text:
You do not have to be a nature nerd like myself to enjoy being outside. I understand that a three-hour one-mile walk, prodding bark for hidden creatures and turning over fallen branches in search of something with six legs, is not for everyone. However, most people enjoy a stroll through the woods or even a casual walk through a city park on a nice day. Even better, step outside with someone you care about and perhaps love will step in. That's how it happened with Dan and me.
I was quite sure I had rambled on way too long on the magical world of mollusks on our first date. I was deep in explanation of my conviction that the Angel Wing clam likely started its fragile life inside floating driftwood when I realized I was likely boring the daylights out of him. Shockingly, he called me for a second date. It is hard to pinpoint the exact moment I knew Dan was my soul mate, but I knew he was special when we spent over an hour searching out all the moths and nighttime insects attracted to the dimly glowing lights of the campground bathrooms. Dan snapped photos and I gushed over the diversity and their resemblance to alien creatures for over an hour. Prior to dating me, I seriously doubt Dan would have spent so much time exploring the insect world. Although, from the beginning I knew there was an appreciation for nature on his end; I could not help but notice his abundance of wildflower pictures. Dan's appreciation of nature is usually captured through his camera lens and mine through touching and identifying.
It was time for the family reunion in Hope, NY. Hope is a little town in the southern Adirondack Mountains and some of us chose to camp versus traveling the forty minutes to the nearest hotel. I made a bold decision to invite Dan and it was on this camping trip I began to fall for him. Mother Nature made it easy by providing so many opportunities for exploration, discussion, fun, and mutual awe. He arrived with all his camping gear and about twenty pounds of trail mix. I smiled at his sweetness and laughed to myself thinking of lugging it all on our two mile hike. I watched the near thirty-year-old Dan revert into a twelve-year-old boy as he jumped over and over into the cool mountain waters from what our family calls the "big rock." He was not alone, young and old alike took turns plunging into the Great Sacandaga River.
So why does Mother Nature make a wonderful place to fall in love? Lots of reasons! You can learn about each other's families, share stories that have shaped your life, and laugh with someone you care about with the only distraction being Mother Nature. Natural distractions come randomly and perfectly. A distraction can start with something as simple as finding the letter "s" in tree bark and lead to a shared interest that lasts a lifetime. Who would have thought a random wasp sting to Dan's chest would be a welcomed conversation starter while on a walk through a state park. We now laugh over this shared memory. Not only can nature inspire and provide the perfect place for great conversation, it allows for learning to occur. The knowledge I have gained from Dan while walking, exploring, camping, or simply swinging in front of a Chautauqua Lake sunset is abundant. I now have a better understanding of the workings of electricity, computers, and what an accelerometer does in a cell phone (needless to say, Dan is a tech nerd). I like to think I have taught Dan a nature thing or two.
I fell in love with the natural world early on in life and it only builds with each new day and each new creature. It never ceases to amaze me. It is fitting that I fell in love in nature and it is a love that grows in the same way. Dan, now my husband, and I will forever enjoy the diversity, intricacies, and fun found in nature. This Valentine's Day it is my hope that you will step outside with someone you care about and enjoy a date outdoors. Share, learn, and laugh with one another while sledding, skiing, or come to the Audubon and take a walk on one of our many trails. If you have not found the one you love yet, no worries, take a walk in nature and perhaps someone special just might cross your path.
Hope Lyon is winter seasonal naturalist at Audubon and a hopeless romantic.
The Audubon Center & Sanctuary is located at 1600 Riverside Road in the town of Kiantone, one-quarter mile east of Route 62 between Jamestown, New York and Warren, Pennsylvania. For more information, call (716) 569-2345 or visit jamestownaudubon.org.


text:
NYPA Power to Assist Redevelopment of Manhattan Waterfront at Hudson River Park
January 27, 2004
WHITE PLAINS—The Trustees of the New York Power Authority (NYPA) today approved a power contract with the Hudson River Park Trust. The Trust is responsible for development and operation of Hudson River Park on Manhattan's west side shoreline. Authorization for this proposed contract will now be sent to Governor George E. Pataki for his consideration.
"By using NYPA's lower cost electricity, Hudson River Park will now shine not only brightly but economically, too, as part of Governor Pataki's commitment to revitalizing Manhattan's waterfront," said Louis P. Ciminelli, chairman, New York Power Authority. "Hudson River Park joins public facilities throughout New York City using Power Authority electricity which saves taxpayers hundreds of millions each year on their municipal electric bills."
The Hudson River Park Trust, a New York State and New York City partnership, is charged with the design, construction and operation of Hudson River Park. The Hudson River Park Trust is a public benefit corporation in the metropolitan area of New York, and is therefore eligible for Power Authority service. Hudson River Park will realize savings of about 20 to 25 percent on its annual electric costs by using Power Authority electricity as compared with market prices. The Park's electricity is currently supplied by Consolidated Edison.
"The significant savings achieved using the Power Authority's lower cost electricity will assist Hudson River Park in bringing Governor Pataki's and Mayor Bloomberg's vision of free public recreational activities and events to the local community," said Connie Fishman, president, Hudson River Park Trust.
Hudson River Park will be a 550 acre park stretching five miles along Manhattan's west side shoreline from the Battery to 59th St. The Park is being developed in seven segments. The first segment, Segment 4, in Greenwich Village, opened in spring 2003. Currently under construction in the Park is Segment 7, the northernmost section of the Park and the first to be developed in the city-owned portion of the Park. Its completion is scheduled for spring 2005.
Hudson River Park will include a wide array of active and passive recreational areas for activities such as boating/kayaking/rowing, playgrounds, wide open lawns for relaxation, sports fields, biking, golf, batting cages, dog runs, food concessions and restaurants, areas for special events and ecological learning, and much more including several "get downs" which are ramps leading down to large railed floating docks to allow the public to get closer to the water's edge. When fully completed, Hudson River Park will have 13 public park piers, a continuous waterfront esplanade, numerous places for active and passive recreation and boating, and three commercial development nodes.
With Segment 4 in Greenwich Village complete, the present Park load is about 50 kW. As the park is developed over the next several years, its electric demands are expected to grow, and upon completion, is estimated to have a load of about 500 kW. The Park will be a full requirements customer meaning that, upon approval by the Governor, NYPA will meet the existing and future full electricity requirements of Hudson River Park's public facilities and infrastructure.
Among other government customers whose essential services depend on economical NYPA electricity are the City of New York, the New York City Housing Authority, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Using NYPA electricity saves taxpayers and rate payers annual savings of hundreds of millions of dollars in municipal electric costs.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Club 2020
October 3, 2012
Vodafone created a mobile commerce platform to help expand its marketing database in Spain.
Members Only Content
This content is available to ANA Members only. Please login below or create an account.
You may already be a member. Find out if your company is already an ANA member.


text:
A child in Ghana can have a lasting effect on your life. Which child will you sponsor?
About Ghana
Since the Greenwich Meridian, or Prime Meridian, passes through Ghana, and because if its proximity to the equator, it is said that Ghana is geographically closer to the "center" of the world than any other country. But in this case, location isn't everything:
Change a life by sponsoring a child in Ghana today!
When you bring the hope of Jesus Christ to a child in Ghana, you change a life forever! Your Compassion child sponsorship of just $38 a month provides life-changing benefits, such as:
We're not asking you to change the world, but we would like you to change the world for a child in Ghana.
Please consider sponsoring a child in Ghana today. It truly is a life-changing experience for the child you choose to sponsor and for you as well! Pray before you click and ask God which child He wants to bless through you.
As you exchange letters, send photos and offer encouragement in Jesus' name, your love will bring hope to a child that will last a lifetime. Sponsor a child today! Just click on a child's photo to learn more.
Every photo shows a child who urgently needs a sponsor. Which child will you choose to sponsor?
Showing – of children
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Your tax-deductible contribution of just $38 a month connects a child living in poverty with a loving, church-based Child Sponsorship Program.
Your support provides:
When you sponsor a child, you'll receive your child's photo, personal story and a child sponsorship packet by mail in approximately 10 days.
When children find out they've been sponsored, the joy they feel is indescribable. Just knowing that someone across the globe cares means more than you can imagine. Sponsoring a child in need will profoundly change the future for your child, and will change your own life as well.
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God wants to use you to accomplish transformational redemptive work in this world. Choose your action to help release children from poverty in Jesus' name.


text:
Decoding Netflow v5 packets with PHP
Lately I have been toying with rewriting the Flowview plugin in Cacti with something that is a bit more usable. The current plugin has some major disadvantages. Namely it relies on the flow-tools package to do all the heavy lifting such as collecting flows, parsing everything, creating reports. In reality, the current plugin is really more of a viewer for flow-tools. Flow-tools itself has several major drawbacks. It doesn't support Netflow v9 or v10 (IPFIX). The last one is a major problem considering that VMWare 5.1 has moved all of its distributed switches to only outputting v10. I also have to rely on the flow-reports command to spit out a few canned reports, so its not very customizable. It also has major issues when receiving flows from routers that are in different time zones (lots of wackiness when saving the flows per hour, and attempting to use those directories for reports).
To rewrite Flowview. There will be 3 major parts. The Collector (and storage), the Parser, and the Interface. The Collector will be as small and efficient as possible to help it collect large amounts of incoming netflow packets. Spawning multiple threads will help a bit too I think. I bet my friend Greg can help me out with a large stream of Netflow packets to stress test it with. I will be storing the flows in a MySQL database (partitioned per day). As with the Syslog plugin, we have had pretty good luck with performance utilizing MariaDB 5.5 partitioned tables with large data sets. I will be directly inputting into a Memory table (again to help improve performance with the Collector), and will do some processing on those entries (via the Cacti Poller) every minute to move them into long term storage. The UI will be easy enough, and the Parser will be doing the heavy lifting of querying the database. I want to move to a queued job approach of querying for reports, so that we can get a better handle on the load that each report can put on a server.
The first thing to write is the Collector. The easiest Netflow packet to decode is v5. It has completely static length headers, flow record sizes, and data field lengths. You can take a quick glace at the format and fields over at the Cisco site.
NetFlow Export Datagram Format
Each packet you receive will first contain a header telling you a little about the included flows. Following that will be each flow record. You can have multiple flow records in a single packet. A simple loop and a few lines of code to unpack everything is all that is really needed.
Now, for anyone wanting to write their own Netflow parser in PHP, I have included some basic code below to get you started. From here you will want to expand it to do validations, possibly some logging, and decode more Netflow versions. I will show how to decode v10 (IPFIX) in my next blog post.
# We first setup our listening UDP Socket. We use the default port of 2055, but that can be changed to anything
$socket = stream_socket_server("udp://0.0.0.0:2055", $errno, $errstr, STREAM_SERVER_BIND);
if (!$socket) {
die("$errstr ($errno)");
do {
# We now wait for a packet. Standard MTU is 1500.
# I will need to check on if this needs to be moved to 9000+ for VMWare instances using Jumbo Packets.
$p = stream_socket_recvfrom($socket, 1500, 0, $peer);
# Packet Received, so we must first check if it is version 5
# This is were you would check to see if it is v9 or v10 also to decode those types of packets
$version = unpack("n", substr($p, 0, 2));
if ($version[1] == 5) {
fv5($p, $peer);
} while ($p !== false);
function fv5 ($p, $peer) {
# Packet Reference: http://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/net_mgmt/netflow_collection_engine/3-6/user/guide/format.html#wp1006108
# The headers / flowrecs in v5 packets are fixed lengths, so we set them here
$v5_header_len = 24;
$v5_flowrec_len = 48;
# We now need to take a look at the Netflow header. This will give us a nice array of named values, I don't make use of most of them in this example
$header = unpack('nversion/ncount/Nsysuptime/Nunix_secs/Nunix_nsecs/Nflow_sequence/Cengine_type/Cengine_id/nsampling_interval', substr($p, 0, 24));
# For now, we will just care about the count, as that will tell us how many flows are contained in this packet
$count = $header['count'];
# We will loop through each Netflow record here
for ($i = 0; $i < $count; $i++) {
# We need to pull the flow record out. Since every flow is 48 bytes, and the header is 24 bytes,
# its pretty simple to determine the location of each flow record.
$flowrec = substr($p, $v5_header_len + ($i * $v5_flowrec_len), $v5_flowrec_len);
# We now will unpack the flow record into an array that is more usable
# For a rundown on what each field is, check the reference URL above. They are named exactly the same
$flowdata = unpack('C4srcaddr/C4dstaddr/C4nexthop/ninput/noutput/NdPkts/NdOctets/NFirst/NLast/nsrcport/ndstport/Cblank/Ctcp_flags/Cprot/nsrc_as/ndst_as/Csrc_mask/Cdst_mask', $flowrec);
# You now have the entire netflow record in a tidy named array. From here you can manipulate it however you like.
# I personally just insert it into a Memory table in a MySQL database for later processing.
June 6, 2014
· Jimmy · 4 Comments
Posted in: Cacti, Netflow, Plugins
CactiEZ 0.7 Released
Today, the long awaited release of CactiEZ v0.7 is out. While the release took much longer than anticipated (I reworked it several times) I believe the final product turned out better because of it.
There are several key things to note about the new CD.
- OS is CentOS 6 x64 (there is no 32bit version)
- Now prompts for a few key items during the installation such as Network info, timezone, and password
- More secure out of the box than the previous builds (some linux hardening, randomized mysql passwords, etc…)
- PHP Timezone is automatically configured for the timezone entered during install
- Cacti and all plugins are now installed via RPMs from my custom repository for easy updating of Cacti
- Switched to RSyslog instead of Syslog-ng
- NTop removed
- Now includes a custom setup plugin that walks you through setting up your Cacti server (plugin installs, templates, etc…)
- Custom jquery based theme donated by an anonymous source (Thanks!)
- No upgrade path from CactiEZ v0.6 provided
It is currently available for download via torrent at CactiEZ. EDIT: I have now added a HTTP download link.
I would like to thank all the beta testers that have helped with this project. I had 500+ beta requests so congrats to those who were selected and got an early peak at it. For the 1000 other people that asked me why it took so long. Please realize that every minor change that occurred would require testing that consisted of rebuilding the RPMs (if necessary), recompiling the CD, transferring the CD, re-installing from CD, and then actually starting the testing after all that was done. All I can say is thanks to VMWare ESXi and a lot of custom scripting, I was able to stream line the process.
For anyone that appreciates the hard work that goes into a project like this, I have provided a Donations link on the CactiEZ page. I also love Amazon Gift Cards.
For support / questions, please use this thread over at cacti.net – CactiEZ Support
Update: I would like to thank everyone that has made a donation no matter how small. I shall drink a pint in your honor while I decide what to put in the next CactiEZ (snmp traps maybe?)
October 14, 2012
· Jimmy · 37 Comments
Posted in: Cacti, CactiEZ
Open Source System Management Conference 2012
For anyone interested, I will be speaking at the Open Source System Management Conference 2012 in Bolzano, Italy on May 10th, 2012. If you would like to attend, please check it out below. There is going to be a lot of great speakers and informative lectures going on.
Save the date!
Thursday, May 10th – Bolzano / Italy – 9.00 a.m.
International keynote speakers Lively discussions Shared experiences
The yearly Open Source System Management Conference goes in its 4th edition. The event over the past years has grown to one of the most important meets in Europe for
IT managers, system administrators and everyone interested in Open Source monitoring solutions like Nagios, Cacti, Shinken or Icinga. Join this free event and get in touch with international experts presenting relevant trends, new strategies, actual projects
Date and Location:
Who should attend: IT managers, system administrators
Free entry:
Overview of this year´s speakers:
Jeffrey Hammond, Principal Analyst Forrester Research (US)
****** NEWS – Find further Conference news on our Blog or go directly to the Conference´s Webpage – NEWS ******
April 20, 2012
· Jimmy · Comments Closed
Posted in: Cacti
Querying Nagios NRPE Client via PHP
I recently had the idea to write an agent for a few windows servers to execute some custom commands so I could graph the data in Cacti. I have dabbled in making my own Windows SNMP extension agents in the past (and I love SNMP) and while they work well; I really didn't want anything that complicated.
Now not being someone to re-invent the wheel unless I have to, I started looking around at a few other existing agents. A few of the requirements I had in mind were that I didn't want the communication in plain text, it needs to be somewhat secure (password or ACL), it needs to be fairly easy to install and configure custom commands, and most importantly I need to be able to easily communicate with the agent over PHP. After finding agent after agent that did 1 or 2 of my requirements, I settled on the Nagios NRPE Agent. While it does have some quirks, it does satisfy the first 3 of my requirements, so all I would have to work out is the 4th. The NRPE Agent can use SSL to communicate between the monitoring server and the agent. While it does not have the ability to require a password, it does allow me to set an ACL on the agent to specify the IP addresses allowed to communicate to it. Configuration is just editing a text config file to add my custom commands, which is really simple. It also makes it pretty easy to push any new updates to my servers.
As for the 4th requirement, communicating with the agent from PHP. I wanted to do this, so I could write some Cacti Script Server scripts, and not have to launch a new process to then query the agent. For NRPE, you normally would have to run the check_nrpe executable with the command line arguments for the command. This was messy and an extra step which would add some latency and slow down my polling. I looked around, and really couldn't find much info on the protocol NRPE uses between the client and host. I did finally manage to find a perl script that did basically what I wanted, or at least laid out the basics of the required packet for me, so I didn't have to resort to Wireshark to figure it out. The only thing required was to figure out exactly what it was doing, and then implement the same thing in PHP. The perl script was a few hundred lines of code, and had 4-5 required libraries, which was something I was going to have to do away with.
A few of the tidbits I gleamed. I first made the mistake of attempting to use fsockopen to create the SSL connection, but for SSL to work with NRPE, it seems to require the use of the ADH cipher. Just trying to do a straight up SSL2 or SSL3 connection is going to fail with an error about the cipher (check the agent log). This didn't pose much of a problem though, since PHP also has lots of nice built-in functions for dealing with SSL streams, and its really easy to change the cipher used with those functions. This also makes it easy, since I really don't have to deal with certificates or anything else you would normally need to do with SSL. The next thing is that the NRPE agent expects the packet to always be the exact same size no matter the command. We are basically going to have to pad the command with nulls to be 1024 in length, we then add all our CRC checksums and other misc headers to this. Overall the packet itself is very simplistic, and doesn't include anything really complicated to create.
Anyway, on to some code. This is the simple script I wrote to test querying the agent.
$context = stream_context_create();
$result = stream_context_set_option($context, 'ssl', 'ciphers', 'ADH');
$command = "pdm_disk_c";
$f = stream_socket_client("ssl://192.168.0.100:5666", $errno, $errstr, 60, STREAM_CLIENT_CONNECT, $context);
if ($f) {
sendcmd($command, $f);
function sendcmd($data, $f) {
for ($a = strlen($data) ; $a < 1024; $a++) {
$data .= "\x00";
$data .= "SR";
$res = pack("n", 2324);
$packet = "\x00\x02\x00\x01";
$crc = crc32($packet . "\x00\x00\x00\x00" . $res . $data);
$packet .= pack("N", $crc) . $res . $data;
fputs($f, $packet, strlen($packet));
$data = fread($f, 8192);
$data = substr($data, 8);
echo $data;
Overall it took very little code to create the communication which made me extremely pleased. It turned out to much much smaller than the perl code I was originally working with. This will ofcourse have to be modified to conform to the Cacti Script Server usage, but that is really the easy part. Once I get a few templates completed (for the normal NRPE commands) and I will post them for everyone to use.
February 18, 2012
· Jimmy · Comments Closed
Posted in: Cacti
CactiEZ v0.7 – Update
As the completion of the latest version of CactiEZ nears, I figured I would give you all a sneak peak into what is coming.
May 6, 2011
· Jimmy · 5 Comments
Posted in: Cacti, CactiEZ


text:
Will Brady: Watching from Singapore
While his teammates were stressing out about family, travel plans and the biggest competition of their lives, Will Brady was taking a safari in Singapore. While they were staring at pictures of the Bird's Nest in Beijing to take the edge off and get comfortable by envisioning themselves there, Brady was enjoying the scenery of the Far East.
Brady failed to qualify for one of the United States' two Olympic spots in modern pentathlon for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, but he was able to make the most out of the missed opportunity. He turned his disappointment into a chance to take a step back and learn from his teammates' successes and mistakes.
"It was two-fold," Brady said. "Everybody's a little bit jealous. You can't say that you're not, even if you are. But it would have been really fun, and a great experience to call yourself an Olympian and all that stuff. But at the same time it was kind of nice because you didn't have any of that pressure. Everybody is stressing out because of the Games. I didn't have a care in the world."
Brady traveled to Singapore before the Games as a training partner for Olympians Sam Sacksen and Eli Bremer. When they left to compete in Beijing, Brady just stayed. He watched the Opening Ceremony on TV in his hotel room.
Brady knew all along that his main goal was to help Sacksen and Bremer further their training for 2008, and his main goal has been to qualify for the 2012 London Olympic Games. Still, Brady couldn't help but think of what might have been in Beijing.
"It would have been nice, but it wasn't the ultimate goal," Brady said.
Brady still supported his teammates and offered them words of wisdom before they headed to the Olympic Games wishing them good luck and telling them not to let "everything get to your head'' and reminding them that they had family support. Brady kept in close touch with Sacksen via e-mail during the Games and watched his teammates compete online.
"The difference between growing up and watching the Olympics, and to actually see people you know and you live with and train with, it's a little surreal," Brady said.
By having some of his peers compete, Brady had the chance to learn from their mistakes. Some of his peers were really upset when it came to feeling pressure from family members, travel complications and taxi drivers showing up 15 minutes later than they said they would.
Brady said the biggest thing he learned was not to freak out about the "little things."
According to Brady, the toughest on-the-field competition for modern pentathletes is the World Cup, but because the Olympic Games involve so many more logistics, he believes it is the toughest challenge mentally.
"If you talk to anyone in the Olympics, mentally it's so much harder," Brady said. "You just never realize the grand scale of everything and how stressful it is. That's probably why the scores are lower. Everybody's nervous."
Brady chose to work closer with a sports psychologist at the end of last summer to relieve himself of unnecessary stress.
He also learned to keep an eye on things he doesn't think about back in the United States, including his shoes. Last summer, a few of the modern pentathletes were given a new order of shoes from Nike right before the Games, and nobody thought twice about breaking them in.
"Things that you don't think about ... they make the differences," Brady said.
Brady returned to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo., immediately following the Games. When he arrived, he found the place was empty, as none of his teammates came back.
"Basically, everybody went AWOL after the Olympics and took vacations," Brady said.
On the bright side, it allowed him to receive one-on-one training with his coaches for several weeks.
By traveling the Olympic road as an observer, Brady may have learned more than some of the Olympians themselves. He's already planning on posting a picture of the London venue in his residence.
"I definitely learned things not to do, just like mentality and just watching other people and what they do before the Games," Brady said "Just getting themselves so stressed out, and just thinking to (myself), 'Man, I'm not going to do that.' ''


text:
Recipe: Crispy Kale Bars
Combine kale chips and oats for a post-workout iron boost
Editor's Note: This is Part III in an online series of recipes from Camilla Saulsbury's Power Hungry: The Ultimate Energy Bar Cookbook.
Copious amounts of kale were sacrificed in my pursuit of a kale energy bar. On my umpteenth attempt at puréeing the leaves into gooey-green glue, inspiration struck: why not incorporate the kale in crispy kale-chip form? It only took one batch to know I had a winner. The trick to getting great bars is to make sure that the kale is super-crisp, which is a cinch so long as you dry the leaves thoroughly—I'm talking layers of clean dish towels or many turns in the salad spinner, a mere minute or two of effort, before baking. If water remains on the leaves, the kale will steam, not crisp. I don't know about you, but the prospect of steamed kale bars doesn't do it for me. But crispy, toasted seed-enhanced bars? Yes and yes!
- 1 large bunch kale, tough stems and center ribs removed, torn into bite-sized pieces
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 cup quick-cooking rolled oats
- 1/3 cup pepitas (green pumpkin seeds) or sunflower seeds
- 3 tablespoons sesame seeds
- 1 cup unsweetened whole-grain puffed cereal (e.g., puffed wheat, quinoa, or rice)
- 1/3 cup goji berries, dried cherries, or dried cranberries, coarsely chopped
- 1/3 cup natural, unsweetened nut or seed butter (e.g., almond, cashew, or sunflower)
- 1/4 cup natural cane sugar or packed organic light brown sugar
- 1/4 cup DIY Glucose Syrup (see page 2), organic light corn syrup, or brown rice syrup
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with foil or parchment paper and spray with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Preheat oven to 350°F.
3. To prepare the kale: Thoroughly wash the kale under cold water and then remove all of the excess moisture by blotting the leaves between several layers of paper towels or spinning multiple times in a salad spinner. Transfer the kale to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Drizzle the leaves with the oil, tossing to coat the leaves.
4. Bake the kale in the preheated oven for 12-17 minutes until the leaves appear paper-thin and crisp, but not browned (watch closely). Using the parchment liner, transfer the kale to a rack and cool completely, about 10 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, spread the oats, pepitas, and sesame seeds on a large rimmed baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven for 5 to 8 minutes, shaking halfway through, until golden and fragrant. Transfer to a large bowl; stir in cereal and berries.
6. Crumble the cooled kale leaves into the bowl; gently stir to combine.
7. Combine the nut or seed butter, sugar, syrup, and salt in a small saucepan. Heat over medium-low, stirring, for 4 to 5 minutes until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is bubbly. Remove from heat and stir in the almond extract.
8. Immediately pour the syrup mixture over the oats mixture, mixing with a spatula until coated.
9. Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan. Place a large piece of parchment paper, wax paper, or plastic wrap (coated with nonstick cooking spray) atop the bar mixture and use it to spread, flatten, and very firmly compact the mixture evenly in the pan. Refrigerate at least 1 hour until firmly set.
10. Using the liner, lift the mixture from the pan and transfer to a cutting board. Cut into 10 bars.
- For best results, do not use peanut butter; it will overwhelm the other flavors in the bars.
- The ratio of dry and liquid sweeteners here is essential for binding the bars—experiment at your own risk!
- The crispy kale leaves can be prepared up to 1 day ahead. Cool completely and store in an airtight container until ready to use.
- Serving size: 1 bar
- Calories: 205
- Fat: 8.5 g, (Saturated 1.4 g)
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
- Sodium: 102 mg
- Carbs: 29.3 g (Fiber 2.5 g, Sugars 15.8 g)
- Protein: 5.8 g
- Tightly wrap the bars individually in plastic wrap.
- Room temperature: 2 days
- Refrigerator: 1 week
- Freezer: 3 months in airtight container; thaw 1/2 hour
Crispy Spinach and Apricot Bars: Prepare as directed, but use 6 cups of packed baby spinach leaves in place of the kale and an equal amount of chopped dried apricots in place of the dried berries. Omit the almond extract and add 1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated orange zest instead.
This recipe was excerpted from Camilla Saulsbury's Power Hungry: The Ultimate Energy Bar Cookbook.


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Evoque Launch
October 3, 2012
For the launch of the Range Rover Evoque, an integrated campaign featuring print, TV, and digital exceeded industry benchmarks in key areas.
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Price: $
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What it is: A luxurious hand cream infused with Shea Butter and Sweet Almond Oils. Fragrance notes include: Amber Resin, Oak Bark, Blood Orange, Patchouli.
What it does: It provides instant hydration to dry, hard working hands with a fragrance that will tickle your senses.
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Suite 4A
New York City, New York 10023
United States
|Law School
|New York Law School
|Juris Doctorate
|Most recent firm
|Glancy Binkow & Goldberg, L.L.P., New York, NY
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Attorney - Leasing
USA-NY-New York City
COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE - LEASING Midtown real estate law firm is seeking a commercial leasing attorney with a minimum of 5 years of leasing experience for sophisticated and diverse practice. The id...
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The purpose of the position is to provide administrative support and assistance to the Associate General Counsels and Deputy General Counsel and other attorneys within the division on confidential mat...
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Legal - Assistant General Counsel, Strategic Transactions Team, Card Commerce & Digital -VP
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Legal - Assistant General Counsel, Strategic Transactions Team, Card Commerce & Digital -VP Duties: Assisting with the drafting and negotiation of key strategic transactions in support of any of t...
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A. Harrison Barnes is a well-known attorney throughout the United States. As a member of the Malibu community, Harrison is committed to serving the needs of Malibu residents and businesses in legal matters.


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Robert D. "Rob" Higginbotham, 33, of 420 Park Avenue, Kane, died Thursday evening, May 23, 2013 due to injuries sustained in an automobile accident in Highland Township south of Kane.
Born November 7, 1979 in Pittsburgh, he was the son of the rev. Robert W. and Ruth McDowell Higginbotham, Jr.
Rob was a drug and alcohol counselor at Abraxis near Marienville. A member of the First United Methodist Church in Kane, he enjoyed hunting and fishing, and was a coach for the Kane Area Soccer Association for those under six years old.
Surviving, in addition to his parents of Cranberry Township, are his fianc Katie Cappello of Kane; two sons, Connor W. and Robert "RJ" Higginbotham, both at home; a sister, Rebecca J. Gillam of Edwardsville, Kan.; and grandparents Robert W. and Betty Higginbotham, Sr. Several aunts and uncles survive, plus a niece and a nephew.
He was preceded in death by grandparents F. Wilson and Kathryn Jean McDowell and Delores J. Higginbotham.
The family will receive friends at the Ronald McDonald II Funeral Home, Inc. on Sunday from 2:00 until 4:00, at which time a memorial service there will be held with the rev. Douglas B. Myers, pastor of the Unionville United Methodist Church, officiating.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorial contributions may be made to the Kane Area Soccer Assn., or toward an educational trust for his sons at Northwest Savings Bank, 56 Fraley St., Kane, PA 16735.
Online condolences may be expressed at www.ronaldmcdonaldfuneralhome.com


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The Palm Beach Opera presents Gioachino Rossini's The Barber of Seville, February 22 at 7:30 p.m.
In the most beloved comic operas of all time, Rossini's flamboyant Figaro hatches a plan for Rosina to outwit the creepy, old Don Bartolo from winning her affection…and her money! A hit parade of tunes, including the popular "Figaro, Figaro, Figaro!", will have you tapping your toe, rolling in your seat and leaving the opera with a big grin on your face.
Come for a laugh out loud evening with a cast featuring a Palm Beach Opera debut by Metropolitan Opera star Rodion Pogossov ("shimmering, even voice and sharp comic timing"- New York Post) as Figaro and return of Bruno Praticò("delightfully silly"- Sun Sentinel) as tricked buffoon Don Bartolo.


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"Since I've been with the Reds in 1989, we've never had a farm system this loaded," Bowden said. "If we were the New York Yankees and had unlimited dollars, we could have traded for Colon, (Jeff) Weaver, Rolen, (Cliff) Floyd, (Kenny) Rogers and Finley and gotten them all -- and still held onto our top five prospects. That's an amazing statement."
Gunner44 (06-26-2013)
Pitt up on mariners 2-0 in the 4th and the cards get another vs the AAAstros. Not good.
I blame the offense.
You had to expect some of these starters to come back to earth. Arroyo must notably.
Reds are just not a very consistent offensive team. They had better improve soon because the Cards and Bucs aren't losing that much and the Reds could be 7 games out by next week.
remdog (06-26-2013)
Hey, at least it's a really good pitcher shutting us down today.
Wait, never mind.
Mes with a "hit." (Any good OF would have caught that ball.)
I'm sure Izturis will hit into a DP here.
As I said. GIDP.
Unbelievable how bad we look recently.
It's not a good day in Reds Country.
Izturis needs to retire. Yesterday.
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Sterling Silver Namesake Bracelet
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Crafted of fine sterling silver, our heirloom-quality jewelry serves as a lasting symbol of those you hold dear. Intended as a keepsake for both mother and child, our baby bracelet is sized to fit newborns through age 5, capturing the name of a very new arrival in a sweet vintage typewriter font.
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Daniel Eric Wiley, age 9, of Harrisburg passed away Friday, Aug. 2, 2013, in Henrietta, Texas.
He was born on Dec. 31, 2003, in Marion, to Wes Wiley and Nona Bowman. He was a student at East Side School having completed the third grade.
Daniel is survived by his mother: Nona Bowman and stepfather Kenneth Sharples of Harrisburg; father: Wes Wiley of Harrisburg; sister: Mattilyn Sharples, Harrisburg; two stepbrothers: Kenneth and Kyle Sharples; grandparents: Mary and Danny Bowman of Henrietta, Texas, and Marvin and Judy Wiley of Harrisburg; aunts and uncles: Chris Wiley of Harrisburg, Josh Wolf of Harrisburg, Ben and Mandi Wallace of Zalma, Mo., and Adam and Amanda Wallace of Perryville, Mo., and many cousins.
Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2012, at Reed Funeral Chapel. Burial will be in Rhine Cemetery. Visitation will be 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2012, at Reed Funeral Chapel.
Condolences may be sent to the family at reedfuneralchapel.com.
Location, ST | website.com


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Here's how RW members rated this race in the past (63 votes).
In short: Flat scenic half marathon but ran out of water at three water stationsIn full: I did the half marathon, normally I would have targeted a PB as it's a great, fairly flat course, but I had a bit of an off day. The race is very friendly with a nice atmosphere but it was a disgrace that the final three water stations had all run out of water - not good at all and it's just as well the hot weather didn't last for the whole race or people would have been really struggling.Date of review: September 5, 2010
In short: Stunning scenery, serious PB potenial, flawless orgaisation.In full: Never ran such a small race before (200ish) and a bit apprehensive, however everybody you spoke to was incredibly friendy.The scenery was really good - hills, sea, bit of forest. Not many people out on the course and you will run on your own in parts, but hey-ho. Superb, family atmosphere at the finish line.Real PB potential - depends on the wind on the coast, if it's calm or behind you, PB is on. if it's a headwind, maybe not. Really only two climbs (not big ones) and the biggest one is only 3 miles in so quickly forgotten.Exceptionally friendly staff. If you fancy a race in Scotland with great scenery, more distilleries in a 20 mile radius than you can shake a stick at and the chance to run your fastest ever marathon, go for this one.Date of review: September 5, 2010
In short: A shame the later water stations ran out ... Fast and flat, but exposed to the windsIn full: Overall, this was a *reasonably* well organised race - not quite as good as the organisers seems to think - that offered very good value for money. The strong head- and cross-winds for two thirds of the course made achieving a fast time a real challenge, although the course is mainly flat and in the right weather it would have excellent PB potential. The race organisation was wanting in the provision of toilets at the start of the race (I think the swans in Cooper Park pond might turn yellow over the course of the next few days ...) plus the lack of water at the final three water stations for marathon runners finishing in the second half of the field. I'm sorry that I didn't get there sooner as well, marshalls, but there's no need to be huffy when I ask when the next station that has some water is going to be! (The majority of marshalls were both encouraging and efficient, and I suppose I was the umpteenth person to ask where the water was, but ... after 20+ windy miles my forbearance gets a bit depleted.) Otherwise this was a good race - I would happily pay an extra £5 or so entry if it meant that these problems were avoided. Oh, and if someone turned the wind machine off ;-)Date of review: September 5, 2010
In short: Lovely route. 2nd year in a row I've had a PB here despite strong head winds. Will be back next year.In full: This is my local race and it seems to bring out the best in me as both times I've run it I've got a PB (3:10:07 this year). There's a few undulations and a couple of tough hills, but nothing too bad. The big problem this year was the strong head wind for the majority of the course and this definitely added a few minutes to my time. The finish in the Cooper Park in front of Elgin Cathedral is special. The anonuncer did a sterling job giving most runners a namecheck. Looking forward to next year but hoping for a less windy day.Date of review: September 5, 2010
In short: A nice friendly race in a great part of the countryIn full: Ran this for the first time this year after the Dundee race was cancelled. Really enjoyed the friendly atmosphere. Plenty of drinks station around the course - never seen so many in the second half of a race before.Date of review: November 9, 2009
In short: Great run through country lanes, villages and towns.In full: Small marathon with around 158 runners (although half and 10km later in the morning which attract more people). Good mix of club runners and generall runners although most people do finish sub 4:30.Starts in the city before going along country lanes, through old fishing villages, past Silver Sands holiday park and Lossiemouth airbase, before running through Lossiemouth itself - very popular with golfers. Around the harbour area and back onto the country lanes before returning to Elgin itself.Plenty of long stretches of flat / undulating road with a few inclines thrown in although these aren't too bad.Water stations every couple of miles with water in bottles and they don't run out!T-Shirt given out in the town hall before the race when you pick up your race number.Medal, banana and orange juice carton at the finish + tea etc in the town hall I think.Commentator generally announces your name and number and where you're from.Excellent organisation from all involved - plenty of marshalls showing you the way and water stations well manned.Only downside was no date on the t-shirt although the medal does says 2009.Well worth doing especially if you want an uncluttered run so that you can run at your own pace.Date of review: September 15, 2009
In short: A splendid race with great Scottish hospitalilyIn full: Perfect weather on a PB course. Start and finish in Elgin book-ending a flat scenic course.Enjoyed this marathon immensely and it has the imprint on how to stage a top event. The organisers prioritise the runners laying on an imaginative and varied route ranging from urban, coastal and rural. Plently of marshals at all the junctions, and they did a great job supporting the runners and managing the traffic. Water stations were regular and stocked with the handy sized bottles. Loved the mile markers counting down rather than up although the first few felt a bit daunting!Crowd support on the course was a little sparce, but their were some thar popped up regularly enroute to give that vocal cheer that makes a difference to tired runners.Running commentary from the race MC as we came down the home-straight, and a medal, t-shirt and plentiful free refreshments for all finishers.One thing that I wanted to add that distinguishes this event from most is the generosity of the organisers. A number of us from the 100 Marathon Club came to celebrate a friend's 100th marathon at Moray, and for her to be awarded £100 worth of gift vouchers by the organisers was both symbolic and touching. The people behind this event came across as the most genuine that you would like to meet, and I would love to return for another stab at this next year. Date of review: September 14, 2009
In short: A fair, friendly, well-organised marathon.Date of review: September 14, 2009
In short: Beautiful scenery, excellent organisation and low entry cost. In full: Ran this as my second ever marathon yesterday (Sun 13th September 2009). An excellent course and with an amazing number of thoroughly supportive marshals. Water stations at 3 mile intervals approx as well. The only thing that could improve this would be a technical t-shirt (and availability of XL sizes) rather than the cotton T-shirt provided but I appreciate that this would likely add to the cost.Date of review: September 14, 2009
Date of review: September 14, 2009
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Book worms
Students of Sunset Elementary visited the Kendall Young Library earlier this month to encourage reading.
Classes visited the library in a field trip for about 20 minutes and had the opportunity to check out books from the library. Library director Angie Martin-Schwarze said at the library board of trustees meeting that the trips have encouraged those students and their family members to become library card holders with 55 new cards assigned since last week.
"We're very excited about this partnership," Martin-Schwarze said. "More kids are getting into the library, staff have the chance to tell them about upcoming programs and I anticipate this will carry into the summer so more kids will be likely to come back then."
Martin-Schwarze said Linda Williams, curriculum director at Webster City schools, encouraged teachers to take the trip out to the library. Martin-Schwarze said the school is encouraging literacy amongst families by encouraging them to read together.
Martin-Schwarze also spoke about a number of upcoming events at the library. The Festival of Chocolate, scheduled for Jan. 27, is taking entries until Friday. She said that deadline may be extended based on interest.
Digital download classes at the library have seen about six to 12 people per session. The classes show how to use digital devices, such as tablets and phones, to access the library's digital services. Martin-Schwarze said 61 people have signed up for Zinio, a digital magazine service the library now offers.
The library board also reviewed their circulation policy. As of Feb. 19, items will be checked out from the library on a three-week basis, down from four weeks. However, library patrons will be able to renew items up to two times if there is no one on a waiting list for that item.
Since the library is now allowing renewal of items, Martin-Schwarze said the grace period after an item is due has been moved down to one day. The maximum fine on overdue items has been decided at six dollars. That is slightly over the fine limit to check out books at the library, which is five dollars. At five dollars or more, patrons will not be able to check out items at the library until their fines are paid. Martin-Schwarze said the library will work with patrons as the new policy comes into effect.
"We will be very forgiving as people become adjusted to this," Martin-Schwarze said.
The library board also reviewed the 2012 budget and set the budget for 2013. The library's anticipated income for this year is $728,914 and their budget is $701,656.


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Pink Family Totes
- Overview
Take our supersturdy tote along on all the fun outings of summer, packed to the brim with essential gear, toys, towels and more. There's a size for every member of the family, so everyone can pitch in.
- Kids (without handles): 19" wide x 5.5" deep x 13" high
- Medium (without handles): 24" wide x 7" deep x 15.5" high
- Large (without handles): 28" wide x 9" deep x 17" high
- Made from pure cotton canvas with a reinforced bottom and webbed handles.
- All sizes feature a roomy interior zipper pocket.
- Open tote design.
- Sold individually.
- Dimensions & Care
- Overall (without handles): 19" wide x 5.5" deep x 13" high
- Interior Pocket: 13" wide x 8.5" high
- Handles: 8.5" drop
- Overall (without handles): 24" wide x 7" deep x 15.5" high
- Interior Pocket: 14.5" wide x 11" high
- Handles: 9" drop
- Overall (without handles): 28" wide x 9" deep x 17" high
- Interior Pocket: 16" wide x 12" high
- Handles: 9" drop
- Spot clean with a damp, white cloth.
- Shipping & Return Info
This is a general shipping item.
View Our Shipping Information
Return Policy
At Pottery Barn Kids, we take great pride in the quality and craftsmanship of our products. Attention to design, materials, safety and construction is our priority. We carefully inspect your order prior to shipment; upon receipt, please inspect your purchase and notify us of any damage. We will arrange for a prompt replacement. If, within 7 days for Quick Ship upholstery and 30 days for all other products, you are dissatisfied for any reason, you may return your purchase for a refund of the merchandise value.
If your return for Merchandise Credit Cards is greater than $10,000, we will issue $10,000 in Merchandise Credit Cards to you that day, and then mail additional Merchandise Credit Card(s) for the amount in excess of $10,000 to you.
We cannot accept returns on monogrammed, personalized, special-order items, or on items damaged through normal wear and tear. We also cannot accept returns of final-sale items, which are identified by a price that ends in $0.99.
For returns of items purchased from your Pottery Barn Kids registry, we will gladly provide a refund or exchange for the merchandise within 90 days of your event or within 90 days of purchase, whichever date is later.
For assistance, please contact Customer Service at 800.993.4923
International Returns: Online returns are available only for items that were shipped to the United States. If you would like to return items that were shipped outside the US, please see International Returns and Exceptions.


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Warrior Words is a project supported by the Forest Free Press.
We have some zines to work on... you are welcome to join us.
when shall we meet?
Thursday lunchtime?
or sooner...?
we have a Stall at:
Compassionate Living Fayre '08
Sat 8th November 08. 10.30am – 5.30pm
St Augustine's Church Hall, George IV Bridge, Edinburgh
More at www.bunnyhuggers.org.uk/fayre08.php
Set up time: 9.30am – 10.30am (closes at 5.30pm, to pack up by 6.30pm)
Can you help staff it please!?!!


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How should I pack for a trek? What should I pack for a multi-day hike? What is too much? And what is too little? How am I going to carry it all? Which gear and trekking supplies should I buy in advance and which can I buy on the ground?
After receiving numerous emails, queries and comments asking about trekking gear and how to pack for treks, especially when the trek is incorporated into a longer trip, we decided to assemble our packing advice for treks, short and long.
By way of background, during the first six years of our journey we carried all that we needed in our backpacks so as to be prepared for just about any kind of climate or activity, from beach to glacier. In retrospect, we made some silly decisions in those early days. As a result, we schlepped a few bits we never used. But through experience and experimentation and after about a dozen multi-day treks across all continents, we got smart not only as to what gear to carry with us, but also what to buy locally or rent.
And we figured out how to do all this while on a budget.
We've created two pieces of content for you. The first is below and includes thorough explanations of what to bring and why. We realize it's extensive. That's why we've also created a simple one-page downloadable trekking packing checklist to help make your next packing experience smooth and easy.
Note: The following advice applies mainly to multi-day treks where your sleeping and eating arrangements are taking care of already (think guest houses, lodges, huts, tea houses, or home stays). If you are camping, then you'll need to add food, camping, and cooking gear to everything below.
Skip ahead:
- Trekking Packing Myths
- Packing for Your Trek: First Principles
- Backpacks and Bags
- Trekking Clothes, Jackets and Shoes
- Electronics and Other Trekking Gear
Trekking Packing Myths
1. You must purchase the latest and greatest trekking gear.
It's true that some trekking clothing technology is especially useful for lightness, wind-resistance, waterproofing and wicking (GoreTex, fleece, Polartec, etc., come to mind). However, we suggest focusing on the trekking basics: clothing that is comfortable, breathable, light, easily layered. You're not climbing to the peak of Mount Everest here. (If you are, that's for a future article.) For a little perspective, watching locals breeze by you in flip-flops might make all your pre-purchased fancy gear seem a little unnecessary.
So there's no need to overspend. Go for good quality, but resist the shiny bleeding-edge trekking toys. I know it's hard. Outdoor stores are dangerous shopping vortexes for us, too.
2. You need to bring EVERYTHING with you.
For every trek we've undertaken, there's been ample opportunity to rent or buy gear to supplement our trekking kit. For example, it's just not practical for us to carry around bulky waterproof pants in our backpacks when we only need them a tiny fraction of the time. Same goes for walking sticks and sleeping bags. Do your research and find out what is available on the ground and at what cost. Ask the tour company you're going with or reach out to other independent travelers who've experienced the same trek. When you land on the ground, shop around for the best price.
Before climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, we'd traveled through Bali, Malaysia, Bangladesh, Jordan and Thailand — all from the same gear in our backpacks throughout. So it was more than worth the $65 I spent in Moshi, Tanzania to rent a sleeping bag, waterproof pants, waterproof jacket, walking stick, gaiters and more to get me to the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro. Dan even rented hiking shoes for $15 which offered a little more ankle support and stability than the ones he'd been wearing. When we departed for our safari just after the Kilimanjaro trek I could just drop all that stuff off at the trekking shop and continue with my regular light backpack.
3. Real treks require camping.
This is all subjective. It's true that camping and carrying all your own gear may give you a greater sense of independence and accomplishment and allow you to dive deeper into nature. However, we take issue with the assertion that camping equals a better trekking experience. In fact, some of our most memorable treks (e.g., Annapurna Circuit, Markha Valley Trek, Svaneti, Peaks of the Balkans, Kalaw to Inle Lake in Burma, etc.) have been memorable precisely because of the local culture and human interaction dimensions surrounding our accommodation and food arrangements.
It's the combined experience of nature and people (and the human nature that responds to the surrounding environment) that we find truly soul nourishing.
Packing for Your Trek: First Principles
1. It's all about the layers.
This is true in all types of travel, long-term and short, but especially for trekking into high altitudes. Temperatures can change very drastically during the course of a day. I always prefer to have an extra layer in my bag than to go cold.
Even if the days are warm at low altitude, nights may still be chilly. On summit days you'll often need to pile on everything you have to get to the top, only to peel it off layer by layer as you descend.
2. Rest and sleeping clothes.
I learned this from the folks at Erratic Rock in Puerto Natales near Torres del Paine National Park in Chile. They called the yucky, stinky clothes you'll find yourself wearing every day until the very end your uniform. In light of this — and even if you are going minimalist — try to include an extra set of night clothes to change into at the end of the day. These clothes will be dry (quite important if you've hit snow or rain that day), comfortable and relatively clean. I usually pack an extra t-shirt, pajama pants and socks. I'll further layer other clothes on top to stay warm at night. Regardless, the layer closest to my skin is dry and relatively fresh.
Oh, the little joys while on the trekking trail.
This technique also gives your wet and stinky clothes a chance to dry and air out overnight. The next morning you can slip back into your trekking clothes — yes, your uniform — and you'll be ready to go.
3. Never skimp on sun protection.
As you advance higher in elevation, the sun becomes scary strong. So even if you tan beautifully on the beach without any sunscreen, be sure to pack ample and strong sunscreen. Carry a hat that will protect your face from the sun (think rollable foldable sun or jungle hat — we don't need to look pretty while trekking). Trekking with sunburn — head, face or hands — is miserable. And if your sunburn is bad enough, you'll almost feel flu-like. Not good for peak performance.
Also be sure to have sunglasses with quality lenses that protect your eyes. Otherwise, they too will become burned and sore.
Trekking gear: Bags and Clothes to bring on a multi-day trek
Backpacks and Bags
Small backpack: You'll be carrying all your stuff on your back up and down mountain passes so the size, fit and comfort of your pack is important. Aim to carry a pack that is big enough to hold the essentials, yet not too big that it will weigh you down. The size will depend on how many days your trek is and whether or not you will camp. Don't forget to bring a rain cover to protect your backpack in storms.
We've often repurposed our Crumpler laptop bag and rented backpacks from trekking agencies. They usually did the trick, but they were not always entirely appropriate and thus kind to our back and shoulders. This may be something you want to invest in before your trek.
Update August 2016: We upgraded our trekking backpacks in order to walk the Camino de Santiago (960 km). Here are the backpacks we're now using:
– Audrey: Deuter ACT Trail Pro 32 SL Backpack: Very light with all sorts of great functionality like a built-in rain cover, water bladder compatibility, wide waist belt for stability, and more. Still love this backpack even after walking almost 1,000 km with it on my back.
– Daniel: Osprey Packs Exos 38 Backpack: This backpack comes in several sizes, so the Large version is well-suited for tall trekkers. Light, comfortable, and durable. The main complaint about this backpack is the walking stick holder as it's a little janky.
Camera bag: If you're carrying a DSLR camera and multiple lenses consider packing a separate camera bag to protect your gear and to allow you easy access to it. We use a camera bag with a waist belt that allows the bag's weight to rest on the hips rather than on the shoulders. We can still wear a backpack or daypack on top.
Dry Sack: You never know when it's going to rain or snow, so prepare for the worst — particularly if you have gear that must remain dry. We carry a dry sack with us in order to protect our gear against freak storms or inadvertent submersions while fording rivers.
Trekking Clothes, Jackets and Shoes
For a seven day trek we each carry:
- 1 pair of trekking pants: We're both been using Clothing Arts Travel Pants (his and hers) as our go-to trekking pants these last few years. We find the additional secure pockets useful on treks for keeping phones, money, tissues and other things handy.
- Thermal underwear (top/bottom): I love my silk long johns as they are warm, comfy and take up almost no room at all. Dan is still keen on his Patagonia zipper top and bottoms that he's been using for a decade.
- 3 short-sleeved t-shirts: Preferably quick-dry or regular cotton.
- 1 long-sleeved travel/trekking shirt (his and hers)
- :Pajama/sleeping pants: I find that cotton yoga pants work quite well.
- Underwear: However many pairs that you're comfortable with carrying. Recommended his and hers
- 3 pairs of socks: I love SmartWool hiking socks as my first pairs lasted me almost seven years of heavy usage. If you prefer a thinner sock check out their ultra-light line.
If you are going on a shorter trek then you can cut back, but if your trek is longer you can still carry the same amount of clothes or even less. You'll just need to "recycle" them more or find a way to wash them along the way. By recycle, I mean turn things inside-out, air them out, wash them. Whatever the best mechanism you have available to give it longer life and whatever your tolerance level might be. The most important thing is not whether you stink (there's a good chance you just might), but that you are dry and comfortable.
As mentioned above, my approach is to carry and maintain separate trekking and sleeping (or relaxing at night) clothes. To be on the safe side to protect against things getting wet, put your sleeping clothes and whatever else you aren't wearing at the time in Ziploc or another kind of plastic bag.
Outerwear (jackets and waterproof pants)
I always prefer to have the option to remove layers than to not have enough to put on when I'm beginning to chill as I head over a mountain pass or through a storm.
For jackets, we each usually bring a fleece jacket, thin windbreaker and waterproof outer jacket. We used to borrow or rent waterproof pants (and sometimes jackets) from a local trekking agency, but most recently we picked up a pair of light pull on biking waterproof/water resistant pants that fold up into a small bag, but keep you quite dry when the clouds open up.
Hiking Shoes: Shoes may be the most important thing you bring with you so if you invest in one thing in advance, invest in a solid comfortable pair of hiking shoes. And break them in. Your shoes can literally make or break a trip. Ask in advance whether you need mid- or high-cut hiking shoes for ankle support as this may influence your purchasing decision. We don't find ourselves often needing high-cut boots. However, if your ankles are weak or susceptible to turns and sprains, more support is better than less.
We wore Vasque Scree Low Ultradry Hiking Shoes for over a year and really like them not only because they are supremely comfortable shoes, but also because they are waterproof and quick drying (which we tested hopping across and into streams on our Markha Valley Trek in Ladakh). Vasque stopped making these shoes for women last year so I'm now using the Mantra GTX Hiking Shoes.
Flip flops or river shoes: At the end of a long day of walking you may want to take off your hiking shoes and give your feet a rest. But you'll still need something on your feet to go to and from the outhouse or nearest bush. That's where flip flops or river shoes worn with socks (yes, ignore the fashion police) are perfect. Outside of these situations, you may find river sandals either useful or required for crossing or fording rivers. Depending on the bottom surface of the river and the depth, we've also just managed in bare feet or with our waterproof hiking boots, given some time to dry.
Other Trekking Gear
Headlamp: Lights the way and keeps your hands free. If you're staying with families in guest houses or home stays, you may find they are without electricity at night or in the bathroom/outhouse, a most unfortunate place to trip in the dark. If you're camping, headlamps are of course absolutely essential.
Quick-Drying Travel Towel: Always good to start and end your day by washing your hands and face. Don't expect hot showers on treks, nor running water of any kind. But on a few occasions we've been able to get a couple of bucket baths that were really, really nice.
Silk sleep sack: Arguably non-essential, but nice to have. Whether staying in home stays with provided bedding or sleeping in a rented sleeping bag, you sometimes wonder when the last time anything was properly laundered. And you may also wonder about bed bugs and other critters. That's where a sleep sack with a pillow wrap comes in to provide a clean layer between you and everything else. Prophylactic!
Note: We do not carry a sleeping bag with us usually. If we need one for a trek or camping, we try to rent one locally.
Reusable water bottle: We carry a reusable liter water bottle on us and refill along the way. A CamelBak type water bladder in the backpack also works really well. Even if the trek has bottled water to sell, resist the urge to buy bottled water, as plastic bottle waste is an enormous problem at elevation and in villages around the world.
Water Purification: Some treks will provide you with clean, boiled water as part of the service (e.g., Kilimanjaro, Markha Valley). Sometimes there will be a program of UV (ultraviolet) purified or pass-filter cleaned water services in villages where you can refill your bottle with clean water for a small fee. Hop on it, maybe even pay a little extra. It's worth it to you, the village, and the environment.
On other treks it's up to you to somehow purify or clean the water you source from mountain streams or village taps. We suggest carrying a combination of a SteriPEN and sterilization tablets or drops. The SteriPEN uses ultraviolet (UV) light and technology to purify the water which does not affect the taste. The sterilization tablets or drops may make the water taste a little funny, but it won't make you sick. We find water sterilization drops to be a little easier to abide and stomach than sterilization pills.
Sunscreen, hat and sunglasses: Bring the highest SPF sunscreen you can find and wear a hat at all times. The sun's rays are exceptionally powerful at altitude and you'll find yourself especially exposed when there isn't a cloud in the sky.
Moisturizing skin cream and lip balm (with SPF): Creams and moisturizers may sound extraneous, but they can make a difference. Many mountain treks involve high desert where you will not only be exposed to lots of sun, but also arid conditions. Your skin and lips will dry and crack to discomfort if you don't keep them moist. Treat them nicely: moisturize! And be sure to carry only a tiny lightweight container, not the original 32 oz. tube!
Walking stick: Highly recommended on most treks, especially for downhill sections. If you don't bring a walking stick with you, then keep your eye out for a tree branch or limb that can be carved for the purpose. Two walking sticks or one, you ask? We'll usually share one walking stick set between the two of us so each of us uses one stick.
Snacks: Even if your meals are provided to you on a trek, it's sometimes nice to have a little something to nibble on between stops. We usually bring a small stash combination of Snickers bars, granola/power bars, a jar of peanut butter and crackers. You'll want a little bit of both salty and sweet foods.
Hand sanitizer gel and soap: One of the best ways to avoid becoming ill: wash your hands thoroughly and often. If you feel a little obsessive compulsive with the hand cleaning, that's a good thing.
Toilet paper: One roll, used sparingly. Better to be self-sufficient here. No explanation needed. I often also keep a pack of tissues in my pocket as well for such emergencies.
Medicines: You may be miles or days away from any doctor so be sure to have some basic medicines with you in case you (or others) fall ill. On our treks, we've picked up sinus infections and helped others who have picked up the wrong kind of gut bacteria. Having the basics with us allowed us to deal with medical issues immediately and to keep going.
We recommend packing: Band-Aids, aspirin/Tylenol, Cipro (or other stomach antibiotic), Amoxicillin (or other basic antibiotic to treat sinus infections), rehydration packets, anti-flu powder (a packet that dissolves in water that breaks fevers may work better than a pill if someone has been throwing up), duct tape (magic in preventing and managing blisters) and Compeed (magic when you already have blisters). For a full list of travel medicines and how to use them, check out these travel health tips.
Note: You can easily stock up on medicines at pharmacies in many developing countries. Basic medicines such as the ones listed here and in the article above will likely be astonishingly cheap and will often not require a prescription.
Earplugs: A good night's sleep on the trekking trail is supremely important for your condition. And although you may be sleeping in the middle of nowhere, there are still noises from roosters, howler monkeys, birds, lions, and not least other trekkers that will all conspire to keep you up. That's where earplugs come to the rescue and help shut it all down to silence.
Leatherman: A multi-tool device with a knife, bottle opener, screwdriver, and more comes in quite handy when on the trail. We use ours all the time for cutting cheese, vegetables, bread or other food items for picnic stops.
Batteries, memory cards: It's usually better to assume that you won't find electricity along your trekking route. If you do, consider it gravy. Be sure to ask your trekking guide or agency, or other route-experienced travelers (either in forums or once you are on the ground). Ask them all once, then again for good measure. Bring extra memory cards for your camera so you have ample space to snap away or record video.
This means you should try to bring extra batteries for your camera, headlamp, and anything else that's battery-powered. If you're carrying your smartphone with you consider bringing an extra battery pack and putting your phone on Airplane Mode to preserve battery life. If there's electricity along your trek and you'd like to recharge, by all means bring rechargers. We do. But it's just something else to pack — and something you must prioritize when the final bag stuff begins just prior to setting off.
What did we miss? What are your go-to items for trekking?


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Building people-to-people relationships through sports and culture, 20 teenaged basketball players and four coaches from across the United States traveled to Moscow and St. Petersburg July 7-19 under the U.S.-Russia Bilateral Presidential Commission (BPC). From training with David Blatt, head coach of the Russian National Mens Basketball team to sharing jokes with Russian Minister of Sport, Tourism, and Youth Policy Vitaly Mutko, these American athletes -- and sports diplomats -- experienced Russia through the prism of basketball and culture.
They even had the opportunity to catch up with Russian athletes who had been on a similar exchange in the United States at a reception hosted by U.S. Ambassador to Russia John Beyrle. During the BPC's inaugural sports exchange in May 2010, young Russian basketball players visited the Washington, D.C. area, where they played basketball with President Obama.
They played basketball with the Russian National Under-16 team as well as with local clubs in both Moscow and St. Petersburg. In addition, they spent five days at the Trinta basketball camp training with some of the top coaches and youth basketball players in the country.
Basketball was a key element of the exchange, but so was the opportunity to experience Russian culture. The youth explored iconic Red Square, took a boat ride on the Moscow River, visited local churches and monasteries, and perused the treasures of the Hermitage and the luxurious Peterhof estate, filling their stomachs with borsch, blini, and pelmeni along the way.
Most importantly, the young athletes' shared love of the sport that brought them together with their Russian peers helped bridge language barriers and created lasting.
What is clear is that each and every one of these young sports ambassadors will have a better understanding of the richness of Russian culture and the camaraderie of its people. As they left, many were already talking about coming back to Russia in the future, sending Facebook messages to their new Russian friends.
This exchange was the fifth of its kind conducted under the U.S.-Russia Bilateral Presidential Commission (BPC)'s Education, Culture, Sports, and Media Working Group. Under the leadership of Presidents Barack Obama and Dmitri Medvedev, and coordinated by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, the BPC is dedicated to identifying areas of cooperation and joint projects that strengthen strategic stability, promote international security, and facilitate connections between the Russian and American people.


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Welcome everyone to a month ending version of TeaDay. Today, everyone has 2 votes!
Today, although a few days late, let us look at your favorite tea for the month of September, with a twist. What is the country of origin of this tea? The bonus question today will be what type of tea was it? Any details you would like to share are welcome as well.
I am looking forward to sharing TeaDay with everyone. Bottoms up.


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Q. David Bowers: The following narrative, with minor editing, is from my "Silver Dollars & Trade Dollars of the United States: A Complete Encyclopedia" (Wolfeboro, NH: Bowers and Merena Galleries, Inc., 1993).
Numismatic Information
Hoard coins: Although the San Francisco Mint served as a storage depot for its own coins, many bags of Uncirculated 1904-S dollars were shipped to the Treasury Building in Washington, D.C., and from time to time in the 1930s and 1940s an occasional bag would be paid out from there. In 1941-1942 there was a particularly large release, which would serve to augment dealers' stocks for a long time.
Although in later times the 1904-S would be recognized as one of the rarer issues, a perusal of advertisements of the 1950s will reveal that most dealers had a supply of Mint State 1904-S dollars. However, John Skubis, who was one of the most active dealers in bulk S-Mint dollars in the 1950s, recalled that the only S-Mint Morgan dollars he did not handle by the bagful were 1892-S, 1893-S, and 1904-S.
One or more bags of 1904-S dollars came out through Los Angeles banks in the early 1950s. Bebee's, then located in Omaha (having recently moved from Chicago), bought some from this hoard. I have found no accounts of any being in the 1962-1964 Treasury release. None was in the Redfield estate (1976).
Circulated grades: In worn grades the 1904-S is plentiful in lower grades through Fine or so. EF and AU pieces are few and far between.
Mint State grades: In the years before 1940, the 1904-S dollar was a great rarity in Uncirculated condition. Even the largest collections were apt to lack a specimen. After the early 1940s, the situation changed, and, as noted above, specimens were readily available on the market.
The 1904-S is moderately scarce now in the 1990s. Most specimens seen today are in lower grade ranges from MS-60 to 63. MS-64 coins are scarce, and MS-65 coins are rare. I suggest that just 5,000 to 10,000 MS-60 to 62 coins survive, 4,000 to 8,000 MS-63s, 1,500 to 3,000 MS-64s, and only 200 to 400 MS-65 or better.
Most 1904-S dollars are lightly struck, especially at the center of the obverse. Lustre ranges from "greasy" to lightly frosty. Some have extensive abrasions, especially on the obverse.
Prooflike coins: While semi-prooflike coins are relatively easy to find, pieces with full prooflike surface are rare. Probably only a very few hundred exist. Most have extensive bagmarks and unsatisfactory contrast. DMPL coins are exceedingly rare. The Barbara Goldfreed DMPL sold in Auction '87, Lot 1301, may be the finest known.
Circulation strikes:
1. C-4 reverse hub over C-3. Large S: Breen-5703, VAM-3, 4. Believed to be scarcer than the following.
Circulation strikes: Large S. Breen-5702, VAM 1, 2, 5, 6. The usually seen variety.
Dies prepared: Obverse: Unknown; Reverse: Unknown.
Circulation strike mintage: 2,304,000; Delivery figures by month: January: 1,252,000; February: 216,000; March: none; April: 576,000; May: 260,000;June-December: none.
Estimated quantity melted: Totally, 2,000,000 or so, but probably most in later (after 1918 Pittman Act) melts.
Availability of prooflike coins: Very rare, but often with low contrast. Serni-prooflike coins are common. DMPL coins are exceedingly rare.
Characteristics of striking: Average strike and lustre.
Known hoards of Mint State coins: Bags were paid out of the San Francisco Mint over a period of years, possibly ending in the early 1950s. In the early 1950s one or more bags were distributed through banks in Los Angeles.
The 1904-S in Mint State is an excellent example of a coin that was readily available on the market in the 1950s, but which was not represented in the Treasury releases of 1962-1964, and is now considered rare.
Jack Lee - Arno Collection - Heritage 1/2009:5071, $46,000 - IPS Collection
Anne Kate Collection. Part II - Bowers & Merena 8/2006:2287, $43,700 - Coronet Collection - PFM Morgan Basic Set


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GeoScienceWorld (GSW) serves as a comprehensive resource for research and communications in the geological and earth sciences. It is built on a core database aggregation of peer-reviewed journals indexed, linked, and is inter-operable with GeoRef. The organization gives global researchers a single point of access to 47 full-text scholarly journals plus specialized searching capabilities and links to millions of relevant resources hosted elsewhere on the Web.
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