text:
UMass Heads To Temple For Lone Meeting With Owls, On Sunday
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UMASS (15-7, 4-4) at TEMPLE (11-10, 4-3)
UMass Heads To Temple For Lone Meeting With Owls
The Atlantic 10's top three scorers will play in the game as UMass features top-scorer Gary Forbes (20.6) and Ricky Harris (19.0), who ranks third. Temple's Dionte Christmas is second at 20.1.
Streaming video will be available on UMass All-Access on UMassAthletics.com as well. The game will be carried on the UMass Sports Network on 100.9 FM WRNX in Western Massachusetts and on 830 AM (WCRN) in Central Mass and 95.9 FM (WATD) in Eastern Mass. Bob Behler calls the action alongside color analyst and Tim Kenney.
UMass is seeking to string together two wins a row for the first time since Jan. 14-19 when the Minutemen beat Dayton and Charlotte. The Minutemen come off a big win over Rhode Island, which was third among "others receiving votes" coming into the game, effectively ranking them 28th. In the win, Gary Forbes had his fifth double-double of the season with 26 points and 13 rebounds. Etienne Brower also had a double-double with 10 points and a career-high 17 rebounds, the most by a UMass player in more than a year. Chris Lowe tied his career-high with 23 points. The Minutemen led for all but eight seconds in the win which evened the Minutemen's conference mark at 4-4. The win was UMass' ninth against a top 100 RPI team and second against a top 25 team, Dayton being the other.
Forbes continues to score in double-figures as he has done in 26 games in a row dating to last season. The Minuteman has done it all 22 games in 2007-08 and leads UMass with a 20.6 scoring average, which ranks 28th nationally.
Rising In The RPI
UMass plays the 10th-toughest schedule in the nation and the Minutemen have been sensational with a 9-4 record against top 100 teams. UMass has beaten No. 14 Dayton, No. 23 Rhode Island, No. 43 Syracuse, No. 58 Houston, No. 89 Charlotte, No. 91 Duquesne, No. 95 Boston College, No. 97 Wis.-Green Bay and No. 99 Marist
The Series With Temple
UMass faces Temple just once this season, the first time since the Owls joined the A-10 in 1982-83.
Last season, UMass won 88-77 at the Mullins Center on Jan. 13, 2007. Temple returned the favor with a 98-89 victory at the Liacouras Center on Feb. 11, 2007.
Two years ago, in Ford's first season UMass won the first meeting, 60-34 on Jan. 21, 2006. That was the fewest points UMass allowed since 1950. Prior to that, Temple had won three straight including both games in 2004-05, by virtually the same score: 61-49 on Jan. 5, 2005 at UMass and 61-48 on Feb. 26, 2005 at Temple.
After Temple led the series 21-0, UMass rebounded to win 13 of 15 contests from 1992-97, including two six-game win streaks. Since then the Owls have won 12 of 18 meetings, but UMass snapped Temple's three-game series win streak in the series, at the Mullins Center with a 66-65 win on Jan. 24, 2004.
UMass is 12-5 all-time against Temple at the Mullins Center. The 17 games played against the Owls are the most UMass has played against any team all-time at the Mullins Center since the building opened in 1993. The 12 wins are also the most by UMass against any team at the Mullins Center.
The Owls hold a 22-4 advantage for games played in Philadelphia at the Liacouras Center (9-1), McGonigle Hall (12-3) or the Palestra (1-0). UMass' only win at the Liacouras Center came on Jan. 27, 2001, a 65-64 overtime victory.
UMass coach Travis Ford is now 2-2 against Temple. New Temple coach Fran Dunphy is 1-3 against UMass losing twice while he was at Penn. Prior to last season's first meeting, the last time he coached against the Minutemen was on Jan. 14, 1995, a 93-60 UMass win at the Mullins Center
Last Season's Meetings
AT THE LIACOURAS CENTER (FEB. 11, 2007): Despite UMass' first 30-point effort in three seasons, the Minutemen lost 98-89 at Temple on Sunday afternoon. Junior guard Gary Forbes netted a career-high 31 points but it was not enough as Temple shot 53 percent from the floor. The Minutemen fall out of first place (17-7, 7-3 A-10). Temple's guards were sensational all afternoon as the A-10's leading scorer Dionte Christmas poured in 30 points, Dustin Salisbery tallied 25, Mark Tyndale netted 15 and point guard Semaj Inge had 11 points. For Christmas it was his fourth 30-point effort in five games.
Scoring, More and More
With the new offense, UMass is scoring at a high-pace. The Minutemen are averaging 83.0 points per game, up from 76.7 points (+7.3) through 22 games last season and 77.3 points (+5.7) for the entire season.
UMass is eighth in the NCAA in scoring through Feb. 8 with 83.0 per game. The Minutemen are also second in the Atlantic 10 scoring behind No. 5 Duquesne (85.2). VMI leads the nation with a 92.6 average.
UMass is one of two squads with two players in the in the Top 50 NCAA scoring leaders as of Feb. 8 with Gary Forbes 28th with a 20.6 average and Ricky Harris at 50th with 19.0 per game.
UMass is 36th in total 3-pointers made with 191. With 8.7 treys per game, UMass leads the A-10 and is 31st in the NCAA in 3s per game.
Block Party
After finishing third in the nation (7.45) in blocked shots with the nation's top shot blocker in Lasme, UMass is third in 2007-08 with 7.7 per game. UConn (8.7) and Mississippi State (8.5) and lead the nation.
UMass has six games with 10 or more blocks most recently its outing vs. Rhode Island (2/7) with 10.
The Minutemen picked up 41 blocks in three games (13.7 per game) from Dec. 22-Jan. 2. The Minutemen had 18 swats against Central Connecticut on Dec. 22 for the second-most prolific shot blocking game in school history. The only game with more came with a school-record of 20 on Jan. 3, 1995 in a win over West Virginia at the Springfield Civic Center. UMass followed that up with 14 blocks vs. Boston University.
The Minutemen hold the top four shot blocking days in Atlantic 10 history led by the 1995 showing and this year's party against CCSU. UMass also had 16 against St. Francis (N.Y.) last year and St. Peter's in 2005.
The 18 blocked shots ties for the ninth most in a game in NCAA history, dating to 1985 when blocked shots became an official statistic.
Showing Major Improvement
Sophomore Ricky Harris has emerged as a major weapon on offense, scoring 19.0 points per game after just 4.5 last season as a freshman. He played in 32 games, all off the bench, but has started every game this season. Harris has 419 points this year after 145 all of last year. He passed his entire scoring total in the eighth game of the season against Marist with 18 points. He leads all Minutemen in scoring improvement at +14.5 points per game. Harris scored in double-figures in the first 18 games this season and in 20 of 22 overall with a career-high 30 at Saint Joseph's (1/23). He also scored 25 on four occasions (at Syracuse, at Boston College, at Vanderbilt and Saint Joseph's). He scored more than 15 in each of the first four games, surpassing his freshman-season high of 14 each time.
Senior Etienne Brower has become the force UMass thought he would be after transferring from Boston University. Brower is averaging 11.7 points, starting the first 15 games after scoring just 2.7 points per game in 2006-07 when he was hindered by an ankle injury all season. Brower has 247 points in the first 21 games after just 59 all of last year in 22 games. He passed his entire total in the fifth game of the season with 75 after the Wis.-Green Bay (11/17) game which he scored a career-high 25 points. Brower is averaging 16.3 points in his last four games including 22 vs. Xavier (1/27). His +9.0 improvement was aided by his career-high 25 points against Wis.-Green Bay (11/17), 22 points against #23/22 Xavier (1/27) and 18 points against Houston (1/2).
Senior Danté Milligan has tallied 10 or more points in seven games this season. he had just four double-figure games in 32 contests last season. He had his career-high of 17 in two of three games at Syracuse (11/28) and against Yale (11/14). Milligan's season-high last year was 10 points which he accomplished twice. Milligan has taken his averages from 3.3 points and 2.5 rebounds to 7.5 points and 4.9 rebounds. An increase of 4.2 points and 2.4 rebounds.
Junior Luke Bonner is also seeing more time and making his signature 3-pointers. Bonner, who averaged just 1.6 points in 06-07 is up to 4.2 per game and has made 18-of-47 from 3-point land. Last year he made seven treys all season in 31 games.
Among The A-10 Leaders
Harris is second in steals per game with 1.9. He's sixth in 3-pointers per game with 2.59.
After an early season ankle injury, Chris Lowe has returned to his usual form and place amongst the leaders when it comes to point guards. He is second in the league in assists with 5.2 per game. He is also eighth in assist-to-turnover ratio with 1.78. Lowe has averaged 13.4 points and 5.5 assists over 17 games since returning from an ankle injury on Nov. 28. Over three games (Dec. 29-Jan. 5), Lowe averaged 18.0 points per game and shot 62 percent from the floor along with 4.0 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game.
Lowe is moving up on the all-time assists list at UMass as he stands seventh with 374. After passing Anthony Anderson (367) at Saint Louis (2/2), next on the list is Anton Brown (417). With five helpers against Charlotte (1/19), he passed Charlton Clarke (350). With five assists against CCSU (12/22), he passed BC Coach Al Skinner (320) and then with five more against Houston (1/2), he passed Louisville coach Rick Pitino (329).
Tony Gaffney stands third with 1.8 blocks per game including a career-high six at Duquesne (1/30).
Danté Milligan is shooting 62.4 from the floor (63-of-101), but is shy of qualifying for the NCAA rankings (5.0 made field goals per game). If he were eligible, Milligan would rank ninth nationally and second in the A-10. Milligan has taken his field goal percentage from 49.4 to 62.4, an improvement of 13.0 percent.
Milligan is fifth in the Atlantic 10 in blocked shots per game with 1.7.
UMass Continues Home Dominance
Ford-Tough At Home
UMass Against Ranked Teams
This season the Minutemen are 1-2 against ranked teams, losing at then-No. 15 Vanderbilt on Jan. 5, 97-88, in Nashville and falling to #23/22 Xavier on Jan. 27, 77-65, at the Mullins Center.
Last season, UMass played just one ranked team when they lost at No. 4 Pittsburgh, 85-68 on Nov. 18, 2006. Two seasons ago, UMass lost to No. 3 UConn, 78-60 on Dec. 8, 2005, to No. 11 Boston College, 91-62 on Jan. 3, 2006 and to No. 7 to George Washington, 69-66 on Feb. 15, 2006.
UMass head coach Travis Ford won his first-ever game as a head coach against a ranked team with the win at Dayton. He is 1-6 at UMass after going 0-9 while coaching at Eastern Kentucky from 2000-05.
All-time, UMass is 30-67 against ranked teams.
Vote UMass!
For the week of Jan. 21, UMass received 47 votes in the AP Poll to effectively rank the Minutemen No. 31. It was the most points UMass received since the 1998-99 season. UMass was part of "Others Receiving Votes" from Dec. 17-Jan. 7 polls. In the Jan. 7 poll, UMass had five points, UMass would have been ranked 34th. UMass had eight points on Dec. 31. UMass received six points in the Associated Press media poll on Dec. 17 and 24. UMass has received votes in a week for the 10th time in the last two seasons with the votes on Jan. 7. Last season, the Minutemen received a season-best 11 votes in the March 3, 2007 poll to "rank" them 37th that week.
The last time UMass was ranked in the AP Poll was in the Nov. 18, 1998 poll, when the Minutemen came in at No. 23.
Three Atlantic 10 teams have been ranked this season with highs of Dayton at No. 14, Rhode Island at No. 22 and Xavier at No. 20. When all three were ranked in the same weeks of Jan. 7 and Jan. 14, it was the first time since the 2003 season, the A-10 had three ranked teams.
This week, Xavier is No. 15. Dayton, Rhode Island and Saint Joseph's are including in "Others Receiving Votes".
UMass also played No. 14 Vanderbilt (17-3), one of the final five undefeated teams in the nation, in a 97-88 loss on January 5.
For the Jan. 21 week, UMass received votes in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches poll for the first time this season with nine points. Effectively, UMass was 33rd in the nation according to that poll. Last season, UMass received one vote in March for its only other time with points in the last two seasons.
Getting It Done In 3s
The Minutemen also had three players grab 10 rebounds in a game for the first time since 1999. UMass was led by Tony Gaffney, who also had a career-high six blocked shots, with 12. Dante Milligan had 11 rebounds and Forbes had 10 to give him his fourth double-double of the season.
Non-Conference Success
Beating the ACC & Big East
Harris Gains National, A-10 Honors
Forbes Earns National, A-10 Honors
In the win at BC, Forbes also pulled down seven rebounds. For the week, he shot 13-of-28 from the field and 18-for-19 from the line on the week. He was also named A-10 Player of the Week after the second week of the season on Nov. 18.
Forbes was honored by the A-10 for the first time after his outstanding play on Nov. 18 as he was named the Atlantic 10's co-player of the week along with Rhode Island's Will Daniels. Forbes averaged 24.3 points, 8.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists in three contests between Nov. 11-17. He scored a season-best 29 points, including the 1,000th of his career, on Nov. 11 at Northern Iowa. He added 19 points and nine boards in the Minutemen's 89-80 win over Yale on Nov. 14. Finally, he scored 25 points, grabbed seven rebounds and dished out seven assists against Green Bay (11/17). That game was special to Forbes as he played before his father Roberto for the first time in his collegiate career. Roberto was visiting from his home in Jonesboro, Georgia.
UMass Wins Commonwealth Classic
UMass' athletic teams have had great success against Boston College athletic teams in the 2007 calendar year. The Minutemen and Minutewomen posted a 10-2-1 record against BC in 10 different sports. Most notably, UMass' men's soccer team, which played in the NCAA College Cup on Dec. 7, knocked off No. 1-seeded Boston College on Nov. 28, by the score of 2-1. Additionally, UMass' softball team beat BC twice last spring, while the Minuteman hockey team has a 2-0-1 record against the Eagles, who won the 2007 Hockey East title. One of UMass' losses came in football, where the FBS Eagles were challenged by UMass' FCS team on Sept. 29, in a 24-14 BC win at Alumni Stadium. The Minutemen, who play with only 63 scholarships in the former Division I-AA, were within 17-14 in the fourth quarter.
The basketball win also marked the first win vs. an ACC opponent since the Minutemen defeated Florida State, 78-68 on Feb. 15, 2005.
UMass also defeated alumnus Al Skinner for the first time since 1999, after Skinner had won eight in a row. Skinner is one of four former UMass players to have his number retired. Skinner had his No. 30 retired on Feb. 18, 2004. All-time against his alma mater, Skinner is 11-21
Bits From The 107-Point Outburst
The 107 points were the most UMass has scored in a regulation game since a 110-97 win over Duquesne on Jan. 6, 1977. It tied for the 11th-most points in a game for UMass as it also scored 107 in a win over Colgate in 1966.
The 207 combined points tied for the third-most points in a game in UMass annals. The record is 233, when UMass lost at Rutgers in triple overtime, 119-114 on Feb. 27, 1988.
The other game with more total points (214) marked the last time UMass played in a game where both teams scored 100 points in a regulation when North Texas beat the Minutemen, 110-104 on Dec. 29, 1982.
UMass continues to be the personal bug-a-boo for Hall of Fame Coach Jim Boeheim. Of schools the legend has faced two or more times, UMass is the ONLY school which Boeheim has never beaten. The Minutemen are 3-0, winning in 1992, 1995 and 2007 against the Orange.
In the epic win, UMass rallied from a 12-point deficit in the second half to come away with the win. Ricky Harris led the Minutemen with a career-high 25 points while Gary Forbes added 23 points. Forbes also had seven assists and six rebounds in what Travis Ford called his best game at UMass.
25 Is Twice As Nice
UMass Goes 2-1 At BTI Tip-Off
2006-07 A Season To Remember
The Minutemen captured a share of the league title on March 3 with a 71-67 win at Saint Joseph's. It marked UMass' first regular-season league title since 1996 and sixth A-10 regular-season crown overall. The Minutemen won five straight regular-season titles from 1992-96 and proceeded to win the A-10 Tournament each time.
The Minutemen went 24-9 overall and had the best season since the 1995-96 Final Four year when they went 35-2 in finishing as a national semifinalist. UMass finished with a 13-3 record in the Atlantic 10. UMass had its best conference record since going a school-record 15-1 in 1995-96. Prior to the loss to Saint Louis in the A-10s, the Minutemen had won six games in a row overall, their longest win streak since capturing 10 games in a row in Jan.-Feb. 1998.
UMass senior Stephane Lasme was named the Atlantic 10 Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year in 2006-07. Lasme is the first UMass player to be named the league's top player since Marcus Camby in 1996 and fourth overall joining Camby, Lou Roe (1995) and Harper Williams (1992). Lasme was named an AP Honorable Mention All-American following the season. He was UMass' first All-American honoree since Camby in 1996.
Lasme was joined by senior Rashaun Freeman on the A-10 First Team. Freeman is the first player since Saint Joseph's Jameer Nelson (2001-04) to be a three-time first-team selection.
Lasme is the second player to be named the league's Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year in the same campaign joining Pepe Sanchez of Temple in 1999 and David West of Xavier in 2002. Lasme joined Tony Dobbins of Richmond (2002-04) as the only players in league history to earn Defensive Player of the Year honors in successive seasons. Lasme was also named to the All-Defensive Team for the second year in row.
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Should your Business File a Tax 941 Form?
Every business owner is required to submit a completed IRS Tax Form 941 especially if you withheld social security, federal and Medicare taxes from any of your workers' paychecks.
Employers and businesses are required to file their Form 941 for each quarter of the year- that is due on or before the last day of the following month. January 31st, April 30th, July 31st and October 31st.
Form 941 is among the federal tax payroll files that is used in reporting to the IRS (Internal Revenue Service) with regards to your company's number of workers, total wages and the total payroll taxes/withholding that were paid in that same quarter. Here are easy instructions on how to fill-out form 941.
In order for you to file the form, you'll need the following things:
- A copy of Tax form 941 and its instruction package. You can download tax form 941 from the Internal Revenue Services' official website at www.irs.gov. As soon as you've downloaded your own electronic copy, print out the form and the instruction package.
- You would also need your EIN or Employer Identification Number. Check this important number twice, thrice or several times. Providing an incorrect Federal Tax ID number could lead to the IRS imposing a penalty on your business.
- Have your payroll reports in hand and ready.
Since this business form is expected every quarter, note these important dates on your business calendar:
Months Quarter Ending Due Date Is On
Jan-Mar March 31st April 30th
Apr-Jun June 30th July 31st
Jul-Sep September 30th October 31st
Oct-Dec December 31st January 31st
Now it's time for you to fill out tax form 941 itself. Make sure you have the instruction guide at hand. It is expected that you fill out this form off-line or on-line (then print it) and submit it the regional IRS office near you.
Note: We have attempted to assist you in completing tax form 941 quarterly tax return by breaking it into a line-by-line set of instructions. Those sections appear on the left column of this blog.

subset: commoncrawl


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Cloud & Service Management blog
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fashions and progress - but the basics stay the same
ivor macfarlane 2700022KPS firstname.lastname@example.com Tags:  tivoli ibm pulse itsmf ivor service-management itil 2 Comments 4,456 Visits
Well, we are well into 2012 now and we have just about got though the 'my predictions for 2012' phase and in to ordinary routines again. Whatever the predictions, like with most years I predict that 2012 will look a lot like an older version of 2011.
Could we just fake the IT?
ivor macfarlane 2700022KPS email@example.com Tags:  itil ibm service-management itsmf tivoli ivor 1 Comment 6,466 Visits
Today we trust computers – literally and unconsciously with our very lives. I was reflecting on this level of trust when I got £50 of cash out from my local ATM and declined the offer of a receipt. Seems I now have total faith the computer systems will 'get it right'. I've come a long way from keeping all my own cheque books to cross check against later bank statements.
Now, combining that faith with a little healthy British cynicism, and triggered by watching the Olympics tennis finals on TV, a mischievous but irresistible thought came to my mind.
It used to be that when a ball hit the ground near the line we relied on the human eye to say whether it was 'in' or 'out'. That caused disagreements and discussion – and - in tennis often - sulking, swearing and the full range of petulant behaviour.
Nowadays that is all replaced by referencing the technology. When there is doubt – or one of the players questions a call - then we simply ask the computers. What we get then is a neat little picture representing the appropriate lines on the court and a blob showing where the ball had hit. So, problem solved: disappointment still for one player but, so it seems, total acceptance that the computer is right. After all it is an expensive system working away inside a very expensive box – must be right, mustn't it. Or to put it another way 'computer says in', who would argue?
But what occurred to me is this. All we can actually see is some boxes around the court, and a stylised display with a blob on it. That could be delivered by one person with a tablet showing the court lines and them touching the screen where they think it landed. Very cheap and still solves all the arguments because – naturally – everyone trusts technology don't they!
Now – of course, and before anyone calls their lawyers – I am not suggesting for the merest moment that there is the slightest possibility of such a thing happening. But it's fun to think it might be possible. There is little public awareness of what accuracy the system – and here I presume it does really exist – works to. If you dig around on the web you can find out (the answer by the way for tennis is 3.6mm). You also find out there is some very minor grumbling and questioning going on. But that seem at geek level – in everyday use the audience stands instantly convinced.
So, thinking it through there are a couple of interesting consequences to real IT life:
I guess my big issue is to wonder how comfortable we are – as the deliverers of the technological solutions for our customers – and especially our users - to have such blind faith. Of course, people being the irrational things they undoubtedly are, that blind faith in the detail is often accompanied by a cynical disregard for overall competence – think faith in ATMs and on-line bank account figures with the apparent level of trust in the banking industry as a whole.
As a little codicil to the story, I registered with anew doctor yesterday – the nurse asked me questions, took blood pressure etc and loaded all the data she collected into a computer. The system was clearly ancient, with a display synthesising what you typically got on a DOS3.0 system. First thought: 'OMG why are they using such old software, that can't be good? Second thought: 'They've obviously been using it for years, so they really understand it, have ironed out all the bugs and it does what they need. It ain't broke so they aren't fixing it'. But my instinctive reaction of suspicion of it for not being pretty was there and I had to consciously correct myself.
Would you as a service provider prefer more questioning of what you package up and present to your customers and users, or are you happy to have that faith? My own view is that the more blind faith they have in you, the more the retribution will hurt if things do go wrong. Or perhaps that's just me being cynical again?
encrypting and decrypting your ideas - aka talking to people
ivor macfarlane 2700022KPS email@example.com Tags:  service-management itil abc itsm pulse ivor 1 Comment 4,277 Visits
Just about my very first experience in IT – brought onto a project as a customer 'expert' – was listening to the IT guys debating how to make use of the data we already had on the old system. In my naivety at the time I had thought computers used 'computer language'. Quickly I realised they were more like people than I had suspected – that there were lots of computer languages, and each computer spoke only one of them, and could make no sense of the others.
Now, in the interceding years (some 27 of them L) great progress has been made – we expect computers to talk to each other. This almost universal technological communication ability sometimes blinds IT people to the fact that human communication has not evolved similarly.
Until we perfect direct thought transference, all the communication we do, whether written or spoken, texted, tweeted or painted on the walls, relies on a two stage process. First you put your ideas into words (usually words and sometimes also gestures or pictures – or a combination of all three). Then someone else has to take those words etc and turn them into thoughts inside their head. There is always an 'encrypt/decrypt' section to human communication.
Now that can get messy, confusing and create all sorts of mistakes in delivering the message. You probably wouldn't design it that way. In fact in a pure IT context we would be looking at ways to deliver direct communication in a standard format from one system to the other. But people don't work that way; it is what we have and we need to work with it.
Communication isn't just about being accurate; I think it is better measured by whether it is useful. In IT, people still manage to get the communication spectacularly wrong by not thinking about the whether the customer (or client or user) is equipped to decrypt the message. As one example, here is an error message I got on my screen the other day, apparently intended to inform me why the software couldn't do what I had asked it to do: "Unable to contact the target back-end forwarding host (proxy target)". I presume that made perfect sense to the person who set the software up to deliver that. They were maybe a great programmer, but evidently not a human communications specialist.
It's easy enough just to dismiss this as one more version of 'Computer says no', but why is it no surprise? Maybe it's because we still seem to think it OK to throw our jargon at others who don't share it. Or maybe we forget they don't know what we do. Actually, to be fair this is not only an IT thing – ask anyone who has been caught on a French train having failed to quite understand the printed message exhorting them "composter votre billet". (And if you don't already know but intend to travel on a French train, trust me, you need to find out what it means, but it isn't a French word that they usually teach you in basic language classes. A classic case of encrypt/decrypt failure in a service management situation that has nothing to do with IT.)
The technologists amongst us love the challenge of integration, communication across platforms etc. but there is recognition that this is expensive and should be unnecessary – an area where standards and commonality help everyone. Why do we forget our most common encrypt/decrypt situation – getting a message from one mind to another.
I hope that the irresistible tide of universal cloud adoption and pervasive social media communication will solve all these troubles – and allow us to concentrate on the people issues more. But so far the social media snowball doesn't seemed to have reduced jargon – quite the opposite. Those of at a certain age are now totally incapable of understanding what are children are saying, even when they give us access to their on-line worlds.
Actually, this is fresh in my mind now because it forms a little game we will play during my talk at Monday 5th March at Pulse – our big SM event in Vegas next month. I plan to have people encrypting and decrypting during that session. I am interested to see how they get on, and hopefully to make them realise there are some simple tools we can use to make things better. Nothing magic, and the same techniques we demonstrate in the simulator. Mostly they rely on establishing common ground – establishing communication channels and learning what will work, by finding shared understandings, and by relying on more than words alone when it makes a difference.
The best part about all that is that from the outside it might look like gossip and drinking at the bar – but we realise it is building business critical communicating platforms and channels. The message that things can be both fun and relevant at the same time is also part of the session.
So, if you are at Pulse maybe you will be able to come along at 6pm on Monday. If not I hope to get the chance to encrypt/decrypt with you at another event this year. And thank you for your efforts in decrypting this message, I hope it wasn't too difficult – and I hope it has some resemblance inside your head to the one that was in mine.
Talking with the neighbours
ivor macfarlane 2700022KPS firstname.lastname@example.com Tags:  ibm service-management itil itsmf devops ivor 1 Comment 3,464 Visits
Over the recent Christmas break, I found myself at lunch with an Enterprise Architect and the conversation turned – as it does - to the future of the IT industry. we agreed on the topic of what IT jobs and attitudes should be over the next 10 years – others at the table disagreed with us – but that's a topic for another blog another day.
Now I live in a Service Management space, and so clearly I know that everything – at least everything about creating and delivering IT services – is wholly contained within a complete picture of service management[1]: because everything flows from the need for the service – in terms of value conceived, engineered and then delivered to the customer.
So, imagine my surprise when the enterprise architect (let's call him Kevin J) came out with the phrase – introduced as though it were universally accepted knowledge – that everything is contained within the concept of enterprise architecture and all other things fit inside that. Well, you would think that one of us has to be wrong – but maybe not?
Seriously though, I do realise that each of us has a coloured view of the world. But even when you know you might be, if not actually biased, at least running along familiar tracks rather than striving for objectivity, it can still be a surprise when you run into what seems a different perspective.
Of course – in this instance it isn't really a different perspective at all. Human Beings to tend to fit external matters into handy pigeon holes – and those pigeon holes are inside our own pigeon house – service for me, EA for Kevin.
Maybe we just need to get all these different perspectives in one room and get them to agree on which view is right? I suspect, however, that this has been tried – and failed. Because it isn't conflicting theories we are dealing with here. Instead it is that familiar old chaos machine – people and perceptions. They are all right (and all wrong too of course, but this early in a new year let's try and be optimistic).
Trying to look at the situation simplistically, it seems to me that we have had lots of good idea over the last 20 years or so that have been helpful – but we live in a complex interrelated world and each successful approach brings you to an edge or interface where you are dependent for further success on the neighbours. Human nature makes us jump to the conclusion that if the neighbours used my approach then they would do better. Maybe it's true but maybe it's not – maybe we have as much to learn from the neighbours as they have from us?
Let's analogise that to real neighbourhoods. Is there anyone who doesn't think things would be better if their neighbours behaved more like them and adopted their processes,and practices – especially things like where it is OK to park and when it is OK to be loud? But actually they have slightly different needs (maybe because of things we don't have like kids and dogs or a job that requires shift working) and so they do need to do things differently. But still there is much to learn from each other; simple stuff like where did you get your fence fixed etc and more strategic stuff like comparing mortgage plans or discussing the best school options.
Within our IT/services/architecture kind of world[2] we have the same chance to benefit from discussions with our neighbours. And just like with our domestic neighbours, the best way to get along and help each other is by accepting others' perspectives as equally valid. It is good to see initiatives like devops[3] starting to encourage this. My major familiarity over the past 20 years has been service management but I can see both lots to learn from our neighbours like EA and development and also lots we can help with too.
Have you spoke to your neighbours recently? And if so was it with a predisposition to teach or to learn?
[1] OK, I am joking a tiny bit here.
[2] That is a deliberate singular, not a typo!
[3] If you don't know about devops – I mentioned it months back in this blog https://www-304.ibm.com/connections/blogs/59c1123b-0353-458e-a719-b002d84108d5/entry/devops_should_i_have_known_what_that_is1?lang=en_us
devops? should I have known what that is?
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why we might love the most what we don't notice
ivor macfarlane 2700022KPS firstname.lastname@example.com Tags:  ivor service-management back2itsm 7,413 Visits
There have been a lot of good discussions on Back2ITSM recently. I find the site a wonderful reminder of the two universal constant truths: 'everything changes' and 'there is noting new under the sun'. They might seem contradictions at first, yet the older I get the more both seem true.
Firstly, if you aren't looking at the Back2ITSM group on facebook then you are missing out - go sign up, now! Let me explain what it is and how it is brand new and full of ITSM tradition at the same time.
Secondly, it is about people talking with each other. That's the bit that is the same as it's always been. The willingness to share ideas, help others – even those in competing organisations – is just exactly like many itSMF regional meetings I have been to, in UK, Canada and New Zealand; except that now we are all in three at the same time.
Of course, social media isn't new, and facebook is not the newest kid in town. But what is 21st century about this kind of group are the immediacy of comment and dialogue and the wide spectrum of simultaneous participants it allows. Since it has active members from all across the world, there is constant input and comment.
OK, so we have all know that the technology for this has been around a while. After all it is 'just' about real time input to a forum – and we now have about 20 or 30 people across the world presenting their opinions to an audience of 500+ (lurking is positively encouraged). For me what is important is precisely that I am not aware of the clever technology or feel all the time that I am using a novel means of communicating or even just how damned clever the whole thing is. With this group I have reached stage three in my own 'using technology' scale: comfort and taking for granted.
Stage 1 is when you are using some new way of doing things just because you can. This isn't just about IT of course, many of us may recall how such things have affected our choice of travel (my
example is choosing an airline because they had A380s on the route, and even if a bit dearer I had never been on one of them before …).
Stage 2 is when the mean is no longer overwhelming the ends – you're using it now because it is logical to do so, and it is delivering value. But, you are still very aware of how cool it is. And you probably keep telling other people how cool it is too.
Stage 3 is when your focus is totally on what you are doing. I can now just read what is written, comment if I have something to say. You know it's a normal conversation because it goes off at tangents, people get flippant, say daft things, agree, argue, make subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) digs at each and launch jokes that no-one else notices. In short, it's normal human conversation, without thinking about how you are achieving it nor where all the people are, or what time it is there.
And to me this is a good motif for successful technology. It isn't when it is there and running that the implementation part is properly over. Real success is when people don't notice it any more, but just get on with using it, unconsciously – as part of their everyday lives.
It's one more example of how success is about being invisible. First time I flew in an A380 I was excited about it – last time I was watching a movie before we reached the runway. That's success. (Ok, so there was a little re-attention on the technology after the Qantas 380 had an engine explode but I am back to ignoring it again now.)
So the important lesson and message that I see is how we need a customer perspective on the introduction of new technology. And maybe what you actually want is people to stop telling you how impressed they are, because then they are getting on with using it, which was, after all, the real point of the exercise, wasn't it?
Motherhood, Apple Pie and Devops
ivor macfarlane 2700022KPS firstname.lastname@example.com Tags:  ivor itsmf devops service-management itsm itil ibm 4,488 Visits
A while back I wrote a blog just mentioning devops, and what a sensible idea it seemed – certainly the word 'devops' hit some bells and I got 3 times my normal hits in the first day. At the beginning of this year (2012 in case you got here late) I wrote a blog inspired by a discussion with a TOGAF fan; I felt we in parts of the IT world need to talk to our neighbours a lot more.
I was reminded of these by seeing several devops write-ups recently (separate articles in itSMF UK and US magazines in the same month). Both are encouraging and make the unavoidable point: what devops suggests as a matter of principle is clearly something to be supported like the proverbial apple pie. It is just so obvious, it has to be right - why would you not use the people who built and know a new piece of software (or anything else for that matter) to get it in place and working, and as first point of call should anything not work as expected?
Both articles argue that ITSM people should embrace the ideas rather than rush to defend their empires. Devops is not the only example, but it seems to me that what we might be faced with is set of approaches[1] all driven from disparate firm foundations in our vast ocean of IT and services.
In fact the commonality between the approaches is massive, especially once you get past a temptation to overly rigorous application. It amazes me that the same IT people who would never dream of reading the instructions before using their new technology toys insist on applying every word of best practice.
If you want an example of how ITIL® overlaps the base devops concept look at section 6.7, page 236 of Stuart Rance's Service Transition book in ITIL 2011[2].
The point I really wanted to make is that we need to get above the point of origin and see identification, creation delivery and operation of service as the real goal and the subject of some integrated guidance. Everything we have so far shows its origins.
I started my career helping organisations establish and improve services, I got sidetracked into IT and oft-times I miss that bigger image. I still find it hard to think only of IT aspects and solutions, but I find I am often talking with people – suppliers and customers – who are content to be restricted to IT aspects.
In the short term I think what we need is more selling of the neighbour's ideas. I want to see devops being evangelised by someone from the ITSM community, and we need the converse too. Otherwise it can feel like the recommendations for apple pie are coming exclusively from the apple marketing board; doesn't mean they are wrong but they can less than convincing, especially to a cynical audience or to one that has something they feel they must defend. Maybe I have stumbled onto my subject for next year's conferences – anyone interested in inviting me?
[1] You call them methodologies, frameworks, revelations, best practices or whatever – I was searching for a generic term, if you have a better one let me know.
[2] In case you don't like what is there, I should point out the content of that section comes from the 2007 version, which was not written by Stuart. There is simple diagram here that makes the point, but it is Crown Copyright so I dare not use it here, so please o look if you are interested.
Looking back to look forward
ivor macfarlane 2700022KPS firstname.lastname@example.com Tags:  itil ibm ivor service-management itsmf back2itsm iso20000 7,803 Visits
I went to an itSMF
Now that kind of thing, apart from making me feel old (which is, admittedly, a fair enough feeling at my age) also made me look back and think on where we (the ITIL community) have come from and where we are now.
The first thing that occurs to me in thinking back to the early days of ITIL is that we now find ourselves in a place that none of us imagined we would. Don't get me wrong, the original inventors and drivers[1] of the ITIL idea were not short on confidence or vision, nor in seeing the benefits that documenting this aspect of best practice would bring. But I suspect that world domination of this industry sector by the word 'ITIL' was beyond even their best possible visions.
The key to the expansion of ITIL was that it quickly became about more than just the books. The ITIL advertising leaflets produced in the mid 90s coined the term 'ITIL philosophy' to represent this expanded
scope of ITIL. I suppose I should confess that I invented that phrase and also the diagram that went with it – a version from about 1997 is shown here. The accompanying words suggested that, even back then, less than 1% of 'ITIL-related sales' were about the actual ITIL books, and the rest were evolved services.
The fact that I couldn't even hazard a guess at what that percentage might be today indicates a few, pretty self-evident truths:
Some other things have changed too.
Nowadays the maturity of the ITIL ideas means most players are focused on market share rather than growing the sector itself. That means more competition than there used to be. Nonetheless there are still lots of examples of that collaboration still easily found. Probably the best example is the 'Back2ITSM' facebook group – a place where free advice, constructive debate and openly shared thoughts are still the norm[3].
The itSMF was born in 1991, and played – probably – the major coordinating role is promoting the idea, importance and approaches of service management. Like ITIL, itSMF predates the term 'service management', having started as the ITIMF. Even here we have seen a lot more competition during the last third of its lifetime: both competition from other community organisations and also considerable internal competition. I hope itSMF will evolve form this to carry on delivering benefit to its members. I am a bit too frightened to work out what percentage of my time has been given to itSMF over the last 17 years – or at least frightened what my employers over that period might think. But that commitment does make me wish hard for its future health.
So, looking back should makes us appreciate where we are now – nostalgia can be deceptive for usually the past wasn't better; because progress is exactly that – going forward and getting more. And wherever ITIL is now, IT Service management has come a wondrous way in the last 20 years. Global technology changes have made a difference to that journey; we've seen personal computing and the internet make all but unbelievable levels of change. We may well see Cloud do the same; personally I think cloud might do that by freeing us from some of the technical baggage and letting us see and address real service management issues, without the obfuscation of technology issues or the opportunity to hide behind them any more.
We've seen a move from books being the go-to source of wisdom when ITIL started to an amazing range of information sources. Nowadays your typical service management will expect their influences to come via social media, electronically delivered white papers and the like. Interestingly, in many cases, they would also expect them to come for free, and that throws a real challenge on the thought leadership business. If ITIL 4 ever happens I think it will be a radically different entity from versions1-3.
Where I want to see ITSM going is towards SM. IT is now so pervasive that it is everywhere, which to me means that ITSM cannot be a subsection of overall SM anymore because it logically applies to everything, since all services now depend on IT. Nevertheless, IT has treated SM well, and – after some effort –has taken it seriously. I hope those lessons will work their way into broader adoption and we will see an improved – and critically an integrated – approach to service management across enterprises because of that. I am driven to optimism in this (not my natural state you understand so it is noteworthy) by the fact that, alongside this blog, I am involved just in this same month in a webinar and an article for IBM's SMIA series on the idea that IT is now spreading its ideas – and delivering its technology and specifically its evolved software solutions – to the broader enterprise needs.
I wonder what we will be saying in another 20 years looking back – maybe ITIL will survive another 20 years, maybe not, but I am certain service management will progress and improve.
[1] And the top two names I would put here are Pete Skinner and John Stewart – perhaps our least sung heroes, especially the late Mr Skinner – but pivotal all the same.
[2] I don't plan to, and hope no-one else is tempted – there are far more constructive things for intelligent service management practitioners to progress knowledge about.
[3] And if you are interested (sad?) enough to be reading this then you should be part of that group if you aren't already.
Maybe the service is bad on purpose?
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Why do we think we are good at customers surveys?
ivor macfarlane 2700022KPS firstname.lastname@example.com Tags:  ibm itsm itil customer-survey ivor 3,758 Visits
How would you feel, as manager in your company's IT department, when the marketing people specified, commissioned and developed an IT application for their needs?
I was driven to ask this question by several 'customer surveys' that I have seen come out of the IT departments. An extract from my very favourite is shown here, which while it demonstrates admirable self-confidence it is perhaps not the perfect basis for objective assessment.
It just seems strange to me that an industry built entirely upon providing specialist expertise to allow others to deliver their jobs doesn't always feel the need to get specialist advice itself.
Now, personally, I do believe I know at least as much about building, delivering and analysing surveys as I do about technology application. But that is mostly because I know so little about technology. In both situations I would always welcome expert advice if I need to get something right.
Even IT listens to the CFO's people when it comes to costs and accounting, yet many have potential access to significant expertise in their marketing people that goes untapped.
This feels important to me simply because of the all the bad surveying we still see. I suspect that availability of free services like Survey Monkey leads us to build and do surveys without any real planning, and without thinking through how we might analyse and use the results when we have them. Basically a good example of reducing the 'Plan-Do-Check-Act' cycle down to 'Do' - speedy and economic but not usually very effective.
As for the confusion and the wrong results taken from unrepresentative samples …
For simple, but telling, examples think about how many 'customer survey' results you have seen where in fact it is only users who have been addressed. It is an important thing, user satisfaction, but it isn't customer satisfaction and we need to find out both and act accordingly on what we find. For example if you have 100% perfect user satisfaction, then the odds are your customers will think they are spending too much. And you will frequently see a mix of customers and users asked questions that are not really targeted at all, just asked because they can. This is often based on the – misplaced – belief that the more people you ask, then the more accurate the answer, ignoring the whole 'sample selection process'.
Take a classic ITSM example, where a support unit routinely sends questionnaires to those who have made use of the service desk. This, of course, gives you a satisfaction result amongst those who have had sufficient problems to make them phone for help. Might you expect a rather lower score from these people than the ones who have been working quite happily without the need for support.
We know we need to care more and more about understanding what our customers – and users and other stakeholders – want and need. We also need to understand it is not always an easy task to find that out. There is a whole professional specialism out there that delivers this service – as service providers ourselves, proud of our professional expertise, should we recognise that more – and take some better advice before we 'knock something up to measure satisfaction?
Maybe you do consult with your internal experts if you have them, or maybe you buy in expertise. It would be good to hear if you do.


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New superintendent takes helm at Montrose
The new superintendent of the Montrose Area School District introduced the board of directors to a cross cultural project she is proposing for introduction into the district's curriculum.
Carol S. Boyce, who came to MASD after holding the head position at Palmerton Area School District for five years, was named superintendent at the Jan. 13 board meeting, effective Feb. 3.
Boyce was employed under the terms of a three-year contract, with a starting salary of $120,000.
The "Zuni Project" was an agenda item for the work session prior to the school board meeting, and Boyce said that she wanted to introduce a document detailing the project that, if approved, would enable students to make connections with students and artisans in Arizona who are members of the Zuni tribe.
Boyce was wearing a silver necklace with hummingbirds crafted by Bobby and Loreen Shack, internationally known Zuni silversmiths, who may be able to participate as artists in residence, along with their son, who is a woodcarver and member of a Native American dance troupe.
Board President Chris Caterson responded, "Sounds like a curriculum area – perhaps you can flesh this out further at our next curriculum meeting?"
Building, grounds and transportation director Chris Tripp reported that two undersized propane shop heaters in the district garage were failing, which provided a good opportunity to switch to natural gas heating.
He said that although not all of the invoices are in, the bills show that Leatherstocking Gas was "almost dead on" with their prediction for savings on energy bills.
"There is a big efficiency gain from going to natural gas, and while we would have spent $27,000 on fuel oil last month, we spent $11,000 on gas, Tripp said."
Tripp also said that the communication system for the transportation is working out very well. "The communication with bus drivers has been terrific."
Caterson noted that the former acting superintendent Andy Falonk had commented on how well the communication system here works.
Business director Michelle Lusk said that the state audit report has been received for the 2011-12 year, with no findings, which is considered a satisfactory report.
She said she attended the PSEA's conference regarding the governor's proposal and that the district's state funding was estimated at $375,000 for the next school year, and ABG funds were estimated at $136,000.
Regarding the district's summer camp program, she cautioned the board that Title 1 funding for the program has been decreased, and that carry-over money from previous years is nearly used up.
Richard Jordan was reappointed to school board director, again replacing George Dow, who resigned a second time after winning the seat in the November election.
Board member Douglas Wilcox was re-appointed as district representative on the Intermediate Unit 19 Board of Directors from July 1 2014 to June 30, 2017.
Debra Smith was appointed as co-board secretary effective Feb. 17 at a fiscal year stipend of $2,000, to be prorated. Duties of the position differ from those of board secretary, Diane Truman.
Technology Director Craig Owens said that a new program for the school's website is being installed to replace the OWL program currently in use. The new 365 web application will be used for board documents such as minutes and agendas, and will also have an "outlook" program for email, and a Skydrive Pro application will provide each board member with 25 gigabytes of document storage.
Owens said the new Pennsylvania Core Standards program now being implemented is the new Common Core requirements for curriculum. This is the last year of PSSA testing: next year, PCS aligned testing will be employed, it was announced.
Cafeteria director Betsy O'Malley reported that the steamer warming the food at the high school is still not operational, and that the outdoor freezer at Choconut Valley Elementary went down last weekend, but was fixed Saturday.
The search for a new head football coach is underway, and so far, applications have been received from six candidates.
The resignation of Assistant Varsity Wrestling Coach Michael Gardner was accepted retroactive to Nov. 18, 2013.
The resignation of Eric Powers as assistant Track Coach was accepted with regret, and with much appreciation for his service as coach.
The following coaches were appointed: Ariel McKennas as Assistant Softball Coach at $2,350; David Hare as Junior High Head Softball Coach, at $1,850, and Michael Zuba as Junior High Assistant Softball Coach, at $1,785.
Kathleen Lonzinski's resignation as food service worker at the high school was accepted with regret. Leanne Branning was hired as part time food service worker at the high school effective Feb. 10.
Mary Wager was hired as full time secretary at Lathrop Steet Elementary effective Feb. 10. There were 56 applicants for that job, Caterson noted.
Melanie Major was hired as a long-term substitute autistic classroom teacher at Choconut Valley Elementary, effective approximately Mar. 17 through June 10.


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Blake Lewis
Birth Name: Blake Colin Lewis
Born: 1981/07/21
Birth Place: Bothell, Washington, United States
Years Active: 1998–present
Genres: Pop, Soul, Electropop
Born: 1981/07/21
Birth Place: Bothell, Washington, United States
Years Active: 1998–present
Genres: Pop, Soul, Electropop
Blake Colin Lewis (born July 21, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter and beatboxer who was the runner-up on the sixth season of ''American Idol''. His major label debut album ''A.D.D. (Audio Day Dream)'' was released on December 4, 2007 through 19 Recordings/Arista Records. On October 30, 2007, his first single "Break Anotha" was released. The album landed on #10 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Billboard 200 as its highest peak position with 97,500 copies sold in its debut, and over 350,000 copies so far. After the release of his second single "How Many Words", which peaked at #8 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Dance/Club Play Songs, Lewis was dropped by Arista Records. Lewis eventually signed with T... Continue Bio >>
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text:
I want to go touring in europe for up to three months. I would like to camp when possible so intend to carry a sizable load including my camping and cooking needs as well as other essentials such as tools, clothes, food and maps etc.
I am naturally considering buying a touring bike as my racing bike (a dawes gire 200) is unlikely to be suitable for the load I will need to carry. I have a good amount to spend and so was looking at offerings from koga and thorn, as I am interested in the rohloff speed hub, and dont want to be worrying about over loading but i worry about taking such expensive bikes away incase they get stolen.
what sort and price of bike have people toured on? is it necessary to purchase a top of the line bike? are my fears about broken spokes unfounded when touring on make shift tours such as MTB and cheep touing bikes?


text:
A group charged with looking at Bozeman's school calendar says they have a long way to go before they'll be ready to make a recommendation that's best for kids and the community.
The School Calendar Task Force aims to examine all possibilities when it comes to options for the school calendar, including a non-traditional four-day week and year-round schooling.
At Monday night's meeting, the group recapped discussion from their last meeting when they talked about regression. They discussed the need to clearly identify objectives and tossed out ideas on ways they can communicate the task force's agenda to the rest of the Bozeman community.
Members say they hoped to be further along in the process by now but say they're still learning and won't be ready to make a decision any time soon.
"Sometimes progress can't be measured in things you can check off a list but, in the communication and the relationship that you build, we definitely did that tonight," says Tami Phillippi.
Bozeman School Superintendent Kirk Miller is part of the task force.
He accepted a job in Helena and will leave the district soon but, at the meeting Monday night, encouraged the group to keep working until they reach a solution.


text:
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Summary:Meet Roy & Candy and Lonnie Earl & Darlene--two close married couples who thought they knew one another, until they decided to take their dream vacation together. Now, they're hitting the road in a brand new, fully loaded SUV--and having the time of their lives--until a funny thing happens on the way to the Monster Truck Show in Reno, Nevada. Lonnie Earl, it seems, has a thing for Candy and when evidence of this starts to surface, this fun-filled road trip really heats up.


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The Science Museum in London is planning a year-long exhibition to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the birth of a pioneering computer scientist.
Codebreaker – Alan Turing's Life and Legacy will look at the achievements of the man whose influence is still felt today and whose wartime code-breaking helped to shorten World War Two.
It will be the most extensive collection of Turing artefacts ever assembled under one roof. Visitors will be able to see the Pilot ACE computer he developed in the early 1950s, which was the fastest computer in the world at the time and a forerunner of today's machines.
Other key exhibits include a piece of Comet jet fuselage wreckage analysed with the aid of Pilot ACE in 1954 following a series of crashes. The computer's work eventually helped to reveal the source of the problem, leading to changes in aeroplane design.
Pilot ACE was also used by Nobel Prize-winning chemist Dorothy Hodgkin in her examination of the structure of vitamin B12 and insulin molecules, and it was also put into use as one of the earliest computer traffic simulators.
Other highlights of the exhibition include German military Enigma machines and the few remaining parts of the revolutionary electromechanical 'bombe' machines that Turing devised during World War Two to crack codes. More than 200 were built, each weighing a ton and operating constantly at Bletchley Park and other secret sites in the UK. During the War Turing was known at the secret government intelligence site Bletchley Park as 'the Prof'.
The Science Museum is open daily 10am–6pm, admission free. There is no charge for Codebreaker – Alan Turing's Life and Legacy, which runs from 21 June to June 2013.
Science Museum, Exhibition Road, London SW7 2DD
Tel: +44 20 7942 4000
Website: www.sciencemuseum.org.uk
Facebook: Science Museum
Twitter: @sciencemuseum
YouTube: Science Museum
Flickr: Science Museum London's photostream


text: So i've been fixing up a buddies old GT 26er and noticed that his forks are shot. I found some cheapo fork online (as he is not looking to put much $ into this old bike) for $15 plus shipping. However when they arrived I realized they are for a 700c wheel (27.5"?). Anyway, what are your thoughts on running a 29 inch wheel on front in this situation? Guess the geometry will be all off??


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Coolio Arrested For Suspended Licence
By Celeb Stink 8 years ago
Rapper Coolio has been arrested by police in Hollywood after he was caught driving on a suspended licence.
The musician-turned-chef - real name Artis Leon Ivey, Jr. - was pulled over by cops in the early hours of Tuesday (10Jun08) for a minor traffic violation.
But when officers ran a background check on Coolio, they realised a warrant was already out for his arrest for the suspended licence crime.
He is currently being held in police custody, with bail set at $10,000, reports website TMZ.com. (MT/WNWCZM/IG)
Copyright 2008 WENN


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Bucatini All' Amatriciana
Effortlessly enrich your Italian pasta traditions with Boar's Head Dried Pancetta and Pecorino Romano Cheese.
- Set water to boil and cook pasta according to package directions.
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté onion for about 2 minutes, until tender.
- Add the pancetta and pepper flakes, and sauté until pancetta is crisp.
- Stir in the tomatoes and sugar.
- Raise the heat to medium high, cooking about 15 minutes and stirring often.
- Drain pasta and pour the pasta directly into pan with the sauce. Mix well.
- Sprinkle with Boar's Head Imported Grated Romano Cheese and serve.


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Former Oklahoma County district attorney speaks about overcoming contention, divisiveness
Wes Lane, president of Salt and Light Training Inc. and former Oklahoma County district attorney, once stole from a restaurant owner for whom he worked as a bartender his senior year at the University of Oklahoma.
He confessed his crime to some 400 guests of the Oklahoma Business Ethics Consortium luncheon Wednesday at the Petroleum Club.
"He (the former boss) chewed me out for something I didn't do, and I was mad and wanted to get even," said Lane, who spoke about overcoming contention and divisiveness.
"I started pocketing cash for a few months, left and went to law school," he said, drawing guffaws from the crowd with the mention of law school.
Ten years later, after Lane said his world view changed, he sought out his former boss, owned up to his wrongdoing and presented him with some two-and-a-half times the few hundred he stole. "It was so freeing, like I was a balloon filled with helium," he said.
Fittingly, Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater, who defeated Lane in a hostile campaign in 2006, introduced Lane. The pair worked together in the DA's office before Lane fired Prater for what Lane later learned were unfounded reasons.
"The acrimonious tone of the campaign was my fault," Prater said. "I felt wronged, and I wanted to do anything I could do to not only get elected, but also take him down, and hurt the man who hurt me."
But Prater, four years ago, said he realized he'd forgiven his friend when he learned through the Oklahoma City Police Department that a newly released prisoner made death threats on them and the late DA Bob Macy.
"No one had yet alerted Wes to the threats and I realized how angry I was — not at Wes, but at the man out of prison," Prater said.
He called Lane and it led to a full reconciliation, he said. "That day, love overcame hate," he said.
Lane, who last week officially asked Prater to forgive him though they'd both already forgiven each other, said the weeks following his defeat for re-election were one of the greatest times in his and his wife's life.
"I didn't expect to lose, was hurting, embarrassed and wanted to evaporate, but we realized we'd structured our life around God, something that couldn't be destroyed or taken away," he said.
Lane talked about the rock of small kindnesses, telling of a time he attended the funeral of a judge and Prater tapped him on the shoulder and asked him to come over and sit with the DA's office.
He also said that meekness gets a bad rap as "sissy," when it's really "self-restraint rooted in the recognition that it's not all about you."
Lane closed with a call to area businesspeople to astonish the nation like they did following the bombing of the Murrah building.
"For one, we need to empty out the needs of our foster care system," said Lane, chairman of the Department of Human Services Commission.


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We're looking forward to meet you! The hostel is located right downtown Toronto, close to the St.Lawrence Market, the Eaton Center and King East. We've got free WiFi and a kicking bar in the hostel's basement which serves food and drinks plus makes it easy for you to meet people from all over. Start that digital detox now and join us for some real social interaction!Have a question? Don't hesitate to stop by front desk to ask our lovely staff about their top tips and favorite spots in the city!
The Cavern is open every day and offers an unbelievable selection of whiskeys as well as events showcasing local and international artists.
We offer a variety of activities every week in partnership with some of our awesome partners, such as the Steam Whistle Brewery.
We now have Blue Jays tickets for sale for every game in section 538L. Call us or email us to book your seat!


text: HOT 101.9 Mid-day personality, Kerry James is celebrating 15 years in professional show-business in Central Virginia. Since December of 1996, Kerry has been acting, producing, and hosting programs on radio, television, film and stage. He's voiced 100's of commercials and appeared in several movies. Most recently, Kerry played "Officer Larry" in the remake of Plan 9 From Outer Space. The film, simply titled "Plan 9", is scheduled for release in 2012. In 2010, Kerry produced a short movie for a 72-hour film competition. The four minute piece, entitled "Two Guns, A Grenade And A Pizza Guy" garnered the Audience-Choice-Award for the Adrenaline Film Project at the Virginia Film Festival. Kerry has also won two awards from the Virginia Association of Broadcasters for "Commercial of the Year" in 2002 and 2006. Outside of work, Kerry enjoys spending time with his wife Amy and her three children, Claire, Will and Mckellar. Email Kerry HERE


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My wife and I just recently completed a 2 week tour of the bottom of the south island of NZ. It was our first tour on mountain bikes after touring a fair bit on touring bikes. Both our bikes were pretty much lower end stuff and both bikes suffered broken spokes. Neither of us have had broken spokes before. My wife's bike sustained 2 for the whole trip. Mine ended up with 6. 3 of them occurred within a short space of time in the middle of the Catlins. As I didn't have a tool to remove the freewheel I was stuffed. Fortunately I got a lift into Balclutha from a store owner and unfortunately the shop there botched the attempt to re-spoke the wheel and I instead bought a cheap wheel off the shelf (&kept the old hub assembly) to keep me on the road for the rest of the trip.
My question is... Should I get a new wheel built say with a double walled rim & decent spokes to suit my old hub or could I consider a factory made wheel? I can get a wheel that looks half decent (includes machined faces and eyelets with a deore hub for $150AUD. I really don't trust the wheel I bought in Balclutha as it has none of the above things and cost $90NZD! What do you think I should do?


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Harness racing driver Jason Merriman won five races throughout Northfield Park's 15-race program on Wednesday (August 5). Merriman's triumphs included TT'ssizzlinsally ($7.00) in race one, Bold Decision ($17.40) in race four, Dunks Brother ($2.20) in race five, Tiffany Malone ($4.60) in race six and Stone Of Magic ($3.40) in race 15. Merriman, 28, began driving in 2003 and has since garnered 1,764 career victories and is approaching $8 million in total purse earnings. Jason is third in Northfield's local driving ranks with 161 wins posted so far this year. Only Ronnie Wrenn Jr. (361) and Aaron Merriman (312) have more victories this year over the Flying Turns than Jason Merriman. Ryan Stahl (123) and Kurt Sugg (106) complete the top-five local drivers. Ayers Ratliff
Northfield Park recognized its 2014 harness racing leading driver and trainer on Monday (February 2). Northfield Park Vice President and General Manger, Brent Reitz and Assistant General Manager, Mike Colacarro were in the winner's circle to congratulate Ronnie Wrenn Jr. and Brian Loney. They presented them with plaques and each will receive a $100 gift certificate to the Hard Rock Rocksino Northfield Park. Ronnie Wrenn Jr. again topped the 2014 local driving ranks, winning 659 races over the Flying Turns. His nearest competitor, Aaron Merriman, drove 475 winners. Josh Sutton (282), Kurt Sugg (191) and Jason Merriman (171) completed the top five reinsmen. Wrenn, 28, resides in Maumee, Ohio and now has three driving titles under his belt. Ronnie won the dash titles at Northfield Park and Northville Downs in 2013. Ronnie's 2014 total victory tally is 847, which was seven wins better than any other driver in North America. Aaron Merriman (840), George Napolitano Jr. (679), David Palone (640) and Bruce Aldrich Jr. (615) completed the top five drivers (by wins) in the continent. Wrenn began driving in 2008 and has won 2,221 races and purses of $9,006,331. Wrenn's richest win ever came in a $200,000 Ohio Sire Stake Final. His fastest win was aboard Rockin Finish in 1:50.0. Northfield Park's 2014 leading trainer Brian Loney won nine more races than any other Cleveland conditioner. He garnered 89 local victories throughout the year. Barry Langley finished second with 80 wins. Virgil Morgan Jr. (72), Jessica Millner (70) and Calvin Hollar (68) complete the top five Northfield Park trainers for 2014. Brian is originally from Hager Hill, Kentucky and has recently relocated to Northfield, Ohio. He has three children: 14 year-old son Gannun, 10 year-old son Payton and 5 year-old daughter Polly. Loney, 36, has 1,185 career victories and purse earnings of $2,549,704. However, 2014 marks his first dash title. Brian remembers his first training win was with the gelding pacer Stealth Fighter, at Fairmount Park. His favorite horse he has ever cared for is Moe Joe Rack It. Ayers Ratliff
Northfield, OH --- After spending the weekend with their families in Michigan, Ron Wrenn Jr. and Jason Merriman hit the road back to Ohio at 4 a.m. to spread some good cheer Monday morning (Dec. 22). Joined by Kurt Sugg, his wife Becky and children Brandon, Kiersten and Kaitlyn, the trio of Northfield Park drivers suited up in their colors and dispersed nearly $3,000 worth of toys, electronics, movies, CDs and gift cards among those at the Cleveland Clinic Children's Hospital. The gifts were all gathered within five days through donations from not only Northfield Park horsemen but of those in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Florida, plus individuals who called to give after simply reading of the fundraiser. Heather Miller, an employee of the clinic and longtime horsewoman, helped arrange the visit. The donations will be dispersed and used throughout the year at the hospital's many campuses. The hospital cares for children who range in age of a few months to 18 years old with various medical issues. Many were confined to ventilators, wheelchairs or their beds but none of them were hampered by the ability to smile as Merriman, Sugg and Wrenn entered the room. Spending a few minutes with each child and posing for pictures was an obvious honor for the men who more than willingly gave of their time and resources. "As much as it may have brought joy to the kids, it brings me much more," said Sugg. Future charitable acts are being planned for horsemen and horsewomen, plus their families. Those under consideration are volunteering at the Akron Food Bank and Haven of Rest Ministries. by Amy Hollar
Long shot players were ecstatic as the horses crossed the wire in the sixth race at Northfield Park on Monday (October 6), when (8) Tommy Two Shoes successfully kicked from the back to win at odds of 68-1. Fowlerville, Michigan's Jeg's Standardbreds Inc. owns the six year-old. Trainer Steve Main called upon Jason Merriman for the winning drive. It was the fifth win this year in 28 starts and represents Tommy Two Shoes' 23rd lifetime score. (8) Tommy Two Shoes (68-1) was followed across the wire by (7) Aligned Hanover (3-1) and (9) Gordieisanartist (8-1). Tommy Two Shoes returned $139.40 to win; the 8-7 Exacta paid $644.20; and the 8-7-9 Trifecta returned a whopping $5,049.40. Kirty Dream was impressive in winning the $12,500 Open Trot. Jeff Hochstetler trains the seven year-old for owner Mario Caponi of Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. Aaron Merriman was aboard for the winning drive. Kirty Dream (Cantab Hall – Klelia – Cezio Josselyn) was assigned outside. He was parked with cover through initial fractions of :28.1 and :56.4. Merriman tipped the trotter three-wide up the backstretch and was trotting the overland route through the 1:26.3 three-quarters. He secured the front in the final turn and trotted away from his competition by 4-lengths, stopping the timer at 1:56.1. Completing the race were Edit, Easy Strength, Mary's Darvin, Calling A Victory, Wind Surfer, Lady Rev, Buckeye Man and Rose Run Logan. Monday's triumph was the eighth win this year for Kirty Dream. It increased his lifetime win tally to 19 and his earnings to $265,459. He returned $5.40 to win. Fiftyshadesdarker took the evening's $12,500 Open Pace. Brian Loney owns and trains the winning four year-old and enlisted the driving services of Ronnie Wrenn, Jr. Fiftyshadesdarker (Bettor's Delight – Crystal Slipper – Artiscape) started from post six and virtually led the field from start to finish through fractions of :27.1, :56.1, 1:25.2 and 1:54.1. He was ¾-lengths in front at the finish. Completing the race were Hall Of Memories, Top Of The Mark, Playin For Keeps, T Red, True To Mach, Just Crowned, Our McLovin and Hare Craft. Fiftyshadesdarker now has five wins in 28 starts this year, nine career successes and a bankroll of $72,585. He was the race favorite and paid $5.40 to win. The Open Pace was one of six wins on the evening's program for Northfield Park leading driver Ronnie Wrenn, Jr. Wednesday Action Returns Wednesday racing has returned to the Flying Turns. Northfield Park is now in action every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday with a 6:00 p.m. post time. On Wednesdays throughout October, Northfield patrons are encouraged to "Spin N' Win" the Prize Wheel. The Wheel is FREE to spin - and everyone is a winner! by Ayres Ratliff, for Northfield Park
Longshot players were rejoicing in the 12th race at Northfield Park on Thursday (June 26), when (7) Milliondollarflirt successfully kicked from the back to win at odds of 67-1. Macedonia, Ohio's David Lake owns, trains and drove the six year-old. It was the first win this year in sixteen starts and represents Milliondollarflirt's eighth lifetime score. (7) Milliondollarflirt (67-1) was followed across the wire by (3) Corno CC (5-1) and (6) Cin Cardle (80-1). Milliondollarflirt returned $137.40 to win; the 7-3 Exacta paid $913.60; and the 7-3-6 Trifecta returned a whopping $14,591.00. The party continued in race 15 when (6) Dawn Of New Money barreled up the lane to reach the wire first at odds of 54-1. Jason Merriman drove for owner/trainer Steve Novak of South Lyon, Michigan. Dawn Of New Money paid $111.40 to win and led off the $427.60 Exacta and $2,105.20 Trifecta. Earlier on the night, Up Front Kellie Jo captured the $12,000 Fillies and Mares Open Pace in the tenth race. She is trained by Ron Steck for owners C. Ed Mullinax and Mark Ford. Keith Kash Jr. was aboard for the winning drive. Up Front Kellie Jo (Bettor's Delight-Life's Highway-Life Sign) started from post six. Kash fired her off the gate, secured the lead and was never headed. She led her competition through fractions of :27, :56, 1:24.4 and 1:54. She bested her competition by a head. Completing the race were Stacked Deck, Sweetheart Dance, Ruler's Best, The Sweet Dion, African Violet, Sparkling Yankee, Ride A Cowboy and So Long My Love. Thursday's win was the ninth victory this year and 47th career score for Up Front Kellie Jo. It bolstered her lifetime earnings to $876,947. She was the race favorite and returned $6.80 to win. by Ayers Ratliff, for Northfield Park
As the heavy 1-5 favorite faded in the fourth race at Northfield Park on Wednesday (March 26), long shot players were hopeful as horses were five across the track through the stretch. It was 48-1 Artistic Dreamer who eventually prevailed. The 10-year-old pacer is owned and trained by Tony Peregrin of Cuyahoga Halls, Ohio. Jason Merriman was aboard for the upset victory. (7) Artictic Dreamer (48-1) was followed across the wire by (6) Ridge Park (32-1) and (3) Merit Wings (26-1). Heavily favored (1-5) Argon Fire hung on to complete the Superfecta. Artistic Dreamer returned $99.60 to win; the 7-6 Exacta paid $991.40; the 7-6-3 Trifecta returned $17,154.40 for a $1.00 ticket; and the 7-6-3-1 Superfecta paid $1,727.06 for a 10-cent ticket. by Ayers Ratliff, for Northfield Park
Rose Run Logan trotted home for his fifth straight win Monday (March 17) in Northfield Park's opening race. The seven year-old gelding is owned and trained by Jeff Hochstetler of Urichsville, Ohio. Hochstetler called upon Jason Merriman for the winning drive. Rose Run Logan started from post five and sat the pocket in the first half of the mile through fractions of :28.1 and :57.1. Merriman pulled in the backstretch, took the lead and never looked back, closing out the mile with fractions of 1:26.4 and 1:55.3. The mile clocking represents the trotter's new lifetime mark. Rose Run Logan posted a dominant 5-length margin of victory over his closest competitor, Bookem (Josh Sutton). Monday's triumph was the 11 career success for Rose Run Logan (Armbro Laser-How Miraculous-Baltic Speed) and increased his lifetime earnings to $27,698. He was heavily favored and returned $3.00 to win. In the evening's sixth race, Goodnite Goodluck captured the $9,500 Open Pace for owner Mark Jakubik of West Seneca, New York. Trainer Andy Rickert enlisted the driving services of Aaron Merriman. Goodnite Goodluck (Bettor's Delight-Priority Overnite-Artsplace) started from the rail. He was in the garden spot through fractions of :27, :56 and 1:24.3. Merriman pulled into the passing lane and won by 1 ¼-length in 1:53.4. Completing the race were Lyons JosephJNR, Man He Can Skoot, Forever Good, Western Churchill, T Red and Curator. Goodnite Goodluck now has 34 career successes. Monday's victory pushed his bankroll to $302,547. He paid a healthy $18.20 to win. Julians Caesar was a repeat winner of the $10,000 Open Trot in the evening's eighth race. Ron Burke trains the seven year-old trotter for owners Burke Racing Stable and Weaver Bruscemi LLC. Chris Page was the winning driver. Julians Caesar (Oaklea Julian-Twin B Lady-Royal Strength) started from post eight and let his competition carve out the fractions of :28.4, :58.2 and 1:28. He took the lead in the stretch and won by a full length in 1:57.4 despite being parked the entire mile. Completing the race were Action-Broadway, Pembroke Snapshot, Hello Carlo, Sure Thing, Mary's Darvin, Mythical Hall and Easy Strength. Monday's triumph increased Julians Ceasar's lifetime win tally to 13 and his earnings to $250,172. Despite winning this race last week, he returned $13.40 to win.
Eight Michigan Sires Stakes (MISS) finals were held on the Monday, Sept. 2, Labor Day afternoon card at Hazel Park, with four going being the gate as non-wagering affairs prior to the regular program. Although for the most part the races consisted of short fields, eight different stallions were represented in the winner's circle. The quartet of races on the betting card got underway with the $35,172 MISS final for 2-year-old male pacers. The Brad Kramer-driven Beastly was fourth at the three-quarters but the gelded son of Stampede Hanover-Todd's Affair rushed past the competition in the final turn to draw clear by 10 1/2 lengths as the 1- 9 favorite in 2:02.2. Man The Torpedo (Skip DeMull) was a distant second, with Chasing Jake (Jason Merriman) third. Kelly Goodwin owns and trains Beastly, who won for the third time in six starts. Kramer sent Lady Laker to the lead from post 7 in the $39,377 MISS final for 3-year-old filly trotters, and by the :58.1 half she had a three-length lead, expanding the margin to seven lengths at the 1:27 three-quarters. The 1-9 favorite then cruised to the wire 15 lengths in front in 1:58. Defending MISS champion Kendall Marie (Peter Otten) finished second, with Crazy Sherry (Carl Putnam Jr.) third. A daughter of Lockkeeper-Hyercass, Lady Laker is trained by Al Tomlinson for owner David Vanderhyde. She was undefeated in four starts in 2012, and in 2013 her four wins also include the Hanover in mid-July at Balmoral Park. Her earnings went past the $100,000 mark with her MISS win on Monday. Ovewhelming favorite That'll Be The Rei successfully defended his MISS title as Mike Micallef directed the son of Cheyenne Rei-Unspeakable Joy gelding to a wire-to-wire, 1:55.1 victory in the $37,827 MISS final for sophomore male pacers. That'll Be The Rei defeated runner-up Lexington Avenue (Kody Massey) by five lengths, with Sharp Cheeser (Darrell Wright) third. Micallef also trains That'll Be The Rei for owner Dan Courtemanche. The win was his ninth in 14 starts this year and 18th overall in 24 career starts. That'll Be The Rei increased his earnings to more than $120,000 with the victory. Haberdashery busted the favorite brigade wide open in the last of the four betting races with a 50-1 upset in the $40,077 MISS final for 3-year-old male trotters. The 1-2 favorite Zeplin, driven by Goodwin, appeared on his way to victory but when he broke stride in the stretch, it paved the way for Haberdashery and driver Jeff Sweeney to go on to the 2:02.4 victory. Zeplin recovered to finish second, with Winwood Scout and driver DeMull third. A gelded son of Keystone Nordic-Ready Elegance, Haberdashery won for the first time in six career starts. The winner is trained and owned by Chris Allen. All four early races were won in relatively easy fashion. Lady Windsor started things off with a 2:00.1 victory for trainer-driver Wright in the five-horse, $35,272 MISS final for 2-year-old filly trotters. Keep It Sweet (Larry Lee Smith) was 13 lengths back in second, with Best Friend Always (Todd Buter) another 18 lengths behind in third. E.J. Underwood III owns Lady Windsor, a daughter of Coventry-Rhonda T. The career-best win was her sixth straight in seven career starts. Scrappy Alex and trainer-driver Putnam led wire to wire in the $35,222 MISS final for 2-year-old male trotters to score in 2:09.3. SS RC CR (Rex Putnam) finished 2 3/4 lengths behind in second, with Just A Kid (Tim Roach) third. A gelded son of Scrappy Robert-Classic Enterprise, Scrappy Alex is owned by Sam Heron. The win was his fourth in nine starts. Kramer and Kayla Grace romped to a 15 1/4-length win in 1:58 in the $34,372 MISS final for 2-year-old filly pacers. Sue's Your Daddy (Jeff Sweeney), TC Country (Otten) and Winwood Elle (DeMull) finished second, third and fourth, respectively, as the short field crossed the wire in post-position order. A daughter of He's All That-A Maze Of Grace, Kayla Grace remained undefeated in nine starts. She is trained by Marie "Ginny" St. Charles, who shares ownership withEd and Cheryl Sayfie's ECS Racing. Super Soph, whose nine-for-nine freshman season in 2012 included the MISS final, successfully defended that title with a career-best 1:53.2 score in the $34,627 contest for 3-year-old filly pacers. Jason Merriman was in the sulky as Super Soph led gate to wire to defeat Don't Stare (Keith Crawford) by 2 1/2 lengths, with Reiwatch (Kramer) third. A full sister to Canadian Hall of Fame inductee Admirals Express, Super Soph is a daughter of Admirals Galley-Platinum Card. Greg West trains Super Soph for owners Ryan Morefield, Brian Campbell and Mark Wamp. Her earnings now stand at more than $128,000. Submitted by Hazel Park Publicity Department
Eight Michigan Sires Stakes (MISS) championships will be contested on a special Labor Day afternoon card on Monday, Sept. 2, at Hazel Park Raceway. Four races will be held on the holiday card that gets underway at 1:30 p.m., while four will be raced as non-betting races prior to the program at 11:30 a.m. All four MISS 2-year-old champions are in this year's finals and have a chance to repeat. The quartet of horses, who were also all named 2012 champions in their respective divisions by the Michigan Harness Horsemen's Association, includes the 3-year-old filly pacer Super Soph, who went undefeated in nine starts last year. Trained by Greg West and owned by Brian Campbell, Mark Wamp and Ryan Morefield, Super Soph has six wins in 13 starts this year, including the Michigan Breeders Futurity on Aug. 19 at Hazel Park. A daughter of Admirals Galley, Super Soph is a full sister to Canada's 2005 Horse of the Year Admiral's Express, who was just inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame. The $34,627 MISS final for 3-year-old filly pacers is one of the four early races, with the Jason Merriman-driven Super Soph leaving from post 1 against just three rivals, including Spartan Futurity winner Reiwatch. On the wagering program, Kendall Marie will try to defend her title in the $39,377 MISS final for 3-year-old filly trotters. The daughter of Keystone Nordic has four wins in 14 starts this year, including the Spartan Futurity on Aug. 13 at Midland. Peter Otten will drive for trainer Keith Hough from post 4 in Race 7. Reigning champ That'll Be The Rei, who amassed a nine-race win streak last year, brings a five-race skein into Monday's $37,827 final for 3-year-old male pacers. Trained and driven by Mike Micallef, That'll Be The Rei's current streak includes the Wolverine Futurity at Holland in late July. The daughter of Cheyenne Rei will start from post 4 in the 8th race. The 3-year-old gelding trotter Zeplin won just twice last year in nine starts but one of those efforts came in the MISS final. The son of Hard Rock N Roll has two wins again this year, one of which was a victory in the Michigan Breeders Futurity last time out on Aug. 19 at Hazel Park. Trained and driven by Kelly Goodwin, Zeplin will start from post 3 in the $40,077 final that is scheduled as Race 9. The only race for 2 year olds on the pari-mutuel card is the $35,172 final for colt pacers. Scheduled as Race 2, the five-horse field includes Michigan Breeders Futurity winner Beastly, who will be driven by Brad Kramer from post 4, and Spartan Futurity winner Man The Torpedo, who will start from post 2 with driver Skip DeMull. Admission and parking at Hazel Park are free. The track will also offer concession specials on Monday as well as live music. By Hazel Park Publicity Department
Fox Valley Armor paced home for his 50th career victory on Wednesday (May 8) in Northfield Park's fourth race. The harness racing 11-year old has 236 career starts, winning 50 times, and finishing second and third 33 and 29 times respectively.
The day after he broke his ankle in an August 5 on-track accident at Raceway Park, harness racing driver Jason Merriman was at Hazel Park, wrapped in a cast, trying to convince the state race stewards that he was ready for action.
Whenever harness racing driver Jason Merriman travels to a new track, he is greeted by the same question: No, he is not related to Aaron Merriman. But that's not to say Merriman is without family ties in harness racing. Although he is not related to Aaron Merriman, a well-known driver with more than 5,150 wins to his credit, Jason Merriman notes proudly that he is a fourth generation horseman on both sides of his family.


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Do You Really Completely Trust
and Rely on the Lord Jesus Christ?
When we trust and rely on the Lord Jesus Christ, we are surrendering our will to Him. That allows Him to take charge of the situation and to release His power and victory comes. Unless you release the desires of your heart completely to Him, he cannot interfere. A person who believes is one who has total confidence and assurance that the Lord Jesus Christ is the God that is more than enough. When Jesus appeared to me He said He can not do any thing until we give the entire situation to Him. It is very humbling to ask for help or to say it is beyond your control. That is why we have to have a child like trust and Faith. Always remember the Greater One is inside of you waiting for you to call upon His name. Then the power of God will be released. Most of the great miracles we have witnessed in this ministry is when a person has no hope and the cry out to the Living God. We need to trust in God and not in ourselves.


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Definition: 'Incontinence Of Urine'
incontinence of urineType: Term
1. the involuntary voiding of urine into clothing or bedclothes. A common problem in old people, especially those in long-term care facilities, which may be due to neurologic abnormalities, loss of sphincter function (especially common in multiparous women), chronic bladder outlet obstruction, or loss of cognitive functions.
The definition information for incontinence of urine is provided by Stedman's. You can search our medical dictionary here.
Stedman's, part of Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, provides a comprehensive line of health-science publications for healthcare professionals and medical students.