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Get that house off the market by making it look new again
We talked to Elizabeth Dodson of HomeZada about what's worth sprucing up in your home to impress potential buyers.
Government Center MBTA station repairs delayed
The Government Center MBTA station is in need of serious repairs. But the two-year proposed closure that state officials were […]
MTA to shut R, G trains to repair Sandy damage
The MTA may shut down the R train's Montague Street tunnel for more than a year to repair damage caused by Superstorm Sandy.
Report: Deficient roads and bridges cost Pennsylvanians $9.4B annually
Structurally deficient roads and bridges in Pennsylvania cost drivers billions in wasted fuel, lost time and vehicle repairs, according to a new report.
Travel between Boston and NY still disrupted by train crash
Travelers scrambled Monday to find alternatives as trains between Boston and New York remained cancelled due to Friday's train crash in Connecticut.
Landlords owe New York City millions: report
Landlords owe the city $65.3 million.
City will reimburse residents who repaired homes after Sandy
The city announced that it will distribute federal aid to homeowners who have already paid to fix damage caused by […]


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Two new Samyang lenses, video-priority 8mm f3.5 fisheye and 14mm f2.8 for Nikon
In addition to the multi-mount 35mm f1.4 manual lens announced last week, Samyang has revealed two more new special-interest lenses at Photokina! The first one is a new variation of the 8mm f3.5 fish-eye lens for HD-DSLRs (Canon, Nikon), as it is can be adapted to work with a "Follow Focus" system. This is not exactly the same lens, the Samyang news page explains the differences:
"Comparing it to the photographic version with smoothly adjustable aperture, the casing's shape was modified and sharpness adjusting rings have been replaced by bars. This modification allows to smoothly and precisely set parameters with the use of Follow Focus system. In order to facilitate reading the distance during filming, indexes have been reversed by 90°. What is more, tulip casing in Samyang V-DSLR 8 mm F3.5 Aspherical IF MC Fish-eye CS has been replaced by wide collar."
The second special-interest lens is the 14mm f2.8 ED AS IF UMC created for the Nikon mount, providing an electronic system connection that enables the flow of information between camera and lens. This is a new lens, in addition to the standard 14mm f2.8 lens available in the traditional SLR mounts that was announced one year ago at Fauxtokina 2009.
Via Optyczne.pl and Optyczne.pl.

subset: commoncrawl


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User Reviews & Ratings - Actonel Oral
Read user comments about the side effects, benefits, and effectiveness of Actonel Oral.
Overall User Ratings228 Total User Reviews
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Reviewer: Gymrat, 45-54 Female on Treatment for 6 months to less than 1 year (Patient)
Ease of Use
I have been taking the 150 mg dose of Actonel for 10 months now and I can't do it anymore! I was fine for the first 4 months and then the symptoms got much worse. I've had nausea, horrible stomach cramps, diarrhea, fever of 101, chills, aching joints and stools that smell like death! And they are lasting longer and longer, now up to 10 days out of the month. The latest addition was being a ... Show Full Comment
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Reviewer: Pray4me!, 45-54 Female on Treatment for less than 1 month (Patient)
Ease of Use
Actonel, has terrible side effects!!! I was (still am) very sick from the side effects. The first day, I had chills (shaking), fever 102, vomitting, aches/pain in my joints & back. I thought i had the Flu or Mono!!! My health was so bad, i had to go to the ER 3 times. By, the 3rd time, i had a migraine headache for days, then my speech & thoughts delayed. Then, i kept loosing my balance. ... Show Full Comment
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Reviewer: AZmenopause, 45-54 Female on Treatment for 1 to 6 months (Patient)
Ease of Use
My endocrinologist prescribed actonel 150 mg to go along with atenolol 50 mg to treat hypertension. I was leaving his appointment when he decided to have the assistant re-take my blood pressure and that's when he discovered that my bp shot way up (in just a few minutes' time) and is the reason why he changed my diagnosis from simply high bp to hypertension. Okay so he prescribed this acton ... Show Full Comment
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Reviewer: Kathie, 55-64 Female on Treatment for 2 to less than 5 years (Patient)
Ease of Use
I have not had any side effects and have been taking Actonel for nearly 5 years. My last bone scan showed an improvement.
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Reviewer: Thanks from MN, 55-64 Female on Treatment for 5 to less than 10 years (Caregiver)
Ease of Use
Actonel Is wonderful ! Would use it my whole life! Don't let anyone tell you there is a generic drug for it ! That is a lie! This is NOT the same as fosimax, which I would not recommend for anyone! You cannot stay on fosimax, it will cause bone breakage later, however both my parents have been on Antonella for years and there bones are strong like a teenagers! I would like the Actonel co to ... Show Full Comment
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Pretty please vote for my Challege Detroit entry so I can help make a difference in our great city. Pass this on to help me out even more! Many thanks for all who help me!
If I could stop having spam accounts be nearly exclusively the only ones to interact with my blog that would be fantastic… Haven't even attempted to e-mail tumblr about all the spam accounts I've run across. I could pretty much be employed to do simply that. Tumblr you need to have some sort of simple function to report spam accounts like Twitter has!
Crunching numbers for school and living on my own really blows. I'm obviously taking out lots of loans from somewhere… In need of some major pep-talks and advice. Help! How am I going to make this happen realistically?


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The Lighthouse Blog
Whatcom County Sheriff partners with U.S. Marshals
Published on Wed, Mar 6, 2013 by
Brandy Kiger
Read More
Drug deals, violence and murder.
These are things that you expect to hear about in large metropolitan areas like Los Angeles or Chicago. It's not something that readily comes to mind when you consider Whatcom County, which has about 203,000 residents living in mostly rural areas.
But Whatcom County Sheriff Bill Elfo says over the last five years he's seen gang members leave their native pavements and find root in Whatcom soil.
"There are more than 700 confirmed gang members or associates here," he said. "They represent anywhere from 34 to 37 gangs at any given time. We've always had gang wannabes and gang-type activity here, but we didn't see these national ties to established gangs until about five years ago."
He said that the proximity to the border, vast stretches such as the Mt. Baker wilderness area and high through traffic make the location ideal. "We've seen people from virtually every state pass through our system," he said. "The gangs take members who are wanted in other states and stash them here until things cool off."
Elfo pointed out that the sheriff's department has 84 deputies to cover an area larger than the state of Delaware. "It encompasses 2,150 square miles. That's a lot of ground to cover, and you have wilderness areas like Baker Lake that we are responsible for. We are spread out far and wide," he said. "It's not just a Bellingham problem," he said. "It may have been that way at one point, but it's evenly distributed now. There's been a huge problem in Birch Bay and Everson. It's county-wide."
It's tough to get a grip on the growing problem, so Elfo and his team reached out for help. They've been partnering with the Drug Enforcement Agency for the past two years, and recently connected with the U.S. Marshal's office when five Whatcom County sheriff's deputies were deputized as U.S. Marshals.
"We don't have the resources to do it alone," he said. "Most agencies don't. We're trying to develop as many partnerships as we can. We've been working with the marshals informally, but they suggested we take it to the next level." The partnerships give the sheriff's office access to advanced tracking equipment, better intelligence gathering and information sharing and, perhaps most importantly, extra bodies.
Together, they've developed the Northwest Regional Gang and Drug Task Force to tackle the problem head-on. Local law enforcement agencies and Homeland Security join in the hunt and hold monthly or bimonthly roundups of gang members with outstanding warrants and bring them in for questioning.
"We're really interested in dismantling these criminal enterprises," Elfo said. "It's a three-pronged attack: intelligence gathering, long-term investigations and street enforcements. So far it's been pretty successful. It sends a message that if you are a gang member in Whatcom County, you won't be ignored and that we're looking for you," Elfo said.
They've also made sure an officer is assigned to the prosecutor's office to ensure that the prosecutor has everything they need before trial to build the best case possible and that witnesses, often the lynch pin for trials, are not intimidated by gang members in the process. "A lot of times the prosecutor has to plead or drop the case because the witnesses don't show up. Our officer makes sure they are taken care of and there isn't any intimidation before the trial. Because of that, we're able to get more convictions," Elfo said.
They are also able to work with the U.S. Attorney's office in Seattle to procure stiffer penalties thanks to the now established partnerships with federal agencies. "We can put habitual offenders away for longer," Elfo said.
Though he has seen progress since they've implemented the task force, Elfo isn't ready to declare victory yet. "Seven percent of the people we put away are responsible for the 80 to 90 percent of the crime we see," he said. "We're just whittling away at them."


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PureCM 3.0: Commercial Version Control System on LinuxOct 24, 2008
British company PureCM.com Ltd has released a new version of its PureCM software configuration management (SCM) tool.more »
Linux Standard Base 4.0 Is Feature RichOct 15, 2008
Linux Foundation has released its first beta of the Linux Standard Base (LSB) version 4.0. The providers have already promised developers an easier work environment through the SDK, shell script and application checker. The successes are logged in the FOSSBazaar workgroup.more »
Mono 2.0 is Ready: Compilers for C# 3.0 and Visual Basic 8Oct 07, 2008
The developers of Mono, the free implementation of the .NET framework, have achieved a major milestone with version 2.0.more »
Sun Places Java UI Toolkit Under Terms of the GPLAug 19, 2008
Three months after the announcement at the JavaOne exhibition, Sun Microsystems is putting the discussed plans into action and placed the Lightweight UI Toolkit (LWUIT) under the conditions of the GPLv2. The Toolkit is intended for Java ME applications.more »
Linux Foundation Announces Linux Developer Network betaAug 08, 2008
On August 7, Brian Proffitt, former Managing Editor of Linux Today and the new LDN Community Manager, announced the beta release of the Linux Foundation's Linux Developer Network.more »
LinuxWorld Video: Jeremy Orlow on AutotestAug 08, 2008
Linux kernel developers use Autotest as a tool for software testing and bug hunting. We caught up with Autotest's Jeremy Orlow at the LinuxWorld .org pavillion.more »
Alitheia: The Truth about OSS Quality Goes AlphaJul 21, 2008
Alitheia is a platform for automated evaluation of software projects. Version 0.8.1, which has jst been released, is described by the developers as the first usable alpha version. Core functionality is available, however, some work on execution and individual customization is still required.more »
Opensuse Build Service 1.0: Open TeamworkJul 12, 2008
The Novell sponsored Opensuse project has released version 1.0 of its build service in a step that will make working on software packages for the distribution much easier for external developers.more »
Issue 168/2014
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Tag Cloud
Mozilla Labs Shuts Down
Mozilla's product think tank sinks silently into history.
Internet Giants Launch Collaboration to Improve Open Source
TODO group will focus on open source tools in large-scale environments.
Fedora Announces New Partition Manager App
New tool will look like GParted but support a wider range of storage technologies.
Mozilla Releases a New Firefox
New public key pinning feature will help prevent man-in-the-middle attacks.
Tool Predicts Which Websites Will be Compromised
Carnegie Mellon researchers say 3 million pages could fall down the phishing hole in the next year.
SSH Key Management Guidelines
The US government rolls new best-practice rules for protecting SSH.
Knoppix 7.4 Released
Klaus Knopper announces the latest version of his iconic Live Linux system.
PHP Attack Puts WordPress and Drupal at Risk
All websites that use these popular CMS tools could be vulnerable to denial of service attacks if users don't install the updates.
Heartbleed Bleeds On
According to a report, many potential victims of the Heartbleed attack have patched their systems, but few have cleaned up the crime scene to protect themselves from the effects of a previous intrusion.
Drone Brain Goes Open Source
DARPA and NICTA release the code for the ultra-secure microkernel system used in aerial drones.


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Even if Nate McLouth weren't owed $7.75 million in the final year of his contract, if the amount were significantly less, he would go to spring training with a good chance to be the Braves' opening-day center fielder.
So says Braves GM Frank Wren, who doesn't seem nearly as concerned about the team's projected center fielder as many Braves fans are.
Team decision-makers believe McLouth can bounce back from a concussed, career-worst 2010 season, when he hit an anemic .190 with 12 doubles, six homers, a .298 on-base percentage and a .620 OPS in 85 games (242 at-bats).
"We think he can do it," Wren said. "I think we saw enough in September, and we've seen enough in his career. He's a good player. I believe, and I think most people around here believe, that what we saw for that first year he was with us was an aberration. That's not Nate McLouth. I mean, he's too good a player, there's too many teams that would love to have him. And he brings some things to the table that we don't have.
"I feel real good about where he is now, both physically and mentally, to get the job done this year."
So does McLouth, 29.
He's gone from being a 2008 All-Star and Gold Glove winner with Pittsburgh – he had a league-high 46 doubles, 26 homers and 94 RBIs that year – to being a bust so far since a June 2009 trade to Atlanta. But the ever-optimistic Michigan native says he's ready to get his career back on track.
"Last year when I went through such a tough year, your confidence does take a hit," McLouth said this week by phone from his home in Grand Rapids, Mich. "But I've done it. I've gotten my strength back and my swing feels good this offseason. I'm as confident as ever.
"I'm not going to pretend like last year didn't happen, but I think I can take positives form it, and hopefully when struggles come along, that can help me get through it."
McLouth missed six weeks with a concussion from a June 9 outfield collision with right fielder Jason Heyward. But even before the collision and DL stint, he was batting only .176 with three homers, 14 RBIs and a .577 OPS in 57 games.
Still, Wren says it's not the money that McLouth is guaranteed — $6.5 million salary in 2011, and a $10.65 million option for 2012 with a $1.25 million buyout – that stopped the Braves from acquiring another starting center fielder.
"No. The money never was in the equation," Wren said this week. "The talent is what makes those decisions and drives those decisions. And Nate has talent."
After struggling for a week in his return from the DL in late July, McLouth was sent back to Triple-A to try to rebuild his confidence and his swing. He impressed teammates and Braves officials by how he responded to that demotion.
(Say this for the guy: teammates in Pittsburgh and Atlanta have always described him as a terrific teammate, a team-first guy.)
McLouth said the time he spent at Triple-A was productive.
"It absolutely was," he said. "It couldn't have been handled by the organization, by Bobby [Cox] and Frank, in a better way. I appreciated how they handled it. I tried to handle it as professionally and as well as I could, and to use my time in the minors as a positive, not be upset and bitter about it."
After five weeks at Triple-A, McLouth was recalled Aug. 31, and in his fourth game back he began a 10-game tear that saw him go 11-for-30 (.367) with three doubles, a triple, three homers and 10 RBIs, and have two other would-be homers taken away by catches above the center-field fence, once with bases loaded.
"When he plays like he's capable – and we saw it in September – he has an impact on the game," Wren said. "He can drive a ball out of the park, he can run, he can do a lot of things on the field to help you win."
The Pirates thought so when they signed him to a three-year, $15.75 million on Feb. 17, 2009, buying out his first three years of arbitration eligibility. They traded him four months later in what the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette called a "stunning move." McLouth had been one of the most popular Pirates in years, both in the community and in the clubhouse.
"I know how it's going to be received back home," Pirates general manager Neal Huntington told the Post-Gazette after the deal was announced. "Believe me, it was the most difficult move I've made, but we believe it was the right baseball move, and we believe it firmly."
The Braves gave up three prospects in that trade, pitchers Charlie Morton and Jeff Locke and center-field prospect Gorkys Hernandez. Locke still hasn't pitched above the Double-A level; Hernandez hit .266 with 11 doubles, two homers and a .668 OPS in Double-A last season, and Morton is 7-21 with a 5.91 ERA in 35 major-league starts for the Pirates.
So it's not as if anyone the Braves gave up is threatening to haunt them for the next decade.
But that doesn't change the fact that the Braves haven't gotten anything close to what they expected from McLouth when they got him in June 2009 to replace their skidding, injured opening-day center fielder Jordan Schafer.
The Pirates immediately replaced McLouth with their top prospect, multi-talented Andrew McCutchen. That's worked out well for them, to say the least.
In two seasons, McCutchen has hit .286 with 103 extra-base hits (14 triples, 28 homers) in 262 games, with 168 runs, 110 RBIs, 55 stolen bases in 70 attempts, and a .365 on-base percentage and .459 slugging percentage (.824 OPS). In 2010, he had 35 doubles, 16 homers and 33 steals in his first full season.
Pirates center fielders led the NL in average (.286) and OBP (.359) in 2010, and were fourth in slugging (.450). Braves center fielders? Well, they were last in the NL in average (.232), 14th in slugging (.339), eighth in OBP (.329).
The Braves have paid about $9 million to McLouth already, and in 169 games for the Braves he's hit .229 (133-for-581) with 32 doubles, 17 homers, 60 RBIs and 89 runs, with a .330 OBP and .379 slugging percentage (.709 OPS).
That's quite a contrast from his last season-and-a-half with the Pirates, when McLouth hit .269 (205-for-761) with 52 doubles, 34 homers, 137 runs and 123 RBIs, with a .352 OBP and .482 slugging percentage (.834 OPS).
And get this: In his last 169 games for the Pirates, McLouth was successful in 28 of 28 stolen-base attempts. In 169 games for the Braves, he's been caught eight times in 27 attempts.
Nor has his defense been up to its Pittsburgh levels. In fact, it's been mediocre or worse at times with the Braves. His throws — or lack thereof — have been particularly baffling. McLouth doesn't have a particularly strong arm, but too many times he's opted not to throw at all when it appeared there might be a chance to throw out a runner.
After his encouraging 10-game surge in September, McLouth went 4-for-24 in his last 10 regular-season games, with seven strikeouts, no extra-base hits and no RBIs. He went 1-for-2 with a single in his only postseason plate appearances.
"Even at the end when I tailed off a little bit, I felt like I was hitting the ball hard," he said. "The whole time I was back [from Triple-A] I felt like I played well."
That said, McLouth realized he had a lot of work to do after he got home to Michigan and began his offseason workouts.
"One thing I really noticed — it kind of took me till end of year to notice – that in the time I missed due to the concussion I really lost a ton of strength. Because I couldn't do anything after that concussion, as far as my normal weight workout. And when I got back from the DL I didn't want to lift and go through that initial soreness you get when you come back from a layoff. I didn't want to go through that soreness during the season, so I held off on the weights.
"When I got back in the gym after the season, I noticed how much explosiveness and core strength I had lost. That's one thing that's been encouraging this winter. It took a while to come back, but I've gotten most of my strength back. I feel good."
He laughed and said, "I will not use the phrase, 'I'm in the best shape of my life.' I promise I won't use that, because everybody uses that."
But the implication was that he's in his best shape, or at least getting there. And that's important for the Braves and for McLouth, who realizes that, for all intents and purposes, the 2011 season is a like a free-agent walk year.
Barring some unexpected turn of events, the Braves will pay the $1.25 million buyout rather than pick up the $10.65 million option for 2012.
For this season, at least, they're counting on him. If he struggles, next in line is Schafer, who finally seems healthy after missing much of the past two seasons recovering from surgery to repair a fractured bone near his wrist.
If they have to, the Braves could make another emergency trade like the one that brought McLouth, or could pursue another center fielder between now and opening day. But for now, the job is McLouth's to lose.
He agreed about it being like a free-agent walk year, and called it exciting.
"I haven't thought about it much, but it's reality," he said. "It's an important year…. I'm back in the right frame of mind, confident and just ready to have a good season and get back to the playoffs."
McLouth traveled to Atlanta a week before Christmas to meet Larry Parrish and work with the Braves' new hitting coach. The Braves also plan to have McLouth work a lot with Lee Elia, the former major league manager hired this winter as a Braves special assistant to the GM.
"I haven't had a chance to meet with [Elia]. But I came to Atlanta in December and worked with Larry, got to work with him and just chat. I liked that, he's an old-school guy who likes to work. I came down to meet him, talk a little bit. That was the first time I hit this winter.
"I've actually cut back a little bit on my hitting this winter, as far as volume. Because I'm going down to Florida on February 1st, and I'll wait till then to really crank it up. You get more swings in spring training than you can handle, so I'm just hitting two or three times a week right now."
Elia will serve as an instructor in the majors and minors, focusing on hitting.
"The whole thought in adding guys like Larry and Lee to the staff is, hitting is hard," Wren said. "It's one of the hardest things in all of sports to do. And having veteran guys that have seen everything and been around good hitters and helped make good hitters better hitters, can only help us organizationally."
♣The up-and-comers: In case you missed it, I mentioned in the comments section of the blog yesterday what an impressive group of young prospects the Braves have assembled for their inaugural five-day rookie development camp at Turner Field. I went down to check out a few of the players drafted last June, particularly the batch of college players that could reach the majors sooner than the younger players the Braves traditionally draft or sign as international free agents.
Wren said the Braves recognized a year ago that they had a lot of top young talent in the low minors and elite prospects in the high minors such as Jason Heyward, Mike Minor, Craig Kimbrel, Jonny Venters and Freddie Freeman.
But in the middle of the organization, they were light on prospects. So they targeted a lot of college players in the draft, guys who are 19, 20, 21 years old and could get to the majors in a year or two.
"That's why we went out and got the Cunninghams [outfielder Todd Cunningham, second-round pick from Jacksonville State] and the Gosselins [second baseman Phil Gosselin, second-round pick from Virginia] and the Leonards [third baseman Joe Leonard, third-round pick from Pitt], and guys like that, who could jump into the middle.
"And now we're back to where we have a good, consistent flow of talent again [throughout the organization]. But that was the strategy last year, to do that. Strategically we were trying to fill the middle gap, and it worked out."
A couple of dozen players or more have filled the clubhouse each morning this week, and it's odd seeing all these fresh-faced kids using the Braves' lockers, lounging on the couches, hanging out between workouts and meetings, just cutting up and watching the overhead big-screen TVs.
The first thing I noticed was how comfortable they all seemed with each other and with team employees and media members. It was a great idea to do this thing, to give these guys a chance to experience some of this environment at the same time as so many of their peers, rather than as an isolated rookie called up from the minors and thrust into the major-league atmosphere in the midst of a regular season.
A lot of these guys are shy about being interviewed when they're called up to the majors during the season, which, if you think about it, seems a natural reaction given that they are surrounded by veteran players in that situation. Many young guys are worried about saying the wrong thing in that atmosphere, or just being at the center of so much attention when others have been on the major league team since opening day, many of them slogging away without getting much attention.
Another thing I noticed: Julio Teheran's not skinny like he was a couple years ago. The Braves' uber-prospect pitcher, who'll be 20 on Jan. 27, is wiry strong these days, and I can see where Wren is coming from when Wren says he reminds him physically of a young Pedro Martinez. (Although I don't remember Pedro having biceps as big as Teheran's.)
Shortstop prospect Edward Salcedo and Teheran are two of the youngest guys in the room, but both are confident guys, not shy about interviews at all. Both have swagger, particularly Salcedo, who's still only 18 but acts like he was born to do this. Which, of course, he was.
You've gotta love the guy's firm shake, and how he looks you in the eye when he's answering a question, and that smile. He just always looks like he's enjoying himself. Which is even more noteworthy considering he hit just .225 with three homers and a .307 OBP in 304 plate appearances in his first season of pro ball in 2010, including .197 with a .239 OBP in 209 PAs (54 games) for low-A Rome after being brought over from the Dominican Summer League.
That performance kept him out of Baseball America's Braves Top-10 prospects list, but it did nothing to diminish the expectations of team officials. The rangy Dominican bonus baby is projected as a future major league standout, either at shortstop or third base.
"He's young, and it was his first time competing at this level," Wren said. "You can't play on an emotional high every day. You've got to just play the game. He would have days where he played brilliantly, and then he would have days where he wasn't as good. That's the norm for an 18-year-old kid.
"He gets it. You don't have to talk to him very long to understand that he's pretty advanced. He knows what he wants to do. He knows exactly where he wants to go, what he wants to do. That's pretty good."
The Braves have a bit of a glut of shortstops in their minor league system, and Mycal Jones, who hit .262 with 31 doubles, 15 homers, a .327 OBP and 22 stolen bases last season at three levels in the minors, mostly high-A Myrtle Beach.
Wren said Jones would play a lot of center field this season at Double-A.
"We're going to start transitioning him," Wren said. "He's played some second base in the instructional league. I think the next phase is to look at him some in center field, because he's a really good athlete, he has explosive speed, and he's always hit."
The Braves aren't moving a few other shortstop prospects to new positions, at least not for the time being. First-round draft pick Matt Lipka could eventually move to the outfield.
"Matt's a great athlete," Wren said of the former Texas high school All-State wide receiver. "We don't predetermine those things coming out of rookie ball, where they're going to play five years from now when they get to the big leagues. For now, we like his skills at short and we want to keep watching him play there."
The Braves are also high Tyler Pastornicky, 21, the shortstop prospect they got from Toronto along with veteran shortstop Alex Gonzalez in the trade that sent shortstop Yunel Escobar north of the border.
Pastornicky hit .257 with a .343 OBP, eight homers, 50 RBIs and 35 steals in 115 games last season in high-A and Double-A, and also played some second base.
The Braves drafted shortstop Andrelton Simmons in the second round out of an Oklahoma junior college, and Baseball America rated him the best defensive shortstop in the entire draft. He also had a 97-98 mph fastball as a juco pitcher, which would be an option if he doesn't make it as a position player.
"We've got a lot of good young shortstops," Wren said. "That's a good problem to have."
♣ Cordier has elbow 'scoped: Right-hander Erik Cordier will be at least a few weeks behind other Braves pitchers at spring training after having arthroscopic elbow surgery on Wednesday.
Dr. James Andrews removed a floating particle that Wren said was possible calcified scar tissue that had broken away, a remnant of "Tommy John" elbow surgery that Cordier had three years ago.
The 6-foot-4, 230-pound rookie had at least an outside shot at one of the final two spot in the Braves' bullpen, after going 12-8 with a 3.82 ERA in 2010, including 25 games (23 starts) at Double-A Mississippi and two Triple-A starts. He allowed only 123 hits and three homers in 143-2/3 innings, with 117 strikeouts and 76 walks.
Wren said Cordier, 25, wouldn't be too far behind other pitchers.
"Dr. Andrews found a little piece, either scar tissue or a small floater in the joint, and they just felt it was best to go in there and arthroscopically pluck it out," Wren said. "He should be ready to start throwing when we get to spring training. So he'll probably be a little behind. But it should eliminate having any further discomfort."
♣ Wren on Chipper: The Braves GM insists he wasn't worried about Chipper Jones' recovery from August knee surgery, even before January when he saw the veteran third baseman go through his first hitting sessions since his ACL surgery.
"I've seen Chipper hit three times, I think." Wren said. "He looks great. That was always my expectation, that he was going to be fine. From the time I watched him get introduced in the playoffs, when he jumped up out of the dugout and ran out on the field, I thought he was doing well and would do well."
When pressed, Wren did allow that he felt even better after seeing Jones hit.
"When I saw him him hit for the first time two weeks ago and really drive the ball, that was great," Wren said. "That was great to see."
♣ Braves Caravan: Here's the rundown from press release about the metro Atlanta area stops on Braves Caravan:
(Participant schedules are subject to change & additional participants will be announced for some dates)
Thursday, January 27
Scheduled to participate: Brian McCann, Jonny Venters, David Ross, and Nate McLouth; and coach Eddie Perez
10:00 – 11:30 a.m. Meet and Greet with patients and staff at the Shepherd Center
4:00 – 6:00 p.m. Autograph Signing – Peachtree City, Publix Super Market at Wilshire Pavilion, 1200 Highway 74 South
Friday, January 28
Scheduled to participate: Brian McCann, David Ross, Brandon Beachy; pitching coach Roger McDowell, and GM Frank Wren
10:00 – 11:30 a.m. Meet and Greet with students and teachers at Creekland Middle School in Canton
4:00 – 5:30 p.m. Autograph signing at Academy Sports + Outdoors in Athens, 3505 Atlanta Highway (at Timothy Rd.)
Monday, January 31
Scheduled to participate: Chipper Jones, Peter Moylan, and Jordan Schafer; manager Fredi Gonzalez, GM Frank Wren, and Braves president John Schuerholz
10:00 – 11:00 a.m. Meet and Greet with baseball and softball teams from several Atlanta Public High Schools at The New Schools at Carver, 55 McDonough Blvd, Atlanta
11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Surprise lunch stop at local restaurant
1:00 – 3:00 p.m. Surprise visit with customers and employees at a local business
Wednesday, February 2
Scheduled to participate: Jason Heyward, Mike Minor, Stephen Marek, and Scott Proctor; manager Fredi Gonzalez, and Braves president John Schuerholz
4:00 – 6:00 p.m. Autograph Signing – Roswell, Publix Super Market at 4401 Shallowford Road
Friday, February 4
Scheduled to participate: Martin Prado, George Sherrill, Craig Kimbrel, and Eric O'Flaherty, and bench coach Carlos Tosca
2:00 – 3:00 p.m. Meet and Greet with patients and staff at Piedmont Hospital
4:00 – 6:00 p.m. Autograph Signing – Lawrenceville, Publix Super Market at Old Peachtree, 2380 Buford Drive (Hwy 20)
♣ Etc. Three Braves spring training games will be shown on ESPN: vs. Tigers on March 3, vs. Boston March 16, and vs. Philly on March 25. The Braves, Yankees and Red Sox are tied for the most scheduled appearances among ESPN's 10 spring games. (Yes, it probably helps when a team plays its home Grapefruit League games at ESPN's Wide World of Sports.)
OK, that's it for baseball news. Stop here if you dislike reading about music and non-baseball matters….
I"m officially digging the upcoming Drive-By Truckers album Go-Go Boots, set for release Feb. 15. A friend had a hookup, and I've been listening to it a lot lately. It grows on you after an initial surprise at the direction the band has gone on this one. It's got a lot more country and R&B flavor than their usual wall-of-squal guitar sound, and they do it well. (After all, they are based in soulful Muscle Shoals, in addition to Athens.) Steel guitar, retro organ … We like. A lot.
And speaking of likes, if you haven't seen Fred Eaglesmith live and ever get a chance to, you must. He's a brilliant singer-songwriter and also one helluva pure entertainer, great stage banter and funny stories between his songs. And with the Fabulous Ginn Sisters as his opening act, then doubling as his band and backup singers, it was a memorable show Wednesday at Eddie's Attic in Decatur. Quite a lineup coming at Eddie's, by the way, with two of my favorites coming soon – Alejandro Escovedo Jan. 30-31 and James McMurtry in March.
Let's close with one of Fred's gems, "49 Tons," and here's a video of him doing it live.
"49 TONS" by Fred Eaglesmith
There were seventeen cars out in my back yard,
The boys in blue are calling my name,
Semi-automatic up on the rooftop,
They just to want to talk to me,
I told them what they wanted to hear,
The only thing that I knew:
Forty-nine tons of diesel locomotive
Couldn't drag me back to you.
Everywhere you look, there's a train wreck, baby,
Everywhere you look, there's a runaway train,
Play my heart like a bottleneck, baby,
Running up and down and pulling it's strings.
Everywhere you go, everybody knows,
You're looking for someone to do.
Forty-nine tons of diesel locomotive
Couldn't drag me back to you.
If I was a switchman, if I was a brakeman,
If I was an engineer,
I'd point that train on down the track
And clear on out of here.
If I was the man swinging the lantern,
I'd swing it 'til it was blue.
Forty-nine tons of diesel locomotive
Couldn't drag me back to you.
Forty-nine tons of diesel locomotive
Couldn't drag me back to you.
Forty-nine tons of diesel locomotive
Couldn't drag me back to you.
Forty-nine tons of diesel locomotive
Couldn't drag me back to you.
Forty-nine tons of diesel locomotive
Couldn't drag me back to you.
By David O'Brien, Braves blog
January 20th, 2011
3:51 pm
Thanks DOB
January 20th, 2011
3:53 pm
Thanks for the new Blog, Chief!
January 20th, 2011
4:00 pm
Wow, tons of info in this blog. Fantastic!!! Man I can't wait to head to the Ted!
January 20th, 2011
4:09 pm
Whew, great post O'great1. Lots to digest.
January 20th, 2011
4:11 pm
Good article, DOB. I am kind of scared about McLouth next season, but I think he is worth giving another chance. I don't believe he can be any worse than last season. I could be wrong, but I am going to give him the benefit of the doubt and just hope he finds his groove this upcoming season.
January 20th, 2011
4:15 pm
DOB, 4 questions.
1. Has Wags filed his retirement papers yet or shall we read between the lines?
2. Has KK been told not to come to Orlando when the pitchers report?
3. Do you feel the team is set barring injury or injury setback?
4. Lastly, did you talk to Larry about my suggestions on correcting his swing?
January 20th, 2011
4:16 pm
Heck of a blog. With the good Nate this the could be really good.
January 20th, 2011
4:16 pm
Thanks for the work DOB
January 20th, 2011
4:16 pm
Is Posendick not an option at all?
January 20th, 2011
4:18 pm
Good stuff, DOB.
January 20th, 2011
4:19 pm
Thanks for the Nate update!! Dave
I am really hoping the best for Nate and Jordan…it will be a great improvment for them to be productive lead-off hitters this season. It will also be nice to see Freddie make the case for batting something other than 8th or 7th… real nice line-up "problems" to have. Gonna be fun.
January 20th, 2011
4:20 pm
Hi, bruce! How've you been?
January 20th, 2011
4:22 pm
You see the Jazz Fest lineup yet? Holy crap!!! Ain't nothin keepin me from the Big Easy that weekend!!
January 20th, 2011
4:22 pm
And Dave, still not a word about Nate the carnival act's throwing arm.
Why in the h— will someone not bring up Nate's defense?
His poor year wasn't only about offense.
I mean he practically became a psycho at times in the ouutfield.
January 20th, 2011
4:23 pm
I can't wait to see how Robert will react next season when he has to bash someone else other than Cox.
January 20th, 2011
4:24 pm
It's really cold here in Colorado and I can't wait for P&Cs to report. Man, if Nate can rebound it will go a long way in making our offense better an making our line-up deeper. I still am worried about the bullpen, losing Wagner and Saito will be hard to replace.
January 20th, 2011
4:24 pm
DOB, what would your lineup be for this season?
January 20th, 2011
4:25 pm
Oh, how many players have had their best year when it's contract time.
Have that fantastic year, then sign a multi year big money contract and hit the tank again. The contracts are our form our winning the lotto. I always thought it would be a good idea to have a team full of players playing in the last year of their contract. Production would be outstanding and the possiblities of winning the World Series excellent.
January 20th, 2011
4:25 pm
or even more pertinent… will Nate get 13 back? Maybe he just was not cut out to be 24… even though is he a fan of that show.
January 20th, 2011
4:26 pm
Good stuff. Nice work.
January 20th, 2011
4:28 pm
Too early in the new Blog to do lineup discussions. Wait a couple days.
January 20th, 2011
4:28 pm
Nice read. Great update on McLouth DOB. He sounds confident and that's a positive – one of the first big steps in baseball is to head to the plate with confidence.
If you don't believe in yourself who will.
January 20th, 2011
4:28 pm
Oh in that collision with right fielder Jason Heyward, McLouth made no attempt to call off the right fielder. I don't know how he ever won a Gold Glove. I've seen just miss and easy soft liner in the gap and take bad angles on balls multiple times. If all these other teams want him, I say let them have him.
January 20th, 2011
4:29 pm
Too much information at once. Overload.
January 20th, 2011
4:29 pm
I've pretty uch said all I need to about Nate. I truly hope he has a huge bounce back season.
Good to hear about Teheran and Salcedo's confidence. I always liked Teheran ever since he was signed and I'm sure that he will be fine and hope Salcedo's development continues in a more positive manor this year.
Sounds like Wren and the scouting department drafted some real athletes with the potential to diversify defensively. That's always a good thing. Looks like Lipka can take a hit.
January 20th, 2011
4:29 pm
DOB, good stuff thanks
January 20th, 2011
4:30 pm
how many cunninghams, gosselins, and leonards did we draft?
January 20th, 2011
4:30 pm
Hey McFann — I'm doing pretty well… thanks for asking…. not working for Cuccinelli anymore, he has all the resources he needs as AG. Have a snow blower now after the depths of last winter, and will be perfectly happy to not use it… looking forward to opening day (and PCR for that matter).
January 20th, 2011
4:33 pm
Thanks, DOB. Great to hear about all those shortstops!
January 20th, 2011
4:34 pm
I've pretty uch said all I need to about Nate.
you have some opinions on mclouth, lew? do tell. :- )
January 20th, 2011
4:34 pm
Obviously all Braves fans hope McLouth comes back and has a great year, but I don't really see where Wren's optimism is coming from here.
January 20th, 2011
4:36 pm
Thanks DOB. Good to hear about the youngsters. Spring CANNOT get here fast enough.
January 20th, 2011
4:40 pm
40yrBravesFan, yeah I am ready for the boys of summer to get back on the field where they belong. Speaking of Boys of Summer, does anyone know where I could find that old Braves "song/commercial", Here come the boys of summer rollin on back in town, tomahawks will be choppin now, pitchers gonna shut 'em down?
January 20th, 2011
4:41 pm
I personally ragged on Nate a lot last season for… well, sucking. But he does seem like a nice guy that deserves another chance to succeed again in 2011. I think he can do it.
January 20th, 2011
4:43 pm
I'm still wondering who's going to be calling the Peachtree TV games this season. I figure Joe Simpson will be one of the announcers.
January 20th, 2011
4:44 pm
Yup. I've seen Polar bears, caribou, wolves, foxes, moose, seals – you name it basically. Problem is many communities actually is climate is warming and polar bears are beginning to roaming the street in search of food NSSteve
hah, shades of Northern Exposure, a great series IMO….well maybe not the last season
January 20th, 2011
4:45 pm
He laughed and said, "I will not use the phrase, 'I'm in the best shape of my life.' I promise I won't use that, because everybody uses that."
He reads the blog comments. There's no doubt about it.
January 20th, 2011
4:46 pm
bruce not working for Cuccinelli anymore, he has all the resources he needs as AG.
Oh, I'm sorry! Every time I've seen him on TV, I've thought of you.
Have a snow blower now after the depths of last winter, and will be perfectly happy to not use it…
Ha! Yeah…we had a big snow/ice storm (by our standards, anyway) last week. It's weird to think that this time a week ago we were venturing outside for the first time since it all fell, and there was still ice and snow all over the place, and now today it's in the 40's…craziness…
looking forward to opening day (and PCR for that matter).
Me, TOO! January always drags on forever. Just under 4 weeks, though, and catchers and pitchers will be reporting! Can't wait…once they report it won't be long till the games start up! Spring Training games are fun to follow, I think.
January 20th, 2011
4:47 pm
Three Braves spring training games will be on ESPN: vs. Tigers on March 3, vs. Boston March 16, and vs. Philly on March 25
YAY! Thanks, Chief!!
Eeerrrg…I'm gonna make it…I'm gonna make it…!
January 20th, 2011
4:49 pm
February 26th is the first game!!
January 20th, 2011
4:49 pm
I'm smelling another Braves dynasty. The decade is ours, my friends!
January 20th, 2011
4:51 pm
26 homers & 94 rbi, WOW anything close to those numbers, what would that do for the Bravos chances??? Lets go Nate, we NEED you to come thru! Going to be a interesting year huh DOB?
January 20th, 2011
4:52 pm
Obviously all Braves fans hope McLouth comes back and has a great year, but I don't really see where Wren's optimism is coming from here.
If it helps, you can go ahead and imagine him disheveled, bug-eyed and chewing out his fingernails.
January 20th, 2011
4:53 pm
McLouth deserves another shot next year, but Frank Wren is out of his mind if he thinks this decision didn't have a lot to do with money. It certainly had a lot more to do with money than McLouth's supposed talent.
The guy was one of the worst CFs both offensively and defensively last year and he is going to make almost 8 million bucks this year.
And the reason they didn't go out and get another CF is purely based on money. They couldn't afford to go out and get another CF. Especially not when they were paying 8 million for McLouth to then sit the bench to be a very expensive pinch runner.
January 20th, 2011
4:53 pm
He reads the blog comments. There's no doubt about it.
Uh oh! That cant be good for his confidence, can it?
January 20th, 2011
4:56 pm
like watching someone order Filet Mignon in restaurant cooked well done, then smother it in Ketchup Snot
tell me about it. while in college I worked part time running a pool hall, an older student I was friends with was a pretty fine pool player. we would play straight pool to 150 for dinner. Every time we went no matter who paid that was exactly what he did, ordered a filet mignon well done and put ketchup on it. Since he usually won more often that I did at that time, I found it even more depressing to have to watch him do that. wasn't bad enough that I had lost I had to pay for that mess too .
January 20th, 2011
4:56 pm
Play my heart like a bottleneck, baby.
Everyone knows your looking for some one to do!
49 tons…………Well said.
January 20th, 2011
4:58 pm
Trey – You're assuming that the Cox bashing ever stopped.
January 20th, 2011
4:59 pm
I watched you with the Pirates and know what you can do. A player just doesn't lose the ability that you have.
You just put up your career averages, and the Braves will be in the thick of the pennant race this season.
Go Braves!
January 20th, 2011
5:01 pm
Damn thats a long post. Great job DOB.
Also – i second your reviews of the new DBT. It's great. Very mellow. I think the songwriting takes center stage on this album – and from all three songwriters. This is an album where they miss a few old band mates . . . their sound would have been great here.
Jason Isbell would stand out on this album.
January 20th, 2011
5:04 pm
Stankees signing Andruw – one-year deal worth $2 million plus $1.2 million in performance bonuses
January 20th, 2011
5:06 pm
DOB Helps when you play home games at "ESPN's Wide World of Sports."
Ha! For sure…
Of course those other two didn't need any help, though.
January 20th, 2011
5:06 pm
"Heck of a blog. With the good Nate this the could be really good."
That's what is kind of intriguing about this team. On one hand you have 3 "mysteries" (4 if you're concerned about Prado adjusting to LF). They are as follows:
1) How will Freeman handle the everyday role?
2) Will Chipper remain healthy enough to contribute?
2A) If Chipper can't go, who plays LF when Prado moves to 3B?
3) How will Nate rebound?
My on Freeman is simple. I think he'll hit and produce close to what LaRoche did his 1st full season in 2005 (140 games, 20 HR, 78 RBI). Worst case scenario, he's a great glove and Hinske can spel him if needed.
My take on Chipper is a bit more sketchy. If he's healthy, it will be a big boost. I'd still like to have another veteran infielder to spell him so when he needs a day off, Prado can stay in LF. And perhaps even if he's injured for an extended period of time, Prado could remain out there as well. Either way, Wren needs to find a reliable 4th OF (could be Hinske if Freeman is fine at 1B?), or another utility type guy for this purpose. Doing so would also solidify the bench in the event they aren't needed to start too many games.
Then there's Nate. Too many people dooming and glooming the fact that he's still out there. I say hogwash. Our LF/CF combination was so bas last year, half of that is now taken care of with Prado in LF. While not a prototypical power corner outfielder, he'll provide a great improvement over what we had in LF last year. Add to that, adding Uggla at 2B now solidifies some more power in the lineup.
To me it doesn't matter where the guys play and provide the power. If it makes you feel better, pretend Prado is still at 2B and Wren adding Uggla essentially gives us a 30+ power guy in "LF". The end result on the lineup is the same.
Back to Nate… what nobody is really talking about is the fact tha if for some reason, Nate does rebound to his 2008 (or even 2009), form? This lineup will actually be pretty damn good. With no real weak links anywhere.
We have 4 of the 8 guys that are REALLY good hitters. Uggla, Mac, Prado and Heyward. All have been All-Stars. Uggla was the 2010 silver slugger award.
Then we have two guys that likely will at the very least provide decent production in Freeman and Gonzo. Leaving Chipper, who if healthy should give us 15-20 HR and 75-80 RBI. Not what he once was, but no slouch at the plate, especially with all his walks.
Again, leaving Nate. So what if he doesn't rebound to 2009 form. If he doesn't it leaves one weak link in the lineup. Perhaps Schafer takes over at some point. Perhaps Wren finds another option for CF (Mather?). Perhaps even Andruw or somebody like him is picked up to even platoon with Nate in CF (or play LF if Prado is needed at 3B).
Lot of "ifs" on this team. But really when you look at it, there is fewer question marks for the lineup going into 2011, than there was going into 2010.
Those questions were:
1) How would Glaus rebound and handle 1B?
2) How would Prado respond given the full time 2B job?
3) How would young Heyward handle ML pitching?
4) Could Escobar take the next step?
5) Could Diaz handle everyday duties in LF?
The pitching is a whole other matter, with "different" questions (but similar ones) that we had going into 2010.
Bottom line from my angle is that this team should be good enough to win around 88-91 games even if some of the question marks don't pan out. And possibly more if guys like Nate, Chipper and Freeman produce.
Enough to catch the Phillies or keep up with them? Likely not. But certainly enough to be in the running for the wild card again.
Anybody assuming we'll win the East is being optimistic. Anybody assuming this team has no shot at the wild card is being pessimistic and not realistically looking at things.
The 2011 Braves will be a good, competitive team. For right now, that's good enough, and enough reason to be excited for the upcoming season.
January 20th, 2011
5:08 pm
McLouth deserves another shot next year, but Frank Wren is out of his mind if he thinks this decision didn't have a lot to do with money.
He's not out of his mind. Given the situation, you just can't expect him to come out and say that this decision has a lot to do with money – even if it is.
January 20th, 2011
5:08 pm
Dammit Andruw, anyone but the Yankees.
January 20th, 2011
5:10 pm
Damn thats a long post. Great job DOB.
That's not a post buddy, that's the blog. Long posts always belong to Nye8.
January 20th, 2011
5:11 pm
The Good Nathan finally showed up. I agree pretty much with that assessment.
January 20th, 2011
5:12 pm
Well, I guess that takes Andruw off the platoon/4th OF list, huh?
NY is a good fit for him actually. He can play all 3 OF spots and DH if they need him to. Good RH bat off the bench for Girardi.
I'm really suprised Wren didn't think harder about that one. Then again, not really.
January 20th, 2011
5:13 pm
Lew, nooo, I just want to see who will get blamed for the loses next season.
January 20th, 2011
5:13 pm
hate long blogs..we are excited..take a breath N8……play ball!
January 20th, 2011
5:14 pm
"The Good Nathan finally showed up. I agree pretty much with that assessment."
LOL! I never went away. Just because you don't agree with me on a topic, doesn't make me "bad". I just figured the Bobby banter had run it's course. I actually had calmed down and started chatting in a civil manner with nolie late last night. Too many take my rants as angry rants. My BP didn't rise once last night while discussing Bobby. Just got a little long winded with it.
January 20th, 2011
5:15 pm
I'm not too surprised either N8.
NY is a homer park which is what Druw has specialized in the last few years. Prolly a good idea since that's about all he can do any more as a hitter.
January 20th, 2011
5:15 pm
While wishing we still had Wagner…………Why Wren, oh why? Why did you lock us in at big dollars for so long with KK and McLouth? Is there anybody in this whole wide world who can make sense out of those two trades?
Oh well, what's done is done, we are we we are, etc. I hope for the best for Nate.
But please, Frank/Fredi–no more K.K.
January 20th, 2011
5:16 pm
I hate this time of year. Basketball sucks. Football is winding down. And we are still a few weeks away from spring training. HS baseball starts the week after next and the colleges are already going. So it should be spring, right? Bring on the 70 degree temps. and some spring training baseball to warm us all up and get excited about the season ahead. Thanks DOB for getting us thinking a few weeks ahead. Can't wait to ready your blogs from spring training.
January 20th, 2011
5:16 pm
DOB, you put some serious time and effort into that blog!! Very much appreciated. Sounds like you enjoyed that meet and get to know em at the Ted as much as the kids did.
January 20th, 2011
5:16 pm
Nolie … NE season six was actually pretty good. When the actor who played Fleischman left, they had to make some midseason corrections which weakened the end of the season. But some of the series best eps occur in the last year.
January 20th, 2011
5:16 pm
"Lew, nooo, I just want to see who will get blamed for the loses next season."
Trey, there are 27 options on any given night. The 25 players on the active roster. Fredi and of course Wren if the guys he give Fredi to go to battle with don't produce, while other options he could have had do for other teams.
For instance, if a guy like Andruw tears it up against LHP pitching for the Yanks, and Nate fails miserably again? Wren will take the brunt of that "choice".
But I'm an equal opportunity griper. Nobody is off limits to being blamed for a loss.
January 20th, 2011
5:18 pm
I'm going to blame Robert for everything that goes wrong in 2011. Makes as much sense as blaming the manager.
January 20th, 2011
5:20 pm
Where can I go to buy World Series tickets?
January 20th, 2011
5:21 pm
McLouth should have quite a year… if you look at him from the right perspective:
- He's lowered expectations enough to where hitting above .215 would be a big deal
- He's going to be a free agent after the season and he's playing for his career. Another sub .200 season and he's off to the Royals to join Melky in 2012
- There's not a single qualified prospect who can come up and take his spot, so he's your starting CF on opening day no matter what
I expect big things from Nate this season. My prediction: .235, 11HR, 62RBI
January 20th, 2011
5:22 pm
Go to the City Of Brotherly love…….clarence
January 20th, 2011
5:23 pm
Did all you negative bloggers and carping ajc sportswriters see me crush that mighty Wake Forest team?
January 20th, 2011
5:23 pm
"But I'm an equal opportunity griper. Nobody is off limits to being blamed for a loss."
Well, at least you are fair with your blame on players and coaches! I'd probably blame the worst person on the team, heh.
January 20th, 2011
5:24 pm
Oh, okay, thanks…..
January 20th, 2011
5:24 pm
Trey.. I'd figure that Robert, better known as Donkey in the blog, probably has an edited copy.. I thought that commercial had Bobby in it as well and we all know that Robert couldn't have that in his stall.
January 20th, 2011
5:25 pm
Abwright, I will blame this fortune teller down the street. She told me the Braves would win the World Series in 2011. Got my entire fortune riding on that.
January 20th, 2011
5:28 pm
"Trey.. I'd figure that Robert, better known as Donkey in the blog, probably has an edited copy.. I thought that commercial had Bobby in it as well and we all know that Robert couldn't have that in his stall.
Oh, that was just a seperate comment of the comment of Robert. I was just trying to find where I could find it. I haven't seen it in years and that song was in my head.
January 20th, 2011
5:29 pm
Trey … Did you give the FT any money on that bet?
January 20th, 2011
5:31 pm
Abwright, she told me it would be in my best interests to and to trust her.
January 20th, 2011
5:31 pm
I like the smell of a new blog in the morning. Smells like victory.
January 20th, 2011
5:32 pm
Nah, there aren't any fortune tellers around here. Well that I know, at least. You got these roadside fortune tellers like Miss Violet that I don't trust. I really don't know why anyone trusts them.
January 20th, 2011
5:33 pm
Nathan – Nah, you've got little angels and demons that look like the Guitarist from Stryper and Keith Richards that whisper all sorts of crap in your ears.
January 20th, 2011
5:36 pm
Mitchie-san, finally got things situated with my detailer.
January 20th, 2011
5:39 pm
The pic of Lee Elia looks like it was drawn by a MAD Magazine artist.
Just saying.
January 20th, 2011
5:40 pm
There's an ad on the top of the page that says "snoring is the silent killer."
That's just wrong. The missus isn't silent as she blows your head off … You couldn't hear her coming over all that dayum snoring.
January 20th, 2011
5:41 pm
Thanks DOB:
Right now this MLB fan lives in a vacuum. I find the NFL boring. The NBA drives me nutty cause so many players get away with walking, the foul calling makes no sense from game to game, and the season never ends. Then my wife hears me complaining so she takes the remote away and the next thing I know–she's turned to one of those syrupy Hallmark movies. I enjoy NCAA basketball, but it's still not the Braves.
So, your Braves updates are all I got to hang onto and help me survive the sucking action of this "MLB/Braves" vacuum.
January 20th, 2011
5:44 pm
"No. The money never was in the equation," Wren said this week. "The talent is what makes those decisions and drives those decisions. And Nate has talent."
Yeah and Wren has some fine Florida Swampland he will sell to you for a song!
January 20th, 2011
5:47 pm
I like the smell of a new blog in the morning.
Hey, that's my new blog line.
January 20th, 2011
5:47 pm
May already be posted, but A. Jones signed with Yankees.
January 20th, 2011
5:47 pm
At least Andruw didn't turn traitor and go to the Mets.
January 20th, 2011
5:50 pm
I'm astonished the management keeps saying this, are they this far from reality or the owners told them to make it work or lose their own jobs. The guy was a cancer to the lineup, automatic out, bigger hole than the pitcher.
January 20th, 2011
5:52 pm
Sorry, Murp. Didnt mean to steal it.
January 20th, 2011
5:53 pm
Oh yeah, Trey? What did you decide?
January 20th, 2011
5:54 pm
Charlotte, NC.
January 20th, 2011
5:55 pm
FT. Bragg??
January 20th, 2011
5:56 pm
automatic out, bigger hole than the pitcher Navigator
exaggeration is always interesting
January 20th, 2011
5:58 pm
Thanks for the new blog, DOB.
Good stuff on Nate, beyond the obvious benefit to the team, he's easy to pull for. Interesting bit on the kids too, let's hope a handful pan out.


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For many East Bay families, a trip to the Castro Valley Christmas Tree Farm each year marks the start of their holiday season.
This year the farm, located just north of Castro Valley in the hills at the juncture of Redwood and Miller Roads opens November 23. It is scheduled to be open through December 16 on Wednesdays through Fridays from 12 to 5 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. You can get complete directions to the farm here.
It is recommended you check the farm's website first before coming, however, because they reserve the right to close early if there is a short supply of trees.
The tree farm has been in existence for over 40 years.
You can read a history of it here.
For more information call 510-889-1992 during the Christmas operating season.


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commented on Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn would be shut down without a subscription plan, says Naoki Yoshida
Um. I disagree with you a great deal. Longevity is what Yoshida is aiming for, and no F2P will be compelling for more than a year or two. Period.


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-- Randy Dotinga
FRIDAY, Sept. 23 (HealthDay News) -- Foreign-born U.S. women are
becoming more likely to undergo mammograms to screen for breast
cancer, but native-born women still outpace them, a new study
"There is progress, overall, in use of mammography among foreign-born women in the United States, but there is still a lot of work to do to improve their use of recommended breast cancer screening," study lead researcher Nengliang (Aaron) Yao, a doctoral student in health policy and administration at Pennsylvania State University, said in a news release from the American Association for Cancer Research.
The study authors said foreign-born women are less likely to get
breast cancer screening due to factors such as lack of health
insurance and a regular place to get health care.
The researchers studied mammography screening in the United
States from 2000 to 2008 by looking at results from a national
Over the eight years, the percentage of immigrant women who
underwent screening grew from 60.2 to 65.5 percent. The researchers
attributed the rise to more "culturally and linguistically
appropriate subsidized programs."
The study findings were released Monday at the American
Association for Cancer Research Conference on the Science of Cancer
Health Disparities, in Washington, D.C.
Because this study was presented at a medical meeting, the data
and conclusions should be viewed as preliminary until published in
a peer-reviewed journal.
More information
The U.S. National Library of Medicine has more about
breast cancer.
Please be aware that this information is provided to supplement the care provided by your physician. It is neither intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. CALL YOUR HEALTHCARE PROVIDER IMMEDIATELY IF YOU THINK YOU MAY HAVE A MEDICAL EMERGENCY. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider prior to starting any new treatment or with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.
Copyright © EBSCO Publishing. All rights reserved.


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Legends Wedding Courtyard
Beneath soaring live oak trees reminiscent of the old south, the Legends Wedding Courtyard provides privacy and an intimate setting for bridal parties. Infuse your ceremony with style, charm and natural beauty. A bride walks the aisle lined by a carpet of lush green grass and fragrant seasonal flowers to meet her groom. They exchange their wedding vows in front of the three-tiered fountain with the lake as their backdrop.
The Legends Wedding Courtyard is one of Orlando's finest outdoor wedding venues.