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Express. Home of the Daily and Sunday Express.
Aguero out for a month
Manchester City top scorer Sergio Aguero is expected to be out for a month with a hamstring injury, manager Manuel Pellegrini has announced.
The Argentina striker hobbled off during City's 5-1 Barclays Premier League win at Tottenham on Wednesday.
Pellegrini said: "The doctor is seeing him - maybe one month, but we are not sure absolutely."
The injury will rule Aguero, who has scored 26 goals this season, out of the first leg of City's Champions League last-16 tie against Barcelona as well as Premier League and FA Cup games against Chelsea.
The match at White Hart Lane had been Aguero's fifth since returning from a month-long lay-off with a calf injury.
Yet with City having scored 115 goals in all competitions this term, Pellegrini is confident his team can overcome his absence.
He said: "It is very difficult. Sergio is a top player for us but I think we can replace him.
"As with the other injury, we hope we can continue to do it.
"But, of course, he is a very important player for us.
"Sergio is just coming back from an injury - one month that he couldn't play.
"All the other strikers, Alvaro Negredo, Edin Dzeko and now Stevan Jovetic, replace him."
Pellegrini, speaking at a press conference to preview Monday's Premier League game against Chelsea, gave little away about the possibility of making new signings before the transfer deadline.
City have been heavily linked with a late move for the Porto pair of defender Eliaquim Mangala and midfielder Fernando.
Pellegrini did not rule out deals but did not wish to discuss them.
He said: "For the moment - sorry - no news, but I promise tomorrow you will know all about it."
On the matter of players leaving, Pellegrini was similarly unmoved.
"Same thing," he said.
Defender Joleon Lescott has been the subject of speculation linking him with West Ham.
When asked if any business at all might be likely, Pellegrini said: "Business maybe, a lot of business - but no news."


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By PSXHAX on Mar 8, 2018: #1Following JKPatch / MemView, the NetCheat API and PS4 Cheater homebrew application we've seen a resulting PS4 Game-Modding Offsets Drop thread... but today JDsnyke kicked things up a notch initiating a free PS4 Cheat List on Github for PlayStation 4 game modders to share their findings with the community!
Download: PS4-Cheat-List-master.zip / GIT / PSXCheatList.tk
Hopefully others will join in and fork it pushing current changes, and to quote from the README.md in part: PS4 Cheat Code / Offset List
List of PS4 cheat codes / offsets found for either PS4Cheater or NetCheatPS4
All codes belong to their respective owners. I am merely gathering them here for ease of use.
I do not and cannot guarantee the accuracy nor the reliability of either these programs / software nor of these codes / offsets.
I nor the original publishers of these codes are to be blamed for any issues that arise with their use.
In other words, USE AT YOUR OWN RISK!
Original threads found here, here and here on the psxhax forum.
I will update at my pace. What I have here is mostly incomplete and untested.
Feel free to Fork and maintain your own versions. (Or even Push your Changes!)
Thanks to @Shurikan117 for the heads-up HERE on this collaboration project!
Page 19 of 46

subset: commoncrawl


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This is a 10m ST (male) to ST (male) aqua duplex riser-rated fiber patch cable. An OM4 cable has a core size of 50µm microns that supports 10 Gigabit Ethernet at lengths measuring up to 550 meters, and 100 Gigabit Ethernet measuring up to 150 meters and is reverse compatible with OM3. This optical fiber, nonconductive, riser (OFNR) cable is best suited for use in interior fiber-optic applications. A duplex cable is a two-strand fiber optic patch cable that works best with transceivers that both transmit and receive. Our patch cables are 100% compliant for all of your networking needs. Our products are guaranteed by federal law to not affect or void OEM warranties.
Product Details
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|Patch Cable
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|Fiber Optic
|2 x ST/UPC multi-mode - male
|Connector (Second End)
|2 x ST/UPC multi-mode - male
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|2 x ST Male Network
|Connector on Second End
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|Core / Cladding Diameter
|50 / 125 micron
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|50/125 µm
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|Network Device; Patch Panel; Media Converter; Router; Hub; Switch
|Fiber Optic Mode
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|32.81 ft.
|Type of Fiber Optics
|warranty length
|limited lifetime
|Weight (Approximate)
|6.40 oz
|Show More ▾


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On Friday, November 29th, 2013 and Monday, December 2nd, 2013, millions of consumers will get ready to reach into their pockets and shop till they drop - or can't stand the glare from the screens of their electronic devices any longer - whichever comes first.
As the countdown to two of the biggest grossing holiday dates begins, Black Friday and Cyber Monday respectively, you're going to want to get your online store ready and get prepared for the online blitz.
Just how big of a deal is it? Well, let's put it in perspective.
In 2012, Black Friday online sales surpassed $1 billion in the first time in history, with 57.3 million Americans visiting at minimum one online store that day. Not be outdone, it's not-so-distant cousin Cyber Monday 2012 shattered previous online shopping records by a landslide with roughly $1.5 billion in online sales.
Shopify merchants were especially busy those days selling nearly 200,000 products on Black Friday and doubled that with 420,000 products on Cyber Monday where we were processing 124 sales per second as a platform, with exceptional uptime thanks to our performance and operation team.
Here's a nifty little graph from Deepfield that shows how our Shopify merchants put up a good fight last year and held their own with the best of them, including the likes of Amazon, eBay, and Zappos.
Excited yet? Okay, here are some tips to have your store optimized for the upcoming holidays.
1. Offer Black Friday & Cyber Monday Discounts
This should probably be on the top of your holiday store optimization checklist. Consumers flock to shopping online on Black Friday and Cyber Monday specifically for the actual or perceived discounts that they're told to expect on those days.
So, if you want to take advantage of shoppers with their eyes on bargain, you'll have to provide discounts that rival top retailers to draw their attention. It's also a precursor to taking advantage of all the other tips in the post.
2. Have a Countdown To Signal Anticipation and Scarcity
Holiday seasons and countdowns go together like peanut butter and jelly. Have you ever celebrated New Years without one?
Well, the same should go for every other major holiday, especially those on which the general consumer market tends to splurge on online purchases.
There's also something about missing out on something that is a proven and potent trigger behind the psychological influence of creating scarcity in the minds of consumers. So get people excited about what you have to offer.
Amazon definitely knows the magic behind having a countdown ticker and prominently one on their site. You can add your own with the Product Discount app from the Shopify App Store.
3. Learn From Last Year's Analytics
The closest you can get to anticipating the future is taking a look back and using last year's numbers as benchmarks you can add or subtract from. Take advantage of both your ecommerce and web analytics to have a sound idea of everything from what deals and discounts worked last year to how much inventory you should have in stock this year.
Fortune favors the bold, but it also rewards folks who are prepared.
4. Own Your Email Marketing Strategy
Want to know how shoppers heard about all those awesome discounts and deals you're planning on offering? According to research by Monetate, email clearly comes out as the winner.
However, why stop at just your holiday deals. You should also keep in mind the importance of other transactional emails that alert your prospective or current customers about everything from shopping cart abandonment to order confirmations.
5. Take Advantage of the Increased Traffic by Collecting Emails
Let's face it, the holiday season is great, but you're going to want to keep the momentum going after things start to die down. One surefire way to do just that is to collect your email addresses from your visitors to build both a responsive and profitable ecommerce mailing list. Once you have a list going, think about leveraging it to your utmost advantage.
Some ideas to get you started are following up with first time customers to get feedback on your website and products, asking them to share their purchase on social media in the order confirmation or receipt email. You can also ask them to connect with you on all the social channels in which you're active to keep the conversation going well after the holiday craze ends.
6. Offer Free Shipping
What if I were to tell you that consumers preferred free shipping worth $6.99 in savings over a $10 product discount? Sounds bizarre, but that's exactly what a professor at the Wharton School of Business found in a study.
Here's a look at Target's free shipping offer:
You can experiment with the total threshold a consumer reaches before qualifying for free shipping, but some data crunching from comScore found that when Amazon had it's threshold set at $49, the average purchase quantity was 3.31, however, when they lowered it $25, the average purchase quantity was only 2.53. Which means you'll want to offer shoppers a sweet deal, but make them stretch enough to make sure it's profitable for you.
Amazon recently changed it's online shipping to be free over $35, which might be a good starting point to consider.
7. Add Live Chat
With so many eager shoppers dying to get their hands on your products and take advantage of your Black Friday or Cyber Monday deals, you can bet they'll be overly antsy and have tons of questions to ask. Which is why even if you don't have live support year round as a smaller online merchant, you should certainly consider it for the busy holiday season.
Vielle+Frances does a fantastic job with a live support window that you can pop up throughout their site. Want to add your own? The Shopify App Store has multiple live chat integration options, including Olark, LiveChat, and UserPulse.
Bonus: Offer Gift Cards to Spread the Holiday Love
According to a survey conducted by the National Retail Federation, 81% of Americans will buy at least one gift card during the holidays. In fact, roughly 70% of customers who are on the receiving end of gift cards and use them, will spend more than the value on the card. Talk about a win-win situation.
Giving visitors to your online store the option to purchase a gift card for their loved ones is a sure fire way to take part in the season of giving and to give your sales a boost at the same time.
With these tips in mind you can be sure that you'll be making the most of the upcoming holiday season. If you have others tips you'd like to share for how to optimize an ecommerce store for Black Friday and Cyber Monday, please let us know by commenting below.


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Category: Limousine
Renting Limo Service in NJ
The next time if you want to travel to any destination, you must think about traveling in style and provides nothing highly comfortable and stylish travel than a limousine. Large number of people think that getting a limo services NJ is done only by the rich. In fact, anyone can can consider hiring a limousine by not worrying about its cost. Just you have to find a good service provider based on your needs and they will further help you with your wants.
Luxurious but not Expensive:
A limo service , lot of people think that it is a luxurious manner of traveling and it is costly. The luxurious method of traveling is true, but it is not costly. Actually renting a limo service NJ is the cost effective way of traveling in comfort and style. A normal limousine can have space to take seven to eleven persons without any difficulty.
Trained Drivers:
Limousines are driven by a licensed and trained experts who know about the rules and regulations and so they do not exceed the speed limit. So you must be sure that you will attain your location safely. You can also tell the driver to drive the vehicle slowly if you think that he is driving fast. Limousines are harder vehicles hence they have the capacity to withstand any accident and so can take passenger to the interested place without any injury.
Travel in High Class:
Hiring a limo service NJ for traveling to one place is the best method because it is vehicle of style and class, offers good impression on friends, clients. It is not important to own a limo to attract people. Just search online to get the best limo rental service providers. You will get different options, pick the good one after making some research like the experience, training for the driver, license and reputation. If you check all these you will be able to choose a best limo service in NJ. The one which you choose should suit your budget also.
Know your Need:
You can hire a limousine to pick certain important client or guest from the airport. The drivers who drive the vehicles are experienced, trained and well mannered. More over they are also equipped with different modern system like GPS, hence they know the routes of the particular city. Choosing a limo model is depend on the number of passenger and the services that are needed. You can check in the limo fleet provided by the limo rental service provider.It offers information about the different types of vehicles and the conditions. A perfect fleet is a assurance of good service.
Most of the limo service NJ provide the standard amenities that has a stocked bar,plush leather interiors, video and audio systems and laser lights. Limousine make the special event memorable with its luxury, class and exclusivity. It can include sparkle to any program like prom, wedding, birthday, bachelor parties or picking up any VIP from the airport. Limo service are an essential part of business transportation and are availed to serve business customers and top executives.


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Item #: ID3994
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|Roma (Lombard) falls prey to a phony medium (Dinehart) who promises to call up the spirit of her recently murdered twin brother. At the same moment of the seance a murderess dies in the electric chair and her body is used in Dr. Houston's (Warner) life-after-death experiment. Too bad Roma becomes possessed by the woman's evil spirit. Now the doctor and Roma's fiance (Scott) must undo the curse. A hokey B-grade movie disliked by Lombard.
|Directed by:
|Victor Halperin
|Albert Haperin, Victor Halperin, Paramount Pictures.
|Carole Lombard, Randolph Scott, H.B. Warner, Alan Dinehart, Vivienne Osborne, Beryl Mercer, William Farnum, Willard Robertson


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8 tips for being a successful police family
The wife of a recently appointed police officer turned to Quora for advice on what to expect now that her husband has joined the law enforcement world. The forum flooded with credited responses and advice from current and former police officers of varying ranks. Below is a selection of the best pieces of advice given by Quora members.
1. Talk about how much you want to share about the job
You'll have to decide, and relate, how much you're comfortable with knowing and not knowing. Are you going to expect a digest of every shift no matter how mundane, or do you only want a heads up if he's going to be on the news? If he has a close call with something that ends up okay, do you want to know or not want to know? There are defensible arguments for either side, but he won't know if you don't tell him. This will save him a lot of guilt and second guessing when you ask, "How was your day?" – Justin Freeman, former patrol officer
2. Discuss with whom you will share the knowledge of his/her police status
Philosophies run the gamut here - some officers don't seem to care if the entire galaxy knows what they do, while others zealously guard the fact they're a cop and don't willingly disclose this fact to anyone. Your decision is yours, but I erred toward being a bit guarded - I didn't advertise my occupation on Facebook, tried to make sure photographs there had limited distribution, and tried to think twice before bringing my job up in conversation. If you decide to be guarded, answering a question about employment with "he works for the [city, county, etc.]" is a truthful out. The goal is to make sure one of you isn't obtuse with the same person the other's open with. – Justin Freeman, former patrol officer
3. Decide how much off-duty work is permissible.
Depending on where your husband works, there may be opportunities for him to work off-duty or overtime gigs. Some of them can be fairly lucrative, so you need to establish early what the balance will be here - how many hours a month is acceptable? What's the cut-off where the time away isn't worth it, no matter the pay? Obviously you needn't be constrained by your own parameters if you discuss a specific situation later, but it would help if you both had a general idea of what your needs and desires are here. Bonus Tip: Don't formulate budgets or develop spending habits that require overtime work - if he works overtime, every dime should be butter, totally discretionary. – Justin Freeman, former patrol officer
4. Have an off-duty carry plan
Some cops carry their guns 24/7, others leave them in their work lockers. If your husband is one of those who prepares for the worst when off duty, encourage him to include you in his tactical planning. If, God forbid, he was to engage someone in a public place, what will you and the kids be doing? Will you know to take cover, or stay behind him, or leave by the most direct exit? Are you supposed to call 9-1-1 on his behalf? Do you know what to tell them if you do (including the off-duty cop's physical description, clothing, and department affiliation can make the difference between a coordinated apprehension and a blue-on-blue tragedy)? The critical thing is that you will have discussed this in advance, and he will know what you are or should be doing while he is otherwise occupied. – Tim Dees, Retired cop and P1 columnist
5. Get used to unusual hours / going to events on your own
You have a right to demand that your family/marriage come first, but know that sometimes his hands will be tied. He will get called in to work unexpectedly, or have to stay longer than expected. There will be last minute arrests, accidents, reports, interviews. Learn to go to birthday parties, holiday parties or weddings alone. It is part of the job of being an officer's wife. When he's working midnights, get used to being alone in the house at night. (A German Shepherd is a great family addition.) – Rick Bruno, Former police commander
6. Embrace other police families
Attend department functions ( like Christmas parties or picnics). Get to know the families of the other officers he is working with. They can be a big resource for you, and you for them. – Rick Bruno, Former police commander
7. Don't be afraid to ask for help
There is no shame in crying. There is no shame in counseling with someone. It takes a very strong person to be honest with himself and know what his limitations are. It is often the weak and fearful who put up a strong front and deny their hurt. – William Bolt, Police Sergeant
8. Be confident in the strength of your relationship
It is not all doom and gloom. As high as the divorce rate may be in law enforcement there are also many families who do just fine. The unique nature of the job and its inherent stresses may make things a little tougher but a good relationship will cruise right by these hardships and endure. – Roger Curtiss, Retired Detective


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Get Ringz and turn your brain blubber into beefcake! By harnessing the awesome power of spinning disks, sliding rows, and shiny balls, we have created the ultimate mental work out machine. So throw away that expensive university membership – now you can get the brain you've always wanted from the comfort of your iPhone!
Ringz is the latest brainercise machine from the mind jocks at Urbian, Inc. With this simple but elegant app, you can mold your mental muscle and become a master of spatial manipulation. Your goal is to move a number of randomly placed colored balls into a specified pattern. The balls are located on a board composed of three moving rings, one static center ring, and one slider that allows the player to shift the balls between the different rings. By rotating the three moving rings and using the slider, the player moves the colored balls from their starting position to the position of the desired pattern. But of course, getting to the right position isn't everything – the truly brilliant will be able to do so using the least number of moves possible. The early levels are easy, but don't get cocky, the later levels are guaranteed to make your synapses quiver and your neurons sweat. Get Ringz and turn your brain blubber into beefcake!


text: MainSports & GamesHandball Listen HandballThis page draws together handball-related information for all of Special Olympics. The coaching materials and other links will help you get a good sense of how this sport contributes to Special Olympics. StoriesEventsGames About This PageHandball is a physical and fast sport of intense physical contact, with shots being thrown at speeds approaching 100 km per hour. It is played indoors on a 40m x 20m court with seven players (one goalkeeper + six court), which speeds up the game even more. The object is to score more goals than the opponents by throwing the ball into a D-shaped net. Handball athletes are known for their speed, agility, physical strength and stamina.About This PageSpecial Olympics focuses on the individuality of each athlete so that coaches can train and encourage growth in skills and accomplishment. The coaching materials, rules and other resources on this page have been specially prepared for coaches working with people with intellectual disabilities. Coaching Special Olympics athletes calls for the same skills and experience that many coaches are familiar with. The extra information in our coaching guides about working with people with ID is what makes our materials helpful and valuable.


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This Application collects some Personal Data from its Users.
Allows the Owner to retrieve some basic information from your Facebook profile.
Send emails
Publish content to the Wall.
Permissions: Email; Publish to the Wall
Personal Data: address; company name; country; date of birth; email address; fax number; first name; gender; last name; phone number; profession; province; state
Personal Data: Cookies; Usage Data
Personal Data: Cookies; Usage Data
Personal Data: various types of Data as specified in the privacy policy of the service
Owner contact email: firstname.lastname@example.com


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Filed under: update | Tags: anarchy, anti-globalization era, egoism, insurrectionary, italian anarchists, practice, projectuality, venomous butterfly, willful disobedience, wolfi landstreicher
Ardent press is compiling texts from various issues of the influential insurrectionary anarchist journal Willful Disobedience edited by Wolfi Landstreicher which is to be published as a book. Wolfi's writing has been very foundational for the development of insurrectionary ideas and practice within the US, by either introducing texts by Italians (who had been writing and thinking through these ideas since the 70s) and others that he translated through the Venomous Butterfly project or with his own personal egoist influenced writings which offered critique as a massive unshackling from the chains of vapid anti-corporatism and activist practices (among other things) that were dominant and a holdover from the anti-globalization era.
We'll be ordering and getting them in as soon as their available.
Here's the introduction from the first volume:
"Willful Disobedience is intended to express ideas that are part of my life projectuality. It is an explicitly anarchic project in the sense that it opposes to every form of authority with the self-determination of individuals who refuse all domination; it is insurrectionary in its recognition that authority must be attacked and destroyed as an essential part of the project of creating our lives for ourselves based upon our desires. That means that this project is not a forum for democratic dialogue in which all ideas are equal and therefore equally vapid … The understanding of anarchic insurgence underlying this project is as follows:
Within the present social context our lives as individuals have been made alien to us, because society creates interactions and activities for us which are not based on the singularity of our unconstrained dreams and desires, but only serve the continuing reproduction of society by channeling the energy of desire into that reproduction through a variety of institutions and systems which integrate to form civilized society: the state, capital, work, technology, religion, education, ideology, law … Opposition to this begins when we as individuals rise up in willful disobedience and recognize the necessity of attacking and destroying all institutions of domination, not as a cause, but for ourselves, because we want to create our own games…"


text: On Wed, Apr 02, 2008 at 03:04:28PM -0700, Jon Forrest wrote: > But, the question remains. How can Microsoft compete with free? > How much better will they have to be than standard Linux > clusters before they get any mainstream interest? What technical > features could they add that couldn't be added to a Linux > cluster? The thing to remember is that a cluster (even one running "free" -- as in beer -- software) is not without cost. Apart from hardware, licenses (if required), etc., a business will also have to find (and pay) someone to build and maintain the cluster. A former co-worker of mine now works elsewhere, at a company where they are looking to build a cluster for some research he will be doing, and it will almost certainly run Windows. And this is not because there is something "better" about Windows, but because they are a Windows shop, and thus the cost of hiring or training staff would more than outweigh any savings on licenses. -- Greg Byshenk - gbyshenk at byshenk.net - Leiden, NL


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Rhode Island News Team Discovers Dangerous 'New' Drinking Game Called Beer Pong [VIDEO]
A local news team in Providence, Rhode Island recently uncovered a "new" drinking game that is sweeping across New England and could bring an end to higher education as we know it. It's called "Beer Pong."
That's right, folks. The I-Team (about as relevant as the A-Team) uncovered this new fangled game that involves two teams of two players each throwing a spherical, lightweight apparatus from the future called a 'ping pong ball' into cups filled with cheap domestic beer. If this 'ping pong ball' lands in the opponents' cup, players have to….gasp…drink the cup's contents until none remain!
Oh, the horror! Sound the alarm! Get your children out of college and hide them in the basement until this all blows over.
Coming up next, the I-Team investigates the dangers of Friendster.
[Via NBC10]


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A 46-year-old woman is facing charges after state police say she stole the identity of a victim and made tens of thousands of dollars in purchases.
Troopers from the Poughkeepsie barracks received a complaint in November of 2017 of fraudulent credit cards being opened and used in the victim's name. After a two-month investigation, LaGrange resident Laura Quinn was found to have opened the accounts and made purchases totaling in excess of $30,000, police said.
Quinn was arrested on Tuesday, Jan. 9 and charged with identity theft in the first degree and grand larceny in the third degree, both class D felonies, and one count of attempted identity theft In the first degree, a Class E felony.
Quinn was arraigned before the town of LaGrange Court and released on her own recognizance. Quinn is next scheduled to appear before the court on Tuesday, Jan. 16.
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Scrapp Deleon (Dolla's Lil Brother) - My Big Brother Dolla [R.I.P Dolla]
Scrapp Deloen (Dolla's lil brother)- My Big Brother Dolla. R.I.P To Dolla
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text:
Story by
Curt Brown
At the end of a feverish fifth year, it's easy to paint North Dakota's oil portrait by numbers: Production is inching toward a million barrels a day, up seven times what it was in 2008.
Thousands of workers have poured in to staff 200 rigs, drilling 2 miles deep to tap a projected 7 billion barrels buried in the shale. The state has vaulted ahead of Alaska, trailing only Texas and the Gulf of Mexico in oil extraction. Its once-shrinking population is now growing faster than any other state and its coffers are laced with a $1.6 billion surplus.
Behind all those gaudy numbers, you'll find countless dreamers and schemers, truck drivers and schoolteachers, frackers and land agents spread across the vast prairie. We'd like to introduce a few more as we wind up our series exploring the state's transformation as a player in the world's energy race.
'Everyone kind of caters to you'
It's Saturday night at Cattails bar on Main Street. A fracker from Utah sings "Free Bird," karaoke-style. Oil-field workers clink shot glasses. And concrete mixer driver Michelle Bean strokes her cue at the pool table, starting another game of 8-ball with her housemate, dump truck driver Sonya Adams.
Nothing goes in.
"That shot was like a woman," she says. "All bust, no balls." Bean, 41, sips Crown Royal and Red Bull to stay alert after working nearly 90 hours this week, pouring concrete for roads, sidewalks and oil pads. Sunday is her day off. She came out to the Bakken in February, fleeing a bad breakup in the woodsy country near Leavenworth, Wash.
"I miss the trees," she says. "And the guys to girls ratio is a little unbalanced."
Being female in the North Dakota oil fields, Bean and Adams say, isn't as bad as the horror stories they hear about leers at the Wal-Mart and harassment around every corner. Unofficial counts say there are 10 men for every woman working in western North Dakota.
"It's not too bad because everyone kind of caters to you," Bean says. "Nobody's messed with me and it's all been respectful."
Knife River Corp., a 5,000-employee construction giant based in Bismarck, provides the women with a five-bedroom house they share with another truck driving woman named Betty. They earn $24 an hour plus a $50 per diem and Knife River deducts $600 a month for the housing. Adams, 40, left a divorce and 9-year-old son back in southern Idaho.
Her parents, Richard and Tina Yelton, have come up from Arizona. Her dad is her truck boss and her mom drives a 10-wheel end dump truck just like she does.
"Women are definitely outnumbered," she says, but even that has improved from when she arrived two years ago. "They're learning we work just as hard and do just as a good a job."
'What we do is investigate, negotiate and argue'
The back seat of Vern Stiller's silver Mercedes SR5 SUV is littered with maps, a hard hat, work gloves and an extra carton of Pall Mall cigarettes.
There are 180,000 miles on the odometer, with 80,000 more piling up yearly. He's driven 330 miles today and it's still early afternoon.
"That's a lot of ass time," said Stiller, 70. "I drive around, smoke cigarettes, drink coffee, talk smart and write checks."
His voice is pure gravel, his neck tan and weathered. You can't tell he's got an artificial leg under his bluejeans, a remnant of a busted ankle and frostbite from five decades working on oil fields in Texas, Oklahoma, Wyoming and now North Dakota.
"They call us land men," he said. "What we do is investigate, negotiate and argue."
As middle man between the oil companies and ranchers in western North Dakota, Stiller searches courthouses for titles and figures out who owns the mineral rights. Then he greases the deal, acquiring rights of way easements for pipelines to move the oil and natural gas from this remote landscape to a world thirsting for fuel.
"I do love making deals," said Stiller.
He's been married four times, lives in Billings, Mont., but spends most of his time in a friend's Airstream trailer at the Tobacco Garden campground 20 miles northwest of here.
"I've retired three times but needed something to do," he said. "I make more money than a medical doctor or an engineer, which is hard to imagine."
As he steers his Mercedes through the canyon country known as the Little Missouri Breaks, he spots a prominent landowner — Bill Jorgenson of the Bar U Ranch. They talk on the road about 15 miles of potential pipeline that one of Stiller's clients would like to put on Jorgenson's property.
"Anyway you can work it out," Stiller says in parting, lighting another Pall Mall and driving off past another well pad tucked in a hillside.
'It's an opportunity for me'
Nathaniel Kroshus didn't come here for high wages or to escape his past. He's here chasing his passion.
The 31-year-old from Grand Rapids, Minn., loves to teach music. But a dearth of music-teaching jobs in budget-wracked schools back home sent him nearly 600 miles west in 2012 with his fiancée, Trisha, their cat, Gulliver, and Juno, a gray-eyed white Husky.
"I knew the experience would be like hell," said Nate, a whitecap in this historic wave of migration making North Dakota the fastest-growing state. "But I didn't really realize how hellish till I got here."
He was sitting on a couch last spring, eating Noodle Roni with mock chicken and a salad that Trisha, a vegetarian from Medford, Minn., just prepared. They were paying $1,800 a month for one-third of a trailer at the Hexco man camp, 400 square feet of space down a snaking dirt road north of Williston.
The place had no address. The sink and shower leaked. The microwave outlet didn't work "and the walls are so thin, we cannot only hear the kid next door, we can follow what TV shows he's watching," Trisha said.
"I knew it would be expensive, but didn't believe it would be this expensive," she said. "I thought there would be older ladies with rooms to rent. There are not. This place is a cave and the space is so crowded, we want to kill each other."
Instead, they returned to Trisha's home near Owatonna on summer break and got married in Hastings.
Trisha kept her "fingers crossed that a call would come with a job in Minnesota," but when that didn't happen, she shrugged.
They headed back to the Bakken, where hotels and apartment buildings had sprung up in and around Williston nearly as fast as oil rigs — a building boom within an oil boom.
Their new apartment building opened in August near Williston's almost-done, $70 million recreation center. Their top-floor apartment is 728 square feet — nearly twice as roomy as their man-camp cave, It rents for a third less, $1,250, including the $100 fee for Gulliver and Juno.
Nate's salary, meanwhile, has jumped nearly 20 percent to $50,400.
"The perception is everyone's rich out here, but I'm still making about half the median salary of $88,000," he said. "But it's an opportunity for me, and I am excited to share the lifelong gift of music."
Trisha has landed a support job at a school here.
"It's better," she said. "But it's still Williston."
Plenty of danger with the paychecks
Spencer Logan was in Hour 16 of his day as a Halliburton safety lead on a hydraulic-fracturing site. It was raining, cold and "the site was just a mud hole and I was just concerned about getting the hell out of there."
He failed to look up and see a wire line still on, which should have prompted him to open a value and release 4,500 pounds of pressure. The screw-up left live explosives — known as guns — 4 miles down in the ground, costing his company "lots of money" and nearly getting him fired after four years working his way up the Halliburton ladder.
"I was in too big a hurry," said Logan, 45, who grew up in Red Wing and lives in California when he's not fracking for oil in North Dakota.
He's just glad no one got hurt.
"There are chemicals and explosives, lots of high pressure and so many different things that can get you killed that you'd better know what you're doing before you step on a site."
Of the 70 death investigations the Occupational Safety and Health Administration has conducted in North and South Dakota since Oct. 1, 2009, more than half (37) have stemmed from the oil fields of western North Dakota.
Logan remembers one of those deaths with an overwhelming tinge of sadness.
Mike Krajewski, a 49-year-old father of three daughters from Duluth, was killed when a pipe from a high-pressure line fell and struck his head while fracking in January. OSHA fined Halliburton $14,000 — the first time the oil-field servicing giant has been cited with workplace safety violations in North Dakota.
"I always wondered why he just didn't look up," recalled Logan, who witnessed what he called a "tragedy." He knew Krajewski personally as "a great friend.
"He thought it was time to go out there and bleed off the fluid from the joints so it would slowly flow out," Logan said. "He just didn't look up and see the wire line on there. It's all about being in a hurry. The thing flew up like a rocket as soon as he opened it up, and he got flown into the wellhead and it crushed the back of his head.
"It's just a reminder how dangerous this work can be."
'I hope I'm out here another 20 years'
It's 6:40 a.m. and a dramatic flaming sunrise illuminates the hilly prairie around "Raven Rig No. 1," one of nearly 200 towering oil rigs drilling around the clock, every day, in western North Dakota.
Billy Peterson and Ivan Welch greet you with a cram course in the nomenclature, the distinct language of an oil rig. Peterson, 36, is the tool pusher, a not-so-lofty title for the rig boss. Welch is the company man, in charge of the site.
The other 20 crew members living in trailers around the 152-foot-tall rig include rock hounds (geologists), derrick hands, mud hands, drillers, floor hands, motor hands and directional drillers (who take umbrage when mistaken for rock hounds).
"Go on up," Peterson says.
So you climb a 31-foot ladder, slick from dew and grease, to the rig floor — a slippery metallic beehive of activity offering a view that stretches for miles. Sparks fly and an acrid smell comes from the burnt steel cable being soldered and unsnaked to prepare for today's drilling.
Scott Berreth, a 35-year-old derrick hand from Billings, Mont., steps into a harness and is hoisted up like a circus acrobat, using a wrench to bang things in place some 10 stories up at the rig's crown. Soft light filters in on a series of dangling black pipes, hanging like oversized salami in a deli.
When everything is ready, a huge overhead piece of machinery swings into place. Floor hands Ray Gerrish from Utah and Texan Russell Girsh slather the pipes with grease and connect them.
Grinding noise from the drill brake signals that drilling is underway, spinning a drill bit 2 miles deep in the Three Forks formation below the North Dakota prairie. The drill bit will eventually twist and veer off horizontally.
When the holes are set in a few weeks, the entire rig will be lifted on its four feet and moved one-third of a mile, making two turns, to its next drilling site.
Then dozens of fracking trucks will come in and pound in water, chemicals and round silica sand from Wisconsin and Minnesota, exploding the shale for oil extraction. Eventually, pumps come in and pull the oil out and deposit it into tanks until trucks and trains move it to fuel-thirsty consumers.
The scene, with rigs drilling holes before frack operators get the crude flowing, repeats itself at roughly 200 sites across the prairie — producing nearly a million barrels a day.
"I hope I'm out here another 20 years," says Peterson, who works two weeks on and two weeks off, returning to six kids a dozen-hour drive away in Wyoming. He's been working on drilling rigs since he was hired as a maintenance roustabout at 17.
"When the days are going good, I ain't got a whole lot to do and might even take a nap," the tool pusher says. "When days are going bad, I can be up for three days straight.
"It's good for us workwise, and good for the country," he says. "Maybe we can start making some money off this stuff instead of buying it all the time."


text:
Update at 4:22 p.m.: The family of the woman who fell to her death Friday night has identified her as Rosy Esparza of Dallas.
Update at 11:15 a.m.: Six Flags released another short statement early Saturday morning:
"Our thoughts and prayers are with the family. The investigation into the death at Texas Giant is still ongoing. We are working closely with authorities to determine the cause of the accident. The ride will remain closed. In addition, we have canceled the concert that was scheduled for today."
The park clarified that the investigation is "internal" and no other park attractions will be closed because of the accident.
The KIDZ Star USA talent search auditions on Saturday and Sunday have been cancelled. This follows the earlier cancellation of a Saturday night concert from Bridgit Mendler.
Original story: Six Flags Over Texas announced Saturday morning that the Texas Giant roller coaster will remain closed as authorities investigate a woman's fatal plunge from the Texas Giant roller coaster Friday night.
The Arlington amusement park still has released few details beyond reporting that its medical staff and city paramedics had responded immediately. The victim's name was not released.
Besides keeping the ride closed, Six Flags has canceled a concert by singer and actress Bridgit Mendler that had been scheduled for Saturday night.
Park officials offered their condolences to the woman's family as investigators began to study the cause of the accident, which occurred after 6:30 p.m. Although the ride was closed, the park remained open through the evening.
Early attention was beginning to focus on witnesses' reports that the woman's safety restraint may have come undone.
Carmen Brown of Arlington was waiting in line as the victim was being secured in for the ride. She said she believed that the woman's son was on the ride with her.
Brown said the woman had expressed concern to a park employee that she was not secured correctly in her seat.
"He was basically nonchalant," Brown said. "He was, like, 'As long as you heard it click, you're fine.' Hers was the only one that went down once, and she didn't feel safe. But they let her still get on the ride."
She said the victim fell out of the ride as it made a sudden maneuver.
"The lady basically tumbled over," she said. "We heard her screaming. We were, like, 'Did she just fall?'"
Investigators were interviewing witnesses on the ride, some of whom reported that the woman had been thrown from the roller coaster as it rounded a turn. Arlington police declined to comment on the accident.
Hysterical passengers had to wait to disembark as the train stopped short of the platform.
John and Darlene Putman of Rockwall said they were in line to board the roller coaster as the train in which the woman had been riding returned.
John Putman told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that he heard two people screaming, "'My mom! My mom! Let us out, we need to go get her!'"
Reports from park visitors began spreading rapidly on social media online, drawing worried parents and others to the gates to check on family members.
Joshua Paul Fleak posted on Twitter that he believed that the woman's restraint had come undone.
"Just witnessed someone fly off of the Texas giant two seats in front of me," he said. "… Coaster turned and she was gone."
The Texas Giant opened in 1990 as the world's tallest wooden roller coaster but was closed in November 2009 to convert it to a steel-and-wood hybrid.
Although the rebuilt ride incorporates some of the original structure, it includes 4,700 feet of new track.
When it reopened in April 2011, the expanded coaster offered a smoother ride and a higher top speed of 65 mph. It features a 79-degree drop and three turns sharper than 90 degrees.
Friday's accident was the second ride fatality for a guest at the park since it opened in 1961.
In 1999, Valeria Cartwright of West Helena, Ark., drowned when a Roaring Rapids raft capsized. Ten other people were injured in that accident.
In March 2006, passengers on the park's Texas Tornado ride reported injuries when the ride slowed rapidly and several of its swings collided.
In another amusement park accident Friday, a boat on a thrill ride at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio, rolled backward down a hill and flipped over in water when the ride malfunctioned, injuring all seven people on it.
Six Flags Entertainment Corp. emerged from bankruptcy protection in 2010 after the company said it needed to shed $1.8 billion in debt. In April, the company posted record revenue.
Staff writer Robert Wilonsky contributed to this report.
Related video: Carmen Brown describes Texas Giant rider's fatal fall


text:
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Posted by The Dweller at 11:13 AM
Labels: Music
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The key to achieving family-friendly workplaces in the Federal Government is to make full utilization of all the personnel flexibilities and resources available. As an employer, the Federal Government has long recognized the value of part-time employment. Legislation encouraging part-time employment for Federal employees has been in place since 1978.
Part-time employees are represented across occupational fields, pay plans, grade levels, and agencies. These employees might need or desire to work less than the traditional 40-hour workweek in order to:
The use of part-time employment is also beneficial to employers. Offering part-time employment opportunities can:
When employers must staff a position on a full-time basis, job sharing is an option. Job sharing is a form of part-time employment in which one position is filled with two or more part-time employees. Job sharing has added benefits for management. At an agency's discretion and within available resources, each job sharer can work up to 32 hours per week. Agencies also benefit from having the special skills and abilities of two unique individuals.
The Federal Employees Part-time Career Employment Act of 1978 encouraged a greater Federal commitment to utilizing employees who wish to work less than the traditional 40-hour workweek. Recently, President Clinton strengthened that commitment because of his belief that supporting the concerns of family members in the workplace is vital to good government and productivity.
President Clinton's July 11, 1994, memorandum directed executive departments and agencies to establish a program to encourage and support the expansion of flexible family-friendly work arrangements, including the use of career part-time employment and job sharing. On June 21, 1996, the President also directed executive departments and agencies to review their personnel practices and develop a plan of action to utilize flexible policies already in place.
This OPM guide is intended to assist agencies and employees in utilizing part-time employment and job sharing effectively and to the fullest extent possible.
Averages and percentages are based upon 41,857 part-time permanent employees as of March 1999.
Data Source: OPM's Central Personnel Data File (CPDF). Data includes Federal civilian part-time employees in the executive branch but excludes Postal Service employees.
*This information was adapted from Flexibility at Work ... 5 Steps To Get You Started, a brochure produced by the Association of Part-time Professionals.
I had a 3-year-old coming out of diapers and an 83-year-old mother going into them . . . My four years of part-time management employment have been superb. My director has been marvelous, and swears she had more work from me in three days than some others in five."
Being part-time in the same position that I had as a full-time position has made a total difference in my outlook on work and family life, and also has definitely affected my health. I am much more productive while at work, and I am much happier at home . . ."
I had a 3-year-old coming out of diapers and an 83-year-old mother going into them . . . My four years of part-time management employment have been superb. My director has been marvelous, and swears she had more work from me in three days than some others in five."
Being part-time in the same position that I had as a full-time position has made a total difference in my outlook on work and family life, and also has definitely affected my health. I am much more productive while at work, and I am much happier at home . . ."
I need a professional life, but I also want to spend extra time with my family. On a part-time schedule, I get the best of both worlds."
Before we started stirring things up, we wanted to understand what was possible. OPM was very helpful. They thought the process through with us, and later used the flexibility of the system to support us. With our senior management in the Department, whether because they could positively relate to our situation or for other reasons, they asked, why not instead of why."
We had worked together before so we were accustomed to working together; we just do it more now. More importantly, it has expanded the dimension of the parenting role for both of us."
It's been great. The situation has been nothing but a plus for me and the Department. Joan and Amy are both terrific employees and they're great for this program. Initially, staff were concerned about reporting to two supervisors, but it has worked out well. With the Ethics job, our clients are, for the most part, the senior management. It's important that when inquiries come in, the person representing the position is responsive."
"Competition was never an issue between us. It has survived because we had similar priorities. Our priorities in job sharing were to have time with our families."
"It takes an extra effort to job share, but the advantages to both the employee and the agency are great."
"People we work with have been accommodating about our arrangement, which we appreciate. We also try to be flexible, taking calls at home and coming in on our off-days if something is urgent. I recommend to anyone considering job sharing that they find someone who thinks like them and with whom they can communicate well."
"My overall impression is that part-time managers represent a considerable bargain for the Federal Government. Highly motivated individuals following a part-time schedule on their own initiative tend to accomplish a larger workload than is commensurate with the reduced hours. This is done because the individual has a personal motivation to make the work arrangement succeed and to be viewed as successful while working on a part-time basis. My experience is one of working more effectively and reducing to a minimum the 'down' time that most employees take as a matter of course on the job. . . "
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Governmentwide policy on part-time employment gives agencies the flexibility to decide where part-time positions best fit into the organization. In some cases, job sharing enables management to staff a full-time position and also provides part-time schedules which would otherwise not be available.
Agencies are strongly encouraged to develop job sharing programs in partnership with their unions and other stakeholders. Furthermore, when job sharing programs are planned for organizations where employees are represented by a labor organization with exclusive recognition, by law, agencies must notify the union and bargain in good faith on any negotiable proposals the union submits.
A departure from the 40-hour workweek often creates questions and concerns for part-time employees, their and managers. An employee should consider the following personnel issues when thinking about reducing his or her work hours.
A part-time permanent employee has a career or career-conditional appointment (or a permanent appointment in the excepted service), works between 16 and 32 hours each week (or between 32 and 64 hours a pay period) on a prearranged schedule, and is eligible for fringe benefits. Part-time permanent employees are eligible, on a prorated basis, for the same benefits as full-time employees: leave, retirement, and health and life insurance coverage.
Job sharing is a form of part-time employment in which the schedules of two or more part-time employees are arranged to cover the duties of a single full-time position. Generally, a job sharing team means two employees at the same grade level but other arrangements are possible. Job sharers are subject to the same personnel policies as other part-time employees. Job sharing does not necessarily mean that each job sharer works half-time, or that the total number of hours is 40 per week.
There is no law or regulation that limits part-time employment to specific jobs or grade levels. In fact, any job may be filled by a part-time employee or a team of job sharers when the arrangement meets the needs of the organization and the employee(s). Part-time employees are currently working in professional, administrative, technical, clerical, and blue collar positions at many grade levels. Job sharers, though fewer in number, also work in a wide variety of positions.
Appointment procedures for part-time employees are the same as for comparable full-time employees. Agencies process individual personnel actions for each employee in a shared position; for example, an SF 50, Notification of Personnel Action, would be issued to appoint or promote each job sharer.
Employees, their managers, and agencies can benefit from using part-time work schedules. Employees could spend more time with their children, pursue educational opportunities, care for an aging parent or ill family member, participate in volunteer or leisure activities, or continue working when illness or physical limitations prevent working a full-time schedule. Managers and agencies could retain highly qualified employees, improve recruitment, increase productivity, and reduce absenteeism.
Job sharing offers additional benefits to managers and employees alike. Employees are provided the opportunity to work part-time in jobs where full-time coverage is required. Supervisors gain flexibility in managing their offices. Job sharing team members may bring a wide range of skills and strengths to a job, be able to fill in for each other's absences, and be able to work extra hours when there are unexpected workload surges.
Employees should carefully consider all the personal issues involved in switching to a part-time or job sharing schedule, such as a reduction in pay, increased share of health insurance premiums, and the change in leave earnings. Although procedures vary from agency to agency, the first step is usually to discuss the idea with the immediate supervisor.
Job sharing may be an option for an employee who wishes to reduce his or her hours but finds that such a schedule is inappropriate for his or her current position. If part-time requests cannot be accommodated, agency personnel offices may be able to help employees identify other positions in the agency which could be filled on a part-time or job-shared basis.
To meet the needs of the office or the employee, an agency may temporarily or permanently change the total hours of a part-time employee. However, generally part-timers have schedules within the 16 to 32 hours-per-week range required by law.
Employees earn annual and sick leave on a prorated basis depending on the number of hours worked per pay period. An employee with less than 3 years of service earns 1 hour of annual leave for each 20 hours worked; with 3 but less than 15 years of service, the employee earns 1 hour for each 13 hours worked; and with 15 or more years of service earns 1 hour for each 10 hours worked.
Part-time employees earn 1 hour of sick leave for each 20 hours worked. Part-time employees are also eligible for other kinds of leave and are covered by the rules governing the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 and the Federal Employees Family-Friendly Leave Act.
If a holiday falls on a day the employee normally works, the employee is paid for the number of hours he or she was scheduled to work, not to exceed 8 hours, except for an employee on a compressed work schedule. A part-time employee is not entitled to a holiday which falls on a day the employee is not normally scheduled to work.
Retirement annuities are based on an employee=s length of service and the highest annual base pay received for any three consecutive years. Each year of part-time service counts as one full year toward the length of service requirement. However, the annuity calculation for periods of part-time service after April 6, 1986, is prorated to reflect the difference between full-time and part-time service. Employees who are considering a change to a part-time work schedule should obtain an estimate of their retirement benefits from their agency's benefits office.
Part-time employees who participate in the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program receive the same coverage as full-time employees but pay a greater percentage of the premium because the Government's share is prorated based on the number of hours the employee is scheduled to work each week. For example, an employee on a 20-hour-per-week schedule receives one-half the Government contribution towards the premium.
A part-time employee is eligible to participate in the Federal Employees Group Life Insurance Program. The amount of insurance for which an employee is eligible is based on the part-time employee's annual salary applicable to his or her tour of duty.
Part-time work is prorated for determining qualification requirements. For example, an employee who works 20 hours a week would receive credit for 6 months of experience at the end of 12 months of work.
Gross pay is computed by multiplying the employee's hourly rate of basic pay by the number of hours worked during the pay period. Except for certain employees on alternative workweek schedules, overtime rates apply only to the hours in excess of 8 hours in a day or 40-hours in a week. Non-overtime hours above those normally scheduled are paid at the basic rate of pay (5 U.S.C. 5542 and Fair Labor Standards Act).
In a reduction in force (RIF), part-time employees compete separately from full-time employees. A part-time employee can compete only for other part-time jobs and has no assignment rights to full-time positions. Similarly, a full-time employee has assignment rights only to full-time positions and cannot displace a part-time employee.
Part-time employees have the same rights as full-time employees when disciplinary actions or performance-based actions are taken against them. Adverse and/or performance-based actions include suspensions, removals, furloughs, and reductions in grade. (A reduction in scheduled hours is not subject to adverse action procedures.)
A part-time employee earns a full year of service for each calendar year worked (regardless of schedule) for the purpose of computing dates for the following:
Regular, non-overtime hours worked by part-time employees count toward an agency's full-time equivalent (FTE) work year personnel ceiling. A part-time position counts as a percentage of a full-time job. For example, an employee who works 24-hours a week is counted as 0.6 FTE.
Although job sharing is a form of part-time employment, it presents participants with unique considerations not encountered by the part-time permanent employee. Job sharers, their managers, agencies, and anyone interested in participating in a job sharing arrangement may find the following information useful.
By law, 5 U.S.C. 3402, nearly every Federal agency is required to have a program for part-time employment.
It would be appropriate for agencies to incorporate references to job sharing in all materials relating to part-time employment. A special notice to employees (and periodic reminders) or mention in newsletters or other issuances would let employees know they can request job sharing. Information could include the name and telephone number of a contact point in the agency's personnel office.
In addition, OPM encourages agencies to include a statement in vacancy announcements for full-time positions saying job sharing teams within the area of consideration may apply. (Job sharing may be used for non-permanent appointments as well.)
The experience reported by employers of job sharing teams suggests that job sharers must be good communicators, be willing to consult and cooperate as members of a team rather than as competitors, be flexible, and have a strong commitment to the job and to making the job sharing arrangement work. They must have complementary skills, knowledge, and abilities and compatible work styles.
When two job sharers at the same grade level are jointly responsible for all the duties and responsibilities of the full-time position, there is no need to restructure the position. Each team member should have a copy of the original position description to which a statement has been attached to show that the incumbent is a job sharer jointly responsible for carrying out all the duties and responsibilities of the position.
When the job sharers will be individually responsible for portions of the job, or when the job sharers are at different grade levels, separate position descriptions are required to reflect the actual duties and responsibilities of each employee. Each job sharer must have a position description that accurately reflects his or her duties and responsibilities.
The decision on whether job sharers should be jointly responsible for the entire position or only for separate functions depends on the job and the abilities of the job sharing team. To determine the arrangement for a particular job, the supervisor (with assistance from the personnel office, if needed) should examine the position description and decide which tasks will be shared. In other words, some tasks may be handled by the team member on duty while other tasks may be handled by a specific individual based on his or her skills and experience. In some cases, tasks will be divided between the sharers, but overall responsibility for the position may be shared.
At one end of the spectrum is a clean division of duties between two people who have little or no interaction with each other. At the other end, two people are jointly responsible for each and every responsibility and function. Most job sharing arrangements will probably fall somewhere in between with the job sharers individually responsible for certain aspects of the job and jointly responsible for others. A good management practice is to have the supervisor and the job sharers sign a job sharing agreement. (See Appendix A.)
Specific work schedules depend on the nature of the job and the needs of the office and the job sharing team. Almost any reasonable arrangement is possible if it meets the needs of the supervisor and the job sharers. Scheduling should take advantage of the fact that two or more people rather than one are filling the job; these possibilities include overlapping time, split shifts, or working in different locations at the same time. Work schedules for job sharers can be from 16 to 32 hours per week and can be varied in the same way as other part-time employees. Additionally, part-time employees are eligible to participate in flexible and compressed work schedules if the agency permits it. The number of scheduled hours each employee works as well as the amount of scheduled overlap time depends on the needs of the particular position and the resources available as determined by the agency. (See Appendix B.)
Each member of a job sharing team must have his or her own performance standards. These will be identical if the job sharers are jointly responsible for the entire position. Each job sharer must be evaluated separately although the evaluation will often be based on work to which both have contributed. To make the supervisor's job easier, it would be wise to build in a mechanism for determining the relative contributions of each job sharer.
In some agencies, the availability of space and equipment will be tight. Job sharers who use the same desk, telephone, computer, etc., will need to agree on the basics so they do not lose time searching for or rearranging items. Agencies may choose to permit job sharing employees to telecommute under the agency's general authority to specify employee duty stations. Federal telecommuting programs allow employees to fulfill their job responsibilities at a site other than their principal office one or more days a week. For additional information, contact your agency personnel office or contact us.
For job sharing to be truly successful, everyone with whom the job sharers have contact must be able to assume that any information given to one team member will reach the other. In other words, supervisors, co-workers, and clients expect to communicate with both job sharers via the person on duty at the time. The job sharers must have a workable communication system which serves the purpose without detracting from their ability to get the work done.
The decision to approve or to terminate an arrangement is at management's discretion. To avoid misunderstandings, this point should be made clear before the job sharers begin work. In addition, it should be decided in advance what will be done if one partner is unable to maintain the agreed-upon schedule, goes on extended leave, resigns or takes another job. It is wise to clearly state at the beginning whether the remaining partner will be expected to work full-time until another job sharer is found. If it is necessary to end a particular job sharing arrangement, the agency may reassign one or both of the job sharers to other part-time positions or to other full-time positions.
Agencies may not refuse to accept applications from individuals solely because they are part of a job sharing team. Each job sharer must be evaluated individually to determine eligibility. If both are among the best qualified, they must be referred as a team to the selecting official.
However, in situations where a job sharing arrangement would not be appropriate, the selecting official can select a single candidate from among the best qualified. (A member of a job sharing team may also apply as an individual and be considered on that basis.)
The Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) Employment Service recently implemented a new part-time job search on USAJOBS, the United States Government's official source for jobs and employment information. The new search allows job seekers to quickly and easily locate a consolidated list of jobs that are being or may be filled on a part-time basis. Employment Service added this enhancement in response to a growing interest from users about part-time opportunities.
Employment Service also added an employment information fact sheet on part-time employment to the General Information component on USAJOBS. The information fact sheet contains policy information about part-time Federal employment in an easy-to-read, user friendly format. It also provides a link to the Family-Friendly Workplace Advocacy Office's web pages on the OPM website for more detailed information.
Memorandum for: From: Subject: Proposed Job Share for Employee A and Employee B
This memorandum proposes the establishment of a job share for the position _________ currently encumbered by _________. The proposed job share would partner Employee A with Employee B in management of the __________ Program and the __________ Program. In addition to strengthening the staff, this action would ensure the retention of two highly experienced employees with specialized area and program backgrounds. The proposal has been discussed informally with the staff involved and they have concurred with the proposal. We ask that the action be approved under the terms and specifications suggested below.
This proposal is made as a one-year pilot project whose continuation will depend on a formal evaluation by management at the end of the 12-month period. If deemed successful by the evaluating elements, the arrangement would be continued indefinitely. In the unlikely event that the pilot is evaluated as unsuccessful, management would propose that the unit be combined with the Division staff and that all supervisory responsibilities would be assumed by the Division and Deputy Division Chiefs. In any event, the pilot project and any subsequent extension are proposed as experimental and non-precedent setting.
With regard to the assignment of responsibilities, supervisory and management assignments and scheduled work hours, we propose the following:
Employee A and Employee B will each work three days per week (48 total hours) with Wednesday as the overlapping day of the week.
Employee A will be assigned primary responsibility for the __________ Program. In that role, she will be the direct supervisor of the Program Officer and will rate her performance and approve her leave request. She will function as selecting officer for the position and any other position that might be assigned to the __________ Program in the future (subject to approval by the Division Chief). Employee B will have secondary responsibility for the __________ Program.
Employee B will be assigned primary responsibility for the _________ Program. In that role, she will be the direct supervisor of a still-unnamed Program Officer. She will also be the responsible supervisor for the Unit Secretary. She will rate the performance of both employees, approve their leave requests and serve as selecting officer for both positions (subject to approval by the Division Chief).
On the overlapping work day, management and supervisory responsibilities will not differ from the other days of the week. Each will report directly to the Division Chief or Deputy Division chief on activities that relate to their primary program assignments. In the absence of one job share partner on the overlapping work day (or any other day), accountability for the secondary program assigned is automatically assumed by the partner present.
All time and attendance recordkeeping and reporting for the Unit will be handled by the Division Secretary, with approval of the Division Chief or Deputy.
In the event that one of the job share partners decides to resign or transfer from the unit, the position will automatically revert to a full-time position with the expectation that the remaining job share partner will assume the full time requirements of the above position, including a 40-hour work week.
The candidates for this proposed job share are both exceptional employees with crucial backgrounds and experience and excellent performance records.
Employee A has been Unit Chief since March, 1990. She holds an MA in public administration and joined the Agency as a Presidential Management Intern in 1980, rotating through a number of Agency offices until she joined this Unit. She has a wide general knowledge of Agency exchange programs and is the expert on these programs.
Employee B holds an MA in Public Administration and joined the Agency as a Presidential Management Intern. She started work in the Bureau as a program officer, developing an impressive background and expertise in the area which lead to her promotion to Senior Program Officer. In order to assume a part-time schedule, she requested a voluntary reassignment where she is currently a program officer in the grants unit. She is eligible for re-promotion on a non-competitive basis. In her current position, she has accrued wide experience with its Programs and has some responsibility for unit affiliations, making her particularly valuable to the unit which has expanding programs.
That management concur with the establishment of a job share for the position under the conditions outlined above.
CONCUR _____________________________ Date _____________ DISCUSS________________________________________________
To: Manager From: Two Branch Managers Re: Job Sharing
This represents an initial proposal for implementing job sharing for the position of Branch Manager. While job sharing may be done in many ways, the one we feel best relates to our situation as two equally qualified Branch Managers is to share between us one entire job, including all of its responsibilities and duties. Each of us will be accountable for everything.
Individual systems and methods will be integrated by consensus. A diary system is to be set up for all routines and strictly adhered to. At least one representative will attend all manager meetings, conferences and training seminars. Audit will be shared jointly except in areas that can be clearly distinguished. With respect to staff and personnel matters, there is a strong need for clear communication of joint expectations and objectives to all staff, open-door policy for staff, communication between partners and joint feedback, joint preparation of performance reviews and joint presentations. Campaigns will be the responsibility of both partners -- work schedules will accommodate peak periods and deadlines for major campaigns.
Both partners will take vacations at the same time or stagger their vacation, whatever method works best for the particular time chosen. The partners agree that any maternity leave would be limited to 17 weeks. The working partner would work full-time to cover the leave. Normal procedures are to be followed for sickness, operating short staffed unless unusual circumstances occur, in which case the other partner would cover.
The work schedule would be prepared one month in advance and a copy forwarded to the Manager for reference. All scheduling would be completed by the two partners and any necessary changes would be worked out between the partners.
Each partner will work two full days and one five-hour day. The excess cost would be $2,581 per year in terms of salary. This does, however, allow for overlap of 2.5 hours per week, which we feel is important in making job sharing a success.
If one partner were to leave the agency or request full-time work, we propose that if a compatible partner could be found and it is agreeable to the employer and both employees, the system could continue. If no compatible partner is available, and an original partner left the agency, then the remaining partner would return to full-time employment. If one or both partners request full-time employment, then they would be considered for the next available opportunity.
We have given this concept a great deal of thought and are prepared to commit ourselves to job sharing for a period of five to ten years. We have known each other for four years and feel comfortable with each other. We have similar backgrounds with respect to education and bank management training. We want job sharing to work and we are both committed to work out any problems that may arise.
We agree to a four-month trial period with ongoing assessment and feedback from employer and partners. Customer assessment will be incorporated into the standard Customer Service Survey, and staff assessment will be incorporated into the standard Employee Relations Survey. Feedback modifications to the system are to be mutually agreed upon by both partners and employer. If the agency decides to terminate the Job Sharing Agreement, a notice period of eight weeks will be given, and both partners will be offered comparable full-time positions in the area or given a choice of part-time management if the individual desires.
Ideally, the supervisor and the job sharing team should jointly determine how the work-week will be divided. While the needs of the office are paramount, a successful arrangement will take into consideration the needs of the employees as well. Several options are possible, including split days, alternate days or weeks, and flexible or compressed work schedules if the agency permits it.
For example:
When job sharers want to work on alternate weeks, certain scheduling requirements must be met. In order for a part-time employee to be regularly scheduled -- and eligible to earn leave-- he or she must have one hour of work scheduled in each week of the bi-weekly pay period. Also, a part-time employee may not be scheduled for more than 32 hours per week. Within these requirements, one job sharer could be scheduled for 32 hours in week A and in week B. The employees would have to take annual leave (or granted leave without pay) for the one hour in the week he or she wanted to be off. Job sharing on a 6-months on, 6-months off basis should be handled differently. In this situation, the employees would be considered full-time and could be granted leave without pay at the agency's discretion.
The example might give the impression that job sharers' time on the job must be mutually exclusive. While this may be true in most cases, employees can overlap some or all of the time, depending on the nature of the work and the availability of space and equipment.
Job sharing offers supervisors considerable flexibility in scheduling. Temporary rearrangement of hours does not require paperwork, but consideration needs to be given to employee concerns such as child care or class schedules. Job sharing also allows the supervisor to match the work schedules to workload peaks. For example, one job sharer could work an early morning tour and the other, a tour late in the day, with no coverage in the middle of the day. Further, since job sharers can often swap schedules to cover for each other's absences, the office has the benefit of a built-in backup system. (Advance arrangements should make clear the conditions under which one team member would be expected to work additional hours in the absence of the other and how work will be performed if one of the job sharers were to leave the position.)


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Date: 06/28/2007
Views: 3282
Welcome to the photographs of Tom Gardner, ARPS
I am a photographer based in Edinburgh, Scotland.
My main subjects are landscape, nature and abstracts, mostly taken in this beautiful country.
I love travelling, preferably in the more mountainous regions of the world by foot or bicycle, and you will see some of my travel images here.
Gift certificates available! Give a loved one a beautiful photograph of their choice for Christmas, birthday or housewarming!
Also available- my book on Landscapes of Scotland Printed on demand from Blurb.com, 12" square hardback, 160 pages with over 270 photographs. Full preview avaialable.
For Christmas 2013, a very limited number of 20"x16" (40x50 cm) canvas prints of selected images are available at the low price of just GBP 70. This is less than half price, so act fast! Details on request.
This is a great deal and they make wonderful gifts, as there are no extra framing costs to these. Select this special offer from the purchase options.
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Health is the level of functional or metabolic efficiency of a living organism. In humans it is the ability of individuals or communities to adapt and self-manage when facing physical, mental or social challenges.The World Health Organization (WHO) defined health in its broader sense in its 1948 constitution as "a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.
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An important way to maintain your personal health is to have a healthy diet. A healthy diet includes a variety of plant-based and animal-based foods that provide nutrients to your body. Such nutrients give you energy and keep your body running.


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Mark Giles, DNP, CRNA is a 2016 graduate of Quinnipiac University, Hamden, Connecticut, post master's program. He is a staff CRNA at Yale New haven Hospital, New Haven, Connecticut, and an adjunct faculty member at Quinnipiac University.
General Anesthesia versus Conscious Sedation for treatment of acute ischemic stroke with Intra-arterial mechanical thrombectomy: A Case Report
Abstract: Patients with acute ischemic stroke are treated with several standard-operating principles. The primary goal is to lyse the clot via intravenous fibrinolysis or intra-arterial method to re-establish blood flow in the blocked territory. Current protocols states intra-venous tissue plasminogen activator (IV TPA) should be given within 4.5 hours of stroke onset. Early revascularization has been associated with improved prognosis, and several techniques allow for mechanical removal of the thrombus. Several retrospective studies have noted differences in outcomes in patients receiving general anesthesia versus conscious sedation. Anesthesia providers awareness of these differences is imperative for better patient outcomes.
Key Words: intra-arterial thrombectomy, general anesthesia, conscious sedation, patient outcomes, acute ischemic stroke.
Patients presenting with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) must be treated sooner rather than later if we want to see good functional outcomes. The ischemic stroke can be medically treated by lysing the clot via intravenous fibrinolysis or removal of the clot through an intra-arterial method to re-establish blood flow to the blocked vessel. The management of AIS has evolved over the last decade using IV TPA, however, a significant number of patients have failed this treatment or have a contraindication for its use. Intra-arterial mechanical thrombectomy was developed to endovascularly remove larger clots thus improving revascularization. Initially, these procedures were performed under general anesthesia, but recent publications
of conscious sedation anesthesia have shown improved clinical outcomes. Treatment factors such as hypotension and hypertension (systolic blood pressure less than 140 mmHg or greater than 180 mmHg), as well as keeping the patient very still during the procedure have influenced the controversy of the anesthesia technique. Neuroradiologists in favor of general anesthesia site the benefits of patient immobility, potential neuroprotection from inhaled anesthetics, control of blood pressure, and better mapping of images. Those in favor of conscious sedation site the benefits of monitoring the patients neurologic status during the procedure, as well as the early alert of an intracranial bleed. Davis et al (2012) found the association between general anesthesia (GA) and poor outcomes to be high, with 15% of GA patients having a probability of good outcomes compared with 60% in conscious sedation (CS). Several other retrospective and meta-analysis studies have concluded CS to be associated with lower mortality, improved functional outcome, decreased respiratory issues, and better revascularization compared to GA. A task force for the Society for neuroscience in Anesthesiology and Critical Care (SNACC) published a paper on this subject stating, the choice of anesthetic technique and pharmacological agents should be individualized based on clinical characteristics of each patient. When patients present who are uncooperative, agitated, or cannot protect their own airway, GA is the preferable choice. The posterior circulation stroke victim usually presents in this fashion. Anterior circulation stroke victims usually present with an intact airway, and are cooperative which makes CS feasible, but the anesthesia provider must always be prepared to convert to GA if necessary.
Case Summary
A 47-year-old man presented to a local hospital emergency room complaining of severe headache and left sided weakness. His wife around 10:40am picked up the patient from work. During the drive home, he developed an acute onset of left sided weakness and a severe headache. He was driven to the hospital. On admission, he stated a headache x 3 days, which was bitemporal but now, feels the pain behind his eyes. Vital signs in the emergency department were: B/P 128/84, pulse 90, RR 16, temp. 97.0, SpO2 97% on room air. His medical history included Helicobacter Pylori (H. pylori) infection, migraines, motor vehicle accident, stab wound to the neck in 7/15, former smoker (quit 11/22/15), former cocaine abuse (quit 10 years ago). A CT scan was performed which showed right middle cerebral artery (MCA) territory hypo density, CTA with filling defect in right M2 (M2 extending anteriorly on the insula, also known as the insular segment). His National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score was 14 on a scale of 0-42. TPA was given at 11:41am and he was then transferred to a local university hospital, which functions as a stroke code center. On arrival to the university hospital his NIHSS score was 9.
Upon arrival, a MRI was performed which showed a clot in the M1 (also known as the sphenoidal segment), M2 bifurcation. A stroke code was called and the patient was taken to Interventional Radiology (IR). Patient was seen and examined by anesthesia. A review of the systems yielded an awake, alert, and oriented to person, place, and time. He was noted to have left sided weakness in his hand and leg. All other physical examinations were within normal limits. He was
classified as an ASA class 3. The anesthesia care plan was for conscious sedation with general anesthesia as a backup. The emergency department performed blood typing and screening. A discussion with the neuro radiologist and the anesthesia team was performed stating to keep the patients SBP between 140-180.
The patient was transferred to the operating table. A 16-gauge IV catheter was already in place in the left ante cube, a right lateral arm 20-gauge IV, and an 18-gauge IV was placed in the right hand. The patients hands were secured with wrist restraints, and his head was taped to the bed. The procedure was explained to the patient who verbalized understanding. During the two and half hour procedure, he received a total of 200mcg of fentanyl, versed 2mg, labetolol 15mg, zofran 4mg, lactated ringers solution 600ml, and nasal cannula 02 at 3L. During the entire procedure, a second neuro radiologist was present who performed neuro checks every 10-15 minutes. The patients hemodynamic status was stable with blood pressures ranging from 138/76- 190/99. During the brief period of his SBP being greater than 180, labetolol was given. During the last 10 minutes of the procedure the patient became agitated and wanted to move. Staff members were able to talk to him and he calmed down. A 1cm clot was removed from the distal M1, M2 bifurcation at 18:45. The time to recanalization was 8 hours. At the end of the case the neuro radiologist did a thorough exam, which continued to show left sided weakness. The patient was transferred to the neuro intensive care unit (NICU).
The hospital course was unremarkable and the patient was discharged to home on 1/22/16 with out patient physical therapy and occupational therapy. A 24-hour post tPA CT of the head showed no hemorrhagic transformation, and a repeat MRI/MRA of the brain showed evolution of his previous stroke. At discharge patient was noted to have left pronator drift, and was unable to perform left fine finger movements. On 2/8/16 patient was discharged from PT and OT with complete resolution of all deficits.
The therapeutic reference for acute ischemic stroke is intravenous thrombolysis with tPA within 4.5 hours of stroke onset according to the National Stroke Association. When the occluded artery is large or proximal tPA may not always work and recanalization is highly correlated with the patients prognosis. Endovascular techniques have been developed to mechanically remove the clot, thus restoring blood flow. Intra-arterial thrombectomy (IAT) have been performed under general anesthesia as well as conscious sedation with varying degrees of results. A 36 patient study by Soize, et al. 2013 showed mechanical thrombectomy while under CS (86.1%) is associated with a high percent of good functional outcomes at 3 months. There are a number of potential complications that may occur during this procedure. The most serious and feared is symptomatic intra-cerebral hemorrhage. Others are vessel perforation, arterial dissection, and issues with the groin access site. There is a paucity of literature directly looking at the various products on the market that is used for the procedure. A retrospective study of 190 patients by John et al. 2014 showed GA being associated with poorer outcomes and higher mortality in patients undergoing IAT. Many of the studies identified limitations to their findings such as patient level of conscious at presentation, retrospective, selection bias, and the particular device used to remove the clot.
In this case, the patients initial presentation of awake, alert and the ability to protect his own airway made him an ideal candidate for CS. The activation of the stroke code and staff members working quickly to stabilize the patient are key factors in getting the patient to IR for clot removal. The importance of communication between the neuro radiologist and the anesthesia team played a critical role in a favorable outcome for this patient. Anesthesia providers will always have a major place in stroke code therapy by choosing the most appropriate and least harmful anesthesia to patients with acute stroke treated by mechanical thrombectomy. Further studies comparing general anesthesia versus conscious sedation on patient outcomes would be useful.
ReferencesDavis, M. J., Menon, B. K., Baghirzada, L. B., Campos-Herrera, C. R., Goyal, M., Hill, M. D., . . . Calgary Stroke Program. (2012). Anesthetic management and outcome in patients during endovascular therapy for acute stroke. Anesthesiology, 116(2), 396-405. doi:10.1097/ALN.0b013e318242a5d2 [doi]
Jellish, W. S., & Edelstein, S. B. (2015). General anesthesia versus conscious sedation for the endovascular treatment of acute ischemic stroke. Journal of Stroke and Cerebrovascular Diseases: The Official Journal of National Stroke Association, 24(9), 1957-1960. doi:10.1016/j.jstrokecerebrovasdis.2015.05.037 [doi]
John, N., Mitchell, P., Dowling, R., & Yan, B. (2013). Is general anaesthesia preferable to conscious sedation in the treatment of acute ischaemic stroke with intra-arterial mechanical thrombectomy? A review of the literature. Neuroradiology, 55(1), 93-100 8p. doi:10.1007/s00234-012-1084-y
John, S., Thebo, U., Gomes, J., Saqqur, M., Farag, E., Xu, J., . . . Hussain, M. S. (2014). Intra-arterial therapy for acute ischemic stroke under general anesthesia versus monitored anesthesia care. Cerebrovascular Diseases (Basel, Switzerland), 38(4), 262-267. doi:10.1159/000368216 [doi]
Schonenberger, S., Mohlenbruch, M., Pfaff, J., Mundiyanapurath, S., Kieser, M., Bendszus, M., . . . Bosel, J. (2015). Sedation vs. intubation for endovascular stroke TreAtment (SIESTA) - a randomized monocentric trial. International
General Anesthesia versus Conscious Sedation 9
Journal of Stroke: Official Journal of the International Stroke Society, 10(6), 969-978. doi:10.1111/ijs.12488 [doi]
Soize, S., Kadziolka, K., Estrade, L., Serre, I., Bakchine, S., & Pierot, L. (2013). Mechanical thrombectomy in acute stroke: Prospective pilot trial of the solitaire FR device while under conscious sedation. AJNR.American Journal of Neuroradiology, 34(2), 360-365. doi:10.3174/ajnr.A3200 [doi]


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Community Calendar
April 2019
Guidelines for Events to be listed on the Town of Old Lyme website:
Only Town-sponsored and not for profit community-sponsored events will be considered for listing.
Any organization submitting an event listing must be based in or have members who live or work in Old Lyme.
Events may be listed on the Community Calendar and/or announced on the website Bulletin Board at the discretion of Town staff.


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48°19' / 25°34'
Translation of Die Juden in Unter-Stanestie
Edited by: Josef Schapira
Published in Tel Aviv, 1965
Project Coordinator and Translator
Irv Osterer
This is a translation from: Die Juden in Unter-Stanestie; The Jews of Unter-Stanestie,
JewishGen, Inc. makes no representations regarding the accuracy of
the translation. The reader may wish to refer to the original material
for verification.
JewishGen is not responsible for inaccuracies or omissions in the original work and cannot rewrite or edit the text to correct inaccuracies and/or omissions.
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NOTE: This is one of two memorial books for Unter Stanestie that have been published as part of the JewishGen Inc. Yizkor Book Project.
The other book is: Unter Stanestie Bukowinaer Circle, Inc. Twentieth Anniversary and Banquet Journal. The memorial list in the banquet journal records place of death and family information, where available. The donor believes that the list in that booklet is probably more accurate than the list in the yizkor book.
Memorial List from Staneshtie de Zhos
Memorial List from Shtetls Surrounding Staneshtie de Zhos
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Hello mathoverflow community !
I have a simple question that seems to have a non trivial answer.
Given a discrete one dimensional signal $w(x)$ defined in a finite range, and the boxcar (rectangular) function $r(x)$
$$r(x)=\begin{cases} 1 & \mbox{if }0\leq x \leq 1; \\ 0 & \mbox{elsewhere} \end{cases}$$
I would like to find the coefficients $a_i,\ b_i,\ c_i $ of the sum
$$w' = \sum_{i=0}^{N}\ { a_i \cdot r\left(\frac{x}{b_i} - c_i\right)}$$
("sum of $N$ rectangles in any range and of any height") such as $\sum_i\ \left| w_i - w_i'\right|$ is minimized (for a given $N$).
This problem seems related to:
- Discrete wavelet transform
- $l_1$ regularized solution of an overdetermined linear system
- Maximum subarray problem
However, to my understanding it does not fit any of these cases:
- $r(x)$ is not a wavelet basis,
- the problem cannot be solved (practically) as a linear system because the (finite) set of $a_i,\ b_i,\ c_i $ values is too large to compute explicitly (length of $w$ in the order of $10^4$),
- Since $a_i$ is undefined, it does not fit as a maximum subarray problem.
Right now I have an approximate solution (iteratively solving the problem via maximum subarray formulation by brute force exploring a subset of possible $a_i$ values), however the idea of "decomposing a signal as a sum of rectangles" seems general enough to think that someone has already addressed it in the past.
Do any of you have a suggestion on how to tackle this problem ?
Has it already been solved in the past, by a method I am not aware of ?
Thank you very much for your answers.


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Reviewed by Jorge B. (age 9)
T.J.'s Secret Pitch illustration will appear here.
This book is really good because it was about something I really enjoy, baseball. It was so good that I was able to finish the book in a couple of hours. I would recommend this book to anybody who enjoys baseball or any other sport. The lesson in this story was to never give up and to try harder.