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Building Your Financial "Safety Gear"
Published on - May 3rd, 2011 (by Sierra Black)
This post is from staff writer Sierra Black. Sierra writes about frugality, sustainable living, and raising children at Childwild.com.
Recently, I've gotten into indoor rock climbing. It's a challenging activity, and frightening when you first begin. You need to really push the edges of your strength and flexibility. Once in awhile, if you happen to glance down and see how far off the ground you are, it can be terrifying.
Which is to say, it's a lot like managing your personal finances.
What makes rock climbing a fun hobby instead of a dumb stunt is the safety gear. You climb with a rope and a safety harness, so if you "fall", you're caught in mid-air. In most cases, you don't really fall at all. You just swing out from the rock when you lose your grip. The rope holds you up and you can pick up close to where you let go. Falling like this can be scary if it's unexpected, but it's not particularly dangerous.
To bring this metaphor back to your money, financial security is about creating financial "safety gear" to protect yourself. A harness and rope won't keep you from financial collapse, but there are tools that will.
Your Emergency Fund
The tool that springs most immediately to mind, of course, is your emergency fund. That cash cushion acts like the crash pad climbers use when they're "bouldering" — climbing without a rope. It's the safety net that will catch you if you do fall, and hopefully cushion the blow of any financial tumble you take. While an ideal emergency fund comprises three to six months of living expenses, even people struggling to get out of debt should have a thousand dollars or more set aside in a savings account. This fund will protect you from the financial repercussions of flat tires and sudden illnesses.
Having a solid emergency fund is essential to absorb the shock of a financial fall. Your goal, though, is never to need it. An emergency fund isn't your first line of defense — it's the last one. It's what breaks your fall at the bottom. Ideally, as in climbing, you'll be able to avoid falling at all. To avoid the falls, you need other "safety gear".
Financial "Safety Gear"
No amount of income will protect you from financial trouble if you don't manage your money well. You can have a six-figure salary and still be sinking ever deeper into debt. To be truly well-off, you want to become balance-sheet affluent rather than income-statement affluent. That is, you want to have a solid net worth. To get that, you need good financial habits.
Even more than an emergency fund, it's the good financial habits you develop and commit to that will protect you from financial falls. Think of these like your rope and harness: They're the safety gear that stops you from falling, rather than the crash pad that cushions the blow when you do. Unlike an emergency fund, which protects you from hitting rock bottom, these strategies aim to catch you in mid-air, so if you slip you can pick up close to where you dropped off. They're the tools you can rely on every day as you manage your money. Do them right, and they'll always be there for you.
Your essential financial safety strategies include:
- Spend less than you earn. This is the most basic tenet of personal finance. If you master it, you're ahead of the game in everything. Without it, all the financial tricks in the book won't protect you. You simply must spend less than you earn. Developing this simple habit doesn't come easy to many of us. Like anything, you need to gradually build up your strength. Once you have a firm habit of spending less than you earn and saving the rest, you'll be in a much better financial position. Even if you do nothing else. When you habitually spend less than you earn, you're poised to absorb an unusual expense without touching your emergency fund. Even better, you'll be able to consistently grow your savings.
- Track your spending. Keeping track of every penny you spend and earn is one of the most powerful tools there is for taking charge of your spending habits. When you see where your money goes, you can act to reduce costs in big and small ways. Without that tracking, you often find yourself spending carelessly on things that don't really further your financial goals. You can track your spending with a variety of financial software products. I use Mint these days, because it has a nice set of features and a good iPhone app. You can also use a simple Excel spreadsheet or even a pen and paper. Do what works for you. Just be sure to do it.
- Develop a spending plan. A spending plan, a budget — call it what you will. Having some clearly articulated intention for how you'll spend your money helps you avoid frittering it away on small luxuries when you want to be saving it up for something big. Your spending plan will also help you predict upcoming expenses, and put aside the money needed to pay annual bills and large purchases. A spending plan is like the other side of your spending records. While tracking your spending shows you where your money has gone, your spending plan shows you where your money will go. Both are essential to successfully living below your means and managing your money with intention.
Mind Over Money
Cultivating good financial practices isn't easy as easy as buckling on a climbing harness. Developing these habits is hard work. As I mentioned before, it pushes at the edges of your strength, flexibility and endurance. I believe this is especially true if you're getting out of debt.
If you've been in debt, you probably had spending habits that exceeded your income at some point. Even if that's not the case, if it was a sudden catastrophe like a major illness or job loss that pushed you into debt, climbing out is hard. It takes endurance, and a willingness to keep going when it seems impossible. It also requires flexible thinking to cut expenses back to a minimum, and strength of will to keep up with your essential financial safety strategies.
Finding these qualities in yourself can be a challenge. That's why, along with the good financial practices outlined above, it's a smart to do something to cultivate strength of will, flexible thinking, and endurance in yourself. It doesn't have to be about money. Like my rock climbing, or the yoga practice I've written so much about recently, these things aren't directly connected to personal finance, but they do call on some of the same strengths. Because I'm doing these things, I have more strength, flexibility, and endurance when I sit down at my desk to do my money mojo for the week. That carries over into staying more on top of my finances, and more motivated about my goals. Finding an activity that can build these qualities in your life is a gift.
You don't have to spend a lot of money to do this — or any money at all. Take up running, or sitting meditation, or writing morning pages. Even just keeping a brief journal where you jot a sentence or two each day can help develop discipline, flexibility, endurance and strength. Again, do what works for you. Just do something.
What do you do to stay motivated and to keep your financial "safety gear" intact?
Great points Sierra! I think the knowledge of these steps are powerful, but without application, they are useless.
The hardest part in achieving financial security is acquiring financial discipline! This really cannot be taught. Something needs to spark inside someone and give them the realization that they are not going down the correct financial road.
If there is no spark, all of the finance books in the world won't help.
I like the analogy of safety gear. Good one.
In the mind over money section, I'd also add something about having mentors who can teach you. I think that's a lot of what keeps people coming back to GRS. Sometimes you need to have an example in front of you to see what you can do.
I think of myself as a pretty good money manager. But I work with clients who, despite having an income below poverty level, still manage to save money. I bow in humility before their amazing money management skills. And I'm inspired to make even better decisions for myself in the future.
Cute post.
I like the analogy, but I thought you could have used it more to talk about safety instead of just a shell to reiterate the basic principles of the site. Would be a good tool to talk about different types of life insurance, short and long term disability insurance and other things I would consider true financial safety gear (along with an emergency fund). Still, a good simple reminder of the basics.
I agree! Good post, but I was really surprised to see insurance left out of the mix. Insurance works hand-in-hand with an emergency fund (like covering deductibles and filling in the gaps.)
I don't understand what kind of financial "falls" you're talking about that don't immediately land you in your emergency fund (or some other savings account with a different name).
Job Loss? Straight to the emergency fund.
New roof for the house? Generally an emergency fund thing.
Big medical bill? That's textbook "emergency fund" there, isn't it?
How is tracking your spending preventative for any of these things?
Not for me, Tyler. After figuring out that we will always have house repair issues, we created a 'house repair' sub account. I have a medical account too, for copays, appointments, etc. A job loss would probably end up drawing from the emergency fund eventually, but I'd be more likely to drain my travel fund and my play fund first while buying time.
Tracking spending was beneficial to me, to realize that all these categories are things that I'm going to spend money on. So I might as well save for them and expect them, instead of dipping into the emergency fund eveery time. This year – adding a 'taxes due' sub account. Oops.
Sierra – count me as +1 for the climbing wall. Love the sensation of freedom and achievement. And have you seen this month's National Geographic about free climbing in Yosemite? Those folks live their whole lives without protective gear…
I guess maybe my problem with this is that I view all savings accounts as interchangeable. Taking $10,000 from the "medical fund" instead of the "emergency fund" still leaves you with the same amount of money in the end. If the emergency gets bad enough, then all your savings accounts eventually become emergency funds anyway (you're not going to refuse to pay for a live-saving medical procedure because the money is in a "travel" fund).
Maybe doing the planning helps you to recognize exactly how much emergency savings (regardless of the names you use) that you'll actually need.
I think when you don't have very much money, you can only afford one emergency fund ($500/$1K, etc.), and when you have a high income (and relatively low fixed expenditures) you only need one emergency/slush fund because your income next month will refill emergency funds with very little sacrifice.
For the folks in the middle, the mental accounts must help a lot with planning.
And actually when deciding how much we needed in savings this summer (since we're on 9 month salaries), even though it's one account I had to mentally tag it: 3 months regular spending + 1 month "emergency" + school tuition for next year (because there's a discount if we pay upfront, but we don't get paid until October). So I guess that even though most of the year our income is high enough not to need those separate tags, when regular income isn't coming in, we do.
Tyler, I think it just depends on what works for different people. We have a "house fund" for home maintenance/repair. Last summer, we spent $3k to get bees and honeycombs out of our siding and repair the damage, and we paid for it from our house fund. This meant we had $3k less for a planned but non-essential house project, refinishing the wood floors. We could have considered the honey bee infestation an emergency and used our emergency fund, and also refinished our floors, but I felt better knowing that our emergency fund remained untouched, and we refinished the floors a couple of months later. I know it's all mental… we could have done the bees and floors at the same time, then replenished the emergency fund later. I know this! But my husband and I made the decision that helps us sleep easiest at night.
I understand what you're saying, and I echo TRB's comment.
My husband and I have been saving into our emergency fund for almost a year now, but any time an unplanned expense came up, it came out of that fund.
We're slowly, but surely, getting a handle on those "unexpected" expenses by trying to anticipate them. I think this relates to the post earlier of tracking expenses and then making changes. We have a medical fund to pay for any co-pays we may have. We have a dog fund to take care of our pooch. We don't have a "new roof" fund, because we rent!
That money for those smaller funds came out of what would normally be put to an "Emergency Fund," but we're trying to keep the true "Emergency Fund" for emergencies only. It's still growing, and it's not being hit as often since we're aware of our more likely future needs.
On Tyler's point, I'm sometimes wondering why I have an emergency fund at all, beyond about a month of income stashed away just as a nice cushion for unexpectedly large cash flow months. The standard 6 months + of expenses for emergencies sitting in very low interest earning accounts (1.25 or 1.5% is common, inflation at 3.3% now, losing money!) just doesn't seem to fit me.
Picking some of the things mentioned:
"Job Loss?" – the likelihood of this happening is extremely remote, but it is possible. In my case, as a Chartered Accountant specializing in taxation and compliance with 10+ years of experience in my industry and great connections, unless the economy was terrible, great depression era terrible, I'd be able to land another job in a few weeks or sooner with similar income. The last recession was supposedly the worst since the depression and I changed jobs during its peak in summer of 2009 with mutliple offers for a 40% raise from my previous position. So, I know of what I speak here.
Plus – I would get the maximum employment insurance and am contractually obligated to get severance pay, accrued vacation pay, etc. So, yeah. This plus cutting my lifestyle would enable to live for many months without a job if I was laid off even if I had no savings.
"New roof for the house?"
I rent. All "emergency" maintenance is covered by my landlord and/or renter's insurance.
"Big medical bill?" Covered by the Ontario Health Insurance universal coverage, whether I have a job or not. Short and long term disability is offered through work and I take both of them and pay extra for the max coverage which is very generous (I work for an insurance company).
"Unexpected auto expense?" My car collects dust in the parking garage. I walk to work. If the car was destroyed, I'd go without. Insurance would handle any 3rd party damage or liability.
On top of this, I live close to a huge amount of family and friends who I am very close with and support who would/could help me with food/shelter/etc if something extremely crazy occured until I could get back on my feet–and I am not too proud to work *any* job from driving trucks to cleaning toilets to be independent.
In conclusion: Short term and long term disability, severance pay and unemployment insurance and in-demand-skills, auto insurance and walking to work, renting and renter's insurance, a support network of loving family/friends, all these things substitute for a large emergency fund in *some* cases. I also do have a large emergency fund, but I'm planning on using it for a downpayment someday rather than just keep it earning 1.5% at ING.
You're supposed to determine the amount of your emergency fund based on your situation. Other's have different needs, which may require a larger emergency fund. Here's why we have a large emergency fund to make us comfortable:
Job Loss-It's in the 50/50 range if my spouse will keep his job. We have a strict schedule of volunteer activity that we put first in our life. Our secular work supports our life goals. If his job (of 11+ years) won't let him keep the part time schedule he plans to quit. Things are fine for the moment but always a potential concern. Finding new pt employment of the same wage (high due to 11+ years) probably won't happen. We cannot live on the amount of unemployment insurance he'd receive (after 6 weeks when you quit). I work seasonally and it's not enough to live on.
New roof for the house – We own. If our furnace goes out in winter it would be an emergency for us. I feel this should be saved in a maintenance account but we don't currently have one.
Big medical bill – We are covered through public health. However, if we disagree with the treatment they are willing to provide we'd need money and don't have it saved other than in our emergency fund. Also, I'm not sure they cover ambulance if it became necessary.
Unexpected auto expense? – At the very least we'd need to cover our insurance deductible. We live in a place that has poor public transportation. In addition, things are not close together, we don't have enough time to bike. It'd take my spouse an hour to get to work and an hour home. It's really cold and icy 6 months out of the year here biking is impractical most of the time.
The family that we live close to does not have the financial means to support us.
The tone of your comment seems haughty. A single guy in a place that has health care paid for probably requires the lowest dollar emergency fund of anyone I know. I would not agree that this is the same for a single girl that doesn't know much about cars.
Sorry! Didn't mean to sound haughty, just taking the theme of the article that the actual emergency fund comes last in the line of defense and if you can build up your other safety net (integral skills, insurance, connections, good phyiscal health, close family/friends) you can rely on less money sitting in an ING account losing money to inflation. As with all personal finance, YMMV!
Excellent post. I enjoy creative and vivid analogies and rock climbing paints this picture well.
To use another analogy, bicycle safety doesn't begin and end by simply using a helmet. The helmet, is your emergency fund, it may or may not save you. Safety begins with safe riding habits, watching the traffic, following the road rules, etc.
Great post! I am currently working towards building up an emergency fund, and other savings accounts. It just takes discipline.
I do agree with "Pamela" on the need for mentors, too. That is one reason that I spend my time visiting the finance blogs. As for the discipline portion, that is why I created my own blog and intend to use it as a motivator.
I will use all resources available to me to improve my financial life.
Tracking your spending is a must for anyone that is looking towards working for their financial freedom. This is the real key because knowing what you spend helps you create your financial goals and create an effective budget.
Great post Sierra! I liked all of your "safety gear" perspective.
Phenomenal post, Sierra – I really enjoyed the rock climbing analogy.
I agree wholeheartedly with the point about the emergency fund being the last line of defense as opposed to the first, that's critical. If you don't have that mindset you're constantly working to replenish your savings with the unintended consequence being your savings could become stagnant and woefully inadequate to address any pitfalls life may randomly throw your way.
For us, I would contribute to our savings and drain it fairly routinely due to a lack of planning and foresight. Our current fiscal goal is to pay off our vehicle, in my haste to make a lot of progress I would send too much money prematurely and then other small things would come up, like us needing more gas, having to pick up more staples for the grocery store, the unexpected gift, etc. – I would have to run to savings. The Christmas season would come around and it's like an atom bomb would hit our savings. I will start the Christmas fund this June. I also temper my excitement and kind of "dollar cost average" my debt payments, I send it in little chunks progressively over time. This way we will not be in a bind before payday.
Paying off debt packs such a punch, in terms of a psychological boost. I readily concede that saving is an indispensable part of my plan for us to be financially independent, it's just not sexy. I love logging in to our creditors' websites and see the balance freefalling-LOL
Nice try tying physical activities to finance, but I think that pretty tenuous. Why is it so rare that we see financially savvy sport stars?
Could it be because they have not managed to link the competencies that sport gives them with these required by savvy finance management?
This may be your best post ever. I enjoyed your illustration.
"What do you do to stay motivated and to keep your financial "safety gear" intact?"
I think about what Future Me might want. Right now I'm in university, living off my student loan because my long hours in the workshop combined with cheerleading haven't left much time for a job. What do I think I will want in the future? A workshop of my own? A city apartment close to design teams and galleries? A smallholding out in the countryside?
Thinking about what I might want in the future keeps me on track financially. Sure, I end up turning down a lot of nights out with friends, but would I rather spend £50 on travel, food and drink for a night or keep that £50 as a budget for the whole week?
I agree with some of the other posters that this was simply a regurgitation (hope I spelled that correctly!) of advice that we have all seen many times on this site and others like it. If Sierra had the desire to write about her passion for wall climbing (love the irony of her name and her hobby), couldn't she have spent more time on the final paragraph of her article where she spoke about how discipline in other aspects of her life help her with her finances. That's an article I would like to read that I haven't read a thousand times before.
IMHO this was Sierra's best written post. Even if we've heard the same message a thousand times before.
How about this article next week –
"I saved tons of money by not wasting my time climbing a fake rock wall at some over priced indoor park for spoiled urban adults."
Maybe that would help pay your debts. If you want to climb rocks, why not do it for free outside?
Anne, that was hilarious and a very accurate description of what can be a waste of money. I decided to give up golf today because
a) It is expensive
b) I am stressed out when I play. I shoot in the low 80′s but want to hit every shot perfectly, and instead of being frustrated for 5 hours a week, why not spend that time and money on something more worthwhile?
Good for you Evan. Golf is a good walk spoiled.
Ouch. What happened to conscious spending — ie saving on things that matter less so you can spend on things that matter more? To each her own, I say, and all the more power to Sierra if she wants to spend money on indoor rock climbing.
She also may not be at the level necessary to climb outdoors. Or she may not have the right friends who are more experienced to go with her.
That's not my point. Would you being saying the same thing if she wrote an article about how her jimmy choo collection taught her about her personal finances (when she still had debt)? I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be the only one ciritizing that article.
I don't mean to criticise how she spends her money. Do what you want, just don't bullshit me. There's this idea that certain hobbies or spending habits are untouchable in terms of criticism. No one here would tolerate a writer who continues to buy designer clothes when they had not cleared their debt. But if it is a form of exercise or something like travel, suddenly it is filed under conscious spending.
Yes, parents and people in debt need hobbies and a life. But people in debt also should not TAKE UP expensive hobbies. I'm not taking up weaving right now and I don't even have any non-mortgage debt. But I do have a young child. I'd love to take up weaving, but it's not responsible now.
It is silly to take up an expensive hobby and then say you're learning about personal finance from it, when that money could be put towards debt (or other pragmatic matters).
What I know about her is that she has two children she home schools and she is a freelance writer. I also know she has (or had) a condition that may make it difficult in the future for her to earn consistent income. (A freelance writer with an msd in her HANDS, isn't an easy situation.) Is she self-insuring for her disability (since no insurer will probably take her now).
Last year she said she didn't have enough money for the software that could have helped. She wrote an interesting article about making do when you have such problems. But now she has the money to take up rock climbing? And she wants me to think it's teaching her about good financial habits?
A little rich imo.
There is a difference in constructive criticism and downright harsh. Your writing tone is too harsh! If the article is not to your liking….just more on to another blog. What is the big deal?
I think this comment is unnecessarily malicious and incredibly infantile. The only person that has a right to decide what to do with Sierra's money is Sierra and her family. Your opinion is simply irrelevant.
Furthermore, on a distant but related tangent. I think Sierra is becoming a victim of "group think." Everyone seems to be hypercritical of Sierra's contributions as if every post has to be personally tailored to their sensibilities. I also think people feel emboldened when other people criticize an individual.
It is true that some of Sierra's posts have included misinformation that she did not address or correct in the main post once the incorrect information was pointed out. That is what I consider to be poor reporting– badly done research and misinformation without correcting the final product. Misinformation in financial settings can be dangerous (and even more so in psychological settings!).
She's been doing a lot better recently. This post is fine. I would be happy seeing more like this. Sierra's posts are best when she sticks to things she knows about personally. Her writing is best when she talks about her own experiences and her own thoughts. There are other writers to do the heavy research lifting.
I believe that each post should be judged on its own merits and I also dislike the pile-on.
It's not free to climb outside. Gear costs hundreds (as in many hundreds) of dollars to purchase.
Clearly, you don't rock climb.
Spending less than you earn is the central theme of personal finance, and overall money management. Us bloggers really just provide a way for you to do that better, i.e. budgeting, coupons, online shopping etc.
Wow, these blog posts are getting a little silly and extraneous and redundant. I suppose that the basics of finances remain the same, so one is tempted to repackage them in post after post. Which leads to silly regurgitations, such as "rock climbing as a metaphor for personal finances." Really?!
JD – I know that you think your financial life is boring, but anything that you write about your actual personal finances is a million times more interesting than these "fluff" pieces that beat metaphors over the head or nonsense about extremem minimalism and the rest.
Having fewer posts overall is better than having repetitive stuff like this posting, which just gives the impression that the author wanted to come up with an excuse to write something – anything – today to meet her writing quota, to be published (just for the sake of being published, even if it's not original or useful) or to get paid.
I think the point that was really best and and not said often enough is that the emergency fund is not the first line of defense. In what I've read, it often is made to seem like the be-all-end-all of financial defense and security which is not necessarily a good way to look at it. Plenty of "emergencies" are non-routine expenses that don't get factored in when people are looking at their spending habits. (I mean, come on – who's car has never broken down?) When you're climbing out of debt, it's certainly better to use that than your credit card, but when you're a bit more secure, it can be counterproductive.
In keeping with the rock climbing analogy, I think that it would have been good to also talk about points of contact. If you've got at least three points of contact (perhaps income from a job and some investments plus some sort of insurance to get three in this case) it's not so critical if one of those points falters. If you're relying on one or two, you may need that harness or the crash pad at the bottom more frequently.
I really enjoyed this post. As to running as a way to develop patience and persistence – absolutely. This is why I became a long distance runner – you have to plan, you have to be parsimonious, have to use your head to develop a strategy and the main thing – need to keep pace.
Running and finishing a marathon is just like paying your debts off – I just want to cross the finish line and celebrate.
I liked the post – yes, it's regurgitative of some of the basic tenants. But differenrt approaches speak to different people. I also like the point that like any other pursuit it takes time, patience, and most of all PRACTICE to be good with money. Mental muscles need to be flexed just like physical ones.
I liked the last part, "Mind Over Money," and the need to cultivate endurance and flexibility through different activities.
I don't know what I do for that specifically, but having become a GTD convert in the past month I can attest it helps me persevere and be flexible at the same time. I used to be just flexible, and forget things, ha ha ha.
Although we've had a year over year increase of 30k in our savings, we actually feel less well off this year as compared to last. The reason for the drop in sentiment is that at the end of last year we broke our single savings into several smaller accounts – vacation, tuition, car replacement, and e-fund.
We figured our e-fund needed to be a minimum of six months of expenses and then we took the surplus and put it into the sub categories. Now when unforeseen expenses have come up we've pulled funds from the vacation account rather than the e-fund. And that'll translate into more low brow meals – not a big deal for our brood, and much better than pulling from an e-fund when we didn't really need to.
The safety net is most important. It allows you to take risks. That's why I'm focusing on building up our emergency fund.
Hmm… somewhat the analogy does not work too well for me. May be because when I think about rock climbing, I think of the importance of technique more than the safety gear. Balance, legs and core strength, and economic placements and movements are what crossed my mind. I'm not saying that safety gears are not important, I always wear them when I rock climb but they feel so basic. Somewhat it's not ringing right to me the analogy of PF and rock climbing.
i've never placed much importance in a sizeable emergency fund until recently. All this while, i've focused on property investment as my safety gear. realised now that it's not a very liquid vehicle and as such am moving some funds into cash & stocks.
Rock climbing doesn't do it for me either. Always seemed kinda silly and dangerous, whether on a real mountain or on an indoor plastic one. Why don't people do more normal things, like jumping out of airplanes (which I have done; used to skydive. Now that's another story…).
But whether the analogy fits me or not, I like the ideas it being used for: to give people a "hook" to understand some personal finance concepts. BREAKING NEWS: Are we shocked, shocked, shocked to find out that not everyone will respond to the same kind of story in the same way!? Different authors with different approaches and different experiences are needed. Variety is a good thing. That's why there is more then one kind of flavor at the ice cream parlor.
Don't ask me to like every single one.
One comment about the three items listed for "Your essential financial safety strategies include". I would have thought there would be a fourth item, something along the lines of "automate savings" (even if starting small) or "pay yourself first" or some such.
Anyway, good article.
I think it's preposterous that folks seem to read this and other finance blogs expecting the authors to reinvent the wheel. Everything you need to know you probably got the first time you read through the home page-and then went on to every other post you had time to read. I know I did. I come back because there is always another way to view things and having other voices give their experience is a good thing.
Just because every post is not 100% relevant to you doesn't mean it has no value or significance to others.
I am one of the most undisciplined people I know. I appreciate Sierra's analogy and the stories others shared.
One of the things I am most disciplined in is ignoring other people's opinions of my personal decisions. Even with that lack of guilt inducement, and a very meandering life path I can say I see the top of the mountain.
I now have an emergency fund, a full pantry and do what I love daily. Because my debts are getting smaller, I am able to focus more on doing what I love to do.
My emergency fund was smaller than my ego for a lot of years but GRS and circumstances helped me become more disciplined there.
Thanks for dodging the stones others throw Sierra. See you at the top!
I love the kitty pictures, and you have some great tips!
All the listed strategies seem to just allow you to funnel more money to the emergency fund, which as Tyler said, is the most logical choice in any significant "financial fall". (By emergency fund I mean basically any savings set aside for future unexpected expense – whether the expense itself is unexpected or the timing of the expense is in doubt.)
I would have went a different direction here and mentioned things like:
1) unemployment compensation (job loss)
2) short/long term disability (medical issue)
3) DIY skills (instead of throwing money at a problem, learn how to fix it yourself)
4) medical insurance (medical again)
5) life insurance (the ultimate financial fall – death of someone the household depends on financially)
6) multiple streams of income (job loss)
7) social network (job loss/medical issue)
You don't fall, unless you're lead climbing! And the fall is the most exciting part! Enjoy climbing, it's amazing!
My wife and I just got married last January and we've been looking for investment opportunities. But we agreed to set aside around 100,000 pesos (about 2,200 dollars) as emergency fund. We're about to hit that amount and then we'll look for investment opportunities.
I don't think that metaphor is used appropriately in this article.
Is it an analogy? Yes.
Is it a metaphor? No.
Definition of METAPHOR
1: a figure of speech in which a word or phrase literally denoting one kind of object or idea is used in place of another to suggest a likeness or analogy between them (as in drowning in money); broadly : figurative language — compare simile
2: an object, activity, or idea treated as a metaphor


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Hello. My Name is Thomas, And I'm a Falcons AddictPosted: January 10, 2013 Filed under: NFL, NFL Playoffs, Thomas Lake, Weekly Issue | Tags: Atlanta Falcons, nfl, NFL Playoffs, Thomas Lake Comments Off
After 46 years in the National Football League, the Atlanta Falcons remain one of 14 teams that have yet to hold the Vince Lombardi trophy and call themselves Super Bowl champions. To be a fan of the Falcons is to accept the inevitable feeling of complete and utter disappointment. SPORTS ILLUSTRATED senior writer Thomas Lake, a lifelong Falcon fan, describes how his fondest memories of the Falcons are fogged with the eerie understanding that even the most outstanding victories can be followed by season-halting losses. Whether it was the debacle that was their first Super Bowl appearance in 1999, the complicated love-hate relationship and bitter divorce with Michael Vick, or last year's playoff shutout loss to the Giants, Falcons fans have learned to live with heartbreak. But as the Falcons gear up for this year's playoffs, Thomas and his brother, Red, stand together amongst a sea of red and black waiting for their turn to come. Could this be their year? History says no, but their eternal optimism and devotion is telling them yes (page 66).

subset: commoncrawl


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Every minute at least one child dies from a water-related illness.
Women spend 200 million hours a day collecting water
More than 2.5x more people lack water than live in the United States
The majority of illness is caused by fecal matter
More people have a mobile than a toilet
Lack of community involvement causes 50% of other projects to fail
Coverage Archive
- Philanthropy Gets Smarter Economist.com
- Matt Damon: Catch Your Next Wave Men's Health
- Water BBC World Service
- Philanthropy Meets the Market The Economist The World In 2014
- Matt Damon Takes on Global Water Crisis The LEAD CNN
- Clean Water and Toilets for India's Poor New York Times India Ink
- Water brings Damon to India The Telegraph
- Raising Awareness via Potty Humor Marketing News
- WATER: A Q&A with Gary White & Matt Damon Stanford Medicine
- New Chief Operating Officer Press Release
- Water.org On Building A Winning YouTube Campaign: Toilet Striking Fast Company Co.CREATE
- World Water Day HuffPo Live!
- Gayle King Talks World Water Day with Gary White CBS This Morning
- From TED to World Water DayThe Daily Beast
- It's About Passion, Smarts and Dedication New York Times Room for Debate
- March 2013 The Hemi Q&A with Matt Damon Hemispheres Magazine
- Matt Damon Drops a Bomb at Press Conference Impatient Optimists
- Matt Damon's Potty Strike Today
- 2013 Katerva Award winners Katerva Awards
- Cultural Influencers, Educators, NGOs, Corporate Collaborators Embark On Mt. Kilimanjaro Expedition To Raise Awareness Of Global Clean Water Crisis Summit On The Summit
- "Big Stars, Big Giving" CNN Dec 2012
- Zynga and Water.org Bring Clean Water to Developing Communities TriplePundit.com, Nov 2012
- Matt Damon's Major Role in Finding Clean Water for World Bloomberg, Sept 2012
- Schwab Foundation Announces the 2012 Social Entrepreneur Awardees World Economic Forum, Sept 2012
- How Companies Can Move Beyond Philanthropy in Developing Countries Triple Pundit, Aug 2012
- Could Water Strife Lead to Mass Killings? Inter Press Service, Aug 2012
- Water.org Founder Gary White Solving the Clean Water Crisis Conde Nast Traveler, Sept 2012
- Water.org, nonprofit with a venture fund San Francisco Chronicle
- Is Water the World's Next Global Security Threat? Huffington Post
- Water is Fundamental Passports with Purpose, June 2012
- Waterworks Washington Post, April 2012
- "Matt Damon and Gary White on Foreign Aid" The Atlantic, April 2012
- "Funding Innovation" Huffington Post,
- "Your Voice Matters (Maybe More Than Money)"Huffington Post,
- "Charities give Christmas gift of water"USA Today, Dec 2011
- "Can Matt Damon Bring Clean Water to Africa?"Fast Company, Sept 2011
- ABC News This Week Interview ABC Television
- Safe Water and a Toilet—Is that too much to Ask for 2.5 Billion People? Huffington Post
Do Something About It
There is no shortage of ways you can make a difference
Make a direct impact by involving your friends online and together we will make a difference. More »
Your voice has the power to make a difference. Signup and spread the message online. More »


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I am a Graphic Designer based in Doncaster South Yorkshire. Currently I work for DPP Group based in Wakefield near Leeds. I also work on a freelance basis for a number of individuals and companies. I work on Graphic Design for both print and online media. From E-marketing to websites, press advertising, branding and print projects.
I can help you with all of the following: Print Design, Branding and Logo Design, Online Advertising, Email campaigns, Website design and build, SEO, Press Advertising, Photoshop Image retouching and much more.
Please check out my work by clicking on 'portfolio' on the top menu then either look through it all or browse by category.


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Get Ready for Winter. Get Ready to Save with the Yellow Tag Sales Event!
See the 2015 sleds, accessories and gear, plus talk with our experts.
You ride. We invent.You corner. We transform.You jump. We tweak.You explore. We reinvent.You never stop. We never stop.
Versatility to ride both on-trail and off, these agile and radical performance sleds feature a longer track than most trail sleds to bridge bumps and play in the powder.
We're further sharpening the industry's best handling snowmobiles
A taller ski spindle, refined geometry and lighter components sharpen the sled's already precise handling, especially in extreme conditions.
Snow Goer Canada Profiles the Ski-Doo Manufacturing Facility in Valcourt, Québec.
September 29, 2014
Story by Hal Armstrong,SnowGoer Canada| Photos by BRP Nestled in Québec's Eastern Townships, Valcourt has a long and rich history in the powersports industry, beginning in 1942 when Joseph-Armand Bombardier manufactured the Auto-Neige Bombardier, the first tracked vehicle designed to … more
2015 Ski-Doo MXZx 600RS Race Sled Upgraded for Speed
September 9, 2014
BRP's 2015 Ski-Doo MXZx 600RS builds on its strong chassis performance from 2014 by refining the engine and drive systems for better power delivery and even better overall durability. Last season saw big chassis changes for the Ski-Doo stock terrain … more
Guide to Ski-Doo at Hay Days 2014
September 2, 2014
We are SO ready for winter…thank goodness the Hay Days event in Minn. is just around the corner! If you're one of the thousands sledders heading to North Branch to get your season started, we are anxious to see you in … more
Best Facebook Fan Photos of 2014 (So Far)
August 10, 2014
Click on any of the photos in the box below to open a photo album of some of the coolest photos posted this year to our Ski-Doo Facebook and Ski-Doo Mountain Facebook pages by our fans. // Post by Ski-Doo. . . . . .
By {{video.uploader}}
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Your 3 closest dealers
Sign up to receive the latest Ski-Doo news, events and deals.


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Tag Archives: Del Monte Fresh Produce
United Fresh to Honor Industry Champion in Washington
The United Fresh Produce Association will again honor one company as an outstanding advocate for the fresh fruit and vegetable industry this September at … Continue reading
Del Monte Fresh Produce Joins Fair Food Program
Del Monte Fresh Produce N.A. announced that one of its subsidiaries agreed to join the Coalition of Immokalee Workers' ("CIW") Fair Food Program. Del … Continue reading
Del Monte Fresh Produce Expands its Tomato and Vegetable Program
Del Monte Fresh Produce N.A. announced that one of its North America subsidiaries acquired approximately 2,620 acres of agricultural production land located Northwest of … Continue reading
Produce's big top performance
This year's Southern Exposure event promises to be "the greatest produce show on earth." No longer is an apple just an apple or a … Continue reading
A healthy resolve
Each New Year consumers focus on healthy eating. Retailers would be wise to capitalize on this trend by recommitting to the produce department. Continue reading
Fresh Fruits and Vegetables Post Gains for the Third Quarter of 2013
Fruits and vegetables posted gains in dollar sales this quarter compared to last year's figures. The majority of fruit and vegetable categories also maintained … Continue reading
United Fresh Honors Del Monte Fresh Produce
The United Fresh Produce Association honored Del Monte Fresh Produce as the Produce Industry Advocate of the Year last week at the Washington Public … Continue reading
Del Monte Fresh Announces "Gold for Gold" Pineapple Promotion
Del Monte Fresh Produce announces the launch of a first-of-its-kind pineapple promotion: "Gold for Gold." This consumer promotion encourages US and Canadian grocery shoppers … Continue reading
Fresh Produce Sales, Volume Up in Q1 FreshFacts on Retail
Fresh produce saw positive dollar and volume sales in the first quarter of 2013, a strong start to the year. Organic fruits and vegetables … Continue reading
Del Monte Fresh Finds its Third Contest Winner
Del Monte Fresh Produce announces its third of four weekly aspiring chef winners for its "Find Your Inner Chef" online contest. Areli Biggers, from … Continue reading
Snackin' in the sun
As days grow longer consumers begin to look for convenient, fresh snack ideas. Continue reading
Del Monte Fresh Welcomes Consumers to Find their Inner Chef
Del Monte Fresh Produce N.A. announced it will hold its first ever "Find Your Inner Chef" contest. The "Find Your Inner Chef" contest encourages … Continue reading
Northward bound
Produce growers and companies are geared up for CPMA with promotions and products for the Canadian market. Continue reading
All grown up
The Southeast Produce Council prepares for the Tenth anniversary of its Southern Exposure show. Continue reading
Produce(ing) a new start
With the New Year comes New Year's resolutions, often creating opportunities for retailers to promote fresh fruits and vegetables. After indulging in delectable treats … Continue reading
Del Monte Goes Bananas for Charity Events
Participants in the Miami Paddle Challenge held at Matheson Hammock Park were in for a unique surprise when they were joined by five giant … Continue reading
Del Monte Fresh Produce is Giving Away Banana Halloween Costumes
Del Monte Fresh Produce announced the launch of its Banana Halloween Costume Giveaway. The Facebook sweepstakes began October 8th and ends October 18th. Many … Continue reading
Produce Powerhouse
PMA Fresh Summit is fast approaching. The industry is poised to put its best foot forward. Continue reading
Del Monte Fresh Avocado Pulp Wins Superior Taste Award
Del Monte Fresh Produce, N.A., Inc. has been awarded the Superior Taste Award with the maximum three stars for its fresh Hass Avocado Pulp … Continue reading
A Spring Showcase
Retailers are looking north to see what is blooming for spring produce. Continue reading
Value-Added and Organic Produce Show Growth in Q4 FreshFacts on Retail
According to the latest edition of FreshFacts on Retail, nearly all categories within value-added and organic produce groups saw positive dollar and volume growth, … Continue reading
Del Monte Fresh Produce Announces "500 Sneaker March" Promotion
Del Monte Fresh Produce announced today the launch of their "500 Sneaker March" promotion which begins March 1 and runs through March 31. The … Continue reading
Southern hospitality
The Southeast Produce Council's (SPC) Southern Exposure trade show is a favorite for many produce growers. Its smaller size and intimate setting provides a breeding ground for developing new relationships. This year's show promises to be no different. Continue reading


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HALIFAX - Olivier Ouellet and the Saint John Sea Dogs killed any shred of playoff hopes the Halifax Mooseheads had left on Saturday.
Ouellet had a goal and an assist as the Sea Dogs eliminated the Halifax Mooseheads from playoff contention with a 3-2 win in the lone Quebec Major Junior Hockey League game.
With one game remaining, Halifax is two points behind the Val-d'Or Foreurs and the Lewiston Maineiacs for the final spot in the QMJHL playoffs. Even if the Mooseheads win their final game and both Val-d'Or and Lewiston lose, the Maineiacs will win the tie-break because they have more wins on the season.
With the win, Saint John (34-29-2-2) took sole possession of eighth place, two points ahead of the Montreal Junior. Both teams have one game remaining.
Danick Gauthier and Joshua Schram also scored for the Sea Dogs. Tomas Knotek had a goal and an assist and Gerrad Grant added a goal for Halifax (18-41-3-5).
Robert Mayer made 27 saves for Saint John, while Mooseheads netminder Mark Yetman stopped 28 shots.
The game was rescheduled from February 19 due to severe weather conditions.


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Brigadier General Robinson "Robbie" Risner, a celebrated Korean War jet fighter ace and Vietnam prisoner of war, died October 22 at home in Bridgewater, Virginia.
General Risner completed 33 years of distinguished Air Force service before retiring in 1976. During the Korean War, Risner flew more than 100 combat missions, becoming America's 20th Jet Ace by shooting down eight Soviet-made MIG fighters. In 1957 he set a transatlantic speed record during the 30th anniversary commemoration flight of Charles Lindbergh's solo flight.
During the Vietnam War, General Risner was shot down twice over Communist North Vietnam, eventually captured and confined for seven and one-half years as a prisoner of war. General Risner's book, The Passing of the Night, describes his Air Force experiences, concentrating on the time spent as a POW.
In 1979, General Risner became the first living person to be honored with the designation of a major military trophy in his own name. One of three bronze statues of him stands in the Air Garden at the United States Air Force Academy. He was also the first living recipient of the Air Force's highest award, the Air Force Cross, which he received twice. In addition, he received over 65 awards and decorations. More information about his career can be found at wikipedia.org.
After retiring from the Air Force, General Risner organized and served as Executive Director of the Texans' War of Drug for seven years. He was appointed in 1985 by President Ronald Reagan as a United States Representative to the 40th Session of the United Nations General Assembly.
For years after release from imprisonment in Hanoi, General Risner spoke to thousands throughout the United States, as well as in other countries, about his experiences as a POW, his faith in God, and his love of country.
Robbie and his wife, Dorothy, spent 20 years near Austin, Texas, raising quarter horses on their ranch before moving to San Antonio and finally, Bridgewater, Virginia. He loved golf, riding horses, reading westerns, visiting with his many friends and family across the country, being involved in church, and continuing to be a motivational speaker.
He is survived by the love of his life, Dorothy Risner. Also remaining are his six children and their spouses, Timothy Risner, Daniel and Page Risner, Dana and Gregory Duyka, Deborah and Michael Darrell, David and Pamela Risner, DeAnna and Timothy Parker, and 14 grandchildren. He leaves one sister and her spouse, Peggy and Normal Goldstein, and one sister-in-law, Jean Risner.
A graveside service will be held at Arlington Cemetery at 11:00 AM on Thursday, January 23, 2014.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Wounded Warrior Project at www.woundedwarriorproject.org.
Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.johnsonfs.com.


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Ha-Ketavim Ha-Ivriyim Shel Baal Tikune Zohar ve-Raya Mehemna
|Moshe Idel, Michal Oron, Shemuel Reem
|Publish Date:
|January 1, 2003
Add to wish list | Link to this book | Add your own review | Add to bookbag | Sell this book
About This Book:
Title: Ha-Ketavim Ha-Ivriyim Shel Baal Tikune Zohar ve-Raya Mehemna
Click on this books subject categories to see related titles:
Body, Mind & Spirit > General > Cabala
Religion > Mysticism > Cabala
Religion > Judaism / Kabbalah & Mysticism > Cabala
Book Details Summary: The title of this book is Ha-Ketavim Ha-Ivriyim Shel Baal Tikune Zohar ve-Raya Mehemna and it was written by Moshe Idel, Michal Oron, Shemuel Reem. This particular edition is in a Book format. This books publish date is January 1, 2003. It was published by ha-Aòkademyah ha-le®umit ha-Yiâsre®elit la-mada°im and has a total of 246 pages in the book. The 10 digit ISBN is 9652081612 and the 13 digit ISBN is 9789652081612; it is a part of the Kitve Ha-Aòkademyah Ha-Le®umit Ha-Yiâsre®elit Le-Mada°im, Ha-ÒHaòtivah Le-Mada°e-Ha-Ruaòh series. To buy this book at the lowest price, Click Here.


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Kickoff Meeting March 23, 2014 AGENDA HERE
We will be posting news and information here that will be helpful to those involved in changing election law here in Oregon! Let's keep up the fight for our sacred right to fair and honest elections!
Catherine Engelbrecht from True The Vote visited Oregon to speak at the 2013 Gathering of the Eagles in Turner Oregon. Watch her inspiring talk!


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Talking Points: Edvard Munch's "The Scream" Sells at Sotheby's for $119.9M
So, what is widely considered to be the best of four versions of Edvard Munch's "The Scream" sold at auction last night in New York at Sotheby's for $119,922,500, making it the most expensive piece of art work ever sold at auction. When it comes up in conversation tonight, this weekend, talk smart:
1. Love it or hate it or don't particularly care, "The Scream" is among the most recognizable images ever put to canvas. Still, that doesn't fully explain why the hammer price was so high. It is partly based on the fact that of the four versions of the work that exist, it is the only one privately held. The other three — two oils and a pastel — are held in permanent collections at the National Gallery Oslo (oil) and at the Munch Museum (oil, pastel), also in Oslo.
2. Plus, this version, dated to 1895, is considered the best of the four. It is the only one that is in a hand-painted frame with an inscription from Munch, describing his inspiration for the piece. The inscription reads, "I felt the great Scream in nature."
3. Via Time: Mark Winter, director of Munch Experts, told the Guardian, "It is the crown jewel of the four but you really need a national budget to buy it. And not the budget of a small country, either." Tobias Meyer, the Sotheby's auctioneer, told Reuters the bidder got a good deal. "It's worth every penny that the collector paid."
4. In absolute dollars, "The Scream" unseats former record holder, Here is a handy guide to the top ten most expensive works of art sold at auction, updated with "The Scream.".
5. But, actually, in dollars adjusted for CPI inflation, "The Scream" doesn't come close to van Gogh's "Portrait of Dr. Gachet." In adjusted today-dollars it sold for $146.5M in 1990 (it actually sold for $82.5M).
6. There were seven bidders on "The Scream" and the auction lasted 12 minutes. The winning bidder bid anonymously via telephone.
7. Technically, the hammer price was $107M (watch the video). $120M includes a buyer's premium. Typically, the auction house takes 25% of the first $50,000; 20% of the first $1M; and 12% of the rest. For a sale of this size, the seller likely negotiated with the auction house to get some of this premium. But, do the math: the buyer's premium for this sale was 12%, and you can safely assume Sotheby's pocketed at least $10M.
8. The seller was Petter Olsen, whose father was a friend of Munch's.
9. Somewhere between fascinating and inconceivable (except for jaded art world insiders in the crowd) is the fact that the anonymous buyer of "The Scream" does not get reproduction rights alongside the painting. Like many artists, Munch's core intellectual property — the images, not the paintings depicting the images — is policed by the Artists Rights Society (VAGA is a competitor). It's simple copyright law, though at a particular price point one looks for the rules to bend. Nope. A museum wishing to reproduce images for use in, say, a book celebrating an exhibit celebrating the life of Picasso has to negotiate the rights to reproduce the images with ARS.
10. The most expensive piece of art ever traded, that we know of, was Paul Cezanne's "The Card Players," which went in a private sale to the Royal Family of Qatar for an estimated $250M.
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Made With Paper
Made With Paper
Lazy bum being a lazy bum. #bulldog #lazy #vscocam
The fff Ligature by mmmerch
Pokémon Created Using Colorful Leaves and Other Natural Materials
Keep dabbling. If you dabble hard enough you'll become an expert. — Colin Northway
Full CSS NES - CodePen -
If I could drop a ROM on this thing and play it, it would be perfect.
Game of Thrones + Pokemon. I approve.
Throne Battle!
Tees available today, 5/15 over here.
Created by Italiux and Drew Wise
The Era of Symbol Fonts -
I've become a big proponent of symbol fonts in regards to icon usage and this article gives a nice overview of their advantages
Welcome to the third epoch in web performance optimization: symbol fonts. Everything from bullets and arrows to feed and social media icons can now be bundled into a single, tiny font file that can be cached and rendered at various sizes without needing multiple images or colors. This has the same caching and file size benefits as a CSS sprite, plus additional benefits weâre only now realizing with high-resolution displays. Discover the advantages and explore the challenges youâll encounter when using a symbol font.
Get your parallax on with this great Pitchfork article on Daft Punk
current status…
(via 1jps)
Great article by @karenmcgrane on the role the CMS plays in the expectations of content presentation.


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Modern camp meetings build on rich heritage of faith, family
When Betty Kincaid's first husband asked her to marry him, she had one question:
Would he go to the Salem Camp Meeting in Covington, Ga., with her every year?
When he said yes, she said yes.
"I would have married him anyway," said the 85-year-...


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Academic Support
One aim of a liberal arts education is to challenge you intellectually. So we expect that at some time during your time here, you may need some academic support, whether you are trying a new discipline, stretching for an upper-level class, or having trouble managing the demands of a heavy course-load.
There's a great wealth of academic resources here at Princeton—your task as a student is to reach out when you feel like you could use some help figuring out which resources might benefit you. Remember that your professors and preceptors are the best place to start if you're having trouble in a class: they know the material better than anyone else, and can help you get perspective on the course. Office hours are there to be used!
Your peer adviser, RCA, and faculty adviser are well-versed in campus resources; also feel free to contact your dean or director of studies for help navigating the options.
ASAP - Academic Success at Princeton
The ASAP – Academic Success at Princeton – website provides the most up-to-date and comprehensive list of course-specific and general academic support. This is the site for information about review sessions, study groups, study hall, tutoring, workshops, learning consultations, etc. Bookmark this site: it's indispensible!
The Writing Center & Senior Thesis Boot Camps
The Writing Center is one of the university's best-used academic resources. Writing Center fellows can consult with you on writing from any course, from initial planning of an essay through the final stages of a paper. You may make appointments online, or drop in for help during term-time.
McGraw Center for Teaching and Learning
The McGraw Center for Teaching and Learning helps students develop more sophisticated modes of inquiry, and become aware of their approaches to learning. It offers a series of hands-on, practical workshops in which students learn and apply strategies designed for the demanding Princeton context. Individual consultations are also available to help you approach the specific demands of your courses. In addition to focusing on specific courses, consultants offer strategies for efficient reading, advanced problem-solving, note-taking (and use), exam preparation, and time management.
Health Professions Advising (HPA)
If you are considering careers in the health professions, be sure to make contact with Health Professions Advising. They can help you get perspective on the process, as well as work with you to map out your pre-health requirements in the way that's best for you.


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I'm sure that I sound like an old man here, but backslashes are the only thing that should be used to escape characters. Under no circumstances should single quotes be used to escape single quotes… that's crazy talk.
I'm sure that I sound like an old man here, but backslashes are the only thing that should be used to escape characters. Under no circumstances should single quotes be used to escape single quotes… that's crazy talk.
I've never been a huge fan of blogs that ask more questions than they answer, which means that I'm not a fan of most startup/tech blogs. So many articles seem to be regurgitating a product release announcement followed by a couple of questions.
Having launched a number of projects, I read this type of thing about my projects all the time. The latest article about Fancy Hands (not Fancy Pants) asks "So… what do you think? Where does Fancy Hands get the employees, and who are they?"
I suppose he's more interested in engaging his readers by soliciting comments than informing them by giving them answers. Otherwise, I can't imagine a reason why he'd decide not shoot me an email and ask that exact question. He could certainly find it, my name is plastered all over the site and on every article about it. Finding my email address is probably one of the easiest things that someone can do on the internet.
But, my point here is simple: if you have any questions about my projects, just get in touch. Even if you're not writing an article, or if you're writing a scathing review and only want me to make some bone-headed quotes. I'm always happy to answer these types any questions. Also, most other small developers/startups would be happy to answer these types of questions, just ask.
As for hiring, where do I get the people? Well, the job application process at Fancy Hands is a bit of a test. Every step along the way is designed to weed out people who wouldn't measure up. There is a huge series of questions they must answer, they must do sample tasks (not for actual clients), and they must display a couple of signs of technical and interpersonal saviness. But the simplest, easiest way for me to weed people out is making the application process non-obvious. Sure, I could get a lot more applications if I had a big "make money" link on the homepage, but I don't want more applications, I want better applications.
Redwood is my newest project: a simple implementation of a tree data structure in pure Ruby. It provides a few things:
- The
redwoodcommand-line tool: a Ruby hack/rewrite of the Unix
- A Module providing tree-like methods for your objects.
Redwood::Nodeclass as a basic implementation of tree creation.
Redwood::FileNodeclass for representing directories in a tree-like way.
gem install redwoodto get started.
Learn about, enjoy, and fork the redwood project over at GitHub. For help with the
redwoodCLI, read the redwood(1) manpage.
My favorite thing about Redwood is that you get the awesome tree view for all of the tree objects that mix-in
Redwood |-- bin | `-- redwood |-- Gemfile |-- lib | |-- redwood | | |-- filenode.rb | | `-- node.rb | `-- redwood.rb |-- LICENSE |-- pkg | `-- redwood-0.0.1.gem |-- Rakefile |-- README.md |-- redwood.gemspec `-- test |-- helper.rb `-- test_redwood.rb
Redwood was created mostly to facilitate this kind of thing, and as a bit of a brain-teaser. The
redwoodCLI is, honestly, totally inferior to the original
tree(written in C). I was getting frustrated working on Prism, and I created Redwood to get my mind wrapped around the concept of tree structures. While there are several implementations of tree data-structures in Ruby, I wasn't really impressed with any of their APIs. And none of them created the tree-view that you get with the
Redwood began life as a thought-experiment and I hope you are able to use it whenever you need something resembling a tree.
He's on fire!


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External Resources and Privacy
Something that used to be a perfectly normal part of the Web and HTML specifications has been turned into quite a privacy problem: External resources.
These are every element of HTML that contains a "src" (source) attribute - images, external scripts, frames and inline frames, and even stylesheets. Any time a web page is called, the browser first opens a connection to the web server and loads the requested document; then - without further user input - it begins to request all the external resources this document includes. Of course, no distinctions are made between different servers - I can include the Google logo here without a problem:
For good reason, too: Imagine you would receive a pop-up warning every time a web page tries to load a resource not on its own server.
But here's the privacy issue. If an image is included in a page, this causes a separate requests to the server - which is logged. Using dynamic images (eg. with PHP), the server can even send you cookies in response to your image request. The image itself need not even be visible: A 1x1 white pixel in the bottom right corner of every page can allow the image host to log all visits, set and read cookies, and see the path the visitor took. Here's an example in between the brackets:
Apart from further HTML or JavaScript exploits, this script can do pretty much anything it could have done if you'd clicked this (non-existant) link. And you weren't even warned.
Now, Firefox offers a few settings that eliminate part of this problem. Firstly, there is the option named "Automatically load images". Wenn switched off, the browser won't load any images included on the site. It even has an built-in "white-list" that allows exceptions for certain sites. But that's as far as it goes: A website that is white-listed will have all of its images loaded. Also, this doesn't stop iframes, scripts or stylesheets, which can just as easily be used for this purpose.
The second feature is a bit more powerful. Adblock is an extension everybody should install. It allows black-listing all resources whose addresses match a particular URL.
In my opinion, however, there is still a gap there. You can either allow certain resources to be loaded everywhere or nowhere. And without additional settings, you have to either white-list every single site you visit, or live with the risk of downloading content before you even know to block it.
Most of the privacy risks come from a third-party having resources on your web page - after all, the original web server already sees your first request; it doesn't need to use images to trick you into sending further requests.
The solution I propose is therefore to block websites from loading resources not on their own server.
Like the other features, this would have a white-list and a black-list. Some websites could be allowed to load any resources, some resources could be allowed from anywhere, and other websites would be permitted to load only content from its own url and, say, "google.com".
Further fine-tuning to block images, scripts, css or frames would be nice too.
Finally, this extension would be a great addition for Thunderbird as well. Mail tracers like "readnotify" rely on invisible resources included in "spiked" mails, which call home whenever the mail is read in HTML format. Simply disallowing such resources from being loaded would save a good deal of grief while still maintaining convenience.
- 4048 reads


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Junior synopsis
A research scientist becomes the world's first pregnant man in order to test a drug he and a colleague have designed for expectant women. To carry out the trial, he has an embryo implant, believing that he will only carry the baby for three months - hardly expecting to face the prospect of giving birth.
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Ka'anapali Zipline Adventure on Maui
Leave the beaches of Maui behind and soar over some of the island's most pristine landscapes on this thrilling Ka'anapali zipline adventure. Begin this 3.5-hour tour with an exciting off-road drive to the top of the zipline course with your professional guide. Then, fly through the air on eight ziplines and soar high above two valleys and lush flora and fauna.


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These potatoes are the BEST!!!!! Only added one can of peppers - they were still a little bit warm. Will make again & again! Great flavor!!!!
Chipotle-Corn Mashed Potatoes
Jendavis Posted: 02/16/09
tara31 Posted: 08/16/09
The grilled sweet corn makes the entire recipe - don't skip it! I only used 2 T. of butter and almond milk instead of cream, which lightened the recipe drastically. No need for all of the fat - the flavors are wonderful without it. I also used 5 canned chipotles instead of 2 and added 5 garlic cloves to the potatoes while they boiled. Only had 3 lbs. of potatoes, which made more than enough!
mjmayinsf Posted: 06/13/10
Tasty side dish. I was a little unsure about the crunchy corn in the potatoes, but my husband loved it. So...my 3 stars and his 5 stars = 4 stars. If you don't like the heat, cut down on the chipotles - they are VERY hot!
Daily Specials


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I am not a professional photographer- I take photos mainly as an experiment to a new artistic path. I have always found myself inspired by gorgeous photography and compositions, so trying to emulate what I love might help me see the world of art in a new way.
my art tumblr: http://zoroko.tumblr.com
my Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/zoroko/
I saw this statue reblogged on Tumblr, found out it was in Cleveland and just had to go. It was a gorgeous day out, unusually nice for january so it was the perfect opportunity to go. Took Amanda with me and met up with Kiera when there since she lived so close to the cemetery :D. This statue was so gorgeous, and the graveyard was HUGE. We looked everywhere for this specific statue and we couldn't find it, so we asked some nice gravediggers and they showed us the way there~ heheh
I wouldn't say this is a good or the best shot of the batch but I don't have the time to go through the photos yet. I got me an job interview!
Disgaea Photoshoot from Youmacon 2011!
Photography by me~
Another shot from my graveyard hopping adventures~ See more on my flickr
Full view for non blurry tumblr thumb! It was a gorgeous day outside! So what do I go do on such a nice day? Go to a graveyard and take photos! Totally normal way to spend an evening right?
I really liked how this shot is, despite it being a pretty generic shot of a gravestone. I like the radial curves of the clouds and branches and how it emulated the curvature of the stone~
Testing out my new flash that I just bought on my friends! It works pretty well without a diffuser but not all the time….I'm going to have to pick one up soon.
These came out really contrasty and dark, not sure if I like the lighting so dramatic but it's fun playing around with it.
Here is a teaser of the photoshoot with them~


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This is about right.
Tag Archives: QE3
Thomas Sowell: Why do we continue to listen to the Federal Reserve? They're almost always wrong.
Sowell's right. The Fed over its 100 year history has been consistently wrong and has often exacerbated crises not ameliorated them. Both the Great Depression and the Great Recession are examples of this.
But don't tell a Keynesian this.
A Farewell to Sanity: A Proposal to Expand the Fed's Balance Sheet from $3 Trillion to $33 Trillion
We pray that this is very dry satire. I honestly can't tell. Let's hope this is a joke.
Bernanke Didn't See The Great Recession Coming, Glad He's Managing Things Now
This video has clips of Bernanke from 2007 just before the collapse.
A Top Left Economist Says That the Fed is Helping the Rich, Hurting the Poor. He's Right.
The hedge funds and the big banks have done better than anyone under the Fed's printing regime.
Zombification of the US Economy
The article below describes the process perfectly.
The Biggest Bail-out of Them All
The Wall Street Journal got this right in an editorial today:
Goldman Sachs Takes Over the Bank of England
Technically one of their alums is taking over the Bank of England, Mark Carney, but it is pretty clear that the "vampire squid" now holds sway over nearly the entire European banking system.
Goldman Sachs Tells Washington What To Do – Again
You will recall how a former CEO of Goldman Sachs, Hank Paulson, ran the Crash of '08 as Bush's treasury secretary by getting an ethics waiver so that he could talk almost every day with Lloyd Blankfein, CEO of Goldman Sachs.


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Item: 913625 Model: 16200
Three Power Settings
This Honeywell HEPA tabletop air purifier features a four-stage cleaning process with three power settings that allow you to remove smoke, dust, and pollen from the air for a cleaner, healthier environment. A separate setting lets you turn the ionizer on or off for extra cleaning power when you need it.
Antimicrobial Filter
To prevent the growth of bacteria and mold, the filter on this Honeywell HEPA tabletop air purifier features a Protec antimicrobial treatment. As air flows through the purifier, particles are trapped and removed, allowing clean air to flow back into the room. An electronic indicator lets you know when you need to replace the filter, ensuring proper operation at all times.
Compact Design
The compact design of this Honeywell HEPA tabletop air purifier provides powerful air cleaning without taking up a lot of space. It works in both the horizontal and the vertical positions, giving you plenty of flexibility to place the purifier where it fits best.
|Air Purifier Type
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|Less than 100
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Honeywell®Honeywell 16200 HEPA Clean Tabletop Air Purifier, White
Reviewed by 1 customer
It's ok
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Comments about Honeywell® Honeywell 16200 HEPA Clean Tabletop Air Purifier, White:
I purchased this machine to keep the germs down in my office environment, because of all the "bugs" going around. I suppose it does it, it has the HEPA filter. But the reason I gave it a three star *** rating, it is runs very loud, so I don't keep it on a lot. Only when I know I am having a lot of traffic in my office. Also it says to keep it three feet from the wall, well that would be towards the middle of the room, in the way of walking, or my office chair, no table there, so not really a good place for it. I haven't been ill this season, so I guess it is doing the job I bought it for. All in all a good little machine.
Bottom Line Yes, I would recommend this to a friend
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Comments on Are There Alzheimer's Survivors? TypePad 2011-01-31T23:49:38Z Mona Johnson http://www.tangledneuron.info/the_tangled_neuron/ tag:typepad.com,2003:http://www.tangledneuron.info/the_tangled_neuron/2011/01/are-there-alzheimers-survivors/comments/atom.xml/ C commented on 'Are There Alzheimer's Survivors?' tag:typepad.com,2003:6a00d83451d58669e2015435eb7cc8970c 2011-10-05T21:31:17Z 2011-10-05T21:31:17Z C The statement itself is correct. To date, there are no survivors of this awful disease. You can have a great...
The statement itself is correct. To date, there are no survivors of this awful disease. You can have a great quality of life until your death, but AD is fatal. If we try to paint a rosy picture about how wonderful our live are until we become debilitated, we take away from the power and reality of the fact that AD kills everyone it infects. So, rather than argue with semantics, let's focus our energy into a cure, so that someday we CAN say "yes, there are survivors".
 Also, take a look at the newly published research at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston that found that some AD may be contagious via infection, and similar to Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
 oran commented on 'Are There Alzheimer's Survivors?' tag:typepad.com,2003:6a00d83451d58669e20147e2307c49970b 2011-02-01T12:58:11Z 2011-02-01T12:58:11Z oran http://www.reflexandmore.com This terrible statement reminds me of my father complaining that everyone he knows who went into an assisted living or...
This terrible statement reminds me of my father complaining that everyone he knows who went into an assisted living or nursing home eventually died there... so according to the Alzheimer's Association's logic, there should be a warning about assisted living and nursing homes - "that there are no survivors - none."

Mary Kay I applaud your willingness to share with us your own situation and the reasons why this statement should be removed. I totally agree with the importance of prevention and taking care of our planet . I wish that the funds collected for research were also used to educate people about the importance of their lifestyles in preventing not only cognitive loss, but most health challenges.

 Don Moyer commented on 'Are There Alzheimer's Survivors?' tag:typepad.com,2003:6a00d83451d58669e20147e2307b24970b 2011-02-01T12:57:02Z 2011-02-01T12:57:02Z Don Moyer http://donmoyer.com Since Alzheimer's is diagnosed by a pathologist's examination of a brain after death, Alzheimer's is always fatal -- by definition....
Since Alzheimer's is diagnosed by a pathologist's examination of a brain after death, Alzheimer's is always fatal -- by definition.

The scandal is that pitifully little is spent to help people live well with various symptoms "diagnosed" as probable Alzheimer's or probable dementia of some other sort.
 Mary Kay Baum commented on 'Are There Alzheimer's Survivors?' tag:typepad.com,2003:6a00d83451d58669e20148c835edb1970c 2011-02-01T01:57:55Z 2011-03-14T18:05:04Z Mary Kay Baum http://profile.typepad.com/marykaybaum I agree that a lot depends on the definition of survival and of Alzheimer's disease. I know of no person...
I agree that a lot depends on the definition of survival and of Alzheimer's disease. I know of no person who, after she was somehow definitively diagnosed as being in very late stage Alzheimer's disease, suddenly woke up with no hint of Alzheimer's and went on to live Alzheimer's-free for years to come. But highlighting that peculiar concept on the top of the Alzheimer's Generation Report is false hopelessness. It misses the real challenge to our baby boomers. Many scientists recognize that what we call Alzheimer's is a range of chronic syndromes to be managed, rather than a sudden acute condition to be cured. Let us work together to explore ways that this generation can live well with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) of probable Alzheimer's etiology. Let us learn how to reduce the risk that MCI, or even subclinical Alzheimer's, will decline into late stage dementia Alzheimer's. Many are reducing symptomology and maintaining good quality of life. To me, survivors are persons who have had medically documented cognitive decline, but who have stabilized or reduced their symptoms in time to prevent becoming demented. I hope that I am a survivor, but only time will tell. My survival does depend upon my medications, nutraceuticals, and my lifestyle, but even more so on the health of the planet. And for a clean environment I depend upon the work of many. That is my challenge to my fellow Boomers. We should not be the Alzheimer's Generation. It is a matter of life or death that we become the Wellness Generation, wellness for individuals, all communities and the earth. That is how we all survive.


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The Houston Texans have two very talented running backs, that can be a good thing, and it can be a bad thing. If both players are on board and content with their roles this could be a dream situation. Arian Foster has proven to be one of the league's best running backs leading the league in rushing in 2010 but his back up Ben Tate could probably start on many NFL teams, and Tate wants to be the man.
"I would be lying to you if I told you that I embraced the complement role to someone else," Tate told Ross Jones of FOXSports.com. "That's not why I wanted to be in the NFL. That's not my dream to complement someone else. That's not what my attitude or why I work out is to complement someone else."
Last week Foster carried the ball 18 times for 57 yards, a pedestrian 3.2 yards per carry average. Foster was almost twice as effective running the ball 9 times for 55 yards.
Reportedly the Indianapolis Colts are exploring trades for a running back after losing Vick Ballard for the season. For now though Foster looks like the Texans guy and Tate is locked into that complimentary role and Foster should get the majority of the carries again.
Tags: Ben Tate Houston Texans


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Add extra shade to your pontoon boat with Taylor Made's Pontoon Gazebo. It is constructed of Hot Shot marine-grade polyester fabric to ensure superior strength. The fabric is supported by a shock-corded fiberglass pole framework. This framework can be easily removed during storage. The gazebo's large inner radius provides enough head room and also allows for comfortable seating. Install the permanently mounted hardware on the boat for setting up the gazebo in no time.
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Billionaire Leon Cooperman's Energy Stock Picks
Meena is a member of The Motley Fool Blog Network -- entries represent the personal opinion of the blogger and are not formally edited.
Omega Advisors was founded by Leon Cooperman- who had formerly headed Goldman Sachs Asset Management in 1991. It has since grown into a fund with $3.4 billion in assets under management, and Cooperman is himself a billionaire. The fund's recent 13F filing disclosed a number of its long equity positions, and many of Omega's largest holdings were from the energy sector- either because they pay good dividend yields, or because Cooperman and his team otherwise considered them good investments. Read on for our quick take on the fund's five favorite energy stocks or see the full list of stocks Omega owned.
Cooperman's top energy pick was Linn Energy (NASDAQ: LINE), a $7.9 billion market cap oil and gas exploration and production company. Linn is focused on the onshore U.S., and its sales have been up from their levels a year ago. The company pays a dividend yield above 7%, and even given its exposure to oil and gas prices it might be a good prospect for income investors. Wall Street analyst estimates have it trading at 22 times forward earnings estimates, so it doesn't seem to be as good a value as the oil majors, though if it can get its earnings to rise at a rate similar to what the top line has been doing recently it might be able to justify its valuation on a growth basis.
Another high-yield energy stock in Omega's portfolio was Atlas Pipeline Partners (NYSE: APL). The current dividend yield is close to 7% here as well, though Atlas tends to be more exposed to the broader market than Linn- its beta is 1.9- and its most recent quarterly report showed a decline in revenue compared to the third quarter of 2011. The valuation multiples are high here as well, but Atlas- which gathers, processes, and transports natural gas and natural gas liquids- has substantial upside if natural gas prices begin to rise on increasing demand.
Kinder Morgan (NYSE: KMI) was the most popular energy stock among hedge funds during the third quarter (see the full rankings), as 59 filers in our database of hedge funds and other notable investors that file 13Fs reported a position. Omega was among them, owning 4.7 million shares. It also has a good dividend yield, above 4%, and as another pipeline company it too benefits from more oil and gas production in the U.S. At a market capitalization of about $36 billion, it carries a forward P/E of 26. It has been growing recently, but that is at least partly due to recent acquisition activity.
Omega increased its stake in Transocean (NYSE: RIG) by 19% to a little over 3 million shares. Transocean is a leading offshore contract driller operating globally (with a focus on the Gulf of Mexico and the North Sea). Analyst expectations imply that the stock is cheap- the forward P/E multiple is 9 and the five-year PEG ratio is 0.6- and it's possible that the valuation is being driven down by Transocean's association with the Deepwater Horizon disaster. Billionaire Steve Cohen's SAC Capital Advisors owned 1.9 million shares of the stock at the end of September, though this was a 46% reduction from the beginning of July (find more stock picks from billionaire Steve Cohen). We think that the demand for offshore drilling will depend more strongly on oil prices than onshore activity, so investors should consider onshore-focused operators, oil majors, and services companies as well.
Atlas Energy (NYSE: ATLS) was another of Cooperman's energy picks; it is primarily a producer and processor of natural gas and natural gas liquids. Its revenue was down 12% last quarter compared to the same period in 2011, and earnings numbers have been low. With a very close relationship to movements in the broader market- the stock's beta is 2.9- and a business that hasn't been performing well recently, we think that there are better buys in the energy sector.
This article is written by Matt Doiron and edited by Meena Krishnamsetty. They don't own shares in any of the stocks mentioned in this article. The Motley Fool owns shares of Kinder Morgan and Transocean. Motley Fool newsletter services recommend Kinder Morgan. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Is this post wrong? Click here. Think you can do better? Join us and write your own!


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Aggressive underage drinking stings sounds like a good idea but what if those stings are creating problems that might not otherwise exist? What if it is threatening small businesses in the process?
Some local businesses that sell alcohol might feel they've been targeted by law enforcement with these monthly stings and they might have a point.
The I-Team has uncovered information that shows local alcohol regulators are on track to more than double their revenues from fees and fines this year.
In 2008, Phillip Blaxton opened Skimo's restaurant on Houston Levee Road in unincorporated Shelby County. From the beginning, he made it clear, under-age drinking would not be tolerated. "Early on, when we opened up, we had minors coming in here trying to use fake IDs and stuff, and we had employees who helped us and said they're minors, they don't need to be here. We ran 'em out. Word got out, you can't go to Skimo's and get alcohol if you're a minor because they're going to bust you, run you out or call the police."
But in November of last year, when a new employee failed to check the ID of a customer, who looked much older than 21, Skimo's reputation took a hit. The customer was part of a sting operation conducted by the Shelby County Sheriff's DUI Squad. The sting would ultimately cost Blaxton $2,200 in fines from the Shelby County Beer Board and the state ABC Board.
Despite Skimo's having only failed one sting in five years the sheriff's department kept the restaurant on its radar after November. "They didn't come back in December, but in January they came back and did a sting, we passed. In February they came back and did another sting and we passed. In March they came back, now this is every three weeks they're coming now and I'm starting to feel, okay, wait a minute, am I getting penalized because we made a mistake in 2012 or is this the way it's going to continue from this point forward?"
The March sting produced another citation when another new employee reportedly failed to check the ID of another older looking customer. Blaxton says it was an honest mistake that could cost him more than the $2,200 he paid for the November bust. "That's a payroll basically. And this is going to be another payroll, so basically as an owner, you just don't pay yourself."
The sudden attention got Blaxton wondering if he had been targeted by the sheriff's department but, Blaxton contacted the I-team, and we found something interesting on the rules for checking identification of people ordering drinks in local restaurants.
Under state law, restaurants that serve alcohol don't have to check for ID, if the person appears to be 35 or older. But get this, in Shelby County those state rules don't apply.
Carter Gray, Shelby County Attorney says, "They gotta follow our rules if they hold a permit from us and our rules say you gotta confirm they're not under 21. I guess you could say we're more stringent in that we don't have the 35, but our rules say confirm everybody."
Gray says in unincorporated Shelby County, even if the customer looks 70, the establishment must check their ID before serving them a beer. As for Blaxton's concern about whether the sheriff's department has singled his business out for monthly stings Gray says he has no knowledge of that.
But the I-team did uncover evidence the sheriff's department is having more success with its stings. Records we obtained show the beer board assessed fines totaling $11,900 for all of 2012. Over the first three months of this year the board has assessed businesses fines totaling $6,050.
At that rate, fines for 2013 will be more than $24,000 - more than double last year's fines.
To make sure he's not adding to those totals, Blaxton recently spent another $2,000 on these driver license scanning machines. It displays the customer's age, and tells the restaurant if the ID is valid and when it expires.
Blaxton says he's cautiously optimistic this will ensure Skimo's passes all future stings. "This weekend I had a 42 year old and a 25 year old. The 25 year old looked like he was 18. I carded him, I put it in the machine and I turned around and I looked and I walked back and I'm like, 'you sure this is your ID?' I mean I'm scared to death to be able to, and the rest of the staff, they're scared. They're afraid they're going to get in trouble or going to have to go through the process."
A process that now has this small businessman worried about an honest mistake costing him his business.
The Shelby County Sheriff's DUI Squad initially agreed to be interviewed for this story, but later declined. As for Blaxton he goes before the beer board on Thursday. He'll plead his case hoping board members will consider his reputation and the steps he's taken to make sure no kids are being served illegally at Skimo's.
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text: What are Target reduction strategies are designed to? Edit Edit source History Talk0 878,182questions onWikianswers This question is awaiting an answer... Please leave this field blank unless you are answering the question. Do not ask questions you already know the answer to. Thank you. Retrieved from "http://answers.wikia.com/wiki/What_are_Target_reduction_strategies_are_designed_to?oldid=3868973" Categories: Un-answered questions Add category Cancel Save


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Showing All "Joanna Newsom" Posts
Mar 21st 23 Comments
If something portends future classic status for an album, it may well be contemporary artists covering songs from the record shortly after its release. This was certainly the case with Joanna…   Read Story »
Jan 13th 4 Comments
UPDATE: Last night Bono reportedly told Showbiz 411 U2's new album is now coming in June. // Last night Hollywood gathered for the 71st annual Golden Globes, that annual mishmash of movie and…   Read Story »
Dec 23rd, 2013 204 Comments
We're almost (almost!) done reflecting on the year that was, so it's time to start taking a closer look at the year that will be. For the past several years, we've ranked our most anticipated albums.…   Read Story »
Sep 25th, 2013 3 Comments
Looking back, it's actually difficult to capture just how weird and momentous the freak folk movement of the first half of the 2000s felt. It wasn't cobbled together so much as it was a united front…   Read Story »
Sep 22nd, 2013 10 Comments
After five years of dating, Andy Samberg and Joanna Newsom are now married. The couple's wedding took place yesterday at a luxury retreat in Big Sur, the Post Ranch Inn, according to US Weekly. "He…   Read Story »
Aug 8th, 2013 2 Comments
Joanna Newsom has been cast in Paul Thomas Anderson's upcoming film Inherent Vice, screen adaptation of reclusive novelist Thomas Pynchon's foray into pulp fiction of the same name. The story is…   Read Story »
Jul 22nd, 2013 20 Comments
This past weekend, Chicago's Union Park played host to Pitchfork Music Festival. The two-and-a-half-day event was packed tight with performances from the indiesphere's current marquee artists and its…   Read Story »
Jul 20th, 2013 4 Comments
Folks attending Pitchfork Festival this weekend (including Claire and Liz on our end) got a nice surprise from Joanna Newsom's set. As you can see from the fan videos below, Newsom played some new…   Read Story »
Mar 15th, 2013 7 Comments
Usually, especially during the weeks where I liked a K-pop video or two, I do my best to explain what, exactly, I enjoy about the videos I list here. This week, though, Scott and I are on our way out…   Read Story »
Mar 14th, 2013 7 Comments
The newly engaged Joanna Newsom hasn't given us a whole ton of new music since the Have One On Me motherlode a couple of years ago, but she recently hit the studio to record a cover of Sandy Denny's…   Read Story »


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Decatur - Local Information, Resources & Photos
Decatur - Searchable Map, Aerial Photos & Driving Directions
Decatur is an incorporated place (Class Code P1) located in Newton County at latitude 32.439 and longitude -89.1084. (Decatur Panoramio Photos). The elevation is 430 feet. Decatur appears on the Decatur U.S. Geological Survey Map. Newton County is in the Central time zone (GMT -6). Observes DST? Yes. Current Time. | Decatur, MS ZIP Code Maps | Decatur local area photos
Photos of the Decatur Local Area
Decatur had a population of 1,932; a land area of 5.5 sq. miles; a water area of 0.06 sq. miles; and a population density of 351.46 people per sq. mile according to the US Census Bureaue estimate of July 1, 2009. Latest Census Estimates for all incorporated places in Mississippi.
Newton County: Cities & Towns | ZIP Codes | Schools | Features (airports, churches, hospitals, etc.)
Decatur Local Resources
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Ben Bernanke
Ben Bernanke is the head of the Federal Reserve; 2006 - ????.
Expanded Definition
Bernanke was appointed by President George W. Bush to succeed Alan Greenspan on 2/1/06. He is an economist who received his PhD from MIT. He has had the misfortune of stepping into his job at the beginning of one of the greatest crises the Federal Reserve has ever faced. A scholar of the Fed's actions in the great depression, Bernake considers deflation to be public enemy number one in a financial crisis. His every move (many of which have thus far been very controversial) will likely be studied by economists for decades.
Some on Wall Street refer to him by the unflattering nickname "Helicopter Ben" due to his supposed penchant for rescuing troubled banks.
Related Fool Articles
- Who's More to Blame: Ben Bernanke or Credit Derivatives?
- Just Stop, Ben Bernanke
- Ben Bernanke Is Destroying Our Financial System
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- 3 Reasons Mortgage Rate Trends Aren't Your Friend Right Now