon before the lease begins. There are three ways to earn rent credits, but only the following two will save you money.
- The seller charges you fair market rent. Every month, the seller puts a portion of that rent in an escrow account. At the end of the lease term, or whenever you choose to purchase the home, the seller gives the money to the buyer as a credit off the down payment of the home. This is the ideal scenario for a buyer. For the seller, it incentivizes the buyer to make the purchase. For the buyer, it makes the home less expensive and the down payment less daunting, which, in turn, also encourages the buyer to buy.
- The second option is premium payment matching. The seller charges you fair market rent for the home. Additionally, you and the seller agree on a premium payment you will make on the home each month. For example, if fair market rent is $1,000, you pay $1,100 each month. The extra $100 is put into an escrow account and returned to you, if you decide to purchase the home. The seller than matches the money you paid and puts an additional $100 in the escrow account. In this scenario, you get $200 for every month you lease the home. This option is $100 per month of the lease cheaper – or whatever amount your seller's matching contribution is – than renting a home and then buying a different one. So, if you lease for 36 months before buying the home you have been renting to own, you saved $3,600 by renting to own.
The other way that renting to own could be cheaper than renting and then buying a home is if you and the seller decide the purchase price of the home at the beginning of the lease and the property appreciates above that amount. If the property is worth more than what you are paying for it, you are saving money because in any other situation the property would be selling for what it is worth, not a speculated amount.
So, Which One is It?
- You can afford to buy a home right now,
- You are able to qualify for a mortgage,
- You do not buy the home you rent to own
- Or the property depreciates after you sign the contract
- You buy the home for what it is worth,
- No rent credits or premium payments were made
- and the property is worth what you are paying for it
- The property appreciates above the set price and you buy,
- Or you and the seller establish rent credits or matching premium payments and you buy
…it is more expensive.
If everything goes perfectly…
…it is the same as renting a property and then buying a different one at the end of the lease.
…renting to own a home is cheaper than renting a home and then buying a different one.
Modern Building Against Sky by Expect Best is licensed under the Pexels Photo License.


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I have been so busy the last ten days I haven't blogged about Split (except for the fire – read it here – which is all done now). No disrespect – in fact it just shows how great this place is. We have done and seen everything we can, trying not to break the bank. It's been a lovely place for a visit but our time in Split and Croatia now comes to an end.
We loved our little Airbnb here, tucked into a courtyard just off a very quiet street, our stone house was a stones throw from Diocletian's Palace
and the harbor. A perfect location for anyone visiting.
I think the best thing about Split is Diocletian's Palace. I didn't really understand before coming here that the "palace" is actually the old town.
Originally built for the Roman Emperor Diocletian in 4th century as a summer home, he enjoyed it for six years after abdicating the Roman throne. After his death it fell into demise for centuries until people from the neighboring village fleeing the Croats ended up here. Slowly the local people took away the stones and built-in and around the palace a city. They rebuilt within the dilapidated walls of Diocletian's house. Today the
beautiful glistening stone city is built-in and around the original palace walls and grounds and it is so beautiful. And certainly unique as far as antiquity and historic cities go.
Alas it is also crowded, but we came to Croatia knowing this would be the case. We did not see as many cruise ships in Split's harbor as we did in Dubrovnik but there is definitely more yachts and
small cruise boats. The most beautiful yachts I have ever seen in my life. The harbor itself is also nice, a beautiful promenade lined with restaurants and shops and benches to sit, enjoy and watch the beautiful people go by.
We did some great training for our upcoming
Camino walk while in Split – walking up Marjan Hill, and around the Peninsula. Very nice place to walk. We spent a little time at the "beach" although the crowds are not to my liking and the rocky area makes for a not so relaxing experience. Late in our visit we found a nice beach at the end of the peninsula within Marjan park – so we visited there twice.
We took the ferry out to the island of Brac and spent the day enjoying the lovely village of Supetar, also
full of history. We swam and had lunch and it was a nice break from the "big city".
One of the funnest things we did was a two-hour sunset sailing cruise around the bay. Dalmatia has more than a thousand islands and sailing is a national past time. My mother in law Lynn, who was with us for two weeks, sponsored this little sailing excursion and it was a lovely way to end her time with us here. We saw a little wind, a beautiful sunset, sipped wine and ate local cheese and
enjoyed listening to our captain talk about growing up in Split and all his adventures. Lynn has really enjoyed Croatia, especially the pastry, the gelato,
the history, the boats, the music and most of all the people watching. Me too.
On the last night with Lynn we had a delicious and very authentic Croatian meal at Konoba Marjan. I great seafood feast prepared in the local style and a great way to celebrate our time in
Towards the end of our time here we began a "game" of wandering off into the depths of the old town, down narrow alleys and pathways just to see
where we would end up. If you've been to Venice, Split is smaller but similar in that you can get lost in the belly of the beast. Pretty fun to see where you end up.
After we said farewell to Lynn and shipped her back to Seattle we had a couple of days left. We did another Camino training day and then today a stay
home and pack day, which I actually always enjoy. It feels good to pull everything together again each time.
Tomorrow is our final day here and we have plans to enjoy another authentic Croatia dinner and then attend an outdoor opera performance in Diocletian's palace of "Aida", part of Splits Summer Festival. It will be a lovely way to end our time in this beautiful country.
We will take a rental car to drive us north into Slovenia. We plan to make a stop at Zadar to see the sea organ, an art installation that plays music via waves (I'll post photos) and then arrive in the village of Piran in the late afternoon.
But for Croatia – I highly recommend it, it has so
much to offer. Just be prepared if you come in the summer for lots of crowds. Spring and fall are good times to travel here too – it's beautiful and bountiful no matter the
So now Chapter Nine continues as we make our way North to Slovenia. We have visited Slovenia before, and this six-day visit is focused primarily on our friends the Chaussins (the family of our exchange student from ten years ago) who spend their summers in Piran. We are looking forward to seeing them again and having six days to just relax after the whirlwind that was Croatia, before we head off to Portugal.
So, farewell to Split – it's time to Split – away!


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This story has been updated.
Extra security is on campus at Walter Panas High School in Cortlandt Manor following a reported threat by a student.
School officials said in a letter to parents that there were a number of rumors circulating regarding an incident at the school on Monday, March 18.
"This matter has been fully investigated and handled by the administration and the police and there is no existing threat to the school or community," school officials said in the letter. "As the public is aware, we cannot release the results of student investigations, however, we can emphasize once again these reported incidents were fully investigated by the school and by the police."
Westchester County Police said they became aware on Wednesday, March 20, that rumors were circulating on social media that there would be an incident at Walter Panas High School Thursday, March 21 and that students should stay home, said Kieran O'Leary, spokesman for the Westchester County Police.
The rumors stemmed from a previous dispute between two students, O'Leary said.
"Westchester County Police, including our School Resource Officer assigned to Panas, had investigated that original incident and also conducted additional investigation last night after the social media postings," he said. "It was determined that there is no credible threat to the school."
To alleviate any concerns that students or parents may have, additional county police officers are at Walter Panas today along with the SRO, O'Leary said.
The school said it is not releasing additional information because the concerns that continue to be raised "are simply not grounded in facts, and spreading false accusations, only makes matters worse"
They also said asked parents and students to trust that they have the matter in hand and that all safety precautions have been taken.
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SM-Mobile App for Android and Apple
SM-Mobile is a powerful mobile productivity tool, providing field workers with the information processing tools to make their jobs easier and your entire workforce more productive.
- SM-Mobile is a native app, running on both Apple and Android devices.
- SM-Mobile functions as an accessory to Scheduling Manager Gemini and Web Express.
- Available for dozens of industries.
SM-Mobile synchronizes data with Scheduling Manager Gemini, or the Web Express, so the user in the field can access their job schedules directly on their mobile device.
SM-Mobile provides powerful management tools for mobile workforce management. This mobile job scheduling app puts the power into the hands of the field worker, while management gains through greater awareness of activities in the field.
SM-Mobile has been a great additional software tool, allowing us to increase productivity, and spend less time updating completion details on the desktop computer. Matt Long, Magic Maid, Portland, OR
Some features of SM-Mobile, mobile software for field service businesses
View Scheduled Job Appointments
Employees can view all their own scheduled jobs for the day, for the week or any other time period.
Team leaders can view all jobs for their team. Master users (supervisors) can view all jobs for all teams in their district.
The SM-Mobile user can view all details concerning each job by tapping the screen. They can also see all associated customer information, and also initiate a phone call to the customer at the tap of a finger.
This aspect of the mobile service business software makes it unnecessary for employees or supervisors to carry around any kind of paperwork. This makes your service business more efficient and profitable!
Create Estimates in the field
Whether you are running an electrical repair business, a pest control business, a carpet cleaning enterprise, a fire extinguisher maintenance operation or any other field service business, sometimes customers (or prospective customers) will ask technicians in the field about new work.
With the instant estimates feature in SM-Mobile software for service businesses, the technician can immediately create an estimate and show that or e-mail it to the client. No more waiting for the employee to return to head office before the client can know how much the services they want are going to cost.
Create invoices and e-mail them to the client
Create invoices showing details of all services performed, as well as inventory items used, and equipment items serviced.
Invoices can be immediately e-mailed to the client, and are also transmitted back to head office, where they are retained for your records.
As you create new invoices for client, his/her account balance is immediately updated.
If you have the QuickBooks Real-time interface, information is also immediately updated in QuickBooks. Interfaces with MYOB, Sage, Xero and other accounting programs also available.
Take photos of the job site and transmit them back to the home office
If you're servicing equipment for a customer, you can take before and after photos to record important details about the job to show to the customer. If you are in the cleaning business, you can take before and after photos to demonstrate the quality of your cleaning work. Property managers can record photographic details of clients' properties to email to clients.
All photos are transmitted back to the central head office, where they are kept on file, and can be accessed by office personnel at any time, for verification or for any communications with the customer.
Capture customer's signature
Customer signs work order and invoice when work is completed, so you have a record of customer's acceptance of the work performed.
You can also have customer sign her acceptance of special warranty conditions attached to certain types of work. This feature is really loved by many of the carpet and upholstery cleaners who use SM-Mobile in conjunction with Scheduling Manager for carpet cleaning businesses.
This information is transmitted back to head office, where it is retained on file. Incredible record keeping with no paperwork involved.
Accept payments – including credit cards
The mobile user can process credit card transactions in the field.
The technician in the field can record amounts paid by the client, whether in cash, by check or by credit card. And, if the customer chooses to pay by credit card, the card can be immediately processed in the field, ensuring that you receive quick payment for the valuable services that you provide.
Another time-saving and organization-effective feature of our mobile service business software.
Mapping of daily job schedule routes
Create helpful maps for each employee, showing current positions and directions to the next job. Or create a map showing the entire route for the day.
Employees no longer need to spend time searching for directions, manually typing addresses into their GPS device or their cellphone. Employees no longer need to call the office to find out directions to the next job. This is a great time-saver, and has been shown to save countless hours for companies using the SM-Mobile system.
This makes your field service business much more efficient, through use of the right kind of mapping software.
Record employees' arrival and departure times
The employee (or sub-contractor) indicates when s/he arrives at the job, and his/her geographical location is verified using GPS capabilities.
When the job is completed, employee indicates this and the departure time and GPS coordinates are again recorded.This information is retained within Scheduling Manager or Web Express (our online version) so that HR and payroll personnel can check employees' timecards accurately and efficiently at the end of each pay period.
In the past, some users purchased an entire separate program just to record check-in and check-out times. With this feature, these valuable capabilities are included in the mobile software at no extra charge.
GPS capabilities let you know exactly where your employees are
You can bring up a map on your computer screen, showing where all employees are at any time.
This makes it easy to know that your employees are where they are supposed to be at any particular point in time.
This facility aids in checking that employees check in and out from their correct work locations. This utility is also invaluable for dispatchers at head office to dispatch service personnel quickly and efficiently when a service call comes in and needs to be serviced ASAP.
You can also get the route traveled by any particular employee for the day.
Set Permissions for Different user-Types
As with Scheduling Manager and our other software offerings for field service businesses, you can customize the way SM-Mobile works, to make it compatible with your way of doing business.
For example, you can choose to configure SM-Mobile so that employees can see only their own jobs and Team leaders can see all jobs for their team members, while supervisors can see all jobs assigned to all employees and teams.
Custom options allow management to define what parts of the data each user can see and modify.
Print and E-mail Work Orders, Warranty Forms, Service Agreements, etc.
Attach images and PDF files to jobs
Mark-up, fill-in and share PDF files directly from your mobile device. Fill in custom PDF forms or mark up image files and transmit them to the office or email them to a client while they are at the job site.
You can:
» Edit floor plans and attach them to customers' records.
» Mark the locations of customer's equipment, such as septic tanks, fire safety equipment, sprinkler systems, etc.
» Keep track of areas where maintenance and cleaning work has been done by marking them off on a floor plan.
» Maintain quality assurance by marking and annotating the tasks performed at the job site.
Pre-filled PDF Forms
Convenience: Work Orders are already pre-filled with the customers' name, company and address. Your employees simply fill in the necessary information and send it to the customer with a click of a button.
Efficiency: Create any custom forms you need, collect signatures from the customer and send the forms to the head office. No more lost paper forms and your employees do not need to spend time picking up and dropping off forms at the head office.


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Find out what iconic Disney snack you are!
What did you get?! Snap a pic and share it with us on Twitter and Instagram @kingdomcuisine!
Do you love Disney food and all things Mickey-shaped?
Share your delicious snacks with us on Instagram and be sure to tag #SnackSquad to be featured!
Snack Squad
Discover Snack Squad T-Shirt from Kingdom Cuisine only on Teespring – Free Returns and 100% Guarantee – "If it's Mickey-shaped it's automatically…


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Social Networking in today's, and soon to be tomorrow's, world is something that is radically different and in this new age with smart phones and feature phones getting more and more access to social networking sites. MocoSpace, the leading mobile social network in the U.S., is packing some serious heat with their new numbers in their latest Q2 Mobile Social Graph Report.
MocoSpace reports that Android traffic has significantly risen during the past quarter and is the strongest of all mobile platforms. It had a surge of 73% increase, while iPhone (67%) and Blackberry (down 2.8%) are only helping to fuel the fire that Android is and will be the future.
Reported Android log-in sessions were 15 minutes and 51 seconds (an increase of 13.2% in Q2) and the chat increased by higher numbers than expected by 38% as the company has introduces the application for the mobile platform.
A recent report by Ground Truth confirms the trend toward longer MocoSpace session times; the report showed that MocoSpace users spend more minutes per day on MocoSpace than they do on either Facebook Mobile or MySpace Mobile.
"In Q2, we were very pleased to see strong growth coming from Android and iPhone users. With the upcoming release of our gaming platform targeting smartphones, we feel the mobile web will only get stronger as more powerful phones enable more robust mobile browser experiences," says MocoSpace CEO Justin Siegel
For the full report check it out at: www.jnjmobile.com/reporti and down below we have the social graphs for you to check out.
About MocoSpace
For a young, multicultural, on-the-go generation, MocoSpace is the mobile community of choice for making friends, having fun and staying connected. One of the largest and most active mobile web sites in the world, MocoSpace has over 13 million registered users generating over 3 billion pages per month. MocoSpace is free and available on any web-enabled mobile phone in the world.
Launched in 2005, MocoSpace is backed by General Catalyst and is based in Boston, MA. For more information on the company, visit www.jnjmobile.com


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Nepal is a landlocked country located in South Asia and stuck between India and China. Nepal visa on arrival was the easiest immigration process I've ever been through. The immigration process was very easy to follow and fast as well. The immigration officers are very welcoming and supportive at Kathmand's Tribhuvan International Airport.
Nepal Visa on Arrival
Except a few countries, every other country's citizen is eligible for visa on arrival in Nepal, as Nepal has a very liberal visa policy in the world. SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) citizens are exempt from visa fee on their first visit to Nepal. Other citizens have to pay $25 for 30 days visa.
Since we had a Pakistani passport (which is a SAARC country) we didn't pay anything and got the free visa on Arrival, and for SAARC countries citizens, there is a separate special counter. It was a pleasant experience to see a different counter and special treatment for the first time 🙂
The immigration officer asked me only one question and that was "how long will you stay in Nepal", I said "4 days", and he stamped my passport with a 15 days visa on arrival. Below is the stamp how it looks.
Welcome to Nepal, and Nepal is a nice country to explore, it was for a long time in my list of adventures and finally that happened on 14 February 2017.
Type of Nepal Visas
Apart from the tourist visa on arrival, you can also get business visa on arrival or any other type of visa. And there are different visa counters at Tribhovan International Airport in Kathmandu with different signs such as 90 days visa, 60 days visa and 30 days visa. If you need a visa accordingly then simply approach the counter which is appropriate. If you want to stay longer in Nepal then you can also extend your visa for a month or two.
And remember, leave the country before your visa expires. Fines are in place, if you overstay in Nepal. and for updated information, please always visit the official website of that country, and in case of Nepal, you can visit this website of Department of Immigration Nepal.
I've written a complete separate post on my Nepal tour which you can read on this blog. Nepal is a beautiful country and you'll find many tourists in Nepal. There are many activities in Nepal for travelers who like adventures, such as the highest mountain is located in Nepal and many more spots to do trekking and hiking.


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Transreality., I have just changed my setting and your avatar just showed up...Can you tell me from where it came ?
Its a interesting image. I imagine the original might be bigger. < email@example.com > thankyou.
Thank you! Because of your thread, my new avatar is that of a waterworld!


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Editors handpick every product that we feature. We may earn money from the links on this page.
The top picks from stylists, CEOs, and designers.
It's rare to find a shoe that fits comfortably on your first try. (If you've found that Cinderella pair, please email me.) For sandals and heels, you can almost anticipate them pinching or rubbing the skin off your heels, but for sneakers, it's slightly more difficult to tell which ones will result in sneak-attack blisters.
Though I'm lucky to have finally found a magical pair (they're Kenneth Cole "Kams" and Kendall Jenner owns them too—I always tell people this), I know I might not get so fortunate with my next sneaker purchase. So, I tapped several footwear experts, from shoe designers to style tastemakers in the fashion industry, to share their personal recommendations on "a comfy sneaker." Here, the best sneaks, from classics like Nike to newcomer brand Allbirds.
"Right now I am really into my Adidas Deerupt sneakers. The technical fabric and performance capabilities make it a really comfortable shoe that molds to your foot. It is perfect for all-day wear. In addition to the comfort, the overall design with the two tone and netting keeps me reaching for these shoes time and time again. These sneakers are also very versatile—I find myself wearing them on the weekdays and on the weekends, whether I pair them with jeans or a knit tank dress." — Erica Russo, Bloomingdale's VP and Fashion Director for Accessories and Beauty
Adidas, $100 SHOP IT
"Most people are surprised to know that I love to wear my Nike LunarEpic Flyknit sneakers to the office. Call it one of the perks of living in Los Angeles, which has a more casual work culture, but on days when I don't have any big meetings, I pair them with my workout clothes and do 30 minutes of Pilates during lunch.
On the weekends, you can find me wearing them to hike Franklin Canyon with my daughter Minty and my partner Michael. I love this spot because it's a bit off the beaten path and much less of a scene than Runyon." — Tamara Mellon, Designer and Founder of Tamara Mellon
Nike, $112 SHOP IT
"My go-to sneakers for travel are my Apollo Mocs by Native. They are lightweight and laceless, they're so easy to remove through security at the airport, and they don't lose their form as you squish them under the seat on the plane.
The perforated upper makes them totally breathable and the cushioned sole has great grip for running across airport terminals and over different terrain. Best of all, they weigh like nothing in the suitcase. I love all the color ways they make, but my light grey pair goes with everything except socks." — Rose Jones, TOMS Design Director
Native Shoes, $38 SHOP IT
"The Nike Air Max 270 is pretty much, hands down, the most comfortable and supportive sneaker that also looks good IMHO. I wear them when I know I'm going to be on my feet all day at a photo shoot or on appointments.
They're also great for travel because they double as running shoes. Plus, they're vegan which is essential for me. Most days I wear them with jeans and a men's striped button down, but when I'm feeling extra I'll pair them with a pantsuit." — Rachael Wang, Stylist & Brand Consultant
Nike, $150 SHOP IT
"I recently developed a new addiction: Allbirds wool runners. The wool is very soft and flexible on your bare feet, which means no socks necessary. The minimal, barely there feeling of these shoes coupled with the fact that they are extremely lightweight, makes them great for travel (which I do a lot of)! These are definitely my go to pair of shoes if I'm not wearing my Nisolos." — Zoe Cleary, Co-Founder and Designer of Nisolo
Allbirds, $95 SHOP IT
"I am currently obsessed with my Nike x Off White air vapormax white sneakers. They fit like a sock and have the most comfortable cushioned sole. I rock them with everything from my activewear to streetwear and they are my favorite go-to travel shoe. They make everything I have look and feel hipper." — Kay Sides, Founder of R0AM
Nike x Off White, $540 SHOP IT


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Miriam moved to New York City in 1996 and had several gallery shows in Manhattan. In 1997 she was the winner of the US-Artist Green card which lead her to immigrate permanently. In 1998 she moved to Los Angeles to work as a visual artist up until 2009. In 2008 she received an official Certificate signed by the Major of the City of Los Angeles based on the City Art Show curated by Senior Senator Pasqual Bettio. Miriam's illustrations are licensed only through Illustration Source in NYC.
Montag, 21. Mai 2012
Abonnieren Posts (Atom)


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Thread starter #1
Boggs Creek is located off Hwy 129 west of Cleveland, GA in the Chattahoochee National Forest. It is a small watershed that was once a very popular camping area. The USFS closed the area to camping as well as portions of the access roadway after tornadoes reeked havoc several years ago. Today Boggs Creek has mostly recovered and is operated as a day-use area. It is a beautiful place that I recently visited several times to make this video. There are very nice rock formations along the creek and in a couple of thousand years the creek will most likely form a slot canyon.
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A handful of years ago, someone highly recommended that I check out a show at the Casbah by a band called Carney. There was a pretty decent crowd for these brothers in a band and people were milling about the bar, but once they started, the patio cleared and every person in attendance was riveted by the incredible voices coming from the stage. It was no surprise then, that a short time later it was announced that Reeve Carney would be performing in "Spiderman" on Broadway. Despite that production being plagued with issues, Reeve Carney's career has still followed a pretty great tragectory. He's playing San Diego fresh off a performance in Fox's remake of "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" and will be at Austin City Limits Live this weekend. Joined by former San Diegan Josh Damigo, you don't want to miss this show. Around town, Parkway Drive plays House of Blues, Waldo is at Soda Bar, and Ziggy Marley plays his second night at the Belly Up.
Tuesday, October 25:
- Reeve Carney, Josh Damigo @ Casbah
- Parkway Drive, We Came As Romans, Counterparts, Smarter Than Robots @ House of Blues
- Waldo, Real J Wallace, Jimmy Javier, DJ Artistic @ Soda Bar
- Ziggy Marley @ Belly Up
- Tiki Tuesday feat. DJ Marshall Islands @ Bar Pink
- Acoustic Alchemy, Jimmy Lewis Band @ Music Box
- Kyle and Duckwrth @ Price Center Ballroom, UCSD
- The Art Dealers, the Gift Machine, Noble War @ The Merrow
- Día de los Muertos: Sugar Skull Painting Workshop @ The Loft, UCSD
- Karaoke with Cici @ The Bancroft
- Robin Henkel @ Crossroads, House of Blues (FREE)
- Michele Lundeen @ Humphreys Backstage Live
- True Bass Presents : Ramsey #Trapped @ The Office
- Rad! Karaoke! @ U-31
- Karaoke @ Riviera Supper Club
- Open Mic Hosted by Gaby Aparicio @ Java Joe's
- Matt Chamberlain & Brian Haas @ Winston's
- Karaoke @ Gossip Grill
- Hawaiian Happy Hour with Desi Relator & Progressive Mai Tais @ Bali Hai
- Videodrome, Sketch Party @ Whistle Stop
- Karaoke @ Riviera Supper Club
- '50s/'60s Dance Party @ Henry's Pub
- High Tech Tuesdays @ Kava Lounge
- Pali Roots @ 710 Beach Club
Rosemary Bystrak is the publicist for the Casbah, the content manager for DoSD, and writes about the San Diego music scene, events and general musings about life in San Diego on San Diego: Dialed In. Follow her updates on Twitter or contact her directly.


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Product description
New Generation V2 Pop-in nappy +bamboo "Middle Box"
NewGen V2 nappies with new hidden wash tabs and improved sizing.
This Pop-in "Middle Box" represents great value containing 10 Pop-in pastel nappies with bamboo soakers, 3 night boosters, 1 roll of Close nappy liners and 1 stripy tote bag.
The Pop-in +bamboo is an excellent choice for those looking for a natural and more absorbent nappy.Bamboo fibre has loads of fabulous properties which make it a wonderful material for making cloth nappies; it's 3-4 times more absorbent than cotton, naturally breathable, kind to sensitive skin and allergies such as excema and it's super eco-friendly sustainable plant.


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What Your Movers Wish You Knew About the Process
You can make your moving project more convenient and less stressful by hiring a professional moving company. However, that alone won't take all of the stress off. Several things could still go wrong. You'll need to work with the company to make the moving process as smooth as possible. Take a look at the things that every mover wishes you knew to make your move and their job much easier.
Tips for a smooth move.
Pack Before Moving Day
If you've chosen not to use the packing services of your moving company, you should have your possessions packed properly, taped up, and ready to move by the time the movers arrive. That will help keep your stuff safe as well as save you a significant amount of both time and money. Don't pack your books and other heavy items in large boxes, as that will make them harder to move. You should also empty your desks, drawers, and armoires to get rid of unnecessary weight and chances of items falling out of them during the moving process.
Label Everything
Label each box with the items enclosed in it as well as which room it's intended to go. That will help your movers know what to do with your boxes once they get them to your new home and make unpacking less stressful. If something is broken or fragile, make sure you mark it and tell your movers about it beforehand so they can handle it with utmost care.
Don't Pack Prescription Medication, Cash, or Jewelry
Do you have prescription medications that you'll need quick access to at your new home? Maybe you have some money hidden in your sock drawer or expensive jewelry stored in your bedroom closet. Professional movers don't want to worry about the safety of these items on moving day because they have many other things to keep track of, and they'd like to protect themselves from false accusations. Consider keeping these items in a separate box or bag in your vehicle during the move.
Reserve a Parking Spot
Your movers will come with the assumption that you've already researched on the time limitations on moving or parking, where their truck can be parked, and how they can easily access your home. One way to surely put a damper on your moving plans is finding out on moving day that the truck has to be relocated or has received a parking ticket. Find out if there are designated moving hours where you live and schedule your moves within the set hours. Reserve a parking spot for the truck before it arrives.
Sit Back and Relax
You may mean well as you hop on the moving truck to reorganize boxes. Unfortunately, you're interrupting the moving process that your movers have been professionally trained to carry out. You may also jeopardize their insurance. Getting out of their way and allowing them to do their job will help make the process faster and more efficient. It will also make the move less stressful.
Need more advice on moving, packing, and storage? Then contact us at Magic Moving.
Whether you're moving to the city of Pleasanton, one of the surrounding Bay Area towns or cities, within the United States, or to another part of the world, we'll take your stuff there safely, on budget, and on time. If you require it, we also have inexpensive storage services. We've successfully made more than 100,000 moves for individuals, families, and businesses since 1990.
Tell us how we can be of help by calling 877-246-2442 or filling our online contact form.


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Right to Manage
What is Right to Manage and how can it benefit you?
If you are not happy with the service you are receiving from your current management company and wish to make a change, Commerson is here to help.
You may have experienced poor communication, financial irregularities or maintenance worries.
By using your rights under the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002 you can take advantage of all the benefits that the leaseholders in our developments enjoy.
In simple terms, the law allows leaseholders to form a Right to Manage company (RTM company) which will take over the landlord's management functions. Once this has been done, the company can appoint a new managing agent.
The qualifying criteria for the establishment of the RTM company are set out in legislation and details can be obtained from the Leasehold Advisory Service (www.lease-advice.org).
How can Commerson help?
It is important to remember that taking responsibility for the management of your development involves work, both at the outset and on an on-going basis.
This may seem daunting, however we can use our expertise to guide you through every stage and provide you with the improved management service that you are seeking.
As well as acting as company secretary (if required) and providing a registered office for Right To Manage companies, we can provide:
- Full estate management
- Directors' registration
- Share certificate issue
- Annual accounts
- Estate accounts, including preparation and presentation of service charge budget and year-end accounts
- Staff recruitment, training, local senior management and support
- Regular and open communication with residents
- A secure website for viewing account information