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Anyone hiking or four-wheeling this summer in the backcountry, especially around Vallecito Reservoir, is asked to keep an eye out for any signs of a boy who went missing last November.
Dylan Redwine had a black backpack, black shirt, black shorts, black Air Jordan shoes, a Duke Blue Devils ball cap and an older-model Verizon flip phone, said Denise Hess, a family friend who has helped organize several community searches.
She asked outdoor enthusiasts to be alert for pieces of clothing or anything that appears out of the ordinary. She also asked pet owners to be aware if their dog is sniffing at something unusual or finds a piece of clothing.
If people find something that appears out of place, they should avoid disturbing the site and notify the La Plata County Sheriff's Office, spokesman Dan Bender said Thursday.
"We've been doing searches on almost a weekly basis, particularly after the snow melted off, and we'll continue to do that in the foreseeable future," he said.
Dylan, who now would be 14, was reported missing Nov. 19. He was staying with his father, Mark Redwine, who lives north of the reservoir.
The search for Dylan has drawn national attention, including a two-part episode on the "Dr. Phil" show in which the father and mother, Elaine Redwine, accused each other of being involved in his disappearance.
Elaine Redwine lives in Colorado Springs. Dylan was visiting his father as part of a court-ordered visitation during the Thanksgiving holiday.
"We in our hearts believe he's still out there somewhere," Hess said, "but we have to keep covering all of our bases."


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Posts tagged 'Buckingham Street'
Historic photos
More on pictures today. I've just been looking at PictureAustralia, an initiative of the National Library of Australia and others. PictureAustralia has been in existence for more than 10 years and is still growing as a source of images of "all aspects of Australiana".
When possible I like to add photos to my family history – photos of people when possible, but also photos of buildings, graves, schools – whatever is relevant and will add interest. Relatives often have acccess to photos that I do not, but I like to look at archives and website collections of old photographs as well.
In the past, one of my favourite sources of such photos has been ArchivePix, the City of Sydney Archives digital photograph bank. This can be found under the "Image Galleries" link (under "History & Archives") on the City of Sydney council website.
Today I searched PictureAustralia for "21 Buckingham Street" – where ancestors lived 130 years ago. What I found was a photo of terrace houses at 21-25 Great Buckingham Street, Redfern. The "Rights" published on the website advise that the photo can be saved or printed for private research, but permission must be sought if you wish to use it for other purposes. What is interesting is that the photo comes from the City of Sydney Archives, implying that PictureAustralia might be the gateway now for photos from that collection too.
Even individuals may now contribute photos via Flickr to PictureAustralia, allowing individuals to share &/or sell copies of their photos, or perhaps have theose photos "preserved for perpetuity" by picture curators.
An Advanced Search allows users "exact phrase" searching or to select the year or place of interest, or even to select a particular contributor. Looking at the list of Contributors suggests other possibilities to search – including photos from New Zealand.
Not only places but images of people can be found too: A photo entitled 'BATTLER FROM DOWN UNDER MEETS "THE CHAMP" ' is described "Shows Sergeant Graeme Etherington, amateur middleweight boxer from Sydney, squaring off with Jack Dempsey" – interesting!

subset: commoncrawl


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Jeremy Campbell becomes first Paralympic athlete to throw 60 meters
Highlighted by the London 2012 Paralympic Games, called the greatest Games ever by International Paralympic Committee President Sir Philip Craven, 2012 was a thrilling year for the Paralympic Movement in the United States and around the globe. Records were broken and legacies were made. From Dec. 20-31, USParalympics.org will unveil the Top 12 moments of 2012 for U.S. Paralympics in chronological order.
On April 28 at the Triton Invitational in San Diego, Jeremy Campbell became the first Paralympic athlete to throw a discus over 60 meters when he threw 60.19, a new world record. That impressive feat was no fluke for Campbell as he set the world record three more times in 2012.
He set the current world record of 63.46 at the Endeavor Games in Edmond, Okla., on June 10. On that day at the University of Central Oklahoma, Campbell actually broke the world record twice – a record that he set less than a month ago at the BT Paralympic World Cup in Manchester, England – first with a throw of 62.3 and second with a throw of 63.45.
"Once I saw that the distance of my first throw was longer than I thought, I knew it was going to be a good day," said Campbell, a native of Perryton, Texas. "Breaking the record not only validates how hard I've been working, but also motivates me to keep pushing. My throw isn't perfect – I can go farther."
At the London 2012 Paralympic Games, Campbell narrowly missed setting the world record again, but took the gold medal with a Paralympic-record throw of 60.05.
"It wasn't my best day. It wasn't bad, as I went 50-plus, but I was expecting to go a lot bigger," Campbell told the International Paralympic Committee. His top rival, Dan Greaves of Great Britain, won the silver medal.
"Eighty-thousand people rooting for the guy that's not you can become quite hostile. That definitely played a role. I just don't know. I think I peeked a little early in my season, but it just happens and it's a learning experience and I'm glad I learned off a win."
With the 2013 IPC Athletics World Championship, July 19-28, in Lyon, France, Campbell remains the only Paralympic athlete to have thrown over 60 meters in competition.
The International Paralympic Committee contributed to this report.


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Santa wasn't sitting for hours in the darkness of Black Friday waiting for a hard-to-secure Wii game system, but several of his helpers sure were.
Santa wasn't sitting for hours in the darkness of Black Friday waiting for a hard-to-secure Wii game system, but several of his helpers sure were.
After waiting up to 10 hours, less than a dozen blanket-wrapped, hot chocolate-gulping shoppers met with success at Game Crazy, 1510 E. Riverside Blvd. Shortly after a FedEx ground driver unloaded his cargo at 7:35 a.m., 10 systems arrived and the first 10 received a coveted numbered green slip allowing them to buy the Nintendo system for the normal retail price of $249.99.
"Now we can go take our boys, Sebastian and Seth to see Santa so they can give him their list," said Rebecca Garlock, 36 of Loves Park. "Sebastian is 6 and he's just crazy about this game. He's wanted it since it came out last year and that's what he wants to tell Santa so I guess we're going to see Santa tonight or tomorrow."
Store manager Tyson Mohr said the store gets at least 10 Wii systems each week.
They are usually gone within an hour or two.
"We told our regular customers to buy them in September when they were pretty much available for a day or two," he said of the game that has sold 16 million consoles in just 12 months. "Those that took our advice are happy they did.
Smaller retailers such as Game Crazy, Mohr said, are being encouraged by Nintendo to sell just one unit to a buyer and keep a record so you don't sell them another one within two weeks. The move is an effort to prevent bulk purchases where most of the units will end up for sale on eBay.
"One of my clerks says they are going for double the retail price on eBay right now," Mohr said. "He wants to buy one but I know he already has one and I know what he'd do with it."
First in line was Steve Webster, 30, of Dixon, who said his purchase was a gift for a friend. He got in line with his lawn chair at 9:15 Thursday night just as Mohr closed the store.
Second was Natane Scott, 27, of Roscoe, who waited most of the 20-degree night totally covered in a thick blanket over her heavy parka.
"This is the first time I've done this and I think I'm nuts," said the mother of three, ages 8, 5 and 4. "They've wanted it since it came out last year and they deserve it. Santa is a very kind person and Santa just has to do this for them."
With most customers knowing that just 10 units likely were available (Mohr says he gets about 100 calls a day inquiring about the delivery details), shoppers near the middle of a line that reached close to two dozen jokingly tried the sympathy card on those in front of them.
"Here, I'm buying this for my daughter and I'll call her on the phone and let you hear how much she wants it," said Gordy Rose, 43, of Byron to the person in front of him, Melissa Grant, 25, of Joliet.
Grant, her faced warmed by a small propane-type burner as she sat on the sidewalk in a leather jacket and hooded sweat shirt, wasn't buying the suggestion or those of a sick relative with cancer and a tumor.
"I'm up here visiting my relatives," she said as she held her spot. "I've checked all of the stores in the Joliet area and nobody has them."
As it turned out, Grant was No. 9. Rose was correct on being "on the bubble." He got the No. 10 card.
It was a good 20 minutes before the store opened, and shortly after the sun had come up, 10 lucky ones had the right to buy their Wii.
"Each year I say I'll never do this again and each year we find something we want," Garlock said. "I guess it all started with Cabbage Patch Kids when I was very young. Me and my two sisters each got one that looked like us."
How to get one
The Wii is produced at a single plant in China that has ramped up production several times during the first year of production to meet worldwide demand.
Nintendo has increased its market share to nearly 50 percent, mostly at the expense of Sony and Microsoft. Obtaining a unit isn't impossible, but it's likely there won't be enough to meet demand, Game Crazy store manager Tyson Mohr said.
His suggestions on getting your hands on one:
Shop around: Call several of the stores and find out what day of the week they get their regular shipments. Most stores will tell you, he said.
Get on an order list: Some retailers will put your name on an order list. "We will put people's name on a list and call them when they come in. They get 30 minutes or so to come and get them," he said. "That's so we can reorder because we can't replenish until all of the games are out of the store."
Go off the beaten path: "They tend to be more available in places like Belvidere or other smaller towns so you may have to drive a little," Mohr said. "Call the smaller stores in your area or the bigger ones in another city."
Game Crazy is at 1510 East Riverside Blvd., Loves Park. It's open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. during the holiday season; 815-636-8834.


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Bad news for Yum? McDonald's China sales fallJune 8, 2012: 12:36 PM ET
Shares of McDonald's and KFC-owner Yum! Brands declined Friday amid growing fears about slowing economic growth in China.
McDonald's announced that its sales at stores open at least a year in the Asia, the Middle East and Africa region declined 1.7% in May, with particular weakness in Japan and China.
In fact, sales in China declined for the first time since November 2009, said Lynne Collier, analyst at Sterne Agee. Collier said that her conversations with McDonald's management suggested that the lower comparable sales in China last month is "not a one-off", but rather the start of a new trend.
McDonald's (MCD) stock slipped more than 0.7%. It was the biggest laggard on the Dow.
Related: U.S. companies betting big in China
Shares of fellow fast food giant Yum! Brands (YUM), which now generates more of its revenue in China than the United States thanks to the growing popularity of KFC there, took an even bigger hit. Shares fell 3.2%, making it one of the worst performers in the S&P 500.
Yum! Brands has been under pressure for weeks amid growing fears that a slowdown in the world's second largest economy could have a big impact on the company. Shares sank more than 5% last Friday following news that Chinese manufacturing declined in May for the seventh straight month. The stock is down almost 12% in the past month.
In its latest effort to spur growth, China's central bank cut the country's deposit and lending interest rates on Thursday.


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Just loved this write-up - the only problem is that one of these special guitars will set you back a cool £5,000 in the UK!
Claire Frances Martin may be the seventh generation in a guitar building dynasty, but as a cute-as-a-button baby, she isn't thinking about the future yet. Still, birthright is birthright, and C. F. Martin & Co. has decided to get its prospective leader off to a good start by building her a first guitar. Little and exquisite like its inspiration, Claire's Guitar celebrates her arrival in spectacular style.
Like the Mini Martin the Company currently offers, Claire's Guitar is a diminutive Size 5 guitar, with gracefully rounded upper bouts, 12 frets to the body and a 21.4" scale ideal for its traditional tuning: a minor 3rd (three steps) above standard. However, Claire's Guitar is the fanciest Size 5 C. F. Martin has produced in more than 80 years, one destined to capture a young girl's – or a guitar connoisseur's – heart.
Choice solid tonewoods give Claire's Guitar impressive tone and volume for a small instrument. Back and sides of rare CITES-certified Brazilian rosewood are paired with a top of premium Sitka spruce for warm, full resonance, while unscalloped 1/4" top braces contribute clarity and focus. The low oval neck with diamond volute is carved from genuine mahogany, while both fingerboard and bridge are crafted from black ebony.
These choice tonewoods are matched by equally choice appointments. Both the Style 45 rosette and Style 41 top purfling feature beautiful inlays of Korean Awabi, a fine textured abalone with shimmering turquoise, pink and silver highlights, flanked by mitered black/white/black line accents. Both the top and back are bound in grained ivoroid, while a colorful Style 45 backstrip bisects the bookmatched back.
The traditional C. F. Martin & Co. logo is inlaid in Korean Awabi pearl on the Brazilian rosewood headplate, but underneath, the "Est. 1833" has been replaced by Claire's 9/13/04 birth date inlaid in matching pearl. Adding to its beauty, the solid headstock is fitted with gold Waverly tuners with ivoroid butterbean knobs.
Created especially for this guitar, the fingerboard inlay of diamonds, squares and snowflakes culminates in a tiny footprint (think birth certificate) between the 17th and 18th frets. In keeping with the guitar's pearl accents, its genuine bone bridge pins and endpin are topped with Korean Awabi pearl dots. Both the nut and long saddle are crafted from genuine bone.
Aging toner on the top adds to Claire's Guitar's timeless beauty, while polished gloss finish on the body accentuates the beautiful tonewoods and pearl inlays. The neck, featuring Martin's new two-way adjustable rod, receives a satin finish for playing comfort. In another bow to tradition, this special guitar is available only as a pure acoustic (without a factory-installed pickup system).
Only 100 of Claire's Guitar will be produced. Delivered in a fitted Geib style case, each will bear an interior label personally signed by Claire's dad (and Martin Chairman) C. F. Martin IV and Claire's mom Diane S. Repyneck, and numbered in sequence. Beginning immediately, authorized C. F. Martin dealers will take orders for Claire's Guitar. After the edition has been fully committed, the names of participating dealers will be available on the Martin website.


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It's the weekend again, which means even more new TV shows are here to fill up your life and distract you from those incessant group chats you never wanted to be a part of in the first place. On Friday, Netflix dropped the terrifying adaptation of The Haunting of Hill House and Amazon released the first season of Matthew Weiner's anthology series The Romanoffs.
Hill House is one part family drama, one part haunted house story as the 10-episode series traces how the Crane family's lives are forever changed by their summer living in the ghostly house and the tragedies that befell them there. While we're big fans of the terrifying series, it may have some viewers wishing to exorcise sa few of the show's more horrific images from their memories.
Fall TV Popularity Contest: Which new shows are your favorites?
That's a problem you won't have with The Romanoffs, which stars a lot of your favorites from Mad Men as modern people who claim to be related to the notorious Russian royal family. Every episode features a different cast and a new story, and the series includes appearances by Christina Hendricks, Aaron Eckhart and John Slattery. To be honest, we thought it was a bit of a snooze-fest, but maybe you disagree.
The good news is that you get to be the ones to tell us! We want to know what you think of the latest fall shows in TV Guide's Fall TV Popularity contest. Did you boo Hill House's ghosts? Did The Romanoffs turn you roman-on? Let us know what you think about all the new fall shows by voting right here.The Romanoffs, The Haunting of Hill House" data-image-credit="Christopher Raphael/Amazon, Steve Dietl/Netflix" data-image-alt-text="�The Romanoffs, The Haunting of Hill House" data-image-credit-url="" data-image-target-url="" data-image-title="�The Romanoffs, The Haunting of Hill House" data-image-filename="popcontest-news.jpg" data-image-date-created="2018/10/11" data-image-crop="" data-image-crop-gravity="" data-image-aspect-ratio="" data-image-height="1380" data-image-width="2070" data-image-do-not-crop="" data-image-do-not-resize="" data-image-watermark="" data-lightbox="">
Other Links From TVGuide.com The Haunting of Hill HouseThe Romanoffs


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Police in Frisco say a woman has been arrested and charged with killing her 10-year-old son.
Officers found the boy's body in the tub at his home, wrapped in cloth up to his neck. Police said there were also several plastic bags found around the boy, but did not elaborate.
In a news conference Thursday, Sgt. Brad Merritt, with the Frisco Police Department, said the boy's father, Sumeed Dhawan, called police at about 6:30 p.m. Wednesday and said he was concerned about the welfare of his wife and child.
Sumeed told police he had just returned home to North Texas after traveling for three weeks and that he was concerned over the time it took his wife to return home and because he had also received an email from his son's school stating he had not been in attendace the last several days.
Sumeed told police that his wife had apparently left the home a couple of hours before he called them and he was growing more and more concerned about their welfare.
The latest news from around North Texas.
Officers arrived at the home and, as they talked with Sumeed, his wife returned home. Police asked Pallavi Dhawan about the location of Arnav and she said she wished to speak with her husband privately — which the officers allowed.
As Pallavi and Sumeed talked, the man grew noticeably upset, police said. He then called the officers over and directed them toward a locked bathroom door.
"Officers asked Mrs. Dhawan if the child was in the room, and she nodded her head `yes.' Officers asked her if she killed the child, and Mrs. Dhawan nodded her head `yes,"' said police Sgt. Brad Merritt, at an afternoon news conference.
Police said that Pallavi was arrested Wednesday and is said to be cooperating in the investigation. On Thursday, the boy's mother was charged with 1st degree murder, police said.
She was held in the Frisco City Jail on $50,000 bail, but bonded out of jail just after midnight on Friday. At this time, police have not released a motive.
Attorney: "Not So Fast" on Mother's Confession
Despite statements from the police, Dhawan denied admitting to killing the child, said her attorney, David Finn, of Dallas.
"We categorically deny that she indicated in any way or form that she was responsible for his death," he said. "Any statement that my client nodded of affirmed that she was responsible for the child's death, not so fast."
Arnav had been "the center of their universe," Finn said of the family. "He was a happy, fun-loving boy."
Pallavi and Sumeet Dhawan are naturalized U.S. citizens, Finn said. Family members described the couple's only child and his mother as being "inseparable," he said.
Finn said there are "a plethora of unanswered questions." For example, he said there were no signs of physical trauma or water in the boy's lungs.
The Collin County medical examiner performed an autopsy on the boy Thursday, though the findings have not yet been released.
The Frisco ISD said Thursday morning that Arnav was in the fifth grade at Isbell Elementary School. The district said additional counselors will be at the school on Thursday and Friday as needed. A letter about the death has already been released to parents to notify them about the death.


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My father is in the front row, far left.
My mother wrote: U.S. Navy - USS Yorktown Aircraft Carrier
My father wrote the following:
April 2, 1944 In the Shop Arrow to "my helmet"
L to R Top row. W. Musson, N. Trepaskp, W. Rosenbaum, E. Hoegeman
Mid row: C. Culbertson, R. Pagel, T. Mosbey, L. Goldsmith, C. McCarthy
Bottom row: ? (my father) Lt. J. O. Hatchet, J. Jones, Lt. G. H. Klans and J. McCormick
(There are probably errors, as he always had terrible penmanship. If anybody wants to make a correction, I would love to hear from you.)


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Sharing Eternal Moments through Tea
A Japanese Tea Presentation and Dinner at Fivelements, Puri Ahimsa
7 September 2011
The drinking of Matcha tea from China was introduced to Japan together with Zen over 800 years ago. Buddhist monks began to explore this art form in temples and other sites in the hills northwest of Kyoto. Though strongly influenced by Zen, the transformation of the Japanese tea ceremony began in the 1480's outside the temples among the ruling class and merchants from whom spread to the rest of the privileged. Over the next hundred years, the simple tea ceremony grew into the form we know and practice today – a ritual representing the principles of harmony, respect, purity and tranquillity.
Chanoyu, the ceremony surrounding the serving of powdered green tea, is a synthesis of many Japanese arts with the focus of preparing and serving tea with a pure heart and a means of self-cultivation.
Chado, the way of tea, in its subtle way, is perhaps one of the largest contributions Japan has ever made to the cultural life of the world, believes Japanese tea master, Søren Bisgaard. In chado one learns to value each fleeting moment. Each encounter between the host and guest is unique. It has never been experienced before and will never be repeated again. It exists only in that very moment, so you have to pay attention to the present with all your heart and mind. When everyone's attention is focused on the moment, that moment becomes eternal.
Today, Japanese tea master, Søren, travels around the world introducing Chanoyu to many people for the first time. He believes that when people come together to share a bowl of tea through chado, goodwill and peace can be realised.
About the Tea Master, Søren M. Chr. Bisgaard
Native to Copenhagen, Denmark, Søren became interested in philosophy at the age of 15, visited the Oracle of Delphi at 18 and became a sannyasin monk at the age of 20. He initiated interest in Indian philosophy and religion among the youth in Denmark, which led to the foundation of a monastery. After having studied sanskrit, philosophy and Japanese language at Copenhagen University, Søren began his journey across the world.
Arriving in Japan in 1976, Søren immersed himself in the study of Japanese tea ceremony, joining the Urasenke Midorikai program in Kyoto, where he continues his studies to this day. Over the years, Søren's devotion, practice and embodiment of chado, the way of tea, has earned him significant recognition as a well sought after tea master in Japan, Denmark and beyond.
Please join us in this rare opportunity to share eternal moments through tea, followed by a Japanese inspired, living foods dinner at Fivelements.
Rp. 550,000 per person, Presentation & Dinner
Rp. 350,000 per person, Presentation only
23 September 2011
After 14:00 Arrivals & Check-in & Orientation am-pm Optional Healing & Beauty Ritual(extra cost) 17:00–21:00 Talk: Raw Food for Health, Beauty & Longevity. Gourmet Raw Food Dinner prepared by Master Chef Cherie Soria & Fivelements' Chef Made Runatha
24 September 2011
07:00–08:00 Yoga 08:15–09:00 Breakfast & Green Smoothies 09:00–09:30 Orientation and Introduction to Class 09:30–10:00 Culinary Demo: Five flavors for dynamic sauces. Learn how to balance flavors to make fantastic dressings and sauces. Cherie will prepare several amazing dipping sauces for students to use in a variety of ways when creating their own wraps and rolls. 10:00–10:45 Culinary Demo: Basic knife skills. Learn how to use knives like the pros to create textures that enhance flavor and enjoyment. Cherie will also show a variety of ways cut vegetables for wraps and rolls that are easy to make and fun to eat 10:45–11:00 Break/prepare for hands-on food preparation lab 11:00–12:00 Knife skills lab: Students practice cutting vegetables like a pro (prepare/cut ingredients for wrap fillings under Cherie's guidance) 12:00–12:30 Hands-0n Wrap and Roll Lab: Please play with your food! Have fun making wraps and rolls that suit your taste 12:30–13:00 Group discussion and Q&A with Cherie 13:00–14:00 Lunch buffet plus wraps and rolls 14:00–16:00 Free time for Healing & Beauty Rituals, Pool lounge 16:00–16:30 High Tea 16:30–17:30 Free time for Healing & Beauty Rituals, Pool lounge 17:30–21:00 Health Cocktails and Dinner
25 September 2011
07:00–08:00 Yoga 08:15– 09:00 Breakfast & Green Smoothies 09:00– 09:30 Talk: Feast, Lose Weight, Gain Energy, Feel Younger on Raw Foods 09:30–10:30 Culinary Demo: Healthy everyday gourmet meals made easy 10:30–10:45 Break/wash hands for food preparation lab 10:45–11:45 Hands-on Gourmet Creations Lab: Have fun creating delicious, healthy, gourmet meals that are simple to make, incorporating all five flavors, great textures, and beautiful presentation 11:45–12:00 Break 12:00–12:30 Talk: Tips for creating a high raw lifestyle for health, beauty, and longevity 12:30–13:00 Group discussion and Q&A with Cherie 13:00–14:00 Lunch buffet plus student creations 14:00–16:00 Free time for Healing & Beauty Rituals, Pool lounge 16:00–16:30 High Tea 16:30–17:30 Free time for Healing & Beauty Rituals, Pool lounge 17:30–21:00 Health Cocktails and Dinner
Deposit and cancellations:
Reservations must be confirmed by 15 September 2011, 8 days prior to retreat start.
Check-In/ Check-Out:
Check-in is from 2pm. Check-out is by 12pm.
Special Conditions:
As a healing destination retreat, Fivelements, Puri Ahimsa maintains a peaceful atmosphere integrated with nature. To this regard, we support a smoke-free & alcohol-free environment. We kindly request that usage of all electronic devices be limited to guest rooms only.
Conditions:As a healing destination retreat, Fivelements, Puri Ahimsa maintains a peaceful atmosphere integrated with nature. To this regard, we support a smoke-free & alcohol-free environment. Additionally, we kindly request that usage of all electronic devices be limited to guest rooms only. Our Sakti Dining Room offers gourmet raw vegan living cuisine.
Special Discount for Guests participating in the Gourmet Culinary Retreat:
20% discount for Fivelements' Healing Treatments & Beauty Rituals
30% discount for additional night stays at Fivelements, Puri Ahimsa
All bookings based on availability


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The Apple MacBook Air 11-inch pushes into a new space for Apple, slotting between the existing (and refreshed) Air 13-inch, and above the iPad. It means Apple now has a compact and extremely portable format of computer: Apple had always said they wouldn't make a netbook and this new Air rivals the 11.6-inch format in the PC world, so it is about as "netbook" as we can expect Apple to get.
Except it is about as far from the cheap and cheerful netbook-esque PCs that fill this middle space. Instead you have the specs and the design that go some way to justifying the not unsubstantial cost of the MacBook Air. But that's perhaps forgivable: you'd never look at the MacBook Air as a cheap alternative so you don't have to heft around your bulky main computer. No, the MacBook Air is a premium product in its own right.
The design is the most striking thing about the MacBook Air. It is the thinnest computer we've ever seen. It's so slender that it's almost thinner than some of the recent tablets that we've seen launched. Is this just Apple showing off? We suspect there is a dose of that, but it's an undeniably impressive engineering feat to pack a working machine into such a slim chassis without having to make critical compromises on usability. One thing working in Apple's favour is their aluminium unibody, which gives strength and rigidity, with practically no flex evident across the entire device.
Some will argue that sacrifices have been made that don't make it practical. The connections, for example, are minimal. You get the MagSafe power connection, a single USB 2.0 socket and the 3.5mm jack on the left-hand side, along with the built-in mic. On the right-hand side you get a DisplayPort connection and a second USB 2.0 socket. That's it. That's all the connections you get.
Obviously missing is the Ethernet port, so all your networking will have to be done through the in-built a/b/g/n Wi-Fi. But seeing as everywhere from your home to your local Starbucks now offers Wi-Fi, and you can buy a USB Ethernet adapter (£25) we don't see this being too much of a problem. You also get Bluetooth 2.1 to hook-up your fancy wireless speakers.
Similarly, some might gripe about the lack of VGA/D-Sub or HDMI connections. Apple have long been using the DisplayPort connection and again, there are adapters to connect to other common standards, again around the £20-25 mark. The essentials are covered and many will find they just didn't need all those superfluous connections.
The 13-inch MacBook Air offers you an SD card slot that the 11-inch doesn't feature, so again, you'll have to connect your camera via cable to access your photos and video. In this case, the close proximity of the power or display connections might mean you can't get anything too bulky into the USB sockets, in which case you might want to use a USB extension cable, especially if you're using something like a Flip camcorder.
One thing we do miss is the battery indicator. The battery in the MacBook Air 11-inch is inaccessible inside the device. It is good for up to around 5 hours, we typically got around 4 hours in general web use on Wi-Fi and watching a healthy collection of online videos. Without a battery indicator there isn't a way of gauging the battery life before you head out of the door, something we'd like to see included in future iterations.
Measuring 299.5 x 192 x 17mm (at the fattest point at the rear), the MacBook Air tapers down to a fine point at the leading edge. This gives a very slight slope to the keyboard, but that isn't the best thing about the keyboard. The fact that Apple have stuck with regular sized keys, regularly spaced just as they are on their larger MacBooks means it is excellent to type on. Many small format computers take some time to get used to, but the MacBook Air takes minimal thought - you just start typing.
The travel of the keys is excellent and there is enough support behind the keyboard to make the experience universally impressive - too many cheap rivals will have a flexible patch on one side of the keyboard that unbalances the whole experience. The only keys that have been reduced on the MacBook Air are the top function/shortcut keys. There has been a slight tweak on the right-hand end, offering a power button on the far right.
Our hands just about fit on the palm rests of the MacBook Air giving a comfortable typing position, but we suspect those with larger hands might find they are somewhere between the desk and the palm rests - something worth trying out in your local Apple Store if you do have larger than average hands.
Below the keyboard in Apple's excellent trackpad. Despite the smaller frame the MacBook Air still offers you 120mm (diagonal) pad so there is plenty of space. It is silky smooth and the MacBook line offers the best trackpad multitouch experience you'll find on a computer, with plenty of gestures to help keep things ticking along without the need for a mouse.
The 11.6-inch display sits on the same drop-down hinge you'll find across the MacBook range, meaning it neatly drops behind the body of the Air as you open it up. This makes for a more compact computer when open, ideal for using on the tray table of trains or aircraft. Opening the lid of the Air single-handed is easy enough, but it does rock backwards as the hinge approaches 90 degrees when opening on a desk. On the lap we found the Air to be well balanced - the screen is light enough so it doesn't topple backwards when you stretch your legs out.
The display offers up a resolution of 1366 x 768, so it can claim the HD tag. It is glossy in its finish so isn't always as practical in direct sunlight as some matte rivals, but it is bright enough to overcome most problems you'll encounter with reflections. As with all Apple displays, it is wonderfully vibrant with excellent colour reproduction and wide viewing angles. The screen is large enough for daily working, with ample resolution to fit a document on the screen, but is a little too small if you're one of those people who likes to have side-by-side apps running together. It works well with Spaces, giving a screen over to a large app, like your browser, or a couple of smaller apps together.
Powering the MacBook Air is an Intel Core 2 Duo processor, clocked at 1.4GHz (a 1.6GHz upgrade is available for £82). You get 2GB of DDR3 RAM (4GB upgrade for an extra £80) and the graphics are driven by the Nvidia GeForce 320M GPU. The result is, even at the basic specification, that the MacBook Air cuts through everyday tasks with no problems at all.
The MacBook Air will handle streaming HD video, offering up the likes of YouTube HD and BBC iPlayer HD without too many problems - perhaps the odd frame dropped here and there but perfectly watchable. It didn't cope so well with 1920 x 1080 content from a camcorder, especially at the higher 18Mpbs data rate, but played back a slightly lower 14Mbps file with no problems.
The sound quality is also excellent which is surprising from a machine so slim. The stereo speakers are hidden behind the hinge and are both loud enough and of acceptable quality for most purposes. If you want to watch a movie, then plugging in your headphones will probably be the first port of call anyway, but we found it fine for listening to music on the move.
The other thing that the MacBook Air has working in its favour is a solid state drive (SSD). This is a much more expensive option than your average hard disk drive and accounts for some of the price, but offers much faster data access rates and lower power consumption. There are two options available, 64GB and 128GB. These don't sound huge when it comes to storage, but that's not the point of the MacBook Air - it isn't a machine you should stuff full of content, it is designed to be fast and light.
The result of the SSD and the hardware configuration is that the MacBook Air doesn't feel like a MacBook that has been compromised. It has all the power of a fully-fledged computer, so you can process your photos, edit your HD video and enjoy movies on the move. Of course the MacBook Air isn't going to be as adept as the new line of MacBook Pros are at these tasks, but for such a light and portable machine, it's impressive none the less.
Naturally it comes running OS X Snow Leopard, the current iteration of Apple's excellent operating system. That's due for an upgrade in summer 2011, bringing with a collection of new features. As it is the OS runs fast and pre-installed iLife suite will take care of your music, movies and entertainment needs.
There is little to complain about with the MacBook Air 11-inch. It is, in a word, spectacular. It delivers performance in a package that is surprisingly complete and this, coupled with the design, makes the £1020 for the model reviewed here almost justifiable. Of course, that's still expensive by any standards and there's no avoiding the fact that you can get a new MacBook Pro, which is more powerful in all directions, for less money (and an SSD version of that starts from £1199).
But the MacBook Air isn't about affordability, it's about making a statement, it's about travelling light without having to sacrifice power and design. It won't suit every taste and the lack of optical drive and connections will make the MacBook Air impractical for many, but you can't help marvelling at it.


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The storm out of California could bring snow on Christmas to parts of Arkansas and Oklahoma, places that haven't seen that happen in more than 80 years. The Weather Channel's Julie Martin reports.
A major winter storm that on Sunday was dumping steady rain and snow on Northern California could strengthen as it makes its way east, promising a White Christmas – and travel headaches – for a wide swath of the country.
The storm will deposit snow from California's Sierra mountains to New England through Friday morning, forecasters said. "Unfortunately, this occurs not only during the Christmas holiday, but also in the peak travel period after Christmas Day in the South, Midwest and East," weather.com said.
Forecasters warned that roads would become treacherous Christmas Day and Christmas night from the High Plains of western Kansas and the Texas Panhandle eastward into Oklahoma, extreme north Texas, Arkansas and into the mid-Mississippi Valley.
There was also the potential for severe thunderstorms with damaging winds, hail and tornadoes in parts of the South on Christmas Day, said Greg Forbes, The Weather Channel's severe weather expert.
The storm was expected to reach the Northeast Wednesday, bringing gusty winds and widespread precipitation. Whether that precipitation will be snow or rain remains to be seen.
Millions are on the move the Sunday before Christmas, and while the holiday outlook has improved from recent days, weather might continue to disrupt travel plans in some parts of the country. NBC's Gabe Gutierrez reports.
"For now, snow seems most likely in the interior Northeast, with the potential for rain or perhaps a wintry mix to start in the major metros," weather.com said.
The new storm comes on the heels of another storm that buried parts of Iowa, Nebraska and Wisconsin in more than a foot of snow last week and led to thousands of flight delays or cancellations.
More content from NBCNews.com:
- Report: Female Las Vegas blackjack dealer stabs another
- NRA chief: If putting armed police in schools is crazy, 'then call me crazy'
- Ban high-capacity ammo clips? Activists zero in on idea
- Schools seek security after Newtown tragedy
- Disbelief from some to NRA call for armed guards at schools, blames movies
- Video: Teacher brings opera to elementary students
Follow US news from NBCNews.com on Twitter and Facebook


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Steve was a star in high school in Moline, Illinois, the same high school as fellow-WTHHT Acie Earl. He was a 6'8" guy with the skills of a guard which was rare back in those days. (Strangely enough with his height, ball-handling and passing abilities he played a lot like a guard, and even somewhat resembled his numerical successor Bird in that regard.)
Initially Steve would attend the University of Illinois, where he would have been an even bigger star. However the NCAA, who usually looked the other way when big colleges paid players, cracked down on U of I when they discovered they had a "Slush Fund" filled with donations from wealthy boosters. It came to light in the late 1960's, and the NCAA finally was forced to come down hard on Illinois. They fired their head football coach and head basketball coach, and a few others, and cleaned up the programs.
Unfortunately for Steve, he was one of the players who was found to have taken cash payments from the "Slush Fund" and Illinois cut him. After this, he decided to transfer to Bradley. He had 2 years of eligibility left, but after a very good year at Bradley, opted to go to the NBA and forego his final season. He was selected by the Celts in the 4th round of the 1969 draft. He'd spend his first 6 seasons with the Celtics (wearing #11 at the time) before being drafted by the Jazz in the 1974 expansion draft. He was then traded from the Jazz (before playing a game) to the Bucks where he'd play one year. The following year, 1975-76, he'd start with the Braves before being released and being signed back by the Celtics. He'd start on that 1976 team, that only started 5-5, en route to the NBA championship. Although he started it was really for super-sub Paul Silas to come in off the bench to provide energy (sort of like Greg Dreiling on Indiana who would start for Detlef Schrempf, play like 2 minutes, and then have Schrempf sub in for him). He'd retire after 3 games with the Celts in the 1978 season, missing Larry Bird by two seasons. This prevented Kuberski from pulling a move like Terry Catledge did with Shaq who was a rookie (Shaq was #33 at LSU and Catledge wouldn't give it to him as a rookie).
Some fun facts about Kuberski:
- Toughest guy for him to defend was Gus Johnson (who should not be confused with the awful Knicks radio announcer who was canned this year).
- However the "best" player he played against was Dr J, in his younger years, though he also gives a lot of credit to Billy Cunningham.
- Two best players he played with were Kareem and Hondo.
- How he'd like to be remembered as a player: "I gave a lot of effort. I just thought that whatever needed to be done at that given moment was what was important. I wasn't one to always score a lot of points, although I had my moments. I tried to adapt to whatever the situation called for."
- The player he admires most in the league today is Kevin Garnett.
- If he could clone anyone it would be Mike Kryzewski.
I actually saw Steve in action in Game 5 of the 1976 Finals. He's extremely athletic, and really had a knack of being in the right place at the right time. It's tough basing how good a player he is off one game, but I'd say James Posey might have been a poor man's Steve Kuberski. Steve did the little things, like blocking out and making putbacks. The intangibles. And I get the feeling he did it at an even slightly higher level than Posey, who don't forget, did it very well in his own right.
Since 1982, Steve has been the owner of ProQuip Inc, a company that specializes in storage products like lockers, amongst other things and sells them to schools, country clubs and restaurants. The weird thing is, that it's also located in Woburn, MA, which is where Hank Finkel's company is located. You'd think the two might collaborate and join forces? (Or perhaps Woburn, MA is a hotbed for WTHHT players). He has been married since 1967 to Diane, who was a cheerleader at his high school. Steve also has two sons, Jason and Matthew, the former of which works for ProQuip.
Celticslife thanks Steve for his time with the Celtics and for helping contribute to the two titles in the 1970s. We wish him luck with all future endeavors.
For a list of all the "What the Hell Happened To" Series please click here.
Special shout-out to the site administrator at BradleyFans.com for filling in some valuable information on Steve's collegiate career. Definitely check out his blog tb727 1/02/2011 12:01:00 AM Tweet Edit


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"I believe that trust in God, love for one's children, and prayer for wisdom are a recipe for successful parenthood far more reliable than all the books and seminars in the world."
There are so many wonderful features in the making of a home. This is a place where I would love for you to share your love for anything home-related. Homemaking, homeschooling and homesteading are all a part of the lovely art of home-making!
~~Please link up posts in the spirit of Titus 2 and Proverbs 31 (such as recipes, godly encouragement, DIY's, frugal living, child-raising, medicine making, preparedness, gardening, home decoration, school lessons, sewing, crafts, etc).~~ You are welcome to share as many posts as you like!
On to this week! For the sake of our readers, please link up appropriate and wholesome home-related articles and leave out any giveaways, advertisements, etc. Thank you for understanding! I can't wait to see what you all have to share!
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All the fine print. This post may be shared with some or all of the following link-ups: The Art of Home-Making Mondays, Modest Mom Monday's, Monday's Musings, Good Morning Mondays, The Scoop, Tuesdays with a Twist, Raising Homemakers, Wise Woman Link Up, Homestead Blog Hop, Wow Us Wednesdays, Coffee and Conversation, Homemaking Thursdays, Home Sweet Home, Our Simple Homestead, Awesome Life Friday Link Up and Create, Bake, Grow & Gather. Thank you lovely ladies for hosting these. This post may contain affiliate links (which are merchant links that help to support this site at no additional cost to you if you purchase an item through them).


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Golden Hill United Methodist Church
Saturday, July 04, 2020
An Open and Affirming Congregation
Date: Wednesday, December 04, 2013
Time: 6:30 PM - 7:30 PM
Location: Chapel
Taize is a contemplative worship experience offering songs of chanted prayer, silence and meditation and scripture. Our prayer service is held weekly on Wednesday evenings at 6:30 p.m. in our Chapel. Enter the church through the Elm Street doors.
Taize is for you when:
You need some peace and quiet
You're looking for refuge from the
hectic world
You want an opportunity to be
still and become aware of God's presence
You are listening for GodPrevious Page


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The bus driver involved in an accident last April that killed two Arlington elementary school students was cleared of all charges by a jury on Tuesday.
BUS DRIVER Pamela Sims, 38, was charged with one count of reckless driving and another count of failure to pay full time and attention. If convicted, Sims faced up to one year in jail.
Lilibeth Gomez, 9, and Harrison Orosco, 7, both students at Hoffman-Boston Elementary School, were killed when the bus, which was preparing to make a left turn from Columbia Pike onto S. Courthouse Road, and an oncoming garbage truck collided on April 18.
Garbage truck driver James Sterling Wallace, 42, has been charged with a single count of reckless driving, and his trial is due to begin on April 3.
The seven person jury — comprising four men and three women — deliberated for less than two hours before declaring Sims not guilty of both charges. Sims did not testify during the trail.
The presence of tire tracks and calculations by accident reconstruction experts proved that both the school bus and garbage truck were "up over top of the yellow line" dividing the east- and west-bound lanes of Columbia Pike, Sgt. Matt Hanley of the Virginia State Police testified on Monday.
After the initial contact between the two vehicles, the steel fork arm of the garbage truck penetrated the interior of the bus, most likely causing the death of the two students, Hanley said.
If the steel arm was not present, or in a different position, the two vehicles would have merely side-swiped each other, causing far less damage, Hanley added.
THE LEAD prosecutor for the county argued that Sims had been distracted just prior to the accident, and had not gotten enough rest after working an eight-hour overnight shift beforehand.
Sims "drove across the yellow line because she wasn't paying full attention to her driving," Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Jason McCandless.
Defense attorney John Keats refuted those claims, arguing that Sims slowed to nearly a complete halt while trying to take a left turn onto S. Courthouse Road, and that activity inside the bus did not affect her driving ability.
"If she did anything wrong…what she did was put a tire on the yellow line," Keats said. "When you're talking about reckless driving, you need something more than the breaking of a traffic regulation."
The evening before the accident, Sims worked the night shift as a stocker at a Safeway grocery store. It was only her second night on the job.
Only a few hours after she finished the shift, Sims began picking up students to bring to school. The proximity of the two jobs left little time for sleep, McCandless said, and Sims should have recognized she was too weary to operate a school bus.
Keats retorted that there was no evidence to suggest that his client did not rest between the two shifts, or that the lack on eight hours of sleep caused the accident.
The state also argued that Sims was distracted by events going on inside the bus in the moments before the accident. After the crash she told detectives that, preceding the collision, she had been talking to a girl on the bus and had also leaned down to pick up a clipboard that had fallen, Det. Paul Guevara said.
Sims did reach down to pick up the clipboard, Keats replied, but "there is no reason to believe it happened at the moment of impact."
INSTEAD, the garbage truck was traveling nearly 40 miles per hour up over the hill that precedes the intersection, and Sims had no time to move out its path, Keats said to the jury. "She had no time to react or do anything," he added.
Sims "had plenty of time to react to what was going on if she was paying attention," McCandless said.
David Schulman, a key defense witness, told jurors that he saw the garbage truck move "very close to the road's center line." He was approximately 100 feet behind the truck at the time, with no vehicles between them.
Gary Stinson, a witness called by the prosecution, said he did not see the bus' break lights go off while it was preparing to make a left turn, but did believe that the bus slowed down considerably.
Fifteen accidents have occurred at the intersection of Columbia Pike and South Courthouse Road since 2003, police officials told the Arlington Connection last year.


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The United States U-17 team started off their World Cup campaign with a dream 3-0 victory over the Czech Republic at Estadio Torreón in Mexico on Sunday afternoon.
Alejandro Guido opened the scoring in the fifth minute with a left-footed blast from 25 yards. Highly touted goalkeeper Lukas Zima had no chance to stop the Californian's impressive effort.
The European side rode Patrik Svoboda back into the match as the midfielder created a few chances, but they failed to capitalize and found themselves down by a goal at the break.
The deficit would double soon after the break as Paul Arriola dribbled toward the right touchline before dishing to Esteban Rodriguez. The speedy winger didn't miss from in tight, making it 2-0 US.
Alfred Koroma finished off the scoring just two minute after joining the match for Mario Rodriguez.
The Americans face Uzbekistan, 4-1 losers to New Zealand in their opening match, on June 22 and close out group play three days later against the Oceania side.
Scoring Summary:
USA - Guido 5'
USA - Rodriguez 51'
USA - Koroma 89'
Disciplinary Summary:
USA - Salkicic (caution) 84'
United States
McIntosh; Acosta, Carroll, Fehr Amon, E. Rodriguez, Dunn, Guido (Salkicic 74'), Pelosi, Arriola (Melo 89'), Rodriguez (Koroma 87')
Czech Republic Staring Line Up
Zima; Karafiat, Filip, Nerad (Stratil 54'), Lueftner, Cermak, Salasovic (Travnik 71'), Julis, Svoboda, Sterba, Masek (Kadula 60')


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Ordinances appearing in several McHenry County municipalities might change the way driving under the influence charges are negotiated in court.
Some DUI cases have a lack of evidence, leaving prosecutors wary of failing to get convictions at trial. Like most criminal cases, most DUI cases are resolved via pleas, and defendants and defense attorneys are hesitant to plead guilty to driving under the influence when the case is weak because of long-term consequences.
Prosecutors and defendants often settle on a reckless driving conviction during those negotiations, but that disposition is going out of vogue. A new "careless driving" violation carries lesser consequences than the Class B misdemeanor reckless driving charge, often reached during plea agreements for DUI cases. The violation has been added in at least four McHenry County municipalities and is up for a vote in at least four others.
Dave McArdle, of Zukowkski, Rogers, Flood & McArdle, which represents those eight McHenry County municipalities, said the careless driving violation is another tool at lawyers' disposal. He said prosecutors still will consider reckless driving during negotiations.
Matt Haiduk, a criminal defense lawyer based in Crystal Lake, said reckless driving has been used in DUI plea agreements so frequently that the two are viewed legally in the same light.
"Almost every prosecutor on the planet is going to know it's a DUI," Haiduk said of a reckless driving charge. "Anyone who knows anything about it knows legally it's an insignificant difference."
Both a DUI and reckless driving allow court supervision on a first offense, which keeps the offense out of the eyes of insurance companies, Haiduk said. But that would change on a second offense, he said.
He said the new violation won't have the same lasting consequences.
"Careless driving shouldn't have the same effect on your record," Haiduk said.
In Woodstock, where the ordinance passed Tuesday evening, the violation will carry a $750 maximum fine. It also will allow the city to assign rehabilitation such as drug and alcohol counseling and victim impact panels – though, McArdle noted, rehab is often a part of plea agreements already.
Instating a careless driving violation also carries financial implications for McHenry County municipalities.
Whereas a municipality would receive only a portion of a fine assessed for reckless driving, it will receive the entirety of the fine for a careless driving violation, Woodstock Police Chief Robert Lowen said.
But Lowen said money wasn't the city's primary motivation. "We're not looking at it at that angle at all," he said.
The violation could cost drivers more in Lake in the Hills, where the village passed the ordinance last week with a maximum fine of $2,500, Director of Public Safety James Wales said.
Wales said the "potential is there" for this to generate significant additional revenue. "But we don't look at it as a revenue stream, never have," he added.
**Available for a limited time at http://www.nwherald.com/2013/02/20/new-plea-option-for-duis/a9kau/?page=1.


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City of Chula VistaHome Menu
Please feel free to contact us with any comments or questions by filling out the form below or contact one of our Departments directly.
For a list of phone numbers by services please visit our services page.
Want to report a pothole, graffiti, broken streetlight and more? Visit the Service Requests page.
Contact a Department


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Please, spend a few minutes to read and follow these online safety tips we create to provide a high level of privacy for all our participants.
Note: We will never send you an email, sms or any other notification asking for your username and password information. Any such communication should be reported immediately.
Have you been scammed? Let us know by filling out the form.
Trust, but verify. Always consider the possibility that the approach may be a scam. For this, do an image search of your admirer using such services as Google or TinEye. Pay attention to things like spelling and grammar mistakes, inconsistencies in their stories and persistent desire to move you away from the site.
Photos & Videos. Be extremely cautious when sharing your personal photos or videos with people you've never met before. Scammers are known to blackmail their sacrifices using compromising materials.
First meetings. We highly recommend you to gather maximum information about other person before meeting them for the first time. Also, it makes no sense for you to travel to some place far away for a first meeting with someone you have never seen before.
In other cases please follow the next tips:
- Use the technology (Internet, social media, paid services) or government resources available to everyone to check your admirer.
- Tell family and friends about where and when you're going. If you already have contacts of your partner – feed your closest with this information.
- Always meet in public – never in a private or remote location, and never at your date's home or apartment.
- Stay in public place on the first date.
- Keep a clear mind no matter how hard your want to know the person closer.
- Have a plan B. In case things don't work out or suspicions crowd upon you, drive yourself from the first meeting using your own car or taxi.
- Always keep an eye on your personal stuff, especially on your drink so it can't be tampered with.
Finances. Never send money or provide your credit card details to anyone you don't trust. For this be aware of how much information you share on your account.
Avoid transferring money for someone else, intentional funds transfer, electronic currency. Scammers can pose as government or charity representatives but no one from government or charity funds will use dating websites to get in touch with you.
Other personal information. Our scam watch team recommends you not to disclose such information as phone number, email address, passwords or even your full name in your online dating profile.
Moreover, pay extra attention when accessing your profile from a public or shared device, do not use auto sign-in feature and don't forget to clear all saved information.
Report suspicious users. Navechno team makes everything possible to protect you from unwanted contacts. In case you suspect someone or feel you shouldn't trust them, please block suspicious user and then report it to us immediately. The Navechno team greatly appreciates your contribution to the collection of scam-related data.
TOP 6 warning signs you should pay attention to:
- You meet someone online and after some relatively short period of time they ask to chat or meet with you privately.
- After you check their online dating profiles and then compare it to their Facebook page or the stories they share with you – you might notice inconsistency. For example, poor English and university education.
- After you chat for awhile and gain everyone's trust there might be a situation when your admirer suddenly tell you an elaborate story and ask for money.
- Sometimes messages may address you by the wrong name.
- Their calls become more desperate and persistent if you don't send money.
- They usually have an excuse for everything.


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Florida Gov. Rick Scott wants the state's annual back-to-school tax holiday to last longer and cover more expensive items.
Scott on Friday announced that he will ask legislators to extend the sales tax holiday from three days to 10 days.
The Republican governor also wants to increase the amount of clothing items that can be purchased tax-free. Last year clothes costing $75 or less were exempt. Scott would like to increase that to $100.
Scott also wants to let Floridians buy computers tax-free again this year.
Florida's sales tax is 6 cents on the dollar.
The state created the first back-to-school tax holiday in 1998 and over the years legislators have tinkered with it. They have added school supplies to the list while also adding, then taking away, books.


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These icon disks use our abstract triangles in pink design printed on our shimmering silver glitter with the Mickey Icon cut out in the middle and are finished with a protective clear dome to give the disk even more wow factor! They come in a sheet of two and go on the center puck of your MagicBand 2. Can be used on the icon puck in the MagicBand or in a MagicKeeper.
Our specialist adhesive ensures that the stickers stay firmly in place while allowing for trouble free removal when you are ready to change your style.
*Excludes orders that contain personalized products.
Customer Tags: Mickey Mouse, Mickey Ears, Mickey Candy Apple


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LONDON 2012: U.S. men beat Nigeria, setting Olympic record
LONDON (AP) -- The U.S. team had scored 100 points by the middle of the third quarter. It was that kind of night for the Americans.
They broke a few records, shattered others. They hardly missed.
Carmelo Anthony scored 37 points, making 10 of 12 3-pointers, and the Americans rewrote the Olympic record book with a scintillating shooting performance and 156-73 win Thursday night, an epic blowout that seemed to send a message to the rest of the men's tournament field.
Anthony set the U.S. Olympic mark for points in a game -- in less than three quarters. The U.S. also set the Olympic record for points in a game and points in a half (78). The Americans bettered the U.S. records as well for 3-pointers (26), field goals (59) and field-goal percentage (71).
Incredibly, they eclipsed the 100-point mark with 5 minutes left in the third.
And when Andre Iguodala hit a 3-pointer with 4:37 left, the Americans had surpassed the previous Olympic record of 138 points set by Brazil against Egypt in 1988. When the record was announced to the mesmerized crowd, all the players seated on the U.S. bench got up and slapped hands with coach Mike Krzyzewski and his coaching staff.
The last group in England with this many records was The Beatles.
"When we get hot, it's a big problem," Kobe Bryant said. "So you have all these guys on one team and then all get hot on the same night, it's tough."
Bryant scored 16 points -- 14 in the first quarter -- for the Americans, who scored 49 points in the first and didn't let up after scoring 78 in the first 20 minutes.
Russell Westbrook finished with 21 points and Kevin Durant had 14 for the U.S., which will play Lithuania on Saturday.
Ike Diogu scored 27 to lead Nigeria (1-2).
Bryant was mostly a non-factor in wins over France and Tunisia, playing just 21 minutes and getting into early foul trouble. But from the outset against Nigeria, the two-time Olympian nicknamed the Black Mamba was as deadly as ever. He set the tone by scoring seven quick points as the U.S. (3-0) raced to a 13-0 lead, a haymaker that stunned the Nigerians, some of whom had promised they wouldn't be intimidated by the Americans.
But the U.S. was scary indeed.
Durant buried three 3-pointers, Bryant and Anthony added two from long-range and when Kevin Love came off the bench and knocked down his first 3, the U.S. team's shooting gallery of stars had opened a 41-15 lead and made the p.a. announcer's pregame comment that "anything is possible" seem prophetic.
He was talking about a possible upset. The only surprise in the first quarter was when the U.S. missed.
"We were looking forward to this game, playing against the U.S.," Diogu said. "You know we wanted to use this to show the world what type of team we are. We just came out flat, turned the ball over too many times and they made us pay every time."
After starting so sluggsishly in blowout wins over France and Tunisia, the U.S. came flying out of the gates, led by Bryant.
The Americans seemed intent on breaking Nigeria's spirit, and when that was accomplished with ease, they set their sights on making history.
Anthony, who made five 3-pointers in the first half, put on a shooting clinic in the third quarter. With the U.S. bench standing in anticipation every time he touched the ball on the perimeter, Anthony made all five of his attempts, punctuating one that made it 97-54 by turning and walking toward the other end of the floor, shrugging his shoulders.
He was in a zone unlike any seen before.
And, he wasn't alone as the Americans made 29 of 46 3-pointers (63 percent), numbers that could stand for several more Olympiads.
Although an Olympic rookie, Nigeria, with 10 players who played college ball in the U.S., also has its share of pro experience.
Diogu, who was born in Buffalo, N.Y., after his parents emigrated from Africa, has played for eight NBA teams and Al-Farouq, the No. 8 overall pick in the 2010 draft, was traded last year by the Los Angeles Clippers to New Orleans in the deal for U.S. guard Chris Paul.
But there isn't a team in the Olympics that can match the American's celebrated roster with a combined 43 All-Star appearances, seven NBA titles and four league MVPs.
Krzyzewski gave his players the day off on Wednesday, a chance to relax and enjoy the games. Anthony and James Harden went to see boxing. Durant watched beach volleyball.
They came back rested.
And on target.


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The average hourly pay for a Diesel Mechanic with Electronic Troubleshooting skills in Knoxville, Tennessee is $17.00.
Is Diesel Mechanic your job title? Find out what you should be paid
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What Do Diesel Mechanics Do?
Diesel mechanics are in charge of maintenance, repair, and overall care for diesel vehicles such as buses, boats, trucks, and bulldozers. Most diesel mechanics repair, replace, recondition, dissemble, weld, and examine parts and engines. In some cases, these individuals will have expertise on a specific type of diesel engine. A diesel mechanic can work in government, vehicle wholesaling, freight trucking, and mass transit. Being a diesel mechanic is a very physical career, in which the individua…Read more
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Employees with Diesel Mechanic in their job title in Atlanta, Georgia earn an average of 47.5% more than the national average. These job titles also find higher than average salaries in Denver, Colorado (41.1% more) and Dallas, Texas (35.4% more).
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Merced, CAHome Menu
Financial Crimes (Fraud , Forgery & Identity Theft)
The Financial Crimes Unit has been charged with the investigation and prosecution of criminal offenses involving; split-deposit schemes, counterfeit checks, Internet fraud, stolen checks, identity thefts and identity takeovers within the City of Merced.
Over the years, the Merced Police Department's Financial Crimes Unit has kept pace with changing crime trends, technology, and law, and has adapted in order to meet contemporary crime problems. We continuously seek and implement new methods of investigation to efficiently combat crime based upon the opportunity caused by rapid changes in technology.
White-collar crime is responsible for the loss of billions of dollars annually to government, businesses, and citizens nationwide. The Financial Crimes Unit is committed to aggressively investigating and prosecuting offenders, of these financial crimes, in state and federal courts.
This website is designed to assist and educate you in dealing with the complexity of financial crimes. You will find information dealing with the prevention of financial crime and the necessary steps to take if you become a victim. You will also find a comprehensive section dealing with the most common scams and a listing of agencies and organizations that can provide you with additional information.


text: MrsGryn Posted January 29, 2011 KristinaName (Age): Kristina Kell (46) Tribe Designation: Ometepe Current Residence: Malibu, Calif. Occupation: Law Student (University of La Verne College of Law) Personal Claim to Fame: Understanding and learning how to deal with an autistic child; grasping the Autistic Spectrum and obtaining vigorous early intervention services to improve the quality of my son's life. This experience, and helping other families facing the same crisis, was the catalyst for my legal education. Inspiration in Life: Probably the men and women of our armed forces - these brave folks sweat, bleed and die for us here at home, and I appreciate them beyond words. Hobbies: Computers. Pet Peeves: Whining and people who are cheap. 3 Words to Describe You: Stubborn, logical and fair. SURVIVOR Contestant You Are Most Like: None. Reason for being on SURVIVOR: The money and experience. Why you think you'll "survive" SURVIVOR: I'm resourceful and tough as nails. If you don't know that lying and manipulation is a part of this game, then you're an idiot. Why you think you will be the sole SURVIVOR: There are a lot of amazing things in my life, and they all have started out with the thought, "I'm gonna do…(fill in the blank)." Whether it's making documentaries, opening my business, helping families cope with children on the Autistic Spectrum, going to law school, or winning SURVIVOR, they all start in my head as an idea. I take baby steps, one by one, until finally it's done. Biography courtesy of CBS.com Share this post Link to post Share on other sites


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NAZA Professional Development OpportunitiesClick Here for the Spring 2020 NAZA Training Calendar
Since its inception, NAZA has continuously invested in building youth workers' capacity to provide high-quality programming through free-of-charge trainings in positive youth development, youth program quality assessment, mental health, youth engagement, project-based learning, literacy and more. The offered professional development opportunities are intentionally five positive youth development principles that Nashville adopted in 2009, as well as to the domains of instructional quality that NAZA tracks through a partnership with the Weikart Center. NAZA trainings are free to all professionals in Nashville working with youth. In 2016–2017, NAZA provided 1,683 hours of trainings to 394 participants from NAZA-funded and non-NAZA-funded partners on how to deliver high-quality programs, including fostering positive youth development.
It opened my eyes to what I did not even know was missing in my program. I feel like i have learned things so I can better connect with my kids.
It gave me a direction for me personally and how to get my kids involved in our program.
Many of us don't have a Bachelor's degree in youth development. To see a list of everything we should be doing is really helpful.
- This event has passed.


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Oneida Indian Nation pressures NFL's Redskins to change name
As football season begins in America, the campaign to change one NFL team's name continues. The Oneida Indian Nation of New York announced last week the start of their "Change the Mascot" campaign to pressure Washington, D.C.'s football team, the Washington Redskins, to change its name and mascot.
"As a proud sponsor of the NFL, we are concerned that the NFL's continued use of such an offensive term is undermining its position as a unifying force in America," Oneida Nation representative Ray Halbritter said in a statement. "America is a society that values mutual respect. Using a slur and making a mascot out of our indigenous culture has no place in such a society."
The Oneida Nation launched a new radio ad that began airing in the D.C. market on Sunday ahead of Monday night's game between the Redskins and the Philadelphia Eagles. "That word, Redskins, is not a harmless term," Halbritter says in the ad. "We do not deserve to be called Redskins. We deserve to be treated as what we are: Americans."
Three news outlets—Slate, The New Republic, and Mother Jones—announced in August that they would no longer use "Redskins" to write about the Washington football team; the New York Times and AP have said they will continue using "Redskins."
American Indian Movement Youth Council Leader Tessa McLean of the Ojibwe Nation told NBC News that the term is offensive because of its reminder of colonization. "The dominating society says 'we're going to take your land, your language and culture and we're going to determine a mascot for you, and you're supposed to be okay with it.'"
The Redskins faced similar pressure from outside groups in the early '60s that led to the team's desegregation, making the Redskins the last NFL team to do so.
The pressure to change the Redskins' name began earlier this year after the Washington Post published various columns calling for a new name. In February, Post ombudsman Patrick Pexton defended the paper's choice after attacks that the city was bowing to the pressure to be politically correct. "Native Americans are not mascots or historical bygones to be imitated," Pexton wrote, "they're flesh-and-blood Americans, as much a part of the warp and weft of the living fabric of this country as George Washington or Thomas Jefferson."
In May, 10 members of Congress—nine Democrats and one Republican—sent a letter to Redskins owner Dan Snyder and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell urging them to change the team's name. The same group of lawmakers also introduced a bill to block companies from trademarking the term "redskin" in reference to Native Americans.
But Snyder said he has no plans to ever change the team's name. "As a lifelong Redskins fan, and I think that the Redskins fans understand the great tradition and what it's all about and what it means, so we feel pretty fortunate to be just working on next season."
He added, "We'll never change the name. It's that simple. NEVER—you can use caps."
But if Snyder did have a change of heart, this wouldn't be the first time a team changed its name because of a negative connotation—though it would be the first time such controversy pushed the decision. In 1995, the Washington Bullets became the Washington Wizards because team owner Abe Pollin wanted to "express his abhorrence of gun violence" in the D.C. community.


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Chas Frey was named Morenci Area High School's D.A.R. Good Citizen by the Lucy Wolcott Barnum Chapter, National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR).
The senior was honored at the D.A.R.'s monthly meeting March 17, at the Croswell in Adrian.
Good Citizens are high school seniors who demonstrate the qualities of leadership, service, dependability, and patriotism to an outstanding degree. They are chosen by their respective high schools.


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Highlighters & Headsets: The Jimmer ShowPosted by jstevrtc on January 28th, 2011
Highlighters and Headsets is an occasional look at the coverage of college basketball – from television to print (they still make paper?), blogs to bracket busters, and Gus Johnson to Gameday – written by RTC contributor Steve Moore. He welcomes your comments, column ideas and Dickie (V) jokes at firstname.lastname@example.com. You can follow him on Twitter @smoore1117.
With a Mountain West matchup taking a national stage for the first time, I'm sure there were plenty of college hoops fans – and mainstream sports fans (even Simmons was watching) – searching the cable guide for CBS College Sports Wednesday night.
While unable to watch live, I did set the DVR and decided to see how this mid-major network handled its moment in the sun. By the time I pressed play, the Twitter explosion had already told me how the Jimmer show went down in Provo. But since I usually leave the on-court analysis to my RTC colleagues, the suspense wasn't really what I was after.
Having only seen the occasional glimpse of action on CBS College Sports, I hopefully enter with no bias or prejudice. Hell, I don't even know who's on the call tonight. We'll soon find out.
PREGAME: First disappointment: Realizing I don't get CBS College Sports (CBS-C from now on) in high def. I understand they broadcast in it, and that some carriers offer it, but if you want to be a major sports network, you need to FORCE everyone to carry your HD feed (I'm looking at you, Fox Soccer Channel).


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Despite being more recently known for his roles in "Boston Legal" and "The Office," James Spader has had a vibrant film career ranging from "Less Than Zero" to "Sex, Lies and Videotape" to "Secretary." Now, in director Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln," Spader tallies another memorable screen credit playing the prototypical political operative W.N. Bilbo, who resorts to all manner of creative incentivizing and arm twisting to aid Abe Lincoln's bid to formally abolish slavery before ending the Civil War.
Spader, who like his role is himself a bit of a colorful character with a knock for verbal barnstorming, reveals what his experience was like recreating the most controversial period of 19th Century America.
Given the material, the director, your co‑stars, was it a treat to go to work each day on this film?
It really was lovely. I had an absolutely fantastic time in Richmond, Virginia. I was there with some of my family, and I was very lucky in that, although I'm a relatively small part in the film, my character was sort of peppered throughout the entire schedule. So I was able to drink it in, in its entirety. I think I showed up about ten days into the shoot, and I shot on the last day. So I just had absolutely a delightful time.
How did you avoid overplaying a character such as this, and find the right tone to give it the spirit that you know that character can bring to the proceedings?
At one point after we'd shot a couple of scenes – a handful of my scenes were sort of in a vacuum in that I was shooting with one other person. In some cases, they were a very small cameo and they'd be isolated little scenes – I saw an opportunity with this character to be able to take advantage of his vibrant colors. And I remember pulling Steven aside in, I think, maybe the third scene I did and said, 'I just want to make sure that as I'm eating a small amount of the scenery.' I wanted to make absolutely sure that I was making the same film that everybody else was making, and that the tone that my part of the film was going to balance well with the tone of the rest of the film. And he just told me to have at it. He just said 'Absolutely.'
And he was so confident, that he's such a wonderful director to work with, I just completely trusted him to put on the brakes, or help me to put on the brakes when necessary which he never did [Laughs]. There definitely were a couple of times where in my enthusiasm, my accent might get a little bit stronger than other places, and he would make me aware of it, but he really was so supportive of all the colors. In conjunction with the makeup and hair department and the costume department and myself and [screenwriter] Tony Kushner and everybody, we were given a certain amount of free rein with Bilbo. There was not as quite as much research material available on this character as there were with some of the other characters in the film. They didn't have any images of him, so it gave us a poetic license that we took full advantage of.
Working with Spielberg has got to be at the top of many actors' bucket lists. What was intriguing or enlightening for you about watching him work?
I was so thrilled by the moment I walked on the set – and I have known Steven, socially on and off through the years, but I never have worked with him before. And I just was so struck, from the very first moment I saw him working on the set, I saw that 16-year-old boy with the Super-8 camera. He has that incredible enthusiasm and thrill and curiosity and imagination that must have been there in the 16-year-old is unflagging in the whatever age he is now. I mean, it is not diminished one iota.
And that's not only thrilling, it's infectious and contagious. I was really inspired by that – and also, he's tireless! He would be shooting, if he had even a moment of break between scenes or between even setups, where others might go and eat or chat or smoke or nap or whatever, Stephen would be back in his trailer cutting previously-shot footage or working on pages with Tony Kushner for up-coming scenes.
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Every director I've ever worked with has had to devote every moment to the film that they're working on, but considering the time in his life that he's devoted to the making of films, and the enormous body of work that he has had, and the enormous success that he's had, I was fascinated to see it's completely unjaded, completely lacking in cynicism. He's thrilled to be there every single, solitary day.
Some of your colleagues have described the scenes they shared with Daniel Day-Lewis as feeling as if they had actually in some way met Abraham Lincoln himself. Did you experience anything similar?
I find that every actor – every good actor that I have ever worked with – is immersing themselves to different degrees. And in the moment that the camera is rolling, they're making an attempt to immerse themselves to the greatest degree. And some are more successful at that than others. And some are able to pick it up and put it down, and some aren't. I do not suffer from any form of schizophrenia. I have many other mental incapacities and many other issues and idiosyncrasies, but I am not schizophrenic in any way shape or form.
And therefore, I absolutely, do not believe that I was at any point talking to Abraham Lincoln. But in every scene I had with Daniel, I felt that we were all – and not just Daniel, everybody in the film – being the truest that they could be to that time and place, and those people set within those circumstances. But it may just be in the prism through which I see the world, including my work life, I'm still aware of the fact that I'm making a film.


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be nothing (much) to write home about(redirected from am nothing much to write home about)
be nothing (much) to write home about
To be not especially remarkable or noteworthy; to be rather dull, mediocre, uninteresting, or unimportant. A: "Have you eaten in that new sushi restaurant yet?" B: "Yeah, I went there last week. It was OK, but it's nothing to write home about." His performance has been nothing much to write home about so far. To be honest, we were expecting much more from him when we recruited him.


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We here at Collider are happy to debut a new image from director David Ayer's (Harsh Times) police thriller End of Watch. The film stars Jake Gyllenhaal and Michael Peña as two Los Angeles beat cops who get in over their heads when they decide to independently take down a drug operation. I caught some footage from the film at Comic-Con and thought it looked great. Much of the movie was filmed with handheld cameras, and Ayer's POV shots put the audience right in the middle of the action. Instead of another cliché-driven "corrupt cops" drama, End of Watch really focuses on the honest, dangerous work of everyday police officers. Moreover, the chemistry between Gyllenhaal and Peña is a lot of fun (watch a great clip right here).
Hit the jump to check out the new image, in which Gyllenhaal gets fairly intense. The film also stars Anna Kendrick, America Ferrera, Frank Grillo, and Natalie Martinez. End of Watch opens on September 21st.
Here's the synopsis for End of Watch:
From the writer of Training Day, END OF WATCH is a riveting action thriller that puts audiences at the center of the chase like never before. Jake Gyllenhaal and Michael Peña star as young LA police officers who discover a secret that makes them the target of the country's most dangerous drug cartel.
Click to enlarge.