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I've been thinking about a clothing line for some small while now, mostly considering things to plug some of the gaps in the vintage scene. These bathing suits are patterned to look like the woolen malliots, commonly worn by women in the 20s and 30s. They're fitted mesh and can be found in-world and on the Marketplace now.
Proletariat's Pillow
A grungy, old fashioned pillow, for all your laying about needs. Rez it on the floor, rez it on a bed. Comes complete with seven solo poses and eight couples cuddles. The perfect solution for some low key intimacy, wherever you happen to be.
Avaliable now.
Rietveld Chair
In 1918, Gerrit Rietveld made a chair that would go on to become an icon of early 20th century design. Known as the Red and Blue Chair, the piece is an exemplar of the de Stijl art movement, with an emphasis of geometric lines and primary colours.
This reproduction is fully mesh and has a land impact of only 1 prim. More exciting though, it has been textured with a specular materials effect and when viewer in a compatible viewer, has a varnished sheen that reacts to in-world lighting.
::MM:: Rietveld Chair, a photo by Myficalities on Flickr.
Something for August
Got a leak in your roof and no way to fix it? How about an old enameled saucepan to catch the drips?
This lovely old saucepan is the perfect way to stop a damp spot on your floor. It comes complete with rippling water, a slow and steady particle drip and even a grungy patch of mold for your ceiling.
It's fully mesh, copy/mod and only $50L. Available on the Marketplace now…
More Poses!
Still working with poses, the early twentith century providing rich ground that hasn't yet been trod too many times.
First new release for this update, a set based on nude photos of the dancer come actress, Louise Brooks. Brooks was well know in the latter half of her career, for starring in some very frank for the time, depictions of sexuality. The photos used as inspiration here, follow that trend.
Lulu Pose Pack. $275L, Copy/Mod. On the Marketplace Now.
Second off, a nice free treat for my everyone; a selection of formal poses, perfect for portrait or group photography. There's not much in the way of simple, classic portrait poses around. By dropping these poses in to balls, you can quickly build large group pictures, such as school classes and wedding parties.
Formal Pose Pack. Copy/Mod, FREE! On the Marketplace Now.
Also, now available upstairs at my shop in Vintage Retro.
Something New: Delving Into Poses
clara blog, a photo by Myficalities on Flickr.
June was a lazy month at Myficalities, too many distractions and not enough time spent on new work. Now we're over that, July brings something new: poses!
For our first foray into photography poses, we thought we'd focus on one of our favourite gals; the It Girl herself, Clara Bow! This set contains five poses based on photos and stills of Clara. Each pose comes with a mirror version, for ten poses total. Everything's copy/mod and the pricetag is $375L.
New Releases for May!
May's almost over, so let's get some new things out the door!
First up, a reissue of an earlier piece (okay, it's not fully new). The Mackintosh Dining set features new meshes and textures and a whole additional piece of furniture in the form of a sideboard! This set's based on the work of Charles Rennie Mackintosh and dates to 1918.
Next up, for those of you clamouring for sources of illumination and yet, who didn't buy my earlier offerings, perhaps this will be more to your taste! It's a light! It's kinda barrel shaped! It's made of copper (or possibly bronze) and frosted glass!
That's about it really.
The Mackintosh set can be found by clicking right here.
If you want the light, click here instead.


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How do you remove xstar interior!
I'm having a heck of a time with my bow interior. I saw the nuts in front and on side but the very front is hung up and I can't reach. The middle front interior is even worse. Got all but the left corn undone. No nut behind it but looks to be screwed in some how. At least that was how the other side was.
Your profile says you have a 2001 xstar, so I'm assuming that is the boat we are taking about.
I just did my interior last year, so I am all too familiar with the pain of taking the sides out of the bow.
Start by removing the center piece. To do this pull the bottom corners towards you. They are only held in with automotive door panel connectors. After that the whole piece slides up. It is held in by some L brackets.
Once that piece is out, you will see a 6" hole. If you are lucky, this hole will be big enough to get to the bolts in the top corners of the sides. For me it was not and I used a jig saw to oblong the hole.
You will need to remove the speakers to get to two more bolts. The remainder are on the back sides.
Good luck. Those were the worst for me to get out.
Unfortunately, no I did not attempt to remove those. My suspicion is that they mount those before they put the top and lower portions if the hull together.
Good luck with the hand rails.
If I recall, there is a bolt above and below the speaker. There are three on the back (from the locker or under the dash) and one more bolt on the side from the back. The ones on the back were under the carpet.
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subset: commoncrawl


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I hear a church bell ringing deep into the night
It rumbles all the windowed widows, crashing, crashing...
The sounds begin to ECHO (echo), breathing - -
gasping - -
SLASHING through the sky!
The bells have changed, they're pistons now
Scraping metal wheels and puffing steam into the air
The thunder of the railway line leaves
only those
who want to hear
the march of all
the industries and
as the train moves
down the track you
feel your teeth
begin to rattle
feel the power
of the engine
tumbling fortune
bold decision
and as the sound
begins to fade
the awe of it
begins to fade
the thunderclap
begins to fade
and the train
begins to fade
into the horizon.
Catskill Scruples (or the Locomotion of Destiny)
Posted by Prester John Wednesday, January 28, 2009 at 3:48 PM
I hear a church bell ringing deep into the night
Candles Lit Inside the Empty Pane
Posted by Prester John Tuesday, January 27, 2009 at 5:34 PM
Who could think that thunder can be stolen fast?
Forever bottled, sold, as all things that pass?
The politician bleeds upon the floor
Living like a soldier without war
His life is flashing on the silver screen
Screaming all along the Aventine
Should not all who speak be made to think?
Do not all who gamble surely take a drink?
The undertaker dreams of greater things
Scrambling in the presence of the kings
As he shovels dirt into the hole
Where your body lays without a soul
Are the sins of others our burden to bear?
Sitting in a prison cell with graying hair?
The warden breaks the hands of the thief
Who promises to turn another leaf
Upon the tree of life, he's crucified
And only the old warden knows he's died
My inspiration
Posted by Prester John at 4:39 PM
Arch-angels are laughing at me
Posted by Prester John Monday, January 19, 2009 at 4:14 AM
Death isn't some chain-wielding biker with a flaming skull.
Death is an old man in a hospice bed struggling to breathe.
Life isn't climbing Mount Everest.
Life is counting your change at the drive-thru.
Heaven isn't a cloudy paradise.
Heaven is her gentle fingertips
Hell isn't a fiery pit.
Hell is how easily you've given up.
I'm not who you want me to be.
I'm who I am.
maybe both
Posted by Prester John Tuesday, January 13, 2009 at 2:33 AM
am I vulnerable
or am I venerable
are you caustic
or are you costly
are we haughty
or are we happy
Posted by Prester John at 2:29 AM
strap on a pair of wings
let's go fishing for
eternal happiness?
disassemble me
look at my clockwork chaos
and tell me you love me
i need to know
if you are cosmic
or if you are a dancer
A Love Letter to the Lady Gaza
Posted by Prester John Sunday, January 11, 2009 at 4:13 AM
Say hello, hello
To the brand new world
Say hello, hello
To the brand new year
Say hello, hello
To liberty
Say hello, hello
To democracy
Oh, the rocket's red flare...
Not a refugee camp, it's an--
Did you hear the explosion?
Rather, Democrats,
Unequivocally support this strategy
(Because you can't fire a nuke from a slum
No air strikes in Iran though, please)
Sizzle, sizzle, smoke and flame
Thus the school shall go
Crackle, simmer, boast and blame
Necessary. Unfortunate.
And as a child's blood
mingles with the sand
You wonder:
This is the Holy Land?
Roughshod Meandering
Posted by Prester John Thursday, January 8, 2009 at 12:43 AM
As I remember all of those years--
Well, no, I remember shame, distrust
Precipitation, slander, lies and lust
The frozen hand of hidden shame...
That's what I remember of your game.
Idiosyncratic truths burnt on your head
Emphatic that the soothing past shall lay dead
In its grave so cleanly dug
By all the scandal, sex, and drugs
I feel my love begin to drain...
As a consequence of your little game.
The poisoned cups and toxic air that you breathe
Coupled with the coupling you readily receive
Pencil in your persona, quick--
Before they all see through your trick
And then you'll hold yourself in pain...
Only you can see the point of your game.
Ah, but you had it all worked out so nice
Take what you want and ignore my advice
Vice, so tempting, shall be your redoubt
In the face of the traditions you flout
No, I've never been one to be so plain...
But I refuse to play along with your game.
The Ballad of Bertrand and Emmelyne
Posted by Prester John Friday, January 2, 2009 at 12:13 AM
The lonesome meadowlark perched on the branch of yew
Coos sweet mystic melodies to the Wandering Jew
Who, travelling to the village where tombstone sailors lie
Hopes to cast off his curse, hands groping at the sky
With rugged look and hat and coat stolen from the hole
And with the name of Gabriel sewn upon his soul
This tempter, this traveler, this diplomat of night
Consumed by phantom flames and hideous to sight
Is ready, so he thinks, to seize his life again
And so, in slumber's shadow, he fills his life with sin
Inside the slums of the village where he hopes to go
Sits Emmelyne, the lady with a heart that none can know
With scarlet hair and pouting lips, with rivers in her eyes
Emmelyne, eternal, wraps the winter 'round her thighs
For, though she loves not snowy banks nor memories of cold
The empty air can fill the void of the life she sold
When cast upon the daggers of daylight's crawling climb
Her voice is like a violin, her laughter is like chimes
The peasants of the village all shower her with presents
As Emmelyne declines them, her face becomes unpleasant
Bertrand Baker, born to Quakers, burns with heavy guilt
He stitches all his life into shining patchwork quilt
With pastel dreams of purity, of glory, and of lace
Bertrand is consumed with visions of a woman's grace
He knows her face, her sultry voice, her smile and her tongue
But her name is lost to him, the note that is unsung
On wintery nights, he holds his palms near the open flame
Imagining that she is near, her touch and breath untamed
Yet winds of loss and tides of truth steal this quiet rite
And Bertrand Baker shuffles off into the winter night
Upon the hill are those who preach, the morose gang of monks
Proponents of great zealotry, opponents of the drunks
Among their rank emerges one, their leader, Father John
Who treats the peasants ruthlessly and sells them for a song
With harvest gone and monks withdrawn, he settles for some grain
And gorges on the gifts and tithes shuttled from the plain
Those who hunger, those who thirst, the helpless flock of lambs
Are sacrifices for the success of God's unyielding plans
To Father John and to the monks, the world is nearly cleansed
And the monks are unaware of all the Father's sins
With guarded hate and harried gait comes Gabriel's approach
As a donkey hauls his cart, he seems beyond reproach
For though his painted face reveals a sinister design
He shares his oils and elixirs for a meager fine
And Emmelyne, with her hopes slung across her shoulder
Buys a potion, takes a drink, becoming even colder
Kaleidoscopes of memory slither down her spine
As snakelike people take her blood and paint a silver sign
Bertrand, walking to the square where Gabriel now stood,
Sees his love, pale Emmelyne, on a bench of wood
Noting that her river eyes are swirling, swelling, swallowed
He takes the potion from her hand and sees her soul is hollow
Grabbing Gabriel with force and thrusting him aside
He searches for the antidote to save sweet Emmelyne
Quietly escaping from the ruckus of the square,
Gabriel repaints his face and dyes his silver hair
Father John and his monks arrive to place the blame
And put to death Bertrand Baker by unholy flame
And as sweet Emmelyne awakes from her drugged state
Gabriel, now far away, laughs at Bertrand's fate.


text:
Meet Our Dental Team in Phoenix AZ!
With over 20 years of dental hygiene experience and a total of 28 years in the dental field, I am excited to provide the best oral healthcare as your dental hygienist. I received my Associates Degree in dental hygiene in Perrysburg, Ohio. I genuinely care about my patients and strive to help create a positive, comfortable, and pain free experience for you. I stay current with the latest advancements in dental technology, continuing education, and standards of care.
My favorite part of working at Premier Valley Dental is when I help my patients achieve their hygiene goals. There's nothing better than knowing I have helped someone have a better quality of life. When I'm away from the office I enjoy hiking, traveling, and am currently working on my bucket list.
In her 24 years of dental experience, Melissa has lived and breathed the motto: "The Early Bird catches the worm." She likes to be on time, mostly because people at church stare when you come in late. Despite a degree in Welding technology, she still chooses to stay with us and argue with insurance for our patients.
At home, she has two wonderful teenagers and a caring, loving, husband. As a jack of all trades, she has worked in many different fields, from beauty school to mental health to pediatrics.
She loves dentistry because she believes in it's ability to change people's lives and looks forward to many more years in this field.
Having spent the last three years in the dental field I can truly say that I love coming into the office every day. The individuals I work with are an absolute joy to be around and the day just flies by! I strive to make every patients dental visit pleasant by always welcoming them with a big, warm smile as soon as they walk through the door. I always say "your smile is your best accessory!" I believe something as little as a smile goes a long way and happiness begins with a smile. What I find most rewarding in the field of dentistry is the ability to make patients comfortable and seeing them smile. I really look forward to growing in my career at Premier Valley Dental and being surrounding by incredible individuals.
Outside of the office, I enjoy spending time catching up on a good television show; however, most days I am spending my free time with loved ones. I always enjoy checking out new restaurants and having a fun night out in the town. Some weekends, I will venture off to my home state of sunny California to visit friends and family.


text:
Wow, we had over 40 entries in our last challenge!! That's the most challenge entries yet!
I'm very excited for today's challenge. We are challenging you to make a "Pocket Card", birthday themed of course! Don't forget to include a birthday greeting/sentiment on it! You can find a bunch of tutorials here.
Here is what the fabulous design team made~
Please take a minute to check out the design team members' blogs and leave them some love, they really rock each challenge thrown out at them!
To play along with PTT:
Use the InLinkz system below to link your newly created birthday card using the direct link and not just your blog address. (I reserve the right to remove any inappropriate links or linked blogs vs. blog entries). Please link your card in the comments section should the InLinkz not show up below. If you do not have a blog and would like to play along, upload your card to a public gallery and enter the URL in the InLinkz. Use keyword PTT when uploading to sites such as SCS or PCP. If you have any questions, please review the rules located at the top of the blog.


text:
Concerned about rising health care costs?
Health Savings Accounts may help.
Many individuals lower their out-of-pocket costs with high deductible health plans (HDHPs) and interest-bearing health savings accounts (HSAs). You pay lower premiums for the HDHP and save for medical expenses with tax-free HSA money.
Health Savings Accounts are now available at the State Bank of Arcadia.
Contact Janet Mueller for more information.
Consult your health care insurance provider and your tax advisor for advice.
State Bank of Arcadia
Phone: (608) 323.3331 — Fax: (608) 323.3110
Privacy Policy
Terms of Use
Personal Banking Business
Online Banking Loans
Investments Calculators
About Us Community
Spot Light On Senior


text:
Hello and Congratulations on your engagement!!
Now the time has come to plan your beautiful Molokai wedding. We know that this can be a stressful task, especially from afar.
Molokai Tropical Weddings will take the stress of planning your wedding off your hands.
Together with your guidance, we will design a ceremony to fit your individual style.
We specialize in intimate, beachfront ceremonies. We have an officiant and photographer ready to go.
We are committed to making your ceremony a unique expression of your love and a day you will always cherish.
Molokai is one of the last islands in Hawaii that retains the simplicity and beauty of days gone by, the Hawaii of old.
The island is peaceful, relaxing and very intimate. It is a special location for your ceremony.
Perfect for the unique couple looking for a destination that offers refuge from the hustle and bustle of the other, more commercial islands.


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Past attempts at implementing the Maghreb regional economic integration project left the region largely with just that—a project. Researchers and policymakers have debated the merits, obstacles and reasons behind the disappointing record of regional economic integration, but mostly questions remain. Those questions are the subject of this report. Can the future be any different from the past? How can Maghreb policymakers shape their reform agenda in the medium term to reap the potential of regional integration? What role can service sector reforms play? What does the evidence say in terms of the potential gains from regional economic integration in the Maghreb?
The search for answers in the Maghreb become more pressing as global competition has stiffened and as economic growth has lagged behind the growth of the labor force. In recent years, countries of the region have made important strides in the direction of future prosperity. Stable macroeconomic conditions, some progress on economic reform, and ongoing trade integration with the European Union (EU) have increased foreign investment, leading to a significant rise in per capita incomes. Yet, the three countries still face a daunting challenge. They need to build momentum in policy reforms for sustained reduction in unemployment through accelerated growth.
Is There A New Vision For Maghreb Economic Integration?


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Adductor TendonitisUpdated:
Injuries > Hip & Groin > Adductor Tendonitis
(Also known as Adductor Tendinopathy, Adductor Tendinitis, Adductor Tendinosis, Groin Tendonitis, Groin Tendinopathy, Groin Tendinitis, Groin Tendinosis)
N.B. Although recent research suggests that 'adductor tendinopathy' is the more appropriate term to describe overuse injuries to the adductor tendon, we will use the term 'adductor tendonitis' in this document as it is more widely known.
What is adductor tendonitis?
Adductor tendonitis is a condition characterized by tissue damage and sometimes swelling to the adductor tendon at its attachment to the pelvis resulting in groin pain.
The muscles at the inner aspect of your thigh are known as the adductor muscles (groin). These muscles originate from the pelvis and insert into the inner aspect of the thigh bone (femur) and lower leg bone (tibia) (figure 1).
Figure 1 – Anatomy for adductor tendonitis
The adductor muscles are responsible for stabilising the pelvis and moving the leg towards the midline of the body (adduction). They are particularly active during running (especially when changing direction) and kicking.
During contraction of the groin muscles, tension is placed through the adductor tendon at its attachment to the pelvis. When this tension is excessive due to too much repetition or high force, damage to the adductor tendon may occur. Adductor tendonitis is a condition whereby there is damage to the adductor tendon with subsequent degeneration and sometimes swelling.
Causes of adductor tendonitis
Adductor tendonitis is usually an overuse injury, which commonly occurs due to repetitive or prolonged activities placing strain on the adductor tendon. This typically occurs due to repetitive running, kicking or change of direction activities.
Occasionally, patients may develop this condition suddenly due to a forceful contraction of the adductor muscles often when they are in a position of stretch. This typically occurs during rapid acceleration whilst running (particularly when changing direction) or when a footballer performs a long kick.
Adductor tendonitis is commonly seen in running sports such as football, hockey and athletics (particularly sprinters, hurdlers, and long jumpers) as well as in skiing, horse riding and gymnastics.
Patients may also develop this condition following inappropriate or inadequate treatment of an acute groin strain.
Signs and symptoms of adductor tendonitis
Patients with this condition typically experience groin pain that develops gradually overtime. Patients usually experience pain on firmly touching the adductor tendon at its attachment to the pelvis (figure 1). Pain may also increase when squeezing the legs together or when moving the affected leg away from the midline of the body (abduction).
In less severe cases, patients may only experience an ache or stiffness in the groin that increases with rest following activities requiring strong or repetitive contraction of the adductor muscles. These activities typically include running, kicking and change of direction activities. The pain associated with this condition may also warm up with activity in the initial stages of the condition.
As the condition progresses, patients may experience symptoms that increase during activity and affect performance. In severe cases of adductor tendonitis the patient may be unable to continue the activity and may limp as a result of pain.
Diagnosis of adductor tendonitis
A thorough subjective and objective examination from a physiotherapist is usually sufficient to diagnose adductor tendonitis. Further investigations such as an X-ray, ultrasound, MRI or CT scan may be required occasionally, to confirm diagnosis, assess the severity of the injury and rule out other conditions.
Treatment for adductor tendonitis
For detailed physiotherapy information on the treatment of this condition 'Become a Member'.
Already a Member?
Prognosis of adductor tendonitis
Most patients with adductor tendonitis heal well with appropriate physiotherapy and return to normal function in a number of weeks. Occasionally, rehabilitation can take significantly longer and may take many months in those who have had their condition for a long period of time. Early physiotherapy treatment is vital to hasten recovery in all patients with this condition.
Contributing factors to the development of adductor tendonitis
There are several factors which can predispose patients to developing this condition. These need to be assessed and corrected with direction from a physiotherapist. Some of these factors include:
- muscle tightness (particularly of the adductors, gluteals, hip flexors, or hamstrings)
- poor biomechanics
- muscle weakness (especially of the groin, gluteals or core stabilisers)
- inadequate rehabilitation following a previous adductor injury
- inappropriate or excessive training or activity
- inadequate recovery periods from sport or activity
- change in training conditions or surfaces
- poor posture
- poor foot posture (e.g. flat feet)
- inappropriate footwear
- inappropriate running technique
- inadequate fitness
- fatigue
- inadequate warm up
- joint stiffness (particularly the lower back, hip and knee)
- poor pelvic and core stability
- neural tightness
- muscle imbalances
- being overweight
Physiotherapy for adductor tendonitis
Physiotherapy for patients with adductor tendonitis is vital to hasten the healing process, ensure an optimal outcome and reduce the likelihood of future recurrence. Treatment may comprise:
- soft tissue massage (particularly to the adductors and abductors)
- electrotherapy (e.g. ultrasound)
- stretches
- muscle energy techniques
- joint mobilization (in particular the lumbar spine and hip joint)
- ice or heat treatment
- the use of a compression bandage or strapping
- education
- biomechanical correction
- the use of crutches
- dry needling
- progressive exercises to improve strength, flexibility, core stability, pelvic stability and balance
- clinical Pilates
- hydrotherapy
- activity modification advice
- technique correction
- anti-inflammatory advice
- prescription of orthotics
- footwear advice
- devising and monitoring a return to sport or activity plan
Other intervention for adductor tendonitis
Despite appropriate physiotherapy management, some patients with this condition do not improve adequately. When this occurs, the treating physiotherapist or doctor can advise on the best course of management. This may include investigations such as an X-ray, ultrasound, CT scan or MRI, pharmaceutical intervention, corticosteroid injection, autologous blood injection or referral to appropriate medical authorities who can advise on any intervention that may be appropriate to improve the condition. A review with a podiatrist may be indicated for the prescription of orthotics in patients with abnormal foot biomechanics. In very rare cases surgical intervention may be considered.
Exercises for adductor tendonitis
The following exercises are commonly prescribed to patients with adductor tendonitis. You should discuss the suitability of these exercises with your physiotherapist prior to beginning them. Generally, they should be performed 3 times daily and only provided they do not cause or increase symptoms.
Your physiotherapist can advise when it is appropriate to begin the initial exercises and eventually progress to the intermediate and advanced exercises. As a general rule, addition of exercises or progression to more advanced exercises should take place gradually and provided there is no increase in symptoms.
Initial Exercises
Hip Abduction
Begin this exercise lying on your back (figure 2). Keeping your knee straight, take your leg to the side as far as you can go without pain and provided you feel no more than a mild to moderate stretch, then return to the starting position. Keep your knee cap and toes facing the ceiling throughout the exercise. Repeat 10 – 20 times provided there is no increase in symptoms.
Figure 2 – Hip Abduction (right leg)
Hip External Rotation
Begin this exercise lying on your back with your knee bent and foot flat on the floor (figure 3). Take your knee to the side as far as you can go without pain and provided you feel no more than a mild to moderate stretch, then return to the starting position. Repeat 10 – 20 times provided there is no increase in symptoms.
Figure 3 – Hip External Rotation (right leg)
Adductor Squeeze
Begin this exercise lying in the position demonstrated with a rolled towel or ball between your knees (figure 4). Slowly squeeze the ball between your knees tightening your inner thigh muscles (adductors). Hold for 5 seconds and repeat 10 times as hard as possible and comfortable pain free.
Figure 4 – Adductor Squeeze
Intermediate Exercises
For intermediate exercises that are a vital component of rehabilitation for this condition 'Become a Member'.
Already a Member?
Advanced Exercises
For advanced exercises that are a vital component of rehabilitation for this condition 'Become a Member'.
Already a Member?
Rehabilitation Protocol for adductor tendonitis
For a detailed, step by step rehabilitation protocol for this condition 'Become a Member'.
Already a Member?
Find a Physio
Find a physiotherapist in your local area who can treat adductor tendonitis.
Physiotherapy products for adductor tendonitis
The most commonly recommended products by physiotherapists to hasten healing and speed recovery in patients with this condition include:
- Crutches
- Ice Packs or Heat Packs
- Foam Rollers (for self massage)
- Spikey Massage Balls (for self massage)
- Resistance Band (for strengthening exercises)
- Wobble boards or dura discs for balance exercises
To purchase physiotherapy products for adductor tendonitis click on one of the above links or visit the PhysioAdvisor Shop.
Other Exercises
- View more Groin Stretches.
- View more Hip Strengthening Exercises.
- View more Leg Stretches
- View more Leg Strengthening Exercises
- View Balance Exercises
- View Beginner Pilates Exercises to improve core stability and posture.
More information
- View detailed information on How to Use Crutches
- View detailed information on when to use Ice or Heat
- View detailed information on initial injury management and the R.I.C.E. Regime.
- View detailed information on Do I Need Orthotics?
- View detailed information on a Return to Running Program.
- View detailed information on Returning to Sport.
- Read our Hip & Groin Diagnosis Guide.
Become a Member
Become a PhysioAdvisor Member and gain full access to our complete Injury Database. Our experienced physiotherapists are updating PhysioAdvisor's injury articles to include the most important information to help users take control of their injury and hasten their recovery. Updated sections include detailed information on: Treatment, Intermediate & Advanced Exercises and a step by step Rehabilitation Protocol for each updated injury article – ensuring you have the tools to take control of your injury and save money on expensive physiotherapy consultations.
For more information see Become a Member.
Return to the top of Adductor Tendonitis.


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Travel playing cards made from durable, wipe clean, non tear material.
Relieve the stress of long journeys with this cool stainless steel game.
Ultra slim and manufactured from stainless steel, ideal for challengin...
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What Specifically Can I Do To Become Professionalized?
Personal Development
In one sense or another, everything that can be considered professional development is also part of your personal development. Personal development involves undertaking activities and fulfilling responsibilities which expand your life experience and help you to become a mature, well-rounded, knowledgeable, and ethical person - exactly what professional programs, internship directors, and employers are looking for.
But in addition to the other professional development endeavors described throughout this web site, other, more simple endeavors and experiences can also be part of your personal development: consistently reading daily newspapers, magazines of substance, or alternative news sources; reading fiction; pursuing hobbies and other extracurricular interests (rock-climbing, photography, dance, sports, travel, writing - anything fulfilling that makes you a more worldly person); attending university and city-wide academic, cultural, and other events; being mindful of personal challenges you've overcome, or mistakes you've learned from. In other words, develop and maintain a strong sense of intellectual curiosity throughout and beyond your undergraduate experience.
Following from these examples, admissions committees and hiring committees often look for something interesting that sets one applicant apart from another, or which might make the applicant an interesting addition to the classroom or workplace.
At least as important, if not more so, is that activities of this sort are simply a fulfilling part of your educational process and your ongoing experience as a life-long learner.


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MySQL Storage Engines
This article offers a discussion on the plethora of storage engines available for use with late releases of the MySQL database management system (DBMS). Our focus will be on the two most widely-deployed — and talked about — engines, InnoDB and MyISAM.
This article has been written with the developer in mind; particularly those without convenient access to a local MySQL database administrator or out-of-hours guru.
What is a storage engine?
It is not uncommon to hear of developers who have worked with MySQL for some time before realising that the root cause of their poor-performing application is a direct result of their choice of storage engine. This can seem confusing at first, as no conscious choice has often been made. Developers infrequently need to think about such low-level details by design: how your DBMS structures your high-level view of tables on disk is rarely significant to the task at hand, so it is abstracted away.
A MySQL storage engine is best thought of as the end of the line in terms of a query's reach into the DBMS. It is the storage engine's routines that govern the translation to on-disk, machine-friendly data formats (and the same in reverse). A storage engine will impose various functional limits on your application, some more significant than others. (Limitations for the InnoDB and MyISAM storage engines are discussed below.) Heavily-loaded applications that are functionally compatible with more than one storage engine may suffer performance setbacks when thoughtlessly paired with a particular engine. Complex, well-designed applications layered on top of MySQL are often designed to work with more than one storage engine to gain the best of all worlds.
Storage engines in MySQL can be broadly categorised as either transactional or non-transactional. MySQL's default storage engine (as of MySQL 5.0.67) is the MyISAM non-transactional storage engine.
MyISAM is most often described as MySQL's most mature and performant storage engine. While the maturity of the codebase is up for discussion, this engine's supposed performance supremacy should come bundled with a bright disclaimer: it is generally ineffective at handling large, concurrent loads with all but the most trivial of write-to-read query mixes. MyISAM is not a transactional storage engine, nor does it support fine-grained locking. As a result of which, most writes (all UPDATE statements and most INSERT statements) to a MyISAM table will result in an exclusive lock being taken on the entire table. Most importantly, the MyISAM storage engine is not a magic bullet for all application use-cases. As a developer, you should assess its suitability before accepting it (often as a default).
- Crash recovery can be a time-consuming process owing to MyISAM's lack of a transaction log. Expect to have to perform such a recovery during your peak-usage period. (If it can happen, it almost certainly will.)
- MyISAM does not support or enforce foreign key constraints.
All UPDATE queries to the same table are serialised — that is to say they carried out one at a time — and block all other queries, including SELECTs, from executing. This effect is pronounced on most busy multi-user applications.
MyISAM supports concurrent INSERTs only in certain cases.
- MyISAM tables created on 32-bit operating systems or using MySQL releases earlier than version 5.0.6 will be limited to 4 GB in size. This limit can be overcome after migrating to a 64-bit host or updating the MySQL server to a later software release.
When to use MyISAM
Your application demands full-text search capabilities. Rather than push all your data into MyISAM tables to gain full-text searching, it may be viable to split your dataset into data that must be indexed for full-text searching — and stored using MyISAM — and data that should be stored using a transactional engine, such as InnoDB. A scheduled background job may then asynchronously update your MyISAM full-text indexes and provide links from the InnoDB data as appropriate. This is a common example of how to gain the best from all worlds.
Your application is effectively single-user — there are very few concurrent queries hitting the MySQL server.
- You are performing limited testing or development where performance is not under scrutiny.
InnoDB is MySQL's general purpose transactional storage engine. It is only with this storage engine that MySQL can claim ACID compliance. InnoDB's featureset is largely taken for granted by Microsoft SQL Server and PostgreSQL Server database administrators.
- Queries that result in large scans of the tablespace are often slower when using InnoDB.
- Consistency is only maintained if the underlying operating system and hardware can guarantee buffer flushes. This limitation is inherent in all transactional database management systems.
- InnoDB tables consume a greater amount of space on-disk than their MyISAM equivalents. This is now largely irrelevant given the ubiquity of large (multiple hundreds of gigabytes) hard disk drives.
When to use InnoDB
Or, stated with greater effect, when not to use MyISAM:
You are developing an application that requires ACID compliance. At the very least, your application demands the storage layer support the notion of transactions.
You require expedient crash recovery. Almost all production sites fall into this category, however MyISAM table recovery times will obviously vary from one usage pattern to the next. To estimate an accurate figure for your environment, try running myisamchk over a many-gigabyte table from your application's backups on hardware similar to what you have in production. While recovery times of MyISAM tables increase with growth of the table, InnoDB table recovery times remain largely constant throughout the life of the table.
Your web site or application is mostly multi-user. The database is having to deal with frequent UPDATEs to a single table and you would like to make better use of your multi-processing hardware.
Creating one-off InnoDB tables
You are given a chance to specify the storage engine to use for a particular table at creation time. Simply append the ENGINE attribute to the CREATE TABLE statement as follows:
CREATE TABLE innodb_example ( ... ) ENGINE = InnoDB;
Converting a single table from MyISAM to InnoDB
First, some obligatory scary warnings: Never attempt this change on a production environment first. This change should not be considered trivial. Plan and carry out comprehensive testing on a throwaway dataset beforehand. Referential integrity constraints are stored in MyISAM tables but not enforced. This can lead to a nasty shock upon moving to InnoDB, where suddenly, dormant constraints spring to life and cripple once-functional INSERT and UPDATE queries.
You are not required to perform a complete dump-and-restore when converting from one storage engine to another. The following pair of statements will suffice:
SET SESSION sql_mode='NO_ENGINE_SUBSTITUTION'; ALTER TABLE table_name ENGINE = InnoDB;
As usual with ALTER TABLE statements, reads (SELECTs) from the table will return successfully while the ALTER TABLE statement is executing. Writes (INSERTs and UPDATEs) will be blocked until the ALTER TABLE statement has completed at which point they will be processed as usual.
Now for a practical example.
First, populate a table with some sample data. Here is what the trivial sample table looks like:
CREATE DATABASE egads; CREATE TABLE batman ( foo INTEGER AUTO_INCREMENT, bar BOOLEAN, baz CHAR(255) CHARACTER SET ascii COLLATE ascii_general_ci, CONSTRAINT PRIMARY KEY (foo) ) ENGINE = MyISAM;
Note that I have explicitly ordered the use of the MyISAM storage engine for this table.
Cue a hacky Python script to generate a couple gigabytes worth of random data:
import MySQLdb import random conn = MySQLdb.connect (host = "localhost", user = "root", passwd = "moo", db = "egads") cursor = conn.cursor () for i in range (1, 10000000): cursor.execute ('INSERT INTO batman (bar, baz) VALUES (' + str (random.randint(0,1)) + ', ' + str (random.randint(0,999999999)) + ');') print i cursor.close () conn.close ()
This script will take a few minutes to run. The result (trimmed for brevity):
mysql> show table status like 'batman'; | Name | Engine | Data_length | | batman | MyISAM | 2609999739 |
# ls -lhF egads/ total 2.6G -rw-rw---- 1 mysql mysql 8.5K 2008-11-24 15:57 batman.frm -rw-rw---- 1 mysql mysql 2.5G 2008-11-24 16:14 batman.MYD -rw-rw---- 1 mysql mysql 98M 2008-11-24 16:14 batman.MYI
Call it about 2.5 gigabytes of table data.
We are most interested in knowing how long it will take to convert that MyISAM tablespace into data that can be used with InnoDB:
$ time echo 'SET SESSION sql_mode='NO_ENGINE_SUBSTITUTION'; USE egads; ALTER TABLE batman ENGINE = InnoDB;' | mysql; real 7m34.190s user 0m0.008s sys 0m0.004s
mysql> show table status like 'batman'; | Name | Engine | Data_length | | batman | InnoDB | 3038773248 |
That roughly equates to three (3) minutes per gigabyte.
For reference, these figures were generated on a GNU/Linux system running kernel release 2.6.27 and MySQL 5.0.67 on an Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 with 2 GB of DDR2 SDRAM and an inexpensive, desktop-grade SATA I/O system. This load was largely I/O-bound.
Using InnoDB without all that CREATE TABLE...ENGINE noise
The default storage engine in MySQL is not fixed (to MyISAM). Supposing your next project would benefit from having a rich mix of InnoDB-to-MyISAM tables (or you require total ACID compliance), you can save yourself some extra finger work by specifying the following additional configuration directive when starting the MySQL daemon:
Any CREATE TABLE statements given without an ENGINE= option (or with a non-existent ENGINE) will now default to InnoDB.
Applies to
- MySQL 5 (5.0.67 and above).


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Thursday, April 30, 2009
grade gov
grade gov
This is the hottest news coming right now read below to get more info.
President Barack Obama marked his 100th day in office Wednesday with a primetime news conference in which he told the American people he was pleased but not satisfied with the progress of the nation's economy, and twice advised citizens to wash their hands and cover their mouths when they cough to prevent the spread of pandemic flu.
"I think we're off to a good start, but it's just a start," Obama said of his three-month-old administration. "I'm proud of what we've achieved, but I'm not content. I'm pleased with our progress, but I'm not satisfied."
Obama was asked about the future of the U.S. auto industry, the safety of nuclear weapons in Pakistan, the political significance of Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter becoming a Democrat, what kind of shareholder the government will be and whether the Bush administration tortured detainees.
The president paused and sighed before answering that the methods used against detainees were torture and the information gained by such methods could have been collected other ways. He said he was "very comfortable" with his decision to ban interrogation methods he considers torture.
Concessions from auto workers and creditors have allowed Chrysler to likely avoid bankruptcy and merge with Fiat, Obama said. General Motors has "a lot of good product" and can still emerge a strong and competitive company, he said.
At several points during the news conference, he said he did not wish to run private industries and would prefer a "slimmer portfolio" of tasks.
"I don't want to run auto companies," Obama said. "I've got two wars I've got to run already."
He expressed concern about the stability of Pakistan, but said he believed nuclear weapons were safe.
Obama began his 100th day by welcoming Specter to the Democratic party. He said he does not expect Specter "to be a rubber stamp." The president then delivered an optimistic assessment at a town hall meeting outside of St. Louis, Mo., a battleground state he lost by fewer than 4,000 votes.
"On my 100th day in office, I've come back to report to you, the American people, that we have begun to pick ourselves up and dust ourselves off," he said.
Later, his administration encouraged schools with cases of swine flu to close temporarily to contain the outbreak.
Another story line of the day had lawmakers, news organizations and interest groups assigning grades to the president's performance thus far.
Posted by online jobs at 7:09 AM
Labels: flash forward abc, grade gov.com, gradegov, gradegov.com, newsmax
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Netlabel › Textone
»Rheinpark Liebe EP« by Peter F. Spiess
After a two year long hiatus from publishing music, Peter F. Spiess returns on Textone with an astounding mini-LP. Known from his releases on German labels Klang and Alpha, Peter has developed a unique personal production style, layering minimal driving analog sequences into a captivating cinematic stream of utopian impressions. Epic, but miles away from any associated cliches, Peter manages to create an alternate universe of seemingly endless space that is at all times densely interwoven with futuristic sonic strands. Dubby undercurrents of bass undulate as shifting reverb patterns encircle echoing off chord sequences. Deep, complex moods for the shorter days of the year - six true gems that should not be missed!
Peter will be working closely with Contexterrior Media in the future - watch out for CNTXT#06, Pater F. Spiess vs. Jay Haze, out on vinyl soon.
[Cover graphics by Peter F. Spiess; additional color/typo manipulation by B.]
Netlabel: Textone
Release Date: 2003-11-04
Release-ID: txtn006
Music Style: MINIMAL – TECHNO


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Tools of the 'Trade' – How I Invest (2016 Edition)
UPDATE – 2017 edition is live.
The new year has arrived and with it comes another edition of Tools of the Trade. This is the sixth edition (see recents 2015, 2014, 2013).
2015 was another record year of growth for StockTrader.com and our parent company Reink Media which owns and operates multiple financial sites: StockBrokers.com, StockTrader.com, and InvestingTeacher.com.
For StockTrader.com, the highlight story of the year was the transition to the new domain StockTrader.com in June, effectively bidding farewell to our old name "StockTradingToGo".
Trading Results
My day job is running our portfolio of websites. As a result, I trade only when I have free time.
As a result, trading is strictly a passion and hobby.
More specifically, I leave my retirement assets to low cost passive indexing with Vanguard and keep my personal trading portfolio small. In 2015 I had ~$60,000 allocated to trading. Thus, this is the number I used to calculate my performance returns against the S&P 500 below.
I ended 2015 with a portfolio return of +$6,709.87 after commissions or +11.4% vs the S&P 500 Return of -0.7%. For a full detailed breakdown of trading results, including my largest winning and losing trades, check out my post from earlier this week.
Below are my trading portfolio returns for 2015. Like thousands of other users here on the site, I manually enter my trades using the free StockTrader.com Trade Journal.
Computer Setup
I purchased an Uplift standing desk in 2014 and have fully embraced the health benefits of standing during the day. I currently stand around 75% of the day.
Overall, my trading station setup at work and at home are identical. Same desk, similar spec machines, same monitor stand, same monitors, mice, keyboard, etc. This makes it seamless if I ever trade from home.
While my desktops are a bit older, built back in late 2013, they still get the job done just fine. I upgraded to Windows 10 on both in 2015 and have no issues running any of the top stock broker trade platforms (I run them all throughout the year for StockBrokers.com testing).
That said, whenever I do eventually replace my rigs, I will probably use Falcon Trading. We built a rig with them in early 2015 for a partner here at the office and it turned out fantastic.
PC Specs – Six ASUS 24″ LED Monitors, Intel Core i7-3770 Processor, 8 GB Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600 MHz memory, 2 AMD Radeon HD 7770 video cards, and a 120 GB ADATA S510 SSD Hard Drive.
Online Brokers
Because I head research at our sister site StockBrokers.com, I have money spread across over a dozen online brokers. While there are a lot of great online brokers out there, finding the right one depends on your specific needs as an investor.
In 2015 I traded almost entirely through Merrill Edge to take advantage of free trades through the Bank of America Preferred Awards program. For 2016 I am transitioning to Fidelity to give them a whirl. Again, my broker changes almost yearly as part of my industry research efforts.
If you are looking for a new broker or are considering a switch, I welcome you to read my online broker guide here on the site, or better yet use the best broker lists and broker comparison tool on StockBrokers.com.
Investment Sites, Services, Subscriptions
I use a variety of different services to help me research and monitor the market. Here's my video from last year's tools of the trade post. A year later the list is identical.
The below services and subscriptions are a part of my daily routine. It should be noted that some of these services are provided for me at no cost since we occasionally use the research in our daily market recaps.
- Trade Journal – Free – Inspired by my passion for post trade analysis alongside a goal to bring my personal excel trade log to the web, the StockTrader.com Trade Journal was born. This is where I log all my trades, notes, chart images, and analyze performance.
- MarketSmith – MarketSmith ($999 per year) + Pattern Recognition add on ($14.95 p/m) – MarketSmith is a browser based charting software provider powered by Investors.com CANSLIM data. Besides the easy to read charts and auto pattern recognition, the real value drivers are the IBD metrics that display with each chart.
- Bespoke Investment Research – ~$400 per year up to ~$2,000 per year – Bespoke Premium offers a slew of research via newsletters, research reports, data, and the like. Three tiers of paid service are offered; I use Bespoke Premium ($750 per year). Daily newsletters range from trades of the day to market summaries and ETF reports. Research reports cover anything and everything, leveraging historical data to help breakdown the noise of the market and bring clarity. The Bespoke blog is a good feeler for the content provided to paid subscribers.
- Evernote.com – Free – I am a huge Evernote fan. Evernote is a service for journaling and note taking. You download the software to your computer and it syncs with the web so you can view your notes on any device, at any time. My "Stock Research" notebook within Evernote has 338 entries as of this post and has been a critical part of my growth as a trader.
- Briefing.com – Subscriptions start at $50 per month – Briefing.com (read my full Briefing.com review) is a 24/7 research service that monitors the markets, social sphere, and beyond to deliver real-time news and a slew of research reports. I started using Briefing.com earlier in 2014 and I now can't operate without it.
- StockCharts.com – Free and paid (basic package $14.95 p/m) – StockCharts.com is the site we use to produce all the stock charts for the nightly market recaps here on StockTrader.com. The primary reason we have the basic package is so we can have access to more than three years of chart data and save chart layouts. The free version is the exact same as any paid package less a handful of features.
- FINVIZ Stock Screener – Free – FINVIZ's stock screener is the best free stock screener available on the web. Period.
- ChartPattern.com – $125 per month – ChartPattern.com is home to Dan Zanger (read my full Dan Zanger review) who is the world record holder for the largest portfolio return in one year. His claim to fame is turning $11,000 into $42 million during the late 90s. Dan sends out a nightly newsletter several times a week with technical analysis and personal notes. He also has a chat room for subscribers. Overall if you enjoy our easy to read charts, you'll really like Dan's newsletter.
Investment Philosophy
While I am historically a CANSLIM investor, the last few years has forced me to challenge my roots. The market has been extremely tough to trade, so I've worked hard to evolve as a trader.
On the whole, I have learned to respect both fundamental and technical analysis. I rely on my own passion for technical analysis to drive my trading and leave the fundamental research primarily to Marketsmith / Will O'Neil (IBD).
My best trades of 2015 were Netflix (NFLX) and Valeant (VRX). Netflix was a classic CANSLIM leader, momentum name and Valeant was a tale of negative sentiment creating short term value. Both trades are great examples of the strategies I focus on today.
Closing Thoughts
I see investing as a life long game. Every trade is another lesson to be learned and even though I have over a decade of "experience", I am still learning something new each day.
What tools and services do you use for your own trading? Feel free to email me and let me know. I'd love to hear from you.
Stay frosty (sharp) out there and I bid you a successful year of trading!


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Arista Networks 7500 Series Modular Spine Data Center Switches
Performance without Compromise: 30Tbps and 96x 100Gb, 288x 40Gb, 1152x 10Gb Ethernet Ports
Designed for large virtualized data centers and cloud networks the Arista 7500 Series modular switches are the industry's highest performance data center switches, available in a compact 7RU (4-slot) or 11RU (8-slot) they combine scalable L2 and L3 resources with advanced features for network monitoring, precision timing, network virtualization to deliver scalable and deterministic network performance for mission critical data centers, enterprise and HPC environments.
The Arista 7500E is the second generation of the 7500 Series and delivers seamless upgrades ensuring investment protection of first generation fabrics, linecards and common equipment while setting a new standard for performance, density, reliability, and power efficiency. The Arista 7500E Series offers over 30Tbps of total capacity for 1,152 ports of 10GbE or 288 ports of 40GbE and support for 96 ports of wire-speed 100GbE using integrated optics that support flexible combinations of 10G, 40G and 100G modes on a single interface.
With front-to-rear airflow, redundant and hot swappable supervisor, power, fabric and cooling modules the system is purpose built for data centers. The 7500E Series is energy efficient with typical power consumption of under 4 watts per port for a fully loaded chassis. All of these attributes make the Arista 7500E an ideal platform for building reliable, low latency, resilient and highly scalable data center networks.
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By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Ben Affleck has some big shoes to fill.
The Oscar winner has been cast as the new Batman, replacing Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne in the upcoming Man Of Steel sequel, Warner Bros. announced Thursday.
The Argo director will be the eighth actor to play Batman, following in the footsteps of such luminaries as George Clooney and Michael Keaton.
Ben Affleck accepting the Best Picture Oscar for "Argo" earlier this year.
'We knew we needed an extraordinary actor to take on one of DC Comics' most enduringly popular Super Heroes, and Ben Affleck certainly fits that bill, and then some,' WB president Greg Silverman said in a statement.
The untitled film will be helmed by Man Of Steel director Zack Snyder, and will also star Henry Cavill, Amy Adams and Diane Lane reprising their roles.
Ben Affleck has been cast as the new Batman in the Man Of Steel sequel, Warner Bros announced on Thursday, pictured in June in LA
'Ben provides an interesting counter-balance to Henry's Superman,' said the director.
'He has the acting chops to create a layered portrayal of a man who is older and wiser than Clark Kent and bears the scars of a seasoned crime fighter, but retain the charm that the world sees in billionaire Bruce Wayne.
'I can't wait to work with him.'
The movie will bring the two superheroes together for the first time on the big screen.
Last month's announcement of the film at Comic-Con excited fans and fueled speculation as to who would play the famous Caped Crusader.
Ben isn't new to the superhero genre, having played George Reeves, a former Superman, in the 2006 film Hollywoodland. He also played Daredevil in the 2003 movie of the same name, where he met his future off-screen wife Jennifer Garner.
The film is scheduled to start shooting in 2014, and has been slated for a July 17, 2015 release.
But while producers are excited, fans are split over the choice.
Hundreds immediately took to Twitter to voice their opinion on the casting choice, with many deeming the news a 'catastrophe'.
Ben Affleck as #Batman is the worst thing to happen to the franchise since George Clooney's bat nipples...#WTF', George pictured as Batman
'Ben Affleck as #Batman is the worst thing to happen to the franchise since George Clooney's bat nipples...#WTF,' wrote Jill Pantozzi.
Meanwhile, Shae Connor tweeted: 'Jesus. I leave Twitter for, like, a minute, and you guys let Ben Affleck get cast as Batman? YOU HAD ONE JOB!'
'Really looking forward to seeing Affleck bring the depth and gravitas to Batman that he brought to Daredevil and Gigli,' wrote Will Wheaton, referring to some of Ben's less lauded film roles.
But others appeared pleased by the news.
'So I really like Ben Affleck...I'm actually pretty pumped. #batman,' wrote Hatley Moore.
Chris Williams tweeted: 'I'm sorry but Ben Affleck as #Batman makes sense to me. I had him in my top 3.'
And celebrities also jumped on the bandwagon, bringing their own brand of humour to the proceedings.
Richard Dreyfus joked about the role, tweeting: 'You read for a part, you feel good about it, you feel confident, then they cast Ben Affleck.'
'I want to congratulate Ben Affleck on winning the part of batman it was some battle but you won fair and square,' wrote Chris Rock.
Apart from his new news, Ben is also experiencing a bumper year career-wise.
The father-of-three was recently cast in David Fincher's adaptation of the runaway bestseller Gone Girl.
The star also starred in and directed Argo, which won Best Picture at this year's Oscars.
source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2400713/Ben-Affleck-confirmed-play-Batman-Man-Of-Steel-sequel--fans-split-surprise-choice.html
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A rock slide this morning at about 6:30 a.m. forced the closure of State Route 16 in Franklin County, Tenn., according to a news release from the Tennessee Department of Transportation.
The slide at Rowe Gap Road/Keith Springs Mountain is in the same location where TDOT crews are involved in an active $2.4 million rock slide mitigation project, and personnel are determining when the roadway safely can be reopened, the release states.
While the road is closed, only local passenger car traffic will be allowed to use Iron Gap Road to detour around the site, officials said. Truck traffic must seek alternate routes.
For travel information, go to the TDOT SmartWay web site at www.tn.gov/tdot/tdotsmartway or call 511.


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The botanic garden also has a fantastic conservatory, which just kept going, and going, and going. There was an orchid room, and a fern room, and a begonia room, and a Spanish hacienda garden, and a bonsai room. And more.
I really enjoyed our visit there, and absolutely must go back, because I still have so much more I need to see!


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Hey there, welcome to a Peverett Phile Christmas 8, how are you kids? I'm wishing you a safer holiday season than the woman from "Baby, It's Cold Outside" had. Any of you have a December birthday? I'm so sorry your December birthday is overshadowed by a guy who wore sandals indoors. May your holiday travels not be as long as the next four years already seem. Okay, let's start off with a sweet story. Every November for the past six years, Jim Glaub and his husband Dylan Parker receive hundreds of letters addressed to Santa Claus, delivered to their 22nd street apartment in Manhattan. They have no idea how their address got mistaken for Santa's, they told "Us Weekly," but they've made it their mission to ensure that every single letter gets answered. Most of the letters are from low-income children, said the couple. So, heartbreakingly, many of the kids' Christmas requests are basic necessities like clothes and food. "We got one from a kid who asked for a bed because he was sleeping on the couch and springs were hurting his back," Glaub told "Us." "I started crying." ME TOO, Jim. Me too. Because two people couldn't possibly answer that many letters, they've enlisted the help of strangers via a Facebook group called Miracle on 22nd Street, which allows volunteers to "adopt" letters, which they can respond to, along with sending gifts if they want.
The Facebook group now has 4,000 members, with people offering to help out from all over the world. As far as why these letters ended up at their apartment, Gaub said "it's a mystery." A Christmas miracle, perhaps? The couple has since moved to London, but they've kept their NYC address and seem to have no intention of retiring from their work as stand-in Santas. "It requires that we put ourselves second momentarily to help someone unknown to us and without the usual gratification of seeing the outcome or receiving thanks," said Parker. "The act of giving has to be enough."
The Jefferson Mall in Louisville, Kentucky has made it clear they won't tolerate hate speech, by promising to find and ban a woman whose racist tirade at one of their stores went viral this week.
ICYMI: on Tuesday, a human stocking full of hot coals told Hispanic shoppers at a JC Penney to "go back to wherever the fuck you come from," and "speak English," among other slurs and insults. Fellow shopper Renee Buckner recorded the rant on her phone and shared it on Facebook, where it's been viewed over 7 million times and received over 50,000 comments. "They can't act like the hero, they come here to live and act like everybody else," says the woman in the video. "Get in the back of the line like everybody else does and be somebody. That's the way I look at it. You're nobodies, just because you come from another country, it don't make you nobody." This is horrific, un-Christmas-like behavior on every level. I'm pretty sure Jesus wasn't down with hate speech and wouldn't want it anywhere near his birthday celebrations. The Jefferson Mall, where the incident took place, responded yesterday in a Facebook post, promising to ban the woman in the video, "
"We will work to identify this woman, and once identified, she will be permanently banned from Jefferson Mall, per our Behavioral Code of Conduct." JC Penney has also issued a statement of apology. The company said they are "deeply disturbed" by the incident and are asking for the public's help in identifying the two Hispanic women who were targeted in the video, so they could "offer a sincere apology for their experience" and also reimburse them for their purchases. A JC Penney spokeswoman wrote on Facebook, "We regret that innocent bystanders... both other customers and a JC Penney associate... were subjected to such discriminatory remarks. We absolutely do not tolerate this behavior in our stores, and are working with our associates to ensure any future incidents of this nature will be addressed quickly and appropriately." I'd wish this woman a very miserable Christmas. But based on first impressions, that's basically a guarantee.
Snowboarder Casey Neistat is a braver bro than most of us. He and his buddies couldn't find a drone powerful enough to lift a human (even online!?), so they built their own. Neistat then attached his snowboard to the drone by a tow rope and used it to launch himself through the air, all while dressed in full Santa Claus garb. And behold: the invention of "drone-boarding." This is the stuff you dreamed about as a kid, if you were the kind of kid who loved playing outside and always got picked first in gym class. I was not. But luckily for us indoor kids, it was all captured in some amazing video footage which we can watch from the warmth and safety of our beds. I never say this, but this video was sick as hell, bro. The video was shot in Finland, where I imagine the real Santa Claus lives. And in this behind-the-scenes video, the team explains how they built the drone, nicknamed "Janet," which took them over a year to build. Remember back when drones were just for delivering packages or catching your wife cheating? Not anymore. Christmas future is here. And it looks like this...
Damn, that picture is moving. What the hell? That's a first on the Phile.
Better get the tissues ready for this one. A Tennessee man who plays Santa Claus every year around the holidays rushed to the hospital recently to make a dying little boy's Christmas dreams come true. Santa, whose real name is Eric Schmitt-Matzen, got a call from a nurse he knows at a local hospital who told him that there was a very sick five-year-old boy who wanted to see Santa. "I told her, 'Okay, just let me change into my outfit.'" Schmitt-Matzen told "Knoxville News Sentinel." She said, 'There isn't time for that. Your Santa suspenders are good enough. Come right now.'" Schmitt-Matzen arrived at the ICU just fifteen minutes later. Outside, he met the boys' mother, along with some other family members. "She'd bought a toy from (the TV show) 'PAW Patrol' and wanted me to give it to him," he said. "I sized up the situation and told everyone, 'If you think you're going to lose it, please leave the room. If I see you crying, I'll break down and can't do my job.'" Schmitt-Matzen went in to see the little boy alone. He shared the conversation they had with "Knoxville News Sentinel." He provided the boy the much needed comfort that only Santa could bring. "When I walked in, he was laying there, so weak it looked like he was ready to fall asleep. I sat down on his bed and asked, 'Say, what's this I hear about you're gonna miss Christmas? There's no way you can miss Christmas! Why, you're my Number One elf!' He looked up and said, 'I am?' I said, 'Sure!' I gave him the present. He was so weak he could barely open the wrapping paper. When he saw what was inside, he flashed a big smile and laid his head back down. 'They say I'm gonna die,' he told me. 'How can I tell when I get to where I'm going?' I said, 'Can you do me a big favor?' He said, 'Sure!' "When you get there, you tell 'em you're Santa's Number One elf, and I know they'll let you in.' He said, 'They will?' I said, 'Sure!'" Unfortunately, the little boy passed away right after his conversation with Santa. (I know, I know. It's terrible. I'm cruel for even telling you this story.) But at least we can all take comfort in the fact that this hero Santa made his last moments happy ones. Schmitt-Matzen was so distraught by the incident that he thought he'd have to hang up the red suit forever. (How could you not feel that way?) That is, until he found the strength for one more Santa gig. "When I saw all those children laughing, it brought me back into the fold. It made me realize the role I have to play, he said. "For them and for me." What a hero. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go drown my sorrows in Christmas cookies. Wait, I can't eat them. Shit. Moving on...
Hey, wanna see what a $30,000 ugly Christmas sweater looks like?
What do you get for enough money to buy you a year of tuition at a fancy private college? This ugly Christmas sweater made by Tipsy Elves featuring Santa riding a unicorn past Saturn. It comes complete with two fake diamond necklaces rimming the collar to let everyone know you mean business. The entire monstrosity is covered in 24,274 individually placed Swarovski crystals and took 52 hours to create. I know what you're thinking, this is just too valuable to wear. Fear not! It will be shipped to you "inside a luxury frame" so you can spend a lifetime staring at this hideous mistake. Usually ugly Christmas sweaters come in under the $20 mark, because they're supposed to be jokes, like the one I am wearing now that cost me 9.99. But this year, the joke is on you! Make ugly sweaters expensive again. So far there is only one review, but it is glowing! "There are a lot of ugly Christmas sweaters, but until now none of hem told the story of how bad I am with my money." So hurry up and get yours before they run out (please tell me they only made one). It's the perfect sweater to remember what this holiday is all about: throwing your money around.
I have an extra story I have to tell you. Remember last entry when I told you about the heroic cops who rescued a baby from a locked car, except it was not a baby. Welllll... Kathy Cadle's lifelike baby dolls are very lifelike... so lifelike that someone thought they were running a human trafficking ring. The artist, along with her sister Rachel Smith, make extremely lifelike baby dolls to sell and donate to nursing homes, for old folks to remember the glory days of early parenting. ABC5 reports that when someone on Facebook stumbled upon an ad for a new doll, they thought she was selling a real, live baby. Cadle opened the door one day to a cop investigating her for human trafficking claims, after the Facebooker reported her to the police. She told ABC5 that when the office showed up, "He asked to see the baby, and I brought it in, he shook his head, I wasn't expecting this at all, like wow hey there's a cop. I said nobody is going to believe this, can you take a picture with me, and I can post it. He said sure okay, and that was nice." The story generated so much publicity that they're struggling to keep up with the Christmas demand. It'll make a great gift, as long as they don't leave their new babies in a hot car. Look how real this friggin't thing looks...
Yeesh. Crazy.
Okay, so I mentioned the $30,000 ugly sweater... well, there's a bunch of sweaters that are not as expensive but they do show the ugliness that was 2016. Like this obligatory Harambe sweater...
Hahaha. I love it! Do you guys like that movie How the Grinch Stole Christmas? Did you know before they cast Jim Carrey they had somebody else cast as the Grinch? Now? Well, take a look...
Very fitting, right? Do you know what Donald Trump's previous job was? I'll show you...
Hahaha. He has tiny hands. I have been showing you the last few weeks some really cool Christmas ads. Here's another one...
I have no idea what it is for. Oh, well. So, do you guys like Fisher-Price toys? They have been making toys for years and years, but I think now they ran out of ideas. Check out their latest product...
If my son was a toddler I would get it for him. One of my favorite Christmas movies is A Christmas Story but they seemed to have updated it for modern times.
Ha. That won't only shoot your lights out but will shoot your whole face off. Hey, if you wanna play Santa and forgot to get the costume check this out...
It might work. Maybe. Okay, now from the home office in Port Jefferson, New York, here is...
Top Phive Elf On The Shelf's Biggest Complaints
5. Felt pants chafe like hell!
4. I got stuck on a low shelf when the dog was in heat!
3. I was named by a five-year-old boy... so legally I'm "Fartsy McPoophat"
2. My legs have atrophied to hell after being stored in the attic for 48 weeks a year!
And the number one Elf on the Shelf complaint is...
1. Turns out the Bratz doll I sent the night with lied about being 18! Now I gotta introduce myself to the neighbors as a Registered Sex Offender: Doll Division!
Hahahaha. If you spot the Mindphuck let me know. Alright, this is something cool... you heard of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, right? Well, apparently during the year it turns out he is a stand-up comedian now that he is grown up. So, I thought it would be cool to have him on the Phile and tell some jokes. So, gather the kids around, people. Please welcome to the Phile...
Rudolph: I am good. You comet here often? Hahaha. Get it?
Me: Yep, I get it.
Rudolph: Jason, you'd be amazed what I can do under a buck.
Me: Ummm. okay?
Rudolph: Can't you tell by my antlers I'm a little horny?
Me: Not really. You are supposed to be here telling jokes.
Rudolph: Okay. What do the reindeers' wives do while their husbands are helping Santa deliver gifts all over the world?
Me: I don't know. What?
Rudolph: They go into town to blow a few bucks.
Me: Rudolph, that's not kid friendly. Try again.
Rudolph: Did you hear about the dyslexic Satanist?
Me: Ummm... no.
Rudolph: He sold his soul to Santa.
Me: That's terrible.
Rudolph: How about this one? Why does Santa have a big sack?
Me: I'm afraid to ask.
Rudolph: Because he only comes once a year.
Me: Rudolph! That's terrible!
Rudolph: Why did Santa name his penis Conjunction?
Me: I can't imagine. Why?
Rudolph: Because it joins Clauses.
Me: I do not like that one at all. You need to stop now, Rudolph.
Rudolph: Why is Santa so jolly?
Me: Because he is just a happy guy?
Rudolph: Because he knows where all the naughty girls live.
Me: Ugh. Okay, you have one more chance before Jeff and I talk football.
Rudolph: Why did Santa land on the roof?
Me: Sigh. I have no idea why.
Rudolph: Because he likes it on top.
Me: Ugh! Okay, Rudolph, that's enough, you're ruining my childhood. Go back to the North Pole!
Rudolph: Okay, but can I take a picture of you, so that I can show Santa what I want for Christmas?
Me: No! Get out!
Me: Hey, Jeff, welcome to the Phile for it's Christmas entry.
Jeff: Always good to be back on the Phile. Merry Christmas to you and your readers.
Me: How are you?
Jeff: I'm okay. Working in a flower shop before Christmas is chaotic, I can assure you that.
Me: So, are you looking forward to Christmas? Any cool plans planned?
Jeff: My plans for Christmas is spending it with the family. And waiting up for Santa, because I've been a good boy this year. Most of the time.
Me: Hahahaha.
Jeff: Hey? Why are you laughing?
Me: It's funny. So, did you see there's a GoFundMe page to fund the Browns 0-16 perfect season parade if it surpasses the goal?
Jeff: Well, we did see that Cleveland can throw a massive parade for when their team wins, so let's see what happens when they lose. I'm not going to ask if they could go all year without winning. Though I am a little worried since their last game is against Pittsburgh.
Me: By the way, the Browns are the latest team to change its name and logo...
Jeff: At this point Cleveland needs to do whatever they can to distance themselves from the product they are putting on the field.
Me: Man, what do you think of the Seahawks' color rush uniforms? I didn't know if that was Russell Wilson or Teletubbie Dipsy on the field.
Jeff: I'm personally not a fan of the color rush jerseys. Throwbacks are okay, especially the Bumblebee ones of Pittsburgh. Though those got retired. Shame!
Me: What NFL news do you have?
Jeff: The biggest news is we had our second coaching causality of the season. Jacksonville fired Gus Bradley, joining the Rams coach of Jeff Fisher. And speaking of Fisher, he has said he wants whatever team he coaches next to play the Rams so he can get revenge on them for firing him. Adrian Peterson returned to the field earlier than expected, but the Vikings lost again. Remember when they were the last undefeated team? I think they are 1-6 since then.
Me: Okay, so, how did we do over the weekend? You're still kicking my ass, right?
Jeff: I didn't realize that we both picked the same team last week! I picked by 7 and you picked by 14. It was Atlanta. And they won by so much that if we added up both our predictions, they still covered the spread! I continued the hottest streak in the history of the league by going 2-0 with a huge Steeler come back win. You went 1-1 with a Giant win. So I extended my lead now. I'm up by 7 now!
Me: That sucks! Let's do this week's picks, Jeff. I say Titans by 1 and Packers by 4. What do you pick?
Jeff: My picks are Chargers by 10 and Miami by 3.
Me: I have to ask, do you have any productions for the Super Bowl? Who would you like to see in it... of course you wanna see the Steelers play.
Jeff: At this point you almost have to go with the teams with the best records which are Dallas vs New England. I honestly would hate that. They are my least favorite teams. So I'm going to say Giants vs Steelers. BRING IT ON!
Me: Okay, so, there's gonna be no entry this Sunday as it's Christmas but the Phile will be back Monday. Wanna be back then to talk about the picks for Saturday's games or next Sunday?
Jeff: Either day works for me.
Me: Jeff, have a great Christmas, and I will see you here on Monday.
Jeff: Have a good one everybody! Merry Christmas!
Mistletoe is an evergreen plant which produces oval leaves, white berries, and sexual harassment lawsuits.
Dave will be a guest on the Phile in a few weeks. BTW, Foghat is mentioned in the book.
That's sick! I'm so sorry. Alright, a friend of the Phile wanted to come on and tell us he's feelings about Christmas. He's a singer, patriot and renaissance man... you know what time it is.
Good evening, humans. Brief list of things I hate about Christmas.... Crowded malls with nothing you want and no parking. Hearing "Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer" on the radio. People. Running out of tape while wrapping gifts. Bad Hallmark TV Christmas themed shows. People who get insulted when I wish them Merry Christmas. People who dress their pets like elves. Sequels of Christmas movies that sucked to begin with. People who put those stupid fucking reindeer antlers and Rudolph noses on their cars. People who wear ugly holiday sweaters. Rude clerks in stores. People who post pictures of themselves in Santa hats with cocktails by the pool in whatever area they live in that has a warm winter climate. People who act all nice for the holiday... when they're DICKS the rest of the year. Houses that are so lit up and decorated you could see them from the moon. People. That FUCKIN' "Dominic the Donkey" song. People who give you a gift from the checkout counter of a 7 Eleven when you spent $80 on their gift. People who buy you a star (really?). Getting a re-gift of the very same item you gave someone three years ago. People who make a BIG deal out of the fact that they're not Catholic and don't celebrate Christmas. VEGAN DINNERS SERVED ON CHRISTMAS DAY! People who ask, "So... are you all ready for the holidays?" People who call from out of town and want me to go into the city with them and see the tree... or go to Times Square on New Years Eve. That fuckin' version of "Jingle Bells" with the dogs barking. Winter hats that look like animal heads. "Hey Santa" by Wendy and Carnie Wilson. SantaCon. Family pictures of anybody by the tree. Gingerbread Man cookies. People. Anyone who says, "I can't believe it's Christmas already... where did the year go?" People who spend thousands of dollars decorating their homes... yet continuously walk by a homeless person without dropping ONE dollar in their donations cup. Merry Friggin' Christmas...
Ha! I agree with most of those. Good job, Laird. Okay, today's pheatured guest is a wonderful singer-songwriter whose new single "Plastuc Hearts" is available on her website. Please welcome to the Phile... the lovely Ila Minori!
Me: Ila! Hey, how are you? I'm so glad you are here on the Phile. I have to get this over with and say it now... you're gorgeous. Okay, I said it. Ahem.
Ila: Thank you. Glad to be on it.
Me: I love your name... it sounds like something from a Star Wars movie or very Italian. But you have Mexican background, right?
Ila: Yes, I have a Mexican-American background. Supposedly my aunt says I have some Italian but I don't know for certain.
Me: Where did the name originate from?
Ila: I wanted something androgynous so I researched some names. I liked the sound and look of Ila (it's Hindu) and Minori is Japanese. I didn't know it was Italian until I visited Italy to write my album. My friend said that there is a town near her house in Gaeta called Minori and we drove off the Almafi Coast and visited Minori. It is a tiny, beautiful village on this jaw dropping coastline of Italy. Also Ila has some history with Hindu Mythology. Ila was basically cursed by a Hindu God to change sexes by the waning of the moon but it ended up being strength because he has both sexes. He even had a boyfriend God and everything.
Me: Wow. Speaking of Italy... you recently spent a lot of time there. What made you decide to go over there?
Ila: The first time was in 2014/2015 and I lived in the Trentino Alps to write the new album. Then the second time was this year and I went to play shows and visit friends. I toured Germany. I also got on a friends' indie label based out of Berlin called Bakraufarfita Records. I missed Italy and wanted to visit my friends that I made out there and make more new friends. I also became friends with some musicians in Rome so when I'm ready to tour there I have a band there. Everything in Rome is a process and takes twice as long. Italians are really big on the relationships with people and want to see you're serious and invested. So I spent a lot of time visiting with my lead guitarist that lives partly in Rome and Napoli. We would plan and plan before we even rehearsed. So it's really different how things are done show and band wise. But it's a personal goal to play some great shows with a band in Rome and Napoli. There are a few great indie rock venues there.
Me: I have been through a lot these last few years and traveling overseas was the last thing I would of thought of going to. My happy place is Port Jefferson on Long Island. Anyway, how long did you stay there?
Ila: I have been overseas twice. The second time I stayed for 10 months.
Me: Did you stay in one place or travel, Ila?
Ila: The first time I lived in the Trentino Alps in a small village. And the second time I stayed and lived in Rome. But we traveled a couple of times to Berlin, Germany where my friends in a band called Feline and Strange live.
Me: Would you go back again?
Ila: Absolutely.
Me: Did you perform over there? What else did you do?
Ila: Yes, I performed. Worked and lived a very traditional life-style with my boyfriend and his family. The first time I isolated myself in the alps and wrote part of my album. I played in Vienna, Austria and some places in north Italy.
Me: How were the audiences compared to American audiences?
Ila: I think there they listen more. It's more a respect for the music as opposed to respect for the drinking.
Me: You recently toured the east coast, and I wish you would of came to Florida. You need to come down here for a few days. Ever been?
Ila: The east coast tour was so fun and I plan to do it again in the spring. Yes, I want to play Florida.
Me: You're from Texas originally, right? What part, Ila?
Ila: Yes, San Antonio.
Me: So, if I went to Texas to visit you where would we go?
Ila: We would go to Southtown the arts district in San Antonio, Austin… cool places in San Antonio for sure.
Me: Alright. I love your voice and music, Ila... have you been singing pretty much all your life?
Ila: No, I was a late bloomer and did not sing until I started to play guitar after high school.
Me: Who were your influences growing up?
Ila: My influences were bands like Mazzy Star, U2, the Doors stuff I listened to growing up and as a teen… I was a teen in the 90s so all of the grunge era... Sonic Youth, the Pixies, Fugazi, Smashing Pumpkins, Nirvana, Belly… etc.
Me: How long have you been playing guitar, Ila?
Ila: Fifteen years.
Me: Did you teach yourself?
Ila: Yes. I took some lessons but mostly taught myself with friends.
Me: What was the first song you learned to play?
Ila: It was a Cure song... I think it was "A Forrest."
Me: What bands do you listen to now?
Ila: Phantogram, Vasco Rossi currently.
Me: If you could share the same bill with somebody who would it be?
Ila: I would love to play with Mazzy Star or Phantogram.
Me: Let's talk about your new music... I love the song "Plastic Hearts." What was the inspiration behind that song, Ila?
Ila: I was separated from my husband and was in Italy. I had a lot of guys that wanted something from me serious before I left but they were always two-faced or false intentions. Even in Italy the men there take the girl out and do a big presentation. They might throw 1,000 EU on a weekend to make a big presentation, for it to only be a game. Mind blowing. So I wrote "Plastic Hearts."
Me: I love it you released it on lathe vinyl. For those that don't know, explain what that is.
Ila: So, lathe vinyl is basically a lighter vintage plastic that's in mono. It was one of the first kinds of vinyl they started to press in the 1950s.
Me: How did you decide to release it that way?
Ila: A label in Brooklyn called Leesta VAll contacted me and said they specialize in lathe vinyl singles. They would love to release one of my songs. So it went from there.
Me: You're coming out with a new CD called "Traveling With Ghosts." I take it that was written when you were traveling in Italy. Is it a personal album?
Ila: Yes, very personal.
Me: What can you tell us about it?
Ila: I will say it sounds incredible. I'm so proud of it. The production is gorgeous and all the songs are wonderful. It tells a story. It's earthy and has balls but delicate at the same time.
Me: You know you have to come back here when it comes out... right?
Ila: Of course!
Me: So, are you gonna be making a video for "Plastic Hearts"?
Ila: Yes!
Me: I have to ask you about the single cover... who is that on it? It's a beautiful picture.
Ila: The cover is artwork from a local San Antonio artist Tim Olson. He works with old photos and created art out of them... you would have to ask him who the bride is.
Me: You write such beautiful music, when you write does the lyrics come first or the music?
Ila: Usually at the same time.
Me: Who plays on the new release with you, Ila?
Ila: John Fernandez (drums), Joseph Lopez (lead guitar) and Dylan Ilseng (bass) played on the album.
Me: I mentioned at the top of this interview that you are gorgeous... which you are. I have seen many photos of you, and I have to say, you have never taken a bad photo! Do you like having your pic taken?
Ila: Yeah, there's an art to it. Thank you.
Me: So, when the album comes out, Ila, will you be doing another tour?
Ila: Yes. Planning to do another east coast to and midwest.
Me: You know I might have to come to Texas to visit you, right?
Ila: Haha... bring it!
Me: Alright, mention your websites and anything else you'd like. I hope this was fun and I hope you come back on the Phile real soon. Take care, Ila.
Ila: Ilaminori.com, instagram.com/ilaminori, facebook.com/ilaminori, twitter.com/ilaminori.
Me: Good job, Ila. See you soon.
That about does it for this entry of the Phile. Thanks to my guests Jeff Trelewicz, Laird Jim and Ila Minori. The Phile will be back on Monday with Phile Alumni Makar. Spread the word, not the turd. Don't let snakes and alligators bite you. Have a good Christmas, everybody. Be safe!
Not if it pleases me. No, you can't stop me, not if it pleases me. - Graham Parker


text:
The spectre of climate change is stalking the resort where winter tourism began, after warm weather forced the cancellation of last weekend's White Turf horse races.
It began snowing in St Moritz last Saturday night and continued all the next day. Soft, settling, silent, Sunday snow: six inches or more. It was certainly not a tearaway New York-style blizzard; it was respectful, perhaps apologetic, having been expected since about November.
St Moritz, perhaps the world's most famous winter sports resort and certainly the most distinctive, was not dreaming of a green, grey and brown Christmas but it got one nonetheless. And snow has been elusive until now. "I think it's the worst winter we've ever had," one resident told me. "Worst" in this context meaning something different to a shopkeeper in an Alpine resort than it would to a Long Island commuter or a Welsh sheep farmer.
It has not been a total disaster: skiers are now used to artificial snow, and techniques to make it have improved, though a connoisseur will always regard it as inferior to the infinite moods of a naturally snowy mountain. Also, skiing on a man-made white track through a bland autumnal landscape can make you feel a bit of a prat.
And for everyone who lives in St Moritz, or loves it, there is a lurking terror. What if this is the future?
By cruel coincidence, the first serious damage to the resort's economy was inflicted a few hours before the snow got started. The organisers of White Turf, the horseracing festival on the frozen lake, had to cancel a meeting – one of three scheduled for consecutive Sundays this month - for the first time since 1986.
The racing attracts crowds of up to 10,000 or more, some of whom were wandering forlornly around the track on Sunday lunchtime, just as the first race should have been under way. Many spectators come from outside Switzerland; not all had heard. "I just had to tell a man who'd come over from Bali," said a steward. "But even he understood."
Actually, I am not sure he did understand. It was not that the ice on the lake was too thin, as was generally assumed. In fact, it was plenty thick enough to cope with the 2,500 tons of horse, humanity and equipment that would press on it. But because of the unusual warmth, explained the racing association's vice-president, Luigi Sala, the limited amount of snow that had fallen had not properly compacted on top of the ice. That meant a galloping thoroughbred might suddenly sink into the snow, with potentially terrible consequences for its fragile legs. In fact, a similar concern forced a day to be abandoned after a single race in 2014.
The fear that this might be a new normality hung heavily over the usually jolly pre-race dinner. "Obviously we hope it is just an exceptional year," said Sala. "But it could mean we will have to adapt. We have already started a Night Turf meeting under floodlights. Maybe we will have to race more in the evening when the temperature is lower."
Uncertain future
St Moritz claims to have invented winter tourism 150 years ago, when British aristocrats began visiting in search of the crisp, sunny climate, then started looking for diversions - sledging, curling and eventually skiing. Today, winter in St Moritz is full of what anywhere else would call summer sports. The 2016 snow golf and ice polo tournaments have taken place; cricket on ice is due to start on Thursday. I acquired my affection for this place seven years ago when the FT sent me to find out if the cricket was for real. It was, and it was great fun, too.
And I vowed to come back so I could see the racing. Which, unlike the cricket, is not just a novelty but a serious sport, supported by some of Europe's best trainers, with decent prize money. I came back all right but . . .
This unique schedule derives from a splendid combination of studied British eccentricity allied to Swiss ingenuity. Plus phenomenal landscape and 322 sunny days a year, even if Sunday was not one of them.
The more obvious wintry activities carried on, but not quite regardless. I wandered over to the Cresta Run, where members of the St Moritz Tobogganing Club hurl themselves down the hillside, head first, on glorified teatrays at up to 82mph. It is not now entirely English, though it is certainly all-male, and a particular kind of male at that. One man walked in from the snow in plus-fours as though he were just heading up Everest with George Mallory ("Do you think I should bring a woolly, old boy?") while awaiting the start of the Battle of Britain.
Another Englishman was booming race times over the tannoy for a club competition, the Roger Gibbs Challenge Cup, though he was apparently not getting through to the competitors, who were failing to report to the start.
The voice was getting cross. "I do not understand why nobody is ready to race. If you read the order on the paper it will tell you when to ride. IF YOU CAN READ." It turned out that, whether or not they could read, they could not hear - the loudspeaker wasn't working in the competitors' hut, probably because of the snow. The voice was undaunted. "We have lost a lot of time because of the complete unbelievable stupidity of the riders. UNBELIEVABLE!"
Over the road at the neighbouring bob run, a round of the 2016 World Cup was taking place: a bigger deal in sporting terms but conducted with better grace. Professional bobsleigh teams tour the European circuit but St Moritz is special, because it is the only championship bob run that still uses natural snow and ice. For the bob people, this is like playing tennis on Wimbledon grass. All the other venues involve concrete bases and refrigeration; sometimes even a roof. "It's so much smoother here," said the British team performance director Gary Anderson. "It's like running on velvet."
And with snow falling and conditions changing, it also creates uncertainties that competitors don't always face. There was nervous conversation as officials tried to work out which runners to use on the bobs. And, deep down, there is uncertainty about the future, too. Will climate change force St Moritz to give in to artificiality?
Up on the mountain, the pistes were still quiet. Visibility was poor and the snowfall had concealed the moguls, creating traps for the unwary. But it was going to be great, enthused a ski instructor: "It will be spring in Zurich and we could be skiing – maybe into May."
The racing people hope that all will be well and that the meetings this Sunday and next will take place as planned. It will take a lot to deter the cricketers. But, as strange season follows strange season, no one with an eye on the future can be worry-free, even Dominic Bachofen, the unflappable manager of the Carlton Hotel, the smallest and most discreet of St Moritz's five-stars.
This is not unprecedented: the first snow in 1989 came on February 20, he said. "But obviously this concerns me. Having a dry winter when temperatures go up to 8C or 9C, this is unusual. I think there is a heating up of the climate."
However, he insisted: "This valley will always stay extraordinary."
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2016
Financial Times


text:
By Matthew YoungThe article argues that doctors should stop issuing prescriptions and hand that task over to trained medicines experts, because no one is looking after the needs of the patient in terms of choosing the best medicine, adjusting it to the right dose, and measuring whether it works. So patients get the wrong prescription, at the wrong dose, and end up throwing the rest of their expensive medicines down the toilet. This calls for a radical separation of the GPs' role in determining the diagnosis – what's wrong with the patient – and prescribing – what medicine will be best for the patient. GPs are trained in diagnosis, but are often out of date regarding what new medicines are best to deal with the problem. And GPs don't have the time to learn in detail about doses and side-effects. The author urges that High street pharmacists who are trained medicines experts should be relocated from the shop to Primary Care – to work alongside GPs. They must be actively involved with the patient and placed in charge of the prescribing process and medicines management. Taking the prescription pads away from GPs will deliver large improvements in patient management and medicines management, reduced hospital admissions and a significant reduction in medicines wastage. Patients will get the best treatment, benefiting sooner from advances in medical science, and the NHS will have a better-managed drugs budget.
Published by the Adam Smith Institute www.adamsmith.org.uk/cissues/