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Phalaenopsis... bloomed for 9 months! |
Orchid's center dried in tact |
Until next time. . . Thank you so much for popping in to visit. I might go sew some string blocks this afternoon... what are YOU up to?
Quilty Hugs,
A place to share things I love: Family, Friends, Quilts, Gardening, Crocheting, Knitting,Tatting, RV/Camping, and Occasional Trips. . .
Phalaenopsis... bloomed for 9 months! |
Orchid's center dried in tact |
DJ-LS10: back |
DearJane D11 - completed 27Sep2013 |
Fabric Box ~ A great gift idea! |
Spool Pin Doily. Red for a FW machine |
Crocheted Spool Pin Doily: about 1.5 inches across |
Pink SPDoily on my Janome6500 |
66 String Blocks & 31 Crumb/Strip Blocks - totally from scraps! |
Missy is helping, or supervising. |
From THIS. . . |
To THIS |
To THIS... TaDah! |
First cut: at paper's edge |
2nd cut: used markings on Ruler! |
Strings+Crumbs = Interesting Square in a Square |
Strings trimmed |
Cut diagonally; add to crumb blocks |
Diamond on left prepped NEW way; the one on right, the old way |
Left point prepped & right one is not... yet |
This looks acceptable to me and is ready to be sewn down |
Sewing the point... NO ends to fight or tuck under! Love it. [don't mind the needle 'parked' off to the side... I needed both hands to take picture.] |
Wonky/wobbly point on top little diamond.. the others are ok |
Dear Jane #D5 |
Pigma Inks, Prym color shading, Kitty stamp |
Applique the arcs; PP the set in strips; machine pieced |
PPing with FP allows pressing options... love that! |
Missy is supervising. ;) |


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by Will Conley
In today's article, we'll be posting pictures of Lady Gaga for the cheap Google hits. We'll also be hating on her because she is beautiful.
We really do admire Lady Gaga though. If it weren't for her daring outfits, her act would be just another acceptably catchy bunch of pop songs. Wait, she does do songs, right?
Whatever, bring on the rest of the low blows… [Read more…]

subset: commoncrawl


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Williams had 143 yards receiving in the Demon Deacons' season-opening 31-7 victory over Presbyterian on Thursday night.
"It wasn't eyeing me – it was just eyeing the defense, seeing what they were going to do," Williams said. "And the play-call was just there."
Tanner Price was 14 of 25 for 219 yards with a 20-yard TD pass to Spencer Bishop, and the quarterback ran 3 yards for another score for the Demon Deacons.
With their Atlantic Coast Conference opener coming next Friday night at Boston College, they mostly kept things simple on offense while its defense forced six turnovers – three fumbles and three interceptions.
"I just think we didn't play very well offensively," Presbyterian coach Harold Nichols said. "They're good defensively, but not that good."
Brandon Chubb returned an interception 29 yards for a touchdown and redshirt freshman Josh Wilhite took his first career carry 21 yards for a late score.
Williams caught five passes and set a school record for receiving yardage by a freshman in his first game.
Tamyn Garrick was 9 of 15 for 36 yards with a 1-yard touchdown pass to Kris Hurley for the Blue Hose, who finished with 151 total yards, but 66 came on their first play – a dash by Demarcus Rouse that set up the TD pass.
Presbyterian only gained one more first down after that, and it didn't come until the fourth quarter.
"I don't think (the defense) could have played any better – other than the one long run to start the game," Demon Deacons coach Jim Grobe said.
Price, Wake Forest's fourth-year starter, has the green light on the ground for a change – he was a 1,000-yard rusher in high school. In this one, he rushed for a team-best 31 yards, mostly on option keepers.
"I've got a couple bruises already, and it's a little bit different from past games," Price said with a smile. "But it's a good sore."
He also showed he still has his deep touch.
And in Campanaro's absence – he was in uniform but sat out with a hamstring injury – Williams emerged as the top target of the night.
"That's what has to happen – when somebody goes down, somebody else has to step up," Grobe said.
He caught three passes of 33 or more yards in the first half alone, with his 53-yard grab setting up Price's short touchdown run that made it 17-7 with 3:18 left in the half.
That came two possessions after Price's scoring pass to Bishop – a rare touchdown throw to a tight end – came 78 seconds into the second quarter, made it 10-7 and put Wake Forest ahead to stay.
Chubb effectively iced it less than 4 minutes into the second half when he pulled a Garrick pass out of the air and raced into the end zone to put the Demon Deacons up 24-7.
Presbyterian, which entered 0-5 against FBS teams and had never held one to fewer than 53 points, threw a scare into the late-arriving crowd when Rouse took off on the Blue Hose's first play and raced down the left sideline to the Wake Forest 4.
Garrick made it 7-0 when he hit Hurley three plays later for Presbyterian's first offensive touchdown against an FBS opponent since 2010.
"I thought early on that we'd be able to run the football a bit better," Nichols said. "But offensively, we did such a poor job of taking care of the ball. You know, you turn the ball over that many times, and as good as the defense was playing early, we kept putting them in a bad position."
Chad Hedlund kicked a 31-yard field goal with 2:16 left in the first quarter to pull Wake Forest to 7-3.
Play was held up for nine minutes between the first and second quarters after the banks of lights lost power.


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We started as a family-owned companyOur management company, Century Care Management, was founded by Noah Duncan beginning with a nursing home in Laurinburg, North Carolina. Mr. Duncan had a passion to provide care for those whose needs were beyond what their families could provide.
Over the years, Century Care's reputation grew and so did our desire to include other North Carolina towns that did not have enough care providers in those communities. We now serve seven North Carolina towns through nine nursing homes. |
... and we still are.Sadly, Noah died in 2011. However, his passion to provide quality care to other North Carolinians did not end. Century Care remains in the hands of the Duncan family and their dedication to providing quality health care is just as strong as Noah's was. The Duncan family tradition of service to others continues.
We're not a mega-company nor part of a national chain. We are proud to be locally owned, managed and operated.Everyone who works in a Century Care facility or in our headquarters lives in or near a North Carolina community. Some of us live in the very same neighborhoods of the families we serve. Local folks caring for their neighbors. It shouldn't be any other way, should it?


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Company Insights
Developing or making new products with the help of living organisms is known as biotechnology. It is basically a technological application which uses living/biological system to produce products for specific purposes. Heavy investment by biotechnological companies resulting in discovery of advanced biological products is likely to drive the market in the coming five years. Increasing usage in therapeutics, commercial application and basic research are the factors expected to trigger the growth of biotechnology market over the forecast period. The instruments of biotechnology market is also likely to witness lucrative growth owing to increasing number of biotechnology firms all over the world and huge expenditure in sunk cost.
Biotechnology market is also used in recycling, treating the biological wastes and making biological weapons. Developing nations possess a huge potential market for biotechnology owing to the continuous gaining popularity of biotechnological products and high effectiveness. There is a huge gap between the demand and supply of biotechnological products which is needed to be served over the forecast period. Flourishing stem cell research is also likely to propel the growth of biotechnology market in coming few years.
Technology Insights
By technology, the global biotechnology market is divided into nanobiotechnology, DNA sequencing, tissue engineering and regeneration, PCR technology, chromatography, fermentation, and cell based array. Tissue engineering and regeneration was dominating the entire biotechnology market in 2013. Owing to improving the damaged tissues or the entire organ and usage of biologically active molecules to improve the functions, this market is anticipated to witness significant growth rate over the next decade. It is basically used for targeting and creating tissues which are used for various purposes like heart muscles, bone, cartilage, nerves and blood vessels. PCR technology segment is also expected to show growth in coming five years due to its ability of amplifying DNA and make identical copies.
Application Insights
On the basis of application, the global biotechnology market is fragmented into biopharmacy, bioagricultural, bioservices and bioindustrial. Among these, the biopharmacy application market was the overall market leader in 2013 in terms of revenue. Continuous increase in demand for drugs and disposable needles to prevent chronic diseases & continuous genetic analysis is expected to push the market growth in the coming few years. Bioservice market is also anticipated to witness lucrative growth over the forecast period owing to the involvement of preclinical and clinical researches which are prescribed by regulatory authorities following certain standards. Huge investment in sunk cost by big pharmacies and government resulting in reduction of clinical trial duration is also likely to push the demand for this market in future.
Regional Insights
In 2013, North America was the most dominant market of biotechnology and expected to continue its lead over the forecast period. Due to presence of sophisticated healthcare infrastructure, growing level of awareness among people and high rate of reimbursement medical policies, this market will continue to grow in the next decade. Furthermore, free pricing nature in pharmacies market due to the strict norms relating to patents is also expected to drive this market. Asia Pacific region is expected to be the fastest growing segment due to strong government support, increasing disposable income resulting in rising healthcare expenditure, and large potential market.
Competitors Insights
Novo Nordisk, BiogenIdic, Gilead Sciences, Merck KGaA, Amgen, United Therapeutics, Celgene, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, Regeneron, CSL, Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Ipsen Group, BioMarin Pharmaceutical, Shire PLC, Cubist Pharmaceuticals, Actelion, Elan, Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Dr. Reddy's Laboratories, Seattle Genetics, Alkermes, Ariad Pharmaceuticals and DiaSorin are the major market players of the global biotechnology market. The market is highly competitive and monopolistic in nature. Firms are going through mergers, acquisitions, new product development and geographical expansion to earn maximum revenue and gain more customers.


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Israel in the CrosshairsBy Alan Caruba May 11, 2009There are few nations on Earth other than Israel with a greater claim to exist as a homeland for a specific people. Along with China and India, Israel reaches back thousands of years, predating both Christianity and Islam. For some 3,500 years, Jews have lived in Israel. In good times and bad, Jews have always identified themselves with Israel even when, as a Diaspora, they spread for their survival to many other nations. The re-establishment of Israel on May 14, 1948 led to two immediate events. Within eleven minutes after the announcement, President Harry S. Truman recognized the new nation. Within hours, the Arab League declared war. With only six hundred thousand Jewish residents at the time, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Iraq joined together to destroy Israel. They failed. They tried again in 1967. They failed. They tried in 1973, attacking on one of the holiest days in the Jewish calendar, Yom Kippur. They failed. Following the 1967 war, eight Arab nations gathered in Khartoum and issued their "Three No's." No peace with Israel. No recognition of Israel. No negotiations with Israel. In time, Egypt would sign a peace treaty; though not abandon its animus. Jordan would make its accommodations. The others remained hostile. To understand Israel's situation, it is necessary to understand that (1) Jews had lived there since the days of Moses, (2) the early Zionist movement members that moved there purchased land on which to farm and live, (3) the land which was captured in successive wars had always been part of Israel, and (4) both the United Kingdom and the U.S., for their own reasons, have not been honest brokers, particularly in so far as their demand that Israel negotiate with people who never had any intention to negotiate peace. The Israelis did not steal their own land, nor are they illegitimate "occupiers" of their land regained as the result of having been attacked. What they gained in wars against them historically was always theirs and had been denied to them by the Arab nations that claimed them. Israel has never known a day of true peace in just over sixty years of its modern existence. In his latest book, "The Late Great State of Israel," Aaron Klein spells out why Israel is closer to destruction than anyone might imagine except for its implacable enemies. I want Israel to exist and to thrive, but I find it unsurprising that a totally Muslim region, the Middle East and throughout the Maghreb, the Islamic northern nations of Africa, would see Israel through their xenophobic lens as in invasion by the West; by European Jews who began settling there in the early 1900s, by the Jewish survivors of the Holocaust, by the host of Russian Jews granted permission to leave the former Soviet Union, and even the many Jews who felt compelled to flee Arab nations following Israel's founding. While Jews had always lived in Israel, the Arabs who lived there prior to its establishment identified themselves loosely as citizens of pre-World War One Syria. The land had known many conquerors, dating back to the Romans who renamed the nation Palestine in a vain effort to remove its Jewish history. Muslims fought many wars, including the Crusades, to extend and maintain their control over Jerusalem Their utter scorn and contempt for Israel and the Jews is found in the Koran and infuses Islam as does its core belief that all religions must bow down to Allah. Christians know the fall of the Jewish state to present-day Muslim invaders would mark the end of any opportunity to visit the birthplace and ministry of Jesus and would be taken as a sign that Christianity was vulnerable wherever it is practiced. In many towns and cities of Israel where Christians had lived for centuries, they have been forced to flee before the hostility of Muslim "neighbors." Herein is the warning that Klein issues in his book. Those who would destroy Israel are not just external, they include (1) the Arab nations surrounding it and the so-called Palestinian "refugees" laying claim to it, (2) the United Nations that has supported the Palestinians since 1950 along with its endless resolutions singling out Israel as racists, and (3) even the largely unreported aid that the U.S. has given to Fatah, the alleged Palestinian Authority with whom Israel is supposed to negotiate peace. Other than (4) Iran that has openly threatened to "wipe Israel off the map", the latest threat is (5) the Obama administration that is demanding a two-state accommodation with the Palestinians that they have always refused to accept because their goal is Israel's destruction. To put the U.S. demands that Israel stop building settlements in the disputed West Bank and other areas in perspective, consider that, according to the World Almanac, Israel is comprised of 7,849 square miles. By comparison, New Jersey is 8,721 square miles. Imagine, then, if the federal government insisted that New Jersey cede Delaware all the area from Atlantic City to the Delaware border? Internally, from its founding, Israel has been divided between its socialist and largely secular Jews, the men and women who took up Zionism as an answer to the bigotry Jews faced in Europe pre-dating the Holocaust, and the religious Jewish community who see Israel as the fulfillment of the Torah prophesy and as the center of world Judaism. This latter group has always felt the scorn of Israel's secular Jewish government. Without delving into the complexities of Israeli politics, Klein makes a strong case that Israelis in recent times have been ill-served by the secular Likud and former PM Ariel Sharon's Kadima parties. The withdrawal from southern Lebanon and the 2006 short war led by Hezbollah shattered the image of Israel's impregnable and powerful military capabilities. Israel's forced removal from Gaza of its longtime Jewish residents, its abandonment to the Palestinians, and the recent military action against Hamas simply demonstrates that the Palestinians have figured out a way to demoralize Israelis with constant rocket attacks. Giving Gaza to the Palestinians merely created a new staging area for attacks. For now I will take some small comfort that Benjamin Netanyahu is once again Israel's Prime Minister, but unless Israel is prepared to assert its right to its ancient and re-conquered land; Unless it destroys the Iranian nuclear facilities for an America too weak or unwilling to address this necessity; Unless it refuses the wrongful demands to turn over Jerusalem, its holiest sites, and other Jewish cities from their control; Israel's future may disappear in a nuclear cloud. There has been one Holocaust in my lifetime. I do not want to witness another. At stake is more than Israel's right to exist. The failure to support and protect Israel puts the entire basis and future of Western civilization at risk.
Alan Caruba is an American public relations counselor and freelance writer who is a frequent critic of environmentalism, Islam and research on global warming. In the late 1970s Caruba founded the PR firm The Caruba Organization, and in 1990, the National Anxiety Center, which identifies itself as "a clearinghouse for information about 'scare campaigns' designed to influence public policy and opinion" on such subjects as global warming, ozone depletion and DDT. |


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- Home
- Departments
- Services
- Sewer/Water/Trash
- Trash and Recycling
- Collection Stickers
The Collection Connection program uses prepaid stickers for picking up extra items outside the carts. Household items that are too bulky to be bagged, bundled or put in the trash cart such as extra trash bags, bicycles, lamps, lawn chairs, sofas, mattresses, box springs, washer, dryer, etc. must have a prepaid sticker attached to the item for collection at the curb. Items will be collected on your regular trash collection day.
Cranberry Township Customer Service Monday - Thursday, 7:30 AM - 8:30 PM Saturday, 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM Closed Memorial Day to Labor Day Sunday Closed | |
Cranberry Highlands Golf Course Call for Pro Shop hours, 724-776-7372 | |
Purchase collection stickers by mail:Print/Mail: Sticker Order Form |
Purchase Collection Stickers below using the yellow Add to Cart button
Online: Stickers will be mailed to you.
Shipping & Handling for Online Orders
Begin your online non-refundable purchase below. |
Trash Bag or small item
(1) for $1.00 or (5) small bag stickers, $5.00
Use this sticker for pickup of extra 32 gallon trash bags or for other small items weighing up to 25 pounds AND under 4 feet in length outside of your cart. These stickers are not for use with recyclables or yard waste. Wrap the sticker around the neck of the 32 gallon trash bag or attach to individual items. Use a separate sticker for each item.
Large item
(1) large item sticker, $5
Use this sticker for upholstered furniture, mattresses, and other large items. These stickers are not for use with recyclables or yard waste. Use a separate sticker for each item and attach it where the driver can easily see it. Call 724.COLLECT (724-265-5328) option 2 to schedule a pickup.
Mattress or Box Springs - Each mattress or box spring requires a $5 bag sticker for pick-up. Why must a mattress or box spring be wrapped? The issue is related to worker health & safety caused by: sanitary conditions, soiled mattress, rain-soaked or bed bugs.
Electronic devices - Pennsylvania law prohibits the recycling/disposal of certain "covered" electronic devices, including desktop and laptop computers, computer monitors, computer peripherals, and televisions. These items are not accepted by the trash hauler. (Effective January 24, 2013)
Refrigerator or large appliance
(1) $10 each
Use this sticker for pickup of washers, dryers, stoves, water heaters, trash compactors, and other items of similar weight and construction. Use this sticker for pickup of refrigerators, freezers, dehumidifiers, and air conditioners WITHOUT Freon™ or refrigerant. The Appliance sticker is not for use with recyclables or yard waste. Attach sticker to item where it can be easily seen by the driver. Use a separate sticker for each item. Call 724.COLLECT (724-265-5328) option 2 to schedule an Appliance pickup.
Special Note on Freon™ removal - refrigerators, freezers, dehumidifiers, and air conditioners contain Freon™. Federal law requires a licensed technician to remove the Freon™ or refrigerant for recycling before sending the item for disposal. PA State law requires you to remove the doors to avoid entrapping children.
Volume pickup collection
(1) $15 each
Use this sticker for collection of multiple items outside of carts. Post the sticker where it can easily be seen by the driver.
NOT for use with major appliances, bulky furniture, or other large items, each of which must be tagged individually. Typical volume pickup situations: Move in or out; attic or garage clean-up; carpet replacement/discards
This sticker cannot be used for major appliances, bulky furniture, or construction/demolition debris. The total size of all items together should not exceed 2 cubic yards -- approximately the capacity of sixteen 32-gallon trash bags. Call 724-COLLECT (724-265-5328) to schedule a pickup for multiple items
View Shopping Cart and check out... |
Collection Stickers do not expire.
Purchases are non-refundable. Stickers purchased online will be mailed to you.
If you can't determine which sticker to use, call 724-COLLECT. (724-265-5328)
Some large and heavy items fall outside the scope of normal residential waste collection and you will need to contract with our hauler or another commercial hauler to remove them. Examples of items outside the contract include televisions, riding lawn mowers, pianos, hot tubs, exterior doors and windows, garage doors, attic steps, laundry sinks, swing sets, assembled toilet tank and bowl, construction materials, and appliances containing refrigerant of any type.
Hazardous, infectious, and toxic wastes are not acceptable for household waste collection. Home Hazardous Waste Collection information


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Two 1967 Tracks From Fervor In This Week's Mad Men
This week's Mad Men episode "A Tale Of Two Cities" features two Fervor Vintage Masters tracks, each a spectacularly underground Psych Rock gem from the year 1967.
One of them is the moody, Zombies-esque Found Love, by the Fly Bi-Nights, which is available on the Fervor Records release Cult Hits of the 1960's Vol. 1
The other one is a Sunshine Pop harmony-laden tune by Leaves Of Grass, called All This Is Right. It was recorded and released in 1967, but has been out of print for some time. It is slated for a Fervor Records re-issue release later this year.
Tune in to AMC this Sunday, June 2nd for a sneak-peek of the studio treasures in Mad Men ep610.


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Billionaire philanthropist David Rockefeller, former head of Chase Manhattan Corp and patriarch of one of the most famous and influential American families, died on Monday, a family spokesman said. He was 101.
Rockefeller, who reportedly gave away nearly $2 billion in his lifetime, died in his sleep of congestive heart failure at his home in Pocantico Hills, New York, spokesman Fraser Seitel said in a statement.
One of the few remaining links to the U.S. "gilded" era of robber barons, he was the son of John D. Rockefeller Jr., who developed New York's Rockefeller Center, and was the last living grandson of oil tycoon John D. Rockefeller, founder of Standard Oil and the family dynasty. He also embodied an era when globe-trotting bank chiefs worked with the world's most powerful politicians.
During his time as head of Chase from 1969 to 1981, Rockefeller forged such a network of close relationships with governments and multinational corporations that observers said the bank had its own foreign policy.
The Rockefeller name came to symbolize unpopular U.S. banking policies in debtor countries, and Rockefeller was scorned on the left for working with Chile's Augusto Pinochet and the shah of Iran.
He also was viewed with anger on the right for pushing to open trade with China and the Soviet Union during the Cold War. The Trilateral Commission, a group Rockefeller founded in 1973 to foster relations between North America, Japan and Western Europe, came to be a regular target of the far-right and conspiracy theorists who said it was trying to create a one-world government.
Rockefeller became embroiled in an international incident when in 1979 he and long-time friend Henry Kissinger helped persuade President Jimmy Carter to admit the shah of Iran to the United States for treatment of lymphoma, helping precipitate the Iran hostage crisis.
Born in Manhattan as the youngest of six siblings, Rockefeller spent his childhood in New York City and at the family's estates, and recalled meeting such luminaries as Charles Lindbergh, Admiral Richard Byrd and Sigmund Freud.
His ties to the internationally famous continued throughout his adulthood, symbolized by his famed 100,000-card Rolodex, housed in its own room next to his office in Manhattan's Rockefeller Center.
The site of the nine-story mansion where he was born, then New York's largest residence, is now part of the Museum of Modern Art, which his mother, Abby, helped found in 1929.
Rockefeller collected beetles as a lifelong hobby and also acquired art - a Mark Rothko painting he bought in 1960 for less than $10,000 was auctioned for more than $72 million in May 2007.
His fortune, investments in real estate, share of family trusts and other holdings were estimated at $3.3 billion in March 2017 by Forbes magazine. Seitel said Rockefeller had donated nearly $2 billion in his lifetime to organizations including the Museum of Modern Art in New York and Rockefeller University.
In May 2015, he made a rare public appearance in Maine to mark his approaching 100th birthday by donating 1,000 acres (405 hectares) for preservation on exclusive Mount Desert Island.
Rockefeller established several international and philanthropic associations: the Americas Society, the weighty Trilateral Commission to promote cooperation between North America, Europe and Japan, and the New York City Partnership to help the city's poor.
Chase Manhattan grew from a $4.8 billion institution in 1946 when he joined to a bank with $76.2 billion in assets when he stepped down in April 1981. But it slipped from its standing then as No. 3 in the world and was purchased by Chemical Bank of New York in 1996. Today it is part of JPMorgan Chase & Co.
He published his autobiography, "Memoirs," in 2002 and continued going to work every day into his 90s.
He remained a lifelong member of the moderate "Rockefeller Republicans" wing of that party, including his 2006 co-founding of Republicans Who Care, to support the party's moderates.
Rockefeller earned a degree from Harvard University in 1936 and did graduate work at the London School of Economics, where he met future President John F. Kennedy and dated his sister Kathleen. He was awarded a Ph.D in economics from the University of Chicago in 1940.
From 1940 to 1941 he was secretary to New York Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia and in 1942 he enlisted in the U.S. Army, serving in military intelligence in North Africa and France. Rockefeller was awarded the French Legion of Honor.
Rockefeller's wife, Peggy, died in 1996. They had six children and 10 grandchildren.
(Writing by Patricia Zengerle; additional reporting by Laila Kearney; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Andrew Hay)


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Country: Spain
Language: Spanish
Place: Spanish speaking countries
Learn to pronounce words and expressions related to Christmas in Spanish
Christmas comes but once a year, but you can practise pronunciation in Spanish all year round on Forvo.
Check out our fantastic Christmas pronunciation guide to help you out with your Spanish over the festive season. It's our present to you!
Main photo: Noirathsi's Eye It's that time of the year... via photopin (license) Thumbnail: Joanbrebo Madrid 001 via photopin (license)
List of words and expression related to Christmas in Spanish


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Sony is getting into the virtual reality business.
The Japanese electronics and gaming giant unveiled a prototype virtual reality headset to be used in conjunction with its PlayStation 4 video game console during a Tuesday talk at the Game Developers Conference.
Shuhei Yoshida, president of Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios, showed off the slick black-and-white headset at the annual gathering of game designers. He said Sony has been working on the technology for more than three years.
The adjustable doodad is codenamed Project Morpheus and features a head-mounted display with 1080p resolution and a 90-degree field of view. Sensors built into the headset can track a wearer's head movement in concert with a PS4 camera.
"This prototype is by no means final," said Yoshida. "We will continue to work on this to improve it, but we believe it's a good representation of how PlayStation will deliver VR."
Anton Mikhailov, a senior software engineer working on Project Morpheus, said the current version of the technology must be attached to a PS4 console with a cord that's about 15 feet long, and users' virtual perspectives can be simultaneously broadcast on a television screen.
"The experience can be shared, and that's only going to allow it to spread," said Mikhailov. "I think that's going to be the key. Once people see someone else interacting in VR, they're going to want to put it on and try it next."
Mikhailov said users will be able to interact with the virtual world displayed on the headset with the gesture-detecting PlayStation Move controller, as well as the standard DualShock 4. He declined to specify when the headset would be released or how much it would cost.
Project Morpheus will be available for demonstration beginning Wednesday for conference attendees on the conference's expo floor with four games: diving cage simulator "The Deep," medieval combat game "The Castle," sci-fi dogfighter "EVE: Valkyrie" and a VR rendition of the stealthy action-adventure title "Thief."
While Sony Corp. has released other head-mounted display units, Project Morpheus marks the company's first foray into VR with PlayStation. Sony's headset is similar to the Oculus Rift, a VR device currently in development by the Irvine, Calif.-based startup Oculus VR.
Both devices use head tracking to reduce queasiness when users peek around a virtual landscape, and they look more like ski googles than the bulky gaming helmets of the 1990s that usually left users with headaches.
Associated Press


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- Table of Contents
- Foreword
- Introduction
- Texas Waterway Map
- Map Key
- East Texas Waterways
- Central Texas Waterways
- Major Waterways:
- Blanco River
- Bosque River
- Brazos River
- Colorado River
- Concho River
- Frio River
- Guadalupe River
- Lampasas River
- Lavaca River
- Leon River
- Little River
- Llano River
- Medina River
- Navidad River
- Nueces River
- Paluxy River
- Pedernales River
- San Antonio River
- San Bernard River
- San Gabriel River
- San Marcos River
- San Saba River
- Wichita River
- Seasonal and Restrictive Waterways
- Major Waterways:
- West Texas Waterways
An Analysis of Texas Waterways
A Report on the Physical Characteristics of Rivers, Streams, and Bayous in Texas
Major Waterways of East Texas
This section contains maps and an analysis of the more popular and scenic sections of rivers, streams and bayous in East Texas and short verbal descriptions of other sections of these same waterways. East Texas waterways are characterized by lush vegetation, deep and slow-moving water, low banks and meandering courses.
Angelina River
Formed by the junction of Barnhardt, Scober, and Shawnee Creeks in Rusk County, the Angelina River flows about 119 miles through Cherokee, Nacogdoches, Angelina, San Augustine, and Jasper Counties, joining the Neches River 12 miles west of Jasper. The Angelina is a meandering stream flowing through forested bottomlands. The water is of high quality and comparatively deep. Since there is usually adequate water, recreational use is feasible on the lower section almost any time of the year. Two reservoirs are located on the Angelina River - Sam Rayburn Reservoir and B. A. Steinhagen Lake. Both impoundments offer public camping and picnic facilities.
Farm-to-Market 1798 to State Highway 21
(Not mapped)
38 miles
The upper reaches of the Angelina River in Rusk and Cherokee counties, flow through scenic, heavily forested East Texas countryside. Waterflow is variable; however, during periods of run-off, a sufficient amount of water usually is available for recreational use. The best sections of the upper reaches are: 1) a 5-mile stretch from the US 84 crossing (15 miles northeast of Rusk) to SH 204 crossing (six miles west of Cushing). Data indicates that there are approximately 1000 feet of shoreline within the highway right-of-way available to the public at the US 84 crossing. A roadside park is located at SH 204 crossing and approximately one-fourth mile of shoreline may be available for public use. 2) A swampy 16-mile section from SH 204 crossing to FM 343 crossing (east of Rusk). Data indicates that there are approximately 1000 feet of shoreline on the highway right-of-way available for public use at SH 204 and FM 343 crossing. 3) A 17-mile stretch from FM 343 crossing to SH 21 crossing (seven miles east of Alto). This section passes through land belonging to lumber companies. It was found that many lumber companies allow public access to portions of their lands; however, advance permission was a prerequisite.
State Highway 21 to US Highway 59
46 miles
This 46-mile section of the Angelina River flows through portions of Cherokee, Nacogdoches and Angelina Counties. Stream flow often fluctuates along this section; however, due to the many feeder streams, the river maintains adequate water for recreational use in all but very dry periods. Very little current is evident at normal water levels. This section flows through heavily timbered bottomlands, mostly owned by large lumber companies. Many of these lands are presently open to the public. Many log and brush jams often appear along this section, which result in navigational difficulties.
Recreational use of this section is feasible between the SH 21 crossing, seven miles east of Alto, and the US 59 crossing. Additional waterway features and distance between each are as follows:
Beaver Creek - Enters on the right. (12 miles)
County road crossing - between FM 1911 and FM 225, 12 miles west of Nacogdoches, and 12 miles southeast of Alto. (2 miles)
International Paper Company land - 12 miles
southeast of Alto. About 1500 Feet of shoreline are available. (0.1 mile)
Bowman Creek - enters on the right. (13 miles)
SH 7 crossing - 12 miles southwest of Nacogdoches. A Texas Parks & Wildlife Department boat ramp is available. (6 miles)
Alazan Bayou - enters on the left. (7 miles)
US 59 crossing - 12 miles south of Nacogdoches. 600 feet of shoreline are available to the public just north of the US 59 crossing, and also 500 feet of shoreline at the crossing. (5 miles)
Sam Rayburn Reservoir to Bevelport
17.5 miles
This 17.5-mile section of the Angelina River is one of the most scenic waterways in East Texas. Located within the boundaries of Jasper County, the stream width varies from 75 to 150 feet with the water being clean and deep. The current is moderate when the dam at Sam Rayburn Reservoir is discharging. However, analysis indicates that there will usually be enough water to permit recreational activities even if no water is being released. The Angelina National Forest borders the river along the upper half of this section and portions of the shoreline are public property. Also, the river contains many sand bars which often lend themselves to camping and day use. Fishing and wildlife observation opportunities are excellent. No particular hazards were found along this section.
In addition, this section provides access to a five-mile loop of the old river channel which can only be reached where it joins the new channel (see map).
Recreational use of the section from the Spillway to Bevelport usually begins below the dam where the new channel meets the old river channel (just off FM 225 on the western end of the dam). Additional waterway features and distance between each are as follows:
Jordan's Creek - enters on the right. (2 miles)
Trout Creek - enters on the right. (3 miles)
SH 63 crossing - 10 miles northwest of Jasper, a TPWD boat ramp is available. (1 mile)
Private Camp - located just downstream from SH 63 crossing. (0.1 mile)
Boggy Creek - enters on the right. (1.5 miles)
Williams Creek - enters on the left. (7 miles)
Bevelport - Texas Parks & Wildlife Department boat ramp is located off FM 2799. (3 miles)
Waterway recreationists are able to extend float trips down this section an additional seven miles by continuing to B. A. Steinhagen Lake. The river is sluggish along this section and no current exists. Martin Dies, Jr. State Park is an additional four miles across the open lake.
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Bellaterra 400400-AB-WER Stora 31 Inch Single Vanity in Aqua Blue with White Quartz Top and Rectangle Sink
The Stora collection by Bellaterra Home features is a traditional cabinet with a modern twist. It is constructed with a solid oak top with birch veneer. On all corners, it has a full corner block for stability and additional support for the countertop. It is hand applied with multiple layers of eco-friendly stain and top coat to prevent pealing, cracking, and fading. The interior finish is consistent throughout and matches the exterior finish. This cabinet offers immaculate styling while concealing a fantastic amount of storage behind a set of doors. The interior drawer is constructed with an English dovetail and smooth full extension glide. The eye-catching 3.5" door handles enhance the simple yet elegant look this vanity offers. This collection is offered in two configurations, wall mount or freestanding, and a variety of finishes. Each cabinet is configured to work with our variety of countertops or any standard-sized tops. This vanity is available in White, Aqua blue. This elegant bathroom vanity top features a 1.3" thick Black Galaxy granite preinstalled with a white undermount cUPC certified oval ceramic sink and a matching 4 in. H. backsplash for utmost beauty and functionality. It will easily match many home interiors. The vanity top is pre-drilled with 3 holes for an 8" widespread faucet and fits directly on top of a standard vanity cabinet (sold separately). Bellaterra Home's countertops are pre-sealed and polished for added protection. All genuine stone material has its variation of veining pattern and color; every top will be slightly different.
- Wood and veneer over plywood construction, no MDF or particleboard
- Each cabinet is configured to work with our variety of countertops or any standard sized tops
- Full corner block on all corners for stability
- Hand-applied with multiple layers of eco-friendly stain and top coat to prevent pealing, cracking, and fading
- The Interior drawer is constructed with English dovetail and smooth full extension glide
- Soft-close hinges
- Eye-catching 3.5" door handles
- The Interior finish matches the exterior
- Genuine Granite, natural material
- cUPC certified white ceramic sink factory pre-installed, no assembly required
- Backsplash NOT Included
- 1.3 in. (33mm) thickness eased-edge elegant look
- Pre-drilled with 3 faucet holes for 8-in widespread faucet (faucet not included)
- 1-year manufacture defects-original owner-parts only
Vanity Specifications:
- Installation Type: Freestanding
- Dimensions: 31x22x36 Inch
- Measurement Tolerance: (+/- 1/2")
- Materials: Solid wood, birch veneer, plywood, natural stone, ceramic
- Hardware: Aqua Blue
- Top Included: Yes
- Top Material: White Quartz
- Backsplash Included: No
- Number of Faucet Holes: 3
- Number of Drawers: 1
- Number of Doors: 2
- Soft Close: Yes
- Number of Shelves: 0
- Assembly Required: Slight assembly required
- Included: Cabinet, countertop and sink
- Not Included: Faucet, mirror
Sink Specifications:
- Installation Type: Undermount
- Shape: Rectangle
- Material: Ceramic
- Color: White
- Dimensions: 16.7x11.4x7 Inch
- Faucet Center to Center: 8 Inch
- Overflow Drain: Yes
- Aqua Blue


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Enjoy the magic of the sea!
Charter a luxury motor boat with a skipper for a day and acquaint yourselves with the warmth of the sun and the deep blue of our sea, or maybe choose a sailing boat and enjoy the winds that are blowing along our Adriatic coastline.
Relax in peace guided by our professional staff, and enjoy a real Mediterranean active holiday!
Considering the fact that the boat charter offer is individual, charter for more days, weekly charter prices and other prices we send on request.
The boat images are symbolic.


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Mystery snapper Villager Jim loves brightening people's days
The mysterious snapper, known only as Villager Jim, spends his dawns and dusks out in the fields of the Peak District capturing breathtaking images like the ones in this slideshow.
Dubbed the Banksy of the photographic world, Jim – if that is his real name – has amassed a legion of followers on the social networking site Facebook where he showcases his stunning landscape and wildlife pictures.
Speaking exclusively to the Derbyshire Times, Jim said he took on a cloak of anonymity after getting too much attention for his work – in the pub!
He explained: "It all started when I published a book of photos and gave it to my local pub so that walkers and visitors could sit with their pints and look through it.
"It became hugely popular but as people read it they would return to the front cover and say 'who is this guy?' and my landlord would point at me and say 'it's him!'
"Then 20 minutes of questions from the lovely pubgoers would ensue and I found myself not able to sit and have a quiet pint!
"So I had a word with the landlord and Villager Jim was born – we have great fun telling people in the pub that nobody knows who he is.
"This is fabulous for me as I can sit next to them anonymously listening to their comments which is exquisite fun.
"Their feedback is always fantastic."
Jim said he got into photography after he moved to Foolow and bought a camera to capture the village's "utterly amazing" wildlife.
He added: "Over the last six years I've learned where more than 20 owls live in my area and every morning I go along this route to see how they all are.
"I swear many of them know me and don't fly off so fast as they used to!"
An image of Jim's own dog, a black labrador reclining on a red leather sofa, has gone viral in America and has been viewed more than five million times.
Jim, who won the BBC's Springwatch photo contest with a spectacular shot of a mother starling feeding her baby, added: "I love capturing special moments and sharing them with people – it really brightens their days."
• Find out more about Villager Jim at www.villagerjim.com and www.facebook.com/VillagerJim


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Law Offices of Donald A. Green
Consumer Trial Lawyers
Personal Injury | Employment | Bankruptcy
Back to Home
Review of Donald Green Donald Green was a pleasure to work with. He was honest, reliable, and attentive. I had a favorable outcome in my case that I attribute to his expertise and perserverance.
Donald Green was a pleasure to work with. He was honest, reliable, and attentive. I had a favorable outcome in my case that I attribute to his expertise and perserverance.
Personal injury is a broad practice area that includes any intentional or negligent act caused by a third party. Personal injury claims include things like motor vehicle accidents where one driver was not paying attention, driving recklessly or driving too fast. Other claims include dog bites, assault and battery, malpractice, premises liability, and the like.
San Diego Employment Lawyer Donald A. Green is experienced in numerous areas of employment law. This is a broad area including all aspects of employment, from wage and hour violations, to fair employment, to discrimination and wrongful termination. This is such a large area of law that there is an entire labor code devoted to it.
Replace this content with your own content. Content should be relevant, unique and written with the goal of providing the reader the type of.
Our courteous and friendly staff of law clerks, paralegals, litigation support professionals, and attorneys are dedicated and committed to serving our clients, their causes, and the justice we seek on behalf of individuals.
Mr. Green obtained his Bachelor's degree from Cornell University, and his Master's degree from Cornell's prestigious Sloan program in Health Services Administration.
Our firm is dedicated to providing aggressive representation from the beginning of your case. We anticipate and plan as though every case will proceed to trial. In that respect,


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Paris has become the top Western target for Jihad.
It can no longer be denied that France is in the throes of the global Islamic insurgency. Today, a coordinated, multifaceted attack eerily reminiscent of the 2008 Mumbai, India attack by Lashkar e Taiba, resulted in the deaths of at least 160 people.
What most people do not realize is that these attacks are but the latest in a string of attacks going back to the infamous Charlie Hebdo attack 10 months ago. Everyone remembers Charlie Hebdo, but few in America realize that there have been several small-scale Jihadi incidents across France both before and after Charlie Hebdo, all of which are indicative of a revolutionary Jihadist atmosphere developing in the country.
France has been targeted because it has been the most active nation fighting Jihad in recent years, effectively decimating Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb in Mali and carrying out air strikes against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.
It is absolutely imperative that the West stand with France with more than just symbolism. Now is not the time for candlelight vigils and peace rallies. Now is the time when NATO must take the threat from the Islamic State seriously. France is a NATO nation and has been attacked by a foreign power. That means that the North Atlantic Treaty must be invoked and activated.
It is time for the full weight and force and the North Atlantic Alliance be brought to bear to end the caliphate once and for all–no matter what it takes to do so.


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In one survey of chess players in Argentina, Campitelli and Gobet found that, indeed, practice is important. All of the players that became masters had practice at least 3,000 hours. "That was not surprising," he says. There is a theory in psychology that the more you practice, the better you'll do in areas like sports, music, and chess. "But the thing is, of the people that achieved the master level, there are people that achieved it in 3,000 hours. Other people did, like, 30,000 hours and achieved the same level. And there are even people that practiced more than 30,000 hours and didn't achieve this."Intelligence is definitely necessary for achieving mastery in chess, but one of the most critical components of current practice is having a good memory. Without a substantial knowledge of opening and endgame theory, chess players of higher ability are at a disadvantage against less able but better prepared opponents. This knowledge can only be obtained by diligent study, but having the right hardware helps. But, even in the middle game one needs a good working memory, since one needs to basically do a tree traversal with a lot of redundancy whenever one analyzes variants.
Campitelli and Gobet suggest that more intelligent children may be attracted to chess, and use their good reasoning skills to play well, but later they need to practice hard to learn all the strategies and plans that make a good chess player -- and intelligence isn't much help.
Current Directions in Psychological Science October 2011 vol. 20 no. 5 280-285
Deliberate Practice Necessary But Not Sufficient
Guillermo Campitelli, Fernand Gobet
Deliberate practice (DP) occurs when an individual intentionally repeats an activity in order to improve performance. The claim of the DP framework is that such behavior is necessary to achieve high levels of expert performance. The proponents of the framework reject evidence that suggests that other variables are also necessary to achieve high levels of expert performance, or they claim that the relationship between those variables and expert performance is mediated by DP. Therefore, the DP framework also implies that DP is sufficient to achieve high levels of expert performance. We test these claims by reviewing studies on chess expertise. We found strong evidence that abundant DP is necessary (but not sufficient) and estimated that the minimum requirement to achieve master level is 3,000 hours of DP. We also review evidence showing that other factors play a role in chess skill: general cognitive abilities, sensitive period, handedness, and season of birth.


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Ex-Lax Cough Syrup
John was a clerk in a small drugstore but he was not much of a salesman. He could never find the item the customer wanted.Bob, the owner, had about enough and warned John that the next sale he missed would be his last.
Just then a man came in coughing and he asked John for their best cough syrup. Try as he might John could not find the cough syrup. Remembering Bob's warning he sold the man a box of Ex-Lax and told him to take it all at once. The customer did as John said and then walked outside and leaned against a lamp post.
Bob had seen the whole thing and came over to ask John what had transpired.
"He wanted something for his cough but I couldn't find the cough syrup. I substituted Ex-Lax and told him to take it all at once," John explained.
"Ex-Lax won't cure a cough" Bob shouted angrily.
"Sure it will" John said, pointing at the man leaning on the lamp post. "Look at him. He's afraid to cough."


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Fresh Pea Pancakes with Smoked Salmon, Crème Fraiche & Quail Eggs
I blogged about pea pancakes in the past but this is a different recipe that I like even better. These little green giants are really delicious. You can top them with smoked salmon and sunny side-up eggs and you'll have a fine brunch dish, a miniature version with quail egg makes an impressive amuse-bouche, or simply leave them naked for a healthy snack. And when I said that for a few weeks in the spring all my food turns green, you thought that I was kidding, eh?
The other reason I'm blogging about this is because I bought a pack of 12 quail eggs that I'm desperately and shamelessly trying to unload. I hate to waste food! You saw them on the spring pizza, they show up again today… and you might meet again! If I get desperate enough I might make the smallest omelette in the world and be done with them. Who wants to eat the smallest omelette, ever?
What makes these so good is that part of the pea batter is pureed while the rest of the peas are incorporated into it which gives them great textural contrast. Of course the Scotch smoked salmon on top doesn't hurt and plays nice against the natural sweetness of the peas, and together with the creamy yolk and crème fraiche it makes a very luxurious bite. And if you happen to have caviar hanging around your refrigerator… well use it here. Or give it to me. I beg you.
Fresh Pea Pancakes with Smoked Salmon, Crème fraiche and Quail Eggs
(Pea pancakes adapted from Jean Georges Vongerichten) - (Makes about 12 small pancakes, or 20 amuse-bouche size)
Fresh pea pancakes recipe:
- 8 ounces (about 1 1/2 cup), fresh or frozen and thawed peas
- 1 egg
- 1 to 2 tablespoons of flour
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- about 2 tablespoons canola or grapeseed oil
- 1/2 pound Scotch smoked salmon
- 12 quail eggs or hen egg
- lemon
- crème fraiche
For the fresh pea pancakes with smoked salmon & quail egg:
- Bring a small pot of water to a boil and blanch them until tender, about 1 or 2 minutes. Drain, then run under cold running water until cold.
- Set 1/3 of the peas aside and puree the remaining pea in a food processor with the egg. The mixture should be smooth, if not add one or two tablespoons of water.
- Place the puree in a bowl and whisk in the flour, salt and pepper and the reserved whole peas. The mixture should have the consistency of pancake batter, adjust the amount of flour accordingly.
- Place 1 tablespoon of oil in a skillet and heat over medium-high heat and spoon the batter with a spoon to make pancakes. Don't crowd the pan too much. Cook gently, about 3 minutes per side, taking care not to color them too much.
- Place the pea pancakes on a plate and keep warm while you cook the rest of the batter.
- Keep the skillet on medium heat and add a little more oil. Break the quail eggs or hen eggs in a ramequin taking care not to break the yolk and transfer to the skillet. Season with salt and pepper and cook to sunny-side up. You can use a small pastry cutter to trim the eggs into perfect rounds or ovals.
- Top the warm pea pancakes with smoked salmon. Squeeze some lemon juice over them and top each pancake with an egg. Serve immediately with crème fraiche.


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TUESDAY, Sept. 8, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- The new coronavirus and antibodies that fight it can be in children's bodies at the same time, surprised researchers have found.
"With most viruses, when you start to detect antibodies, you won't detect the virus anymore. But with COVID-19, we're seeing both," said Dr. Burak Bahar, director of laboratory informatics at Children's National Hospital in Washington, D.C.
"This means children still have the potential to transmit the virus even if antibodies are detected," she added.
Bahar is lead author of a study that included more than 6,300 children who were tested for the new coronavirus and 215 patients who were tested for antibodies.
Of those 215 patients, 33 were tested for both the virus and antibodies. Nine had antibodies in their blood and later tested positive for the SARS-CoV-2 virus, according to findings published Sept. 3 in the Journal of Pediatrics.
The median time it took until the virus could no longer be detected was 25 days -- meaning half took longer, half needed less time.
The median time for antibodies to appear was 18 days, and the median time to reach adequate levels of neutralizing antibodies was 36 days. Neutralizing antibodies potentially protect a person from re-infection.
The researchers also found that 6- to 15-year-olds took longer to clear the virus from their bodies (median: 32 days) than patients between 16 and 22 years old (median: 18 days). Girls age 6 to 15 took longer to clear the virus than boys (median of 44 days versus 25.5).
"The takeaway here is that we can't let our guard down just because a child has antibodies or is no longer showing symptoms," Bahar said. "The continued role of good hygiene and social distancing remains critical."
The next phase of research will be to test if people with both the new coronavirus and antibodies can infect others. It's also unknown if antibodies mean a person is immune, or how long antibodies and potential protection from reinfection last, Bahar said.
More information
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more on children/teens and the coronavirus.
SOURCE: Children's National Hospital, news release, Sept. 3, 2020


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A new emphasis on testing and test preparation -- brought on by politicians, not early education experts -- is hurting the youngest students.
Christine Gerzon is the epitome of a kindergarten teacher: warm and wise, quick to get down on her knees to wipe a tear or bandage a boo-boo. She can rhapsodize for hours about a single leaf and philosophize convincingly about the pedagogical uses of papier-mache. "I teach because it's my calling," she says. "It's my life purpose."
Yet two years ago, after 38 years as an educator, she threw up her hands and retired. (Her last job was at the Harrington School in Lexington.) She couldn't stand the pressure.
Pressure? This is kindergarten, the happy land of building blocks and singalongs. But increasingly in schools across Massachusetts and the United States, little children are being asked to perform academic tasks, including test taking, that early childhood researchers agree are developmentally inappropriate, even potentially damaging. If children don't meet certain requirements, they are deemed "not proficient." Frequently, children are screened for "kindergarten readiness" even before school begins, and some are labeled inadequate before they walk through the door.
This is a troubling trend to an experienced educator like Gerzon, who knows how much a child can soak up in the right environment. After years of study and practice, she'll tell you that 5-year-olds don't learn by listening to a rote lesson, their bottoms on their chairs. They learn through experience. They learn through play. Yet there is a growing disconnect between what the research says is best for children -- a classroom free of pressure -- and what's actually going on in schools.
Take the example of a girl who was barely 5 when she entered Gerzon's classroom. She didn't know her ABCs, but one day in class she made up a song and taught it to the other children. But because of new requirements, "I had to send a letter to her parents saying that [she] is not proficient," says Gerzon. "You tell me that [she] is not proficient in language skills!" The Concord resident, who usually exudes a gentle presence, bristles. "It's destructive, even abusive. That's a pretty strong word, but what do you call it when you take a group of children and you force them to do something that they are not developmentally ready to do? What do you call that? It's abusive."
Psychologist and early childhood expert David Elkind, author of The Hurried Child and The Power of Play, echoes Gerzon. When children are required to do academics too early, he says, they get the message that they are failures. "We are sending too many children to school to learn that they are dumb," says Elkind, a professor emeritus at Tufts University. "They are not dumb. They are just not there developmentally."
* * *
It's been more than two decades since Robert Fulghum published the oft-quoted (and oft-mocked) essay "All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten." The piece describes a bucolic world of wonder, a place for cookies and afternoon naps.
That world is long gone.
Earlier this year, the nonprofit advocacy group Alliance for Childhood, based just outside Washington, D.C., issued a report titled "Crisis in the Kindergarten: Why Children Need to Play in Schools," drawing from nine new studies of public school classrooms around the country. Kindergartners in the studies spent four to six times as much of the school day being drilled in literacy and math as they did playing.
Recess has been truncated or has disappeared entirely in some schools, a double whammy, since children are stressed out by the demands and also deprived of their major stress reliever. The report cites study after study showing increasing stress, aggression, and other behavior problems, and even breakdowns.
Roz Brezenoff taught kindergarten in the Boston Public Schools for 36 years, retiring five years ago. "I have heard stories of kids having what they call psychotic breakdowns in kindergarten, kids who are distressed because they are 'kindergarten failures' because they can't read and they can't write," she says.
To be sure, many children thrive in an academic environment, and some parents seek out institutions like the Edward Brooke Charter School in Roslindale, which bills itself as "unapologetically college preparatory." Teachers there assign nightly homework in kindergarten. But many children that age are not ready for that kind of work, and all are being held to new standards.
These changes grew out of attempts to solve another problem: a disturbing gap between higher-achieving white students and minorities who were falling behind. The state's Education Reform Act of 1993 led to the establishment of the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment Tests (MCAS), given to all public school students in the state every year from Grade 3 through 8 and in Grade 10, to identify schools and districts where student performance is not improving and to hold those schools accountable by state watchdogs. As a consequence, says J.C. Considine, spokesman for the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, "some districts have developed more challenging but appropriate curricula for kindergarten. But many others have curricula, schedules, and expectations that would have been seen in first grade or beyond 10 years ago."
Around the same time, neuroscientists were discovering a period of rapid brain development between birth and age 5. These advances helped launch the "brainy baby" business, a flood of products that promised to turn tiny tots into budding geniuses. Nancy Carlsson-Paige, a professor of education at Lesley University in Cambridge, says that "parents are misled by Baby Einstein," the brand that sells books, DVDs, and flashcard "games" aimed at helping very young children get ahead. "They are misled by a marketing culture and a school culture that tells them achievement in early childhood is children sitting at tables doing work sheets."
Then came the No Child Left Behind Act of 2002, which links federal funding for schools to performance on standardized tests beginning in the third grade. Its passage "put the nail in the coffin" for the old ways, says Ed Miller, coauthor of the Alliance for Childhood study. "Faced with serious sanctions, they weren't going to say, 'OK, let them play and do all the things they used to do,' " Miller says. "Instead, we have to put them in testing boot camp well before third grade."
President Obama has repeatedly emphasized the importance of early childhood education and has committed $5 billion to early learning programs. Yet it's still unclear exactly what changes the administration will make to No Child Left Behind. "The challenge is to attune the learning experience to how children are at that point in their development, rather than trying to make them something they aren't," says Carol Copple of the National Association for the Education of Young Children, a Washington, D.C., accreditation group. "We need to make the schools ready for the kids, not make the kids ready for the schools."
* * *
Some educators are struggling to bridge the gap between best practices and the politically driven demand for accountability. Teacher Michael Kenney sits cross-legged on the floor of his cheerful classroom at the Thomas J. Kenny Elementary School in Dorchester. It's time for reading, and a teacher's aide leads some of the children to another room to read out loud to them. These youngsters aren't ready to read yet, and Kenney and principal Suzanne Federspiel have decided that a reading lesson would only frustrate them. "There is more pressure for children to be readers by the end of kindergarten, and we try to put the pressure on us, not on them," Federspiel explains.
Addressing the remaining students, Kenney pulls out a fly swatter with a hole cut in the middle. "In our classroom, this isn't a fly swatter, it's a word swatter," he says. "I want to find a word, so wham, boom, I swat it!" He whacks the word "the" on a large text mounted on an easel. The children giggle, and for the next 10 minutes, they take turns swatting words. Their glee is infectious, and their swats are precise.
Later, it's time for a writing workshop, and a little break. "If you are done with your drawing and your sentence, you get 20 minutes to play," Kenney says to resounding cheers. "But do a good job, capiche?" In unison, the children respond "Capiche!" In the housekeeping area, two girls are dressing up in hospital scrubs. A boy crawls around the room, meowing like a cat. No one bats an eye.
This is a place of creativity and joy, but it's a tenuous balance. "I try to mix the fun and the lessons," Kenney says. "But we are testing them so much that I barely have time to teach the curriculum. These are 5- and 6-year-olds, and there is so little time for them to be kids."
Ben Russell, assistant director of early childhood education for the Boston Public Schools, is struggling to find the right formula, too. "Some kids aren't ready, and I fear for those kids." Children who struggle in kindergarten are the ones who grow to hate school and who will likely continue to fall behind, he explains. "What becomes of kids who are not reading at the third-grade level?" asks Russell. "We use those numbers to create prisons. And that is a tragedy."
* * *
Leadership comes from the top down in schools, but even the most enlightened principals and other administrators are bound by state and federal requirements. "In my mind, the expectations for our kindergartners should be a little higher, but that doesn't mean the practice should be more rigid," says Valerie Gumes, principal of the Haynes Early Education Center in Roxbury. After 21 years in the field, she says, she is weary of the demands to assess, assess, assess. "I'm not opposed to standards, but the amount of time we spend doing these assessments
. . ." A pause. "It's really criminal." A sigh. "But I'm not in charge."
Anthony Colannino, principal of the MacArthur School in Waltham, objected this spring when the state began requiring schools to administer a standardized test to kindergartners whose first language isn't English. "If you gave this test to the general population, people would be beating down doors," he says. "There would be an outcry. If they gave it to my kid, I would say, 'Tell me what day you are giving it, and he will be absent.' "
In fact, Colannino has a 5-year-old son who is about to enter kindergarten in Woburn. He says that his son, like many 5-year-old boys, is spontaneous and active. And since children are now expected to sit quietly for at least part of the day in many kindergarten classes, Colannino is more than a little worried. "He is curious and asks a lot of questions, and my wife and I are concerned," he says.
What does it say when an elementary school principal fears that his own child won't thrive in kindergarten? And what is the new emphasis on academics doing to the children? The Alliance for Childhood report contains chilling statistics. In Texas, the rate at which kindergartners were held back rose by two and a half times from 1994 to 2004. And in 2007, a 6-year-old girl in Florida was arrested for having a temper tantrum in school.
And what of Christine Gerzon's former student, the girl who failed the official proficiency tests but who showed so much potential? "She's still struggling," Gerzon says sadly. (The teacher has kept in touch with the girl's family.) Students get labeled young, at a time when their ability to perform can vary widely from day to day, and it's hard to shake those labels later on. Children's impressions of school, too, are formed early, and when they feel like failures at 5, it's hard to turn that around later. The city of Boston recognized this last year when it formed a public-private partnership with United Way called Thrive in 5, an umbrella agency that is conducting a citywide effort -- starting support and play groups, distributing flyers about health and other kinds of resources, and more -- to help parents prepare their young children for school.
But these grass-roots efforts can only go so far. Early childhood experts have been publishing books, releasing reports, and testifying before Congress, with little change in public policy. Why isn't anyone listening? "It's not the educators, it's the politicians," says Russell of the Boston schools. "The schools don't make the decisions. The politicians are making the decisions to meet political needs." There is also an element of fear among educators, especially in a troubled economy. "You have to be willing to get your wrist slapped a little bit," says Russell. "If the folks who know what's right don't talk about it, we're never going to get anywhere."
And now is the time. The Obama administration has pledged billions, but some experts remain wary that Secretary of Education Arne Duncan is proposing policy that sounds like No Child Left Behind. "I think he has bought into the standards and testing model," says Miller. "What we need is a whole reassessment and change of direction."
Meanwhile, more and more children are "failing" kindergarten, according to the Alliance for Childhood report -- and missing out on the kind of early schooling that does help develop 5-year-old minds. Winifred Hagan is a former kindergarten teacher and a vice president at the Cayl Institute in Cambridge, a nonprofit that sponsors conferences for principals and fellowships for the study of early childhood education. She worries that vulnerable kids are being sent down a path to failure inside a system that was created to meet purely political goals. "Kids are spending hours of their day sitting with pencils and tracing dotted lines," she says. "And we call that education? We are kidding ourselves."
>Patti Hartigan, a former Globe reporter, blogs about education at http://TrueSlant.
2009 The New York Times Company


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(This is a repost from Thanksgiving of last year, considerably added to and modified.)
For an immigrant like me, the Thanksgiving holiday took a long time to warm up to. It seems to be like baseball or cricket or peanut butter, belonging to that class of things that one has to get adjusted to at an early age in order to really enjoy. For people who were born and grew up here, Thanksgiving is one of those holidays whose special significance one gets to appreciate as part of learning the traditions and history and culture of this country. As someone who came to the US as an adult and did not have all the fond memories associated with the childhood experience of visiting my grandparents' homes for this occasion for a big family reunion, this holiday initially left me unmoved.
But over time, I have warmed to the holiday and it now seems to me to be the best holiday of all, for reasons that have little to do with its historical roots.
The first thanksgiving was supposedly held in 1621, sometime between September 21 and November 11, as a secular feast by the newly arrived pilgrims and was based on British harvest festivals. But this feast wasn't repeated and so cannot be considered the basis of the tradition. The modern thanksgiving tradition began with Abraham Lincoln in 1863, in an effort to unite a nation divided by the Civil War, declaring the last Thursday of November as Thanksgiving Day.
Commercial considerations have also been a part of the holidays with merchants being influential in setting the date. They want it close enough to Christmas so that people associate the holiday as a kick off for the shopping orgy, but not too close or people won't have a lot of time to shop. President Franklin D. Roosevelt wanted to change Thanksgiving Day to the third Thursday in November so as to lengthen the Christmas shopping season, but that was rejected by Congress and the compromise date of the fourth Thursday in November was approved in 1941 and that has been the date since.
I personally would like to see Thanksgiving shifted a month earlier to the last Thursday or so in October, not to lengthen the shopping season, but because there is a long drought of holidays between Labor Day and Christmas, and this would fall nicely in the middle. The weather would also be better for traveling, and it would coincide nicely with a mid-term break for college students.
I mainly like the fact that the holiday has (still) managed to avoid being commercialized and merchandized to death. There are no gifts and cards associated with it. There are no ritualized ceremonies, religious or otherwise, that one has to attend. There are no decorations or dressing up. Although the holiday's roots lie in giving thanks to god at the end of the harvest season for bounties received, that thin veneer of religiosity can be easily discarded and it is now essentially a secular holiday so no one need feel excluded. The thanks that are offered are just for the good fortune of being with family and friends, and not overtly religious. Our family has traditionally celebrated it with friends, all of whom have different religious heritages but are now secular. No prayers are said. We are just thankful for the opportunity to be together.
Thanksgiving is just a time to get together with family and friends around that universal gesture of friendship, sharing food. And even the traditional menu of turkey, stuffing, potatoes, yams, cranberry sauce, and pies, is such that it is not too expensive, so most people can afford to have the standard meal for a large number of people without going into debt. And although there is much talk of anticipated gluttony, in practice this also seems like just a ritualized and familiar joke, and most people seem to eat well but not in excess. There is also no tradition of drinking too much and rowdiness.
Thanksgiving seems to symbolize a kind of quiet socializing that is a throwback to a simpler, less crass and commercial time. It remains mostly an opportunity to spend a day with those whom one is close to, sharing food, playing games, and basking in the warmth of good fellowship. How can one not like such a holiday?
The only catch with Thanksgiving is that it is immediately followed by the horror show known as the "Christmas shopping season" which involves a disgusting orgy of consumption and waste, with merchandisers and the government urging people to buy things they do not need for people who may not want them.
I sincerely hope that Thanksgiving does not also become corrupted by merchandizing the way that Christmas has. But in our the present spend-spend-spend, buy-buy-buy culture you can be sure that retailers are eyeing that holiday too and it will require great vigilance to prevent it from sliding down that particular slope.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
POST SCRIPT: The power of prayer
American Dad goes to church and his prayers are answered.


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Although a controversial new book on the "historical Jesus" is topping best-seller lists, claims made by its author are tired when it comes to New Testament scholarship, a Scripture professor says.
"There's basically not a lot new," Dr. Andre Villeneuve from Denver's St. John Vianney Theological Seminary said of Reza Aslan's recent "Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth."
"It kind of re-hashes what's been said in the last – not just 20 or 30 years – but the last 100 or 200 years about the search for 'the historical Jesus,'" he told CNA in an Aug. 6 interview.
"He creates this artificial split between the alleged Jesus of the Gospels and the Jesus of history, as if they would be radically different figures. That again is nothing new, it's been done for decades and even centuries."
Aslan's book shot to the top of best-seller lists following a roundly criticized July 26 Fox News interview in which his credibility was attacked because of his Muslim religious identity.
"The critique that he's a Muslim is really out of place," Villeneuve said. "It's not that because you're a Muslim that you can't write a book about Jesus … it's not fair to says he's trying to push the Islamic view of Jesus in the guise of scholarship."
Villeneuve pointed out that Aslan's positions on Jesus do not always correspond with the Muslim perspective – and that he in fact parts with Islamic belief by acknowledging the crucifixion of Jesus and rejecting the virgin birth.
But in that same Fox News interview, Aslan also claimed to be an expert in religious history, calling himself "a Ph.D. in the history of religions" and "a scholar of religions with a Ph.D. in the subject."
His doctorate, however, is in sociology, and while he examined the sociology of religions, his expertise – that is, the subject of his dissertation – is the jihadist movement of 20th century Islam.
Aslan is also associate professor of creative writing at University of California-Riverside, based on his master's degree in fiction. He also holds a masters of theological studies, and a bachelor's degree in religions.
"It doesn't seem like New Testament studies would be his specialty," Villeneuve stated.
Aslan portrays Jesus as the frustrated leader of a rebellion against Roman occupation of Jewish lands, and that he was nothing but a failed revolutionary and zealot.
"That puts Aslan more or less in the liberation theology camp, of seeing Jesus as someone who radically challenged the Roman occupation, and in favor of the poor, the marginalized, the dispossessed – really interested more in social justice than anything else."
Villeneuve said it's "completely fair" to think that the Romans might have perceived Jesus in such a secular way, but that there is a "big difference between how Jesus saw himself, and how the Romans perceived or understood Jesus."
"As far as Jesus' point of view goes, it's preposterous to put him in the Zealot camp."
Villeneuve noted Aslan's contention that Jesus never considered himself to be God, because "that was never heard of in ancient Judaism … he claims the idea of the divinity of the Messiah was completely foreign to Judaism in Jesus' time."
"This is false," Villeneuve explained. Among others, Daniel Boyarin, an Orthodox Jewish scholar, has noted that the idea of the Incarnation, "and even of … some plurality in the godhead, were concepts present in Second Temple Judaism."
Boyarin, he said, points to the book of Daniel and to the apocryphal book of Enoch for the presence of the idea of a divine Messiah being present in the Judaism of Jesus' time, and added that "Aslan does not refer – I'm not sure he's even aware – of these positions."
"The idea that the divine Messiah was present in Second Temple Judaism would be very important to find out and know, before you start dismissing it and saying 'divine Messiah' was a completely Greek, pagan concept."
While granting that "Zealot" is "thoroughly researched," Villeneuve said that it seems to have been researched in such a way that "he's influenced by the Jesus seminar school," which in the 1980s and 90s had proposed Jesus as nothing more than a rabbi, sage and healer.
Aslan's view is dismissive and prejudiced against the very possibility of supernatural occurrences, rejecting the miraculous "because these things just don't happen."
"Be careful of these anti-supernaturalist prejudices," Villeneuve advised, "and these revisionists really following the fad of questioning the Christian faith because it's the popular thing to do."
"There are dozens of good books written about Jesus every year, but whatever will question that will be more readily accepted."
Villeneuve offered Benedict XVI's books on Jesus of Nazareth as resources that "really answer a lot of these claims" and show that "not only in the Gospel of John, but in the Synoptics, you see a man who is definitely taking on this authority that goes way beyond that of the rabbis and scribes of his day."
The irony, he said, is that Aslan "proposes Christianity is revisionist," that the earliest Christian community, as Jews, "were completely willing to go into apostasy" and preach things "contrary to what Jesus actually believed."
"When we really try to think along those lines of what Aslan's trying to make us believe, it's really somewhat preposterous actually: that all these early martyrs and disciples were willing to die as martyrs for what, according to him, was a colossal lie, or myth."
"I would submit that Aslan's book is a fad that will pass away, and he's not the first, not the last, but the Gospels will still be around in 20 years, when everyone will have forgotten his book."
Originally published by Catholic News Agency on 10 August 2013.


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- Departments
- Health Department
- Programs & Services
- Community Health Initiatives
- Michigan Adolescent Pregnancy & Parenting Program
Michigan Adolescent Pregnancy & Parenting Program
In the United States, 3 in 10 teens will become pregnant before the age of 20. This is why the Berrien County Health Department is partnering with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services to offer the Michigan Adolescent Pregnancy and Parenting Program to provide parenting support services to teens and their families.
If you are, or know someone between the ages of 14 to 21 who is pregnant and/or a parenting mom or dad, services are available to support you in being successful, healthy and thriving.
One-on-one case management and group support services will help you have the basic needs for today, the ability to meet the demands of tomorrow and the support to reach your goals for the future. Counseling services focus on:
Family Stability
Eight out of 10 teen dads do not marry the mother of their child. Meeting the basic needs of every mom, dad and child is important in ensuring a healthy family situation. We will work together to:
- Assist you with finding safe and affordable housing
- Help you find quality child care so you can finish your schooling
- Develop and provide effective parenting skills
- Assist you with transportation needs
- Provide treatment options for alcohol and drug abuse
Continuing Education
Parenthood is the leading reason teens drop out of school and depend on welfare. Finishing high school is important and achieving your educational goals is possible. Ensuring each student has a foundation for success, MI-APPP provides individualized support and guidance in reaching personal educational goals:
- Connect with alternative education methods such as instruction at home
- Connecting with tutoring services
- Financial literacy classes and workshops
- Job and vocational training opportunities
- College preparation programs and services
Establish Meaningful Relationships With the Help of Adult Advisors
Pregnancy puts strains on relationships important to teenage mom, dad and child. Connecting with others to improve key relationships and empower young parents is invaluable.
- Connect with counseling, therapy or other support services
- Connect teens with adults in the community
- Learn how to develop and grow positive adult relationships
- Learn to approach and discuss the tough topics with parents and guardians
- Receive one-on-one mentoring services
Parent & Child Health Wellness
Providing a foundation for your healthy child is critical. We will work with you on the basics for a vibrant and healthy environment for mom, dad and child:
- Connect to affordable health care services
- Learn about health literacy
- Assist with finding pre-natal and post-natal services
- Learn about labor and delivery services
- Learn about newborn care and breast feeding
- Assist with family planning services
Available Mentorships
Pregnant and parenting teens need support, acceptance and guidance to become the caring parent they want to be. If you are a community member interested in making a difference in Berrien County, we want to hear from you. Opportunities exist for mentoring, supporting, and making a difference in the youth of our future. Contact us today.
Family matters - today, tomorrow and in the future generations to come. Visit us on Facebook.
Get Involved
Contact any of our staff for a confidential conversation.


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PATIENTS and doctors in Oxfordshire have called for new specialist services to help young people suffering from ME.
Oxfordshire ME Group for Action (Omega) claims the county's lack of help has forced more than 300 children to "put their futures on hold".
Research carried out by the group and Oxfordshire Local Involvement Network (LINk) found more that two thirds of GPs do not think services are good enough.
Omega said the doctors would also support a "multi-disciplinary team" to help youngsters cope with ME, which is also called chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS).
At present the Oxfordshire Community CFS/ME Team is only able to treat children 14 and above.
Mark Ellis, from Elton Road, Banbury, has tried to find help for his 18-year-old daughter Sophie, who has suffered from ME for the last nine years. She has been in Banbury's Horton Hospital for the past four months. Her father said even watching TV or talking on the phone can leave her exhausted.
He said: "When Sophie fell ill, although supportive, doctors simply did not have the knowledge or understanding of the illness to recognise it.
"Because it took six years for her to receive a confirmed diagnosis of ME, her doctors didn't know how to treat her and her condition became worse over time.
"For the past three years she has been severely affected and has been in hospital for a total of seven months in the last year being fed by tube to keep her alive.
"If ME had been diagnosed when she first became ill following a gastric virus nine years ago, and we had received good advice, there is no doubt that she would not have become so severely ill.
"Better education for GPs and a community service for children like Sophie are vital to prevent this happening to another child."
Omega member Patricia Wells says: "Our GPs are under great pressure and we are very grateful to those who filled in our survey.
"We are pleased that they recognise this horrible illness as a clinical entity. Many GPs are very helpful to patients with ME. They say they need better information and this is confirmed by our members who experience different levels of knowledge and understanding.
"Changes are needed to improve services for children and adults, to enable them to receive the medical support that they need."
Ian Bottomley, an assistant director with the Oxfordshire Clinical Commissioning Group, said only providing treatment for people aged 14 and over was in accordance with national guidelines.
He added: "Oxfordshire Clinical Commissioning Group is currently reviewing this and is also putting together a formal response to the Omega and LINk report. This will be delivered at the health overview and scrutiny committee meeting on February 21."
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The day after my daughter Holly was born my Canon IXUS 400 camera started giving a 'Memory card error' and refused to save anything to the compact flash card. I assumed that this meant that there was an error with the memory card so I bought a brand new one and was slightly cheesed off when the IXUS gave the same 'Memory card error' message after installing it.
A bit of googling revealed that a number of people have had this error with the Canon IXUS s3 and that the problem was solved by opening the case and removing the internal battery. The specs of the IXUS 400 are similar to that of the S3 and the chassis are practically identical, so I guessed they may well share a fair few components, and therefore problems. I was not that keen on the idea of doing this however until I discovered that Canon wanted to charge me nearly £100 to fix it (including the cost of postage).
It seems a bit cheeky asking for that amount of money to fix a problem that is effectively a design flaw, so I went for the DIY option and it seems to have worked, I have only taken about 20 photos, but as the camera would not allow any to be taken before, this is a significant improvement!
For anyone wanting to do the same here are some photos of what to look for. This one is the back of the camera with the case taken off.
And this one is of the front of the camera. The battery is under the circled bit of metal film which was stuck down and had to be peeled off to get to the battery which is mounted in a clip just underneath.
The battery popped out really easily with a small flat screwdriver. I put the battery back in, put the camera back together and the camera worked (I had to format the memory card first).
Some tips if you are going to try this:
- Have a very small flat and cross head screwdriver.
- Make a note of where the screws came from, many are different lengths.
- Remember which order the body panels and parts came off.
Don't attempt this if you are not confident in doing so, if you break your camera it is entirely your fault, and this will probably invalidate your warranty (mine had expired already). This whole experience has shaken my confidence in Canon cameras, I will be looking at alternative makes for my next purchase.


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Long Lane Honey Bee Farms is a family beekeeping business designed to encourage, assist and educate others in the wonderful experience of beekeeping. Visit Our Website at: www.honeybeesonline.com Our photos and materials cannot be used without our permission.
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
LESSON 118: How To Do A Proper Inspection www.honeybeesonline.com 217-427-2678
Hello from Long Lane Honey Bee Farms in central Illinois! We are David and Sheri Burns and today we want to thank you for visiting our blog/lesson on beekeeping.
Beekeeping is so enjoyable. We love it and it has become a passion of ours to help others start keeping bees. We need our bees for pollination of our fruits and vegetables.
Sheri says, "I don't often see bees on plants like daffodils, tulips, roses or lilies, but early plants they love include boxwood, dandelions, clover, borage and many budding and flowering trees. Mid summer plants and flowers include mint, catnip, flowering herbs, cilantro, and of course vegetables flowering in your garden. I also let some items in my garden flower that typically we eat before it flowers--like the lettuce for example, just so the bees will use some of it. Late in the year, my bees love my cosmos, sunflowers, lavender, sage, coneflowers and seedum". To read more from Sheri, check out her very interesting blog at: http://www.sheriburns.blogspot.com/
LESSON 118: How To Do A Proper Hive Inspection
When I hold advance beekeeping courses I stress to the students that I will teach them how to keep hives alive. Certainly there are problems that are beyond the beekeeper's control such as poisonings and some diseases. But an advance beekeeper is trained how to inspect, prevent and solve most colony problems.
Here's one of the slides from my advance class. I believe the reason that many new beginners do not properly inspect their hive is because they are not sure what to look for or because they lack the confidence to conduct a proper hive inspection.
A beginner is often unaware, unsure, fearful and phlegmatic about hive inspections. By phlegmatic I mean someone who takes a sluggish approach to inspecting the hive. However, we train advance beekeepers to be aware, confident, comfortable and proactive when inspecting hives.
I also show this slide and tell the class there are 6 noticeable problems found within this photo I took of a friend's hive and I show that two of these problems will cause the hive to perish in the winter months. Can you find the six problems? Click on the image to enlarge it.
I reluctantly share the photo above with you because I do not want you to become fearful and paranoid that your hive is not doing well. Bees normally do well on their own and strong colonies really do not need too much from us. However, like all living things, good management practices can go a long way to ensure proper health.
So, let me walk your through several steps of proper hive inspections:
Keep notes
Keeping good notes when inspecting your hives is essential. I have created a hive inspection sheet that really works well for us. More than just a sheet to write down what you observe, our sheet prompts you to decide what you must do next. This sheet is available FREE by clicking here or going to: http://www.honeybeesonline.com/cis.pdf
This is a .pdf file that you can download and print off as many as you need. Enjoy.
Master of the smoker
Many beekeepers fail to properly inspect their hive because they fail to keep the smoker going, and if the bees become impatient the inspection is abandoned prematurely. In our advance class we walk beekeepers through tips that keeps the smoker going. Remember to start a small fire in the bottom of the smoker and slowly add your choice of fuel. You're aiming for cool, dense smoke, not hot flames. Keep your smoker lid clean and round so that when closed it makes a good seal. Always take extra fuel in the pockets of your bee suits.
Observe as you approach the hive
As you approach the hive, observe the surroundings of the hive and the outward appearance. Has a skunk scratched the grass and front of the hive? Are the bees flying in and out in a healthy way or are there dead bees on the entrance of the bottom board.
Observe anything that is unusual
After you blow a few puffs of smoke into the entrance and under the lid, look for anything unusual. When you lift the top, be ready to spot a small hive beetle. Have your hive tool ready to kill the beetle when you spot one.
Is there fresh comb attached to your inner cover? If so, it means the bees need more frames because they are in a comb building mood and have no more room. Add the second brood box or another super.
Inspect the content of each frame
Inspect your hive every two weeks for the presence of eggs. This can be a quick inspection. But every 6 weeks, you'll want to do a complete frame by frame inspection. What do you see on each frame? Is there enough pollen, honey and nectar? What about your brood pattern? Do you see solid and healthy brood?
Start inspecting the hive by slowly removing the comb closest to the outside wall. Keep that frame outside of the hive. Now, slide the next frame into the extra space you have created and slowly lift this frame up, being careful to notice the queen. Do not let her fall off into the grass so hold each frame above the hive when looking at frames. Continue this procedure until you can note what is on each frame.
Inspect content on the bottom board or below
The bottom board can reveal what's going on above. Mites drop down onto the bottom board as well as extra wax scales, and other debris not needed above. Screen bottom boards provide a much more natural way to keep bees because in a tree, the colony's debris can fall down and away from the hive.
Inspect drone pupae
Beekeepers must become much more aggressive toward varroa destructor, the mite. By inspecting a purple eyed drone pupa, an assessment of the mite count is much more accurate. If you look at 5 drones and each one has 5 mites then that's way too many. The varroa mite prefers the drone pupa because the drones are the longest to mature in the cell, 24 days, giving the foundress mite more time to reproduce. Green Drone Comb is a natural way to trap the mites.
Look for viruses, diseases and pests
Good beekeepers who want to keep healthy colonies must become as good as a state inspector in detecting problems in the hive. While we can observe most pests and diseases some require careful lab work for an accurate diagnosis. The Beltsville Maryland bee lab will run tests on your bees for these hard to detect problems such as nosema and tracheal mites. But there is no reason to send samples unless you are certain you have a problem.
Chemical Trespassing
It is illegal for a farmer to allow chemicals to drift onto your land and into your hives. Million dollar lawsuits have been awarded for those who have suffered from chemical trespassing. More and more studies are showing that farm chemical may be harming the honey bees. In my opinion, larger chemical companies deny it, while notable researchers are afraid of the repercussion if they publish their findings. So it must be up to the local beekeeper to keep good records, video tape over spraying and report it to the EPA immediately. Call your local law enforcement at the first sign that someone has poison your bees.
Additionally, quickly collect dead bees around your hive, place them in a Ziploc bag and store them in the freezer. Keep out of sunlight or heat. Carefully note what the farmer was doing prior to your bees dying such as spraying or planting. Note the wind speed and direction for that day. Contact the EPA 1-800-858-7378 or report the incident via email to: email@example.com
While today's lesson on hive inspection barely touches the surface, hopefully it has encouraged you to do a more complete inspection. Consider signing up for our next Advance Class on Saturday July 14th, 2012 Click here for more information or go to:http://www.honeybeesonline.com/servlet/Detail?no=157
Please feel free to contact us. Phone is best. 217-427-2678 and visit us online at: www.honeybeesonline.com
David & Sheri Burns
Long Lane Honey Bee Farms
Website: www.honeybeesonline.com
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Budapest-born star Renato is a rebel, but he definitely has a very good cause: giving erotic thrills to the hottest babes in Europe! Renato loves to emulate fifties idol James Dean by indulging his love of vintage cars and rockabilly fashion, and this bad boy often poses for behind-the-scenes pics wearing his signature mirrored aviator shades. But when Renato decided to chase his own fame and become an actor, he chose not to follow in the footsteps of his hero and set out for the bright lights of Hollywood. Instead, this stud realized he'd have a lot more fun in the adult film business, much to the joy of porn aficionados worldwide! With his love of the party lifestyle and his weakness for big butts, not to mention his defined muscles and big, rock-hard cock, Renato has fit right in since his debut in 1999. He's quickly become one of Europe's most in-demand male performers, starring in hundreds of scenes and showing no signs of slowing down! So grab a bucket of popcorn and settle in to watch this giant of the adult industry take his costars east of Eden!
( Hiện chưa có phim của diễn viên này )