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Not long ago I went to a military park located in the middle of a fairly good-sized city. I arrived bright and early, and as I headed into the visitor center, I noticed a couple walking their dogs along the trail. I didn't really think anything about it.
After seeing the exhibits, I hit the trails myself, where I encountered more dog-walkers. In fact, I saw many more dog-walkers than sightseers. I was seemingly the only person on the battlefield with a map and a camera instead of a dog leash and a sport bottle.
I finally arrived at the park's largest, most impressive monument. Sitting on the base was a college student, her back leaned against the pedestal on the front, with a textbook open in her lap and a cellphone stuck against her ear. The battlefield was apparently a study lounge as well as a dog park.
As the morning progressed, the park got more corwded. Dog-walkers began to give way to walkers and joggers, in ever-increasing numbers. By this time I'd started counting "battlefield users" as compared to "battlefield visitors," for the purpose of reporting my findings in a planned blog post on the subject of battlefield use, which you are now reading. I finally had to give up counting. There were simply too many walkers and joggers to keep track of, although I think I could accurately state that they outnumbered the obvious tourists by ten to one or more.
They came at me one by one and two by two. They came with large, friendly dogs and they came with small, nervous dogs. They came with strollers. They came wearing fashionable, color-coordinated jogging suits, and they came with mp3 players of all shapes and colors. There were quite literally dozens of them.
One guy in particular stands out in my mind. I was reading an interpretive sign when I heard rapid footfalls, and turned to see a sweaty fellow with headphones in his ears, decked out in what appeared to be a uniform obtained from the Fantastic Four. He came to a stop, caught his breath, nodded hello, and then crouched over, put his hands on the ground, propped his feet on a bench, and did a set of push-ups.
Of course, this issue of "multi-tasking" is something that many historic sites face. Some of them actually include "fitness trails," with pull-up bars and the whole nine yards.
Chances are, if you've done any kind of work with historic sites, you've had to accomodate unconventional use of your facilities to one degree or another. It's worse for small institutions like museums that are a part of bigger ones like government entities or universities. If you're a staff member at one of these institutions-within-an-institution, there's a chance that somewhere up the line there's a supervisor who doesn't really know why you exist, and doesn't really care. And if that's the case, God help you. Sooner or later you're going to end up having to justify your performance in terms that have nothing to do with what you're technically supposed to be doing.
In other words, if you're doing public history, you'll eventually find your institution being put to some strange and unintended uses. Sometimes this can be a good thing. It gives your site a larger role in the life of the community than it would otherwise have, and I think most people who manage historic sites and museums want members of the community to feel something like a sense of proud ownership with regard to it. It helps motivate them to get involved and support the place.
Still, there was something about the inundation of joggers and dog-walkers at this battlefield that was more than a little disturbing. Patriotic obligation aside, there's simply the question of good taste. At the end of the day, a battlefield is a place where a great many dreadful things happened within the space of a few hours. You'll find few places in America where death and violence have taken place on such a concentrated scale. I suppose people have every right to use battlefield trails for no purpose other than exercise, but this behavior does indicate a rather striking failure of perception.
Of course, this problem of internalization isn't limited to battlefield "users." It's also common among battlefield "visitors." Your common tourist, visiting a military park to learn and to see the sights, may never fully appreciate the horror involved in the notion of thousands of men trying desperately to kill each other within such a relatively confined area. But the common tourist does, at least, take the field for what it is primarily intended to be.
In one sense, the very scale of violence that took place on most battlefields may work against our ability to comprehend the loss of life. We can all identify with an individual life lost, but how do you get your head around thousands of them? At some point one stops thinking in terms of human lives and starts thinking in terms of abstract numbers.
When I graduated from high school my parents and I went to New York. I had long wanted to visit the American Museum of Natural History, so we had to make our way over to the Central Park West district. Walking back, we passed the Dakota, where a small group stood reverently outside the entrance where John Lennon was shot. They took pictures, as tourists will do, but their overall demeanor was consistent with what you'd see at a cathedral. In fact, they wouldn't have been out of place at the site of Bergen-Belsen. The emotional impact seems to work in inverse proportion to the body count. Kill one prominent man, and you sancitfy an otherwise ordinary spot. Kill scores of anonymous soldiers and farm boys, and the impact diminishes rather than increases.
This perverse arithmetic doesn't speak very highly of the value we place on human life. But of course the major factor involved isn't math but time, that most corrosive of all agents when it comes to memory.
Two hundred years from now, our descendants might very well be going to the top of One World Trade Center for no other reason than to admire the view. They'll think it a fine place to have their pictures made and propose to their girlfirends; the fact that it was once the scene of unimaginable misery may sadly be nothing more than a vague, almost subconscious awareness.
Jefferson stated that the earth belongs to the living, and he believed it to be cause for hope. In many ways it is, but there's a certain tragedy in it, too.


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Standing Out
Looking for a way to provide an additional service to your clients and fatten your checkbook at the same time? One of the best value-added profit centers is landscape assessment. Why? It requires little investment, just a few common tools and virtually no inventory. Essentially, the product to be sold is years of experience and the ability to communicate possibilities to clients.
As with most landscape projects and services, a sit-down discussion with your client is the best place to start. At this point, fight the urge to start spouting off idea after idea for the client. This is the time to listen to the client. Find out what they enjoy about a landscape. Do they like to sit and watch traffic? If so, a small patio with perennial border facing the street might be just the ticket. If they have children, ask about their activities. Do the kids play soccer, or are they the "sit in the solarium and read War and Peace" type? Again, this will dictate possible planting options and hardscape solutions to facilitate these activities. Commercial clients may be more concerned with traffic control and accent on entryways. The list of wants and needs you'll develop from this process is called a program statement.
Overall, the key to landscape assessment is keeping an open mind and not being jaded by previous client objections or bad experiences. Begin by walking the property (with or without the client), clipboard in hand, inventorying the assets and problems; make notes about how to enhance the valuable features and renovate the problem areas. There are advantages to being with the client when you look things over. He or she can provide you valuable information about traffic flow, vandalism occurrences, utility easements and other hidden nuances that the average landscaper would not be privy to. On the other hand, he or she might get in your way while you're trying to be creative and sort out the important issues. After all, most of us would prefer not getting bogged down with trivia like the hairstyle of the letter carrier who comes on Wednesdays and trying to remember if it was 1985 or 1987 when the car crashed into the maple tree. In most cases, a preliminary quick walk-through by you followed by a tour with the client will serve best in terms of site assessment.nt.
In addition to practicality for a two-pass approach is the actual benefit of site inventory and analysis. During the inventory, you'll identify problem areas as well as the assets of an area. A copy of the property plat or survey is quite useful during inventory. Use a piece of tracing paper and lay it over the plat. This helps you take more accurate notes and document potential concerns or opportunities for features. You may want to photograph the area for future reference and comparison. If the finished design turns out well, you may want to use the before-and-after photos to sell a similar job to other customers. Also, use a tape measure to determine the exact location of trees, sheds, etc.
Next, you'll perform the analysis: an evaluation of the importance of each specific condition. For example: the soils, neighboring views and existing buildings may be only a slight concern, but the slope and prevailing winds may be serious contentions. Make note of these. In addition to being a tool for addressing landscape problems, the inventory and analysis help to gain a "sense of place" or context in the landscape space, providing you with a better understanding of the client and the scope of potential improvements.
Each property is different, with unique needs in the landscape; yet there are several common areas that are ripe for renovation in most landscapes. They include the co-mingling of turf and ornamentals, improper spacing, scattered ornamentals, scale, slopes and the use of color.
The most common problem of a new account is the mixing of turf and ornamentals. In fact, you can almost always spot a "do-it-yourself" project this way. In general, turf should be separated from ornamental plants. The two plant types have drastically differing moisture and fertility requirements. A well-conceived design strives to group plants according to similar needs. Plants out of place are subjected to deficiencies or excesses simply due to location. Ornamental plants placed in the middle of turf swards are usually overfertilized and overwatered. Similarly, narrow strips of turf along ornamental beds are difficult to mow, fertilize and irrigate, and tend to receive less care than they require. Instead, design beds for efficient machine use and place plants within beds whenever possible, minimizing scattered elements.
The aesthetic side of this separation is mass/void. When ornamentals are massed together, the planting beds become more unified and make a stronger statement. Scattering ornamentals throughout a turf area dilutes their impact in the landscape. Turf becomes the void that the ornamentals are displayed against, focusing attention on them or nearby hardscape elements. Grouping ornamentals can help you accent entryways and other important functional components of the property, if your design statement calls for that.
Yes, Virginia, plants do grow to the size on the label. Another common problem you may identify in the site inventory is plants that have been installed too close to one another. If Japanese barberry is planted 2 feet apart, there is immediate impact; a finished look to a brand new planting. Unfortunately, Japanese barberry can easily grow to 6 feet tall by 4 feet wide, and in just a few years, the planting is overgrown and likely to be diseased due to inadequate airflow through the stems.
The opposite of tight spacing is the scenario with scattered ornamentals. If the Japanese barberries were planted 10 feet apart and not connected to one another by means of a mulch bed or groundcover planting, they become extended over a wide area and distracting in the landscape. Strive to follow the planting guidelines in terms of size and shape. In many existing landscapes, improper spacing will be a red flag on your inventory.
Goldilocks was unhappy until she found the porridge that was "just right." The same is true for the scale of landscape plants. On the corner of commercial buildings and residences, sharp corners can be harsh to the eye. Properly sited, multi-stemmed shrubs and trees can soften these lines and make the landscape more pleasing. Of course, they need to be in scale with the structure. In general, the mature height should be about ⅔ of the height of the roofline to be in proper scale. Plants lower in mature height than this will fail to soften the vertical edge; plants larger than this will dwarf the structure.
Gentle slopes are desirable because a two- to three-percent drop-off facilitates water movement away from buildings, yet generally allows for water movement downward through the water profile. When the degree of slope is four percent or greater, problems commonly arise in several areas of landscape maintenance. There are four undesirable outcomes associated with a severe slope:
- Uneven water distribution
Following rainfall and irrigation events, plants at the top of the slope don't get enough water, while plants at the bottom of the slope get too much. Both results create an unhealthy growing situation for plant roots. Overly dry roots will slough off, while soggy roots will soon develop root rot.
- Hard to mow
It is difficult to mow slopes safely. Sometimes mowing them is even outright dangerous. On some slopes, there is an increased risk of overturning the mower, leading to injury of the operator and damage to the mower. At the very least, there is difficulty in steering because more weight is being felt by the downward wheel. The steering problem can result in excessively worn turf, as the wheel crushes turf plants during turning.
- Hard to fertilize
On slopes, there is a greater potential for fertilizer to move. Moderate to heavy rainfall can cause the particles to tumble down the slope, causing too much to be absorbed on the down side, with too little on the top. As with poor water distribution, this is problematic, with fertilizer burn in one area as well as a lack of nutrients in others as the result.
- Hard to mulch
Just as fertilizer, herbicides and water are prone to tumbling down the slope, mulch has a hard time staying put as well.
The first step in conquering problems with slopes is deciding whether to keep turfgrass on the slope or to change the plant material. When you come right down to the crux of the matter, all of the possible solutions are steeped in the heart of sustainable landscape design. After all, the last step of the design process is to thoroughly evaluate how well the plan is working after a season of growth. If you've identified problems with a slope for any or all of the above reasons, it's time to create a new planting design.
The simplest design solution is to leave the slope alone and just replace the existing turf with groundcovers or ornamental grasses. There are hundreds of choices, depending on your locale. For more information on these plants, check out The Encyclopedia of Ornamental Grasses by John Greenlee, The American Horticultural Society Flower Finder by Jacqueline Heriteau and Ortho's All About Groundcovers and Groundcovers of the Midwest by Tom Voigt.
If keeping the turf makes sense, consider re-grading or installing terraces and retaining walls. Of course, changing management strategies can also be helpful when you're dealing with slopes. Delayed irrigation starts, aeration and topdressing, plant growth regulators, watering techniques and changing to a "no mow" species of turfgrass such as fine fescue or buffalograss have merit, and you should consider them in the overall scheme of landscape assessment.
Color is one of the most important aspects of a landscape. Get your clients excited about a new landscape by recommending some classic color combinations — simple and understated — to provide the overt eye candy that everyone loves. However, it is possible to overuse and misuse color. This is, of course, somewhat subjective; but I've found that the best approach is to keep it simple. Using more than three colors in a small space usually results in visual overload and confusion in the landscape.
The most important thing is to plan for it. Good color combinations are born in the design phase, not "sort of somewhere along the line" as you're tossing plants into the flowerbeds. While devising the program statement and chatting with clients about the need for privacy and the views toward the other neighboring properties from the deck, make sure you ask them about their favorite colors. Next to fragrance, color is one of the strongest connections to long-term memory and landscape preference that we have. It's quite easy to overlook the enjoyment that your client experienced while spending summers at Grandma's place, making hiding forts in the lilacs and picking shasta daisies for the dinner table.
A more practical approach to choosing colors for your designs might be to start with a dominant plant or group of plants (either the client's idea or yours) and then soften it, enhance it or complement it with other colors. For example, many lilies sport several friendly hues, such as pink, white and dark rose. A large-scale planting of single-hued gomphrena and chrysanthemums expand and replicate the effect on a broader scale, filling the landscape with an effective combination of color.
Finally, remember that all categories of plants can provide color, including annuals, perennials, groundcovers, trees, shrubs, bulbs, grasses and vines.
After you've completed the site assessment and developed a clear, concise program statement, walk through the property with the client, explaining what you see as the assets and challenges of the landscape. You may want to hire a landscape designer to sketch out some landscape fixes. These don't need to be elaborate; just a couple of quick ideas on tracing paper will suffice. Prioritize the various areas of the landscape, in case the client wants to renovate one area at a time. Have a general idea of what it might cost the client to install the plants themselves and how much you would charge. These are good options to discuss after the second meeting with your customer.
John C. Fech is an extension horticulture specialist with the University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension (Lincoln, Neb.).
* The author would like to acknowledge the contributions of Kathleen Cue, landscape designer and horticulturist, to this article.
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© 2020 Penton Media Inc.

subset: commoncrawl


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How much you spend on groceries and clothing this year may depend on how good the weather is around the world. Droughts, floods and excessive rain in several countries means farmers are straining to meet the growing worldwide demand for grain and other commodities that are key ingredients in food products.
How much you spend on groceries and clothing this year may depend on how good the weather is around the world.
Droughts, floods and excessive rain in several countries means farmers are straining to meet the growing worldwide demand for grain and other commodities that are key ingredients in food products.
Commodity prices are approaching or have surpassed the high of 2008. If there's a repeat of disappointing crop yields this year, consumers are likely to experience supermarket sticker shock.
"What you've had is basically a series of less than optimal production. It's not one country. It's not one crop," said Carl Zulauf, an agriculture economics professor at Ohio State University. "We will need reasonably good weather across the Northern Hemisphere this summer in order for prices to decline."
Since February 2010, prices for corn and wheat have doubled because of crop issues, driving up the cost of livestock feed and, thus, the wholesale cost of meat.
The price for cotton has skyrocketed to a record $1.91 a pound, when it rarely exceeds $1. Blame growing demand for cotton in China, massive flooding affecting the cotton crop in Pakistan and export restrictions in India, according to the Financial Times.
Prices for raw sugar cane have risen 75 percent since May, in part because of less-than-expected sugar yields in Brazil as well as flooding and a cyclone this month in Australia, resulting in the worst sugar crop in nearly 20 years.
And coffee prices are at their highest in about 14 years because of a lackluster coffee bean harvest in Brazil, heavy rains harming Colombia's coffee crop and, possibly, investors bidding up commodity prices. Colombian coffee beans are selling for about $3 a pound, compared with about $2 a year ago.
The J.M. Smucker Co. said this month that it would hike prices for most coffee products, including some under its Folgers and Dunkin' Donuts brands, by an average of 10 percent.
"I look forward in the morning to have a cup of decent coffee," said William Griffith of Canton, Ohio. "(Green Mountain coffee) went from $5.98 to $6.38 seemingly overnight. That's been in the past two weeks."
More demand
Zulauf said that several countries have recovered more quickly from the recession and their resumption of growth is pushing up incomes in those regions, spurring demand for higher-quality food.
So far, consumers have not seen the brunt of the commodity-price increases in grocery stores.
Overall, food and beverage prices in the Midwest grew 1.8 percent last month from January 2010, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The increase was modest, even though the average retail prices for some staples in the Midwest were noticeably higher in December than a year ago.
Ground beef prices were up 10 percent, white sugar prices were up 20 percent, eggs were 12 percent more, milk prices 15 percent more and whole-wheat bread cost 7 percent more.
Last summer, wheat producers in Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan suffered droughts that reduced wheat and barley crops. Too much rain resulted in a bad wheat crop in western Canada, and excessive dryness resulted in the U.S. crop yielding 7 percent less than expected, Zulauf said.
That's on top of flooding in Australia hurting its wheat harvest, dry weather reducing the corn yield in Argentina and rains in Malaysia affecting palm oil production. Zulauf said there's concern that dryness could affect the winter wheat crop in the southern Plains states.
In addition, Mexico recently lost much of its corn crop because of a deep freeze, which also damaged yields for tomatoes, cucumbers, bell peppers and other produce in Mexico, Florida and Texas. Wendy's is serving sliced tomatoes only on request by customers.
Food companies and grocery stores have had several options in blunting the effect of higher supply costs on price-resistant consumers. Because raw materials are only part of the cost of final products, companies minimize price increases by cutting the cost of the other components — labor, transportation, marketing, packaging –– or by substituting for other ingredients. But the rising price of oil has added to transportation costs.
Companies also can accept lower profit margins or reduce package quantities. Jeff Fisher, president and CEO of Fisher Foods, said his suppliers also can temporarily lock in the prices of some ingredients through contracts.
Despite such tactics, Fisher said, he's beginning to see some suppliers increase prices, especially for coffee, beef and pork.
"We haven't seen increases as of yet in bread, in deli products and a lot of areas," said Fisher, who thinks investors are speculatively bidding up prices of commodity contracts. "Given the competitiveness of the grocery industry, we're going to make every attempt to minimize the price increases."
Snack-food company Shearer's Foods Inc., based in Ohio, said it has increased the prices of private-label products sold to retailers during the past six months but has not raised prices of Shearer's Food brand products.
Instead, the company has slashed marketing expenses and increased plant efficiency with new equipment. But Shearer's can't absorb price increases indefinitely, said Jim Allan, vice president of strategic sourcing.
Nancy Horne, co-owner of Norcia's Bakery in Canton, Ohio, said she has not raised the price of a loaf of bread since early last summer, even though the cost of a 50-pound bag of flour has risen from between $13 and $14 in August to between $18 and $20.
"I can't absorb all of this, especially with the price of gas for the vans," Horne said. "I have to think about raising prices."
Natalie Lehner, a spokeswoman for the Ohio Corn & Wheat Growers Association, said that although farmers are selling corn and wheat at higher prices, their profits are limited because of higher costs of fuel and fertilizer.
Griffith, who lives on disability payments, doesn't like that events overseas affect how much he pays for groceries.
"So it's a world market then," he said. "I don't really care for it."


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Dear Em
Taking every opportunity I can get to write to you, here is another right on the heels of one I wrote only a day or so ago. I received a letter this morning dated Sept 22 and it spoke of the change of weather from rain to sunshine. It struck me funny, for today was the first day of sunshine we've had for some time, and beleive me it sure did look good. It gave us a chance to dry up a little and we all feel better tonight.
It was news to me to learn that Lena has had such a cold and Im glad to know she is over it. Tonight finds me and eight more of us in a dug out that one of the boys happened to find and although we are not in the lines, a fellow likes to get out of the way of those big long range ones that come over once in a while and that are liable to drop anywhere (if not handier). Besides these dug outs are warmer and drier than out on the ground, and we can light a candle (if we have the candle) that the Boshe airoplanes can not see, which would be a good excuse for him to drop a few iron foundries. OH we try to get into the ground when it is possible. Empey wrote (over the top). There ought to be a new story out with some such title as (digging in).
Not having seen a paper for at least four days now we know little of events. We do know that it is livily enough here, and it might get more so any minute. We are getting plenty to eat which more than ofsets the lodging and weather conditions. We had doughnuts for supper, and they were good too. I don't suppose I should go into family affairs, but there is a fellow here who is looking for those things we didnt bring with us from the States. The meanest animal that crawls. Im scratching in two places myself. On this paper and, /.
So you are not dancing much latly. Well it will soon be cool enough to enjoy this past time I guess. What do you think of the paper. It was some one of the boys here had. Well Em when I put this in an envelope we will strike up a song, blow out the candles, listen to the exchange of iron back and forth which will finally coo us to sleep.
So good night Em and the rest, hoping this finds you all well
Samuel E. Avery #69762, Hdq Co. 103rd Inf. Am. Ex. Forces.
P.S. Keep away from that new Spanish rage won't you? I haven't seen any of it here yet.
© Copyright 2009 by Richard Landers, All Rights Reserved. No reproduction without permission.


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Rotation woes, injuries plague Twins in '13
Minnesota suffers though 96-loss campaign, as starters struggle
MINNEAPOLIS -- It was another ugly season for the Twins in 2013.
They avoided the cellar in the American League Central for the first time since 2010 but finished with more than 90 losses for a third straight year. The rotation was again the major culprit, as Minnesota starters combined to finish with the worst ERA in the Majors.
The Twins tried to revamp their rotation before the season, acquiring Vance Worley in a trade with the Phillies that sent Ben Revere to Philadelphia, and signing veterans Mike Pelfrey and Kevin Correia.
But Worley, who served as the club's Opening Day starter, posted a 7.21 ERA in 10 starts before being optioned to Triple-A Rochester in late May and never returning to the Twins. Pelfrey was also inconsistent, as he struggled to find his command in his first season back from Tommy John surgery.
Correia proved to be the club's most dependable starter, as Scott Diamond took a step back from his impressive '12 campaign and highly touted right-hander Kyle Gibson was hit hard in his first taste of the Majors.
It was bad enough that it left Twins manager Ron Gardenhire wondering how the club can improve the rotation moving forward without outside help.
"I don't think we have enough ready arms to step into this rotation," Gardenhire said. "We have lots of candidates. But are these guys ready to turn you around? I don't think so. They can fill some spots. But everyone is looking for pitching and we're no different than any other organization."
Twins general manager Terry Ryan has maintained he's accountable for the club's recent struggles, as he's the one who creates the roster for Gardenhire. And he proved that on the first day of the offseason, as the Twins agreed to sign Gardenhire to a two-year deal through the 2015 season.
"He's a very good manager," Ryan said. "We've had a lot of success in this organization. We've fallen on some hard times, there's no doubt about that. Nobody's pretending that everything has gone well the last three years, frankly. We need to clean it up, and we think we have the right man in-house to do that, and I'm very happy he's decided to come back."
Record: 66-96, fourth in AL Central
Defining moment: The Twins traded one of the best and most popular players in franchise history when they dealt first baseman Justin Morneau to the Pirates for outfielder Alex Presley and a player to be named later on Aug. 31. The Twins tried to find a taker for Morneau before the July 31 non-waiver deadline but didn't ultimately deal him until the day before he had to be traded to be eligible for the postseason. The Twins were long out of contention by then, but it was a clear signal that no one on their roster outside of Joe Mauer, who has a full no-trade clause, is untouchable.
What went right: The bullpen was a strong suit for the Twins, as they finished with the most innings in the Majors but also posted a respectable ERA that finished in the top half of the American League. ... Glen Perkins developed into one of the better closers in the Majors, and was rewarded with a trip to the All-Star Game along with fellow Minnesota native Joe Mauer. ... Second baseman Brian Dozier bounced back from a rough rookie season to be one of the club's best players. He combined strong defense at second base with power at the plate, as he rebounded from a rough start to the season. ... Rookie outfielder Oswaldo Arcia showed off his power in his first taste of the Majors and is expected to develop into a solid power-hitting corner outfielder. Fellow rookie Josmil Pinto also had a huge September, and figures to be in the club's catching plans moving forward.
What went wrong: The rotation was a mess, as the Twins used 11 different starters and only Correia made more than 30 starts. Correia was also the only starter to strike out more than 100 batters. ... The Twins finished with one of the worst batting averages as a team with runners in scoring position, as they continually left runners on base. Veterans such as Josh Willingham and Ryan Doumit couldn't replicate their success from 2012, as they both had down years. ... Rookie outfielder Aaron Hicks skipped Triple-A to be the club's Opening Day center fielder but struggled before being optioned on Aug. 1 and not returning as a September callup. ... The Twins set a club record for most times striking out, and set the team record before they even got to September.
Hitter of the Year: Mauer was the club's best hitter yet again, as he was named an All-Star for the sixth time, but missed significant time after suffering a concussion on a foul tip while catching on Aug. 19. It was a bad break for the Twins, who also saw players such as Trevor Plouffe, Wilkin Ramirez and Doumit miss time due to concussions. But Mauer's concussion loomed the largest, as it's put his future behind the plate in question.
Pitcher of the Year: In his first full season as closer, Perkins was outstanding, as he was an All-Star for the first time and set a career high in strikeouts per nine innings. Perkins was just about automatic in the ninth inning, as he blew just four saves all year.
Rookie of the Year: Arcia showed plenty of power in his first season in the big leagues, as the 22-year-old combined for more than 30 extra-base hits while playing in just over 100 games. But he still has plenty to refine, as he's still striking out too much and needs to improve his outfield defense.


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Disclaimer: This is not an endorsement of a candidate or party. Please do not leave comments about either since I do not believe that GWB is the proper place for such a discussion. This is an examination of the capabilities of today's technology related to elections.
I was watching part of a political speech given by a supporter of one of the presidential candidates the other night and my bovine manure detector started going off. So what do I do? I start a Google search.
The first site that I happened upon was FactCheck.org. It seems to be even handed and run by a university. I actually saw a news anchor asking a party representative about a "Fact Check" that had been sent to him at the end of the speech. Since then ads have come out even misquoting FactCheck. Nothing like when you start fact checking ads where you yourself are involved.
Now you have to be cautious. Since most web sites do not have anything to hold them accountable they can contain falsehoods as well. Check their affiliations and the facts that they present. Don't just rely on one source.
The next site I found is votesmart.org. This one seems to be more about making the position of the opponents available. This is a nice contrast to FactCheck which focuses on debunking lies and bends in the truth.
So where does this all go? I urge you not to take what you hear or see as the truth. Investigate to the best of your ability and make a decision from the information you have available to you. Read beyond the hype and use the tools available to us in this digital age to educate your vote.
Print | posted on Thursday, September 18, 2008 10:27 PM
Tim is a Solutions Architect for PSC Group, LLC. He has been an IT consultant since 1999 specializing in Microsoft technologies. Along with running the Chicago Information Technology Architects Group and speaking on Microsoft and architecture topics he was also contributing author on "The Definitive Guide to the Microsoft Enterprise Library".


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Paul Simon Performs At Funeral For Sandy Hook Teacher
Five days after the horrific tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School, singer-songwriter Paul Simon paid tribute to heroic teacher Vicki Soto at her funeral in Stratford, Conn. So touching.
Paul Simon performed the classic Simon and Garfunkle hit, "The Sound of Silence," at the funeral for Victoria "Vicki" Soto on Wednesday, Dec. 19. Vicki was one of the 26 who were tragically killed when Adam Lanza opened fire on Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. on Dec. 14.
Paul Simon Pays Tribute
Paul Simon's "The Sound of Silence" was written in 1963 in the aftermath of John F. Kennedy's assassination. Some of the moving lyrics include: "In restless dreams I walked alone, narrow streets of cobblestone."
Paul's performance of the classic song, as well as friends' and family member's eulogies were reportedly broadcasted to the many who had gathered outside at Vicki's funeral to pay their respects. Many who attended the funeral wore green ribbons. Green was the color of Sandy Hook, as well as Vicki's favorite color.
Following the funeral, one of Vicki's sisters Carlee, tweeted " Yes Vicki, there are flamingoes in heaven" (sic), along with a photo of her and Vicki.
Vicki's Courageous Act
Her best friend and former college roommate, Rachel Schiavone spoke of Vicki's love of her students. She said, "She loved them more than anything, they were supposed to do gingerbread on Friday."
Vicki was a 27-year-old first grade teacher who courageously died protecting her students by hiding them in a closet on Friday.
Services for Other Victims
Today was the third day of funerals for victims of the Sandy Hook shooting. The first funerals held were for students Jack Pinto and Noah Pozner. Funerals for fellow students Charlotte Bacon, Daniel Barden, and Caroline Previdi were scheduled for today. Visiting hours for Sandy Hook principal Dawn Hochsprung and student Chase Kowalski, whose funerals and burials will be private, were also set for earlier today.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to Vicki and her family, as well as the rest of the victims of Sandy Hook.
— Caitlin Miller
More Sandy Hook News:


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Free cross-country skiing, snowshoeing this weekend
A trio of cross-country skiers slid almost silently across the snowy lakefront Wednesday afternoon at Camp Richardson, passing the historic structures at Tallac Historic Site and towards some of the South Shore's most popular beaches.For much of the rest of the year, the same area is bustling, with sun worshippers of all sorts clamoring for a slice of Lake Tahoe's renowned summer.But, on Wednesday, it was just the skiers, the howl of a coming storm and miles of Lake Tahoe stretched out toward the horizon.This solitude is one of the main draws of cross-country skiing and snowshoeing, two activities that new participants will have extra incentives to try this weekend.Several groups around the Lake Tahoe Basin will offer guided snowshoe hikes, information about the area's environment and, in Kirkwood Cross Country and Snowshoe Center's case, free rentals and lessons to guests as part of Saturday's Winter Trails Day.The 18th annual event involves almost 100 resorts and Nordic centers throughout the U.S. and attracts around 11,000 participants, according to organizers.Four hundred people have signed up for a sold-out event at Tahoe Donner Cross Country Ski Resort, one of the bigger gatherings for Trails Day around the nation, said Reese Brown, Nordic program director for SnowSports Industries America.Winter Trails Day was started by snowshoe manufacturers about two decades ago to highlight snowshoeing as a sport and has grown to include cross-country skiing, Brown said.While the nationwide event welcomes people who snowboard and downhill ski, but don't cross-country ski or snowshoe, it is really focused on attracting people who don't participate in any outdoor winter activities, Brown said.Snowshoeing and cross-country skiing are an accessible, less crowded and relatively cheap way for families and individuals to enjoy the outdoors during the coldest months, Brown said.Natural beauty and solitude are two reasons Brown said he heads out on his cross-country skis after work many days.Debbi Waldear, manager at the Kirkwood Cross Country Center, agreed.About 80 people were signed up for Kirkwood's event as part of the trails day Thursday, and there are still openings, the longtime cross-country enthusiast said. She encouraged people to make reservations and recommended beginners take lessons before heading out to take in the sights. But the rewards are plentiful from there, Waldear said."Personally I just like going out in the winter environment and enjoying it," Waldear said.
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Sheryl Crow's vintage Mercedes helped raise $260,000 for tornado victims in her native Missouri.
The couple who bought the singer's vintage car, which Crow donated to benefit the schools in tornado-ravaged Joplin, Mo., ponied up another $130,000 for the district's recovery fund. The 1959 Mercedes convertible went for $143,000, minus the auction company's $13,000 cut at the August auction in California. That meant the remaining $130,000 went to the Joplin Schools Recovery Fund.
Missouri's Community Foundation for the Ozarks said Thursday that the anonymous couple who bought the car matched the $130,000 with a donation in Crow's name.
U.S. & World
A May 22 tornado destroyed three Joplin schools and seriously damaged seven others.
Crow was a teacher before she achieved fame. She said in a statement that she was touched by the couple's generosity.
"It was such a pleasure to meet them and see their enthusiasm for this car, which was very special to me, and now learn of their support for Joplin's situation," she said. "They have done a wonderful thing in doubling the proceeds from the event."


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Since the launch of Windows Phone 7, Microsoft has been pushing exclusive, Microsoft-published games and Xbox Live features as a selling point for serious mobile gamers. Now, there are some signs that Microsoft is loosening its tight grip on its gaming properties, allowing a mobile reboot of Age of Empires to show up on iOS and Android devices first.
This isn't the first time a Microsoft game has appeared on a non-Windows mobile device. Games like Wordament and Kinectimals have appeared on other platforms, and second-party titles like Ms. Splosion Man have made their way to non-Windows phones after a period of Microsoft exclusivity. Plenty of companion apps for Xbox 360 and Windows games, including Microsoft's Smartglass features, also work on other mobile phones and tablets.
Still, Age of Empires is one of Microsoft's best-known franchises, one that Polygon reports the company is licensing to Japanese developer KLab for a free-to-play version that will come to iOS and Android first, with a Windows Phone version only coming later. It's not that surprising that KLab would make that platform choice, considering that Windows Phone has less than 2 percent of the overall mobile market, compared to a combined 84 percent for iOS and Android (according to NetMarketShare Web browser tracking data). What's more surprising is that Microsoft would let the developer make that decision with one of its biggest exclusive properties.
Microsoft said the Age of Empires announcement has no bearing on "additional Xbox Live-based games on iOS and Android," despite some earlier reports to the contrary. But today's announcement comes after developer 17-bit announced plans to release a version of Skulls of the Shogun that is free of previous Windows 8 requirements. We can only hope a similar announcement is forthcoming for the locked-on-Windows-8 Halo: Spartan Assault, but we're not holding our breath.


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"I've been working on the M-80 for a long time. I designed it for somebody who was playing at a club, working with a label, about to be signed, or had been signed. I wanted to build a "workingman's" guitar for a new generation of players. That guitar evolved from many years of seeing things in guitars that I like or dislike. A lot of designs on that guitar are my gut-level reaction to what I see people playing, my playing, and what players tell me they like and dislike – or find comfortable and uncomfortable.
"There's a lot of design in the M-80 that doesn't meet the eye. For example, the body comes from a shortened Mustang guitar. If you put a longer-scale Neck on a Mustang, you have to shorten the body so it feels right. I placed the strap buttons, so that when the guitar is hanging, it feels familiar. Let me put it this way … I've got 25 years in the business, and the M-80 is the accumulation of 25 years of designing and building guitars for the world's most discriminating players." – Todd Krause
© 2012, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - now in its 10th year!


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The most-watched Sunday or Monday prime-time NFL game since 1997 helped NBC win the week among the young adult viewers the network targets for the first time in months.
The Philadelphia Eagles' 30-27 victory over the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday was the most-watched prime-time program between Dec. 6 and Sunday, averaging 25.73 million viewers, according to live-plus-same day viewing figures released today by The Nielsen Co.
The viewership was the highest for a Sunday or Monday prime-time regular-season game since the Dec. 15, 1997, ABC ``Monday Night Football'' game between the Denver Broncos and San Francisco 49ers, which averaged 27 million viewers.
The game was the most-watched ``Sunday Night Football'' game in five seasons on NBC, erasing the previous record of 25.68 million for the Oct. 24 Green Bay Packers-Minnesota Vikings game.
Although NBC finished second for the week behind CBS among total viewers, it finished first among viewers ages 18-49, the group ABC and Fox Broadcasting also target and advertisers covet.
The victory was NBC's first among that group during the official television season since the week of Feb. 22-28, the final week of its coverage of the Winter Olympics.
Outside of its football coverage, NBC's highest finish among the group was ``The Office,'' which was 11th and 43rd overall.
NBC also led among viewers ages 18-34.
CBS averaged 10.52 million viewers for its prime-time programming to finish first for the 11th time in the 12 weeks of the prime-time television season. Its most-watched program was ``60 Minutes,'' which finished third overall, behind ``Sunday Night Football'' and its 10-minute pregame show, averaging 17.59 million viewers.
As it has for each week of the season, CBS had the most-watched scripted series, half-hour comedy and new series.
``Criminal Minds'' was the week's most-watched scripted series, finishing fourth overall, averaging 14.23 million viewers.
``Two and a Half Men'' was the most-watched half-hour comedy for the 11th time in 12 weeks, finishing fifth overall, averaging 13.41 million viewers.
The comedy ``Mike & Molly'' was the most-watched new series, finishing 19th overall, averaging 11.04 million viewers.
CBS was also first among viewers ages 25-54 and 55 and older.
NBC was second for the second consecutive week, after finishing third seven times and fourth twice, averaging 8.82 million viewers.
NBC got a boost from the opening week of the second season of ``The Sing Off,'' whose two episodes averaged 8.1 million viewers -- 20 percent more than the 6.8 million for its opening week a year ago.
The season premiere of ``The Sing Off'' on Dec. 6 was NBC's most-watched non-football program of the week, finishing 31st overall, averaging 8.57 million viewers,
ABC finished third for the second consecutive week and third time this season, averaging 7.04 million viewers.
ABC's two most-watched programs were Barbara Walters specials. ``A Barbara Walters Special: Oprah, the Next Chapter'' was seventh for the week, averaging 13.27 million viewers. ``Barbara Walters Presents: The 10 Most Fascinating People of 2010,'' which followed, was ninth for the week, averaging 12.22 million viewers, finishing ninth for the week.
ABC's most-watched series program was ``Desperate Housewives,'' which was 15th overall, averaging 11.60 million viewers.
Fox Broadcasting finished fourth for the 10th time this season, averaging 5.65 million viewers. Its most-watched show was ``Glee,'' which finished 18th overall, averaging 11.07 million viewers. Fox led among viewers ages 12-17.
The CW had its customary fifth-place finish, averaging 2.17 million viewers. Its most-watched program was ``The Vampire Diaries,'' which averaged 3.16 million viewers to finish 83rd among programs on the five major broadcast networks.
ESPN's ``Monday Night Football'' game between New England Patriots and New York Jets Dec. 6 was the week's most-watched cable program. It averaged 16.53 million viewers, which would have ranked fourth among the week's programs on the five major broadcast networks. It was the fourth most-watched program on cable television this year.
ESPN was the week's most-watched cable network in prime time for the seventh consecutive week and 12th time in 14 weeks, averaging 3.8 million viewers.
As usual, Univision was the most-watched Spanish-language network, averaging 3.68 million viewers for its prime-time programming. Telemundo was second (890,000), followed by TeleFutura (870,000) and Estrella TV and Azteca America, which both averaged 200,000.
The week's most-watched Spanish-language prime-time program was the Tuesday episode of a Univision telenovela. ``Soy tu Duena'' averaged 6.27 million viewers, which would have put it 53rd among the programs on the five major English-language networks.
NBC finished first among the network nightly newscasts for the 65th consecutive week and 112th time in the past 113 weeks, averaging 9.42 million viewers, followed by ABC (8.41 million) and CBS (6 million).
The week's 10 most-watched prime-time programs were NBC's ``Sunday Night Football'' and its 10-minute pregame show; CBS' ``60 Minutes''; ESPN's ``Monday Night Football''; CBS' ``Criminal Minds,'' ``Two and a Half Men'' and ``The Mentalist''; ABC's ``A Barbara Walters Special: Oprah, the Next Chapter''; CBS' ``CSI: Crime Scene Investigation''; and ABC's ``Barbara Walters Presents: The 10 Most Fascinating People of 2010.''
Football on NBC, CBS Shows Top Television Ratings
The most-watched Sunday or Monday prime-time NFL game since 1997 helped NBC win the week among the young adult viewers the network targets for the first time in months.


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Tween Reads
October 2017
"Knowledge is power, but it is a terrible power when it is hoarded and hidden."
- from Kelly Barnhill's
The Girl Who Drank the Moon
Recent Releases
Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus
Dusti Bowling
Fiction. The awkwardness of being the new kid at school is extra intense for 8th-grader Aven, who has to put up with her classmates gawping at her because she was born without arms. Telling tall tales about losing her arms while alligator wrestling doesn't help -- some people just don't get her humor -- but things start to look up when Aven befriends some fellow misfits (like Connor, who has Tourette's syndrome) and they begin investigating strange events at a ramshackle Western theme park. Readers who love realistic fiction will root for the memorable characters in this not-so-insignificant story.
It All Comes Down to This
Karen English
Fiction. A lot things are changing for Sophie's family in the summer of 1965: her parents are fighting, her sister Lily is getting ready to leave for college, and they're the only African-American family in their new Los Angeles neighborhood. As Sophie struggles to find new friends and Lily gets involved with Nathan, the housekeeper's son, they get a wider view of the injustices (big and small) simmering all around them. In the tradition of Rita Williams-Garcia's Gaither Sisters trilogy, this family story uses a backdrop of real history to serve up an authentically complicated slice of life.
All's Faire in Middle School
Victoria Jamieson
Graphic Novel. Don't call her a qualling toad-spotted clack-dish -- homeschooled 11-year-old Imogene "Impy" Vega has just been promoted to squire at the Renaissance Faire where her parents work. That means she's ready for a quest, and attending public school for the first time seems like just the thing to prove her mettle. But will the experience transform Impy into a brave knight, or a spiky dragon? If you love quirky yet realistic comics, you don't want to to miss this tale of friendship and "faire-mily" from the Newbery Honor-winning creator of
Roller Girl
The First Rule of Punk
Celia C. Pérez
Fiction. Though her dad reminds her that the first rule of punk is to be yourself, 12-year-old punk rocker Malú finds it tough to claim her identity as a "weird, unladylike, sloppy-Spanish-speaking, half-Mexican kid." Her passion for making zines and playing loud music doesn't live up to her "SuperMexican" mom's expectations, and her unorthodox style gets her into trouble at school. Even so, Malú is determined to get a band together and make some noise. Whether or not you share her taste in music, you'll be rooting for this fierce and funny heroine.
Pam Smy
Graphic Novel Hybrid. With a spellbinding blend of words and artwork,
pulls you into the lives to two girls who lived decades apart. In 1982, mute orphan girl Mary plans her revenge on the cruel bullies at the Thornhill Institute for Children, while in 2017, lonely Ella sees a girl wandering the grounds of the long-abandoned Institute. Mary's story is told through her diary entries while Ella's is told through illustrations, allowing each girl's sections to feel distinct -- until Ella finds Mary's diaries and their stories collide. Fans of Brian Selznick or Ransom Riggs won't want to miss the eerie artistry in this time-twisting tale.
If you're excited about The Book of Dust
October brings a long-awaited return in the book world: Philip Pullman's
The Book of Dust: La Belle Sauvage
, the 1st in a companion series to the His Dark Materials trilogy. While you're waiting for
La Belle Sauvage
, we've got some His Dark Materials read-alikes to tide you over...
The Twistrose Key
Tone Almhjell
Fantasy. When a strange key magically summons 11-year-old Lin Rosenquist to the land of Sylveros, she's overjoyed to learn that the beautiful, wintry country is populated by talking former pets…including Rufus, Lin's dear departed pet vole. Danger looms, however, sending Lin and Rufus on a quest to find a lost child, fulfill a prophecy, and rescue Sylveros from cruel villains. Fans of the animal companions and high adventure in Philip Pullman's
The Golden Compass
should definitely pick up this richly drawn fantasy (and its sequel,
The Girl Who Drank the Moon
Kelly Barnhill
Fantasy. The Protectorate claims that babies have to be sacrificed every year to satisfy the evil forest witch. The villagers obey, never realizing that the witch, Xan, is actually a kind soul who rescues the abandoned infants. After Xan accidentally "enmagicks" one of the babies by feeding her moonlight, she decides raise to the child (now named Luna) herself, with some help from a sage swamp monster and a tiny, talkative dragon. As Luna's 13th birthday approaches and her magic grows, you'll discover that her story is just one of many threads in this award-winning page-turner. Like His Dark Materials,
The Girl Who Drank the Moon
uses fantasy to explore big questions about power and responsibility.
Rebel Genius
Michael Dante DiMartino
In the Zizzolan Empire, where art is strictly illegal, 12-year-old orphan Giacomo is an outlaw. After a Genius (a forbidden creature that guides creative spirits) bonds with him, Giacomo knows he's in serious danger of being caught. Thankfully, his Genius guides him to a safe, secret place for rebellious artists. There, Giacomo learns to channel his creativity through sacred geometry, only to have his training disrupted by a quest to stop a power-hungry artist from destroying the world. Similar to the daemons in His Dark Materials, the Geniuses in this
series opener will intrigue readers who long for an animal familiar of their own.
The Golden Specific
S.E. Grove
Fantasy. A year ago, Sophia Tims and her friend Theo survived a perilous trip through the various Ages of their chronologically fractured world. Now, a new clue about her missing parents leads Sophia on another journey, away from her safe home in 1890s Boston and into the Dark Ages, in search of an unmapped, plague-riddled city. "Brilliantly imagined and full of wonder" (
Kirkus Reviews
), this steampunk-infused 2nd volume in the Mapmakers trilogy offers a captivating combination of history, science, and fantasy, along with a hint of horror -- just the thing for fans of His Dark Materials.
Anne Ursu
Fantasy. Ten-year-old Hazel Anderson isn't happy; her parents have split, and she's had to switch to a new school where neither the kids nor the teachers understand her. She figures that as long as she has her best friend, Jack, she'll be okay...and then Jack disappears. Determined to rescue him, Hazel ventures into the
Minnesota woods where she last saw Jack -- and discovers a frightening magical world full of mystery and danger. If you enjoyed the snowy rescue mission in
The Golden Compass
, or if you like haunting, poetic stories inspired by fairy tales, be sure to check out
Contact your librarian for more great books!
If you are having trouble unsubscribing to this newsletter, please contact the Bernardsville Public Library at
908-766-0118, 1 Anderson Hill Road Bernardsville, NJ 07924


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|*August 16 - 22
|From Folly to Faith
The Apostle Peter
Read for This Week's Study:
Acts 2:14-40; 3; 5:1-11; 1 Peter; 2 Peter.
Memory Text:
"Simon Peter answered him, 'Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life' " (John 6:68, NIV).
Key Thought:
|The apostle Peter was one of the central pillars of the early church.
Jesus changed Peter from an unreliable but passionate disciple into a rocklike
tower of strength in sharing the gospel.
Peter's impulsive, emotional character has made him an interesting study. He was a disciple whose heart was in the right place but who made many mistakes.
Peter's story especially helps us understand the role of emotions in the Christian life. When you are lost in a forest, your senses can take you only so far. You can see, hear, and smell-and still be lost. You need a compass and a map, something more than what you have naturally.
So it is in our spiritual lives. What we feel is not the final test of what is truth. We need something moresomething outside of us. We need a spiritual compass and map. Emotions are a vital part of the Christian life, but not the most important part. Without appropriate care, they even can be dangerous. Peter was someone whose emotions got him into trouble more often than not. However, once placed under submission to Jesus, his emotions and zeal became powerful tools for the Lord's work.
*Study this week's lesson to prepare for Sabbath, August 23.
|August 17
The Fisherman
Peter came from Bethsaida, a fishing village on the northeastern coast of the Sea of Galilee. Bethsaida, which means House of Fishing, was where Jesus later performed many miracles. For nearly two thousand years, Bethsaida was lost to history. Not until 1987 was the archaeological site of this village discovered.
Although Peter was married (Matt. 8:14), we know nothing about his wife or any children he might have had. We do know he was living with his wife and mother-in-law in Capernaum when Jesus called him to be His disciple.
Read Matthew 4:18-20. How did Peter respond to Jesus' call? What significance is found in the fact that they "left their nets" (vs. 20)?
The simplicity of this description leaves us to guess what went through Peter's mind. Obviously something about Jesus was so compelling that Peter was prepared to leave his home and livelihood to follow this itinerant Teacher. The point should be obvious to all of us. We need to be ready to do the same thing; that is, to follow Jesus no matter the personal cost (see Luke 14:26, 27).
Peter r came from a humble working-class background. Contrast that to Paul's background. Acts 22:3, Rom. 11:1, Phil. 3:5; see also Acts 5:34. What point can we take away from this contrast?
Either way, for both Peter and Paul, regardless of their different backgrounds, the call of Jesus required total commitment on their part. Upper class, working class, it does not matter.
|Recount your own experience when being called by Jesus. What did it cost you? What did you have to give up? If someone asked you, Was it worth it? how would you respond, and why?
|August 18
Peter's Folly
Like the other disciples, Peter had a unique opportunity to learn from Jesus. He walked many miles with Him, ate with Him, worked with Him. He listened to Jesus speak, watched the way He dealt with people, saw Him heal the sick. He witnessed dramatic spectaclesthe Mount of Transfiguration, where Jesus talked with Moses and Elijah; Jesus raising the dead; Jesus arrested; Jesus risen from the grave.
Peter also had many opportunities for practical learning. Often Peter found himself in the middle of experiences that provided life-changing object lessons. All these lessons were preparing him for his role as one of the great missionaries of the early church.
In the course of his experiences with Jesus, Peter made many mistakes. Read the mistakes depicted below. What were they, and what lessons should Peter have learned from them?
18:10, 11
Brash, presumptuous, prone to violence, collapsing under pressure, sleeping on the job, Peter on one level appeared to be everything that a humble, meek, faithful Christian should not be. And yet, before it was all over, Peter became one of the key leaders in the early Christian church, a powerful evangelist and missionary for Jesus. What a testimony to what God can do in a life surrendered to Him.
|What lessons can you learn, from this account, about not judging others? Or even judging yourself?
|August 19
Learning From Jesus
Read Matthew 16:13-26. What was the nature of the exchange? Why did Peter respond as he did? What basic lesson was Jesus seeking to teach the disciples?
Though Peter had declared that Jesus was the Messiah, the Christ, he had a false understanding of what that meant. The view Peter and the other disciples had of the Messiah reflected the common understanding of the day. The Messiah would come from the line of David and would overthrow the Romans and bring justice and peace.
Yet, Jesus clearly taught the disciples and the crowds that the kingdom of God was a spiritual kingdom. They would not establish it by power, swords, and daggers but by love, forgiveness, and righteousness.
At a pivotal stage of His ministry, Jesus decided to tell the disciples about His deaththat He would go to Jerusalem, be killed, and rise again after three days. Peter was offended by the idea that Jesus was going to dieeven though this death was to be the central pillar of the plan of salvation.
Within Peter's world-view, there was no room for this. Peter had left his home village and his fishing business to follow Jesus. He had given his life to supporting Him and His ministry. The death of his Master, therefore, had no place in the scenario Peter had painted in his mind. Jesus would set up His kingdom on earth, and Peter would play a key role in that kingdom of justice and peace. How could such a wonderful movement of righteousness and healing end in the death of its Leader? It is almost as if Peter either did not hear or did not understand Jesus' promise to rise on the third day.
|Notice the degree of selfishness seen in Peter here. That explains, it seems, Christ's words in Matthew 16:23-26. Read those texts again. In what areas of your own life might you apply those words to yourself?
|August 20
The Peter of Acts
No doubt, much of the Gospels do not paint Peter in a particularly great light. He is shown, time and again, floundering, falling, making great mistakes. Yet, the Gospels end with a clear indication of the bumbling disciple's future.
Read John 21:14-19. What is Jesus saying to Peter here? Why is that so astonishing, considering Peter's past?
"Feed my sheep"? That is exactly what Peter eventually comes to do. Again, what a powerful testimony to what God can do in the life of someone dedicated to Him. The fiery, impetuous Peter now takes a key role in the formation of the early church.
Browse through the following texts. What do they tell us about the role and work of Peter?
The transformation was astounding, and the lessons for us should be obvious. Through the surrender of himself to Christ, Peter became a powerful witness for the Lord. Despite Peter's numerous mistakes and shortcomings, the Lord was still able to use him as a powerful witness.
|How different are you today from when you first started following Jesus? What progress have you seen? What areas need more improvement? Why, no matter how slow the progress seems, should you never give up?
|August 21
The Peter of the Epistles
When Jesus told Peter, "Feed my sheep," no doubt the discouraged fisherman had no idea what was coming, or the role he would play in the Lord's church. Though we have seen, in Acts, Peter fulfilling that command, we can see it also in the fact this same Peter was also the author of two Epistles, his way of "feeding the sheep" not just in his own time but for all church history. In a sense, every time we read one of his letters, we are seeing another fulfillment of Christ's words to His disciple.
Pick one chapter, any chapter, from either of the Epistles of Peter. Read it over, pray over it, and try to imagine the character of the person writing it. What can you learn about the new Peter from what you have read in that chapter?
In some ways it is hard to imagine these deep, eloquent words coming from the same man seen in the Gospels, the harsh, brash fisherman whose mouth ran faster than his mind or his faith. Yet, this is the Peter transformed by God's grace into what Paul called "a new creature" (2 Cor. 5:17).
Particularly powerful are Peter's words in 1 Peter 1:18-21 and in 1 Peter 2:24, in which Peter puts emphasis on the death of Jesus for the redemption of our souls. The Peter who once was determined that Jesus should never go to the Cross is now the Peter who is proclaiming the Cross as the means of redemption, as the place where Jesus, our Substitute, bore our sins. Notice, too, the wording of 1 Peter 2:18-23, in which Peter is advocating a kind of pacifism, a turning of the cheek that one would not have found in the Peter of the Gospels. Truly, the change was remarkable. It should give us all hope, regardless of where we are in our own personal character development.
Go back over the chapter you picked from one of Peter's Epistles. What was the main point? How can you take what this shepherd was feeding you and make it your own?
|August 22
Further Study:
|Read Ellen G. White,
"A Night on the
Lake," pp. 377-382, in The Desire of Ages.
"In his early discipleship Peter thought himself strong. Like the Pharisee, in his own estimation he was 'not as other men are.' When Christ on the eve of His betrayal forewarned His disciples, 'All ye shall be offended because of Me this night,' Peter confidently declared, 'Although all shall be offended, yet will not I.' Mark 14:27, 29. Peter did not know his own danger. Self-confidence misled him. He thought himself able to withstand temptation; but in a few short hours the test came, and with cursing and swearing he denied his Lord.
"When the crowing of the cock reminded him of the words of Christ, surprised and shocked at what he had just done he turned and looked at his Master. At that moment Christ looked at Peter, and beneath that grieved look, in which compassion and love for him were blended, Peter understood himself. He went out and wept bitterly. That look of Christ's broke his heart. Peter had come to the turning point, and bitterly did he repent his sin. He was like the publican in his contrition and repentance, and like the publican he found mercy. The look of Christ assured him of pardon."Ellen G. White, Christ's Object Lessons, pp. 152-154.
Discussion Questions:
| Go through Peter's Epistles and look for things in there
that specifically show how different a person he was from the Peter of the
Gospels. What encouragement can you draw from what you find?
It is easy to criticize Peter's lack of faith as he sank into the water. But Peter was the only disciple who had the courage to get out of the boat. What are some of the ways you need to "get out of the boat" in your Christian life? What about your own church? Does it need to do the same?
Ellen G. White writes, "Every true disciple is born into the kingdom of God as a missionary."The Desire of Ages, p. 195. Many followers of Christ lose their early enthusiasm to share what they have learned with others. How can church members recapture that passion for sharing the good news? How can you help each other regain this desire for witnessing?
The story of Peter is a tribute to what God can do through even the weakest disciple. Jesus harnessed Peter's passion and good intentions and strengthened him in the faith to be a mighty pillar of the early Christian church.
|I N S I D E Story
|God Hater Becomes a God Lover
by ROSELLE MONTEBON
Pangilinan, a lay evangelist, and his team of volunteers, held evangelistic meetings in a rural area in the northern Philippines. Toward the end of the meetings a number of people asked to prepare for baptism.
Pangilinan asked his team for a volunteer to stay behind and care for the new believers, and Roselle agreed to stay. She lived in a room provided by the village and spent her days visiting the people, holding evening worships, and teaching a literacy class twice a week. Two young women from the village stayed with her to protect her.
In this village lived a man, Totoy, who hated Adventists and didn't want them in the village. When the team left the area, he showed his anger toward them by sprinkling blood outside the door of Roselle's room while she slept. Most of the villagers suspected that Totoy had done this to frighten Roselle into leaving the village, but they had no proof. Roselle wasn't frightened by the demonstration of hatred, and she continued her work in the village.
Several months later Totoy became ill and was hospitalized with tuberculosis. After being released, he asked his physician for the medicine he needed to continue his recovery. But to his surprise, the doctor refused to give it to him. "You must go see Pangilinan," the doctor said. "He will give you the medicine." The doctor chose to distribute medicines to tribal people through trusted local workers, and in Totoy's area that trusted person was the Adventist lay evangelist.
Totoy didn't want to visit Pangilinan, but he needed the medicine. Finally he gave in and went to Pangilinan to ask for the medicine. Pangilinan gave him the medicine and vitamins he needed. Then Totoy went to live with relatives in another village, away from Adventists, he thought.
But in his new village lived Mar, another lay evangelist. Mar didn't know about Totoy's hatred for Adventists, and when he met Totoy, he invited him to church. Totoy agreed to go and began attending church regularly. He even brought his family with him. In time this man who hated God and His people surrendered his life to the Savior and asked to be baptized. He testified, "I hated God, and I hated Adventists. But God did not give up on me. His great love has saved me."
Your mission offerings help support lay evangelists such as Pangilinan, Roselle, and Mar, who work to bring people to the Savior in difficult and isolated areas of the world. Thank you.
ROSELLE MONTEBON is a graduate of Adventist University of the Philippines.
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If #ACTA Is So Great, Where Are All The Supporters Extolling Its Virtues? - http://bit.ly/Hx8Ufh well?
The right to information on Wikipedia - http://bit.ly/H3TnXl inspiring story about Indian Wikipedian
Researcher publishes specs for real #Linux-powered Star Trek tricorder - http://bit.ly/H6TeeL inevitable, really
80-year-old peer dusts off typewriter to pen 'think of the children' UK anti-porn net #censorship law - http://bit.ly/HyaJa8 bad idea
EU opens to first citizens' initatives amid criticism - http://bit.ly/GXWICx reboot needed
Wikipedia's Next Big Thing: Wikidata, A Machine-Readable, User-Editable Database Funded By Google et al. - http://tcrn.ch/H6Voz5 cool
Universal Music Claims Piracy Justifies Monopoly, Wants Power To Control Digital Music Services - http://bit.ly/H6VUgk there are no limits
Common pesticide named as cause of bee decline - http://bit.ly/H3DvUv er, maybe we could stop using them...
The Smartphone Wars: Exit #Blackberry, pursued by a bear - http://bit.ly/H3XJxC "retreat upward never works": why do people forget this?
Can #Tunisia Become the Silicon Valley of the Arab World? - http://bit.ly/H0NMjn interesting idea (v @bdarcus)
Tell Morrisons you're off - http://bit.ly/HsScPK #morrisons inviting backlash over #gm move
Banned on Facebook: Facing, Booking and Poking - http://rww.to/HxohnX facebook lets the mask slip
User uploads to #YouTube hit one hour per second - http://bit.ly/H0SI7N amazing stat, spot-on analysis
Jumping Urban #Drone - http://bit.ly/H36ynH do not miss this further glimpse of our drone-filled future - amazing video
Georges Bizet: Complete Thematic Catalogue - http://bit.ly/H4leql composer of world's most popular opera... #spotify
VFat patent could be invalidated, thanks to Motorola and Torvalds - http://bit.ly/HsHs2G anything win for linus
Consumer groups demand GMO labeling, question food safety - http://reut.rs/Hpx2g6 extraordinary they even have to beg for this...
#Shell overcomes legal obstacles to Arctic drilling - http://bit.ly/H3hSTw a disaster waiting to happen
#Trademark Lawyers Push For Crazy New Domain Rules Making It Easy For Them To Take Away Others' Domains - http://bit.ly/H7omL5 bin #icann
Microsoft may be set to combat piracy with special Chinese edition of Windows 8 - http://tnw.co/Hql8HO but will they switch from XP?
Meet TestPAC: An upstart political action committee that calls Reddit home - http://tnw.co/H8JTHP a trend for the future?
Hot, crowded, and running out of fuel: Earth of 2050 a scary place - http://bit.ly/H7r2Is all thanks to greed & stupidity


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|Spring Term 2021 British Writers I - 3061 - ENG 230
Prerequisites/Notes: ENG 150 or its equivalent or sophomore standing
Catalog Description : Intensive study of five or six major British authors from Chaucer to Swift. Emphasis on close reading and critical writing.
Attributes: Humanities Div GER (01cr), BM Humanities (01cr), Foundation/Gateway Course


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here is some of the traditions i nver fail every year:
Personally I start my countdown by the first day of September (hehe one of my very few traditions) But the real excitement comes when its 4 weeks before Christmas. In the office we do our Kris kringle, its like exchanging gifts but the gifts we exchange is based on a certain category (like on Monday we are going to exchange something that is RED and HAIRY J )but we do not use expensive gifts, like these things only vary from 10 Phil peso 50 phil peso (in US I guess this is $0.45-$1.00) and the excitement goes on and on every week. Some would make fun just to add color and more excitement.
And then by the start of Dec 16, we hear our evening mass or locally known as MISA DE GALLO, funny as we celebrated this @ 4:00 AM usually dawn not evening..ehhhe and we complete this for 9 consecutive dawns ending on the dawn of Dec 24th and the biggest mass is celebrated by the eve of Dec 24 usually @ 10:00 PM -- this is the true evening mass then after the mass all family members gather all together to enjoy our NOCHE BUENA or Christmas dinner (mostly composed of spaghetti, Christmas ham, chicken and cake), I still can remember when I was young, our mother and/or father sleeps through until 12 MN and would ask us to wake them up on time for the NOCHE BUENA. Parents being santa claus is not usually common for us but we have our own santa versions. Our ninangs or ninongs, rather known as godmothers or godfathers are the ones giving us presents every year though we know its from them (as this is being written on the tags) we still consider them as our Santa clauses After the noche Buena we sing carols, or either watch movies or plays with other younger children. By Dec 25 we again hear mass with the entire family and if we have relatives near to us we visit them.
hope u liked da way we celebrate it here and now its ur turn to share ur traditionspresents
How wonderful Leah! Thanks for sharing your culture with us! :D
Bob, Forum Moderator
did you know that Filipinos celebrate Christmas longer than any other country in the world?
when the Ber months settle in, one can usually hear X'mas songs being played in the radios and even some houses can be seen with X'mas trees already set-up...
They also have rice cake being peddled near churches catering to early Sunday churchgoers...
I once worked with a guy who had married a Filipino lady and he told me that when he was over there, they celebrated Christmas from September til at least February. I agree with you, MW; sounds like my kind of people. Too bad, I don't think I'd get away with starting in Sept here in the US, lol.
I experienced first hand how Filipino celebrate Christmas and I love the way they celebrate it.
Thanks for sharing
Ideas for Christmas: http://ideasforchristmas.net
it's the start of the traditional pre-dawn masses here in our country! can't get enough of the urge to wake up as early as 4 in the morning to get a glimpse of the youngsters & old alike braving the morning chill and enjoying a sip of our native ginger drink which goes well with our creamy rice cake topped with salted egg!!!
Oooooh! I'm was there... relly nice....


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Devious virus writers have come up with a new twist on ransomware-style malware.
A new strain of Trojan encrypts recently-opened files on compromised Windows PCs. But instead of demanding a ransom for a decryption key to unlock files, the malware relies on users to search the web for a possible way-out.
Hackers have cleverly baited searches for likely terms, with links to sites offering a supposed fix actually developed by the crooks behind the ruse.
A fuller explanation of the scam can be found Symantec's write-up on the Ramvicrype Trojan here and in a blog posting by Symantec researcher Shunichi Imano here. ®


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Toa$t - All Day [Label Submitted]
"The Washington Heightz, NEWYORK spokesman is back with his first jump off from "WE DON'T SLEEP WE NAP" the mixtape COMING SOON!! Follow the darkskin dominican @toasalini YOU KNOW WHAT IT IS WHEN IT IS WHAT IT IS.....SALINI MUSIC!! "
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No timetable for Gyorko's return after setback
MIAMI -- Injured Padres second baseman Jedd Gyorko rejoined the team and was examined by team trainers before Friday night's game against the Marlins.
He left the first game of his rehab assignment with Double-A San Antonio on Wednesday two innings after experiencing right leg tightness when trying to stretch a first-inning single into a double.
Gyorko was placed on the 15-day disabled list June 10 with a right groin strain.
"I kind of felt it when I was rounding first," Gyorko said. "I kind of pulled up a little easy, went back on the field [for defense] and could feel it a little bit, so I pulled myself out just to make sure i didn't do anything worse."
Padres manager Bud Black said there was no timetable for Gyorko's return. While Gyorko's leg tightness was some cause for concern, the rookie second baseman did not appear too concerned with the issue.
The discomfort he felt Wednesday was far less severe than the pain he experienced when he initially sustained the right groin strain in an 8-7 loss to Rockies on June 9.
"He doesn't feel anything like it did when he had the initial injury in Colorado, so that's a good thing," Black said. "His appraisal was it's not as bad as it was initially. [Team trainer Todd Hutcheson]. is going to treat it, but he didn't have anything real profound to say."
Gyorko said: "It's not nearly as bad as it was in Colorado, so I guess, if anything, it's good. It doesn't seem as bad."
Logan Forsythe has been solid in Gyorko's absence, compiling a .274 batting average, eight runs scored and nine RBIs in 16 games before Friday. But Black was concerned with the setback sustained by one of the best bats in his lineup.
Despite missing 16 games in June, Gyorko ranked second on the team with 36 runs scored, tied for second with eight home runs and second in batting average (.284) among Padres with at least 150 at-bats through Thursday.
"That was a little bit discouraging that he reinjured it a little bit," Black said.
Before experiencing the tightness, Gyorko felt confident he would return soon. The second baseman said he felt "great" before experiencing the leg tightness.
"I ran full speed at home before I left," Gyorko said. "I ran the bases 100 percent. It felt great in [batting practice]. It felt great catching ground balls before the game. Obviously, I wasn't expecting it to do anything."


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SPIEGELAU Soiree Decanter
Showcase favorite vintages with this functional and attractive decanter. Standing 9 inches tall, this flask widens from a narrow neck to a 6 4/5 inch base, creating plenty of surface area for wines to breathe better. The decanter is lightweight and clear, so guests can enjoy the rich colors of wine at the table, and features a beveled pouring edge for fewer drips. A sure conversation piece, the decanter is also sturdy and doesn't tip over, even on the high seas. Easy to fill, it holds one bottle of wine. For cleaning, use hot soapy water and a long-handled brush.


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Posts Tagged 'bi'
Promoting abstinence in sex education is what Candace Maxymowich, a Winnipeg public school board trustee candidate, did during her campaign, before she lost by a wide margin in October's election. But her discussion on infusing the value of Christian-style abstinence into education begs the question: what are kids learning in sex ed in Winnipeg's schools, and are they learning anything about same-sex and trans issues?
Among all of Winnipeg's school divisions—some more progressive when it comes to sex ed than others—curriculum is mandated by the province. The physical education and health curriculum are the sections that apply to sex ed. The province's website details a framework on how schools are to deal with "potentially sensitive content," of which sex ed is a part.
Requiring a planning process that includes parental involvement, school divisions make independent decisions about sex ed, including content, how it is taught, how it's graded and what resources are used to teach it. Not teaching it at all is an option, as the framework gives school divisions the power to decide how much depth and breadth to give the topic. There is also an opt-out for parents who'd like their children to learn the subject by another means if they disagree with what the school's doing.
Winnipeg's schools are many, and range from Dakota Collegiate, which is hosting an upcoming national gay-straight alliance conference in May, to others that have faced controversies over Bill 18 and over transgender students.
When it comes to sex education, what is being taught varies widely as well.
"It's division-to-division on what kind of language they use," says Roselle Paulsen, program director at Winnipeg's Sexuality Education Resource Centre (SERC). She was consulted on the health curriculum when it was created and published in 2000. "There are different approaches to how people interpret the student learning outcomes. So if you see a word like 'diversity,' or those kinds of things, people are going to interpret them differently."
Paulsen points to a couple of examples in the curriculum. The first, a learning outcome for Grade 7, tells teachers to "identify effects of social influences on sexuality and gender roles." Topics like violence against women, media ads, gender equity and culture are generally covered under this topic, Paulsen says. But "Somebody who wants to take more latitude could say that when we talk about gender roles we could delve much more deeply into things like gender identity and social morays."
It's up to the interpretation of the school divisions. Another example is in grade five where the curriculum talks about celebrating all kinds of families—again open to interpretation. By Grade 9, sexual orientation is named explicitly. Since it's included, Paulsen says there should be no reason for schools not to talk about same-sex issues within the context of sex ed, although some don't. "The frustration with this sort of document, is on the one hand, sexuality education within the health curriculum is mandated. On the other hand, the department says, but each division in the province can determine, based on their own community needs, the depth and breadth of what they provide. That's the problem."
Vycki Atallah has also seen a wide variation between what is taught in sex ed. As co-ordinator of Klinic Community Health Centre's Teen Talk program, she's invited into schools to give sex ed talks when schools want more. "It can really look a lot different in different schools and communities. For some schools and communities, we're really welcome, and come in, and some classes get multiple workshops from us; and other schools and school divisions simply don't book us; don't extend an invitation for us to come into their school."
Teen Talk approaches sex ed in line with the provincial curriculum, but from an anti-oppressive standpoint, which includes education about healthy relationships, and the range of genders and sexuality. Their workshops make it clear that all types of couples are valued on an equal level and that body parts can belong to people of any gender, says Atallah.
She says Seven Oaks School Division and Winnipeg One are among the most progressive on these fronts she's worked with.
Anastasia Chipelski, who works with service providers who talk to teens about sex in her capacity as health educator at Nine Circles Community Health Centre, says she doesn't think the majority of teens are learning their sex education in schools anyway. The teens her clients are in contact with are way ahead of any adults who are teaching them about sex. "Who knows where the teens are learning it from?" she says. "They're not learning it in schools." One guess she has is they're getting information from well-informed peers.
Perhaps one piece of the puzzle is that the curriculum schools are teaching needs updating, says Paulsen. "Everybody agrees that it [does]," she says. "Things have changed a lot."
"We have a spectrum of how people identify and their attractions, and all of those kinds of things.
If we're going to be inclusive and comprehensive and provide a safe space for all students, then it is time to be realistic and pragmatic, and let's not pretend that this isn't an issue."
Published in OutWords Magazine, Dec 2014
–Larkin Schmiedl is a freelance writer living and working in Vancouver, B.C. He loves to write about social and environmental justice.


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LEGO The Hobbit on the PS Vita will take players on epic quests and a variety of adventures as they explore key locations from the films, such as Lake-town, Dale, Erebor, Bag End, Goblin-town, Mirkwood, Rivendell and the treacherous High Pass over the Misty Mountains. Fans will also assume the roles of their favorite characters, including Bilbo Baggins, Gandalf, and the Dwarves of Erebor: Thorin, Fíli, Kíli, Óin, Glóin, Dwalin, Balin, Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, Dori, Nori and Ori, each possessing a unique and hilarious ability. One of the main new features of the game allows players to utilize the Dwarves' combined abilities such as buddy fighting, two-player attack, staff climb, mace swing and belly bounce to help them fight Orcs and fouler things or to progress through the game.
PS Vita
In a licensed movie game on a console there lived a LEGO The Hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty licensed movie game, filled with the ends of CEOs who want to make money, nor yet a dry, bare effort with nothing in it to sink one's teeth into: it was a hobbit game, and that means comfort.
It had perfectly round and rotund LEGO figures cavorting around the first two Hobbit movie adaptations by Peter Jackson, coming to a stop near the exact middle. The game opened on to a tube-shaped hall of chambers and environments: a very comfortable action game, with puzzles based on destroying and building with LEGO pieces, and snickering, jokey cut scenes that riff on the movies, provided with polished mechanics from earlier LEGO games, and lots and lots of pegs and bricks to bash for the game's currency. The game wound on and on, going fairly but not quite straight into the side of adventures in the Dwarven halls, The Shire, to the Misty Mountains and under hill, and out from an inspired LEGO puzzle building battle with Gollum. Many little round adventures opened out of the second movie, first in vast Mirkwood forest fights with spiders and then on to another town on the lake and in the mountain with fire-breathing Smaug himself.
No going superior serious for LEGO The Hobbit: dwarves, orcs, elves, creepy crawlies (lots of these) are juxtaposed with laundry machines, giant sharks, heart boxers, rhythm games, all in the same game, and indeed on the same LEGO tradition. The best parts were all on the side of following instructions to build sets, or cooperating with the many dwarf characters to craft and solve puzzles, for these were the only things to set it apart from other LEGO games, though not deep-set differences looking over a garden of individuality, it is enough to say it slopes down to a distinct game.
This Hobbit game was a very well-to-do idea, and it's due to LEGO. LEGO had lived in the neighborhood of licensed movies for time out of mind, and people considered them very respectable, not only because the games were rich with humor and color, but also because the adventures adhered to the idea of the video game spinoff of the movie as something of a joke and didn't take themselves too seriously or do anything unexpected. You could tell what a LEGO game would do on any one game mechanic without the bother of asking him. This is a story of how a LEGO game turned a rather serious adaptation into something more the tone of the original lighthearted adventure for children. LEGO may have lost the neighbors' respect for doing it before the final movie, thus ending on a cliff-hanger with the promise of a downloadable expansion to wrap it up, but it gained -- well, you will see how it's like potato chips and french fries compared to the hearty soul food of the book, but nevertheless more pleasant to digest than a pretentious call to video game dignity.
The mother of our particular LEGO The Hobbit is a Dynasty Warriors-style game. I suppose these mammoth battlefield action games need some description nowadays, since they have become rare and shy of the Big Games, as they call competitors like Assassin's Creed or Shadow of Mordor. They are (or were) little action games, with about half the depth of a good combo system, and larger, more vast areas to explore. Warrior-style action games have no pretension toward beardy RPG style depth. There is little or no magic about them, except the ordinary everyday hacking and slashing which helps them to build pleasant levels around barreling through large swaths of enemies. They are inclined to be fat in the lengthening of their campaigns, and can get a little dreary if play sessions stretch on too long.
Nevertheless, LEGO The Hobbit dresses in bright colors (chiefly humor and whimsy) and wears no pretensions, because its amusing qualities grow naturally in the cockles of your heart. The fact remains that the Silly Licensed Game is not as respected as the Serious Adaptation, though this one is undoubtedly richer (and better with a friend).