text:
Sep 10, 2012
Monday, September 10, 2012 Melanie Miller
77 comments:
- Abejo said...
Good morning, folks. Thank you, Melanie, for an easy and refreshing Monday puzzle. Thank you, Argyle, for the also refreshing review.
This was an easy puzzle all the way through. Enjoyed the speed run.
I had to wait on 9A, SIETE, until I had down perps. I get past about three in Spanish and I am lost.
PERTH even came to my mind after I had the first two letters.
ESME is a crossword staple. One of these days i will read the book.
Theme came easily.
I love 1D FETA cheese, the goat variety.
Never heard of MEDCO. I try to stay away from Rx's. Except for my blood pressure pills.
We have had ESSEN so many times in puzzles I feel I have been there.
Off to the rest of my day. Doctor's appointment at 8:00 AM. Standard checkup. It is about a year ago that I started all this medical stuff. I guess this will be the rest of my life.
See you tomorrow.
- September 10, 2012 at 5:41 AM
- Barry G. said...
Morning, all!
Well, this was mostly a Monday speed run. Blew through most of it in near-record speed, but then hit some speed bumps on the Eastern Seaboard. Neither MEDCO nor SHANT sprang immediately to mind (actually, I've never even heard of MEDCO and had to rely on the perps). Tried TATA instead of CIAO and couldn't think of ABREAST right away. Similarly, couldn't get AS IF off the clue at first.
Being a Monday, none of these issues slowed me down for long and I still finished in good time. It was just a bit odd that everything else went by so smoothly except for that one tiny section...
- September 10, 2012 at 5:50 AM
- desper-otto said...
Good Monday to all.
WBS, to a tee.
Argyle, I think that was a Caretaker typo. I never heard of a "tenent" back in my Methodist days of yore.
Another hand up for never having seen or heard of MEDCO. It'll be interesting to see if that's unanimous here on the blog.
- September 10, 2012 at 6:58 AM
- windhover said...
Ditto here. Until about 4-5 years ago, I had not been to a doctor since 1974 for any reason. Now my calendar is full of appointments. Makes sense of the old adage, "The only thing wrong with old age is it doesn't last long enough". I'm still kicking pretty high, though. Rode the bike 50 miles yesterday, and it was the pedal powered one, not the Beemer.
Speaking of kicking, for the first time in 3 years I missed three consecutive days of the blog while I was out breaking some personal maraschinos. Catching up this morning, I was shocked (shocked, I say) to see that I had been flamed on Saturday without even posting. While I have never met Mr. Bumppo, Esq., I suspect that the only thing we have in common is our state of residence. For one thing, I have never, in 3 1/2 years, posted one iota (puzzlese) of puzzle criticism. I just solve the puzzle (or not, often on Saturdays) and move on. And I pretty much love all music, including that of "the kids" today.
- September 10, 2012 at 6:58 AM
- thehondohurricane said...
Hello folks,
Nice puzzle for me to start getting the rust off from my LOA doing puzzles. Pretty straight forward with a couple of minor slowdowns.
Like Barry & Abejo, never heard of MEDCO. Abbreviations for recipe amounts always have me scratching my noggin. TBSP was no exception.
Biggest embarrassment of the day was DEUCE. After watching two weeks of the US Open, I drew a blank. Didn't help that I had TATA in 48A instead of CIAO.
Otherwise, a nice smooth start for me. I'll call it a Rehab game.
- September 10, 2012 at 7:07 AM
- Spitzboov said...
Good morning all. Interesting take on the puzzle, Argyle. Cool alliteration: MMMm.
Pretty easy as others have said. Laughed at Abejo's take on ESSEN. Means 'to eat' in German. Medco is one of my pharmacy providers, so it was a gimme. Briefly considered 'mouse print' for SMALL PRINT.
Here is a line ABREAST with my avatar 2nd from left, with yours truly on board, in early August, 1959.
- September 10, 2012 at 7:14 AM
- CrossEyedDave said...
I have not done the puzzle yet, saving for the end of a busy day.
I just read last nights late comments, & wanted to add another childhood memory, The Little House (Disney 1952) a rarely seen classic.
To borrow from the style of Husker Gary,,, (imitation is the sincerest form of flattery) What was the name of the narrator, & what was (one of) the things he was famous for?
- September 10, 2012 at 7:29 AM
- HeartRx said...
Good morning Argyle, C.C. et al.
Thanks for your inspired write-up, Argyle! I loved the little fawn, but I wonder why he was there, and what happened to him? Did he ever find his MA?
Interesting use of clechos in the theme entries today. I thought the grid was well done, considering there were fills of 10-9-15-9-10 to get around.
I SHAN'T repeat what everyone else has said, but I did like seeing WHISH. Hand up for never having heard of MEDCO.
Arabon from last night, the gimmick certainly could be done in reverth - but it would have to be consistent, with all the themers changing the same sound from "TH" to "S". But cluing "moss balls" would end up being quite DF, don't you think? LOL!!
Have a great week, everyone!
- September 10, 2012 at 7:32 AM
- Hahtoolah said...
Good Morning, Argyle and friends. Interesting Monday puzzle. I realized we were contemplating small things with the compact car.
I had forgotten about ESME, and neither SHANT nor MEDCO came easily to me.
- September 10, 2012 at 7:57 AM
- desper-otto said...
CED, I can't think of his name, but I can picture him. He used to be on TV a lot.
HeartRx, that reminds me of that famous radio blooper..."Hail as big as moth balls, and I'm talking big moths here." And that reminds me of a Navy baseball game on Guam back in the 60's. I was back at the studio, and couple other guys were at the game doing the play-by-play..."That's two strikes, and the batter's got no balls on him...[giggle][giggle][guffaw] [ROTFL]" He wanted desperately for me to take it back to the studio for a PSA, but I just wouldn't do it. He finally got it back together, but he broke up several more times during that broadcast just thinking about it. Fond memory.
- September 10, 2012 at 8:13 AM
- Mari said...
Hi all,
WEES on MEDCO and SHANT. I wanted WHOSH for WHISH. Nothing else to add, you just about covered it all.
Have a nice week!
- September 10, 2012 at 8:14 AM
- Yellowrocks said...
My son has 9 prescriptions with MEDCO. Their service is great and their personnel are caring. They contact the doctors for reorders, and I like having all the info online.
Today the Star Ledger had a consumer help article on a woman who has been trying to get her ice maker fixed since March.
Link ice maker Sound familiar?
On Saturday I returned to the Y after being unable to participate since Jan. I tolerated it well, but with fewer reps, lighter weights, and longer times.
In re yesterday's blog: Being a long time devotee of state parks in several states, I have learned much about feeding wildlife. The rangers say feeding ducks and waterfowl bread is bad for them. The same arguments apply to bread for deer.
Link Is bread for the birds?
Marti, congrats on a great Sunday puzzle. I wrote a post last evening, but it disappeared before I could publish and I didn't retype it.
- September 10, 2012 at 8:29 AM
- Yellowrocks said...
I see the boys had 48A TATAs in mind before they found 32D ABREAST, smaller but more impressive.
- September 10, 2012 at 8:33 AM
- Husker Gary said...
Except for a couple of erasures REAIR/RERUN, ITSME/ITISI this took a very SHORT, BRIEF time. Quick run before I go see an ENT guy today hoping my hearing can be fixed without a hearing aid – damn vanity! I agree about medical issues WH!! At least my issues are only annoying and aren't life threatening.
-I agree with Argyle's assessment
-esMe/Medco was only real pause but former came out of somewhere and latter made sense with first syllable
-Two FAWNS and mom walked up to us at Fontanelle Forest a few weeks ago. Wow!
-Differentiating into METH., CONG., EPIS., LUTH., CATH. ad nauseum makes no sense to me.
-Old 30's/40's movies where people born in Ohio and Pennsylvania were calling each other "Dahling" are silly
-TRIG was much harder than CALC for me
-What sitcom had two men stealing an ARMOIRE off the street from one of the principal characters?
-When I was teaching, those bracelets has BEADS
-There were more TEARS than TIERS in the Rose Bowl Saturday where the Huskers lost
-Omaha considered a PANDA for its zoo expansion but the costs are incredible
-Greek wife hates FETA and Blue Cheese
-A silly cartoon of Two Men Walking Abreast anyone can draw
- September 10, 2012 at 8:39 AM
- desper-otto said...
YR, ducks and bread...good to know. Your TATA and ABREAST comment was...er, bodacious!
- September 10, 2012 at 8:39 AM
- Middletown Bomber said...
Easy speed run for me today. wanted aenta for 28d but it would not go because of beads. I was aware of Medco they were a pharmacy Benefit management company they were started by Merck, and spun off. Medco ceased to exist in 2012 when they were purchased by Express Scripts.
- September 10, 2012 at 8:46 AM
- Montana said...
Greetings from Central California.
I flew to Sacramento yesterday to visit relatives in Turlock, CA.
Nice to have a Monday puzzle to do. Needed perps for a few answers. I struggled more with the mechanics of doing the puzzle on a computer for the first time. Interesting. I think I still prefer paper/pencil or iPad.
Have a good day, everyone,
- September 10, 2012 at 8:48 AM
Thank you Melanie Miller for a nice, relatively easy puzzle, and Argyle for the enchanted blog. I didn't know fawns made sounds, although we have quite a few in our neighborhood - I know the adult deer don't make any sounds, except some snorts and heavy breathing (as a warning ). I wonder why they lose ( the power of - ) their vocal cords, in adulthood.
We (have to - ) use MEDCO. The company has a direct contract with your Health Insurer, like Anthem, so you don't have any other choices, and you as a consumer are only Numero Dos ( No.2) with them. ... They insist on sending you a 3 month supply at a time, by mail - so if your Doc. changes the medication, (in the middle -) you just throw away the balance. Very inflexible system, not efficient. They are also not the cheapest. I would have much preferred our local discount store Marc's by Marc Goodman, of Cleveland - they discount everything, even newspapers and are very efficient - but as above, we don't have a choice. Plus, if one of the MEDCO shipments is lost in the mail, or is not delivered - it takes at least 30 days, to get them to admit the mistake, credit your insurance and send another shipment - which is ridiculous. I would rate them a 'bare' 3 out of 10. BTW, I almost never thought of them in the xword.
Also they insist on auto-refill, which is totally unnecessary. Also it takes 10 days to receive your shipment - by which time, either your disease has passed its course, and you have been auto-cured .... or dead.
- September 10, 2012 at 8:50 AM
- kazie said...
Well after what feels like a month of family visitors in the house, we saw our son and d-i-l off to Germany yesterday, so now I have the house to myself again for a while. It was really only 3 weeks from when our other son arrived, but with all the comings and goings of their overlapping stays as they all visited their friends in nearby places, it seemed like grand central here. Yesterday was our actual anniversary, so welcome relief at the end of it all.
The puzzle today was easy with perps for the few unknowns, including MEDCO, BTW.
Perth was recently said to have the highest percentage of millionaires per population of any city in the world. I don't know if that still holds true. Beautiful place, but it's grown tremendously since I saw it in 1965.
- September 10, 2012 at 8:51 AM
ALT QOD:- I got one of those Nordic Tracks and those are great, although I hit a tree the other day. ~ Garry Shandling.
Have a good week, you all.
- September 10, 2012 at 8:53 AM
- Hahtoolah said...
Happy Anniversary, Kazie. I posted yesterday but you were out.
- September 10, 2012 at 8:57 AM
What is a natick? Looked it up in Dictionary.com and they didn't have it.
- September 10, 2012 at 9:15 AM
- Argyle said...
Exactly! Try the Urban Dictionary.
- September 10, 2012 at 9:17 AM
I have used Medco for years. It's a mail-order pharmacy thru my health ins company.
- September 10, 2012 at 9:22 AM
- chin said...
My insurance, Blue Cross Blue Shield Federal, has alternated between Merck Medco and what is now CVS Caremark for Mailorder prescriptions. I have never had any problems with either. Even during the transition from one provider to the other, they have made it easy. Non-delivered orders are rectified immediately and without argument. Sorry that some people have had problems but that has not been my experience.
Good and fast Monday puzzle today.
- September 10, 2012 at 9:55 AM
- Irish Miss said...
Good morning:
Nice, easy Monday offering. Thanks, Melanie, and thanks, Argyle, for your great expo.
CEDave @ 7:29 - Thanks for The Little House clip. I have never seen it and found it quite touching.
YR @ 8:29 - Your ice maker link is a horror story. My repairman is due any minute and I am praying that we don't have a repeat of Friday's nightmare.
Kazie, belated Happy Anniversary wishes to you and
Have a great Monday.
- September 10, 2012 at 10:14 AM
- HeartRx said...
D'otto @ 8:13 harrrrggggh haaaa haaaaa [snort]
YR, thanks for the kind words about my puzzle. Glad to hear that you are getting back to the gym - exercise is usually the best medicine, as long as it's not overdone. You sound as if you have it all under control!
Husker G. @ 8:39, re: ARMOIRE. That would be the "Seinfeld" episode that I just saw a couple weeks ago on re-runs!
And happy belated anniversary, Kazie!! I feel for you regarding house guests. We have a friend coming to stay for a week, so have been in full gear to get everything spiffed up...
- September 10, 2012 at 10:18 AM
My rudimentary Spanish comes in handy
every so often...(9a)...Is Humana considered an HMO? I keep getting "offers" to use their mail-order pharmacy...but I always say, "I may have to, some day...but as long as I can support my local pharmacist, I intend to." "Esme" could be an informal answer to 53d. :) 49d threw me for a sec...wanted the "h".
Happy Anniversary, Kazie! Our weather here is making me crave your gridle cakes! Three weeks of company!!! I agree with the adage, "After three days, fish and house guests stink!" I realize that when you come from so far, a longer visit is "necessary..." but it`s still hard on the hostess.
- September 10, 2012 at 10:18 AM
- Blue Iris said...
Enjoyable Monday puzzle. Began by filling in all across except PRIED and NITA. Didn't stop to look at theme until Argyle explained.
I've not yet caught up with past blogs. One of my meds caused pancreatic enzymes to elevate causing abd. cramps and nausea. Had to discontinue and start on another med. New med would have been $280 a month at Walgreen. My mail order, Caremark ( Had MEDCO last year ) charged $65 for 3 months. It was worth a little longer wait to start med. I will probably be throwing about a month's worth away in the end. See physician and get blood work results this week. Feeling better.
- September 10, 2012 at 10:26 AM
- Husker Gary said...
Medical update
ENT Dr. Kuo sent me to an audiologist, as he could find nothing wrong with my ears medically. He said if he sent me to Wal~Mart or some other commercial places, they would have me in a hearing aid in a heartbeat.
Audiologist said I am just above the threshold of living without a hearing aid in my left ear (bye, bye sounds above 9,000 vps). She said if a female voice is talking into my left ear during a basketball game – good luck with that!
I get my meds through Prime Pharmaceutical and have been very happy with that service. I get a three-month supply at a very low price and they send emails telling me when I am due to renew but leave the ball in my court.
Right of course, Marti, on the Armoire
Happy Anniversary Kazie!
- September 10, 2012 at 11:14 AM
- Jazzbumpa said...
Hi gang -
I guess I had more trouble than most of you, though the worst of it was in the common problem area at the center of the east coast.
I knew ESME, but not MEDCO; SHANT was slow to develop. SASHES and BEADS are not in my wardrobe, but they did help to pull it all together.
For some reason, I'm very amused by plenty of fish IN THE SEA.
We had a pleasant diversion on Saturday.
Happy Monday, everyone.
- September 10, 2012 at 11:16 AM
Nice way to start a Monday--thanks, Melanie. And you too, Argyle, for a fun write-up.
WEES on MEDCO.
We recently watched the Zeferelli film of the opera OTELLO on TV (Netflix)with one of our recently widowed friends. The scenes were awesome as was Placido Domingo. Highly recommended.
Have a great start to the week, everybody!
- September 10, 2012 at 11:46 AM
- Jayce said...
Hello everybody. I had much the same reactions/experiences/thoughts you all did with today's puzzle. I should have known MEDCO but I needed the perps to get it. ESME was a gimme, among many gimmes. I put in SMALL POINT at 60A, which almost did me in when I couldn't remember the first letter of Ms. Naldi's name and was scratching my head over what REOU_ could be. Finally the light bulb turned on.
With regard to my reply to your question yesterday about the cluing for KAL as Alpo alternative, I want you to know I did not mean I wish you *had* clued it that way. I appreciate and admire your cluing it as KAL Penn; even though I did not know who he was, I certainly do now, and I learned something. Learning new things is part of what makes solving xword puzzles fun, and your puzzle was definitely fun, as well as something to sink one's teeth into.
Best wishes to you all.
- September 10, 2012 at 12:45 PM
Jzbmpa: Ever heard someone tell another who has lost a boyfriend/girlfriend: "Don`t worry about him/her! There are plenty of fish in the sea!"
- September 10, 2012 at 12:51 PM
- Lucina said...
Greetings, my friends.
Nice speed run today and I couldn't go wrong with TEMPE in there. That's my neighbor city.
I had no idea about MEDCO so waited for perps on it and on DEUCE. It didn't take long for them to make an APPEARANCE.
We don't see much less use IT IS I or SHANT anymore.
Kazie, sorry I missed your anniversary. With all your family there, it must have been a special celebration.
Have yourselves a merry Monday, everyone!
- September 10, 2012 at 12:51 PM
- Irish Miss said...
JzB @ 11:16 - Very nice pictures. I, too, went to CCHS but ours was Catholic Central High School. Our athletes were (still are) the Crusaders, our newspaper was The Triune, and our yearbook was the Catholicon. The faculty included Sisters of Mercy, Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, and priests from various orders. There were no lay teachers at all and the freshmen were segregated by gender, the boys in an entirely different building. How times have changed!
- September 10, 2012 at 12:54 PM
- Jayce said...
Oh, and of course TEMPE was a total gimme for me, too. Our granddaughter is in her 2nd year at Arizona State University there. At first she didn't think she'd like being so close to home, but now she finds it advantageous to drive across town to crash for a weekend at her parents' house. Plus, they have a terrific washing machine!
Jazzbumpa, I also smiled at plenty of fish IN THE SEA. Superb clue and fill.
I noticed there were both ACEY and DEUCE.
- September 10, 2012 at 12:55 PM
- Jayce said...
Lucina, recalling the discussion on spanakopita the other day, I asked our son and DIL if they knew of any nice Greek restaurants in that area. While they have a good knowledge about many restaurants there, they could not think of any that have good Greek food. So I think you might be out of luck finding a spanakopita fix. Oh, and my son said, "Don't even think about Olive Garden." Believe me, he knows. LOL
- September 10, 2012 at 1:01 PM
Good afternoon everyone.
Whoopy – IT IS I in a puzzle. About time.
And it's so nice to have one I could get with few hangups. SHANT took a while plus a few perps. And TRIPP was sooo long ago!
Merck Medco is from whom I and DH get our meds. Doesn't seem like a hard one. Ditto what YR said about it.
Fun puzzle and great write up, as always Argyle.
Had to stop in the middle of all this to go for lunch with DH and then for an estimate on painting my Hondo Civic (1996) that does not yet have 50,000 miles on it. $1000, which is cheaper than any replacement for the few times we need a second car! Includes fixing up in the trunk where DH has put duct tape to hold it all together. I have been nagging DH to get this done, so am feeling very cheerful about today.
- September 10, 2012 at 1:02 PM
To Anony-mouse @ 8:50
We too have deer in our backyard. Once, when I was shooing the deer away from my flowers, one of the does turned and bleated at me in a tone similar to that of the fawn in the video.. She seemed to be scolding me. So at least one adult deer still has its voice!
- September 10, 2012 at 1:04 PM
- john28man said...
In more than 70 years as a Methodist and a United Methodist I have have never heard of us called METHs. Sounds like someone on drugs.
We were with MEDCO for a long time both in the corporate world & on Medicare but our Primary Provider said that they might have to drop us unless we went HMO.
We chose United Health Care's AARP Complete. Saved money, so far.
- September 10, 2012 at 1:34 PM
- Chickie said...
Hola Everyone, An easy solve today. I didn't even see all the clues as the answers appreared with the perps. As usual, an excellent writeup, Argyle .
Medco is an unknown, but Esme is a crossword puzzle regular. Nothing stood out as especially fun or interesting.
We added Feta cheese to our corn dish the other day. It made a creamed corn without all the cream. Delicious.
Happy belated anniversay, Kazie.
A quiet house is something to be treasured when it has been Grand Central Station for a number of days.
Off to the Y this afternoon.
Have a great day everyone.
- September 10, 2012 at 1:36 PM
- kazie said...
Hahtoolah, Irish Miss and Lucina,
Thanks to you all, and to anyone else who mentioned our anniversary yesterday as well, for your kind wishes. Not only did I have no time to work on either yesterday's or Saturday's CW, but didn't really come here until late at night when I saw an email from someone I assumed to be from the blog. However with my overly hurried skimming, I didn't see your wishes then. It's really wonderful how caring and responsive everyone here is.
Today I'm just catching up on normalcy again. But later in the week we are going to use a gift card for a fairly ritzy restaurant in the area that our German contingent gave us to make up for our having spent yesterday getting them off. We did have a lovely family gathering with my DH's sister and her DH on Saturday too.
Congrats on your good deal!
- September 10, 2012 at 1:45 PM
- kazie said...
Yesterday we had a glitch with my laptop--something to do with a "temporary profile". My son had researched this online with their laptop, and found a set of instructions which involved a series of steps to try. Having gone through a few versions of this, it was again bootable in my normal mode, but only after repeated startups. Thinking the Best Buy geeks could probably do it more easily to get things back to normal, we stopped there on our way to seeing them off. They wanted $200 for a year's warranty service for just this one time fix. So we walked out. He worked on it more as we proceeded to where we were going, and now it works normally again.
Thank goodness we tried BB before we let the kids go!
- September 10, 2012 at 1:46 PM
- Chickie said...
Montana, I also have relatives in Turlock, CA. Small world.
We are Kaiser members. Here in our area they have the choice of mail order or a pick up at the clinic pharmacy. This helps if you have a new prescription which needs to be taken immediately. We have been very pleased with the service.
Lucina, we saw a horrible dust cloud decending on an Arizona city. Have you had such in your area?
- September 10, 2012 at 1:49 PM
- Lucina said...
Dust storms have been quite frequent this summer. In fact, on Thursday evening on the way to class I drove through one but thankfully, it was already dissipating and visibility had improved.
Through my insurance provider I use Prescription Solutions, a mail order company, which has been satisfactory and cheaper than Walgreens where I formerly went. A three month's supply costs two-thirds of that from the pharmacy.
- September 10, 2012 at 2:16 PM
- Bill G. said...
Desper-otto, you accidentally read an extra n into 'tenet.' Tenant with an 'a' would be a renter. Tenet without the second 'n' is a fundamental belief.
Kazie, Happy late anniversary wishes. How many years? Tell me more about the ritzy restaurant please.
Damn Dodgers! Damn hot humid weather.
For medications I take long term, I get a three-month supply from Target. I've been happy with their service.
- September 10, 2012 at 2:22 PM
- Jazzbumpa said...
Anon @ 12:51 -
Irish Miss:
Our Year Book was the Centripital, and our paper The Centric. We had Fransiscan nuns, among others, various orders of priests, and lay teachers as well.
The previous Sr. class had a record number of merit scholars, and we won the State football championship. My Sr. Yr. we won one game, and my class was most famous for having a wild party and trashing a local park. I read about it in the Blade.
Cool regards,
- September 10, 2012 at 2:24 PM
- desper-otto said...
BillG@2:22 -- I know that it's supposed to be tenet. But Argyle's link was originally spelled tenent (he fixed it), and in the linked document Caretaker had spelled it as tenent. Of course, Caretaker also spelled lists as litsts. At any rate, that's why I referred to it as a Caretaker typo.
- September 10, 2012 at 2:48 PM
- kazie said...
Chicky and Bill,
Thanks to you both too.
It was our 40th yesterday, and the actual date of the one we started celebrating earlier with our trip to Spain in May. The restaurant isn't ritzy at all by big city standards, but out here in the boonies it passes for what most people only use for special occasions. Nice relaxed atmosphere, good choices on the menu, decent salad bar, and prices high enough that we only go there once a year or less frequently.
- September 10, 2012 at 2:50 PM
- CrossEyedDave said...
3D whish,,, i dunno, it doesn't sound like rustling to me.
Re: The Little House
The narrator was Sterling Holloway, best known (to me at least) as the voice of Winnie The Pooh.
- September 10, 2012 at 3:16 PM
- Jayce said...
Kazie, congratulations and best wishes to you and your husband on reaching the big Four-Oh.
- September 10, 2012 at 3:19 PM
- Razz said...
Howdy Argyle, CC, DFs and DFettes;
(what everbody else said)
WHISH brought back fond memeories of the sound made by rustling pettycoats made at the dances.
- September 10, 2012 at 3:22 PM
- Irish Miss said...
I have been trying to create a link and have follwed the instructions to a tee and when I preview and click on to the link, I get a 405 Error page. Any insight why this is happening?
Forgot to thank Argyle for the fawn video; it was beautiful. The noise she made was similar to the ones made by Serena Williams' opponent yesterday.
The ice maker saga continues. It now appears that the problem is a clogged water filter which I didn't even know I had nor does it show up on the refrigerator schematic. I'll know tomorrow.
- September 10, 2012 at 3:24 PM
- Irish Miss said...
I think I found my problem so I'll try again. This is a link for the white notes at the end of TBBT that D-Otto mentioned yesterday. Happy Reading
- September 10, 2012 at 4:06 PM
- Lemonade714 said...
Happy anniversary and many more. In the old days of the blog (hey RAZZ, nice to see you)you would not have been safe with your comment:
"But later in the week we are going to use a gift card for a fairly ritzy restaurant in the area that our German contingent gave us to make up for our having spent yesterday getting them off." but I guess in the new iteration of the Corner it is all good.
- September 10, 2012 at 4:20 PM
- Yellowrocks said...
Kazie, Happy anniversary and many more.
Anon-Mouse, I have had Medco for myself many years, and for my son, quite a few years. We order continuing long term medication by mail, but for new short term maladies we go to the local pharmacy, where can use our Medco cards to get instant service. As others have said, a 90 day supply is so much cheaper than 3 30 day supplies that even if you don't use it all you save money.
Because many of us had had very good experiences with Medco, I would recommend that you call their customer service rep to discuss your concerns and to ask for alternatives. Maybe you could get a better deal.
Marti, I recovered from my knee surgery in Feb, with little pain and surprising mobility. The PT did me in, causing months of pain, loss of mobility, and far less endurance. It even gave me ankle tendonitis which I still suffer from. When I quit PT I slowly but surely recovered. It is good to be back to gym and dancing.
- September 10, 2012 at 4:54 PM
- Tinbeni said...
Irish Miss @4:06
Thanks for the link to the "Chuck Lorre Productions - Official Vanity Card Archives."
Just as I suspected, He began them with the TV Show "Dharma & Greg."
(#01 to #107)
Hope you have ICE for the "toast" at Sunset.
- September 10, 2012 at 5:09 PM
- CrossEyedDave said...
Whish, the rustling sound of petticoats, of course! Razz nailed it!
(oops! wrong link,,, but not bad!)
Lets try that again. (you don't have to watch all 2:07, nothings going to happen :(
Belated Happy Anniversary Kazie!
- September 10, 2012 at 5:18 PM
- Avg Joe said...
I'm gonna have to watch TBBT a lot more closely from now on. Those white notes are fantastic!!
Happy Aniv Kazie. The restaurant you describe probably exists in some form in most rural areas. When I was young, we said it was a place you could only drive the good tractor to. But hey, at least they had pickled herring and bleu cheese dressing at the salad bar, so it was worth the effort. :-)
- September 10, 2012 at 5:27 PM
- Abejo said...
Happy Anniversary. I guess I missed it the first time through. Hope you and your husband have many more.
- September 10, 2012 at 5:29 PM
- windhover said...
Lemonade @4:20,
Just wait till you're our age. Sometimes it does take all day, especially when one is under the influence of the time you posted.
- September 10, 2012 at 5:37 PM
- Lemonade714 said...
I am 8 squared so I do not mind taking all day to do some things. Good to see you still read this stuff.
- September 10, 2012 at 5:53 PM
Medco is a pharmacy benefit manager, meaning your medical insurer contracts them to handle its members' pharmacy benefits. They were the largest pharmacy benefit manager(pbm) until recently when they were purchased by the 2nd largest pbm, express scripts. They do operate a mail order pharmacy but that is not their classification. When you go the pharmacy, chances are your pbm pays the pharmacy on behalf of your medical insurer and you pay the remaining copay if it applies.
- September 10, 2012 at 6:18 PM
- Bill G. said...
Irish Miss, Yea! There'll be no stopping you now! LINKING MADNESS!
- September 10, 2012 at 6:46 PM
Hi Y'all, good puzzle but harder than usual for Monday for me. Great expo, Argyle!
I can't believe I spelled PEcOE which left me camping on LAcE. Only error.
Deer & rabbits both have voices they use. They are just shy. Mortally wound them and they scream.
Never heard of MEDCO. I'm not signed up for any medicine insurance. Too many hassles as my mother's caretaker. Also she had a medical emergency after the mail-order company sent her the wrong medicine.
I also stood in line at the pharmacy counter behind people who were trying to straighten out fiascos caused by their insurers. I think all the hassles I have had with medical insurance created so much stress it CAUSED health problems. My local pharmacists have been so helpful, I don't want faceless long distance people doling out my meds.
Marti: thanks for your golf answer last night. I root for Phil too, although my Irish blood likes Rory.
- September 10, 2012 at 7:22 PM
- Manac said...
Evening all,
Quick puzzle today. When i see Salinger in the clue I only think of Tess, Bess or Esme.
Argyle, that fawn video you posted was so close to spitting distance from my front porch. It's not unusual to see them around here but rare to see them without mommy around.
Marti, I don't normally do the Sunday puzzle but when I saw your name I had to try it. I admit, I came up with a big fat DNF. I am humbled, but I thank you for such an entertaining puzzle. Kinda makes me look forward to Saturdays Silkies.
- September 10, 2012 at 7:37 PM
- fermatprime said...
Almost a speed run. Thanks, Melanie. Also thanks to Argyle!
Had MEDCO through Blue Cross for several years, paid by CSUN. They changed provider to CVS this year. Experiences with CVS not as pleasant, overall.
One of the workmen must have a green vehicle. Bad damage to right side of my old truck. No insurance for such things, effectively.
New tile for second bathroom arrived at Lowes and was immediately sent back due to breakage. More waiting. Plumbers threw my cute turtle faucets away. Sob!
A belated happy anniversary to Kazie.
I can't imagine a Sunday puzzle being more fun than your offering yesterday, Marti!
- September 10, 2012 at 8:35 PM
Thank you Melanie, and thanks Argyle.
Took far longer to read the blog than to do the puzzle. We had MEDCO. Now with CVS / Caremark.
Schones Jubilaum Kazie !!!
- September 10, 2012 at 8:42 PM
Kazie: congrats on your good deal too.
And happy anniversary to you and your DH.
Good night all.
- September 10, 2012 at 9:32 PM
- Manac said...
For anyone still around tonight.
Would you vote for someone whose camp phones you with a ghost number of 000-000-0000? What do they have to hide? I know this might border on no politics but 5 calls in one night is too much!! I do feel sorry for that fifth caller though, But once pissed...
- September 10, 2012 at 10:16 PM
- Bill G. said...
Manac, I'm still up as usual. What do you mean by 'camp calling'? A fake phone number of people wanting a political donation?
It's odd but I think most everybody is polarized and has their minds made up. I'd be surprised if advertisements or the speeches at the conventions or the upcoming debates sway many folks.
- September 10, 2012 at 10:39 PM
- Manac said...
Bill G.
Continent apart and still awake.
By camp I mean the politician's volunteers that cold call endlessly. They block their number with those robo callers. I can't watch TV anymore because I'm tired of all of it. Governor term here is every two years. Once elected, their entire term is spent on reelection!
- September 10, 2012 at 11:05 PM
- kazie said...
Many thanks to all the additional well wishers tonight. I feel blessed, having so many cyber friends who care.
Great anniversary greeting!
I'm sorry I misspelled your name earlier. I noticed it only later on.
- September 10, 2012 at 11:05 PM
- Irish Miss said...
Still awake also. And like Manac can't stand those robo calls. I have received calls from 000-000-0000 and 123-456-789. Thank goodness for Caller ID.
- September 10, 2012 at 11:24 PM
- Manac said...
Must be insomnia tonight.
Irish Miss, ever get one from
1-212-1212 ?
- September 10, 2012 at 11:29 PM
- Lucina said...
I just returned from class and am surprised to "see" so many of you still here.
Amen and thanks to caller ID. I never answer unusual, toll free, or unfamiliar numbers. Soon they stop calling.
- September 10, 2012 at 11:56 PM


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subset: commoncrawl


text:
Good Samaritans help pull man from burning car in New Hampshire
LONDONDERRY, N.H. (AP) � Police are crediting two good Samaritans with helping pull a man to safety from a burning car.
Londonderry police received a report shortly after 6 a.m. Saturday of a single-car accident resulting in a fire.
When police arrived, they found Earl Wickline of Londonderry trying to put out the fire with an extinguisher he'd gotten from a neighborhood resident. Police say Wickline, along with Apryl Norris of Londonderry and three Londonderry police officers eventually pulled the driver out of the vehicle.
The driver was flown by helicopter to Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston.
His condition was unavailable and his identity hasn't been made public.


text:
In Arab Spring, Obama Finds a Sharp Test
WASHINGTON — President Hosni Mubarak did not even wait for President Obama's words to be translated before he shot back.
华盛顿——埃及前总统胡斯尼·穆巴拉克(Hosni Mubarak)甚至还没等译者翻译完奥巴马总统的话就予以反击。
"You don't understand this part of the world," the Egyptian leader broke in. "You're young."
Mr. Obama, during a tense telephone call the evening of Feb. 1, 2011, had just told Mr. Mubarak that his speech, broadcast to hundreds of thousands of protesters in Tahrir Square in Cairo, had not gone far enough. Mr. Mubarak had to step down, the president said.
Minutes later, a grim Mr. Obama appeared before hastily summoned cameras in the Grand Foyer of the White House. The end of Mr. Mubarak's 30-year rule, Mr. Obama said, "must begin now." With those words, Mr. Obama upended three decades of American relations with its most stalwart ally in the Arab world, putting the weight of the United States squarely on the side of the Arab street.
It was a risky move by the American president, flying in the face of advice from elders on his staff at the State Department and at the Pentagon, who had spent decades nursing the autocratic — but staunchly pro-American — Egyptian government.
Nineteen months later, Mr. Obama was at the State Department consoling some of the very officials he had overruled. Anti-American protests broke out in Egypt and Libya. In Libya, they led to the deaths of four Americans, including the United States ambassador to Libya, J. Christopher Stevens. A new Egyptian government run by the Muslim Brotherhood was dragging its feet about condemning attacks on the American Embassy in Cairo.
19个月后,奥巴马在国务院安抚那些曾被他否决的官员。埃及和利比亚爆发了反美抗议活动。利比亚的抗议活动甚至导致包括美国驻利比亚大使J·克里斯托弗·史蒂文斯(J. Christopher Stevens)在内的四名美国人死亡。而穆斯林兄弟会(Muslim Brotherhood)控制的埃及新政府在谴责对美国驻开罗大使馆的攻击时行动缓慢。
Television sets in the United States were filled with images of Arabs, angry over an American-made video that ridiculed the Prophet Muhammad, burning American flags and even effigies of Mr. Obama.
Speaking privately to grieving State Department workers, the president tried to make sense of the unfolding events. He talked about how he had been a child abroad, taught to appreciate American diplomats who risked their lives for their country. That work, and the outreach to the Arab world, he said, must continue, even in the face of mob violence that called into question what the United States can accomplish in a turbulent region.
In many ways, Mr. Obama's remarks at the State Department two weeks ago — and the ones he will make before the General Assembly on Tuesday morning, when he addresses the anti-American protests — reflected hard lessons the president had learned over almost two years of political turmoil in the Arab world: bold words and support for democratic aspirations are not enough to engender good will in this region, especially not when hampered by America's own national security interests.
在许多方面,奥巴马两周前在国务院的讲话,以及他周二上午(指美东时间——编者注)在联合国大会(General Assembly)发表的演讲(其间他将谈到反美抗议问题),都反映了总统从近两年的阿拉伯世界政治动乱中汲取的沉痛教训:豪言壮语以及对民主抱负的支持,不足以在该地区催生善意,尤其是在美国受到自身国家安全利益的束缚时。
In fact, Mr. Obama's staunch defense of democracy protesters in Egypt last year soon drew him into an upheaval that would test his judgment, his nerve and his diplomatic skill. Even as the uprisings spread to Libya, Yemen, Bahrain and Syria, the president's sympathy for the protesters infuriated America's allies in the conservative and oil-rich Gulf states. In mid-March, the Saudis moved decisively to crush the democracy protests in Bahrain, sending a convoy of tanks and heavy artillery across the 16-mile King Fahd Causeway between the two countries.
That blunt show of force confronted Mr. Obama with the limits of his ability, or his willingness, to midwife democratic change. Despite a global outcry over the shooting and tear-gassing of peaceful protesters in Bahrain, the president largely turned a blind eye. His realism and reluctance to be drawn into foreign quagmires has held sway ever since, notably in Syria, where many critics continue to call for a more aggressive American response to the brutality of Bashar al-Assad's rule.
这种直白的武力展示使奥巴马直面自己的局限性:他促进民主变革的能力和意愿都有限。虽然国际社会谴责巴林对和平抗议者开枪和施放催泪瓦斯的行为,但奥巴马基本上视而不见。从此之后,奥巴马总统的现实主义以及不愿陷入海外困境的意向占据主导地位,尤其是在叙利亚问题上。叙利亚的许多批评人士继续呼吁美国对巴沙尔·阿萨德(Bashar al-Assad)的残暴统治作出更强有力的回应。
Mr. Obama's journey from Cairo to the Causeway took just 44 days. In part, it reflected the different circumstances in the countries where protests broke out, despite their common origins and slogans. But his handling of the uprisings also demonstrates the gap between the two poles of his political persona: his sense of himself as a historic bridge-builder who could redeem America's image abroad, and his more cautious adherence to long-term American interests in security and cheap oil.
To some, the stark difference between the outcomes in Cairo and Bahrain illustrates something else, too: his impatience with old-fashioned back-room diplomacy, and his corresponding failure to build close personal relationships with foreign leaders that can, especially in the Middle East, help the White House to influence decisions made abroad.
A Focus on Respect
In many ways, Mr. Obama's decision to throw American support behind change in the Arab world was made well before a Tunisian street vendor set himself on fire and ignited the broadest political challenge to the region in decades.
Mr. Obama, whose campaign for the presidency was in part set in motion by his early opposition to the Iraq war, came into office determined that he would not repeat what he viewed as the mistakes of his predecessor in pushing a "freedom agenda" in Iraq and other parts of the Arab world, according to senior administration officials.
As large street protests broke out in Iran after disputed presidential elections, Mr. Obama followed a low-key script, criticizing violence but saying he did not want to be seen as meddling in Iranian domestic politics.
Months later, administration officials said, Mr. Obama expressed regret about his muted stance on Iran. "There was a feeling of 'we ain't gonna be behind the curve on this again,' " one senior administration official said. He, like almost two dozen administration officials and Arab and American diplomats interviewed for this article, spoke on the condition of anonymity.
By the time the Tunisian protests broke out in January 2011 — an angry Mr. Obama accused his staff of being caught "flat-footed," officials said — the president publicly backed the protesters. But the real test of the new muscular posture came 11 days later, when thousands of Egyptians converged on Tahrir Square in Cairo for a "day of rage."
Mr. Obama felt keenly, one aide said, the need for the United States, and for he himself, to stand as a moral example. "He knows that the protesters want to hear from the American president, but not just any American president," a senior aide to Mr. Obama said. "They want to hear from this American president." In other words, they wanted to hear from the first black president of the United States, a symbol of the possibility of change.
If the president felt a kinship with the youthful protesters, he seems to have had little rapport with Egypt's aging president, or, for that matter, any other Arab leaders. In part, this was a function of time: he was still relatively new to the presidency, and had not built the kind of cozy relationship that the Bush family, for instance, had with the Saudis.
But Mr. Obama has struggled with little success to build better relations with key foreign leaders like Hamid Karzai, the Afghan president, and King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia.
但奥巴马一直未能与一些关键的外国领导人建立起更好的关系,例如阿富汗总统哈米德·卡尔扎伊(Hamid Karzai)和沙特阿拉伯国王阿卜杜拉(Abdullah)。
In any case, after an awkward phone call between the American and Egyptian presidents on Jan. 28, Mr. Obama sent a senior diplomat to make a personal appeal to the Egyptian leader. But Mr. Mubarak balked. Meanwhile, the rising anger in Cairo's streets led to a new moment of reckoning for Mr. Obama: Feb. 1.
That afternoon at the White House, top national security officials were meeting in the Situation Room to decide what to do about the deteriorating situation in Egypt. Thirty minutes into it, the door opened and the president walked in, crashing what was supposed to be a principals' meeting.
Attending were Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr.; Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton; Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates; the Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman, Adm. Mike Mullen; and the national security adviser, Tom Donilon. Margaret Scobey, the ambassador in Cairo, appeared on the video conference screen.
出席会议者包括副总统约瑟夫·R·拜登(Joseph R. Biden Jr.)、国务卿希拉里·罗德姆·克林顿(Hillary Rodham Clinton)、国防部长罗伯特·M·盖茨(Robert M. Gates)、参谋长联席会议主席、海军上将迈克尔·马伦(Mike Mullen),以及国家安全顾问托马斯·多尼隆(Thomas Donilon)。在开罗的美国驻埃及大使玛格丽特·斯科比(Margaret Scobey)通过视频参加了会议。
The question on the table would have been unthinkable just a week before. Should Mr. Obama call for Mr. Mubarak to step down?
Midway through the meeting, an aide walked in and handed a note to Mr. Donilon. "Mubarak is on," he read aloud.
Every screen in the Situation Room was turned to Al Jazeera, and the Egyptian leader appeared, making a much-anticipated address. He said he would not run again, but did not offer to step down. "This is my country," he said. "I will die on its soil."
局势研究室里的每个屏幕都被调到了半岛电视台(Al Jazeera),埃及领导人穆巴拉克现身,发表了一篇备受期待的演说。他说,他不会再竞选了,但也不会提早下台。"这是我的国家,"他说。"我要死在这片土地上。"
In the Situation Room, there was silence. Then the president spoke. "That's not going to cut it," he said.
Seeing the Inevitable
If this were Hollywood, the story of Barack Obama and the Arab Spring would end there, with the young American president standing with the protesters against the counsel of his own advisers, and hastening the end of the entrenched old guard in Egypt. In the Situation Room, Mr. Gates, Admiral Mullen, Jeffrey D. Feltman, then an assistant secretary of state, and others balked at the inclusion in Mr. Obama's planned remarks that Mr. Mubarak's "transition must begin now," arguing that it was too aggressive.
如果这是好莱坞电影,贝拉克·奥巴马和"阿拉伯之春"的故事到此将圆满落幕,这位年轻的美国总统置顾问们的意见于不顾,和抗议者站到了一边,加速了恋栈的埃及年老统治者的倒台。在局势研究室里,盖茨、马伦、时任助理国务卿杰弗里·D·费尔特曼(Jeffrey D. Feltman),以及其他一些人,都对奥巴马讲稿中有关穆巴拉克的"过渡必须从现在就开始"的说法持保留意见,认为这么说过于咄咄逼人。
Mr. Mubarak had steadfastly stood by the United States in the face of opposition from his own public, they said. The president, officials said, countered swiftly: "If 'now' is not in my remarks, there's no point in me going out there and talking."
John O. Brennan, chief counterterrorism adviser to Mr. Obama, said the president saw early on what others did not: that the Arab Spring movement had legs. "A lot of people were in a state of denial that this had an inevitability to it," Mr. Brennan said in an interview. "And I think that's what the president clearly saw, that there was an inevitability to it that would clearly not be turned back, and it would only be delayed by suppression and bloodshed."
奥巴马的首席反恐顾问约翰·O·布伦南(John O. Brennan)说,总统预见到其他人没能预见的事情:"阿拉伯之春"运动是有后劲的。"很多人拒不承认这一切具有必然性,"布伦南在采访中表示。"而我认为,这正是总统所清晰看到的,这一切具有必然性,而且明显不可能被逆转,只会被镇压和杀戮推迟。"
So "now" stayed in Mr. Obama's statement. Ten days later, Mr. Mubarak was out. Even after the president's remarks, Mrs. Clinton was still publicly cautioning that removing Mr. Mubarak too hastily could threaten the country's transition to democracy.
In the end, many of the advisers who initially opposed Mr. Obama's stance now give him credit for prescience. But there were consequences, and they were soon making themselves felt.
Angry Reactions
On Feb. 14, in the tiny island monarchy of Bahrain, Internet calls for a "day of rage" led to street rallies and bloody clashes with the police. The next day at a news conference in Washington, Mr. Obama seemed to suggest that this revolt was much like the others.
But in the following weeks, Mr. Obama fell silent. Away from the public eye, he was coming under assault from leaders in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, even Israel. Angry at the treatment of Mr. Mubarak, which officials from the Gulf states feared could forecast their own abandonment, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates drew a line in the sand. Some American and Arab diplomats say that response could have been avoided if Mr. Obama had worked quietly to ease Mr. Mubarak out, rather than going public.
On March 14, White House officials awoke to a nasty surprise: the Saudis had led a military incursion into Bahrain, followed by a crackdown in which the security forces cleared Pearl Square in the capital, Manama, by force. The moves were widely condemned, but Mr. Obama and Mrs. Clinton offered only veiled criticisms, calling for "calm and restraint on all sides" and "political dialogue."
3月14日早上,白宫官员获得了一条意外的坏消息:沙特阿拉伯对巴林进行了军事干预,之后,巴林军警用武力镇压抗议,对首都麦纳麦的珍珠广场(Pearl Square)进行清场。这些行动受到了广泛谴责,但奥巴马和克林顿只提出含蓄的批评,呼吁"各方要平静、克制",要进行"政治对话"。
The reasons for Mr. Obama's reticence were clear: Bahrain sits just off the Saudi coast, and the Saudis were never going to allow a sudden flowering of democracy next door, especially in light of the island's sectarian makeup. Bahrain's people are mostly Shiite, and they have long been seen as a cat's paw for Iranian influence by the Sunni rulers of Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. In addition, the United States maintains a naval base in Bahrain that is seen as a bulwark against Iran, crucial for maintaining the flow of oil from the region.
"We realized that the possibility of anything happening in Saudi Arabia was one that couldn't become a reality," said William M. Daley, President Obama's chief of staff at the time. "For the global economy, this couldn't happen. Yes, it was treated differently from Egypt. It was a different situation."
时任奥巴马总统幕僚长的威廉·M·戴利(William M. Daley)说,"我们意识到,在沙特阿拉伯出任何事的可能性都不能成为现实。为了全球经济,不能出这种事。没错,这里受到了与埃及不同的对待。情况不同。"
Some analysts credit Mr. Obama for recognizing early on that strategic priorities trumped whatever sympathy he had for the protesters. Others say the administration could have more effectively mediated between the Bahraini government and the largely Shiite protesters, and thereby avoided what has become a sectarian standoff in one of the world's most volatile places.
If Mr. Obama had cultivated closer ties to the Saudis, he might have bought time for negotiations, according to one American diplomat who was there at the time. Instead, the Saudis gave virtually no warning when their forces rolled across the causeway linking Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, and the ensuing crackdown destroyed all hopes for a peaceful resolution.
The tensions between Mr. Obama and the Gulf states, both American and Arab diplomats say, derive from an Obama character trait: he has not built many personal relationships with foreign leaders. "He's not good with personal relationships; that's not what interests him," said one United States diplomat. "But in the Middle East, those relationships are essential. The lack of them deprives D.C. of the ability to influence leadership decisions."
A Lack of Chemistry
Arab officials echo that sentiment, describing Mr. Obama as a cool, cerebral man who discounts the importance of personal chemistry in politics. "You can't fix these problems by remote control," said one Arab diplomat with long experience in Washington. "He doesn't have friends who are world leaders. He doesn't believe in patting anybody on the back, nicknames.
"You can't accomplish what you want to accomplish" with such an impersonal style, the diplomat said.
Mr. Obama's advisers argue that when he does reach out, he is more effective — as in a phone call last week to Mohamed Morsi, the new president of Egypt. After Mr. Morsi's initial tepid response to the attacks on the embassy in Cairo, a fed-up Mr. Obama demanded a show of support. Within an hour, he had it.
奥巴马的一些顾问辩称,当他真的采取主动的时候,他更加有效。上周给埃及新总统穆罕默德·穆尔西(Mohamed Morsi)打电话就是一例。开罗的美国大使馆遭到袭击之后,穆尔西最初的回应不疼不痒,奥巴马忍无可忍,打电话要求他展示出支持的态度。不到一小时后,奥巴马的要求就得到了满足。
Still, there remains concern in the administration that at any moment, events could spiral out of control, leaving the president and his advisers questioning their belief that their early support for the Arab Spring would deflect longstanding public anger toward the United States.
For instance, Mr. Feltman, the former assistant secretary of state, said, "the event I find politically most disturbing is the attack on Embassy Tunis." Angry protesters breached the grounds of the American diplomatic compound there last week — in a country previously known for its moderation and secularism — despite Mr. Obama's early support for the democracy movement there. "That really shakes me out of complacency about what I thought I knew."


text:
Taylor Swift's ACM Awards Date Kevin McGuire Still Watched Show Despite Not Being Able to Attend
Taylor Swift gave a major shout out to her planned 2012 ACM Awards date Kevin McGuire, who had to miss out on accompanying the singer to the ceremony in Las Vegas. Unfortunately, the New Jersey teen came down with a fever and had a low blood count, forcing him to decline her invitation on Saturday after he initially accepted. While he didn't attend, he still watched the event on TV.
McGuire, a Southern New Jersey teen, is battling leukemia. Earlier this winter, his sister mounted a Facebook campaign to get his dream date Taylor Swift's attention so she could attend McGuire's prom with him. Scheduling conflicts interrupted such plans — as well as the fact that at 22, Swift is too old to attend, per the school's policy of capping dates at 20 – so she instead invited McGuire to the ACMs.
It was a dream come true that was dashed, until the 'Love Story' songstress gave him a huge and heartfelt shoutout during her acceptance speech for Entertainer of the Year. According to USA Today, McGuire was holed up at a local Applebee's during the ceremony he was supposed to attend, noshing on a burger and fries after a tough week.
"After a couple of days in the hospital, I always feel kind of tired, but I feel a lot better than I did last night," the ill teen said. "I had a fever and low blood counts. They're still pretty low. I'm trying to stay away from people." Instead of sitting at home and sulking, which would be well within his rights given all he is going through, he went out for a bite with pals and family, who also got a shoutout from Swift.
We tip our hats to Swift, who is such a class act for remembering Kevin McGuire in a dark period while accepting her award for ACM Entertainer of the Year. That had to be some sort of salve to soothe the sting of McGuire having to stay home. It's the next best thing — and as she promised, she'll make it up to him.


text:
Stack Bundles (Feat. TL & Caddillac Tah - Tryin Provoke Me [In Studio Performance]
off new hood affairs dvd. Stack Bundles, TL & Caddilac Tah music video for TRYIN PROVOKE ME, & SHORT TL INTERVIEW ABOUT STACK!. New shit. Peace to TL, Dremost, BIG T & Superstar Jay, And Million Dollarkid For Plugging me wit the money music dvd rip stack bundles. new unreleased video featuring stack. rip
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Monday, September 13, 2010
It is hard for me to believe I have never until now posted a Graham Townsend album at the Attic. Graham has never properly received his due as on of the very greatest fiddlers in recorded history. Through his lifespan was relatively short (1942-1998), his accomplishments were enormous, and his technical mastery of the instrument was practically unmatched. It is not unfair to say (because recordings of his playing exist to back up the claims) that he had under his fingers Irish, Scottish, Canadian, Nashville, Bluegrass, and Jazz (Venuti or Grapelli) styles of fiddling.
Legally blind since birth, the native of Buckingham, Quebec began playing before he was ten years if age and by his mid-teens was a formidable force on the Canadian contest circuit, setting many records with his numerous wins. Despite this, he is remembered as a genuine and helpful man with a passion for all those who played and shared a love for his chosen instrument. His influence was definitely immense, yet in the scant years since his death he seems not to be remembered as would be expected of a man who's records were reliable sellers in every market in the country. Graham recorded over thirty albums in his career, which found their way into homes from coast to coast.
The present album was released in 1970, and was probably recorded in either Montreal or Ottawa. It has long been a favourite of mine, as I purchased a cassette copy as a youth of about 13, and listened to that tape until it nearly unraveled. I was always very struck by Townsend's control of the bow, brilliant phrasing and overall taste. On the album he covers tunes from the Acadian (Golden Wedding Reel), Irish (Rakes Of Kildare), Scots (Lord Athlone's March), Metis (Princess Irena) and Ukranian (Bandura Waltz, Zaporozich) traditions with equal aplomb. Although this is only one of the many great Townsend albums recorded through the years, I hope it will continue to be, as it was for me, a fantastic introduction to the fiddle marvel who was Graham Townsend.
Click here for a bio of Graham at the Canadian Encyclopedia.
Click here for liner notes to many of Graham's albums, including extensive biographies.
1. Golden Wedding Reel
2. Princess Irena
3. Bandura Waltz
4. Stack Of Barley
5. Quarterdeck
6. Joys Of Quebec
7. Zaporozich
8. Calgary Waltz
9. Lord Athlone's March
10. Rakes Of Kildare
*download here*


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Last week I received a piece of critique mail from someone defending Maybe Gaybe Claybe – saying that my comparison of Aiken to the KFed was unwarranted, that while KFed is a talentless golddigging piece of sh-t, Clay has worked hard and gives back and has already addressed repeatedly the question of his sexuality and as such, does not deserve to be lumped into the same Federline category.
Bet you Kelly Ripa would disagree.
Kelly apparently lost her sh-t on Clay this morning with Regis, referring to Friday's show during which she cohosted with the Maybe Gaybe and at one point he actually leans over and covers her mouth!
This is the co-host of the show. This is a show called Live! With Regis & Kelly.
Not Gay! With Clay Aiken, but Live! With Regis & Kelly. The fact that he spurned the show's generosity but going all wanker when they did him a favour by allowing his egomaniacal ass to come on and join them is what I call ungrateful.
Add this to the incident I reported exclusively from the David Foster benefit when Clay decided to exercise his diva and place ridiculous demands on a CHARITY benefit and you end up with low classy.
Ungrateful + Low Classy + Walmart appeal = Kevin Federline = Clay Aiken.
Basic showbiz math. Basic showbiz rudeness.
Which is why Kelly went off on Clay this morning with Regis for nearly 3 minutes (thanks Lisa!) about what a f&cking loser he is. Click here for the clip, still waiting on Kelly's rant from today – will keep you posted.


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Council, trust, committee, board nominations invited
Nominations are invited for 16 AVMA council vacancies, 19 committee seats, and five openings on trusts. The House of Delegates will fill council openings when it meets in July 2003 in Denver. The Executive Board will make appointments to committees and trusts at its May 2003 meeting.
Nominating materials for councils—including instructions for publishing candidates in the 2003 Campaign Guide—were sent in August to AVMA delegates and chief staff officers of organizations represented in the HOD. Others may obtain nomination forms by calling AVMA headquarters at (800) 248-2862, Ext. 6651 for councils, Ext. 6605 for committees.
For councils
Nominations shall be made by organizations represented in the House of Delegates or by petition of 10 active members.
Terms of council members are six years, and no council member may serve two consecutive terms on the same council. For this purpose, a term of three years or less will not be counted. No member may serve simultaneously in the House of Delegates and on a council, or on two councils. A former member may become eligible for election to a council at the next annual session after the end of a previous term on a council.
Guidelines for council nominations further stipulate that (1) a nominee will not be eligible to be a candidate for more than one council per year, (2) no member may be nominated for election to more than one position on the same council at one time, and (3) a candidate will not be permitted to change the category to which the candidate has been nominated after the February 1 deadline.
Nominations must be postmarked no later than Feb. 1, 2003, and sent to Dr. Bruce W. Little, AVMA executive vice president. To ensure that nominations will not be invalidated because information supplied is incomplete, nominators should not send résumés or biographic information, but provide this information using the prescribed nomination form:
For trusts, committees, and boards
Nominations may be made by local or state veterinary associations, by allied groups represented in the House of Delegates, or by an AVMA member on that person's or another's behalf.
Each nomination must include a one- or two-page curriculum vitae and a statement that the nominee has agreed to serve, if appointed. Only the first two pages of lengthier curricula vitae that are submitted will be used.


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How to Hide a Geocache With Your Kids
Does your family love the thrill of electronic treasure hunts known as geocaching?
Want to create an outdoor adventure that other families can enjoy too?
Take your fun to the next level and hide a geocache with your kids.
With nothing more than a smartphone and a few items from around the house, you and your kids can hide a geocache for other families to enjoy.
In this article I'll show you how easy it is to hide a geocache and share the adventure for months to come.
Why Hide a Geocache?
Have you introduced your family to the adventure of geocaching?
Geocaching is a hunt for hidden treasure using a GPS (or GPS-enabled phone). There are over 2.2 million geocaches hidden all over the world, ready for you to find. You simply log onto Geocaching.com to find the coordinates of a cache in your area, head outside and follow your phone to find the hidden treasure. Once found, you sign the logbook, trade one of the treasures found inside with something you brought to share and hide the cache container back in its place for the next treasure hunter.
It's a lot of fun to find a geocache, but it can be even more fun to hide one.
Hiding a cache is a way to share your outdoor adventures with other families. And a cache hidden by kids for kids is extra-special—it creates more fun and adventures for everyone.
Hiding a cache will introduce other families to your favorite places, show your kids the value of giving back and create an outdoor adventure for other families with young kids.
How to Have a Family Treasure Hunt: Geocaching With Kids
Does the thought of tracking down hidden treasures pique your kids' interests?
Using your smart phone, you and your kids can take part in a global adventure hunt not far from your home (and with almost no prep work).
Welcome to the world of geocaching.
There are more than 2 million hidden geocaches scattered across the globe, waiting for your kids to find—wherever you are.
In this article, I'll show you how fun and easy it is to enjoy the hunt and ensuing excitement of finding a cache wherever you may be.
Geocaching has been around for years. You've probably heard friends or family members rave about how much fun it is to go on these GPS-led treasure hunts. But what is it, exactly?


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Are people born gay or straight? Has always been up for debate. A lot of the current media sources assume the question is a solved scientific problem with all the evidence pointing toward a biological (probably genetic) basis for a homosexual orientation. Contrary to this perception, the question has been poorly studied, although there is some evidence on both sides of question. Many of the initial studies, which were touted by the media as "proof" for a biological basis for homosexuality, have been contradicted by later, more thorough studies. This evidence falls into four basic categories: 1. Brain structure 2. Possible hormonal influences 3. Concordance of homosexuality in twins 4. Concordance of genetic markers in siblings. Today I am talking to a man that struggled through out his life with his sexual identity. He built the courage and strength to come out and be true to his orientation and live a authentic life, which we all aspire to live "authentically" His name is Peter Marc Jacobson.
Peter Marc Jacobson is a television writer, director and producer, and actor. He is best known as the co-creator of the popular sitcom The Nanny, which he created and wrote with his then wife actress Fran Drescher, who was the star of the series.They divorced in 1999, after being separated for a number of years. The couple had no children. He came out as gay to her after their marriage ended. The couple developed the 2011 television series Happily Divorced for TV Land based on their lives. Here is the very talented and sexy Peter Marc Jacobson.
Hello Mr. single and ready to mingle. How are you?
Still single and still ready to mingle.
You wear many hats, you are a producer, writer, actor and director. Which do you enjoy the most?
I love them all. But the hours for writing are easier when you're younger. But still love it. It's great to be able to do what you love.
What inspired you to get into the entertainment industry?
Loved theater, sitcoms, acting. As a kid I was lucky. I was young when I got the itch. I was obsessed with I Love Lucy.
What do you enjoy the most about the entertainment industry?
Being creative. Wonderful friends making people laugh, meeting your idols. I worked with Elizabeth Taylor and couldn't believe I was on the same stage as her. Who knew?
What do you dislike about the entertainment industry?
I'm grateful to be working. Sooo grateful. No complaints. I'd be a dope.
If you weren't in entertainment what other career path would you have taken?
This is all I know how to do, thank God it's working out.
How has your life changed since you came out?
I'm more relaxed. I don't care what people think about me... too much.
How old were you when you knew you were gay?
I think I always knew. But I buried it down deep until I was ready to face my true self.
What did you fear about coming out?
That people would think that I didn't love Fran and I did and still do.
What advice can you give someone struggling with their sexuality?
Be kind to yourself. You are great just the way you are!
What is something about you most people don't know?
Someone offered to fix me up with Sharon Stone shortly after my divorce and I said I wasn't ready. That's when I thought, I must be gay.
Do you have a celebrity crush?
Ricky Martin. I wouldn't throw him out of mi casa.
What are your last words to all the readers?
It's hard to be your authentic self. Do your best. Be patient! And be kind to yourself and others.


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AMD added a pair of low power processors to its Opteron 6300 parts. Previously codenamed "Warsaw," the 12- and 16-core CPUs are largely aimed at customers who run large private cloud computing environments. AMD claims the processors will "deliver improved performance per watt for virtualized private cloud deployments with less power and at lower cost."
These lower-power versions of the Opteron both have a thermal design power (TDP) of 99W compared to the TDP of 115W of AMD's Opteron 6380 and the 140W of the Opteron 6386 SE. While they run at a lower clock speed than those higher-power processors, they cost significantly less and offer about 27 percent more performance per watt than the previous generation of Opteron 6300s, according to Supermicro. The 16-core 6370P runs at a base of 2.0GHz with a "turbo" mode up to 2.5GHz and the 12-core 6338P runs at 2.3GHz with a 2.8GHz turbo. Apart from the clock speeds and TDPs, the new processors share the same Piledriver cores, 32nm fabrication process, cache configurations, and dual-die design that their high-power siblings sport.
The 16-core Opteron 6370P is priced at $598, and the 12-core 6338P goes for $377. Both are available today through the system integrators Avnet and Penguin, and they are shipping in servers from Supermicro and Sugon as well. AMD clearly hopes they will get the attention of big data center owners like Facebook and Google, and it is promoting the CPUs as candidates for Open Compute Platform open source hardware servers on AMD's Open 3.0 OCP offering. But the processors could also be attractive to companies looking to build small, inexpensive private clouds for their virtual server farms.


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Editor's Note: This is the second installment of a three-part series on Chinese succession. The first article is available here. Neil K. Shenai is a Ph.D. Candidate at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and a Visiting Scholar at the Hopkins-Nanjing Center (HNC) in Nanjing, China. Bernard Geoxavier is a M.A. Candidate in International Studies at HNC.
By Neil K. Shenai and Bernard Geoxavier - Special to CNN
On March 15, the Chinese Communist Party announced the removal of Chongqing Party Chief Bo Xilai, a popular 'Princeling' leader, famous for his anti-corruption efforts and dogged support of Maoism. Since the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests, Bo is only the third Party Chief to be fired mid-term, and his dismissal serves as one of the highlights of an eventful month for the Chinese Communist Party.
Since Bo's removal, Chinese social media exploded in speculation about the mysterious death of a young Ferrari driver in Beijing, rumored to be Bo Xilai's son, and even claimed that Bo sympathizers in the Politburo unsuccessfully tried to stage a coup in retaliation to Bo's removal.
In our last article, we outlined the importance of China's leadership succession, arguing that underneath the stable veneer of China's one-Party rule lies a competitive political struggle to control the heart of the Chinese state. In this article, we explain why the Chinese Communist Party removed Bo Xilai and discuss what these events might tell us about the incoming Party Chairman Xi Jinping.
Why the Communist Party fired Bo Xilai
The Communist Party chose to remove Bo Xilai as Chongqing Party chief to sideline a national distraction and expunge one of the Party's biggest political liabilities. Prior to Bo's firing, his police chief and confidant, Wang Lijun, unsuccessfully tried to escape to the United States consulate in Chengdu, fleeing charges relating to corruption and harvesting human organs, among other counts.
Only after the United States denied Wang Lijun asylum did it became clear that Bo's anticorruption campaigns in Chongqing often relied on a host of grisly authoritarian tactics led by Wang Lijun, including torturing political rivals, appropriating private property in the name of the state, and censuring fellow Party officials for their ostensible lack of ideological rectitude.
The day before Bo Xilai's dismissal, Wen Jiabao subtly condemned Bo's heavy-handed approach, claiming that these types of coercive tactics could lead China down a dangerous road of paranoia and political upheaval, much like that of the Cultural Revolution. China's leaders' willingness to sack such a prominent member of their own ranks shows their implicit fear of Maoist-style ideological campaigns.
From this perspective, Bo's firing can be seen as Chinese leadership's repudiation of Bo's unique brand of 'Chongqing School' revivalism. In all likelihood, key players such as Hu Jintao, Wen Jiabao and Xi Jinping recognize that charismatic leaders like Bo can capitalize on the legitimate desires of the Chinese people - like the goal of anti-corruption - to sow paranoia, encourage politically motivated purges, and aggrandize themselves to feed their own cult of personality and expand their power.
The message is clear: Ideological battles might have turned the Communist Party into the omnipresent force that it is in China today, but these types of old-school conflicts could derail the awesome progress of the Chinese economy over the past thirty years and sink Chinese international aspirations. By overstepping his ideological bounds, Bo set the stage for his own dismissal.
Xi Jinping: Laying low to rise above
In all of the confusion that took place over the last month, many China observers have wondered where Xi Jinping went. The de facto incoming General Secretary of the Communist Party has had a quiet month after returning from his trip to America, which many in China saw as the international legitimization of China's sixth generation of Party leaders. Even the Global Times, one of China's more hawkish and nationalist news outlets, openly called for clarity in the face of allegations of party infighting, denigrating the tepid response from the Party about China's coup rumors.
Despite this criticism, staying quiet may constitute a coherent strategy on behalf of Xi Jinping. In facing these rumors, Chinese leadership encountered the timeless paradox of the strong: To acknowledge rumors is to give them (and their proponents) political credibility; to ignore the rumors creates the space necessary for these rumors to grow and take on a life of their own.
By sacking Bo Xilai and staying reticent about coup rumors, Xi Jinping and his fellow leaders have attempted to triage between both of these competing goals. On one hand, sacking Bo is an implicit acknowledgment of the corrosive effect of Bo's policies on the Chinese body politic. On the other hand, by ignoring the associated coup rumors that went along with Bo's firing, Party bosses have been able to give Chinese citizens the impression of normalcy, delegitimizing the coup rumors by not responding to them.
Today, there are no tanks on the streets and no restrictions on how average Chinese citizens can go about their lives. Projecting this image of stability and continuity in the face of challenges to their own power is a coherent strategy employed by Xi Jinping to create distance from himself and the fallout associated with Bo Xilai's firing.
As the last month has shown, China is far from a unified monolith, seamlessly handing power from one generation to the next. Unlike elections in the West, where every gaffe and conflict among candidates dominates the news cycle, China's succession is just as fiercely contested but takes place outside the view of the public eye.
The eruption of the Bo Xilai scandal serves as a stark reminder that just as Western leaders fear China's political regression to Maoism, Party elites also feel threatened by the stark historical memory of the Cultural Revolution.
Further, while many in the West are content to let their imaginations run wild about purported coups and high drama in Beijing, the Party likely realizes that a show of normalcy and strength will give it the space it needs to usher in the 6th generation cadres and help China navigate this tumultuous period of domestic politics.
The views expressed in this article are solely those of Neil K. Shenai and Bernard Geoxavier.
Why is it strange? China is an ungodly country that kills whoever lodges a complaint. The communists do not take lightly the complains, nor do they think twice to get rid of those who are danger to their promotion. They don"t care about their citizens who want to know a little more in the world. The politburo makes sure that the slaves remain in their holes, and whoever lifts his head a little, gets beheaded.
wh0cd4460 triamterene


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Previous Chapter | Table of Contents | Next Chapter
An Important Decision
It was impossible for Xuan Tian Ming to guess what Feng Yu Heng had brought out of her space, but based on the heat that came from behind him, he could make a rough estimate, "It's noodles, right? One with a soup."
Feng Yu Heng smiled and walked around to the front, "In truth, it's nothing grand. It's just a pork and scallion wonton soup with some noodles. The soup is very warming. Quickly eat." She handed him a spoon and chopsticks, saying: "In the future, if you don't eat with everyone else, you… can come and eat with me in my space!"
This was the first time that she had invited anyone into her space, and this was only because the other was her beloved. Feng Yu Heng did not know whether this decision was correct or incorrect, but she understood that Xuan Tian Ming was her most cherished person. She wanted for this man to eat a little better and to sleep a little better. She wanted for this man to share in her most unique secret. If there came a day when she found that she was wrong, she would need to accept that failure because of her feelings without complaint or regret.
Xuan Tian Ming felt that the heavens really treated him quite well. Just earlier, he had been thinking about how he should mention going into this girl's space. This girl had viewed her space as being extremely important. He feared that he would end up arousing her anger with a slip of the tongue; however, he did not think that without needing to say anything, she would take the initiative to bring it up. It was as though a pleasant surprise had hit him on the head. It caught him a little unprepared.
Feng Yu Heng saw him freeze and could not help but laugh, "Have you gone dumb? Get eating."
Xuan Tian Ming asked her blankly: "Will you really bring me in?"
She smiled and nodded, "Really."
"Then why did you not let me in before?" He asked the girl, "Back when we were working on steel in Xu Tian Cave, the conditions were very difficult. Why did you not think to bring me in with you?"
Feng Yu Heng did not know how to reply for a while. At that time, it was not that she did not think to bring Xuan Tian Ming into her space to rest, but she still had some reservations in her heart. After all, she was not from this era. The things inside her space did not belong to this era. Anything that was brought out was capable of shaking up the world. It would be best if she never allowed another person to enter that place, remaining a place that only she could enter.
But that was how people were. When it came to some secrets, the more one understood that nobody else must ever learn about it, the more one would want to share it with someone. This was a common psychological state among humans. Feng Yu Heng was also human, and she could not avoid this. She explained this reasoning to Xuan Tian Ming then told him: "Since it has been determined that there will be a person to share that place with me, Xuan Tian Ming, I hope that it will be you. It must be you!"
He laughed and reached out to pinch her face. The cheeks that had finally gained some roundness had become thin once more. He felt a little distressed. "If your space has an even better resting place, don't squeeze into this place to sleep. When you first came back to the capital, I saw you at the entrance to the city. After investigating, I found that you were the Feng family's second daughter that had been engaged to me at a young age. Heng Heng, you don't know just how lucky I felt at that time. First, I did not need to do anything in a roundabout manner like burning the Feng manor. Second, I did not need to do anything difficult like look for the girl that had treated my legs in the mountains of the Northwest. I know that the people of the Feng family are annoying, thus I knew that you would be unhappy with living there. That was why I gave you a manor. That manor is in a location that everyone in the capital covets. Right now, we are dealing with a disaster, and I do not have any ability to allow you to live more comfortably. Since you have a space, just go ahead and sleep more comfortably, at the very least."
Feng Yu Heng laughed, "You sure say it lightly. Everyone is sleeping together with their clothes on. If I disappear every night, what sort of situation would that be? I am just a county princess that was conferred a title later on by father Emperor. Tian Ge is a proper person of imperial lineage, yet she is also enduring the hardship. How could I not endure this with everyone? Xuan Tian Ming, don't treat me as being so fragile."
He chuckled, "How could you be fragile. My Heng Heng is the best woman in the world."
"Then this best woman will secretly bring you into my space at some point in the future when nobody is around to sneak some food!" She urged him to continue eating then began pulling candy out of her sleeve.
The candy was something that she had placed in the snacks drawer. Feng Yu Heng was very happy that she was a gluttonous girl in her previous life. Only that allowed her to live happily in the ancient world.
Candy was easier to bring out than eggs, and they were easier to bring around. After Xuan Tian Ming finished eating his wontons, she had already covered the bed with candy. There were some cardboard boxes in her space that were used to hold medicine. She pulled some out and placed the candy inside the boxes. She then called in some soldiers to carry them out to distribute them among the refugees. The young children would be given some extra.
One of the younger soldiers found them to be quite novel, thus she opened up a few to give a piece to each of the soldiers.
One of the soldiers said: "When we were distributing the eggs yesterday, there were refugees that said that they are eating better now than before the disaster struck. Previously, they could not even eat white rice. Now, however, not only do they have white rice to eat, such great medicine has been added, and they have eggs to eat. They said that this is the result of good fortune that had been earned from their previous lives. There was also someone that said that if they knew that things would be like this, the rain should have started falling sooner."
Xuan Tian Ming snorted, saying: "People really don't know when to feel satisfied. In difficult times, we give them something nice, and they think about how they should enjoy this treatment all the time. Scarcely could they imagine that nobody's wealth dropped out of the sky. It's impossible for us to take care of them for their entire lives for no reason." He waved his hand, "Take it out and distribute it. Just say that it's from county princess Ji An. If they wish to give thanks, they must thank county princess Ji An."
The soldiers received the order and carried out the boxes of candy to be distributed. Feng Yu Heng lightly consoled Xuan Tian Ming: "The reason that some people are suffering is that their daily lives were already bad, and they did not have the money to fix up their homes. There are others that lived in places that were at a lower elevation. No matter how good their house was, it did not matter. Think about the Feng family's old home. Feng Jin Yuan was the former prime minister. Even if he did not have the heart to provide material assistance, by using his name, the Feng family was able to live peacefully in Feng Tong county. But in the end, they still suffered from the disaster. Such a nice family home was also washed away, right? For these refugees, we are currently helping them stay out of the rain, providing them with medical treatment and providing them with food. When the rain has stopped, we must think of a way to help them find a place to settle down and get back to work. At the same time, the districts that were hit hardest by the disaster need to be completely rebuilt in order to avoid the floods that could occur next year or the year after."
She continued to speak and speak, suddenly causing Xuan Tian Ming to laugh. He reached out to pat her head, "Silly girl, how could I not understand this reasoning? You're so long-winded like an old wife!"
Her eyes became sharp and immediately became unhappy, "Who are you talking about? If I am an old wife, you're an old man. Even if we are both old, you would be the first to become old. There's a gap of nearly ten years. What sort of advantage do you have over me."
Xuan Tian Ming looked at her appearance that had become similar to that of a tiger and smiled even more.
At this time, Huang Quan walked in from the outside with someone behind her. She gestured with her eyes at Feng Yu Heng, telling her to look behind her. Feng Yu Heng looked over and found that the person behind her was wearing a cloak. She found that it was Cheng Jun Man.
"Why have you come?" She thought about it but was still unable to call her mother. There was not much of an age gap between the two. Moreover, from the perspective of Feng Yu Heng as a 30-year-old soul, she could be her younger sister.
Cheng Jun Man removed the cloak from her head and looked up. Seeing that Xuan Tian Ming was also present, she quickly went forward to salute, saying: "This minister's wife pays respects to your Highness."
Xuan Tian Ming waved his hand, gesturing that there was no need for her to be so courteous. He then patted Feng Yu Heng's shoulder and said to her: "You two can speak. I will go out and inspect the camp."
When he left the shelter, Cheng Jun Man finally took a couple steps forward and a helpless expression appeared on her face: "Elder madam insisted that I come for this trip. She also cried and screamed to force me into the palace to ask for an identification to leave the city."
Feng Yu Heng pulled her over and had her sit down. In her mind, she understood why Cheng Jun Man had come: "Is it for Feng Jin Yuan?"
Cheng Jun Man nodded, "Having already been demoted to fifth rank, he is still so unpleasant. Say, he could scam anyone, yet he had to hand a fake deed to Zhang Yuan. I went into the palace and heard aunty talk about it. At the start, Zhang Yuan did not know that the deed was fake. After returning to the palace, he gave it to the Emperor to look at in a report. As a result, his Majesty noticed it and became so angry that he nearly gave the order for Feng Jin Yuan to be killed. Afterward, his Majesty took account of you, county princess, and allowed him to live. He only had Xu Jing Yuan lock him up."
In truth, Feng Yu Heng really wanted to say: "There's no need to worry about me," but, in the eyes of others, Feng Jin Yuan was still her father. It would not be too ethical for her to be too uncompromising.
"As a result, he was just locked up, yet the elder madam is already unable to endure it." Cheng Jun Man continued to speak: "Braving the heavy rain, the elder madam insisted that she go from the manor to the government office. Unfortunately, they did not allow her to visit him. She was completely out of options and later came to cry and scream to Jun Mei and me, saying that she had to have me come out of the city to ask you for some ideas."
Feng Yu Heng helplessly shook her head, but she asked Cheng Jun Man: "In the end, he is your husband. Could it be that you two do not even want to save him?"
Cheng Jun Man did not even think before telling Feng Yu Heng: "Ever since the day we left the palace, us sisters knew that the reason our aunt sent us to the Feng manor was not for Feng Jin Yuan's position as prime minister. Instead, we were sent to keep an eye on him. Aunty said that as long as we follow you, county princess, us sisters would be able to live peacefully." These words were spoken without any need for thought. The thought of following Feng Yu Heng had already been deeply rooted in their hearts. It definitely would not change.
Feng Yu Heng knew the Empress' thoughts. A person that was able to stay in the main palace for so many years was someone that had a great wisdom and experience. Naturally, she would need to find a reliable support for her nieces.
She did not ask any further. She just told Cheng Jun Man: "Just go back and tell the elder madam that there are refugees everywhere outside. Even I, a county princess, and his Highness the ninth prince, a prince, have descended from the city. If she feels that Feng Jin Yuan is not comfortable enough in a cell, I will have someone bring Feng Jin Yuan out of the city to come and help take care of the refugees. One is remaining in a cell, the other is outside the city. Have the elder madam choose on her own."
Cheng Jun Man covered her mouth and smiled, "Elder madam would not be willing to send her dearest child outside the city to suffer. Alright, I understand. I will go back and tell her this. Originally, I was just going to come out and go through the motions. Jun Mei and I gave third young miss a large amount of money to prepare clothes. It should be enough to handle any emergencies here. I will be going back."
She stood up and bid farewell, putting on her cloak once more. Feng Yu Heng sent her out of the shelter and watched Cheng Jun Man get into a carriage. Following the carriage, as it went, she saw another carriage coming out of the city's gates and race in her direction.