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Mr Aaron Blicblau
Senior Lecturer
Master of Engineering Science, University of NSW, Australia; Bachelor of Engineering (Hons), Monash University, Australia
Master of Engineering Science, University of NSW, Australia; Bachelor of Engineering (Hons), Monash University, Australia
- Faculty of Science, Engineering & Technology
- School of Engineering
- Department of Mechanical Engineering and Product Design Engineering
- ATC840 Hawthorn campus
Research interests
Engineering Education; Experiential Learning; Online education; Technological education; Materials Science and Engineering; First year Transitioning student engagement with course-work
PhD candidate and honours supervision
Higher degrees by research
Accredited to supervise Masters & Doctoral students as Principal Supervisor.
Fields of Research
- Mechanical Engineering - 091300
- Specialist Studies In Education Not Elsewhere Classified - 130399
- 2017, Swinburne, Vice-Chancellor's Lifetime Achievement Award, Swinburne University
- 2016, Other, Engineering Education Research Design, Australasian Association for Engineering Education
- 2009, Swinburne, Vice-Chancellor's Intersectoral Collaboration Award, Swinburne University
- 2007, National, Carrick Citation, CAAUT Carrick Award for Australian University Teaching
Also published as: Blicblau, Aaron; Blicblau, A.; Blicblau, A. S.; Blicblau, Aaron S.; Blicblau, Aaron Simon
This publication listing is provided by Swinburne Research Bank. If you are the owner of this profile, you can update your publications using our online form.
Grant information is currently offline and as such is unable to be displayed here. A further update will be provided in mid-January 2019.
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State Lays Out Course onGrounds of Asylum
Austin, Texas -- Lively times are in prospect on the new golf course which the state board of control is laying out on the grounds of the state insane asylum at Austin. Inmates of the institution make it their principle topic of discussion, and they are already preparing to challenge some of the best golf players of the state for match games. It is theory of R. B. Walthall, chairman of the board of control, that playing golf will result in much physical and mental benefit to insane patients. The board is
preparing to establish golf course at ll of the other nine insane asylums, sanitariums, training schools and hospitals of the state.
The Cavalier Chronicle 9/28/1928
"Some of the institutions have more ground than others, but we shalll see to it that all get golf courses" Mr. Walthall said. "It will be recommended to superintendents that they set certain hours of the day for certain groups in order that all may get a few rounds each day. If this can be arranged, the 2,000 inmates at the Terrelll asylum and 2,000 at the Austin asylum will get in their 'daily dozen.' The Wichita Falls Insane hospita has but 1,029 inmates.
"Many of these inmates already are doing outdoor work, such as gardening, but some kind of sport also is needed. Most of these institutions raise their own garden truck and have dairies that produce sufficient mile and butter. This largely reduces the states expense and nearly all of the work is accomplished by patients. We tasked patients recently to put up a building at San Antonio and they thoroughly enjoyed the labor. It did them much good."Over in Wisconsin, the Milwaukee Sentinel published a snappy rejoinder.
So do lunatics outside the State Asylum at Austin.
You would think the poor souls at the Austin asylum had enough to worry about without running around all day replacing imaginary divots.The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. There is no more sane place to do that than at the golf course.
Update: No sooner I had published this post then the following banner ad showed up on my computer. Help! They are reading my brain waves!

subset: commoncrawl


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Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Arizona Diamondbacks Pick-Odds-Prediction - 9/6/14
Arizona Diamondbacks (59-81) at Los Angeles Dodgers (78-62)
MLB Baseball: Saturday, September 6, 2014 at 9:10 pm (Dodger Stadium)
Chase Anderson (R) (8-6) (3.753) vs. Zack Greinke (R) (13-8) (2.716)
The Line: Los Angeles Dodgers -205 / Arizona Diamondbacks +190 --- Over/Under: 7 See the Latest Odds
TV: FS-Arizona
The Arizona Diamondbacks continue their series with the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday night.
The Arizona Diamondbacks are looking towards 2015 after being eliminated from the postseason so the goal is to get a look at a few faces that could contribute in the future. The Diamondbacks gave the Dodgers all they could handle in a 2-1 defeat in the series opener with starter Vidal Nuno keeping his team competitive. In the end Nuno fell to 0-5 with both runs scored on seven hits over seven frames. The Snakes mustered four hits with Didi Gregorius knocking in AJ Pollock with the lone run. Chase Anderson gets the call to the mound to face the Los Angeles Dodgers for the third time in 2014. Andeson has generally been dependable with an 8-6 record with 3.75 ERA over 18 outings.
USA TODAY Sports
The Los Angeles Dodgers were red hot over the second half of 2013 but we haven't seen any long hots streaks from this team yet. The pitching and hitting have been okay but not dominant for any length of time. The pitching was the bright spot in the series opening win over the visiting Diamondbacks. Dan Haren was in top form with the lone run scored through six innings to get the win. The Dodgers received seven hits and walked twice with Matt Kemp going solo while Hanle Ramirez posted an RBI single. Veteran Zack Greinke toes the rubber versus the Arizona Diamondbacks for the 4th time on the season. Greinke has been rock solid over his last six times out where he has allowed no more then two runs.
Los Angeles is the better team which is a no brainer but their offense is truly ordinary which makes this team a less then great bet especially when laying chalk...


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Don't Miss Out… Major Missouri "Right to Work" Conference in St. Louis on Friday
It's time to free Missouri.
The Missouri Right to Work are hosting Mark Mix at the Missouri Right to Work Conference this Friday.
Doors open at 10:00 AM.
Bring your cameras — There are reports that union members will be protesting.
Oh, and don't let them near your camera or phone.
Senator Mayer and a number of the friendly and bold lawmakers will be there.
Check the Missouri Right to Work website for details.
As a privately owned web site, we reserve the right to edit or remove comments that contain spam, advertising, vulgarity, threats of violence, racism, anti-Semitism, or personal/abusive attacks on other users. The same applies to trolling, the use of multiple aliases, or just generally being a jerk. Enforcement of this policy is at the sole discretion of the site administrators and repeat offenders may be blocked or permanently banned without warning. Guest posting is disabled for security reasons.


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Daniel is an actor, writer, director, producer and editor in Los Angeles. He is a recent graduate of the University of Southern California and is managed by Endorse Management Group, TalentWorks (theatrical) and BBR (commercial).
Stay up to date with his latest ongoings on Instagram (@danielrashid) and Twitter (@danielsrashid).
Watch Daniel's latest sketch from his comedy channel Giggle Break below:


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Your Voice Mattered:
1. Many Arts Victories This Legislative Session!
2. New Creative MN Local Economic Impact Studies
3. MCA is Hiring: Research Assistant
1. Your Voice Mattered: Many Arts Victories!
The Minnesota legislative session has finally ended and we are delighted to report many arts victories, including:
- We obtained an overall increase of $800,000 in MN state arts funding
- We ensured that General Funds for the arts remain stable
- The important 47% dedication of the Legacy Arts Fund to the arts was maintained
- The Perpich Center for Arts Education was saved
- The much-delayed bonding bill includes some arts projects
Thank you to all of you, including the 1000 people who attended Arts Advocacy Day, those of you who emailed or called your legislators, who went through our website or attended in-district meetings with your legislators to ask them to support the arts. Your voice mattered!
LEGACY ARTS FUNDING: Thanks to Senate Chair Carrie Ruud, Senator Richard Cohen, and House Chair Bob Gunther for making sure the bill conformed to state law by dedicating 47% of the dollars in the Arts Legacy Fund to the Minnesota State Arts Board and Regional Arts Councils (MSAB/RACs). Between Legacy and the General Fund, there is an approximately $800,000 increase for the MSAB/RAC system over the next two years.
A new wrinkle is the back-loading of dollars into the second year of the coming two-year arts budget. This means a drop from current levels by $5M in the first year with a corresponding $5M increase in the second year. The back-loading of arts funding into the second year will probably be a long-term strategy by the legislature, along with also holding 5% of the fund in reserve, because they are highly motivated to never again run out of money in the fund if tax revenues go down, as happened in FY17. Grantees should note that the MSAB and RACs thus will have slightly less dollars to grant out in FY18 and slightly more again in FY19.
THE GENERAL FUND: The arts funding from this source is what we received prior to passing the Legacy Amendment in 2008. The State Government Finance Committee appropriated stable funding of $15M over the next two years. Thank you to the two committee Chairs Representative Sarah Anderson and Senator Mary Kiffmeyer for ensuring stable General Fund for the arts.
And so, in total, we have secured $73M for the MSAB/RAC system over the next two years compared to $72.24M for the previous two years. Go Team!
BONDING BILL: The legislature also passed the long-delayed Bonding bill. We know some arts projects were included but some were taken out, we are awaiting full documentation to bring you that news.
The Perpich Center for Arts Education suffered a near-death experience after terrible leadership and a bad audit led some legislators to target it for elimination. The Governor appointed a new-majority board, the previous leader departed, and a new day dawned for the Center as many people kicked into high gear to solve its financial and managerial problems. Kudos particularly to Ben Vanderkooi, the new board Chair, Leslie LeCuyer, the Chair of their new Government Relations Committee, Interim Director Peg Birk and the rest of the Perpich board members and volunteers who have been working night and day both to fix the problems at the Center and to save Perpich at the Legislature.
MCA delivered almost 4000 letters from the public to legislators and the Governor via our online advocacy center with the assistance of Perpich alumni, parents and friends. The Center is now on probation by the legislature. Legislation also added the Commissioner of Education as an ex officio member of the board, requires the director to hold a superintendent license, requires persons employed as teachers to have teaching licenses in their respective fields, requires that board meeting minutes be published on the Center's website, and requires an annual report be submitted to the legislature. The bill also leaves decisions related to the Crosswinds school to the Commission of Administration.
(***Note that Governor has not yet signed any of the above bills and nothing is finalized until he signs, vetoes or lets them become law without his signature!***)
2. New Creative Minnesota Local Economic Impact Studies
MCA and Creative Minnesota are partnering with ArtsLab at Arts Midwest and the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council to produce a new round of local city or county economic impact studies of the arts.
PEER LEARNING COMMUNITIES: In partnership with Minnesota Citizens for the Arts, and the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, Arts Midwest is providing a 2017-18 learning experience for up to eight rural and up to eight 7-county Twin Cities suburban communities.This cohort focuses on the growing importance of arts and culture as key drivers in building communities that can flourish.
CITY OR COUNTY LOCAL ECONOMIC IMPACT STUDIES: As a part of the program, we are offering participating cities a local Creative MN study for $1,500. Note that you can particpate in the local city or county economic impact study project whether or not you want to sign up for the Peer Learning opportunity.
In addition, we have learned that there were communities who had questions about eligibility and did not apply for the cohort by the earlier deadline. If you are interested in participating in the local Creative MN study, and/or if you continue to be interested and were a community with eligibility questions about the Peer Learning opportunity, please contact Sharon at email@example.com.
Details for Suburban opportunities:
And Greater MN opportunities here:
3. MCA is Hiring: Research Assistant
POSITION OPEN: MCA represents the arts community of Minnesota at the state legislature and lobbies for state funding of the arts, as well as other issues of concern to the non-profit arts community. MCA also does advocacy for the National Endowment for the Arts. To lobby effectively, MCA organizes grassroots advocacy around the state and keeps constituents educated and informed about the political process and the current state of arts funding throughout the year.
MCA also leads and organizes the Creative Minnesota project with other statewide arts service organizations and arts supporting organizations (see www.CreativeMN.org).
This Research Assistant will coordinate the work on 20 new city or county local Creative Minnesota economic impact studies.
APPLY NOW. Please mail or email resume and cover letter by June 9, 2017 to Mark Albers email@example.com. More information is available at: http://artsmn.org/about/jobs/.


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Endometriosis: Symptoms and Treatment
Endometriosis is a gynecological neoplastic disease, accompanied by the proliferation of the inner shell of the uterus (endometrium) beyond the limits of its cavity. Simply put, tissues that are in the uterus in healthy women, with endometriosis grow in other organs. Endometriosis, whose symptoms are experienced by women, develops for vague reasons, although there are some grounds for identifying immune, hormonal, hereditary and some other factors.
General Description
So, in order to better understand what is at issue in considering this disease, it is necessary to dwell on what, in fact, is the endometrium, and also to penetrate into the peculiarities of the organs of the reproductive system of a woman.
Women in the small pelvis have a uterus — a muscular organ, connected to the uterine tubes opening to the abdominal cavity on both sides. The uterus covers the three main layers, this is the inner layer of the endometrium, the median (muscle) layer myometrium, and perimetry — the outer serous thin shell of the organ protruding into the As a continuation for the leaflets of the peritoneum from the bladder.
The layer of interest, the endometrium, includes two more layers, it is a functional layer and a basal layer. The functional layer includes a layer of cells that resemble cylinders in their own structure, which, in fact, determines their name — it is a cylindrical epithelium. Between these cells are glandular cells — due to them, the required mucus is produced, and also there are a lot of terminal branches belonging to small spiral arteries.
Throughout the menstrual cycle, the functional layer is subject to constant changes due to the effect of female sex hormones. When the menstrual period comes, then its rejection occurs, and finally, the outward excretion. Then, where the functional layer in the uterus has been torn away, the process of dividing the cells of the basal layer begins. As a result, new cells are formed replacing the rejected layer and forming a new layer.
Specialists note that endometriosis is the third most common among gynecological diseases, following uterine myoma and inflammatory processes affecting the female genital organs. Most often, endometriosis is diagnosed in women of the reproductive age group, mainly between the ages of 40 and 44 years. According to various data, the incidence of endometriosis is about 12% on average in middle-aged women. In infertile women, endometriosis is diagnosed more often — about 30-40% of them occur, while multiparous women face this disease more rarely — about 27%.
What is remarkable, teenage girls can also develop this disease. For example, it is known that about 50% of patients in this group who have undergone surgical intervention due to pelvic pain are diagnosed with endometriosis. The premenopausal period also does not exclude for women the possibility of developing this disease — here its frequency on average is about 2-5%. We add that after menopause in women, similar to the listed age groups, endometriosis may also develop, which, however, occurs less frequently.
At the same time, it is impossible to determine the true rates of the disease in question, due to the difficulties associated with its diagnosis, as well as the fact that in some cases, endometriosis occurs without symptoms at all. On average, about 70% of cases of treatment of patients for medical help due to pain in the pelvic region ends with the diagnosis of «endometriosis.»
These data, with the due approach of the readers to them, are a weighty argument in favor of regular preventive visits by such a doctor as a gynecologist. In particular, this applies to those women who are experiencing certain constraints associated with the admission of this specialist, as well as those women who completely ignore such recommendations and in general do not visit the gynecologist.
Endometriosis: causes
The disease we are considering is polyethological, which, in turn, indicates the presence of a variety of possible causes that cause it. At the same time, as has already been identified, the true cause of endometriosis has not yet been determined. Let us dwell on some variants, which are considered to be basic at the moment.
- Retrograde menstruation. Or, as it stands, «reverse» menstruation. This phenomenon determines the following process: a certain amount of menstrual blood released during menstruation, is sent to the abdominal cavity through the fallopian tubes. Menstruation for a similar «scenario» — not uncommon, moreover, it is often found in healthy women. The only difference from patients with endometriosis is that in healthy women, the immune system restrains the endometrium, not allowing it to expand in the area in which it appears, that is, in the abdominal cavity.
- Heredity. This factor is relevant for many diseases that a person has to deal with, and endometriosis can also be considered as a disease, with this factor associated. Accordingly, it is believed that the risk of developing the disease in question is increased if it is available to the next of kin.
- Immune system disorders. This reason is also seen as a presumed factor leading to the development of endometriosis. If the immunity is weakened, then in the abdominal cavity, when the variant of the «reverse» menstruation has already been considered, endometrial cells not only do not collapse, but also attach to the tissues and organs located here, thereby forming foci of endometriosis.
- Surgical intervention in the area of gynecology. Any kind of surgical treatment, and this is curettage (ablation), abortion, cesarean section, cauterization of erosion, etc. — As significant predisposing factors to the development of endometriosis.
- Hormonal changes. This factor is also believed to contribute to the development of endometriosis. The fact that the endometrium is quite sensitive to the effects of female sex hormones, the foci of endometriosis react to them in a similar way. The growth of such foci, for example, contributes to female sex hormones, estrogens.
- Metaplasia of the endometrium. This factor implies a transformation in which one tissue is transformed into another. There is a theory according to which the endometrium, being outside the uterus, can similarly transform into another tissue. Meanwhile, the causes of metaplasia are not clear at the moment, moreover, any assumptions on her account give rise to a lot of controversy among researchers.
In addition to the factors listed, there are some other factors, and they are also not excluded when considering the relationship with endometriosis. In particular, they include:
- iron deficiency;
- environmental impact
- urinary tract infections, as well as STDs
- impaired liver function
- obesity;
- use of an intrauterine device, etc.
Endometriosis: forms and species
Classification of endometriosis is performed in gynecology in accordance with the localization of its foci. In particular, genital and extragenital endometriosis are isolated. Genital endometriosis can be internal (this is adenomyosis) or external, extragenital, in turn, can be extraperitoneal or peritoneal.
By internal genital endometriosis is meant the proliferation of foci of the endometrium in the area of the muscular uterine layer, namely in the cervix and uterus.
As for extragenital endometriosis, it mainly develops in the environment of the kidneys, bladder, intestine, lungs, in the field of some post-operative scars.
Extragenital peritoneal endometriosis primarily affects the fallopian tubes, ovaries and pelvic peritoneum.
Localization of extraperitoneal endometriosis is concentrated from the external genitalia. The main forms of this variant of the disease is endometriosis of the vaginal part of the cervix, endometriosis of the vagina, zadachoshechny endometriosis, endometriosis rectovaginal septum.
Endometriosis can occur in so-called «small» forms or in severe forms. In the latter variant, the localization of foci may correspond to a mixed form, because of which a clear classification of endometriosis is sometimes not at all. In addition, severe forms of endometriosis, according to experts, develop as a result of ignoring the curative and preventive measures at the necessary stages for this.
Based on the depth of lesions by the foci, the corresponding stages of endometriosis are isolated. In particular, this is the minimal stage, the stage is mild, the stage is moderate and the stage is heavy. The severe stage, as is not hard to guess, is the most painful for patients, and also the most difficult to implement measures aimed at treating endometriosis. With internal endometriosis, the lesion in accordance with specific stages is as follows:
- Stage 1 — the mucous membrane is afflicted to the myometrium layer (to the middle, muscle layer, as indicated above)
- Stage 2 — the layer of the myometrium is affected to the middle;
- Stage 3 — the lesion reaches the serous (peritoneal) cover of the uterus;
- Stage 4 — here the parietal peritoneum is affected.
Thus, we can distinguish a group of organs of the abdominal cavity and small pelvis (namely, they are most often affected by foci), which will determine the types of endometriosis:
- Endometriosis of the uterus (also called adenomyosis)
- Endometriosis of the ovaries;
- Peritoneal endometriosis (also known as peritoneal endometriosis)
- Vaginal endometriosis;
- Endometriosis of the cervix
- Rectovaginal endometriosis
- Bladder endometriosis;
- Endometriosis, affecting other organs (the disease is much less common in this item): diaphragm, pleura of lungs, lungs, intestines, eyes, stomach, skin, etc.
Endometriosis of the uterus: symptoms
Endometriosis of the body of the uterus, or, as we previously indicated, adenomyosis, is one of the main forms of endometriosis, in which the myometrium is affected by foci of endometrioid tissue. The symptomatology of this form of the disease is as follows:
- Painful menstruation. This symptom also has its own medical definition — aldysmenorrhea. The intensity of pain in the severity of pain, in general, does not match. The appearance of pain is caused by the fact that the liquid begins to accumulate in the tissues, which is due to the actual adhesive process affecting the uterine cavity, congestion in the menstrual blood, inflammatory process.
- Violations of the cycle. This symptom is quite typical for adenomyosis, although, indeed, not only for him — many gynecological diseases and disorders in the body are accompanied, as is known, by similar «failures». With adenomyosis, most of the cycle disorders are reduced to bleeding. As an important enough symptom for this case is the appearance of brownish or bloody discharge, they appear 1-2 days before the start of menstruation and last the same way, 1-2 days after it. An important signal is also a change in the nature of menstrual flow. So, if earlier menstruation proceeded normally, with adenomyosis they can become, for example, excessively abundant. This is often accompanied by a severe depletion of the patient.
- Dark color of menstrual flow. A characteristic feature of the manifestation of endometriosis during menstruation, there are also blood clots.
- Prolonged menstrual flow. Often menstruation with endometriosis lasts longer, exceeding average duration.
- Infertility. Infertility is due to two main reasons, namely, that there is no possibility of implantation of the fetal egg and its subsequent gestation as a result of the prevalence of the process, as well as the fact that the adhesive process is developed in a pronounced form, Which is accompanied by a lesion of the uterine cavity. In both cases, the result is the same — all this leads to infertility. At the same time, this is not the final verdict in the disease, because at least 20% of cases in practice fix the onset of pregnancy among patients, even with a severe form of the disease in question.
- Miscarriage of pregnancy, that is, in this case it is a spontaneous abortion / miscarriage. The reasons for this outcome are associated with a general picture of the changes against which infertility is developing.
- Endocrine Disorders. In general, this symptom is relevant for extragenital endometriosis, although it may be present during adenomyosis. It manifests itself in the hypothalamic-pituitary insufficiency of the ovarian system. Because of hormonal imbalance, bloody discharge can appear in women between menstruation, which occurs fairly often with endometriosis
In most cases, the disease progresses. In the absence of treatment for about half a year, about 47% of patients face deterioration, while spontaneous improvement occurs in about 30%. It is noteworthy that during pregnancy, some regression of the disease is observed in the patients, or even a significant improvement in the general condition. The fact is that pregnancy is a condition in which the decidual reaction begins to develop in the formed foci, as a result of which they begin to decrease.
Decidualization consists of such changes in the endometrium during pregnancy, in which a special type of cell layer of the endometrium — decidual tissue — is formed. During pregnancy, decidual changes occur quite intensively: the cells accumulate fats and glycogen, the size of these cells increase. Simultaneously with this enhancement, vascular growth in the endometrium is susceptible.
As for the role of this decidual tissue, its role is not completely determined. Meanwhile, it is commonly believed that this tissue controls the insertion of the fetal egg into the uterine wall, where it acts as a kind of interlayer first between the trophoblast, and afterwards — the wall of the uterus and placenta. Also we add that the decidual reaction acts as an integral stage of implantation.
Ovarian Endometriosis: Symptoms
Ovaries in endometriosis can be affected by the entry of endometrial cells in them through the lumen of the uterine tube, which occurs with the flow of lymph and blood. The causes of endometriosis of the ovaries are also not fully understood at the moment, the foci of endometriosis can be located both outside the ovary and directly in it. Symptoms of endometriosis of the ovaries in each case can be manifested in different ways, this depends on the size of the foci and on the specific area of their localization. Let us single out the general symptomatology:
- Pain in the lower abdomen. Such pain is not necessarily associated with a particular period of the menstrual cycle, that is, it can appear at any time. Constant pain in the abdomen can be caused by inflammation of the peritoneum due to irritation on the soil of the formation of endometriosis foci.
- Pain in the lower abdomen during exercise, during sexual intercourse.
- Increased pain in the period before menstruation, especially severe pain on her first day.
- Pain spreading to the inguinal or to the lumbar region, to the rectum.
Peritoneal endometriosis: symptoms
Peritoneal endometriosis (peritoneal endometriosis) is characterized by the fact that in its development an important role is assigned to the interaction of endometrial elements with peritoneal mesotheliocytes. To contribute to the development of this form of the disease, the «reverse» casting of menstrual blood can already be considered, which is caused by certain disturbances in the work of the immune and endocrine systems.
Peritoneal endometriosis can be of two types. So, the first type is characterized by a limited scale of damage — only the peritoneum is affected. The second type, respectively, is characterized by the fact that the lesion of the endometriotic foci occurs not only within the peritoneum, but also behind them, that is, the uterus, ovaries and fallopian tubes are affected.
With small forms of endometriosis, there may be no long-term clinical symptomatology — the disease proceeds in a latent form. At the same time, infertility in such a course of the disease, even in a small form, often exceeds 90%. If the foci of endometriosis have spread beyond the peritoneum and have «settled down» in the rectum and its muscle layer, affecting also the pararectal tissue, then the similar course is accompanied by the appearance of pelvic pain, soreness of sexual contact (which is more pronounced on the eve of the onset of menstruation, and after it) .
Vaginal and perineal endometriosis: symptoms
Basically, the perineum and vagina are affected by endometriosis as a result of germination from the side of the retrocervical focus, somewhat less often due to the appearance of endometrial foci in the area of the site that was affected during delivery.
As the leading complaint for this form of the disease are painful sensations arising both in the vagina and in the back of the pelvis, and the severity of pain in this case varies from moderate to severe enough, often painful, exhausting. Strengthening pain is noted during sexual intercourse, as well as a week before and after menstruation. Severe pain occurs particularly when the front crotch is involved, as well as the external sphincter of the rectum.
There is also a certain kind of difficulty in the act of defecation, which is accompanied by excruciating painfulness in those periods on which the exacerbation of endometriosis occurs. By the nature of the manifestation, the pain is pulsating and burning (analogy with an abscess). When menstruation occurs, the patients will detect swelling, knots or cystic type of formation during palpation.
After the completion of menstruation, the detected lesions either shrink in size or completely disappear, after which the scars remain in their place, they are painful and have brownish pigmentation. If in this case the diagnosis is established erroneously and unreasonably (sphincteritis, rectitis) on the basis of lesion of the external sphincter of the rectum, and thermal procedures (including warm sedentary baths) are appointed, the pain becomes worse.
Pain in the vagina can also be combined with local itching. Some patients find brownish and bloody discharge, emanating from the vagina both spontaneously and during sexual intercourse. There are such discharges in almost standard for endometriosis period for this symptom — a few days before menstruation and within a few days after it.
Cervical Endometriosis: Symptoms
This form of the disease is also quite common, and the reason for this is the location of the affected area — the cervix most often «falls under the shock» during various manipulations in gynecology (abortion, scraping, etc.).
Some symptoms of cervical endometriosis, in general, can be called common with other areas of damage in this disease. These are:
- smearing brownish discharge that appears before menstruation
- pain and discomfort during sexual contact
- the appearance of brownish discharge during sexual intercourse (this symptom mostly occurs in the second half of the cycle).
As for other painful sensations (in the lower abdomen, for example), they are not so characteristic of the general clinical picture for this form of the disease.
Rectovaginal endometriosis: symptoms
Rectovaginal endometriosis can be deep (or internal), which is accompanied by the development of endometriosis-specific pathological foci in the uterus, as well as external, which is accompanied by damage to the fallopian tubes, wide uterine and intestinal uterine ligaments, ovaries, Douglas space and peritoneum.
Symptoms of this form of the disease are similar to the other forms: here, too, are pain sensations that occur during sexual intercourse, as well as pain in the abdomen before and after menstruation.
Bladder Endometriosis: Symptoms
Still some time ago in this form, endometriosis was considered a rare disease, any information about this disease in the medical literature flashed in a rather meager amount. Meanwhile, now the cases of this disease are diagnosed more often, and rather the fault of the past is a lack of familiarization of urologists and gynecologists with it, and not the rarity of its occurrence. His role in this is played by the fact that often specialists in attempts to establish a diagnosis such as endometriosis of the bladder adhere to the direction to another pathology — cyclic hematuria, which in any case is incorrect, moreover, the latter diagnosis is rarely relevant for patients with whom he Was delivered.
The bladder in endometriosis can be affected in different ways. For example, it is possible to hit on its surface the contents that are in the endometrioid cysts of the ovary, as well as the ingress of menstrual blood (according to the «scenario» of retrograde casting), which includes viable endometrial particles, or the proliferation of the endometrium from the isthmus and the frontal uterine wall To the bladder. An important role is played by the isthmus affected by endometriosis, left behind in supravaginal amputation of the uterus, as well as sparing surgical influence on the uterus during this or that manipulation. Cesarean section plays a role. Admissible is the variant of hematogenous entry of endometrial elements into the wall of the bladder organ.
The features of the clinical picture of endometriosis in this case are determined by the features of its genesis. Thus, the foci of endometriosis, formed during the implantation of particles of the endometrium, on the surface of the organ of the bladder, for a long time may not manifest themselves in any way, in other words, there are no symptoms. The detection of foci occurs by chance, for example, in the process of trunking with actual diseases of certain organs of the pelvis, as well as in the lower abdominal cavity. Naturally, the detection of pathology is allowed by those specialists who are familiar with it.
With the spread of endometriosis to the posterior wall of the bladder from the uterus or from the isthmus, severe enough dysuric phenomena develop in patients. If it is a pathology such as congenital endometriosis of the bladder, in which the location of the lesion focuses from the ureteral orifices, the picture of the disease can also be quite severe.
The most common symptoms of bladder endometriosis include complaints of a feeling of heaviness arising in the back of the pelvis and in the lower abdomen. It increases before menstruation, and also after it. At the same time, urination in patients is becoming more frequent, in some cases it is accompanied by soreness. The degree of pain can vary, respectively, they can be both moderate and strong enough, up to a loss of normal working capacity in this period. With urological examinations and repeated urine tests, the causes explaining the sufferings of patients are not detected, due to which the diagnosis of «cystalgia» is established. Therapy applied to the manifestations of symptoms determines the lack of sufficient effectiveness. With thermal procedures, pain intensifies. At the same time, specialists do not attach due importance to the dependence determined between the menstrual cycle and complaints.
Gradually painful urination is supplemented during menstruation with hematuria (blood in the urine), the degree of manifestation of its manifestation can vary. At the stage of progression of the disease, a diagnosis such as recurrent hemorrhagic cystitis can be established. Therapy against manifestations of actual symptoms is still ineffective at the same time.
Soon the disease becomes chronic. According to some data, it takes 3-5 years from the moment of appearance of such a symptom as painful urination before the onset of hematuria. What is noteworthy, many patients face a certain relief of pain when urinating from the time that hematuria began to manifest. In most cases, this symptomatology leads to fear in patients that they may have a tumor in the bladder.
We add that the blood in the urine with bladder endometriosis is, according to some observations, a symptom that occurs in this disease in 25% of patients. If it is a question of extensive endometriosis, in which the neck of the bladder is captured by the lesion, then such a symptom as the problem of urinary retention (incontinence) may also occur.
Endometriosis and Pregnancy
If you consider this disease in combination with infertility, then you can not say unequivocally on the equality between them. In other words, with endometriosis, pregnancy is not impossible. Another thing is that pregnancy with endometriosis significantly reduces the chances of pregnancy. In practice, there are cases of conception in this disease, but it is important to understand that the percentage of success of conception is lower in this case, and, of course, that there is a certain risk for the fetus in endometriosis, which is a spontaneous abortion. If the child was still conceived, then it is mandatory to observe the doctor strictly following recommendations from his side.
As for the cause-and-effect mechanism in the «endometriosis-infertility» scheme, there is still no clear clarity. Meanwhile, there are certain assumptions regarding the factors provoking infertility in endometriosis:
- Immunological and endocrine disorders, topical in parallel with endometriosis. These factors adversely affect ovulation, fertilization and subsequent implantation in the uterus of the egg.
- Mechanical abnormalities that cause obstruction of the fallopian tubes; Pathology of the anatomy of the ovaries; Adhesive processes that make it difficult to release the egg.
- The processes that accompany local inflammations.
- Luteinized follicle syndrome.
- Frequent miscarriages in the early stages.
- Pathology of the uterine tube transport function due to the increase in prostaglandins against the background of endometriosis
In its own interesting and, at the same time, important, is such a factor as unfavorable conditions for the future fetus in the body (womb). More precisely, the essence of this is the following: the body independently decides whether a woman can take out (and after giving birth) a healthy baby right now.
At the same time, new studies show that most women with endometriosis, regardless of the nature of the menstrual cycle (even normal and regular), true ovulation is not present as such, that is, it is about anovulation. We add that without ovulation pregnancy in principle is impossible.
The data of some sources indicate that after treatment and organ-preserving surgical interventions pregnancy occurs on average in 15-56% of cases — such a significant gap in the parameters is due to the peculiarities of the pathological process and the severity of the course of the disease. Basically, gynecologists note that after the treatment in the desired direction pregnancy occurs after six months or a year. Accordingly, the expectation of pregnancy can last from 6 to 14 months.
At the same time (although rarely), there are cases in which successful treatment of endometriosis does not end with the onset of a long-awaited pregnancy in six months or more. In this case, you will need to undergo an additional examination, which will highlight other factors involved in the problem of infertility.
Complications of endometriosis
If the treatment of endometriosis is ignored as a necessity or it is initially implemented illiterately, then you can later face a number of complications:
- infertility;
- development in the abdominal cavity and in a small pelvis of adhesive processes
- development of posthemorrhagic anemia in patients with abundant chronic blood loss, concomitant menstruation
- neurological disorders caused by compression of nerve trunks
- formation of endometrioid cysts of the ovaries
- transformation of endometrioid tissues into malignant tumor formation
In order to establish the diagnosis of «endomectriosis,» you need to obtain results for certain studies, among them are:
- ultrasound of the pelvic area using a special vaginal sensor
- hysterosalpingography is a method in which a contrast medium is used, which can be used to assess how widespread the process of foci formation has been, and also to understand how much the tubal patency has suffered from this, which is especially important in case of infertility, which is actual for the patient,
- Hysteroscopy — this method makes it possible to investigate the features of the uterine surface, endometrioid passages and tubal ostium (on the pale pink mucous membrane they look like dark red dots)
- Laparoscopy is a microsurgical treatment that allows you to diagnose any of the forms of the disease, and — with the simultaneous possibility of treatment during it
- blood test for the detection of an endometriosis marker
In general, the need for this or that variant of the study is determined by the attending physician, depending on the characteristics of the pathological process, the diagnostic scheme may vary.
Treatment of endometriosis is carried out in two main directions, and this is the surgical removal of foci in the areas of endometriosis damage (or removal of organs with them completely), as well as medical treatment aimed at providing hormonal correction of the activity inherent in endometrium.
Surgical treatment often has no alternatives due to the fact that the condition of patients is often rapidly deteriorating and there is a threat for subsequent infertility. In many cases, the pain accompanying endometriosis becomes almost unbearable, in addition to this pain, the rapid growth of foci also accompanies the unfavorable prognosis.
Surgery can be performed in different ways, it is determined on the basis of the location of the foci, the possibility of access to them due to some technique of the required impact. If it is a question of endometriosis of the vagina, cervix or perineum, the preferred option is endoscopy (excision of foci and their cauterization is carried out either through the vaginal cavity, or outside). If the foci are located in the uterine cavity, then the option of removing the uterus (the question of whether to remove or not remove the appendages) or a hysteroscopic operation that provides access through the vagina to the affected uterus organ can be considered.
If endometriotic foci are in the area of the fallopian tubes, ovaries or peritoneum, laparoscopy can be performed — several small holes are made on the abdomen in certain areas for subsequent access to the affected areas.
With regard to drug treatment, it is focused on suppressing the growth / reproduction of endometrial cells. In general, the following groups of drugs are used (only the attending physician can decide on their appointment!):
- oral contraceptives combined action (marvelon, femoden, diane-35, etc.)
- drugs representing the group of antigonadotropins (gestrinone, danazol, etc.)
- drugs representing a group of progestins (depostat, dyufaston, etc.)
- preparations of the agonist group (decapeptil-depot, zoladex, etc.)
- anti-estrogens (tamoxifen, etc.).
Information on these groups of drugs is provided for general information only! Self-treatment by them is unacceptable, the application is possible only on the basis of the testimony of the treating gynecologist!
Endometriosis: prevention measures
Prophylaxis of endometriosis is an equally topical issue for both women who have suffered this disease and recovered from it, and for those women who have experienced this disease only through information sources. Recommendations for prevention include the following:
- regular visit to the treating gynecologist, at least once every 6 months;
- sexual abstinence during menstruation
- timely treatment of gynecological diseases;
- fight against excess weight (exercise, diet, etc.)
- Avoidance of stressful situations as such, as much as possible
- elimination of abortions, selection of optimal solutions for contraception
Endometriosis: Some facts about this disease
Some women ignore this disease, believing that it will pass by itself, some believe that this is only «their problem», some even believe that it will not affect them in any way. Is it so? Let's look at some established facts related to endometriosis.
- Endometriosis is a disease of active and business women
A number of studies in this area and their results in particular indicate that endometriosis is more often diagnosed in women in large cities, as well as in women whose professional activity is associated with increased mental stress. Basically, we are talking about socially prosperous business women, as well as women whose activities are supplemented by a systematic change in climatic conditions due to business trips, etc. Here we are talking about the desire for self-realization when we postpone motherhood for «later». In the high-risk group, there are also those women whose sex life is «overly active», especially when it comes to the combination with frequent changes in sexual partners (which is not very rare, as you know). It is quite possible that, in addition to treating endometriosis, some kind of restructuring of consciousness will have to be taken care of, which is also an important part in this matter.
- Endometriosis negatively affects the sexual partners of women with this disease
Relatively recently it became known that the problem of endometriosis is not only a purely female problem, but also the problem of a woman's sexual partner. On this account, there are two valid statements:
— The seminal fluid contains certain molecules (such as estradiol, prostaglandins, etc.), through which the endometrium provokes a stimulating effect. Seed fluid in the process of sexual intercourse is found in the uterine cavity or in the abdominal cavity through the posterior and anterior vaginal arches. Prostoglandins enhance cell proliferation, and also lead to suppression of apoptosis (i.e., a protective mechanism that operates within the framework of endometriosis), inducing the production of certain enzymes, through which endometriosis develops with greater intensity. Accordingly, it can be summarized that when a sperm enters the patient's body with endometriosis, it acts as a factor supporting the development of this disease.
— Endometriosis negatively affects the qualitative characteristics of sperm. Proved is the fact that hypoxia acts as one of the variants of triggers for endometriosis. In other words, women with endometriosis are always in a state of oxidative stress, in which cells are affected by oxidation. Simultaneously, there is an accumulation in the body of free radicals of oxygen, they, as it became known, are characterized by a toxic effect on the sperm cell — cell membranes, in particular, are subject to damage in particular. And DNA, and apoptosis (cell death) is triggered. That is, those processes that «control» the disease in women, negatively affect the general state of sperm. Accordingly, when infertility is extremely important to begin treatment, thereby eliminating the negative impact for both partners, leading to this result.
- Endometriosis and IVF
In particular, on this item, patients are interested in whether the procedure for IVF is effective in endometriosis. On this account, there are also certain facts:
— common forms of the disease have a negative effect on the ovarian reserve, reducing the number of eggs obtained during stimulation, why this occurs is still unclear;
— Endometriosis itself is the basis for introducing patients into the appropriate risk group regarding the possibility of developing an ectopic pregnancy after embryo transfer has been performed;
— internal endometriosis (i.e., adenomyosis) helps to reduce the possibility of successful implantation of the embryo within the framework of the implementation of PBT programs similarly, as with the usual (natural) mode of conception.
To sum up, the only true solution in the treatment of endometriosis is laparoscopy (surgical treatment) with the addition in the form of certain drugs of conservative therapy.
If you have any symptoms that may indicate endometriosis, you need to visit a treating gynecologist.


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Yet some upscale women will pay $60 for these things. Well, live and let live.
Or, in true Wise Bread fashion, do it yourself and save big.
Flower brooches are frighteningly easy to make. The basic instructions:
- Get a silk flower of some kind.
- Remove it from the stem.
- Glue a pin to the back, either in the center or just above the center of the back.
- Cover the spine of the pin backing by gluing something pretty, like a fake leaf or a piece of felt or velvet.
- Pin to coat or give as gift.
Here are some tips for making flower brooches:
Get your hands on a hot glue gun, if you don't already have one. Using these things is kind of an art, and you will get burned a few times. Practice makes perfect and all that. The glue guns at my craft store cost between $2-15 dollars. Mine is a $9 model that's pretty bad-ass.
Don't buy ridiculously expensive pin backings. Sterling silver really doesn't do much for the backing, and costs too much and won't be seen anyway.
When making brooches, you want the back of the flower to be almost completely flat. Because of the way these fake flowers are put together, sometimes you have to cut off the plastic that holds it all together in order to get a good, flat back. In this case, you'll have to reconstruct the flower using hot glue. It's not too hard, though.
If you have some silk flowers that are less-than exciting, you can always take apart two flowers and combine them. Use the same kind of flower for additional petals, or two or three different kinds of flowers for a sort of hybrid flower.
The little leaves that you glue over the pin's spine can usually be found in the bridal supply section of a craft or fabric store, because they are often used in veils.
The center of the flower is a good place to glue something really cool. On the flower pictured below, I glued an antique button that I bought at a thrift store. It has rhinestones, and complements the subtle colors of the flower perfectly.
You don't have to put anything in the center because a lot of fake flowers look better with their fake centers. But other ideas include regular buttons, smiley faces, crystals, beads, pearls, or even those polished glass pebbles that you put into fish tanks. Below is a small white lapel pin that I made with a cheap mother-of-pearl button for a center.


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The North Middle School Pool serves as the community pool and is the location for open swim, swimming lessons, water exercise, and synchronized swim. It is a great facility for lessons and water exercise due to 25 yards of shallow water and the bleacher viewing area.
Starting Friday, October 19, the North Middle School will reopen for Adult Lap Swim and Family Open Swim. Please see modified schedule below.
Adult Lap Swim / Family Open Swim Schedule
October 19 to November 17
Monday - Adult Lap Swim 4:00-6:00 PM
Wednesday - Adult Lap Swim 4:00-6:00 PM
Friday - Adult Lap Swim 4:00-6:00 PM and Family Open Swim 6:00-8:00 PM
Saturday - Adult Lap Swim 12:00-1:00 and Family Open Swim 1:00-3:00 PM
November 19 to February 28, 2019
(Pool closed Nov. 22-24 and Dec. 24-Jan. 1)
Monday / Wednesday / Friday
Adult Lap Swim 3:45-4:45 PM & Open Family Swim 7:00-9:00 PM
Tuesday / Thursday
Adult Lap Swim 3:45-5:00 PM
Adult Lap Swim 12:00-1:00 PM & Open Family Swim 1:00-3:00 PM
Special Holiday Swim on Wednesday, December 26
Open Family Swim 2:00-4:00 & Adult Lap Swim 4:00-6:00 PM
For a complete listing of American Red Cross swim lesson times, dates and fees visit the Aquatics Section of our Online Course Catalog.
- Per Use Fee
- Our Pool Policies
- Adult & Senior Punch Cards
- Family & Child Swim Passes
- Red Cross Learn to Swim Program
Per Use Fee
Our Pool Policies
Pool rules are enforced at the discretion of the head Lifeguard. Safe, appropriate behavior is expected by all swimmers. Those making a safe environment difficult will lose the privilege of swimming for a specified time period.
Supervision: Children who are 6 years of age or younger must be within 6 feet of an ADULT (Age 18+) at all times. Adult must be swimming with child at all times.
When should participants arrive: Plan to arrive no more than five minutes before your scheduled class time. Prior to the start of the class and once dismissed from the pool, the swim staff does not supervise participants.
What to bring: Participants must furnish their own suits, locks and towels. We are not responsible for participant's belongings.
Locker Room: Attendants are NOT on duty. You are responsible to assist your child in the locker room. A shower is required prior to entry in the pool area. PLEASE NOTE: Youth who are 5 years of age or older must use the appropriate gender locker room. Plan accordingly.
Spectators: For health and safety reasons ONLY instructors/lifeguards and participants are permitted in the pool area. Viewing is allowed from the balcony area only. No street shoes allowed on pool deck.
Pool Toys: Toys from home are not allowed. Please be aware that many toys are provided at the pool for all to enjoy. Participants are allowed to wear life jackets and water wings if attached to child.
Pool Closings are determined when the lifeguard declares an emergency situation that includes, but is not limited to the following:
• Rescue/accident situation
• Lightning or inclement weather
Adult & Senior Punch Cards
Adult and Senior Punch Cards
A punch card entitles the owner admission 12 times to Open and/or Lap Swim at the North Middle School Pool. Punch cards can be purchased at the CE & Rec Office, or at the North Middle School Pool. Cards expire 1 year from date of purchase and are non-transferable.
Family & Child Swim Passes
Family or Child Swim Passes
A swim pass entitles the owner admission to Open and/or Lap Swim. Passes can be purchased at the CE & Rec Office or the North Middle School Pool. Proof of residency may be required. A list of all pass holders will be kept at the pool.
Winter Swim Pass
Valid December 1 - February 28, 2019
Winter Swim Pass Fees and Application
Fall Swim Pass
Valid September 24 - November 30, 2018
Fall Swim Pass Fees and Application
Red Cross Learn to Swim Program
- Parent / Child Aquatics
- Preschool Aquatics
- Learn-to-Swim


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All right y'all. I'm gathering up my people for they new challenge project that I blogged about. I'm making a mad dash for sanity next Tuesday and won't be back until the following week. I'll try to gather everyone together by then so we can kick it off for you. Are you dying of suspense yet? I hope not because I hate it when people do that to me. In fact, I usually roll my eyes and think a big, sarcastic, 'what-EVER.'
So, all together now….what-EVER Lori.


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Wisdom over wealth: Toning down the big, fat Indian wedding
Guradighat, about 18km from Madhya Pradesh's capital Bhopal, almost appears to be showing off its new-found prosperity and reveling in it. But the story of this village is not about its wealth but the wisdom of its villagers, most of whom are simple farmers.bhopal Updated: May 18, 2015 12:04 IST
Guradighat, about 18km from Madhya Pradesh's capital Bhopal, almost appears to be showing off its new-found prosperity and reveling in it. But the story of this village is not about its wealth but the wisdom of its villagers, most of whom are simple farmers.
A couple of months ago, Guradighat took a revolutionary decision — to shun lavish marriages which had become a status symbol here and left many families neck-deep in debt.
Lavish marriages are common in many societies across the country giving rise to the phrase, 'big fat Indian wedding' – an affair costing crores of rupees even among the middle class.
Residents of Guradighat say the trend of costly weddings started around five- six years ago and saw families splurge a crore for marital unions.
"Till recently, even a small farmer would spend 10 to 15 lakh on a marriage and the families would run into backbreaking debts. We then decided to cut down on unnecessary or showy expenditure," says Virma Maran, a local teacher and the head of village development committee which initiated the social move.
The village, dominated by the Meena community, agreed to cut marriage expenditure by half to one-thirds, depending upon family's economic condition and to do away with "unnecessary and immoral" traditions like inviting professional dancers, organising orchestra or music by DJs and even alcohol consumption during the ceremonies.
Kesri Singh Meena, a marginal far mer who does not even own agriculture land, ran up depts of almost 3 lakh after the marriage of his third daughter, recently. "I have another daughter to marry off and was worried stiff. This decision is a big relief," Meena says.
In a typical Meena marriage, the expenses start right from the engagement through the premarriage ceremony to the main marriage ceremony. In between, there is also the other ceremonies arranged by the relatives.
"Farmers sold off parts of their land for each marriage in the family. Those who don't have land take loan from family, friends or even moneylenders. The cycle is vicious and we want to break it," says Akash Maran, a college student.
The scenario is even worse in urban areas.
BM Kaushik, a retired state government employee from Sagar, says he was forced to take a loan of 15 lakh when the in-laws of his second daughter insisted on a "respectable wedding".
The problem cuts through states and communities. In Kerala, Malayalee weddings were once known for their simplicity. But now the Bollywood charm of 'band, baaja, barat' has gripped them too.
Caparisoned ele phants, Kathakali performers, percussionists and fireworks, it is no less than a festival. Often, event management groups are roped in. In one of the recent weddings in Kochi, the price of a single invitation card was around 2000 and more than 5,000 such cards were distributed for the event.
Though this is happening in affluent and neo-rich families many middle and lower middleclass families are also falling prey to this pomp. In north Kerala's Malabar region celebrations start a couple of days before the D-Day.
Many turn bankrupt as they try to imitate the posh weddings that are deemed to be status symbols and at times family heads even commit suicide.
Recently, the Catholic church even made a fervent plea to believers to cut down on wedding extravaganza but it has failed to yield desired results.
"In a growing consumerist society, imitation is mounting menacingly. We need awareness drives to contain this," said PS Sreekala, an activist and teacher of Kerala University.
Back in Madhya Pradesh, villages near Guradighat are also planning similar initiatives.
"We would hold a meeting from nearby settlements and decide on a course of action," says Lakhan Singh Meena, community association head and resident of Semri Kalan.
One of the persons inspired by Guradighat's initiative is state social justice minister Gopal Bhargav, who married off his son and daughter at a state-organised mass marriage recently.
"Some questioned my decision but I remained insistent and my children agreed. I want to give the message of healthy societal trends," Bhargav says.
(With inputs from Ramesh Babu in Kerala)
First Published: May 18, 2015 10:40 IST


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New Zealand batsman Craig McMillan will decide today whether he is fit to face England in the second npower Test after it was confirmed has re-fractured the little finger on his left hand.
McMillan was struck by a Darren Maddy delivery in the tourists' match against Leicestershire at Grace Road and team manager Lindsay Crocker said: "The news is that Craig has re-broken the finger in the same place.
"It is still pretty sore and swollen at the moment, and we are waiting for it to settle and the bruising to die down a bit.
"But the plan is that he will have a bat and see how he feels.
"We have also decided to call up Mathew Sinclair, who is over here playing in the East Anglian League, as cover for us in case of any further injuries."
The Black Caps beat Leicestershire by 328 runs, with left-arm spinner Daniel Vettori taking five for 91 in the second innings - his first five-wicket haul for two-and-a-half years.
New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming added: "It was good for him to get some reward for his bowling.
"He knows he can still get better, but nine wickets in this match will have done a lot for his confidence ahead of the Test match against England at Headingley on Thursday."


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It has been non-stop around here since we returned from our family vacation to Arizona, to the point that it's difficult to grasp the fact that we've only been home for a week. Between Essley's school and activities, a really intense work week for me, Easter, and Robbie getting ready to go back on tour, it feels like it's been months since we were relaxing poolside surrounded by giant saguaros. I'm ready to go back in time, man.
While we take this same vacation to Arizona every spring and have for years, this was the first time we stuck around Scottsdale instead of venturing off to Sedona or the Grand Canyon or other destinations while there. We had less time on this trip, and the kids were loving just swimming and playing outside so much that laying low just felt right. So while the photos you see here might not be as impressive as the years where we did more exploring, they represent the laid back, truly joyful experience we had. These are all incredibly unprofessional, spontaneous cell phone shots too. (We did shoot a couple of outfit posts in the desert that I'll be sharing soon; the first photo in this post is from one of them.)
I know I say this often, but I have come to really love these family vacations we take a few times a year, despite the fact that they're so incredibly different than the way I used to experience the world. I've come to the realization that while I technically can't really call myself a "world traveler" anymore, I'll always be a traveler. Taking a few flights and a half dozen road trips with the kids in a year is a far cry from the monthly trips I used to take to places like Australia and Europe, but seeing it through my children's eyes is a whole new kind of magic. And I'll take it. Until next year, Arizona!


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On the 11th January 2017 we won the Citywire South-West financial planner award for the eighth time. We were honoured, thrilled and delighted.
Financial Planners among the 6000 strong readership of New Model Adviser® completed an in-depth survey and were judged on factors such as professional qualification and client satisfaction. Over 220 short-listed firms were then taken through a further process, looking at areas such as client education, communication and the use of technology.
So what is it that the judges recognised?
Was it our 'Professionalism, excellence and the art of clear communication'? Watch this short video which, we think, says it all. Then you can decide for yourself.


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WAYNESBORO, Pa. - Max Hade recently received almost $2,000 as part of a federal aid program to help struggling hog farmers.
[cont. from front page]
Hade is grateful for the help, but he's a long way from turning the Clay Hill Road farm around.
"It's better than nothing," said Hade, who says he'll know by the end of the year whether he'll stay in the business or not.
Hade lost at least $50,000 in the last year during some severe drops in hog prices. The federal aid will cover his electric bill for a few months. Electricity costs him about $400 a month because he uses electric heat lamps to keep baby pigs warm.
Hade is one of 79 hog farmers in the Tri-State area who received financial assistance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Small Hog Operation Payment, also known as SHOP. Tri-State area farmers received approximately $35,726 at the end of March.


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I've found the last obscure, really good, late 70's new wave (0r whatever) rock song that I've never heard before. It's by the Talking Heads and it's called Happy Day. Seriously, it's great. No, really, it is! Check it out...
I'm probably full of crap. It's likely I'll find some random Blondie song tomorrow and take the whole thing back. Eh. But for now, you should listen to it!
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Adding fields to a form
Apr 20, 2014 8:23 pm
To add a new field to your form, click on the Fields subtab and then the Add a New field button. In this tab, you can easily customize fields on your form without prior knowledge of HTML.
You can also change field labels, re-order form fields, configure validators to prevent visitors from leaving fields blank or entering incorrect information, and create fields with a specific purpose, such as joining the Membership module, ordering a Commerce item, or signing up for a newsletter.
When you add a new field, the system will automatically prompt you to enter additional information as you select the field options.
To add a new field, click on the "Add a New Field" button, then take the following steps:
- Enter the field order number, if you'd like. Or, you can leave this field blank and easily reorder fields using the up and down arrows on the main Fields screen.
- Specify a unique ID for the form.
- Decide how the visitor will submit form information by choosing an input method.
- Enter text for the label that precedes the field.
- Specify how the label and field are formatted on the form with Output Format.
- Use the Required selector to specify whether the field on the form is required and cannot be left blank. Note that if you set this to Yes, you must also enter text in the Invalid Text field.
- If you'd like to specify a default value or values, enter it in the Default field. These values depend primarily on the input method selected for the field.
- If you have selected an input method that requires values, enter them in the Values field.
- Click Save, and your form will be added to the Web Forms tab.