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How to migrate from Spark Pay to Prestashop?
The essence of LitExtension products focuses on their friendliness to users, which means that every shopping cart owners, even who has little knowledge of technology, can follow guidance and migrate data from Spark Pay to Prestashop easily. You are advised that need not to consult any other sources except this understandable step-by-step guide below.
1. Preparation
For Spark Pay Store:
- Please ensure you have the right permission to upload files into your Spark Pay Store.
- It must not block access from Prestashop Store to the connector.
- Spark Pay Store can operate normally during migration as it requires a very limited resource for the process.
For Prestashop Store:
- Prestashop Store should be placed in a stable hosting or in localhost.
- PHP Curl must be enabled.
- PHP Fopen (allow_url_fopen) must be On.
- It also must not block connection to Spark Pay Store.
- Webserver (mostly apache) should have full permission to write on /img folder.
- Demo mode on backend should be turned off
- base64_decode should be allowed.
- It is strongly recommended to backup Prestashop Target Store first.
2. Setup
2.1. Download Migration Tool
After downloading the product zip file from our Store, please extract it into a folder. The module consists of two main parts: Prestashop Data Migration Module ("modules" folder) and Source Cart Connector ("prestashop_connector" folder)
2.2. Prestashop Data Migration Plugin Setup
Prestashop Data Migration Module is a Prestashop Module which acts like a hub at Prestashop side to receive data and import it into Prestashop database. It can be installed just like all other Prestashop Modules:
- Using your FTP software, upload the folder "modules" to your PrestaShop root folder.
- Go to Back Office -> Select on tab 'Modules' -> Modules & Services
- Search for the keyword : 'Cart Migration'
- Click on the button 'Configure' to finish for the module installation.
2.3 Install Connector for Spark Pay
xtract "prestashop_connector" into Source Cart root folder. After finished please make sure Migration Connector can be reached at: http(s)://yourstore.com/prestashop_connector/connector.php
You will get a message "Connector Installed" once it is installed properly. If you have any problem reaching the link please ensure you have htaccess configured correctly and the file has execution permission. For security, please open connector.php, find this very first line:
define('LECM_TOKEN', '123456');
And change "123456" to another string, this will be used to enter to the Migration Form (Cart Token) and acts like "password" to prevent unauthorized data access to your Spark Pay store.
3. Migration Plugins Setup
Migration Plugins are purchased and setup separately. They will provide additional functionalities to the tool. Normally plugins need to be customized and tweaked by LitExtension Team to fit customers requirements and will be sent to customers later on. There are a few types of plugin:
- Products and Categories SEO Urls Plugin: helps migrate Products and Categories urls. Old urls will be saved in Target Prestashop Store and will be maintained to keep all current SEO ranking you have built up for years.
- Custom Fields Plugin: help migrate custom fields from Spark Pay Store to Target Prestashop Store. This is useful in case customers have customized their store, for example: adding fields to database tables, and also want to migrate these fields into Prestashop Store.
- Customer Password Plugin: special plugin which adds the ability to read passwords encrypted by Spark Pay Stores to Prestashop. All passwords are migrated over and remains encrypted, customers can login to the new shop right away without the need of resetting passwords.
To install plugins, just copy plugin files into the instructed folder inside your Prestashop store. New functionalities will be enabled.
4. Enter license key
License Key is an encoded string which comes with your download package. This key is required to activate your Migration Tool.
After purchasing the product, please login to our store and enter "My downloadable products" section. Here you will find download link and license key for the download package.
Login your Prestashop Target Store backend, select Cart Migration > Configuration, and copy and paste your license key here
5. Migration
Please login your Prestashop Target Store backend, select Cart Migration > Migration . The migration will go through 3 simple steps. Just hit "Next" when you finish one step to advance.
5.1 Spark Pay Configuration
Fulfill information in the setup table:
- Cart Type: Choose 'Spark Pay"
- Cart URL: Your Spark Pay URL
- Token: The token string which has been configured in connector.php
5.2 Migration Configuration
- Languages Mapping: Pick the language to be mapped into Prestashop default language.
- Orders Status Mapping: Assign Spark Pay order statuses to proper Prestashop Store order statuses. Creating additional order statuses in Prestashop Store may be needed.
- Entities to Migrate: select all entities to migrate or just a part of them.
Additional Options:
- Migrate recent data: if you choose this option, it will migrate new data only. Supposed you have just finished a full migration from your current Spark Pay to Prestashop, after that Spark Pay store is still live and continue getting new data, and you want to get your Prestashop updated with the new data, select this feature to avoid starting over again.
- Clear current data on Target Store before Migration: if you choose this option, all current products, categories, manufacturers, customers, orders, product reviews, taxes will be cleared.
- Migrate categories and products SEO URLs: if you choose this option, old SEO urls of source will be preserved in Prestashop Store, allowing you to maintain your Pagerank.
- Transfer images in product descriptions to Target Store: download all images in product description into your store so that it won't have to refer back to your Spark Pay or anywhere else for images.
5.3 Migration
The migration will take place automatically in this final step. In order for it to progress, you should not close your browser of remove Spark Pay Connector. Information shows in this step:
- Spark Pay : Spark Pay base url you have entered in Step 1, this url will be registered with your license.
- Entity limit: the limit associated with your license. To change this value, you need to upgrade/purchase another license code.
- Tips slider: handly tips you should know
- Migration progress: show current progress
- Console: show debug information.
- After the migration is completed, click on "Clear Transient" to finish.
That's all about migration process which can be carried out yourselves. Technical knowledge and skills are not necessary to use LitExtension shopping cart migration tools. Hope that with this detailed guide and attached video, online store owners don't hesitate to try our live demo and decide to use our Spark Pay to Prestashop migration tool– optimized solution for your online business.
You can also consider to migrate Spark Pay to other target carts:
Migrate Spark Pay to WooCommerce
Migrate Spark Pay to BigCommerce
If you have any question, please feel free Contact us for more support.


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Many memoirs, and some of the best, are survival stories, tales told by that supposedly fortunate person who emerged living but not unscarred from the carnage of natural disaster or personal tragedy. Survival comes with a price tag: Not only must the survivor move forward, but he or she must assess his or her position vis-à-vis what occurred. That is what Brooke Hayward does in her classic memoir "Haywire" (Vintage: 329 pp., $16 paper), now reissued more than 30 years after its original publication, with an introduction by Buck Henry and a new afterword by the author.
"I had begun to have the disquieting concept of myself as a spectator, not a participant, in my own life. I saw myself as the audience, leaning back to watch my future unfold like a Greek tragedy. I already had presentiments of the ending. That, after all, was the classic form; it was not the surprise denouement that one came to see, but the quality of the drama and performances," writes Hayward, recounting her response to the moment when she realized that her mother was in desperate trouble and on the downward slope to self-slaughter.
Hayward's mother was the actress Margaret Sullavan: brilliant, quicksilver, vulnerable, mistrustful of fame and overly controlling of her family, the reluctant yet beloved star of "The Shop Around the Corner" (1940) and other classic movies and the creator of great Broadway diva roles such as (an omen, as it would turn out) the suicidal lead in Terence Rattigan's "The Deep Blue Sea." Hayward's father, no less charismatic, was the dynamic agent and producer Leland Hayward: dashing, funny, possessed of charm without limit and seething drive, a character who might have stepped straight from the pages of F. Scott Fitzgerald, and one of the men who invented the Hollywood of the great studio era.
From this sparkling coupling issued three seemingly blessed children: Brooke, Bridget and Bill, who grew up having it all in the unspoiled, pre-freeway, citrus-smelling and peach-blossoming Los Angeles of the 1940s. It is a time and place that Hayward evokes here with a glowing ache.
"Every Sunday," she writes, "we would drive over to the Valley, holding our breaths and making wishes as we came to the entrance of the tunnel through the mountains; then, as Sepulveda Boulevard began its serpentine descent to the lovely clear expanse below, Father would take his foot off the gas as a gesture towards rationing and the car would careen around the curves, speeding up and slowing down under its own momentum."
The sad arc of "Haywire" describes how these beginnings, so drowned in privilege, end in divorce, breakdown and tragedy. The bewitchment of the book — and it really is magical — lies in a balancing act: This death-haunted book is at once hot and cold, detached in its control while letting pain and heartbreak bleed through the page. "I wept for my family, all of us, my beautiful, idyllic, lost family. I wept for our excesses, our delusions and inconsistencies, not that we had cared too much or too little, although both were true, but that we had let such extraordinary care be subverted into such extraordinary carelessness," she writes, describing another moment of mournful passing.
Loved ones die, but the smell of their perfume lingers in the spaces and clothes they leave behind. A pushy stepmother (Pamela, the former Mrs. Randolph Churchill and a future U.S. ambassador to France, no less) is only too eager to get her already-jeweled paws on the heirlooms. Hayward recounts this tale not just with courage and honesty but huge narrative cunning, constructing chapters that shuttle to and fro in time, leading toward and then away from the golden childhood idyll. Woven throughout are comments from friends — Jane Fonda, Peter Fonda, Jimmy Stewart, Diana Vreeland, Truman Capote — creating an effect at once close-up and kaleidoscopic, mixing the detachment of oral history with the intimate honesty of self-investigation.
Hayward's witnesses may be celebrities, but this is determinedly not a poor-little-rich-girl story. Her book concerns that which confronts us all: love's loss, the sadness of time, and the sense that, as human beings, we always seem to end up letting down those who have the most right to rely on our trust.
"How often have I had to lie or keep my mouth shut to protect the people I love most," notes the narrator of Herta Müller's novel "The Appointment" (Picador: 240 pp., $15 paper), "to keep them from plunging headlong into some disaster. Whenever I wanted my hatred to last forever, a feeling of disgust would soften it up. With a hint of love on the one hand, and a heap of self-reproach on the other, I was already surrendering to the next hatred. I've always had just enough sense to spare others, but never enough to save myself from misfortune."
Müller, a surprise winner of the Nobel Prize in 2009, left her native Romania in 1987 when the country was still controlled by the totalitarian tyrant Ceausescu. She went to Berlin, where one of the few surviving fragments of the wall that used to divide East from West features a pop-art graffito in which Ceausescu greets the Soviet leader Brezhnev with a French kiss. Muller's subversion was of a subtler, more brooding form, and the narrative of "The Appointment" features a 200-plus-page tram ride, taken by a Romanian young factory worker, summoned to an interrogation from which she fears she might not return. Her offense has been to stitch notes into the linings of men's suits exported to Italy. The notes say, "Marry me," and she was prepared to take the first comer, so long as he would get her out of Romania.
Now she's in the soup. Her dreams of escape and the means by which an upside-down world of political tyranny crushes the life out of personal relationships are revealed in a series of flashbacks, recollections and side stories.
"The Appointment" has shades of Kafka, and it isn't without bleak humor. Müller makes us feel the paranoia of a doomed regime, even as her beset narrator slips into a swirl of foggy rage.
All the more haunting to read this novel now that Ceausescu is long gone, for what Müller has to say about the emotional consequences of tyranny has a universal and present application. Times change and tyrants do fall while the flawed quest for human connection goes on — a quest that is observed with dark sharpness here. This new edition contains the transcript of Müller's Nobel acceptance speech.
Rayner is the author, most recently, of "A Bright and Guilty Place." Paperback Writers appears monthly at http://www.latimes.com/books.
Many memoirs, and some of the best, are survival stories, tales told by that supposedly fortunate person who emerged living but not unscarred from the carnage of natural disaster or personal tragedy. Survival comes with a price tag: Not only must the survivor move forward, but he or she must assess his or her position vis-à-vis what occurred. That is what Brooke Hayward does in her classic memoir "Haywire" (Vintage: 329 pp., $16 paper), now reissued more than 30 years after its original publication, with an introduction by Buck Henry and a new afterword by the author.

subset: commoncrawl


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In the ruined, chaotic state of Somalia the United States has long been engaged in a shadowy struggle with the forces of militant Islam. This US effort has two main goals: to prevent extremist groups from taking root in Somali society, and to counter notorious terrorist figures thought responsible for attacks throughout North and East Africa.
The US missile strike launched March 3 against the southern Somali town of Dobley was part of this larger fight. Whatever the attack's results – the Defense Department officially is keeping mum – US intelligence officials in recent weeks said they are generally pleased with their progress against terrorism in the region.
But is any such progress coming at the expense of Somalia itself?
Attacks against individual militants may frighten and anger ordinary Somalis, say some analysts, leading to something of a backlash against the US. Meanwhile, the US government in the area might be focusing on antiterrorism policy at the expense of nation-building efforts.
"I am concerned we are not helping the Somalis build even a minimally functional government," says Karin von Hippel, co-director of the post conflict reconstruction project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
The March 3 strike was carried out by at least two cruise missiles fired from a US Navy submarine. According to local news reports, the target was Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan, a Kenyan who may have played a major role in the 1998 bombings of US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.
Residents and police in Dobley said at least eight people were injured and a home destroyed in the attack. A radical Islamist movement that ruled much of southern Somalia throughout 2006 retook Dobley last week, according to wire service reports. On March 4 the town's streets were filled with hundreds of protesters shouting anti-American slogans, according to these reports.
At the height of its power, the radical movement, known as the Council of Islamic Courts, controlled Somalia's capital, Mogadishu. But in early 2007, troops loyal to a UN-supported interim government, backed by the Ethiopian Army, ousted the Islamist group.
Of course, to call the elements currently in power in Mogadishu a "government" perhaps is to overstate the case. Since the early 1990s, Somalia has been a nation in name only. No group is in position to control its borders. No one watches its coastline. Yet it is only a relatively short boat trip across the Gulf of Aden to Yemen and the Arabian Peninsula.
The US has long kept its eye on Somalia as a possible haven for Al Qaeda, according to an International Crisis Group study of counterterrorism in the area. As early as 1998, when the Clinton administration fired cruise missiles at terrorist training camps in Afghanistan, US officials were concerned that Osama bin Laden might turn to Somalia as his next place of refuge, says the ICG study.
The Al Qaeda leadership decamped to the border area between Afghanistan and Pakistan, instead. Still, three extremist groups operating from Somalia "have chalked up a deadly track record," according to ICG.
Perhaps most notorious among them is an Al Qaeda cell made up of Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan and several other militants. This group is thought linked to the embassy bombings, as well as the 2002 bombing of a Kenyan hotel and an unsuccessful attempt to shoot down an Israeli airliner.
The second group is a Somali nationalist and Islamist movement with long-standing links to Al Qaeda named al-Itihaad al-Islaami. During its 1990s heyday, the group had a militia of 1,000 fighters funded by Islamic charities from the Gulf states and maintained training camps staffed by foreign jihadis, says ICG.
The third group has emerged since 2003. It is a small but ruthless militant network led by Aden Hashi Ayro, a relatively young fighter reportedly trained in Al Qaeda's Afghanistan camps.
Lumped together, these organizations have given Somalia a reputation as a hotbed of Islamist extremism. But viewed from the perspective of the larger population, that may not be the case.
"In reality, jihadism is an unpopular, minority trend among Somali Islamists," concluded the ICG report.
This week's missile strike in Somalia was far from a first for the US. It carried out similar attacks at least three times last year.
Though those strikes were not all successful, the general antiterror effort in Somalia is going well, according to US intelligence.
A year or 18 months ago, Al Qaeda was establishing a foothold in Somalia that was on its way to becoming formidable, said Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell at a Feb. 27 Senate Armed Services Committee hearing.
Since the Ethiopian Army rolled into Mogadishu, things have changed, said Director McConnell.
"For the most part, we've been able to keep it tamped down, or on the run. We've traced personalities," he told the Senate panel.
The concern of Karin von Hippel of CSIS and some other analysts is that the focus on personalities and security may distract the US from trying to rebuild the government and promoting higher levels of national reconciliation and reconstruction.


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Customer Reviews
All reviews are from people who have redeemed deals with this merchant.
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by Michael Caruso
Hezekiah Jones performed in Chestnut Hill's Pastorius Park Wednesday, June 27, for a crowd that filled the natural amphitheater and enjoyed the band's eclectic blend of various styles of folk music. The sounds of acoustic guitars joined by fiddles, upright bass, keyboard and even accordion came together to both soothe and energize the audience. Vocals were cleverly arranged and harmonized while the instrumental accompaniments provided rhythmic and sultry support.
Songs such as "Agnes of the World Where Have You Landed?" featured dazzling electric fiddle riffs and old-fashioned electric organ chords, combining country and bluegrass styles within the folk music genre.
"I Postponed My Life for You" projected a lively beat despite its downbeat lyrics. "Rain Stars on My Windshield" was sweet and delicate while "Guarantees" recalled the Beatles' era of "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" with its jaunty rhythms and insistent harmonies. "They Don't Care about Us," composed in the minor mode, offered a sly beat and trumpet solos, while "Life Is So Sweet" was actually rather touching and sad. "I'm Going and Not Comin' Back" spiced things up with a dash of hillbilly vitality.
The Delaware Valley Opera Company continues its 2012 season of summer opera productions with Vincenzo Bellini's "La Sonnambula" (The Sleepwalker) July 14, 18 & 21 at 8 p.m. in the Salvation Army's Kroc Center. The East Falls facility is located at 4200 Wissahicken Ave. Tickets are price at $15, $18 & $20, and can be purchased in advance by calling 215-725-4171 or by visiting www.dvopera.org.
"La Sonnambula" received its world premiere March 6, 1831, in Milan's Teatro Carcano. It was Bellini's sixth professional opera. The score is based on a libretto written by Felice Romani, which itself is based on a ballet-pantomime by Eugene Scribe and J.P. Aumer.
The theme of somnambulism (sleepwalking) was a common contrivance in 19th century romantic literature, either in print or onstage. It often permitted a convenient excuse for impermissible behavior. It was also readily available for comedy.
Much of the opera is pitched very high. Rubini's part (Elvino) was originally higher than it appears in the printed score, suggesting that Bellini never intended the original keys for anyone other than Rubini, the most acclaimed tenor of his day. He was very much like the latter day Enrico Caruso, Luciano Pavarotti and Juan Diego Florez. Rubini used a sweet head tone for the highest notes, as was common for all tenors prior to Caruso's singing full voice all the way to a "High C." Florez, a Peruvian native and a graduate of Philadelphia's Curtis Institute of Music, has gone him two better, singing all the way up to a "High E" in full tone, not falsetto. Florez is the best-selling classical vocalist in the world today.
"La Sonnambula" was a success from the very start. It was presented in London July 28, 1831, and Paris Oct. 24 before returning to Italy in 1832 in Florence. The Brooklyn-born Greek-American soprano, Maria Callas, sang the lead soprano role of Amina at Milan's Teatro alla Scala and then at the Edinburg Festival in 1957. Her indisposition at the final performance in Scotland brought forward the Italian diva Renata Scotto as a last-minute replacement, launching her career on the international stage.


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Division I Men
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University of Florida Women Team News
Pictured Sofie Oyen & Lauren Embree (L to R)
Gator Run Ends at USTA/ITA National Indoor Championships
Gators Cap Season-Opening Event with Strong Showing
Gators Finish Season No. 2 in National Rankings; Embree No. 1 in Singles
Embree and Oyen Bow Out of NCAA Doubles Championships in Round of 16
Florida Drops 4-3 Heartbreaker in NCAA Semifinals
Florida Defeats Cal for Fourth Consecutive Trip to NCAA Final Four
Florida Plays Cal in NCAA Quarterfinals on Sunday at 1 pm ET
Gators Advance to NCAA Tennis Quarterfinals with 4-0 win against Duke
Gators Advance to NCAA Quarterfinals after 4-0 win vs. Duke
Top-Seeded Florida Blanks Marist in NCAA First Round
See All Headlines >>
Florida Defeats Cal for Fourth Consecutive Trip to NCAA Final Four
Monday, 05/20/2013
Florida seniors Lauren Embree (Marco Island, Fla.) and Caroline Hitimana (Waterloo, Belgium) stepped up and led the Gators to a hard-fought 4-2 win against California and advanced to the semifinals of the NCAA Championships played at the Khan Outdoor Tennis Complex at the Atkins Tennis Center on Sunday afternoon.
Embree and Hitimana have helped the Gators reach the 'Final Four' each of their four years, as Florida will be playing the NCAA Semifinals for the 23rd time in the last 27 years.
"It feels great to be back in the semifinals," shared Embree, who produced wins on the singles and doubles courts Sunday and improved to 34-2 in NCAA dual match singles and doubles play. "Cal is a really tough team and played great. There were some close doubles matches and we were fortunate to pull it out."
After the Golden Bears (19-6) captured the doubles win on court two for the first individual result of the dual match, the Gators remained focused and the freshman pair of Danielle Collins (St. Petersburg, Fla.) and Brianna Morgan (Beverly Hills, Calif.) earned an 8-4 win on court three before the veteran pair of Embree and junior Sofie Oyen (Leopoldsburg, Belgium) clinched the doubles point with an 8-4 decision.
Florida carried that momentum onto the singles courts early, where the
won the first set on four of the six courts and seemed in control. The Bears, however, battled back and evened the team scoring when fifth-ranked Zsofi Susanyi handed No. 51 Alexandra Cercone (Seminole, Fla.) a 6-1, 6-1 setback that halted the Gator junior's 12-match win streak in addition to handing Cercone her first ever loss in 11 NCAA dual match singles contests.
"I thought we played very well in doubles and I was pleased with that," UF head coach Roland Thornqvist said. "Other than court three where Zsofi Susanyi played out of her mind, we started off well. The momentum switched a little bit and it was nice to see our seniors carry the load for us today."
Embree gave Florida the 2-1 lead when she took down eighth-ranked Anett Schutting, 6-2, 6-0, in one hour and 25 minutes. The nation's top-ranked singles player opened the match with a break and never lost her serve throughout the match en route to her 21st consecutive singles victory, as well as her 39th straight in dual match play, while improving to 26-1 overall this year.
"I had a game plan going in and I tried to stick with that," shared Embree, who served out at love in the only game lasting four points. "Our points were long and most of the games were, too. There were a couple points I was fortunate enough to win and just came out on top."
Junior Olivia Janowicz (Palm Bay, Fla.) moved Florida one win from victory when she defeated Tayler Davis 6-1, 6-1 on court five in one hour and 40 minutes. The Gator junior jumped out to a 3-0 lead behind a pair of breaks. She dropped her serve in the fourth game, but got it right back in the next game en route to winning the final three games to take the first set. The two competitors were on serve through the first four games of the second set, when Davis collected a break for a 3-2 lead. Janowicz broke right back and held at love for the 4-3 lead. The eighth game proved to be a battle that lasted seven minutes and Davis managed to hold, before Janowicz held at love for the third time during the match for a 5-4 lead. She then earned one final break to earn her 15th consecutive singles victory and improved to a team-best 36-6 this season.
"Olivia's really hitting on all cylinders right now," Thornqvist praised. "She's been automatic in her play. She manages herself really well and keeps great composure. She's almost like a senior in her play, she's very steady. She doesn't get enough credit for her play like some of the players in the other positions. The way she's playing and staying focused in her play is very helpful for the Gators."
"It was a really tough match," Janowicz said. "We got things going quickly and it looked in our favor. Then it started getting really close and I realized that they needed me and I wanted to finish as quick as I could to help us out.
"She didn't change how she played through the entire match," Janowicz continued. "The first set, I stayed super consistent and stuck with my game plan. Then in the second I wasn't doing those same things. I went back to the old plan."
One minute later,
struck with a 7-5, 6-4 win on court two where Klara Fabikova defeated Oyen and the Gator's lead was trimmed, 3-2.
Attention turned to courts four and six with Florida needing to win just one of those two matches for a spot in the NCAA Semifinals.
Morgan won her first set against Lynn Chi, but dropped the second and the two where in the early stages of the third set of court four, while Hitimana was battling Annie Groansson.
Hitimana won the tight first set 6-3 and found herself down 2-0 to begin the second. She held at love to get on the board and earned the break in a long fourth game that featured duce six times. Hitimana then held at love for the second time in the match and lost just one point in the next game for the break and a 4-2 lead. Her service game in the seventh also went to duce, but Hitimana held for 5-2 and won the first three points on Groansson's serve en route to the 6-3, 6-2 dual-match clinching victory.
In the highly contested doubles point, Collins and Morgan were on serve through the first five games after they traded breaks against Tayler Davis and Kelly Chui on court three, as Morgan fought off a break point to hold for 3-2. The Gators then earned their second break of the match for 4-2, but couldn't hold and Cal went to the baseline tyring to get the eight-game pro-set back on serve. The Gators battled right back and earn another break and then fought back in a tough ninth game for the 6-3 lead. Collins blasted a forehand winner down the line at break point for a 7-3 lead. UF wasn't able to serve out for the victory but capitalized on its second match point, as Morgan slammed an overhead for a winner at the net to seal the win.
On court one, the Embree and Oyen battled Lynn Chi and Schutting, as the match opened with a pair of breaks. The Gators earned the second break in the next game that went to duce 11 times. The fourth game was just as tight, as Embree held on to win the 16-minute game that gave UF a 3-1 lead. The Gators continue that momentum and earned a quick break for the 4-1 advantage, but Cal broke right back and held, before earning another break to even the score at 4-all. The Florida pair was able to capture the break after a six-duce game and Oyen held for a 6-4 lead, as the Gators won the last two games to claim the doubles point.
Top-seeded Florida (26-2) will play No. 12 Stanford (20-4) in the semifinals on Monday at 6 p.m. ET/5 p.m. CT. The Cardinal upset No. 4 Georgia, 4-1 in their quarterfinal match.
"We played them in February and thought they were wicked good," said Thornqvist of the Cardinal. "We played really well to get out of that jam. I had a feeling that they were going to do deep in this tournament. Obviously, we have some of the same matchups that we did back in February so we'll try to prepare as best we can."
In the February 24 meeting between Florida and
, the Cardinal claimed the doubles point before the Gators rallied to win four of the five completed singles matches. A weather delay forced action indoors with the team score tied a 2-all. Courts one, three and four each had to finish inside the newly opened Perry Tennis Facility, where Cercone posted a gutty 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 win against No. 10 Krista Hardebeck for the highest-ranked opponent she has defeated in her career, and Morgan provided a 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 clinching win over Stacy Tan.
"We always have great, long matches and we're looking forward to having another one," Embree shared of the battle between Florida and Stanford.
"Stanford is looking really good right now," Thornqvist echoed Embree. "We beat them at the beginning of the year, but this is a whole different time of year and the stakes are a lot steeper. It's going to be really intense."
Sunday's win was Florida's 18th consecutive overall victory, as well as its 16th straight in the NCAA Championships. The Gator's last postseason loss was a 4-3 decision to Stanford in the 2010 final.
Stanford leads the all-time series against Florida, 17-13, including a 9-3 record in NCAA matchups and all of those matchups have been in either the semifinals or final. The last two postseason meetings both were thrilling 4-3 decisions in the final, with the Gators capturing the 2011 national championship and the Cardinal the 2010 crown.
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|Book - Lee Miller, Albertina Catalogue
|Dual language - English & German
|Walter Moser with contributions from Klaus Albrecht Schroder, Anna Hanreich, Ute Wrocklage & Elissa Mailander
|Hatje Cantz, 2015
|Format / Size
|paperback 27.4 x 20.8 x 2.5cm
|Produced to accompany the exhibition at Albertina, Vienna 8.5. –16.8.2015 and NSU Art Museum Fort Lauderdale 4.10.2015–17.1.2016. Photographs taken in Vienna in 1945 being shown for the first time, this newly published book provides access to Lee Miller's best works, including early Surrealist compositions as well as travel photos. At the end of World War II, Lee Miller travelled through Europe as a war reporter, producing harrowing photographs with historical significance. One of her most spectacular pictures originated in late April 1945 in Adolf Hitler's apartment in Munich where Lee had a photo taken of herself standing naked in the dictator's bathtub. This was not long after capturing on film the crimes committed in the concentration camps in Dachau and Buchenwald immediately after their liberation by the occupying forces, one of the first photographers to do so.


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Loyola-Chicago star Clayton Custer is one of many transfers who made a huge impact in the NCAA Tournament
SAN ANTONIO — Clayton Custer's path to Final Four fame — from a Kansas City suburb, through the heartland of Iowa, to the nation's third-biggest metropolitan area — has been one of the most popular storylines surrounding a Loyola-Chicago team that seemingly slipped from incognito mode into a central position in the national basketball consciousness.
But Custer's decision to swap schools, leaving the Big 12's Iowa State after his freshman season, isn't the focus.
In fact, college basketball fans have become largely desensitized to transfers. And with an increasing number of transfers each year, as well as the potential for even more relaxed rules in the future, college coaches are starting to ask: Do I have to recruit my whole roster again every summer?
"I think people transferring for the wrong reasons is probably a problem in college basketball," Michigan coach John Beilein said. "Sometimes it may be a better fit or a kid wants to take a year and just try and get better."
Beilein's roster gets a big boost from junior Charles Matthews, who started at Kentucky before moving to Ann Arbor. Matthews had trouble cracking a potent lineup in Lexington, but he made an instant impact with the Wolverines, scoring in double figures 20 times this season. He's been instrumental in Michigan's run to the Final Four.
Other teams have used transfers as a broader strategy, often with remarkable success. Nevada reached the Sweet Sixteen with all five starters coming from other Division I programs. And Kansas, too, has been bitten by the bug — Bill Self's team has five transfers from four-year schools to go with one junior-college transfer.
"You know, I think it's unique to each university. It's unique to each individual that there are some kids that probably may need a change, and that we know it's going to happen when they go to the second spot, the next coach is going to tell them the same thing (as) the other coach: You don't work hard enough in the weight room; you don't practice enough; you don't play the game the right way," Beilein said.
"And sometimes people need to hear that. But there's also situations where the grass is just greener somewhere else and it's not. There's a process that people have to go through to become a better basketball player, a better student-athlete. And we have to really work at finding — I don't know the answer — but to make sure that kids really have, transfer for the right reasons. There's got to be compelling reasons to transfer."
Even though Loyola-Chicago coach Porter Moser has used a steady diet of transfers to build the school's most successful team in decades, he insists he's still not one who's in favor of relaxed rules being floated that could decrease, or even eliminate, the time players sit out before becoming eligible after a transfer.
"Imagine the Missouri Valley. People look at that league, how good of a league it is — it's just going to be a farm system and they're going to pick. Where does it end?" Moser said.
Aside from Custer, who was the team's leading scorer, the 32-5 Ramblers head into Saturday night's semifinal showdown against Michigan with three transfers from four-year schools and a pair of junior-college transfers.
Still, Moser isn't ready to change the system to something akin to true free agency.
"It's a hard dynamic. I'm not going to say it's an easy dynamic. But that's not the answer, in my opinion. I just think that transfer rule — it is going to devastate the trickle-down theory of that. You could be sitting there. It could uproot lives," he said. "You could spend all this time building the program at Loyola. I've spent my heart and soul building this program, from getting through all the tough times. And then you could see somebody going into this year, saying: You know what, Donte Ingram was really good last year as a junior, I'm going to take Donte. And now Loyola is not here today. That's terrible for the game."
Beilein agrees, and he thinks more players will jump ship if the rule is relaxed, a product of a changing culture inside the sport.
"Guy's averaging 18 (points per game), probably thinks he should be averaging 24. And the guy averaging two probably thinks he should be getting eight. And it's really hard to just regulate all that. … I think it's been pretty good and there's nothing wrong with the transfer. But it shouldn't be for the wrong reasons, and many times that's what happens," Beilein said.
"People are looking to get … they want to be a pro right away and they're not getting to be a pro, so it must be the coach's fault. 'So I gotta go somewhere else.' And that's the wrong reason.
"Embrace the process. See what happens."


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- Chapter 1
Hosea and his family are a sign unto Israel—In the day of gathering, the people of Israel will become the sons of the living God.
- Chapter 2
Worshipping false gods brings severe judgments upon Israel—In the last days, Israel will be reconciled to God and become His people.
- Chapter 3
Israel will seek the Lord, return to the Lord, and receive of His goodness in the latter days.
- Chapter 4
Israel loses all truth, mercy, and knowledge of God and goes whoring after false gods.
- Chapter 5
The kingdoms of Judah and Israel will both fall because of their iniquities.
- Chapter 6
Hosea calls Israel to return and serve the Lord—The mercy and knowledge of God are more important than ritualistic sacrifices.
- Chapter 7
Israel is reproved for her many sins—Ephraim is mixed among the people.
- Chapter 8
Both Israel and Judah have forsaken the Lord—The Lord has written the great things of His law to Ephraim.
- Chapter 9
The people of Israel are taken into captivity for their sins—Ephraim will be a wanderer among the nations.
- Chapter 10
Israel has plowed wickedness and reaped iniquity—Hosea calls upon Israel to seek the Lord.
- Chapter 11
Israel, as a child, was called out of Egypt in similitude of our Lord, as a child, coming out of Egypt—But Ephraim turns away from the Lord.
- Chapter 12
The Lord uses prophets, visions, and similitudes to guide His people, but they become rich and will not wait on the Lord—Ephraim provokes Him most bitterly.
- Chapter 13
Ephraim's sins provoke the Lord—There is no Savior beside the Lord—He ransoms from the grave and redeems from death.
- Chapter 14
In the last days, Ephraim will repent and return unto the Lord.


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{ EARTH TO SKYY } Photography & Digital Art show
March 21, 2015
All Day
All Day
Loading Map....
1244 Davie Street (btwn Bute & Jervis)
Vancouver, B.C.
Discover SOULARTUS's Photography & Digital Art of various sizes on now until March 28th! Captivating, Unique and Uplifting ~ 25 framed pieces in this installation.Creating Art allows the Soul to Shine! email@example.com


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I've been using ExpertGPS almost as long as I have been caching. I can't really compare it to Google since I don't use Google. I like it because of the topo maps but there are other features it doesn't have which I would like. The version is 2.3.1 which came out a few days ago. If you have specific questions I will try to answer them.
Take time to smell the roses and love the grandkids.


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Well, here we are. It's Thanksgiving week, and the world is up in arms once again over what's becoming known as the Black Friday creep. Or, as some would call it, Black Thursday. There's talk of boycotts on behalf of the American worker wrested from their turkey daze to sell pieces of plastic made in China dirt cheap.
America? Let's get a grip. Dialing back Black Friday to begin on the holiday itself is hardly the outrage it's being made out to be. On behalf of a family where "working the holiday" is par for the course, let me just say welcome to the club.
I couldn't help but note the irony this morning: Just above one of the Reason for the Season rants from one friend refusing to go out and shop on Black Thursday because she thought people should be home with their families was a some-e-card that said the following:
I work long hours. I wear bodily fluids that aren't mine. I work weekends and holidays. I get screamed at and have my hands in other people's orifices. Tell me again how hard you work?
Not surprisingly, that was posted by a maternity nurse. Because, of course, babies don't stop coming on Thanksgiving.
In fact, America does not stop functioning on Thanksgiving. And because we all depend on the conveniences we are so lucky to have in this great nation, that means people work on holidays. A lot of them.
I was raised in a household with two working parents. My mother was a nurse. There were holidays she worked, and some holidays where she was lucky enough to have someone else cover her shift. My father, the self-employed refrigeration and air-conditioning contractor, was not so lucky.
There was no one to cover for him. If he didn't go when the call came, he didn't get paid. If he didn't get paid, that was that much less money to buy groceries and clothing for his two children.
Today I understand even more why my parents left to work on the holidays because my husband does the same. We haven't had a New Year's together in years. He works the holiday. Every. Single. Year.
When the rest of the staff at his company gets an early dismissal for a holiday, he is stuck behind because -- contrary to what many believe -- computers do not run themselves. And if there's a problem in the computer room on Thanksgiving Day, guess who leaves his wife and child to drive into town and deal with it?
It's happened more than once. And on other holidays too.
Our family is not alone. We are there with the cops and firefighters, the nurses and doctors, the dairy farmers and the emergency gas man. We are there with the convenience store clerks who ring up your gas purchase as you drive over the river and through the woods. We are there with the waiters and waitresses serving turkey and stuffing to folks who just didn't feel like cooking this year.
Do I understand why moving to Black Friday to Thursday seems like an affront to American values? Sure! It's sad that people are so caught up in shopping that we need an extra day to do it. Materialism is hardly our best quality, folks.
And yet, what does it say about us that for years we have taken for granted all the other people who work on holidays, that we have enjoyed the fruits of their labors as if it's "no big deal" because, hey, it's great that they make our lives easier? What does it say about the value we put on those people and their families?
One might say that we don't "need" to go out shopping on the holiday. They'd be right. But then, does one "need" to go out to eat? Couldn't the waiters and chefs stay home? Couldn't moms home birth so maternity nurses could be with their families? Couldn't we plan ahead and fill the gas tank on Wednesday?
We could do all of these things, but we don't want to. We are a country that depends on give and take. We are a country where people work to provide conveniences for others. In return they are paid a wage, which is spent in the economy. They spend on conveniences. They enable this whole country to keep on spinning.
I'll say it straight out: it sucks to have someone in your family work on a holiday. It's a pain in the butt to reschedule family meals. It's a hassle when your husband up and leaves when you could use an extra hand to stir the cheese sauce for the cauliflower.
But the benefits are pretty darn good. The mortgage is paid. So is the cable bill so he can call up that DVR'd football game. We have food to eat this Thanksgiving, and money to spend on holiday shopping. We are blessed, and I'm thankful for that this holiday. I'm thankful that my husband has a job where he has to work the occasional holiday. It's better than having no job at all.
Will you take advantage of the Black Friday creep or are you boycotting?
Image via jbhthescots/Flickr


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Rebekah Higingbottom - Family Ministry Admin
Rebekah graduated from the University of South Carolina. She has been married to Travis since April 2003. Rebekah previously worked at BlueCross BlueShield for nine years before deciding to be a full time mom for their three boys Ayden, Noah and Easton. She joined the staff in 2017 once all the boys were in school. Since joining First Baptist Church in 2008, Rebekah has been very involved with volunteering in the Preschool ministry, working in the nursery and helping with Fam Jam. She loves camping with family, reading and going to the beach.
Contact Rebekah
803-957-0686 ext. 1020


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What are the Miami Dolphins doing with Dion Jordan?
On the heels of his enigmatic rookie season, the second-year pass rusher resurfaced at the team's OTAs this week as a hulked-up behemoth.
After clocking in at 248 pounds at the 2013 NFL Scouting Combine, Jordan took the field Tuesday at a beefy 265 and looking "like he took an air pump to his arms and shoulders," per Armando Salguero of The Miami Herald.
The weight increase comes in response to the team's insistence on using Jordan as a 4-3 defensive end. In a perfect world, he'd play the edge rusher role in a 3-4, one reason a trade to the Eagles made so much sense.
Salguero reported that Joe Philbin and his coaching staff considered moving Jordan to outside 'backer, but chose against it to save the player from having to drop into coverage when his focus should be sacking quarterbacks.
So, instead, Jordan's a square peg in a round hole, forced to bulk up to survive at a position that doesn't jive with his natural talents.
"I was definitely too light to go out there against some of those offensive tackles," Jordan said Tuesday of his first NFL campaign. "This year I had the opportunity to have an offseason where I can take care of my body. I'm trying to move forward and continue to try to better myself in a few areas."
Slowed as a rookie in his recovery from shoulder surgery, last year's third-overall pick rarely saw more than 20 snaps per game. With Cameron Wake and Olivier Vernon lodged ahead of him on the depth chart, it's on Miami's brain-trust to get Jordan more involved.
Playing him at his proper position would make for a nice start.
The latest "Around The League Podcast" predicts 2014 starting lineups and talks insider goodness with Bucky Brooks.


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We're really sorry but we've sold out of this product and are unable to obtain more stock. In most cases this is usually because the manufacturer has discontinued the product. We don't want you to miss out though so here's some of our best selling products which are similar to what you are looking for. Take a look and you could just find the perfect item. Just a small point to note - they might not have the exact features as the product you initially wanted so please be sure to check the features before you buy.
Use the lightning to USB cable to charge your iPhone 5, iPod touch iPad with retina display, or iPad mini at the fastest possible speed. The smaller, more durable Lightning connector is also reversible, which makes plugging it in easier than ever.
Plug it into your laptop to charge and sync, or use your own wall/car charger with USB port to charge from anywhere. It is great as a replacement cable or if you simply need an extra.


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Lady Gaga Tweet: 'Pop Singers Don't Eat'
Lady Gaga is prepping for her upcoming Born This Way Ball tour, which launches on April 27 in South Korea, and while doing so, she is getting herself into fighting shape.
The singer tweeted about her efforts to get her body physically ready for the rigors of touring and in turn sparked a firestorm of controversy. She referenced rigorous spin classes and noshing on a salad, but wishing it was a cheeseburger. Seemingly innocuous, right? Wrong.
The Mother Monster, famous for wearing a meat dress to the VMAs a few years ago, included two hashtags which have gotten her into a bit of Twitter hot water. She added #PopSingersDontEat and #IWasBornThisWay. It's a bit of a social media gaffe on Gaga's part, since she has spoken so openly about loving yourself as you were born and about her own bout with bulimia. So those two hashtags feel a bit at odds with each other, idealistically speaking.
There is also the distinct possibility that there is some inherent sarcasm in her comment.
Gaga recently revealed that she used to struggle with the carb-loaded meals her Italian father put in front of her for dinner every night. Since she has 23 million followers and a sphere of influence that cannot be messed with, Gaga should have thought before she tweeted and exercised a little more control over her thumbs, like she did with her spin class.
Below is Gaga's ill advised tweet, which, at press time, she had not retracted or explained.
Just killed back to back spin classes. Eating a salad dreaming of a cheeseburger #PopSingersDontEat #IWasBornThisWay
— Lady Gaga (@ladygaga) April 10, 2012


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New Mexico has some of the neatest neon signs in the world, particularly those in Gallup and Albuquerque. Sometimes it seems there's a cool or just plain strange neon sign waiting to be discovered around every bend in the road. My personal favorite in Albuquerque is the wrench sign for Rupert's Plumbing on Lomas Blvd. Alibi readers however, voted the Scott's Dog Grooming sign as best neon sign in ten Best of Burque polls in a row.
On this day in 1915, Frenchman Georges Claude patented his "neon tube" in the U.S. Check out the "Neon Report" for a large collection of New Mexico examples, pictured both in their heyday and in their "fazed cookie" stage.


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|#TriniCarnival2k12 / Image: @OneBrownGirl
I was on a press trip in Trinidad and Tobago for Carnival when the press release came out about the partnership between Expedia® and The Passport Party Project™. It was Carnival Tuesday in fact...and after a full day of Carnival fête-ing, I went back to my hotel room at the Hyatt Regency Trinidad and could tell by my email inboxes, my Twitter feed, and Kim Mance's TBEX newsletter that the news was out. Exhausted from the day, I managed to re-tweet and post the news on my Facebook pages and then I went downstairs and ordered a glass of champagne. Alone and smiling, I toasted to the 100 underserved girls all over the nation that will be given a world view. No amount of fatigue could wipe off the silly grin I had on my face...even as I laid down my head that evening. This is really happening, I thought. Expedia® has got my back and the backs of 100 girls and their families. #booyah
|Austin, Texas / The State Capitol
Skyline image courtesy of Wiki
So now the real work begins as I recover from an exhausting trip and get ready for the Austin Passport Party this coming Saturday. Even though I couldn't do this without Passport Party volunteers Shelley Seale, Program Manager Melissa Sustaita of the Ann Richards School of Young Women Leaders, or gracious venue host Barbara Joubert of The Miracle Foundation (I mean that too), I still have quite a few logistics to figure out, supplies to gather, and emails to answer so this will likely be a super busy five days for me as Thursday (the day I fly out) will be here before I know it.
I am happy and I am grateful. Thank you all for your support. I promise to get back to each and every one of you within the next few weeks and appreciate your patience as I wrap my head around this glorious glorious news: Expedia® is the official travel sponsor of The Passport Party Project™. How cool is that?! Carnival ain't got nothing on this. *Big grin*
Yours in service...
The Twitter hashtag is #PassportPartyProject
and #AustinPassportParty


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The Inspire line of outdoor LED luminaires includes 12 models. In addition to being suitable for new installations, each model can be retrofitted in place of older units. Many models can be specified with turtle- and bird-friendly amber LEDs for beachfront and adjacent roadway or pedestrian areas. Features include Dark Sky models, LED arrays that can be ordered with optional wattage outputs, stainless steel fasteners, and a choice of cast-aluminum or steel poles, bases, and surface-mount brackets.
Beacon Products
For more information, visit www.beaconproducts.com.
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Hot New Products from the 2011 SEMA ShowPosted in Events on March 1, 2012
The SEMA show in Las Vegas is one of the largest gatherings of the automotive industry and features some of the latest and greatest innovations, as well as cool cars and trucks built by some of the best fabricators and builders in the world. The show is so large you can literally get lost inside one of the halls and spend a whole day there before you find your way out. As you can imagine, it's a gearhead's dream with more than 26 miles of red carpet.
This year featured some of the coolest rides, from classics to luxury prerunners, as well as some really cool products worth taking a look at. You can't do the SEMA show in one day; you need at least a week to see most of it, but we did our best to get you coverage of some of the baddest products about to hit the market.
We stopped by at Bubba Ropes's booth and checked out their latest products. Their newest offering is called the 'Tree Hugger' which is a recovery strap that will allow you to extract yourself without causing any harm to trees that are used as winch points. The strap is made from 3-inch-wide, 100-percent polyester webbing that can gently wrap around a tree keeping your winch cable from grinding the bark off a tree trunk. It also features a tuff Cordura covering over the synthetic webbing for added web protection and reduced eyelets for easily attaching a joining shackle and the whole thing is rated to withstand up to 58,000 pounds of breaking force.
MaxTrac Suspension just released their new 6.5-inch lift kit for the '05-to-'11 Tacoma which uses a one-piece, ductile cast-iron 4-inch lift spindle as well as 2.5 inch fabricated steel spacers. The new spindles are very similar in design to MaxTrac's Titan lift spindles and offer the same quality and strength while clearing 35-inch tires.
Strategic Racing Designs displayed their F-150 luxury prerunner in the Bilstein booth and we were very impressed with the attention to detail in fabrication. We're positive that this truck can haul the mail without a problem, especially considering its running Bilstein's 9300 Black Hawk bypass shocks.
While wandering around the off-road products area we came across these awesome fully-boxed A-arms from ReadyLift. Their new Series 1 upper control arm kits are available for most late-model trucks and feature tab and slot boxed plate arm construction, Teflon lined 1-inch uniball for outer pivot, urethane bushings, 4340 heat treated conversion pin, 17-4 stainless steel CNC machined high-misalignment spacers and a top quality metallic gray powdercoat.
One of the cool new products we came across was BOLT Locks which allows you to lock your spare tire, trailer hitch and tool box using only one key–your ignition key! The BOLT Locks lock works by inserting your ignition key into the BOLT lock and turning it once at which point the lock mechanically learns the key code and you're all set.
This is AEM's new Dyno-Shaft. It puts a dynamometer on the slip yoke of your transmission—literally. There is a small housing that clamps around the end of a 2WD transmission and picks up a reading off a special slip yoke. The reading on an in-dash gauge gives you real power numbers while you're driving the vehicle. And because of its design, it can handle infinite amounts of horsepower. It's only available for 2WD transmissions, though.
G2 Axle and Gear unveiled its newest differential cover for the Ford 8.8 for the Explorer, Ranger and Bronco. They feature high-strength aluminum construction with a ribbed design for added rigidity as well adjustable bearing cap supports. They also come with a magnetic dip stick and drain plug and offer added fluid capacity to ensure proper oiling.
We made our way to the Mickey Thompson booth to check out some of their newest products and found their new innovative Classic Big Rig wheels. They feature a simulated 10-lug big rig bolt pattern while still bolting up to your 6- or 8-lug truck. No more adapter plates, simply mount the wheels and lock the lug cover into place and no one can tell it's not a real 10-lug wheel.
Another cool and innovative product was Cap-Pack's elevated storage drawer. You can pack it full of tools, tow straps and camping gear and keep it secure and locked while leaving room underneath for more storage or a place to sleep. The Cap-Pack is made of a heavy duty Zinc-coated steel frame and legs and features a black powdercoated aluminum storage with spring assist for easy opening and closing and is rated for 250 pounds of weight.
Although the MaxTrax recovery gear isn't new, they are offering limited editions of the MaxTrax ramps in your choice of either olive drab or desert tan. What we can tell you is that if you decide to venture out on your own to the middle of nowhere, make sure you take some MaxTrax recovery ramps with you, they'll make self recovery a breeze.
We stopped by the N-Fab booth and found these awesome Nerf Bar steps. N-Fab says their AdjustSTEP can hold up to 465 pounds and has 5.5 inches of adjustability. These are perfect if you're building your truck in stages but you don't want to fork over a bunch of cash every time you lift it or put bigger tires on your truck, all you have to do is loosen a few bolts and adjust the height of the step.
BDS brought out this wicked single cab short bed F-350 that featured fiberglass fenders, a shortened bed and frame, and smoothed frame rails that were painted to match the truck along with the entire suspension. It's hard to miss a giant truck with loud orange paint especially when it's sitting on giant Boggers!
With all the custom versions of Dana-style axles available, it was only a matter of time before Dana started offering crate versions of their own axles—the ones almost everyone else bases their custom creations on. Dana just launched their Dana Crate Axle program and is offering universal crate axles for the Dana 30, Dana 44, Dana 60, Dana 70 and Dana 80 models in both front and rear axle assemblies.


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I am lucky enough this year to be more or less off on the holiday. I work tonight, the 24th, from midnight to 8AM (technically the shift starts on the 23rd at 11:59PM, for clarity in scheduling). So while I am theoretically working christmas eve, I am actually off for the real eve of christmas. I am also off on christmas day.
The holidays are different in the ER. There's usually plenty of good cheer and decent food. The staff traditionally flagrantly violates JCAHO standards and brings in a sort of spontaneous potluck which gets set up at the nursing station or in the break room if there is space. There is a sense of camaraderie, in that all of us who are there are kind of pissed off that we have to be at work and not home with our families, but since it is a shared burden we don't get too openly bitter, but sort of refocus on trying to make the best of it and have a marginally festive time where we are. And there is a weird feeling of insularity (especially on the night shift), that we are set apart from the other 99% of the population, being at work when the rest of the real world is on hiatus. More than a little pride in that fact.
The holiday clientele is also a bit different from the usual mix. Fair to say that alcohol related presentations increase, though not so much for christmas as New Year's or the Fourth of July. The nursing home patients come in regardless of the day. Old folks overindulge and go into CHF, young men get kidney stones, young women get gall stones, and plenty of people develop acute illnesses. Many (or most) of the trivial or recreational visitors simply don't come in -- it's the one time of the year when everybody has something else they would rather be doing. But there seems to be a corresponding uptick in the psychiatric visits, and the chronic pain exacerbations seem to increase. Last night I saw six migraineurs -- triple or more what I would average. I wonder how much of this is due to the stress of the holiday season and how much is due to the fact that all the doctor's offices are closed. And since all the clinics are closed, the ED volume is about 30% more than on an average day. The acuity is higher than average, and the waiting room becomes an ugly place indeed.
Aftercare is a huge problem. There is a five day gap when all the clinics are closed and you cannot get anybody in for an urgent recheck or consultation. But (for once) patients are incredibly resistant to being admitted to the hospital -- as I said, they all have something else they would rather be doing. The worst thing is the relatively rare holiday tragedy -- be it a fatal MI or motor vehicle accident. Knowing that someone's holidays have just been ruined forever casts a pall over the entire ED. Fortunately, in the dozen or so christmases I have worked in the ED, I have seen only a few of those. Maybe I am just lucky.
Well, off to work. Happy holidays all.
23 December 2006
Holidays in the ER
I am lucky enough this year to be more or less off on the holiday. I work tonight, the 24th, from midnight to 8AM (technically the shift starts on the 23rd at 11:59PM, for clarity in scheduling). So while I am theoretically working christmas eve, I am actually off for the real eve of christmas. I am also off on christmas day.
Posted by shadowfax at 8:56 PM
3 comments:
May your shift tonight be quiet, and your holidays fun. Merry Christmas, doc.ReplyDelete
Merry Christmas! I hope your shift's quiet, too. I've decided to do a volunteer shift in my ED on Christmas evening, since people who are there then may be more than usually likely to appreciate a visit from a chaplain. I'm curious to see what it will be like, and I'm praying -- even more than usual -- for no deaths!ReplyDelete
Merry 'Hoikey' Christmas and all the very best for 2007 :)ReplyDelete


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I recently bought a 2012 airush protoy 135cm... great board and often over looked... but any one find this quite a slow board ? (in chop and flat water just seems a bit sluggish)
I was previously riding a 2009 airush xpact 132cm and the x-pact was way quicker, and much better bottom end. Probably due to the x-pact being a fair bit stiffer, the 2012 protoy is really flexible and has very bendy flex tips.
any other riders thoughts appreciated.. strangely my 132cm is now my low wind baord and the 135cm the high wind board
(weight = 82kg)


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Prepared Piano is an acclaimed avantgarde creation and turn a regular piano into a weird soundmachine. We did the weirdest and designed strange and dramatic sound scapes that now can be loaded into the Blofeld to make really otherworldly sounds. 40 one-shots and sustain-looped samples, 23 MB.
Complete content overview, click here:
Audio Track demo clip, click here:
System requirement Desktop version: License SL
Purchase directly from the developer
Copyright Klaus P. Rausch -Back In Time Records- Sound Research & Development. All rights reserved.
All prices incl. tax (MwSt.)
Shopsystem u. Shopsoftware von store-systems.de


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Bull testicle beer to be sold nationwide later this month
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A Colorado brewery that created a limited-run beer flavored with bull testicles for a beer festival is making the ballsy move to offer it all year round.
Wynkoop Brewing Company's Rocky Mountain Oyster Stout will now be sold nationwide in cans--available in (what else?) two-packs starting this month.
The Denver-based brewery first served the beer --originally meant as an April Fools' joke--at the Great American Beer Festival in Denver back in October. Made with 25 lbs of roasted bull gonads, the beer masters said they wanted to showcase a local delicacy --deep-fried bull testicles, also known as Rocky Mountain oysters.
People, well, went nuts for it. And soon you'll be able to try it for yourself.
Wynkoop spokesman Marty Jones told FoxNews.com the beer --which is currently available on tap at Wynkoop--will soon be available in cans in the Denver area. It will also be available through BeerJobber.com in about two weeks. The brewery hasn't nailed down a price, but Jones said that each two-pack will probably cost about $7-$8.
The idea to actually brew the bull testicle beer wasn't too much of a stretch for Wynkoop after a spoof video promoting the fictional beer made for April Fools' Day last year became a hit among brewers and bloggers. But getting it approved by the federal Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau wasn't so easy. After hitting some snags, the agency recently approved the brewery's label for the beer, which describes the brew as "a luscious, uniquely ballsy stout with notes of roasted barley, coffee and nuts."
"Initially, they wanted us to provide some information on bull testicles as a food additive," Jones told Westword. "I am not sure they were aware that bull testicles are an actual food and that they are a regional delicacy out West."
Jones said in an interview with FoxNews.com that Rocky Mountain Oyster Stout is both a delicious beverage and a way to make sure the brewery doesn't get bogged down by taking beer too seriously.
"We like to make sure to have a lot of fun on the job," Jones told FoxNews.com, "and this beer has brought a lot laughs."
Check out the spoof video that stared it all.


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Ive been meaning to write a WILD tutorial for some time now as i've had lots of questions from people who find themselves confused by the advanced technique. I have gathered all this info from plethora of WILD tutorials and will attempt to generalize the technique in a way that i hope is beneficial to beginners and advanced Oneironauts.
I've split this guide into four parts:
1. Induction Entry
2. Preparation/Prerequisites
3. WILD Induction
4. Exit Strategies
The Induction Entry and Exit Strategy parts represent the entry points of most traditional WILD techniques and also the possible outcomes of WILD attempts which you probably know yourself.
The Preparation/Prerequisite part contains tasks which everybody should perform before starting with WILD attempt. I will provide more details later on.
The WILD Induction part concentrates on what is common for each and every WILD attempt and shows some of the many variants of WILD. After exploring this part, you will no longer have problems with understanding many WILD techniques (hopefully!)
The Half dream state is an entry point for WILD attempt, just like a state when you are fully awake. Each and every WILD technique must take entry point into consideration. According to state of mind you are currently at, you have to/dont have to perform preparation steps, before performing attempt itself.
If you want to perform WILD, you simply have to prepare yourself for that attempt. Relaxation which is crucial to speed up the process of WILD and to reduce many of itches and scratches and twitches is very important. You may want to start with the 61-point relaxation method developed by Dr. LaBerge or even just breathing meditation perhaps combined with entrainment. Since most WILD attempt are performed after the WBTB technique your body shouldn't need extensive relaxation as your going ot be tired anyway.
When you are relaxed enough, you should start to move your attention from external into internal world. You probably read many tutorials, and each tutorial uses different methods to perform this attention switch. This, or that way. When you move deeper and deeper into yourself, your external senses dont disturb you in process and they are starting to shut down themselves. Many WILD techniques use tricks such as holding the eyes still, not moving at all, or listening to white noise/ Entrainment. Something, what causes external sensory deprivation. Many people use their own imagination to create internal bodies only to get rid of external stimuli. Some people just daydream and let their thoughts do the rest.
Concentrating on your inner self should be the first thing you make. Even if what you do is part of one of the later steps, first thing, that happens is, that you simply stop caring about your external body. Just let the external body go. Let the thoughts go.
All this moves your external attention inwards. Do it however you wish, just remember:
First relax, then sink deeper into yourself
The last part of preparation is setting an anchor. Anchor is something, what reminds you to remain conscious, when everything else collapses into unconsciousness. You can find out more about anchor by researching NLP and lucid dreaming websites. A lot of the tutorials use breathing, counting or mantras as an anchor. Just be aware, there is nothing magical about these aids. They are used only because we tend to fall asleep reasonably easily when falling asleep after relaxing.
Last step of the preparation is installing of the anchor. If you use counting, there is probably nothing to install, but if you use some suggestions, NLP aids or some sophisticated means of anchoring, you should at least reasure yourself, they will work. Once you install the anchor, you should let it do its work. If you think, feel, sense, that the anchor is not installed deeply enough, you should wait in this phase a little bit longer.
How do you know, that an anchor is not installed correctly? Thats simple. You are more concentrated on the anchor then on actual content of WILD method. Placebos work a treat here.
WILD Induction
Now. As you have prepared your body to fall asleep and your mind to remain aware within your sleeping body, you are ready to perform the technique you like. Just take whatever technique you like and perform the steps. Now, when you know, whats common for each technique, there is not much new in every single tutorial. Just the details about how to enter dream world. Pretty important details dont you think?
So which technique should you choose? Which is the best for the kind of personality you are? There are not as many types of WILD. So you dont have to try each technique to find out which technique suits you.
Probably the biggest difference between techniques is, whether you want to be active in process of dream world construction or not. Many people like to create dream scenes from scratch. This requires pretty delicate imagination power, and not everybody has the capacity to do that (at least not at the first time). There are also differences between people in terms of sensory channel they prefer to use. Simple way how to determine, which channel you are best at is taking a piece of text you wrote in the past and count words like see, hear, sense and find out which words do you use the most in your speech. This is pretty effective but in my opinion you wont need this, because you already subconsciously know, which channel you like most.
Your preferred sensory channel is used to determine which sense to use in active dream scene construction the most. If you are an audiophile, start creating your dream world from voices and sounds. If you are good with imagination, visualize stream of pictures. If you are good in sport, you should concentrate on your dream body the most.... I know you are getting what I mean . Don't use something you are not good at at first. The worse you are with sensory channel you would like to use for construction, the more willpower you will need and the less successful you will be. Don't worry if you are good only in one sense. As you construct the scene, another senses will improve in quality as the dream comes closer.
I wrote a lot about people, who want to be active in process of dream world construction. Yes that is interesting, but many people are not as good in visualization. There is a way to have wilds even if you are not good in visualization and that is the passive way. This way has only one rule. Wait, wait wait... And don't fall asleep (in the sense of becoming unconscious). You will get some kind of imagery or if not maybe some feeling or SP. Whatever. The same process as with active WILD happens also in passive WILD, but the scene which is created corresponds the scene of physical world.
Most important is not to fall asleep but to let your body drift off so it becomes almost unnoticeable. When the creative part of the the brain starts to work on its own. It starts to have its own inertia. I named it REM creative inertia for the sake of this WILD guide. This creative inertia is included in each and every guide you will read (even if only implicitly). This special inertia has one property of great use. It simply
.... Solidifies imagery
This creative inertia works like a miracle. You give the brain an idea and it automatically uses associations to construct sensory experience. And it constructs them using memory impressions stored within your brain.
Still. When the brain switches from external into internal world, this ability causes lots of problems. As it activates, there is one transition period when consciousness is very volatile and it is really easily caught by reality of created imagery. And as the ability provides tons of memory impressions, it is more and more intense as the dream nears. Here... you should use installed anchor to hold your consciousness in an attentive state. Also remember not to panic during SP and also enjoy the experience.
Recovery and Exit
In the beginning stages it is easy to become disheartened with WILD and give up. If you think you have failed always perform RCs as i have a numerous false awakenings after a 'failed WILD attempt'.
If you manage to retain consciousness during transition phase, REM inertia will fully solidify imagery and the scene will become solid enough for you to enter it. Still it is not easy not to wake up, or fall asleep within that scene. So first thing you have to do is to stabilize the dream itself and yourself within a dream. This is even more important if you didn't "construct" a dream body using active visualization
After Notes
I hope this will help those who are confused or struggling with this technique. I'll probably add to the tutorial in the future so any suggestions or comments are welcomed. Also if you have any questions please leave a comment or PM me and i'll try and get make to you ASAP.
Shade's WILD Tutorial
Discuss lucid dreaming techniques including dream recall, MILD, WILD, meditation and other ways of attaining lucidity in dreams.
5 posts • Page 1 of 1
Re: Shade's WILD Tutorial
Hypnos worshiper.
- Dreamsphere
- Posts: 36
- Joined: 15 May 2011 17:18
Re: Shade's WILD Tutorial
Gah, i am so close... I will post of my experienc tomorrow, for now it is late!
I am an Engineering student, and have yet to experience a lucid dream. Currently on break, I am hoping to try and master the technique as it will give me some peace during the busy school year. Any advice or links are appreciated. Feel free to pm me.
Re: Shade's WILD Tutorial
Shade that is a superb tutorial - very insightful! Thank you for sharing
Creator of World of Lucid Dreaming
and now Science Me
Creator of World of Lucid Dreaming
and now Science Me
Re: Shade's WILD Tutorial
Awesome tutorial!! Thanks very much for writing that up, Shade.
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Pine Tree Farm
Summer Menu Highlights
Introducing Our Tasty Summer Menu!
Our Summer has arrived and we have a dozen new dishes available to whet your appetite! We just know you'll love our Grilled Sea Bass Fillets, Lemon & Garlic Chicken and Giant Yorkshire Wrap, amongst others. Perfect for the summer months ahead. Our old favourites are still available too, so whether it's the Farmhouse Sharer you're after, or the signature carvery, there's sure to be something for everyone at the table.
So what are you waiting for? Book a table today and come and sample it for yourself.
The Ultimate Ploughman's
Hand-carved gammon, a home-baked sausage roll and wedges of Stilton and Cheddar cheese served with pickled onion chutney, homemade coleslaw, pickled onion, apple, a salad garnish and a cottage loaf with butter
Lemon & Garlic Chicken
Lemon & garlic glazed roasted half chicken, served with seasoned chips, corn on the cob, homemade coleslaw, salad garnish and lemon & garlic sauce
Grilled Sea Bass Fillets†
2 sea bass fillets on a bed of crushed baby potatoes, with a warm dressing made from cherry tomato, lemon, fresh basil, red onion & olive oil
Giant Yorkshire Wrap
Filled with hand-carved beef, crispy onions and rich gravy. Our wrap is served warm with roast potatoes, a jug of gravy and a pot of horseradish sauce
Farmhouse Sharer
4 garlic breaded button mushrooms, 2 southern-fried chicken goujons, 4 chicken wings, garlic ciabatta, 4 onion rings, spicy potato wedges and nachos topped with salsa, sour cream and jalapeños, served with sweet chilli, Texan BBQ and garlic mayonnaise dips
Ultimate Carvery
Our large plate plus our famous giant Yorkie and 2 pigs-in-blankets
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Hungry for more?
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November 17, 2011
Illinois College will bring its explosive offense to Crawfordsville Saturday to test Wabash's often-dominating defense. The first-round NCAA Division 3 playoff appearance is the first ever for the Blueboys. Saturday's game is the sixth Little Giant playoff berth since 2002.
The 9-1 Blueboys are the first at-large representative from the Midwest Conference. Their only loss was a drubbing at the hands of conference champion Monmouth. The 10-0 Little Giants are on a roll after clinching the North Coast Athletic Conference championship over Wittenberg then crushing rival DePauw a week ago.
Kickoff is at noon Saturday on the Wabash campus. Tickets are $8 to the NCAA event. No passes will be honored for this game.
The Blueboys are led by freshman quarterback Michael Bates. The Auburn, Ill, student completed 62 percent of his passes for nearly 3,000 yards and 28 touchdowns. He has run for almost 500 yards and scored four touchdowns rushing.
"He has been fantastic," Wabash Coach Erik Raeburn said. "He's really athletic and has really helped them in the run game as well. They have been able to have really good balance on offense; they have averaged about 200 yards on the ground and 300 yards passing per game, so they have been dynamic on that side of the football this season."
For the Little Giants, it all starts with stopping the run. "We have played our best when we have limited teams rushing the football; that will be true this week, too. If they are able to have balance, you are in big trouble. First and foremost, we have to do a good job against the run; slow their tailback down and not let their quarterback gash us for any big runs. If we are able to do that, then we have a chance to change up our coverages and come with some pressure to try and affect the passing game."
IC averages 41 points a game but has allowed opponents to score 32. The mismatch shows up on Wabash's side of the ledger. The Little Giants score at a 34-a-game clip, but have allowed an average of just 10 points. The Little Giant D has allowed five rushing touchdowns and six passing scores all season.
Blueboy Coach Garrett Campbell recognized the Little Giant defense was going to be a challenge. "They're big, they're strong and fast and they blitz the heck out of the quarterback. We've got to be able to protect the quarterback. We've to go get some completions."
Last week against DePauw in the Monon Bell Classic, the Little Giant offense disappeared but the defense dominated, scoring 28 of the 45 points.
"DePauw is very good on defense," Raeburn said. "In the second and third quarters, we were going into the wind and the wind was significant, so we just had to try and run the football and not attempt too many passes. We felt like the only way for them to get back into the game was for us to be stupid and turn the ball over. We felt the best chance to not do that was to run the football and if they stopped us, hopefully we could get a good punt offense and let our defense go back out there.
"Were we happy offensively after the game? I'm not sure we played fantastic on offense, but we didn't turn the ball over. At the end of the first quarter, it was 24-0, so in the second and third quarters, with the wind, it just made sense with the way our defense was playing to play conservatively on offense."
But Raeburn knows his club will have to be better offensively this week playing a team that can score a lot of points in a hurry. He hopes playoff intensity will bring out the best in his team on both sides of the ball.
"We will be playing three emotional games in a row and you are due for a letdown. It's hard to keep getting up like that. But sometimes, having big games against good opponents can keep you sharp. You become used to playing against tough competition. If we played some lesser teams and had some lopsided games the last few weeks and our guys weren't playing a lot, you can get sloppy and lose your edge. So it could be a disadvantage, but I kind of think it's an advantage to play that sort of game to get your team used to that environment."
Illinois College, in Jacksonville, has similar enrollment to Wabash. The three-and-half hour drive is less than the Blueboys take for some of their regular conference road games. IC has planned at least one fan bus for its students.
The Blueboys will spend part of that ride to Indiana worrying about what to do with Wes Chamblee. Teams have kicked to him this year and paid with big returns. Allegheny went to great lengths to kick away from the South Bend senior and gave up significant field position.
Blueboy Coach Campbell has already expressed concerns about dealing with the talented Little Giant, calling him "Devin Hester" like. Chicago Bear Hester is the NFL's premier return man. Chamblee has returned three punts for touchdowns this year, including one last week. Chamblee averages nearly 23 yards per punt return. He also has a kickoff return for a touchdown.
"I can't believe that there would be a better kick returner in Division III than Wes," Raeburn said. "We feel like every time he touches the ball, he has the chance to take it the distance. In the passing game, we didn't throw many passes last week, but I know the defense was worried about him, and that helps us in the running game."
The other big intangible in a playoff game is playing an opponent you know little about. Wabash and IC last played in 1950. The Blueboys have never participated in a playoff game. Wabash defeated the only Midwest Conference school it has played in post-season competition, a 42-7 win over MacMurray College in 2002.
"They haven't played anyone who is very similar to us, and I'm sure they are watching our film and thinking that we haven't played anyone who is like them," Raeburn said. "There is some uncertainty there on how they will try to defend us or what they will do offensively to attack us."
One of the nation's best offensive attacks versus one of Division 3's best defenses should be quite a show for a big Hollett Little Giant Stadium crowd.


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So far, we've only seen Google Glass in its lensless frame — not incredibly friendly for the hoards of prescription-glass-wearing nerds among us. But Google's finally quelled their biggest fear with today's announcement:
The Glass design is modular, so you will be able to add frames and lenses that match your prescription.
Unfortunately, this version still won't be available with the initial Explorer Edition. But we should be seeing myopic folk with Glass attached to their frames, just like our friend above with an actual prototype, by the end of the year. [Google Plus via The Next Web]


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Azarenka cruises; Mattek-Sands stuns Li at rainy French Open
Paris, France – Former world No. 1 Victoria Azarenka was an easy second-round winner, while American Bethanie Mattek-Sands stunned former champion Li Na in Thursday's action at a rain-plagued French Open.
The third-seeded Azarenka handled young German Annika Beck 6-4, 6-3 on Court Lenglen. The shrieking Belarusian star is the reigning Australian Open champion and was last year's U.S. Open runner-up.
Up next for Azarenka will be French crowd favorite Alize Cornet.
Meanwhile, the oft-injured Minnesota native Mattek-Sands recorded the biggest win of her career by dousing the sixth-seeded Li in 5-7, 6-3, 6-2 fashion in 2 hours, 16 minutes on Court 1 at Stade Roland Garros.
The 67th-ranked Mattek-Sands won seven straight games at one point to grab a commanding 5-0 lead in the final set on yet another wet, chilly day in Paris.
"She's a champion, and I had to play some of my best tennis ever to beat her," Mattek-Sands said. "I'm really proud of myself that I was able to close out the match the way I did."
The 31-year-old Li refused to make any excuses after the loss.
"I know for sure that I don't normally lose seven games in a row," she said. "It was very tough conditions, coming back to the court three times. But for both players it was the same.
"I should find out what happened and I'll talk to myself, my team to see what happened."
The 28-year-old Mattek-Sands posted the fourth top-10 win of her career and her second of 2013. She upset 2012 French Open runner-up Sara Errani on some red clay in Stuttgart last month.
Li was this year's Aussie Open runner-up to Azarenka and captured the lone Grand Slam title of her career at the 2011 French Open.
Second-seeded and defending champion Maria Sharapova was leading promising Canadian Eugenie Bouchard 6-2, 4-2 when play was halted on Day 5.
Rain interrupted the tennis several times on Thursday, forcing the suspension or postponement of five women's singles matches.
The former No. 1 Sharapova completed a career Grand Slam by titling here a year ago, including a victory over Errani in the final.
Seventh-seeded former Wimbledon champ Petra Kvitova improved to 7-1 in her last two trips to the French Open with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over last week's Brussels runner-up Peng Shuai of China, while ninth-seeded former Roland Garros finalist Sam Stosur reached the third round with a 6-4, 6-3 handling of France's Kristina Mladenovic. The former U.S. Open champion Stosur was the runner-up here three years ago.
Sloane Stephens, seeded 17th at this fortnight, improved to 7-1 in Grand Slam action this year with a workmanlike 6-1, 6-3 spanking of fellow American Vania King, while 18th-seeded former world No. 1 Jelena Jankovic of Serbia drubbed Spaniard Garbine Muguruza 6-3, 6-0 to reach the round of 32.
"I know that when I'm healthy and free of injuries I'm still capable of playing great tennis," said Jankovic, a former U.S. Open runner-up.
She will meet Stosur on Saturday.
In other action involving seeds, New Zealand's Marina Erakovic upended No. 16 Dominika Cibulkova of the Slovak Republic 6-2, 2-6, 6-4, Argentine Paula Ormaechea took out No. 27 Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan 6-4, 7-6 (8-6), and a No. 31 Cornet dispensed Spaniard Silvia Soler-Espinosa 6-1, 6-3. Cornet is fresh off her clay-court title in Strasbourg, France. Erakovic will encounter Stephens, while Ormaechea will face Mattek-Sands in an unlikely third-rounder on Saturday.
Also, American Jamie Hampton beat Slovak Anna Schmiedlova 7-5, 6-2 and Chinese Zheng Jie leveled American Melanie Oudin 6-3, 6-1. The 23-year-old Hampton is rewarded with a third-rounder against the formidable Kvitova.
Twelfth-seeded Russian Maria Kirilenko was tied with Aussie Ashleigh Barty 3-3 in the opening set and last week's Brussels champion Kaia Kanepi of Estonia was ahead of Swiss Stefanie Voegele 6-5 in the first set when play was called for the day.
The third round will get underway Friday, including matches for world No. 1 Serena Williams, fourth-seeded Wimbledon runner-up Agnieszka Radwanska and a fifth-seeded Errani. The 15-time Grand Slam singles titlist Williams will take on 26th-seeded Romanian Sorana Cirstea, while Radwanska will meet German Dinah Pfizenmaier and Errani will be opposed by 32nd-seeded German Sabine Lisicki.
The red-hot 31-year-old Williams, the 2002 French Open champion, is currently riding a 26-match winning streak and is 69-3 overall since suffering a shocking first-round loss at the hands of French journeywoman Virginie Razzano at last year's French Open.
Williams and her older sister Venus were forced to pull out of the doubles draw, as Venus is nursing a sore back. The mighty sisters were seeded 12th at this fortnight and are two-time French Open champions (1999, 2010).


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Marvel Tales
Marvel Tales was a literary fanzine devoted to science fiction and fantasy writing published in the 1930s by William Crawford.
William Crawford lived in Everett, Pennsylvania, U.S.A., where he owned his own letterpress and would print his fanzines one page at a time. Marvel Tales were issued with coloured covers and on varying paper stock. The first issue was 40 stapled pages.
Contributors included August Derleth, George Allen England, John Benyon Harris, Lovell Hert, Robert E. Howard, David H. Keller, Amelia Reynold Lon, Clifford D. Simak, and Natalie H. Wooley.
Most notably Marvel Tales was the publisher of several H. P. Lovecraft stories, beginning with the very first issue, which appeared in May 1934. As well, William Crawford was the sole publisher of the only book of Lovecraft's work to appear in his lifetime.


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Dolphins defensive captain Karlos Dansby was on my radio show, Armando and the Amigo, this week. It was interesting, at least to me, on several levels. Consider:
Dansby was asked if the Minnesota backfield that includes Brett Favre and Adrian Peterson is the best the Dolphins will face this year: "It's one of them. We're going to face a lot of them. We're looking forward to the challenge. We're not scared. It's going to be a big task for us, but like I say, we're taking it as a challenge."Dansby was asked if the Dolphins will go after Favre (and hurt him) the way the Saints did in the NFC championship game last year. "The Saints put the blueprint out there. You can't look away from that. You have to get pressure on him and confuse him. Otherwise he'll pick you apart."
I asked Dansby if the sack he had against Buffalo last week is a sign of things to come. "I'm definitely going to collect more. It's going to be a lot like the other night -- I came untouched."
I told Dansby I therefore expect 10 sacks from him. Yeah, that sounds good to me.
"I expect 10 myself this year," he said.
The audio for the interview is right here:
Armando and the Amigo can be heard every Monday thru Friday at 6-10 a.m. on 640-AM in South Florida.


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Cornerback Darrelle Revis will be on the field when the Buccaneers hold their first practice of training camp on Thursday.
Whether or not he'll be on the field when the team plays preseason games is another question, however. While confirming that Revis is going to participate in practice on Thursday, coach Greg Schiano said that the team is still figuring out whether the individualized plan the team has designed for Revis as he returns from last year's torn ACL includes any action in the exhibition season.
"I haven't decided yet," Schiano said, via JoeBucsFan.com.
The Vikings provided a blueprint for getting a player coming off an ACL tear ready for the regular season without any preseason action with running back Adrian Peterson last year, so it's not too unusual to hear the Bucs considering the same route. While no two injuries are exactly the same, the goal of having a player at game speed without undue risk of a setback is identical as are many of the concerns about Revis' ability to cut on his rehabbed knee.
We'd expect the issue to come up again once the Bucs have had a chance to see Revis practice, but there's a strong chance that Revis' first action as a member of the Bucs will come against his old Jets mates in the first week of the season.