text:
Restored farmhouse opened in the year 2000, with rustic decoration in which the foundation stone stands out. It features extensive lounges overlooking the Ulla valley, a terrace with views of the mountain (Pico Sacro) and 4 hectares of grounds.
Dining room with a seating capacity of 30.
It includes an air-conditioned outbuilding with winepress and stove prepared for making charcoal-grilled meat and fish. It still has its original oak beams, along with stones from an old dovecot. It has a seating capacity of 25.
For active tourism enthusiasts, there is a trekking route along the Ulla River 3 km away. From the house you can walk to the top of Pico Sacro, with a view of the entire Ulla valley and Santiago de Compostela.
The house is located in the village of Lestedo, at the foot of Pico Sacro, 10 km from Santiago and 12 km from the airport.
9 double rooms with ensuite bathroom, hairdryer, piped music, heating, television and free WiFi ADSL.
, Access for disabled, Animals accepted (ask for details), Barbecue / Grill, Bike rental (ask for details), Car park, Children's playground, Chimney, Common TV, Cots, Dining room, Garden/Terrace, Green spaces, Hairdryer in rooms, In-room music, Lounge, Swimming pool, WiFi internet access, WiFi internet access in rooms


text:
To the addled Chelsea show-garden designer, questions of medals – gold, silver-gilt, silver or bronze – will seem almost irrelevant today. For the past two weeks, he or she has been up to their neck in mud at the showground, dicing with heavy machinery and drinking strong coffee. Right now they are the most exhausted they have ever been, putting their last ounce of energy into tweaking every twig into place.
On Monday afternoon, press day, it will almost be over: all they have to do is brush their hair and meet Her Majesty the Queen.
As usual, the medals will be announced early on Tuesday morning, the results hand-delivered in an envelope to each garden in turn. Joy or devastation follows. Last year two designers were so unhappy with what they felt were low-ranking medals, that their complaints prompted a review of the judging process. The RHS has since promised "evolutionary" changes to make the system more transparent.
Essentially, however, the judges have to balance their gut reactions to a garden with an objective points system. It is on this basis that an unlimited number of medals is awarded, and the overall winner, the Best in Show, is decided.
There is no doubting the integrity of the judges, who all work on a voluntary basis. For them, the sponsor is immaterial – it's the garden that counts. This is borne out by the relatively poor medals sometimes awarded to gardens backed by important sponsors. I have been one of the RHS's sternest critics when it comes to judging, but I do not believe it is possible to "buy" a Chelsea medal.
The big question this year has to be whether the Telegraph Garden can win yet again, adding a fourth Best in Show to its unprecedented run of three, from 2009 to 2011. Designer Sarah Price is a relative newcomer, up against three former Best in Show winners: Arne Maynard, Andy Sturgeon and Cleve West.
She is, however, a canny choice. As a young designer, her first Chelsea gold will be cause for real celebration and, as a principal designer of the Olympic Park, this could be her year. So, may the best garden win – now place your bets.
For William Hill's odds on the Chelsea Best in Show winner, visit williamhill.com and search under TV/specialsPicture: MARTIN POPE

subset: commoncrawl


text:
LAST UPDATED: May 8th, 2015
For all the fun, challenge and satisfaction we find in scouting, hunting sheds and bowhunting deer, elk and other critters, I'm often struck how often guys tell me they're unhappy with the neighbors, deer numbers or rut activity.
Research shows that "nonconsumptive" recreationists – such as hikers, bikers, campers and rowers – report more satisfaction from their activities than do hunters, anglers and mushroom hunters.
It seems I'm not alone. In fact, here's something to think about: If hunters, anglers and mushroom pickers want to return home feeling happier and more satisfied after every outing, we might want to take up hiking, camping, canoeing or birdwatching.
Like it or not, research consistently shows "consumptive" recreationists – hunter-gatherers – report significantly lower satisfaction ratings than our "nonconsumptive" counterparts.
When Professor Jerry Vaske at Colorado State University reported this finding in 1982, he also predicted it wouldn't change much over time. Why? Probably because hunter-gatherers typically have specific goals like shooting a deer or catching a perch. Further, even if we choose great spots with higher odds of reaching our goals, we can't control deer activity or perch feeding habits.
Nonconsumptive recreationists don't have such exact goals and expectations. Plus, they usually have more control in determining their outing's satisfaction, whether it's a campsite's location, a trail's scenery, a hike's length, or a rapids' degree of difficulty. They can choose outings that best match their skills and interests, which increases satisfaction.
Sure, hunters and anglers also enjoy violet sunrises, fog-shrouded valleys and smoky-gold tamaracks, but these are desserts, not necessarily main courses.
Friends enjoy a campfire after a full day of bowhunting elk in Idaho.
And although we photograph snow-draped cedars for their beauty, we judge the snow's usefulness by whether it helps us see deer, find tracks, or hear hoofsteps. Likewise, we might appreciate a cool breeze on hot afternoons, but then we'll curse it for ruining our casts, blowing our scent to deer, or pushing our boat off biting fish.
Too many standards. Too little control. Too many distractions and failed expectations.
And ultimately, too much room for frustration.
So when Professor Vaske recently updated and expanded his 1982 research, no wonder he found hunters and anglers still aren't as satisfied as bikers, climbers, kayakers, runners and other nonconsumptive recreationists. This time, Vaske and his research assistant, Jennifer Roemer, analyzed 102 studies – 57 consumptive and 45 nonconsumptive – that examined satisfaction levels of participants in a wide range of outdoor activities from 1975 through 2005.
Even mushroom hunters tend to report less overall satisfaction in the outdoors than do campers.
Despite the large sample, the results differed little from his 1982 research. This shouldn't surprise anyone, but I'm guessing some bowhunters and fishermen will take it personally.
Yes, not everyone feels dissatisfied. Many of us enjoy every outing, and don't need to arrow a big buck to feel content. It says so on our bumper stickers "The worst day bowhunting beats the best day working."
Unfortunately, we aren't the majority. When researchers compile data and cross-check answers, they often find things that separate fibs from fact, and wishes from reality.
Even though birders report greater satisfaction than do hunters, how many of us would trade bowhunting for birdwatching?
Vaske notes that while hunters and anglers have other goals that influence satisfaction — such as camaraderie, solitude and being alone in nature – the research found these things were "partial substitutes" and of "secondary importance." In fact, "seeing, shooting and bagging game" remain the most important factors for evaluating hunting and fishing experiences, and "the strongest predictors of overall satisfaction."
In contrast, the goals of campers, backpackers and other nonconsumptive types are more general, Vaske writes. They, too, might feel motivated to test skills, seek solitude, experience nature and spend time with friends. These goals, however, aren't as specific as catching a meal of bluegills or shooting a doe for the family's larder. Therefore, nonconsumptive goals are "more easily substituted if one goal is not satisfied."
Even when some of us go snowshoeing, our main interest is scouting for deer sign.
In other words, it's probably asking too much of hunting – on land or in the water – to satisfy all hunters all the time. For example, when Wisconsin deer hunters rated their experiences the past 10 years of record-setting seasons, you would have thought some were being water-boarded.
After setting the Wisconsin-record deer kill (528,494) in 2000, the majority opinion – 40.8 percent of hunters – judged the season's quality "about average." After Wisconsin's No. 2 gun-deer season (413,794 kills) in 2004, the majority – 52 percent – ranked its quality "low." And after tallying Wisconsin's No. 3 gun season (402,563 kills) in 2007, the majority – 53.6 percent – also ranked it "low."
Worse, some think it's the government's responsibility to satisfy and make them happy by supplying more deer, even as they protest taxes, threaten license boycotts, and demand government get off their backs.
Unfortunately, if anyone thinks lawmakers can deliver long-term hunting and fishing satisfaction, their frustrations and disappointments are just beginning.


text:
FIFA insists the decision on what time of year to hold the 2022 World Cup will not be made until after this summer's tournament, after secretary general Jerome Valcke claimed the Qatar finals would not occur in June and July.
• World Cup Daily: Wednesday
• Platini: Qatar will have final say
• Marcotti: Let's talk about Qatar
• Vote: Would you be OK with a winter World Cup?
Scheduling has been debated ever since the tournament was controversially awarded to Qatar in December 2010, especially over fears that the summer heat in the Gulf state would be dangerous for players and fans alike.
Valcke reiterated his stance on Wednesday, telling Radio France: "The dates for the World Cup [in Qatar] will not be June-July. To be honest, I think it will be held between November 15 and January 15 at the latest.
"If you play between November 15 and the end of December that's the time when the weather conditions are best, when you can play in temperatures equivalent to a warm spring season in Europe, averaging 25 degrees. That would be perfect for playing football.''
FIFA vice-president Jim Boyce responded to the comments, telling Sky Sports News he was "shocked" to hear Valcke's statement as a decision has yet to be made by the Executive Committee.
And world football's governing body confirmed that Valcke was simply expressing his own opinion.
"Secretary general Jerome Valcke explained today in the Radio France interview -- as he had already mentioned previously -- that in his view the 2022 FIFA World Cup must take place in winter and the best possible time frame would be 15 November to 15 January," a statement from FIFA said.
"However, the precise event date is still subject to an ongoing consultation process which involves all main event stakeholders, including both the international football community (FIFA, confederations, member associations, leagues, clubs, players) as well as FIFA's commercial partners (commercial affiliates and media rights licensees).
"As the event will not be played until eight years' time the consultation process will not be rushed and will be given the necessary time to consider all of the elements relevant for a decision. Consequently, no decision will be taken before the upcoming 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil as agreed by the FIFA Executive Committee."
As well as controversy over the potential dates of the World Cup, Qatar has also attracted criticism for its alleged mistreatment of the migrant workers who are building the country's stadiums ahead of the World Cup.


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text:
satellites with the naked eye ... Photograph
shuttles with your telescope ...
Glimpse the dramatic Iridium
flares ... Watch
the Space Station Construction
Several hundred spacecraft now orbit around our planet.
Many of those in low earth orbit (LEO) are bright enough
to be seen by the naked eye as they streak across the
night sky.
Some of the largest spacecraft, such as the shuttle
and the Mir space station, have even been imaged
by amateur telescopes with considerable detail.
A video made by Gary Eldridge from his
backyard with an amateur telescope
of a solar transit by the ISS and docked Shuttle. For
more details, see the posting here:
solar transits of ISS and Shuttle from a back yard -
Space for All blog - Mar.13.08
the archive for previous articles
the archive for previous articles
The easiest way to get started perhaps is to
use the Heavens Above online
program to find the time and coordinates of satellites
that are passing over your location tonight.
Remember to bookmark the prediction page that
is returned after you submit your location information.
The bookmark holds your location so that the next time
that you click on this bookmark, you will get the satellite
visibility page already setup for you.
See also the information at Project
Starshine in which a mirror covered spherical satellite
was tracked by students: Beginner's
guide FAQ.
The Astronomical
Leagues satellite observing program is called the
Orbiting Satellite Observers Club (EOSOC) and teir
website offers resources for the satellite observing
enthusiast such as this tutorial.
As you get more involved in satellite observing, you
probably will want to use one of the offline
tracking programs, many of which are freeware. Many
of these provide star charting as well and thus can
lead you into general astronomy.
supports a Twitter
service that tweets you when the ISS is going to fly
over your location. Follow the Twisst
account to get the notices. It uses your Twitter
account profile information to determine your location.
Here's an overview of satellite observing:
Legault, astrophotographer extraordinaire, talks
with Nancy Atkinson of UniverseToday.com
about the art of observing and imaging spacecraft in
Here are interesting historical accounts of a nationwide
program in the US started in the 1950s to organize amateur
astronomers in the tracking of satellites:
Run in your browser the Satellite
Tracking Tool provided to HobbySpace
by BINARY
The program allows you to track a large set of satellites
in low earth and geostationary orbits. (Windows 10 users
must instead obtain the free SpaceTracker
Note: the program requires Microsoft
Silverlight, version 5 or higher, as well as the
latest version of your preferred browser. Currently
the program works on the Microsoft® Windows® platform
The program also presents satellites in a choice of
3-D views.
Use the program's interactive controls to obtain data
on satellites, to predict their orbits, and more.
Satellite Observer
This web site is devoted to amateur observations of
satellites. Lots of info on everything related to seeing
spacecraft passing overhead.
- Earth Orbiting Satellite Observers Club
This group, sponsored by the Astronomical
League, is administered by the Colorado
Springs Astronomical Society. The club provides
lots of resources for the satellite watcher. such as
this Tutorial.
Google Maps/Google EarthTools
The Google
Map system can be used by outsiders to develop interesting
utilities with it. Here are Google map based tools that
track satellites:
Aerospace launched its first inflatable space habitat
prototype module - called Genesis-1 - on July 12, 2006.
Several more modules will follow it to orbit in the
coming years. Here are some resources on tracking and
observing these modules.
Genesis-1 has been labeled object 29252 by the U.S.
Space Command. It has the nternational Designation Code
of 2006-029-A. The module follows a 345 x 349 mile (555
x 561 kilometer) orbit and is at a 64.5 degree inclination.
NASA: ISS Passes
There are several NASA pages to obtain info on when
the ISS will be visible from your location:
Enter Zip Code
A Visit from Atlantis
Credit & Copyright: Ron Dantowitz, Marek Kozubal,
Center Observatory, Dexter and Southfield Schools.
Picture of the Day, June.28.07 . See also
Station Watching - Sky and Telescope - June.28.07
Photos of spacecraft in low earth orbit
with amateur level telescopes (e.g. 12" Schmidt-Cassegrain)
have been made that provide enough detail to make out
features of the Mir space station and space shuttles.
Amateur astronomers can now follow the
progress of construction on the International
Space Station, which is already one of the brightest
objects in the nightsky.
Ron Dantowitz took the Mir image shown
at top. His Mir images and shuttle images were taken
from nearly 400km during the daytime with a 12" Schmidt-Cassegrain
telescope on a Meridian
Archimage mount.
Image of the Mir space station taken by Ron Dantowitz
daytime on the ground with a 12" Schmidt-Cassegrain
on a Meridian Archimage mount.
Dantowitz and Marek. Kozubal, now at the Clay
Center for Science and Technology, continue their
spacecraft observations and have made detailed images
of the International Space Station.
Image of the Atlantis space shuttle taken in 1996
by Ron Dantowitz
Legault, amateur astrophotographer extraordinaire,
took an
image of the ISS and Shuttle Discovery on February
28, 2011 that shows astronaut Steve Bowen during an
EVA. This is believed the first confirmed image taken
from the ground of an astronaut in orbit:
Here are some links to other spacecraft
images made from the ground:
Meridian provides satellite tracking systems for telescopes.
"...Meridian's proprietary astronomy and satellite
tracking mounts are so advanced that you can view
and photograph the Space Shuttle, Mir, and other satellites
in orbit- even during the daytime. See the solar panels
and modules of Mir before it burns up in the atmosphere.
Or watch up close as astronauts build the International
Space Station in orbit. Shuttle dockings, spacewalks,
Russian spy satellites and burned-out rocket stages
are now easily visible at the push of a button."
"...Meridian's proprietary astronomy and satellite
tracking mounts are so advanced that you can view
and photograph the Space Shuttle, Mir, and other satellites
in orbit- even during the daytime. See the solar panels
and modules of Mir before it burns up in the atmosphere.
Or watch up close as astronauts build the International
Space Station in orbit. Shuttle dockings, spacewalks,
Russian spy satellites and burned-out rocket stages
are now easily visible at the push of a button."
One of the first Iridium flare photos. Taken Sept. 20,
Copyright © Chris Dorreman. Courtesy of Chris
The Iridium communications constellation
consists of 72 or so satellites built and controlled
by the Iridium
consortium led by Motorola. The initial constellation
was completed in May 1998.
satellite. The flares occur when sunlight reflects off
the Main Antenna.
When these satellites pass overhead they
can give a bright flash, or flare, when seen
at just the right position with respect to the satellite
and the sun. This is caused by reflections off the main
antennas, not the solar panels.
There are now several web sites devoted
to this phenomena, which can be very striking. The sites
give information on finding where and when the flares
can be seen from a given location.
Satellite Observer
Visual Satellite Observer provides lots of info on seeing
Iridium flares as well as other satellites. They provide
a page of Iridium
Flare Photos and also a list of programs
for predicting the time and brightness of flares over
your location.
More Sites
Astronomical Info
Latitude-Longitude Finding
Sun & Moon
Project Moonwatch
A program started in the 1950s to enlist the help of
amateur astronomers to observe and monitor artificial
satellites. Initiated by famousof Harvard astronomer
Fred L. Whipple, it eventually involved thousands of
participants. They were quite important in tracking
the first satellites before special full time tracking
stations were set up by late in the decade.
Space Flight (HSF) - Realtime Data
NASA's HSF site provides links to several applets and other resources
for online racking of the space shuttles, ISS, and satellites. E.g.
NASA J-Track J-Pass
Satellite Tracker
SatPasses - Satellite
Passes Over North American Cities
Bester Tracking Systems provides
the viewing predictions for several satellites, plus the shuttle when
it is up, as seen from a long list of North American cities.
Binary Space
This company builds "state-of-the-art Satellite Telemetry Monitoring &
Commanding Systems (TM/TC)". Their SatView package has been used for
many space projects including Artemis, MARECS-A, ITALSAT-2, etc.
They now offer a real-time satellite tracking plug-in based on
Microsoft® Silverlight® 4 that you can check it out for free here.
With an easy to use drag-and-drop interface, you select from a big library
of spacecraft to track their current locations and to obtain future orbits.
They write, It has been developed solely for 'space enthusiasts' and is
not intended for use by professionals.They are asking for input on the
program including suggestions for what orbit prediction services they
should implement.
Stephen M. Schimpf offers this shareware planetarium program for Windows
CyberSky is an accurate, yet easy-to-use planetarium program that provides
an excellent way to learn about astronomy and explore the sky visible
in the distant past, the present, and the far-off future. CyberSky can
display and print attractive, highly-customizable maps of the sky as
seen from your home, your favorite vacation spot, or any other location
on the Earth. The programs clean, user-friendly interface makes it
easy to identify the objects you see in the sky and find the objects
you want to see.
CyberSky is an accurate, yet easy-to-use planetarium program that provides
an excellent way to learn about astronomy and explore the sky visible
in the distant past, the present, and the far-off future. CyberSky can
display and print attractive, highly-customizable maps of the sky as
seen from your home, your favorite vacation spot, or any other location
on the Earth. The programs clean, user-friendly interface makes it
easy to identify the objects you see in the sky and find the objects
you want to see.
Distant Suns
Mike Smithwicks astronomy package is for
".. casual skywatchers to seasoned amateur astronomers ... Distant
Suns is compatible with Windows 95,98, ME, NT and 2000, and Macintosh.
With Distant Suns you may view the sky at the time of your birth, watch
the sun set behind Saturn, land on Mars and follow newly discovered
".. casual skywatchers to seasoned amateur astronomers ... Distant
Suns is compatible with Windows 95,98, ME, NT and 2000, and Macintosh.
With Distant Suns you may view the sky at the time of your birth, watch
the sun set behind Saturn, land on Mars and follow newly discovered
Other features include : Different astronomical stories and tutorials
for each night of the year. Create your own "space movies". Print out
star charts. In depth information of each star and planet. Over 16 million
stars.-Event Alert system will warn you of any upcoming eclipses and meteor
Distant Suns - Grand3D
Night Sky
Gary Nugent provides these programs:
- A Satellite Tracking/Orbital Prediction Program
This program is "an open-source, multi-user satellite tracking and
orbital prediction program written under the Linux operating system by
John A. Magliacane, KD2BD. PREDICT is free software. Users may redistribute
it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License
as published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 2 of the
License or any later version."
Available for Linux/Unix and for DOS under Windows.
Satellite Tool Kit - Analytical
Graphics Inc.
Analytical Graphics professional level satellite tracking program.
Hughes Aerospace, for example, used it to plan the maneuvers of a communications
satellite, which was placed in a useless orbit by a fualty launcher, to
do lunar swingbys to put it into a viable orbit.
This program once cost several thousand dollars. Surprisingly, though,
it has been made available now as freeware. The company says it makes
money by selling sophisticated add-ons for particular applications.
Shuttle/Satellite Tracking
A program by the late David H. Ransom.
It offers the STSPLUS program for DOS to track the shuttles and also satellites
using NASA/NORAD 2-Line Orbital Elements. Shows position and ground track.
AMSAT Software
An assortment of software used in the amateur satellite community. Includes
satellite tracking. A few programs also come with the source code - Downloadable
Software - with source code
CelesTrak WWW Software
T.S. Kelso's CelesTrak offers
several satellite tracking packages to download. The site also provides
the Satellite Tracking Software
Index with descriptions of several other satellite tracking programs.
Microcosm Astronautics
Microcosm is a rocket
company that also sells books
and also software for space applications.
John Walker's
Earth Viewer
John Walker, the inventor of AutoCad,
now writes wonderful freeware such as this program that provides satellite
orbital prediction as well as other astronomical displays.
Space Radio & Observing Books
Amazon.com &


text: We help campers strengthen a solid base of musical knowledge and emphasize ensemble and personal performance improvement. Additional attention is given to the acquisition of knowledge on their specific instrument, the expressive qualities of music, and ways to broaden or focus their interest in music. We also create a positive environment that assists the camper in meeting and making friends.


text:
City forgives: Charlottesville delays sidewalk enforcement
"Wouldn't it be great," says pedestrian advocate Kevin Cox, "if people could say, 'I got to work because the sidewalks are clear and the buses are running."
Alas, what's bad for Cox is good news for those who got a pass from the Charlottesville ordinance that normally punishes those who haven't cleared the sidewalks along their property.
The list of apparent no-shovelers included such notables as film director and homeless center creator Tom Shadyac, Albemarle Administrator Bob Tucker, whose County Office Building sidewalks were strewn with snow, City Public Works Director Judy Mueller, who oversees the snow-blocked city streets and medians, and even the artists of McGuffey Art Center–- originally lauded online but who left their Market Street sidewalk untouched.
And that's just what was obvious Tuesday, December 22 on a jaunt from the Downtown Mall to Bodo's Bagel Bakery, which also seems to belong on the list.
City code requires all property owners to shovel adjoining sidewalks by noon after a snowfall, and Cox–- well-known for his own multi-mile by-foot commute between the Woolen Mills and the UVA Medical Center–- finds it ironic that the law has been officially forgiven, despite near-constant sunshine and above-freezing temperatures since the flakes quit falling.
"There's no excuse," says Cox. "The weather has been perfect for shoveling snow."
Moreover, Cox says, citizens need pedestrianism now more than ever, especially as the City–- which normally operates 16 transit routes–- has tacitly admitted that it failed to clear it own streets by curtailing bus service as late as Tuesday to just two routes: the Free Trolley, which plys a short route between out-of-session UVA and the #7 bus to Fashion Square mall.
"Why can't more of them travel?" asks Cox. "This is the time to make sure that the alternatives exist."
City spokesperson Ric Barrick replies that the trolley and Route 7 combine to carry about two-thirds of all transit capacity. (As of Wednesday, December 23, bus Route 8 was added.)
Bodo's manager Scott Smith expressed regret that something he normally gets accomplished got pushed back in the turmoil. That's also Albemarle County's excuse.
"Basically, we've been sequencing the snow removal, says spokeswoman Lee Catlin. "All weekend, we were working to keep fire and police headquarters open on 5th Street."
A crew has begun working at the County Office Building at McIntire and Preston, says Catlin. "We expect it to be clear today," she says Tuesday afternoon. (Indeed, it got cleared before 8am Wednesday.)
As for McGuffey, artist Cynthia Burke says the artists did a little shoveling but notes, "The City is still in charge of the grounds."
The City's Barrick announced via press release that Charlottesville would start enforcing the sidewalk-clearing ordinance at noon on Wednesday, December 23. But he told a reporter that City action would come as warnings, not warrants.
Cox says he's tired of excuses.
"Hey, I know it was two feet of snow," says Cox. "I shoveled two feet of snow."
On January 5, Cox says, "Many major sidewalks and curb ramps in town are still blocked by large piles of snow put there by snowplows." He beseeches the city to enforce the ordinance, 18 days after the snowstorm.
The number of sidewalk scofflaws who have been fined: zero, according to public works director Judith Mueller, who told City Council January 4 that the city did issue warnings.
Cox added that he hopes Charlottesville will denote snow emergency routes–- such as Main, Emmet, and Market Streets; Barracks Road; and Preston and Cherry Avenues–- thoroughfares important enough that City keeps their sidewalks open.
"On a dead-end cul-de-sac with 12 houses," says Cox, "it doesn't matter. But if they had snow emergency routes, people could walk to work or to Reid's [supermarket] to get groceries."
"I think that makes a lot of sense," says Mayor Dave Norris. "I think that's an excellent suggestion."
–story updated at 1:24pm Wednesday with response from Barrick, new idea from Cox, and confirmation that the County finally cleared its sidewalks –story updated again at 2:38pm Sunday, December 27 with response from mayor
–updated Sunday, January 3 with minor clarifying details
–updated Tuesday, January 5
71 comments
I think a large part of the problem was that no one was prepared for a snow of this type, as it had been 13 years(1996) since one like it had occurred. Just didnt believe it could happen.
One thing I'd like to address is the sidewalk issue. I think most residents did a good job clearing their walks- and as someone pointed out there are lots of people physically incapable of shovelling snow. Everyone knows of the danger of heart attack from this activity. I think Kevin Cox's comments were uncalled for.
But what I find really infuriating is that the city itself has piled snow on sidewalks. The sidewalk by Maplewood Cemetery is still impassable. And there are numerous others in my neighborhood downtown. It is not uncommon to be walking up a clear, dry sidewalk and come to the curb by the street to find it blocked by a wall of snow. Common sense would seem to dictate you don't block walks or driveways with piles of snow. It may not be possible to not block cars parked on the street.
On New Year's Day I hiked from home downtown to Pantops Shopping Center via High St. All the sidewalks were fine save one, that at a vacant building . The only obstacles were these huge walls of snow blocking passage and forcing one to walk in the street.
Hollow Boy,
I don't want anybody to hurt themselves shoveling snow. There are good reasons that some people should stay inside and leave the shoveling to others. Still, many localities get their streets and sidewalks cleared and they don't force the sick, disabled and elderly to kill themselves doing it. There's no excuse for leaving sidewalks and curb ramps covered with snow days and now weeks after the snow fell.
On Monday morning after the snow stopped I walked across town and saw many long stretches of cleared sidewalk. The sidewalk in front of the Amtrak station was clear. The sidewalks on the Drewary Brown Bridge were covered with snow that quickly compacted into ice. Other long stretches of cleared sidewalk were made inacessible by roadblocks of snow pushed from streets and private parking lots and driveways. Ablebodied pedestrians were forced out into traffic and in fact still, three weeks later must walk into traffic because of huge roadblocks of snow. People with mobility and visual impairements cannot access the cleared portions because of piles of snow across the sidewalks and on top of the curb ramps.
When Judy Mueller gave the snow removal report at the recent City Council meeting she said that the city had nowhere else to put the snow but on the sidewalks. That was true in some cases. In order to get streets clear snow had to be pushed onto sidewalks. That should have been a temporary step in cleaning up. In many spots though, there were obvious alternative locations for the snow, sometimes just a few feet away. In other cases snow was pushed onto sidewalks and curb ramps temporarily and then removed soon after that. City plows pushed snow onto the sidewalks around the Ridge/West Main intersection. Then they returned a day or two later and removed some of it from the sidewalks around the Lewis and Clark staue. But a large pile on top of the curb ramp at South and Ridge was left for weeks and only removed yesterday. Midway Manor is at that corner and is full of people with a variety of mobility and visual impairments. The curb ramp at the corner of 7th and Market that leads up to the City Hall Annex was left covered for weeks even though all the adjacent sidewalks were cleared and city crews removed piles of snow from the city employees parking lot across the street.
Kevin Cox
We were in Maryland this weekend and drove back Monday. The roads were 100% clear until we'll hit Albemarle county. We got stuck in the snow twice only blocks from our house in Charlottesville.
You can't shovel a sidewalk when you keep waiting for the plow that never comes. Where are the plows? It seems people are hiring private companies or friends to plow their driveways and streets, but why isn't the city doing the same?
It's just backwards that the city can fine people for not shoveling when they haven't even plowed more than once. I hope the next city council meeting is packed to address the issue of snow preparedness.
Can't or won't... can somebody get me some tissues please? I agree that it is crazy to fine people for not shoveling sidewalks when the city and county can't get it done themselves, but that's just C-ville/Albemarle politics, rules and regs.... do as I say not as I do. Let's not define ourselves by the same code as our elected officials impose.
if they fine you,dont pay. if they tell you to clear it. tell them PLOW MY DARN STREET AND THEN ILL SHOVEL MY SIDEWALK FOR HOBO'S TO FALL ASLEEP ON.
Sounds like a bunch of crap to me. The city always expects others to do things that they don't. On 8th Street in Chville the sidewalk outside of the rear entrance to City Hall hasn't been done. The majority of the time I saw trucks riding with their blades up...oh ...but don't be fooled the more prominant areas some of them got taken care of...the city is a joke just like the police force with approx. 9 blk officers in an area where the demographic makeup is like 30 percent black...??? go figure ...have you heard about them kicking in a wrong apartment door in Hardy Drive a few weeks ago and the officers beat up a 75 year old man... someone really needs to do something with the city and Gary O...
Our road OLD Lynchburg rd, Southern Albemarle was cleared again tonight prior to about 8PM.
It made a world of difference.
I notice today prior to 5Pm most of the city sidewalks are yet to be shoveled.
I wish the city would enforce the fines.
Most snow events I see and hear snow plows routinely but this time around they came mostly after 12PM. I think the first time our road was plowed was early Monday morning.
I understand that all politicians are now formulating a promise that snow will never be allowed to fall here again due to global warming, climate change and decree.............."change you can believe in.."
Walked Rugby Road today, guess the frats are waiting for it to melt. Had to dodge cars while walking in the road due to icy covered sidewalks.
I have never known this NOT to be the case in the past when we have had heavy snows.
I guess it takes more than feel-good positions on social issues to run a city well.
Early January and still some sidewalks are not shoveled - how about some fines ?
Check the Code, not only can you be fined, you can be JAILED for up to 12 months for not having your sidewalk clear.
hear, hear Danica. The city would be FOOLISH to enforce this law when the streets are so poorly maintained.
Not to say that Kevin Cox isn't right. When I had to shovel out my car, I borrowed a shovel from the house where I parked. I shoveled half their walk both as a favor and because I had to to get to my car. Now I regret not shoveling the other half of their sidewalk.
To think that citizens could get fined for not shoveling when the city cannot provide the basic service of plowing the streets strikes me as the height of unfairness. Charlottesville should do better before punishing her citizenry.
If the kids were in school all the buses would be running
jim s, I speak German, French, Arabic, and Hebrew. I have a fairly good understanding of Latin although I'm still learning it and I'm hardly fluent. I also have a master's degree in English composition although my bachelors degree was only for a dual major in math and physics.
You're right, hillbillies like me do get hung up on things like making our sentences have subjects. We insist on on both proper punctuation and spelling too. Maybe your forward looking "new millennium" speak is just to fast for me to handle. Like the following:
".Bet you couldn't get through cause the answering machine was still on the the people who are supposed to represent you where hamming it up for the TV news readers.Man"
A more likely explanation would be that you are just a hapless marooon, which is what I'm betting... I'm sure that other local weekly publication would love to print your thoughts on their "rant" page, where it belongs.
"marooon" Is this a color or a fool?
Most streets in Fry's Spring don't have sidewalks, so I'm glad they got a front-end loader over here last night, and at least pushed some snow around; piled it where sidewalks would be, if we had them, so if you meet a car walking on our streets there's nowhere to go but into the snowbank.
OLR I just went down Old Lynchburg Road and it looked fine. There was 2 feet of snow, where is it supposed to go? Try driving in Forest Lakes or in some of the subdivisions in the County.
Difference is there are fewer cars coming at you if you're walking in county subdivisions. And I wasn't referring to Old Lynchburg Rd, but the other side streets. Not saying the county is any better, but in all the past storms I can remember, the plows were out early and often, and we had sand and salt to deal with all the ice now on the roads, not this time.
CC Spoken just like one of C-Ville upper crusted self serving locals.With all you education Id bet you never worked a day in your life (except for the family winery). You still don't get it do you ? Just get in your Volvo can drive off into the sunset !
Well it would be pretty hypocritical for the city to fine people for sidewalks when they can't even clear the streets. I haven't even SEEN a single city plow (well not one that was actually plowing). I think in my neighborhood, the streets are clear because of a combination of being driven over/natural melting.
But certain businesses on The Corner have done a really terrible disservice by not clearing the walks at all. I'm thinking of a certain former billiards bar.
Interesting. Several years ago an officer showed up at my front door saying a neighbor had complained that I hadn't shoveled the walk. It had been a very light snow, it was in the 50's, and it all would soon be gone but I went out and tried to shovel anyway. I know who called. About a month later we had a big snow when this person was at the ACC Tournament and his walk wasn't shoveled. I was tempted to call the cops on him but decided not to stoop to his level. Fortunately he is no longer in the neighborhood.
This is a tough issue. I shovel my walk all the time and agree with all those who say that people should shovel their walks. On the other hand some elderly folks can't do it or afford to pay for it. I am blessed to have wonderful friends and neighbors. I was out of town when it snowed. They shoveled my front walk which is 300 feet long and then shoveled a path out to my mother's house (90 years old) which is another 100 yards. Two football fields! How do we take care of those people who can't shovel and don't have wonderful friends & neighbors but crack down on individuals and businesses that can shovel their walks but don't.
I saw one snow plow today during the 3 hours I spent downtown. It had its blade up. And you want to what? increase my taxes!
I sure hope the elderly and disabled get out a clear those sidewalks before they get tazed . Oh and a big NO to snowball fights , I hear you get the gun pointed at ya for that now days .
:) Dakota
comment deleted by the moderator
I have never seen anything like these streets in my life. They have plows why aren't they using them? Why are they not clearing the streets? Whatever that mixture is they are laying on the streets didn't work. This is absolutely insane and I feel sorry for the already strapped retailers who have lost customers because of the city's inability to clear the streets.
Oh don't forget Albemarle county either. Atrocious.
I cant understand why Rt29 from the Greene county line into Albermarle county was so bad. Greene did a wonderful job of clearing the roads but Albermarle sucked. Whats up with Albermarle?
I see on the CTS web site that once again most of the busses are not running on Wednesday. I can understand them not being operational over the weekend but this is four days after the storm. Unlike city employees, many of us do not get paid if we don't go to work. It is almost a joke that there is a bus to Fashion Square Mall so people can shop - how do they expect people to get to the # 7? Exactly who makes this type of crappy decision ?
Sure hope the City gets fined, for any street that isn't cleared, by noon tomorrow.
im moving out of this dumb city. it takes 40+ years to build a road,a week+ to do such a simple job to plow the streets,a horrible job of maintaining the streets they DO plow,and it takes a hour for Emergency Responders to respond to a call on a DRY day. let alone a snow'y one. and the "city council" wants to raise our taxes?!?!?!?! ill pay when i see a snow plow come down my street.
You dont wait untill the snow stops falling and cars start to drive on it and pack it down till you start to plow! They need to have a game plan ahead of time. What drivers will cover what area. Then you begin soon after the snow begins then you continue to clear your assigned area, more than one time. Then there isnt 6 inches of packed down snow/ice that you idiots cant even plow. So this melts/freezes/and melts again for the entire week. Get a brain Virginia. People in other parts of the country get snow all the time and know how to work it out. If you are clueless then call one of those states and ask them how they do it.
Kim are you single by chance?
I'll give everyone a couple more ââ?¬Å?Big Name" shoveling scofflaws: How about the Charlottesville City Schools and the Jefferson-Madison Regional Library System. At 5:30 p.m. this afternoon, neither Venable School nor the Gordon Avenue Library had their sidewalks shoveled. Both of these institutions received large amounts of taxpayer money from the citizens of Charlottesville, yet these same institutions cannot be responsible for providing a basic level of responsibly for the safety of those same taxpayers. That's ridiculous.
What's worst is that the Gordon Avenue Library had the time, energy and resources to plow their parking lot and shovel the walkways leading up to and from their parking lot, but the sidewalk that runs the length of the property remains unshoveled. So, anyone walking to the Library is forced to walk in the street. The story is similar at Venable. The parking lot is plowed, but the sidewalk remains unshoveled. This is all very disappointing.
The real question here is why does pedestrian safety take a back seat with City government? Not all areas of the City receive equal benefit when it comes to pedestrian safety, and the concept of delayed enforcement of City Code when it comes to sidewalk shoveling is laughable. This section of Code is there for a reason, so that pedestrians aren't force to dangerously walk in the street. The City has been extremely lucky that no pedestrians have been struck thus far, but why wasn't the Code enforced as it was written? That's the real question here. Why are pedestrians forced into dangerous situation with less than full enforcement of existing City laws?
Hey all,
Assuming you're relatively healthy, you really should have your sidewalk cleared at this stage. Try please, before someone gets run over.
But man, has the plowing been awful. It would be so easy to clear some of these roads mid-day, but it never seems to happen.
There is simply no excuse for what happened on Friday evening. Where were the trucks when the snow started falling? I did not see a single one on Ivy Road. Even if there was not enough snow to start plowing, they should have been out aggressively spreading sand, salt, or whatever abrasives are used these days. I was out today, still no trucks. Ice and snow covered areas, and still no plowing or sand -- how many days has it been now?
I'm kind of with Frank on this one
Remember when you had the chance to keep about $7.5 million of City's funds from being wasted repaving the Downtown Mall and you didn't think it was worth your time to speak up? Remember when you didn't bother to go out and vote for a breath of fresh air on City Council and let the City spend another fortune suing Peter Van der Linde, $115.5 million to add an additional 180 units of public housing (http://tinyurl.com/publicHousingCost), and so on, and so on?
Just think what's going to happen to funds for stuff like snow clearing when we waste another fortune on a reservoir and a ridiculous parkway so a few already rich developers can get richer. When those developers will do once you've paid to accommodate their dream subdivisions, will be to build more houses for even more people who don't have a clue about driving in the snow.
No matter how much funding for snow removal is cut though, you can rest assured that those developers will still get the roads to their homes plowed before yours gets done.
It's easy to register to vote and pretty easy to go do it when the time comes if you aren't off on another diversion by then.
You all are a bunch of shirt lifting school girls. Get off the net and shovel some sidewalks.
Day Four: Few buses running, people unable to walk (on city maintained sidewalks), streets impassable, and they wonder why there are so many homeless, well if businesses shut down and lay-off workers there will be more. Citizens need to rise up and demand better.
I tried to shovel, leaving it for a minute to move my car, found it gone. Went yesterday to several shovel stores, no luck.
I say that the law should read: "All citizens must have their sidwalks shoveld within 24 hours of the city having all of its sidewalks shoveled"
The city should as a matter of course have an army of scofflaws who were sentenced to community service on call for occasions like this where they go and shovel all the public sidewalks, schools, librarys and in front of houses of elderly residents. That is TRUE community service.
The city and county did a poor job and I hope the Hook does a timeline article with in depth interviews about who decided what when and for what reason. It should include the cost of sand and salt they had to buy in the middle of a storm and why there were not enough private contractors on call.
The goverment could also work with homeowner associations to give them an "allowance" towards taking care of their own roads with private contractors.
Of course we know they are a little busy these days with all the green roofs and apologizing to dead people.
The whiners that annoy me are the "I see trucks going by with their plows in the air" people. Are these city or county trucks? I see lots of work trucks going by their plow in the air, but they are not government trucks.
Do you expect a private company with a plowing business to just plow the whole way to wherever their paying job is? Plowing beats the snot out of equipment. Should landscapers on their way to work mow everyone's lawn on the way?
If you need your sidewalks cleared call Troy
434- 326-6361
being from buffalo where 2 feet of snow give you a 1/2 delay in getting anyplace. the politicians in this area should be term limited out(voted out) From the city down to HOAs they all suck at what they do,think only in the present and cow-town to all the rich land barons in town. World clash city! this is a larger town anyplace else.Has anyone tried to contact a city county or state official about this .Bet you couldn't get through cause the answering machine was still on the the people who are supposed to represent you where hamming it up for the TV news readers.Man on Tuesday i went to pick up my kids at daycare traveled down the 250 buy-pass and what did i see a crew removing snow from the sidewalks the border 250 when just a 1/2 mile ahead the street was down to one lane .GIVE ME A BREAK THIS IS 2009 GET SOME PEOPLE IN OFFICE THAT THINK IN THIS MILLENIUM NOT 1809 .THIS HISTORICAL STUFF HAS GONE TO FAR LOOK TO THE FUTURE NOT THE FRIGGIN PAST
City folks should have elected Bob Fenwick
So city resident that's why there is such a homeless problem! Snow done it! Guess that's why Miami doesn't have the same problem.
And jim s, I'm sure whatever you wrote was very informative. Could you translate that to English for the rest of us?
Snowjob, that's a good idea about the community service thing. Get the inmates out there, shoveling, utilizing their jail terms effectively.
The only problem I could forsee with that is it ups the chances for escape. Maybe that's why you only see those guys doing outdoor work along highways, with a heavily armed officer or two watching over them. Criminals wandering around the 'burbs with shovels and ice picks may not be such a wise idea.....
"(1) Class 1 misdemeanor: By a fine of not more than two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500.00), or by confinement in jail for not more than twelve (12) months, or by both such fine and confinement. " Obviously local government considers this a serious problem. But this regime obviously doesn't feel it's THAT much of problem. Not a peep from our Council. I guess they're dealing with Tibet. Oh, that's right, that was yesterday's issue.
Wiating for plows and salt -
My road never saw a plow until today. I got back from a trip, had to dig my car out from udner 2 feeet of snow, and found absolutely no place to park it.
But..I didn't get stuck in the roads. Were they bad? yeah, but practice your driving a bit more.
Because I haven't put winter tyres on yet, my car did get stuck for a bit where I had to ram it into a snow bank. but oh well, it took only a few moments to dig a small spot in front of each drive wheel, and it came out pretty easily. Gee, and for the record, that's a RWD car. GASP.
Yeah, the city really has botched this, and the county, which is why I don't really want to hand them any project like planning a water pipeline.
@Caesonia, would you like for the city to design the McIntire interchange? Haha.
CC I was trying to vent .I don't think you got it.Maybe if you spoke something beside "hillbilly"and read "slowly" you may get more out of it.The point being the government around here just "SUCKS" cant do anything without 10 meetings 6 votes 5 redo's then another vote.All that in just 5 years DA
I'm not anti-christian , but our city street is still impassable as are man in the neighborhood have been repeatedly plowed and are at 80% on the blackometer scale. While the others are at 0%. Sure makes walking near to impossible, since most streets in our neighborhood don't have sidewalks, so there are none to shovel, and the streets are ice or slush with ice underneath. Guess the City priority list is major thoroughfares and streets with churches.
I'm not anti-christian, but our city street is still impassable as are many in the neighborhood, while the streets with churches have been repeatedly plowed, and are at 80% on the blackometer scale, while the others are at 0%. Sure makes walking near to impossible, since most streets in our neighborhood don't have sidewalks, so there are none to shovel, and the streets are ice or slush with ice underneath. Guess the City priority list is major thoroughfares and streets with churches.
I only have one thing to say...get some STEEL blades on the plows for next time and oh yeah, they are supposed to be placed on the ROAD. I can't tell you how many PW trucks I saw just driving around. Rubber blades? Probably some kind of natural, ecofriendly rubber no doubt. Dumbazzes...even my snow shovel has a STEEL blade for gawd sakes. Back in 96 they put a boatload of snow in dump trucks and put it in the lot at Washington Park. No doubt a politically incorrect thing to do now I suppose. Sure did help clear the streets though.
CVilleEye, I think Judy Mueller tried to put a positive spin on things, and it was good she dispelled rumors like the one about the City running out of salt. But I got the feeling she mostly depended on what she was told, that she likely did not go around and look at the streets firsthand.
My street near MJH first saw a snowplow Wednesday after the snow (Dec 23). Fortunately it was passable after a fashion as people driving vehicles with 4WD or something had broken a path.
But I think the crux of the problem is that no one-not the city, not the county, not the citizenry- was really prepared for this snow , this much, after not having any for so many years. That probably accounted for all the people who left work too late and got stranded in their cars on the road-thank goodnness no lives were lost.
Kevin, we may agree more than we disagree on some points. Glad you realize that not every individual is capable of shovelling snow safely, and certainly should not be penalized. And agreed that there is no excuse for businesses' sidewalks , and those of the city itself, not to be cleared in a timely manner.
I mentioned walking down High St toward Free Bridge Jan. 1. Did it again yesterday(Jan 8) still the same walls of snow forcing pedestrians onto the street. Have a feeling though that the one by Charlottesville Wrecker was not the city's doing, but of whoever plowed for the towtruck business.
What needs to be done now is assess the lessons learned from how this snow was handled, how to start plowing in a more timely fashion, how not to create problems with where the snow is moved, etc.
Perhaps we need not to look to Buffalo, but closer to home, to mountain counties who get more snow than we do.
Several years back I had occcasion to visit Highland County a couple days after a quite substantial snowfall(maybe not 20 inches) and found the roads in great shape. I was told that the county knew they faced this problem and were prepared to deal with it quickly so people could travel safely.
It was reported that Albemarle County roads were in the worst shape of any in the state several days after the snowfall.The most obvious answer is VDOT budget cuts, but I wonder if that is the whole explanation.
In the past few years snow has quickly melted. That didn't happen this time. I suspect that the city gambled on warm weather saving a pile of money by doing the job of snow removal.
In June I read that because of El Nino our part of the country could expect more precipitation than usual and normal temperatures. The past few years we've seen less precipitation and warmer temperatures. We got exactly what the forecast warned us we would get and we will probably get more.
I don't deny that many people were not prepared. Individuals lack of preparation did cause them to get in the way of road clearing. Judy Mueller mentioned the need to better publicize the warnings of an incoming snowstorm. Many citizens were prepared though, as the work that did get done demonstrated. I think it's fair to expect the local governments to be as well prepared as many people are.
The bottom line is the GOVERNMENT LET THE CITIZINS DOWN AGAIN !!PERIOD END OF STORY .Weather its a flood a hurricane a forest fire or a snow storm. Its the blind leading the blind.Lets vote out the professional politicians, the people with their own agendas and get someone who'll do what it takes no matter what.that the way this thing was set up now lets get back to basic government for the people by the people .
Wow Steve you sound pretty informed. Ever push snow before I wonder? Yea the new fangled rubber blades for plow are supposed to last longer and be easier on surfaces. Well they are both of those things but not so good on compacted snow and ice. The real kicker is that the rubber edges cost three times as much as the steel blades!
I'd just like to say...the City of Charlottesville gets a big "F" on snow plowing and removal. It's a sad state of affairs out there..still.
I'd like to thank the ass who shoveled out his car & piled 5ft of snow on the sidewalk in front of my house. I spent over 3 hours on Christmas day shoveling the sidewalk in front of my house & the next door house (since it's for sale & no one currently lives there) so the sidewalk would be clear since there is a lot of pedestrian traffic where I live. Shoveling snow ONTO the sidewalk should be a fine in itself! Happy New Year!
@PV, Christmas break.
Yeah, the 250 Exit going onto Locust Ave heading towards pantops is downright dangerous, with only one lane open still. I almost was hit by someone head on, and honestly, I think both of us were surprised. It's like, you've gone down there through habit so many times, you don't expect to be in the same lane as someone else.
The city needs to hit that with a road scraper.
Steve said "[b]ack in 96 they put a boatload of snow in dump trucks and put it in the lot at Washington Park."
Exactly right. Only front end loaders and dump trucks can remove two feet of snow, not a snow plow that struggles to shove it to the side. The plow trundled on down Market St. once in mid-storm, and called the street "plowed," when all they had done was pack down four inches of snow so it hardened into ice canyons after the other sixteen inches fell. I stopped a city plow crew in mid-street and asked them to clear a handicap space for my neighbor who has MS: the driver promised to do it that night. A week later the space remains uncleared.
This was not a failure of City Council though. It was a failure of management. Our City Manager has been here over 30 years. At this point he just goes through the motions. Somebody phones him and says "all the streets are plowed" and he doesn't bother to go outside and look. A replacement City Manager is due, and overdue.
Every time I see your name, I think about your father. When he retired the city had to hire several people to keep up with the workload he did singlehandedly. I miss watching the old guard at work, Richard Barrick and Downing Smith included.
@Hollowboy, what are your opinions on Judy Mueller's snow report given to Council at its meeting last Monday? If you didn't hear it, here's the link http://charlottesville.granicus.com/ViewPublisher.php?view_id=2 Click on Video for 01/04/2009 then Jump To "Snow Report."
Hollow Boy,
Many people were prepared for this storm. The forecast was accurate and early enough and we had fair warning. The evidence that many were prepared is in the work that was quickly done when the snow stopped falling. As you noted,"I think most residents did a good job clearing their walks-" They did a good job becausee they were prepared. Some were prepared with private contractors on call to clear their parking lots and driveways and they did the job promptly. The problem was that in many cases they put the snow on top of the sidewalks. I cannot excuse the city. They should have been prepared. There was ample warning. I wonder what else they aren't prepared for.
Kevin Cox
I think part of the problem was that some people were skeptical it was going to be this bad. After all, there had been forecasts of heacy snowfalls in recent years that did not occur. In other words, some saw it as the media "crying wolf" once again. Only this time we did get hammered.
I wonder what the forecast this week for a couple inches that didn't pan out will mean in terms of taking storm warnings seriously.
I really do think that many people thought because we had not had a major snow event in tears that it wouldnt happen.They were the ones not prepared, who might have ended up stuck on the road. or realizing they did not own a snow shovel, not having needed one for several winters.


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"I'm single, but I'm out mingling around," Jessica told Ellen DeGeneres on Wednesday's "The Ellen DeGeneres Show," which taped earlier in the week.
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Thursday, 14 March 2013
Is the decision to have children a rational decision?
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Week beginning 22nd June
Week beginning 15th June
Week Beginning 8th June
Week Beginning 1st June
Kids' Zone
Our fantastic performance of 'Super Star'
Well done to more of our bronze and silver medallists
Sewing club - Christmas gnomes
Very well done to these readers
Storytelling workshops
Well done to these avid readers
Our latest group of amazing readers - well done
Well done to the latest bronze medallists
What a fantastic trip to Charmouth where the Kestrels found lots of fossils
What a busy celebration assembly today! Congratulations to all our fabulous readers.
Our pupils shared stories from their family history
St. Paul's poppy display for Remembrance Sunday
Kestrels helped Mr. Tedstone prepare a display for Remembrance Sunday. We hope you enjoy reading our thought provoking poems.
Another of Mrs. Ireland's amazing craft sessions - seasonal spooky decorations! Thank you Mrs. Ireland
Well done to our bronze medal winner!
FizzPop Science Assembly
In French we went to a cafe and ordered a delicious meal!
Harvest Festival at St. Paul's Church
What beautiful autumn flower arrangements! Thanks to Mrs. Ireland for another excellent craft club.
Well done to everyone who took part in the summer reading challenge. There may be more celebrations next week because you still have time to complete the challenge at the library.
Photos from 2018- 2019
Thank you and good luck to Mrs. Vines and Mrs. Ford
There were lots of certificates on Thursday!
Year 6 prepared and then enjoyed a delicious curry and tasty pasta bake
Well done to all these fantastic readers. Remember to keep reading over the holidays.
Kestrels' summer chess tournament
Our reading medal winners today - well done!
Kestrels visited the local history exhibition at Kewstoke Village Hall
Dress rehearsal - HOODWINKED
Countryside Day - from butter making, a sheep show to workshops: a brilliant day!
More of our amazing trophy winners
Congratulations to our gold medal winners
Science Club
Sports Day
Well done to these fantastic readers with their trophies!
Congratulations to our latest bronze medal winner
Goodbye, good luck and thank you to Mr. Machell
Silver medal winners
Bronze medal winners
Thank you to everyone for making the Beach Clean such a success! We are an amazing community.
Meet the Lifeguards!
Medal winner
Another well deserved trophy
Our first trophy winners - 200 reads!
Gold medal winners
Silver medal winner
Medal winners at celebration assembly 24.5.19 - well done to you all
Perfect punctuality
Amazing attendance
Well done to more of our reading superstars!
Bronze medals - well done!
Family Yoga After School Club Week 1 May 2019- Mermaid Underwater Adventure!
With Jigsaw this term we are thinking about relationships
Gold, silver and bronze medal winners
Great gold medal winners
More of our sparkly silver medal winners
Easter Flower arrangements - many thanks to Mrs. Ireland
Woodpeckers' celebration of learning
Spring readers - gold, silver and bronze - well done!
Flower arranging with Mrs. Ireland
Mothers Day Lunch
These readers are silver medal winners!
Another amazing reader from The Owls who has earned his gold medal - congratulations!
Well done to our super silver medallists today
Congratulations to our amazing choir who performed so beautifully at the Playhouse last night - WOW
The Kestrels have been learning about parliament and democracy. We were visited by Mr. Williams who works at The House of Commons.
On Book Day we rang the story bell and enjoyed books in every classroom!
More excellent readers - bronze and silver medal winners, and our first gold medal winner!
World Book Day 2019, 101 Dalmatians and Cruella De Vil!
More of our amazing readers
Well done!
More of our super duper readers!
Well done to the bake off winners
Mrs. Ireland's flower arranging session - spring is on its way, and the Narcissi will soon be in flower!
The Young Voices Choir - what an amazing day!
Two more of our avid readers!
Well done to our latest bronze medal winner! Keep reading everyone!
Congratulations to these children who have read their way to a bronze medal
Well done to our latest silver medallist
Great Attendance!
The Christmas Play
The Christmas Chess Tournament 2018
Superhero Day in the Woodpecker Class!
Well done to these bronze medal winners!
Festive Fitness Fun!
Congratulations to our first silver medal winners - you are reading stars!
Well done to our latest reading bronze medal winners
Bronze medal winners 30.11.18 - Congratulations!
Many congratulations to our bronze medal winners! What a lot of fantastic reading you have all been doing - well done.
Kestrels have placed their Poppy Pebbles of Remembrance around the village
Medals from WW2
Kestrels' WW1 booklet
Beam House Camp
Kestrels Science Gloop
Street Surfing Kestrels
Well done to the children who were awarded certificates for excellent attendance
The 2018 Performance of DRAGON
The Chess Tournament 2018
Flower Competition
Y2 Singing Festival
MultiSports Festival
Chess Tournament Kewstoke versus Burrington
Wow day! Who can grow the tallest tomato plant?
Wow day! Den building with Mrs Harding
Wow day! Bug hunting with Mr Youdale
Wow day! Making paper flowers with Mrs Le Guilcher
Visit from the Fire Brigade
Mothering Sunday Flower Arrangement Gifts
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The Lindenwood University Theatre Department will open its 2012-13 season with Neil LaBute's romantic comedy-drama The Shape of Things at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 20-22, and at 2 p.m. on Sept. 23 in Lindenwood's Emerson Black Box Theater. General admission tickets are $10 at the Lindenwood University Box Office.
The Emerson Theater and the Box Office are located in the J. Scheidegger Center for the Arts at 2300 West Clay St. in St. Charles, just west of First Capitol Drive. For tickets or more information, call the Box Office at 636-949-4433.
The play follows a tumultuous relationship between English literature major Adam (Billy Walkenhorst) and attractive graduate art student Evelyn (Kelsey Amann) and the changes he undergoes during the course of it. The cast is rounded out by Josh Wolk as Phillip and Cassie Ballard as Jenny, Adam's friends. The results are sure to provoke conversations on the concept of art imitating life and visa versa.
The Shape of Things debuted on stage in 2001 in London and was made into a movie in 2003, also written and directed by LeBute, starring Rachel Weisz and Paul Rudd.
"Place coeds in a room pursuing 'art' and 'truth' while they struggle with their own personal morality, and you have The Shape of Things," said Director Lyndsay Somers Hicks.
Stage manager and assistant stage manager are Courney McDaniel and Lindsey Conklin, respectively. Set design is by Pippin McGowan with costumes designed by Donna Northcott, lighting design by Tim Poertner, and prop design by Krista Tettaton.
Lindenwood University, founded in 1827, is an independent liberal arts university offering more than 120 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in diverse areas of study in traditional and accelerated formats. Lindenwood operates a residential campus in historic St. Charles, as well numerous extension sites throughout the St. Louis Metropolitan Area.


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Alfred's Chuck Beckwith had another fantastic game on Saturday.
Alfred athletics file photo
Subscribe to the Around the Nation Podcast in iTunes.
Let's see, there's only a ton of good games from Saturday to talk about, and Pat and Keith try to hit it all in an hour. First of all, four ranked teams lost on Saturday, but that was guaranteed since we had four games between ranked teams. Surprise was, though, that none of them was competitive. Why? That's discussed.
What was it that made us call the St. John Fisher and Birmingham-Southern upsets? And what do we do with the many teams which are either undefeated or have just one loss and are sitting outside the Top 25? That includes teams such as Waynesburg, and teams that just got into the poll, such as Coe.
Keith started to look at the video of Mount Union destroying Capital and gives us his first impressions. Plus, what the heck has happened to Capital?
Exactly how long has it been since Illinois Wesleyan won at Wheaton? In fact, in order to run the table, IWU must still win at Wheaton, North Central and Elmhurst. Plus, if you are new to the playoff process in Division III, you'll want to listen for the explanation of how the pools work (apologies to those who have heard it all before).
And then there's the great shootout that ended the night, with Sul Ross State defeating Texas Lutheran. Keith was watching online and gives us more details. All that and more below. Hit play.
You can subscribe to the Around the Nation Podcast in iTunes. You can also get this and any of our future Around the Nation podcasts automatically by subscribing to this RSS feed: http://www.d3blogs.com/d3football/?feed=podcast
Postgame show
Here's this week's D3football.com reports and highlight packages, including the Coe-Dubuque highlights mentioned in the podcast.
And this week's photo galleries from our friends at d3photography.com:


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Everyone is scared of something when their little. Common fears include the dark, bumps in the night, monsters under the bed, and the dentist. My sister and I shared these experiences as well as a very prominent one: movies about race and history. Now that I am older, I understand these subjects are important documents of the past, forever influencing us to make better futures. But as a kid, i tried my best to stray away from certain TV shows and films to ensure I'd get to sleep that night. I listed my top 5.
- In the Heat of the Night (series) - Excellent show based upon the film of a black detective in the South. Perfect mix of pasts demons in a 20th century.
- Nightjohn - Yes it was a Disney movie, but when Carl Lumby gets his fingers chopped off for spelling in the sand, it turns into a PSA for reading.
- The Ghosts of Mississippi - A remarkable depiciton of the long-awaited trial against the assassin of Medgar Evers. The opening scene was scarring, and James Woods was haunting as the unapologetic shooter.
- Roots - Still have yet to watch in entirety. Will do someday.
- A Time to Kill - I've conquered this fear recently. Samuel L. Jackson should have an Oscar by now.


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Birthday bug cake
Children will love the butterfly and ladybird decorations on this colourful cake – and you'll love its simplicity
Nutrition and extra info
Nutrition: per serving
- kcal536
- fat30g
- saturates18g
- carbs64g
- sugars47g
- fibre1g
- protein7g
- salt0.28g
- Easy vanilla cake and syrup mix (see recipe below)
- 100g white chocolate (I used Milkybar)
White chocolatewhy-t chok-lit
To purists, this is not chocolate because it is made only from the fat or butter of the cacao…
- Basic vanilla buttercream mix (see Easy vanilla cake recipe below)
The sun-dried seed pod of a type of climbing orchid, vanilla has an inimitable soft, sweet…
- 12 giant chocolate buttons, 6 cut in half
- treat-size pack chocolate buttons
- 2 chocolate sticks (I used Matchmakers)
Chocolate ganachegan-ash
Chocolate ganache is a combination of chocolate and double cream. It's simple to…
- hundreds and thousands
- multicoloured candles
- red (or whatever colour you like) writing icing tubes (I used Asda)
- multicoloured candles
Bake the Easy vanilla cake in a greased, lined deep 20cm cake tin as in the basic recipe; drench with syrup and leave to cool. Leave the oven on.
Break the white chocolate into cubes into a microwaveable bowl, and heat on High for 1 min (or melt over a pan of simmering water). Stir, then leave any remaining lumps to melt in the warm liquid chocolate. Once just-warm, beat the chocolate into the buttercream.
Start the butterflies. Put the whole giant buttons on a flat baking tray on non-stick baking paper, then put into the oven for 20-30 secs or until the chocolate looks shiny. Take out, scatter with hundreds and thousands, then leave to set completely before cutting in half with a large non-serrated knife. For the ladybirds, pipe dots of icing all over the already cut giant button halves, then leave aside to dry.
Spread the buttercream over the cake, then start to arrange the butterflies. Cut each Matchmaker into 3 – these will make the bodies. Press onto the cake, then stick four giant button halves around each body to make 'wings'. For the ladybirds, place two spotty button halves together, then use a small button for the head. Scatter more hundreds and thousands all over the cake, then poke in the candles.
Recipe Tip
TipThe decorated cake can be left, loosely covered, in a cool, dry place (not the fridge) for up to 24 hours before the party.


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May 16, 2019
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The Houma-Terrebonne Chamber of Commerce came out Friday in opposition to a 31-mill property tax increase proposed by the Terrebonne Parish School Board.
The business group cited the board's lack of a detailed plan for how the money would be spent as a main reason for its opposition.
"Without a detailed implementation plan, budget and measurable outcomes demonstrating how this significant tax increase will further strengthen the school system, the Houma-Terrebonne Chamber of Commerce cannot support the $25 million annual tax increase proposed by the School Board," said Jennifer Armand, the chamber's board chairwoman.
Voters across Terrebonne Parish will decide May 4 whether to approve the increase. The School Board collects a 9.27-mill property tax, and school officials say the increase would raise the tax to 40.27 mills, just around the state average.
Superintendent Philip Martin has said the system will use the money for employee raises and building improvements, but critics, which now include the chamber, have complained the plan is vague and lacks sufficient public input.
"Chamber members have told us that a tax without a detailed plan does not provide the level of accountability needed to assure them that the increased revenue will adequately fill the instructional, staffing and infrastructure needs of the school system," Armand said. "We owe it to the 19,000 students, 2,300 school system employees and property owners throughout the parish to push for development of a detailed plan and acceptable funding mechanism that can be championed by the business community and property owners and will address these needs for many years to come."
The board's 9.27-mill tax costs the owner of a $150,000 house about $70 a year. The increase, if approved, would add another $232 to the bill.
The board also receives local sales tax revenue and gets most of its money from state taxes.
In opposing the tax, the chamber notes that the property taxes the board collects raise about $7.5 million a year. At 40.27 mills, the tax would raise about $32.5 million.
Armand said the chamber's board voted at its regular March meeting to endorse a recommendation from its Education Committee to oppose the tax. The board cast the vote after the chamber asked school officials numerous times for a detailed budget and spending plan for the tax. The chamber also offered to help school officials come up with a concrete plan, an offer that still stands, Armand said.
"The chamber recognizes and appreciates the current challenges of the Terrebonne Parish School District, especially in the face of increased cuts and mandates from the state and federal government," Armand said. "We also believe that the best way to meet these challenges of growing a top-performing school system is to plan first and tax second."
Martin disagreed with the assertion that the system's plan is vague.
"When I say we are going to put a new wing on Mulberry (Elementary), I can't tell you the color of the bricks," Martin said. "We have a plan and I am not sure what specifics are lacking."
The School Board has a two-page document on its website outlining the initiatives it will undertake if the proposal is approved by voters. In some cases, the document does not outline specifics for an initiative and costs for construction projects are not provided.
Cost estimates have been done for each project outlined by the document and can be provided, Martin said.
Martin also noted the millage is dedicated. So if voters approve the tax, 11 mills will dedicated to construction projects and 20 mills will be dedicated to salaries and instructional programs.
Statewide, Terrebonne gets less money in local taxes than most districts its size, Martin said. The parish spent less money per student than any other parish in the state during the 2010-11 school year.
"We will still be the lowest in the region (if the tax passes)," Martin said. "We are currently last at the very bottom."
Chamber voices opposition to Terrebonne schools' proposed tax
The Houma-Terrebonne Chamber of Commerce came out Friday in opposition to a 31-mill property tax increase proposed by the Terrebonne Parish School Board.


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Transvulcania was her first trail running race of the season and only one week after her last ski mountaineering race.
Before the gun fired, she wasn't even sure if she'd finish the 87 km, 8,500 vertical meter race across the volcanoes of La Palma, Canary Islands. But from the start to the finish, she had the lead, giving no quarter to her rivals. Emelie won the race in 2013 and again this time.
Read more about Emelie Forsberg here.
"I took this race as a first approach to the trail running season after a long winter, and couldn't have imagined this result," she says. "As always, running Transvulcania is magic, with all the ambiance and the people cheering you during the race."
A great performance for her first race of the trail running season. © Selu Vega-Transvulcania
The race began in the dawn light at the Tazacorte Lighthouse from where runners must climb an iconic lantern lit path leading to Los Canarios village. Emelie severely injured her hand in this section during last year's race. She began cautiously, but this gave way to confidence, and she decided to seize the lead.
It was a good call as it gave her time to take it easy through the section from Pico del la Cruz to Roque de los Muchachos where many runners suffer from high temperatures.
"I haven't had much training on high temperatures, and I was just skiing last week, so I knew the climb to Roque de los Muchachos would be the worst part," Emelie says. "Fortunately my team told me I had a good advantage over the second girl so I was able to relax a bit and not get dehydrated."
The rest of the race went smoothly and she crossed the finish line in Los Llanos de Adriane with a time of 8h 34m.
Suunto ambassador Ryan Sandes was also taking part, but had to pull out of the race due to severe cramping. "I am disappointed but this is part of being an athlete," he posted online.


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BOLD 3D Evaluation
BOLD Evaluation is the processing and visualization package for Inline BOLD imaging.
Requerimientos Generales
Minimum Software Version
syngo MR A30
syngo MR B13
syngo MMWP VE22A
syngo MR D11
Also available for:
MAGNETOM Prismafit
MAGNETOM Skyrafit
MAGNETOM Avantofit
syngo BOLD Imaging or Inline BOLD Imaging
Please Note: Additional technical pre-requisites may apply. Upon receiving your request, your local Siemens representative will clarify whether your system meets the requirements.
The DTI Evaluation option is required for combined display of DTI and fMRI results in their anatomical context.


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As new technology makes it easier than ever to buy and sell goods online, it's important that our laws evolve to reflect these advances.
Unfortunately, a new bill that just passed the Senate, the Marketplace Fairness Act, is a wolf in sheep's clothing for consumers and independent online retailers.
Supporters of the MFA argue, in the interest of "fairness," that online purchases should be subject to the same sales taxes as in-store purchases. They conveniently leave out, however, that this is already the case under current law.
Any out-of-state purchases, including online purchases, brought back to Illinois are supposed to be reported when you file your taxes so that sales tax may be collected. Despite the failure of many consumers to pay the taxes they owe on online purchases, shifting that burden entirely to the sellers severely threatens their ability to do business.
Estimates suggest that states would collect an additional $23 billion in tax revenue if the bill passes into law, costing the average consumer around $170 a year in upfront taxes.
For small-business owners, the issue isn't paying the tax, but rather the crushing mountains of paperwork and regulations involved. Unfortunately, the notion of "fairness" has been co-opted by large corporations that favor regulating their competitors out of business instead of competing on a level playing field. In fact, the legislation doesn't level the playing field for online retailers – it creates new burdens that only the largest online retailers could survive.
The mom-and-pop business is no longer just the shop on the corner. It's evolved into the antique enthusiast who wants to spread America's heritage selling her collection online, or the father who turned his passion for cars into a lucrative hobby by selling spare parts on eBay.
As soon as these budding entrepreneurs became successful enough to bring in $1 million in revenue – not profit – they would be hit with an avalanche of new regulations. Not only would these new regulations force small-business owners out of the market, they would squash consumer choice.
At the end of the day, large online businesses, such as Amazon and Best Buy, that came out in favor of the MFA aren't pushing to collect more taxes.
They're trying to establish new barriers to entry for current and potential competitors.
Our tax laws are in desperate need of reform, but hastily thrown-together legislation with a populist title will only exacerbate the problems we already have. Instead of responsibly solving state budget issues, too many in Congress are opting for the politically expedient, short-term infusion of cash to their state without weighing the long-term effects.
Furthermore, the Constitution protects state sovereignty, and the Supreme Court has consistently reaffirmed the right and responsibility of each state to collect its own taxes. The Supreme Court ruled in 1992 that businesses were responsible for collecting state sales taxes only in states where they have a physical presence.
If the MFA passes into law, online retailers will have to collect taxes for each of the 9,600 state and local jurisdictions in the country. Rep. Randy Hultgren, a Republican who represents Illinois' 14th Congressional District, should stand up for consumer choice and small-business owners in Illinois – even if those businesses aren't the traditional brick and mortar we think of.
• Michael Moroney is the director of communications at the Franklin Center for Government & Public Integrity.


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Late last year, Microsoft announced the availability of an updated beta or community technology preview (CTP) of SQL Server Reporting Services in the Cloud based on the Microsoft Azure platform. The product is formally known as SQL Azure Reporting Services and if you'd like information about the preview, visit the link above for all the details.
I just wanted to spend a few minutes today introducing you to the new CTP and what I've found there so far. I've built a Cloud BI Web-based sample app and a Windows Phone 7 sample app using SQL Azure Reporting Services and I promise that I will blog about how you can build one, too, in the next coming months. This should be a natural progression of my Microsoft Cloud BI: All the Pieces series.
One thing that I really liked in this CTP is that I am able to manage users so that I was able to make demo users who can access my reports from my Web-based Cloud BI solutions with a read-only report user style account. You can also upload and download RDL files to and from the cloud and your laptop from the Azure management screen.
I was not able to access the normal SSRS styled Report Manager link from SQL Azure Reporting Services. But the Azure Management Screen also contains an area within the Silverlight console that looks like the Report Manager console and has similar functions like when you select a report and use the drop-down menu in the Details view of Report Manager.
The Report Server Web Services URL is available in this CTP, just as it was in the previous CTP.
Of course, a key tenet and advantage of any area of the Azure platform from Microsoft is the fact that all of my existing developer and administrator tools will essentially still work the same in Azure as they do today in the traditional on-premises world meaning that I won't need to learn new tools or new design paradigms. That's true for the most part with SSMS, BIDS, Visual Studio and Report Builder. But architecturally, moving to the Cloud and in a hybrid mode, will likely mean some paradigms shifts in the way that you are used to doing things.
Lastly, I am a big fan of Report Builder 3.0 as the reporting tool that I prefer to use with SSRS. I just find it quicker and easier to get in and out when modifying reports. I am very happy to see that I am able to create folder structures and save my reports out on the SQL Azure Reporting Services just like on-premises.
In addition to that, I can even publish Report Parts to my Gallery on my local SSRS instance (see screenshot at the bottom). That entire report and the associated Report Parts came from my Cloud-based SQL Azure Reporting Services report. So while you can use your SSRS RDL as the starting point for these reports, there is a caveat: the data source for the reports that I published to SQL Azure Reporting Services needed to use SQL Azure as the data source. In other words, it is not valid to host a report in the Cloud that does not have a cloud database source!


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Are you an Angry Bird (addict)?
So…here goes with my second post of the day – I must be mad. I did, however, promise a few people I would share a few of my bonkers ideas for using Angry Birds as a basis for learning in the classroom. I'm sure many of you have some ideas of your own to go with this topic and I have a few friends who have already been using Angry Birds activities as a way of engaging pupils in the classroom. Now not all of these ideas are ICT based but I promised I would share them so…here we go…
First the mad part. I was sitting on the train the other day with my ipad and I saw a mum bring out some home made toys for her little one. Simple felt balls, about 6 cms across, (created as shown above) with little eyes and extras on. I thought how that would make a lovely idea for a school fete or similar and made a note of it. Then she brought out a blue one that looked just like an Angry Bird – my mind went into overdrive. My initial idea was to get pupils to create them (or, possibly a friendly adult) and stuff them with a set weight of kapok so they could be used in maths for weighing/comparing/measuring. Maybe sort them so that the black one weighs twice as much as the red one which weights twice as much as the blue ones (if you know what I mean). After this, mind still in overdrive mode, I thought about creating a separate set of blue ones which had three mini blue ones inside – for times tables work or counting (but I realise this might be pushing things a little too far…). Of course, if money is no object, you could always purchase a complete set of Angry Birds plush toys but I doubt many school budgets would stretch to them!
Let's move onto my next batch of mad ideas then. After maths I moved onto science. How about using the little blighters you've just made for maths in a lesson on forces, complete with giant catapult. Too dangerous? Well it's just an idea. Coming back down to earth with a bump (!!!! – sorry, couldn't resist) why not use autoshapes, or another shape drawing program, to create your own Angry Birds? They could be as simple or complicated as you like. The one above is fairly straightforward – I bet the pupils could come up with something better. Another ICT idea I came up with involved the use of 2DIY (or maybe even 2DIY 3D if you have access to Purple Mash): creating games based on the Angry Birds story and characters. Maybe a journey game where the birds have to sneak past the pigs. Or a collection game for finding golden eggs. Again – the children are bound to come up with much better ideas.
And so to my final few ideas for today (and, I'm warning you, I have loads more): let's link to literacy. If there are pupils who are really familiar with the game they could hone their instruction writing skills by creating walkthroughs for other children to follow. I think this would be a lovely exercise that could involve some really obvious peer assessment. I also think that the initial introduction to the game would make an interesting story starter and, if you want to get really into it, why not get pupils to storyboard and create their own game trailers, similar to the one seen here? I bet they come up with some corkers!


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|There's more than one way to do things
Re: When travelling, what level of existential comfort do you require?by CountZero (Bishop)
|on Sep 02, 2013 at 07:56 UTC ( #1051898=note: print w/replies, xml )
|Need Help??
My Thai Girlfriend. :)
A program should be light and agile, its subroutines connected like a string of pearls. The spirit and intent of the program should be retained throughout. There should be neither too little or too much, neither needless loops nor useless variables, neither lack of structure nor overwhelming rigidity." - The Tao of Programming, 4.1 - Geoffrey JamesMy blog: Imperial Deltronics
In Section Past Polls


text: The other day I did an interview about this blog with Tyler Green of Modern Art Notes, and he was telling me that he thinks one of the things that makes it great is that it doesn't feel like we're plugging something. True, we're usually just interested in sharing what we're interested in. But now I'm going to actively promote something. Sorry Tyler! I hope you'll forgive this transgression, because this is important: