text:
Perfect for giving, or as a simply decadent dessert course, this box contains four flavors of La Maison du Chocolat's exquisite European-style truffles. Hand made at the chocolatier's Paris workshop, these superlative sweets are made from house-blended chocolates sourced from the world's finest crus.
Dark Chocolate: intense, bittersweet chocolate ganache covered with a thin layer of dark chocolate.
Raspberry: full-bodied dark chocolate ganache, infused with fresh raspberry pulp.
Orange: dark chocolate with orange essence and a dash of orange zest.
Caramel: milk chocolate ganache, heightened with Bourbon vanilla and pinch of salt.


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I just edited the link in Jon Skeet Facts and I got an Organizer badge for it. I didn't retag anything, though. Bug?
What is meta?
- Any Stack Exchange user can ask a question
- The community provides support, votes on ideas, and reports bugs
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This was a bug around awarding the badge and deletion, it will be fixed in an upcoming overhaul of the badge code next week.
I think this is related to the fact that when you reach 2000 rep (or 100 for CW on meta), there is no re-tag per se, only edit, which may count as a re-tag from the perspective of the code.
ie: I don't think the code checks what you edited (body, title, or tags) when you edit a post
I just had the same thing happen. I edited some grammar in this SO question, which was re-tagged by the edit previous to mine (which occurred some 14 months earlier). I did not change any tags, but was awarded the "Organizer" badge. I also had over 2k rep at the time.
It seems like it only checked that I edited the question and that the question was re-tagged. I wonder if someone can test to see if you can earn other, potentially similar badges like "Cleanup" in this manner.

subset: commoncrawl


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First, the problem: I'm using a Cowon MP3 player as my main music player with basic earplugs.
It offers A2DP & I'd like to have my netbook (running UNE 10.04) act as receiver.
Some resources on the web about a2dp, but most are out of date:
First, the problem: I'm using a Cowon MP3 player as my main music player with basic earplugs.
It offers A2DP & I'd like to have my netbook (running UNE 10.04) act as receiver.
Some resources on the web about a2dp, but most are out of date:
To use your Ubuntu machine as an a2dp Bluetooth device, you must first configure it to register as an "a2dp sink" endpoint.
The bluez package in Ubuntu (10.04 and above) includes a utility called sdptool that can be used to check whether a Bluetooth device is configured as an a2dp sink or not. Here is the output from sdptool run against my Bluetooth headset (the address is taking from the "Bluetooth settings" dialog in the gnome-control-center):
and here is the output when run against my local Ubuntu machine:
This shows that the Ubuntu machine is not advertising itself as an a2dp sink. It is advertising itself as an a2dp source however:
This enables the Ubuntu machine to pair correctly with the headset as an audio source, but it does not enable using the Ubuntu machine as an output (sink) for Bluetooth audio.
If you edit
This is both counterintuitively named--since what we're adding here is Bluetooth sink support, not source support--and in contradiction with the comment in this file that claims all implemented services are enabled by default. :(
After making this change, you will need to restart bluetoothd by running
If you have previously paired your Android device and Ubuntu computer while trying to get this work, you will need to delete the pairing on both sides and re-pair them in order to get Android to recognize Ubuntu as an available audio device.
Once you've done this, the Android device should show up as an input device under PulseAudio. If PulseAudio does not detect the new Bluetooth audio source, you may need to install and load the Bluetooth module, from the command line:
Then you need to tell PulseAudio to route this audio input to your output/sink (such as your speakers, or a Bluetooth headset) using a loopback connection (a straight line from a source to a sink).
Later versions of PulseAudio may have module-bluetooth-policy included and it may already have set up a loopback device for you, but this does not seem to be the most common case.
A semi-automatic way to set up the loopback connection - if you also have the pavucontrol GUI program installed - is to simply load the loopback module and configure it using pavucontrol, since PulseAudio will remember the settings. Loading the module is done from the command using pactl:
Don't fear if you don't hear anything yet, or if you get strange feedback effects, we need to tell the newly created device which source to get input from and which sink to send the output to first.
Open pavucontrol and open its Configuration tab. Make sure your Bluetooth device shows up here (after pairing with it using blueman-manager or another Bluetooth tool) and the profile is set to A2DP. Switch to the Input devices tab and make sure your device shows up here as well and is not muted. Now switch to the Recording tab and make the newly created loopback connection use your device as a source with the select box next to the mute button. Switch to the Playback tab to select the sink the loopback connection should use in the same way. If the loopback device does not show in the tabs, make sure all streams are displayed using the selectbox at the bottom of each tab.
You should now hear the audio from your device, if it's playing, in your speakers, or whichever output sink you selected. When your device is disconnected the loopback device will fallback to an available sink and source, which may not be desirable, so make sure you mute the loopback device until you need it. The loopback connection will restore the same sink/source the next time the same Bluetooth device is connected thanks to the module-*-restore modules.
If that doesn't work, or you don't have pavucontrol installed, you may instead set up the loopback using the following method:
Here's what an example one would look like (Remember to replace the
If loading the fallback module fails, try removing the
Again, replace
I use blueman, installed from Ubuntu software center. Right-clicking on the blueman icon*-> "local services" -> audio-> Check "advanced audio reception" is tipped. Btw I use it to listen in my Ubuntu 11.10 laptop what I play on my android phone.
*The blueman icon is showed in bottom-right corner in gnome shell + ubuntu 11.10, that is my case. I hope this is useful in some way for you.
It's really simple now in Ubuntu 12.04
Connect your bluetooth device
Search for your bluetooth device and take note of it's source number:
Make a loopback for the bluetooth device:
Where $SOURCE_NUMBER is the number you previously took note of.
For example, I entered the following to get audio playback to work:
That's it! I found the solution in the top answer to be a bit complicated, so I simplified it this way (much less typing and copy/pasting). Though my solution will probably break if you remove any audio devices listed before the bluetooth device by
Also, don't forget to remove the loopback module before disconnecting the bluetooth device:
Take note of the module number of the loopback device you created:
Remove the loopback device:
The previous answers were written prior to 12.04's release, so I'm sure there were some changes. For example, I didn't have to manually enable using bluetooth devices as an audio source (it was enabled by default). However, I do sometimes have to toggle the "Media Audio" profile in my bluetooth settings on my phone (Samsung Captivate running CyanogenMod 9.1.0).
There's probably a way to leverage dbus-monitor by using a shell script to watch for bluetooth A2DP device connections and automatically load a loopback module for it, but that's a bit over my head.
Hopefully we won't need to do this manually any more in Ubuntu 12.10.
For 13.04, pair your source device with the ubuntu laptop and it just works! Very cool to find that it was that easy now.
Even easier solution than the answer.
You can simply go
Then reboot. After reboot, connect to your Bluetooth and simply play the music on your phone. Everything will be transmitted to your computer and play out on the computer's speakers.
And yes! you're welcome.


text:
Titan Spares Kit - Whale Water Systems
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text:
ANDERSON, S.C. – The Anderson University softball team, winners of a league-best nine consecutive games, closes its home schedule by welcoming South Atlantic Conference-newcomer Queens to Smethers Field for Senior Day on Saturday. First-pitch versus the Royals is scheduled for 2 p.m.
Between games of the doubleheader, the Trojans will recognize five seniors - Abby Child, Carly Hudson, Laura Jansky, Charlotte Sieber and Danielle Swygert – a senior class that has combined for nearly 800 games played over the past four seasons and earning 133 victories, forming the winningest class in school history.
Last year, this senior class wrapped up the 2013 campaign with a stellar 40-15 record and made its' first-ever appearance in the NCAA Tournament after earning a berth in the Southeast Super Regional. The Trojans finished the year ranked No. 12 nationally in the final National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) poll after catching fire at the Hickory (N.C.) Regional and sweeping the competition en route to a matchup with third-ranked Armstrong Atlantic State University in the Savannah Super Regional.
Child has started every game of her career (191) and owns the school record for career home runs (43), RBI (183), on-base percentage (.479) and walks (126) and is currently second in school history with a .648 slugging percentage. Swygert holds the school record with 55 doubles and a career .667 slugging percentage and is second in career hits with 230, just one behind junior Jessica Neidigh. The hard-hitting first baseman is second in the AU record books with 180 career RBI. Jansky is tied for third all-time in AU's record books with 68 career walks, is fourth with 119 RBI and is sixth with 21 home runs. Sieber ranks 14th all-time with her .358 career on-base percentage and 17th (.405) in slugging percentage. Hudson has seen action in 34 games since transferring from USC Aiken prior to last season.
The Trojans
On the strength of its nine-game win streak, Anderson (33-9, 11-5 SAC) continues to move up the league standings and is currently tied for second, alongside Lenoir-Rhyne, as the two squads are one game behind league-leading Wingate.
The Trojans have won 12 of their last 14 games and enter their final home doubleheader of the season with a 17-5 home mark. AU continues to lead the South Atlantic Conference in runs scored, home runs, RBI, total bases, on-base percentage and slugging percentage, while ranking second in total hits, walks, and batting average.
Four of the Trojan hitters rank among the league's top 11 hitters, with sophomore Molly Child reaching safely in 25 of the last 28 games and leading the conference with a .748 slugging percentage and is tied with 49 runs scored. The center fielder also tops the SAC with 12 home runs and ranks second in the conference with her 44 runs scored and third with a .424 batting average. Swygert, who has reached base safely in 13 of the last 14 contests, has boosted her batting average by 16 percentage points in the last three weeks, and is seventh in the league with her .392 batting average and .469 on-base percentage. She is second with 12 doubles and fifth with 40 RBI.
Junior Jessica Neidigh ranks eighth in the league and is second on the team with a .389 batting average. The Trojans' leadoff batter is tied with Molly Child with a league-leading 49 runs scored and paces the league with 20 stolen bases on the season. Abby Child is hitting .380 on the season, which ranks 11th in the conference and trails sister, Molly, for the league lead in home runs by one. Abby leads the league with 28 walks and ranks second in RBI (48), third in runs scored (45) and slugging percentage (.713), fifth in total bases (92) and on-base percentage (.491).
Junior outfielder Rebecca Martin continues to boast a career-best .355 batting average and has blasted a career-high seven home runs on the season, which ties her for ninth in the SAC. The Anderson, S.C. native ranks fifth on the team with a .634 slugging percentage. Freshman outfielder Courtney Czentnar is hitting .339 on the season and is third on the squad and eighth in the SAC with her .678 slugging percentage. The right fielder is riding a three-game hitting streak and has driven in six runs in the last two contests. Czentnar ripped a pair of home runs at Carson-Newman and earlier belted three homers in a doubleheader against Newberry.
In the circle, junior Katelynn Howser (13-4) has reeled off five consecutive wins and has not lost since suffering a 1-0 setback at Wingate on March 30. She has tossed six complete games and ranks sixth in the league with her 1.79 ERA. Freshman hurler Lauren Rudesheim (14-4) has won five consecutive decisions and is tied for sixth in the conference with her 14 victories. Freshman Augie Pena (6-1) has earned wins in her last four decisions and has struck out 66 batters. The right-hander has walked just 16 in 48 1/3 innings of work. Her 9.36 strikeouts per contest rank second in the league.
The Royals
Queens (19-19, 5-9 SAC) was a preseason pick to finish ninth in the coaches' preseason poll in the Royals' inaugural season in the SAC, after finishing its final season in the Conference Carolinas with an overall 23-21 record and a 13-7 mark in conference play.
Sophomore Taylor Rosenbalm leads the Royals' offense, ranking fourth in the SAC with a .420 batting average and is ninth in the SAC with her .464 on-base percentage.
The Royals, who are currently 10th in the league standings, are riding a four-game win streak after snapping a three-game skid with a 7-0 and 5-4 sweep of Conference Carolinas'-foe Belmont Abbey on Tuesday and defeating Newberry twice on Thursday.
The Series vs. Queens
The Trojans and Royals have met 26 times on the diamond, with Queens holding a 16-10 advantage in the overall series. Saturday's matchups mark the first meetings with both teams as members of the South Atlantic Conference, as all previous meetings were as members of the CVAC or Conference Carolinas.
The overall series dates back to the 1999 campaign, with Queens reeling off seven straight wins during the mid-2000s. The Trojans won three of the last four meetings – in 2009-10 – before the overall series took a three-year hiatus after Anderson joined the SAC for the 2011 campaign.


text:
I have two strictly increasing integer sequences $a_n$ and $b_n$ such that $\lim_{k\to\infty} \frac{\sum_{n=0}^k a_n}{\sum_{n=0}^k b_n}$ exists.
What can I say about $\lim_{n\to\infty} \frac{a_n}{b_n}$?
Specifically I'd like for these two limits to be equal, but maybe this is asking for too much.
How about the converse: if the limit of ratios exists, then what about the limit of the partial sums?


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BELTON (October 15, 2012)-The man whose body a passerby found Friday morning on a roadside near the Stillhouse Hollow Reservoir dam has been identified as Llael Garcia-Rodriguez, 31, of San Antonio, the Bell County Sheriff's Office said Monday.
Fingerprints were used to identify Garcia-Rodriguez, who had been reported missing in San Antonio and San Antonio police believed he was in the Killeen area, the sheriff's office said.
An autopsy showed he died of stab wounds in the chest, the sheriff's office said. The report also stated that Rodriguez's face had been beaten severely.
His murder is leaving investigators with unanswered questions.
"To me there's not a normal murder," James Lewing of the Bell County Sheriff's Office said.
"Every murder has its own calling card. We just want to figure out why this person was dumped alongside the road like a piece of trash."
Garcia-Rodriguez was a former soldier and Bell County authorities said they don't know of any criminal record.
When asked if his death was gang related, they refused to speculate.
"We're not ruling anything out, it might be gang related it might not be," Lewing said.
Rodriguez's car is still missing.
The 1996 white Chrysler Sebring convertible with black wheels has Texas license number DT6W479.
Investigators are asking anyone with information about the vehicle to call (254) 933-5435.


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7 Movies Based on a True Story (That Are Complete Bullshit)
#3. Victory (AKA Escape to Victory)
The Hollywood Version:
During World War II, a group of Allied prisoners that included the unlikely trio of Pele, Michael Caine and Sly Stallone (who was between Rocky II and First Blood) spent their time in a Nazi prison camp playing soccer. The Nazis, being the clever bastards they were, came up with a can't-miss propaganda extravaganza in which a team of their best and brightest would take on this Allied side, clearly having never heard of Pele.
The Allied team accepts, hoping to use this match as a means of escape. However, once they get their perfect opportunity to escape during halftime, they choose instead to return to the pitch and try to beat the Nazis thus winning respect, rather than their freedom. It should be noted that they were relying on Stallone as their keeper. After a miraculous save by--you guessed it--Stallone, there was much rejoicing, and the Allies escape during the ensuing chaos.
In reality ...
Well, for one thing, there was no Allied team. That means no random Brazilian like Pele, that means no cheeky Brit like Caine, and that certainly means no out of place palooka like Stallone manning the net. Instead, this story is inspired by a group of Ukrainians who were forced into playing the Germans while their country was occupied during WWII.
The Nazis lost to the upstart club miserably and repeatedly, with the Ukrainians destroying them in the final match by a decisive and wholly embarrassing 8-0 score. So that's pretty inspiring, right?
Well, shortly thereafter, the Gestapo found various reasons to arrest and then torture several members of the Ukrainian team. After all, the Gestapo were assholes like that. One player died during the torture process, while the rest were shipped off to a work camp. And, well, executed.
God, that's depressing. And that's precisely why Hollywood chose to Stallone the shit out of it.
#2. Good Morning, Vietnam
The Hollywood Version:
Vietnam, it would seem, was not a good time. What with all the crazy flashbacks, Forrest Gump getting shot in the ass while Willem Dafoe strikes a Jesus pose, and the ridiculous amount of protests that it inspired. How could a regular man or woman make it through without blowing their fucking brains out?
Adrian Cronauer, that's how. A radio disc jockey from Detroit, Cronauer basically told authority to stick a pickle up its ass while ranting and raving with the funniest damn shit you've ever heard, accompanied by a fantastic '60s rock and roll soundtrack, while also teaching impressionable Vietnamese citizens to curse angrily and play baseball along the way.
Cronauer, as portrayed in the movie, is a staunch anti-war liberal. Half of his rantings have to do with how ridiculous the establishment is, or why Army fashion is really awful. He told the Army to stick it repeatedly and with great emphasis, and for his troubles he was sent off to (hopefully) be killed by a commanding officer and then had his ass booted out of the Army.
In reality ...
Well, Army fashion sense notwithstanding, everything else we've mentioned is pretty much fabricated. We hate to break it to you, but it turns out that, shockingly, Adrian Cronauer's story was completely re-tooled in order to fit the manic (and pre-family friendly) comedy stylings of Robin Williams.
In reality, while Cronauer did indeed play some sweet tunes, he rarely resorted to flat out comedy bits, and in fact stated that pretty much everything Williams did in the film would have gotten his ass court-martialed. He was never booted from the military, either. No, he had a far more controversial exit: he went home when his tour was over.
As far as being a staunch anti-war liberal, all we can tell you is this: Cronauer, now a lawyer, is "lifelong card-carrying Republican" and was a vice-chairman for the 2004 Bush/Cheney re-election campaign.
#1. The Hurricane
The Hollywood Version:
The Hurricane is the story of Rubin "Hurricane" Carter, a boxer boasting great talent, a really sweet nickname, and a badass Bob Dylan song he inspired. The movie tells us the story of how Hurricane was a promising middleweight who was falsely accused and convicted of a triple homicide, derailing his boxing career but making him prime to be the subject of a great protest song.
Luckily, after 20 years in prison as an innocent man convicted by a bitterly racist system, three young white people from a magical land called "Canada" took up his cause and, after discovering a key piece of evidence, proved Hurricane's innocence and set him free.
In reality ...
First, there is a scene in the film where Carter beats the shit out of an inferior white boxer (Joey Giardello) only to lose when blatantly racist judges award the fight to the white man. In real life, Carter lost the fight so badly that the real Giardello sued the filmmakers over the scene and got a nice settlement out of it.
But far more disturbing is the whole murder thing. We're not saying Carter committed the crime, we'll just casually point out that by the age of 14, the Hurricane had already been arrested for assault and armed robbery. By 22, he had been imprisoned twice for "brutal street muggings." He was booted from the military after being court-martialed a whopping four times, being described as "unfit to serve." But, hey, nobody expects boxers to be model citizens. It doesn't mean he killed anyone, right?
Well, when it came to the murders, there was enough evidence to convict him twice (both times set aside due to procedural errors by the prosecution). Carter failed a lie detector test--miserably--and then was given a chance to re-take it after he'd been imprisoned for awhile. He refused. At his second trial, several witnesses who had provided Carter's alibi admitted they had been asked to lie for him.
But what about that evidence that proved his innocence? Well, there was in fact none. The judge was forced to throw out the conviction because the prosecution had failed to turn over some evidence and thus didn't give Carter a fair trial. The prosecution could have chosen to re-try the case from scratch to convict Carter a third time, but they decided it wasn't worth doing since 22 years had passed and all of the people involved were either dead or ridiculously old.
Of course the law is the law and the law said Carter could go free. But it's probably not quite accurate to use Carter's story as proof that the criminal justice system is run by the Klan. The whole thing has really made us question Bob Dylan's research skills.
For an article in which we call bullshit on more of your favorite flicks, check out 11 Movies Saved by Historical Inaccuracy or our look at 5 Things Hollywood Thinks Computers Can Do.


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Top Definition
A combination of strong and soft. Used mostly in basketball, to describe someone espicially dominating in brute force, but nimble on his feet at the same time.
Derived from the DMV
Derived from the DMV
They don't get anymore stroft than Blake Griffin!
sean1999가 작성 2011년 02월 18일 (금)
Trending Now


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7 Movie Badasses (Who Completely Fail To Deliver)
#3. Bishop -- Aliens
The buildup:
What? You don't think of Bishop the android as one of the badasses in the sci-fi universe? You forget how his character is introduced. The first thing we see him do is handle a combat knife in a way that makes it clear he could remove your heart before you felt the blade pierce your skin. He does a "trick" in which he stabs holes into a table around Bill Paxton's hand at the speed of light, the blade nothing but a blur as he punches notches in the table with robotic precision.
Only a robot could resist the urge to stab Bill Paxton.
Throughout the rest of the movie, while everyone freaks out about the horror show of the giant spiny aliens and their new death-hive, Bishop shows only contempt. He locks himself in a pipe to Shawshank his way to a radio tower so he can remote-pilot a rescue ship and bring everyone else's sniveling asses to safety. And he refuses to take a gun. We assume if he ran into any aliens he would just beat them to death with his two-ton robot penis. He even earns Ripley's respect despite the fact that she is an android racist.
But then ...
The only alien he comes into contact with rips him in half immediately, causing him to spray milk all over the room like a projectile-vomiting Santa Claus. Shouldn't the man with lightning-fast reflexes have seen the giant monster behind him?
He's like a science fair volcano filled with chowder.
Instead it is left to Ripley and the little girl to fight off the creature while Bishop just kind of sits there and watches. He doesn't even go for an ankle bite. We assume that if the Alien Queen had killed the rest of the survivors, Bishop would've just lain there in the hangar for the rest of time, whistling to himself or something.
And no, don't tell us Bishop is a pacifist due to his programming. Those safeguards are, in his own words, "It is impossible for me to harm or by omission of action, allow to be harmed, a human being."
Asimov was not trying to protect 20-foot murder-beasts.
It's humans he can't kill. If he had an aversion to taking out aliens, they wouldn't have brought him along on an alien-hunting trip. And the part about allowing humans to come to harm due to "omission of action"? How about failing to use your robotic super-reflexes to help them fight the monsters that are biting their faces off?
#2. Bill -- Kill Bill Vol. 1 & 2
The buildup:
Bill is the head of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad, a group that gets a C in self-naming, but a solid A+ in murdering. Each member's personal history alone is monumentally badass, and each one of these face-smashing lords of awesome is shown to fear and respect Bill. That's right -- he is so badass that he manages a group of other badasses like a fantasy baseball team. This bastard had to do something mind-blowing to prove he was fit to lead without question.
Wearing enough black there, guys?
And when Bill's star pupil, Uma Thurman, starts slashing her way through the rest of the team, she gets thumped like a drum in hardcore action sequences of escalating severity. She gets stabbed, slashed, shot and buried alive on the road leading up to her final fight with all-powerful Bill.
After two movies, these two destructive forces are finally going to clash, and we have every right to believe that the ensuing fight scene is going to knock our faces straight through the window.
Fuck. Yes.
But then ...
Bill dies in about 12 goddamn seconds. And yes, we counted. He doesn't even get out of his chair -- Uma pokes him in the chest a couple of times and induces a magical heart attack that kills him before he can even walk across his backyard.
But somehow, this is still more thrilling than every fight scene in every Michael Bay movie put together.
You would think the almighty leader of a kung fu death squad would've at least attempted to block such an attack, or at least throw a fucking karate chop before getting murdered in a lawn chair. Uma doesn't even break a nail when she administers the death poke. Bill leaves absolutely no mark on her whatsoever, after we've sat through two movies literally titled after their final battle. Even fat, sweaty Michael Madsen managed to shoot her in the chest and bury her in a freaking cemetery.
#1. Boba Fett -- Star Wars Series
The buildup:
Boba Fett is a sci-fi legend. There are endless fan sites dedicated to dressing up like him, thousands of pages of fan fiction have been written about him, and songs have been dedicated to the imposing nature of his awesome.
One of which was Dio's "Holy Diver."
In a universe swarming with giant monsters, armies of evil henchmen, space armadas, Sith Lords and freaking Harrison Ford, this guy stands tall with the notorious reputation he has gained and the countless enemies he has collected. He has no special powers. All he has is his butt-clenchingly rad armor and his carefully honed wits in a vast and harsh galaxy. Also, he has a jetpack. They don't give those out unless you can prove you kick tons of ass.
This guy had to hate-fuck a grizzly bear to death before they even let him read the manual.
But then ...
Nothing. Boba Fett doesn't do a goddamn thing. Somehow people forget that.
He tracks the Millennium Falcon to Bespin and then just calls Darth Vader in while he sits with his thumbs up his armored ass. The rest of the time, he just stands around with his arms crossed, trying to look badass. He's like a kid at a death metal show who doesn't want anyone to know his mom is going to be picking him up at 11.
"If you're so much as a minute late, I will ground the shit out of you."
When the time comes for him to finally throw down, he rocket-jumps over to Jaba's skiff and immediately gets his gun chopped in half by Luke Skywalker. Sure, he ties Luke up and delays him for a second, but that only lasts until Han Solo accidentally smashes into his jetpack with a pole and sends him tumbling into a man-eating sand vagina, screaming like a Muppet. The final nail in his coffin is a goddamned wardrobe malfunction. Think about that while you're being digested for the next thousand years, sir.
Blah blah blah, expanded universe, blah blah blah Dengar. He's dead. And fictional. Deal with it.
For more Star Wars characters that let us down, check out 7 Classic Star Wars Characters Who Totally Dropped the Ball. Or learn about some movie good guys that would've helped if they stayed at home, in 6 Movie Heroes Who Actually Made Things Worse.
And stop by Linkstorm to see how Seanbaby is really just a sweet snuggle-head.
And don't forget to follow us on Facebook and Twitter to get sexy, sexy jokes sent straight to your news feed.
Do you have an idea in mind that would make a great article? Then sign up for our writers workshop! Do you possess expert skills in image creation and manipulation? Mediocre? Even rudimentary? Are you frightened by MS Paint and simply have a funny idea? You can create an infographic and you could be on the front page of Cracked.com tomorrow!


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Amazon will start collecting taxes for those of us in California starting Saturday, thoughts?
Thoughts? and Does this affect you?
This is sort of a follow up to this question asked by @segafanalways
"Amazon will begin collecting sales tax in California on Saturday. Local merchants have been waiting for this day for more than a decade. Now that it has arrived, though, they are tempering their joy at the company's apparent surrender."
Source: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/amazon-forced-collect-tax-adding-161007107.html
I find it annoying but at the same time, California does need the money. Between prime and no tax, I used Amazon quite a bit for my electronic purchases, with tax... I'm definitely going to look around a lot more.
Final thought... Does this mean that Woot! will now charge tax as well? :O
17 Answers answer
This staff answer indicates that, yes, woot will charge tax as well. My thoughts? The government has missed out on millions of tax dollars by not taxing internet sales, so it's only a matter of time until we all do. :(
Meh. As much as I like to gripe, taxes are actually a good thing. They serve a purpose and it's not like we're talking outrageous taxes. I enjoyed the ride while it lasted, but am not really going to complain.
Besides....REALLY looking forward to that 1-Day shipping.....
I regularly buy from Newegg and Monoprice, both of which are based in California and thus, taxed. As long as the value is still there, it won't affect my purchasing habits from Amazon/Woot/etc.
California is already the highest-taxed state in the country. The politicians here keep trying to raise taxes even higher saying it's the only solution to our problems, but if that's true then why don't other states with lower taxes face the same problems?
You tax what you want to get rid of. You want less traffic? Add gas taxes. You want fewer smokers? Add cigarette taxes. You want fewer drinkers? Add alchohol taxes.
So what happens when you add taxes to business? You get rid of business. Period.
California is milking businesses for every penny they can, and then wondering why all the businesses are leaving the state.
And this anti-tax rant is brought to you by a mostly liberal democrat. Like most democrats, I believe in appropriate taxes. But California left appropriate behind long ago. Including local city, county, and state taxes, I recently paid 10.75% sales tax for a regular purchase. That's just crazy.
I can't wait to move the heck outta here!
@mrgrogg: 10.75% ... Pico Rivera or South Gate? In either case, they're down to 9.75%; actually, they've been down for a year now, really.
@mrgrogg: You do realize that this actually spurned the creation of multiple Amazon facilities in California almost immediately, right? It's not making businesses go away...that's political rhetoric....reality says differently....don't let the media think for you!
In california, taxes rarely get used for anything worthwhile. Cut schools, police, and roads & fire services, but keep feeding ridiculous bureaucracies like "The committee on the status of women" and the supposed bullet train that is now planned to only be a regular speed 80-billion dollar train.
There's even a bill right now that will require us to hire a second babysitter to relieve the first babysitter when babysitter 1 must take their legally mandated bathroom and meal breaks. 3 of our closest neighbors have moved out of state in the last 12 months, and we're looking to do the same. Damned whores in the state house are corrupt pieces of garbage, spending money like it's not theirs.... oh wait, that's right, IT'S NOT.
I visit friends in Tahoe or Reno every 4-5 weeks, and they've already agreed to let me ship amazon purchases to their address. At least til 2014....
@ OP: california DOES NOT need the money, there will never be enough tax revenue for the current occupants of the state house. EVERY TIME a new source of revenue is created, they find new ways to waste the money. My wife works for the state, and her office building just got all new carpet and paint throughout, even though there was no need for it, the building is only 4 years old! 3 story, 35,000 squarefoot building. The people in charge of building maintenance didn't even know why it was being done, they just said it was budgeted, so it was being done.
Thoughts: Welcome to da club
@pstrnutbag44: Sorry. You're wrong. I've had three jobs where myself and everybody I worked with were offered the opportunity to move to another state or be laid off when California offices were closed. And now I'm doing it too. The company my brother and I started in California has mostly completed its move to New Mexico. I'm the only one left in California. I work from home, but that home will soon be in New Mexico.
Just because Amazon is building offices in California does not indicate that this is the trend. Amazon has offices everywhere. But when a company must choose where to concentrate its business, California taxes ensure that it chooses elsewhere.
Don't let your own choice of media use their rhetoric to blind you. You are missing out on reality.
Yeah, I have a thought ...California is the sewer of the USA.
@kamikazeken: we'll miss you.
As I've written before when discussed about other states, the free ride is over. I don't know why anyone thinks that just because it's sold on the Internet, it's not subject to taxes.
Also, even when you're not assessed sales tax by the merchant, you're supposed to pay a use tax, as specified in many states.
And all those complaining about California and threatenting to move, we'll miss you but you've probably been saying it for years so it's likely not going to happen so you'll keep on complaining. You probably don't see the absurdity in this, do you?
@mrgrogg: Again, your anecdotal evidence is not enough to support your theory. More than just Amazon, several large companies have been breaking ground in California left-and-right, even in places that are not well off, such as Fresno, Ca. Take a look around Santa Clara County, etc. Those places are not losing businesses as you imply. Perhaps the people you knew lost business and/or moved, but it's simply not the case for everyone. Look, I understand that you personally have been affected, but it does not mean everyone else has. There's more at play then either of us are mentioning when it comes to businesses leaving/moving, a lot has more to do with greed (nobody wants to admit it) and profit margin then wether or not they are "losing" business. I have no need for media when it comes to these things, I am a Gov't Employee and know the actual #'s. TV rots the brain. Greed ruins business.
Social Contract sez: Pay the cost of doing business! ;-)
@first2summit: Couldn't agree more! Nobody wants to admit to this either....we should have been paying all along, why cry now???
Your top 5 Reasons business leave CA:
1. Insurance Premiums (Greed on part of Insurance Companies) (#1 BY FAR!)
2. Litigation Services (Need I point out the greed involved here???
3. Health Coverage Costs
4. "Living Wage"
5. Gone completely overseas
NONE of those are "Losing Business" or Tax-related......it's easy to assign blame, much harder to dig deep to understand why things happen. I'm sorry for anyone's loss, but if anyone was told it was because of taxes, I am not sure you were told the truth. NO (that's right, exactly 0) business has reported that as their reason for closing/relocating, at least in any official capacity....
I've actually been defending California for the 40+ years I've lived here, I love so much about this state, but the corrupt government and insane regulations have changed my mind over the last year. As relatives and friends have been leaving the state, I've slowly seen the light. I spent the summer in Ohio, and was amazed how much I liked it there. The roads are better, the taxes were lower, the people were friendlier, and they allow their citizens more freedom to do as they wish. In Ohio I didn't need to check with the government before throwing a log onto a fire in the back yard. When/if we do leave the state, I'll be closing my small business down and that's 3 more jobs the state will have lost. I've got no problem paying my fair share of taxes for services the public needs, but I despise seeing the state I've loved so long slowly decaying while those who are productive are taxed to death.


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deflated hearts
I knit some hearts out of tomato red Peruvia last night. The plan is to stuff the the little things, then toss them in the washer to felt. If all goes as planned the hearts will show up as a free pattern in Knitbits in early February. I can't resist the pun – they'll be called "Heartfelt"
I'll be posting a second list of books sometime in the future – probably titled something like 10 books you should have in your library. Meanwhile I thought it might be nice to start explaining my "indispensable to me" list:
1. I've told this story many times before, so forgive me if it's a repeat for you. My friend Grace Judson taught me how to knit the summer I was 14. When I returned home I promptly bought some lovely locally grown wool at the county fair, found a nice pattern in a magazine and started going at it. Sometimes the instructions frustrated me. I didn't speak the speak yet and if there is a way of misinterpreting over interpreting directions, well, I did just that. (I had the same problem with my English homework, but that's another story). My Mom is left handed and didn't knit at the time, but she was (and still is) great at calmly sitting down, reading carefully and figuring things out. Still, my perfectionist streak got the best of me more than once – resulting in full-on crying jags. How could Mom resist buying Knitting without Tears when she tripped across it in the book store? It was perfect! This is the book that gave me the tools to knit things "my way".
New Note: The instructions for Heartfelt are ready on our web site – here.
It's not a repeat for me. Great story! How lucky that your Mom happened to see Knitting without Tears.
The red hearts at first looked to me like flowers. Maybe with a little bit of white and yellow added, they could be bleeding hearts and join the beets in a knitted garden?
(This is off topic, but wouldn't it be great if somewhere in the world there was a knitted (and crocheted) garden that knitters/crocheters all over the world contributed to?)
I am looking forward to hearing the back story about the rest of your books!January 23, 2008
samm #
Knitting Without Tears is a "forever" book for me. :O) I read it sometimes just to read EZ's wonderfully down to earth style and ideas. A cup of tea and EZ. I think it is my all-time favorite book! Heartfelt is the perfect name! I hadn't thought about stuffing before felting something. Must give that a try!January 23, 2008
Maria H. #
Love those soon-to-be-felted hearts!
My husband had a triple bypass a few months ago and my life has been full of all things coronary lately. Looking forward to the pattern!
Maria (who used to knit for you)
Also Norah, the blog is very well-done and you are a very entertaining writer. Can't wait to see what you come up with next!January 24, 2008
kathy freeland #
another wonderful 'keeper' knitting book is 'No Idle Hands', the history of social knitting by J.Macdonald. available at Amazon,Com. it is a good book to bring things into focus for me, knitting now can be a joyous relaxing way of self expression and always has been even when knitting was an absolute must for warmth and comfort for the family.
completely agree with your top ten.
have been knitting for more than 50 years and still going strong.
KathyJanuary 25, 2008
Chris #
Oh, I certainly hope the February KnitBits comes before Valentine's day! I'd love to make a whole bowl of little HeartFelts for my sweetie!January 25, 2008
Virginia #
I am happy to have found your Website. Have just finished knitting "Show Stopper" and just love it. A friend brought the yarns back from Los Angeles for me. Thank heaven for shopping on the internet, you have started me knitting again and loving it. Virginia in Tasmania, AustraliaJanuary 25, 2008
betty holck #
New to your site and love it . I started knitting during WW11 on squares for afghans for returning veterans. Love this little hat pattern "Cisco" with ears on it. It will go to missionary box to travel to a child somewhere. Felted little little hearts would really dress up a plain child's hat and also send a lot of love.January 26, 2008
Charlotte #
Made one of the Heartfelt hearts last night but was confused by directions. Obviously, you make two…then sew them together? Seems like the directions could add just a little more info. Could you revise them, please?February 9, 2008
emily fan #
When you said said saw seam down to the cast on, did you mean to fold the first hump side way used the 8″ yarn to saw the seam?
I was also confused by how do you pick up 3 stitches from cast on sts and knit 13 sts. from holder.January 10, 2010
Pamela #
Hi, I love the hearts and just finished knitting one. I came out with one side of the heart? are the instructions for one side??? Your deflated hearts look like one piece, front and back? I think I did it wrong. I like the heart & it looks symmetrical so I'm going to knit the back and sew to front, stuff and felt. Am I on track?
PamFebruary 11, 2008
Micheline #
What a clever mom you have. I can almost see the smile in her face when she found the book…so timely.
Thank you for all the beautiful patterns you have designed.
The best thing I ever did for my daughter when she wanted me to knit her a sweater, was to tell her to knit one for herself. She is now a beautiful knitter and much more prolific that me.February 15, 2008
I'm a lefty knitter so I have to ask if your Mom ever learned to knit. For so many years I was told that I "couldn't" learn because I was left-handed…and I am SERIOUSLY left-handed…can't even brush my teeth with my right hand without spearing a nostril. Five years ago, while combing through a used book store I found "Left Handed Knitting", a small book by Regina Hurlburt and it changed my life. I have joined the knitting obsessed and am not afraid to try any knitting project, sometimes unsuccessfully, but with the knowledge that I can keep trying until I do succeed. I hope your Mom had the same experience.
P.S. I just completed your Lite Lopi Pullover and LOVE it! I'm on Ravelry as "Downeastyarnho" and it is pictured in my projects.February 15, 2008


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Home › Scene › Peer Review ›
Peer Review
THE PARTY For its fifth annual gala, the PEERS Network honored the Challenged Athletes Foundation with a sold-out fete that raised $335,000 to help disabled individuals succeed through sports. THE PLAYER Basketball legend Bill Walton and professional skateboarder Tony Hawk shared the limelight with several CAF athletes, with several of the athletes decked out in jewels by S.D. designer K. Brunini. THE SCENE Lisa and Steve Altman's La Jolla Farms residence provided prime sunset-watching opportunities for guests as they mingled and dined at gourmet food stations from Giuseppe Fine Catering, Beaumont's Eatery and Cusp.


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Recently, an immature twenty three years old Saudi blogger has posted couple of tweets through his twitter streamline. The tweets were directed in a fictional conversational style to Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) with discourtesy and blaspheming manner which triggered so many comments calling for his prosecution and some went demanding for his execution considering other atheistic comments.
Couple of hours later, Hamza Kashgari, ex-Albilad newspaper columnist, has deleted his comments as a response toward the outrageous Continue reading


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If I am having performance problems, what tools can I use to identify where my performance lags are coming from? I have used a System Panel Task Manager, Android System Info, System Manager Free and some others but none of them have really identified the problem children. System Panel Task Manager came the closest with it's historical look at CPU and memory usage but it didn't let me look at which apps were using how much resources over time.
Watchdog will monitor your phone's performance and alert you of issues. Here's a quote from the Lifehacker article on Watchdog.
SeePU is another app that will monitor your phone's CPU, memory and network usage. From Lifehacker's artcile on SeePU:


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Possible Duplicate:
Spaghetti and gravy
For all translators I checked it means the same.
For all translators I checked it means the same.
Per the OED, gravy is:
Whereas sauce is:
In other words, sauce is the more general of the two terms. Furthermore, gravy is usually hot, whereas sauce can also be cold.
Finally, with the rise of vegetarian meal options, you now hear qualified versions like mushroom gravy, which is made of mushrooms not out of simmered flesh-juices, to be served hot over mashed potatoes and the like. In other words, to be used for the same thing as meat gravy is used, but not made from animal flesh.
Note also that while a raspberry sauce can be expected to be made of raspberries, that cranberry sauce is a relish made from cranberries, not something to be spread atop cranberries. Things like Hollandaise sauce are something else again.
There are also extended, transferred, and metaphoric meanings of both these words, such gravy train, stewing in one's own gravy, and in the old proverb that what is sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander, as well as saying that someone has a saucy mouth, or that they have too much sauce meaning that they are impertinent. Sometimes, too, sauce can mean booze, at least in slang.
Thank you for your interest in this question.
Because it has attracted low-quality or spam answers that had to be removed, posting an answer now requires 10 reputation on this site (the association bonus does not count).
Would you like to answer one of these unanswered questions instead?


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Tree burning: Bartow's way to celebrate
S.L. Frisbie
In New York, they lower a six-ton ball made of Waterford crystal to celebrate the arrival of the New Year.
They do not, as is commonly reported, "drop" the ball. If they did, the city of New York would have to sweep up 11,875 pounds of very expensive glass from Times Square.
In Canada, they go ice fishing in rural Quebec to celebrate the final day of the year. Ice fishing, eh?
In Mexico, Spain, Costa Rica, and Guatemala, they eat 12 grapes at midnight on New Year's Eve, one with each chime of the hour, and make 12 wishes.
In Italy, Spain, and probably a few other places where they haven't owned up to it, they wear red underwear.
In Belgium, farmers wish their animals a Happy New Year.
In the Czech Republic, the president gives a New Year's Day speech. Yawn.
In France, party guests eat a cake containing a small china doll. The finder is declared king or queen "and gets to wear a gold paper crown and choose his or her partner," according to Wikipedia.
"This tradition can last up to two weeks." Sounds like the royal partnership lasts about as long as a Hollywood marriage. Oh, those French.
In Ecuador, men dress as women. This probably would be frowned on in France.
In quite a few nations, fireworks are lit, as are New Year's Eve revelers.
In Bartow, Florida, U.S.A., we burn Christmas trees.
Yes, a few hours before the odometer turns over onto 2013, a pile of Bartow's discarded Christmas trees will be set afire, the 76th anniversary of the beginning of this tradition.
The event began in 1936, a date I can put forward with a reasonable sense of certainty, partly because most of you were not here then, but mainly because Dad told me 16 years ago that he attended the first one with Louise Kelley, whom he would marry the following year.
That event (the marriage, not the tree burning) carries great significance with me, because without that marriage, I would not be here today; indeed, I would not be anywhere.
For many years, Dad was master of ceremonies for the tree burning.
Some have wondered why you need an MC for a bonfire. It's because Bartow is a town steeped in tradition, and tradition means doing things the way we have always done them. That's why.
One New Year's Eve around the mid-1990s, Dad developed a cold, and asked me to fill in for him. The following year, he suggested that I take over his MC duties.
My spiel has changed little over the years, though I have corrected a few minor errors. I appreciate the fact that the same people, by and large, keep coming out to hear me say the same thing every New Year's Eve.
The tree burning was begun at the behest of Nye Jordan, long-time head of Peninsular Telephone Co., a volunteer fireman, and for many years, a Bartow city commissioner. Mr. Nye, as he was addressed by people younger than him — which was most of the English-speaking world — said it was bad luck to have a Christmas tree still in your house past New Year's Eve.
Dad always suspected that Mr. Nye started that superstition himself, because as a firefighter, he was only too familiar with the danger of having a dried out evergreen in your living room.
A few years ago, someone told me they were familiar with the same superstition, and believed it originated in New Orleans.
At any rate, the tree burning is a tradition of seven-and-a-half decades, though it was discontinued during World War II lest it serve as a beacon to German bombers. We would truly hate to have had one of our tree burnings destroyed by enemy aircraft.
Thirty-seven years ago, it looked like the tree burning would fade from history, because nobody wanted to be in charge. Eda Marchman, a classmate of mine from Summerlin-by-gosh-Institute, stepped forward and announced that she was taking over. Nobody has tried to take the job away from her.
The growing popularity of artificial trees has resulted in smaller and smaller bonfires in recent years, and the wooden utility pole around which the trees are stacked now towers above the pile.
Many households, upon discovering that their own discarded trees have not been picked up for the event, take them out and pitch them onto the pile near the south end of Mary Holland Park.
Want to experience a bit of local culture? Come join us New Year's Eve at 6:30.
Bring a lawn chair, some bug repellant, and a willingness to chuckle at the same old anecdotes I've been telling for the past 16 years or so, okay?
(S. L. Frisbie is retired. Note that he uses the word "discarded" trees, not "live" trees. From the moment they are cut down, they become "dead" trees, but somehow, that term just doesn't have the same ambiance.)


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5 Things Everyone Hates (Science Says You Secretly Enjoy)
Let's face it: Humans like to whine. And not just about serious stuff, like our faltering Internet connections or our favorite shows being delayed for stupid news bulletins about stupid hurricanes. We're talking about really petty stuff, like IKEA furniture and office meetings. Even more pathetic? Science has discovered that we've been frontin' the whole time. Some of the very things we love to complain about are things we actually secretly enjoy. Things like ...
#5. Office Meetings
Jupiterimages/Pixland/Getty Images
Is there any bigger waste of time? The vast majority of work meetings are a bunch of hungover drones pretending to understand PowerPoint presentations while earnestly contemplating whether or not we'd be able to beat Gary in accounting to death with our stapler and leap out of the window before the police arrived.
Keith Brofsky/Photodisc/Getty Images
A question that rests mainly on whether we could resist the urge to also take out Travis in HR.
But According to Science ...
We love those hastily assembled slide shows and awkward suck-up questions (lookin' at you, Gary). According to a study by researchers from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, while the topic and subject matter may bring us down, we get all giddy inside at the prospect of human contact that meetings bring with them.
Comstock Images/Comstock/Getty Images
Once you start building emotional bonds with the faces on your solitaire cards, it's probably time to see real people.
In a survey conducted by Professor Steven Rogelberg, 69 percent of workers reported that their last meeting was "good." Weirder, half of those workers confessed that they regularly complain about meetings, but most of those complainers also grudgingly clarified that they actually enjoy their meetings when they happen, or at the very least don't mind them.
So what the hell is going on? Why does everybody seem to love the chore that Dilbert built a career on disliking?
David De Lossy/Photodisc/Getty Images
Don't answer, teleconferencers. We all know how you spend meetings.
As it turns out, we just don't hate our fellow men as much as we purport to. Well, most of them, anyway (still lookin' at you, Gary). Rogelberg theorized that most people only complain about meetings because saying you like them is pretty much akin to committing office social suicide. It is well established that hating meetings is the thing to do, and who are you to say otherwise? Some kind of rebel? Some kind of play-by-his-own-rules, sexy, meeting-loving rebel? Is that tie paisley? Who do you think you are, buddy?
#4. IKEA Furniture
Denis Charlet / AFP / Getty
A picture is worth a thousand words, right? Then why are those obnoxiously precocious cartoon instruction manuals from IKEA so detestable? Plus, the furniture is a ridiculous pain in the ass to put together. Why, if IKEA wasn't so much cheaper than a regular furniture store, or if Jim's Discount Housefillins served dollar meatballs, you'd never put up with this kind of thing.
Marcel Antonisse / AFP / Getty
"If they can make good meatballs, why not credenzas?" -the world, apparently
But According to Science ...
As it turns out, it's exactly because we have to assemble it ourselves that we love IKEA furniture. Science has even come up with a term for the phenomenon: the IKEA effect.
Jonathan Saruk / Getty
The crap you make yourself is always the most meaningful crap.
Not the most daring name, is it? Well, maybe Science was too busy quantum freezing light beams to take "creative naming" classes in college. Maybe you, with your liberal arts degree, can take your complaints up with the Mars Rover -- you know, the thing that roves all over Mars, thanks to Science.
Ahem. We digress.
In this study, researchers gave half the participants IKEA storage boxes that they had to assemble themselves, while the other half were given pre-assembled versions. Afterward, they asked the participants to estimate how much they would pay for their box. Those who had to build their stuff not only placed more value on the items, but also became more attached to them and wanted to show them off to others -- even if they did an objectively shoddy job putting the pieces together and the whole thing was smeared in their own blood after they mishandled the BjurkenSabre in Step Fljorn.
AFP / Stringer / Getty
Building a living room isn't always a smooth process.
In a subsequent study, scientists concluded that people like self-assembled goods more, because the very process of putting them together helps the builders feel more competent overall.
"Sure, sure," you might be thinking, "some people are just the do-it-yourself type. Some people love that shit: All birdhouses and shell art on the weekends. Not me, though. Me, I'd prefer my furniture to come pre-assembled and not covered in the impotent tears of my own frustrated fury. I don't want a project; I just want a fucking chair."
You're lying!
AFP / Stringer / Getty
Hey, don't get pissy with us: Take it up with Science. Even those who were reportedly uninterested in DIY projects ended up finding more value in the unassembled furniture. No matter how terrible the result is, or how illogical the response may sound, if you build it, you will love it. We imagine it's the same reason parents love their identical twins, no matter how plainly evil and soulless those creatures may be.
#3. Reruns
Digital Vision./Digital Vision/Getty Images
What's on TV right now? Probably an endless stream of the same old garbage: rerun after rerun after rerun. Hell, even when it's a new show, it's probably just repackaging the same tired storylines. How many times can you watch that guy fail to deliver the promised mother before you realize he's just a pathological liar and you've been listening to the bastard spin falsehoods for the better part of a decade?
Jupiterimages/Brand X Pictures/Getty Images
It turns out the mother was their television all along.
But According to Science ...
We love to complain when there's nothing new on TV, but then again, we also buy DVDs and watch them over and over again. We reread our books and have favorite shows we know so well that we can quote them off the top of our head. If the choice is between some new thing that may be terrible or an old thing we know we love, our brains take comfort in "the sure thing."
Creatas Images/Creatas/Getty Images
Our brains would prefer we live in a continual loop of roofies and Frasier reruns.
Human beings are simply not all that crazy about originality, no matter how much we swear, protest, and insist otherwise.
As a kid, you wanted your parents to read you the same bedtime story every single night. And you never grew out of it: You watch, read, or play stories where you know exactly what happens, because your brain isn't looking for surprises. It just wants to experience the same psychological high it's always gotten from your favorite episodes. If your brain were a dog, reruns would be a slobbery red ball.
Ryan McVay/Photodisc/Getty Images
And clip shows would be pizza crusts.
And that's not all. Another study has shown that reruns can actually restore our energy and willpower. When we watch a rerun, we know what's going to happen, so we don't have to expend much brainpower to process the show. But even with the factor of surprise removed from the experience, we still get the same feeling of entertainment. And this helps gives us a mental boost for when we actually have to put our brain to use later on. So go ahead, watch every single episode of Gilmore Girls for the 16th time: If anybody makes fun of you, tell them you're just banking your productivity for later use.


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Frank Pignanelli & LaVarr Webb: Weighing the effects of the Republican State Convention
Rick Bowmer, Associated Press
At the recent Republican State Convention, delegates rejected reforms designed to open the caucus/convention nominating system to broader participation.
Why did convention delegates reject these changes recommended by party leadership?
Pignanelli: "Power does not corrupt men; fools, however, if they get into a position of power, corrupt power." — George Bernard Shaw
Ultra right-wing extremists share the personality traits of most teenagers (i.e. selfish priorities, unrealistic expectations, focus on minutia, etc.) When I confront the adolescents in my home about the family room mess, the following responses are given: "There is no mess"; "It's not my mess"; "I don't have to clean up the mess ... you're not the boss of me." Confronted with mild options to alter the nomination process, Republican delegates responded in the same manner: "There are no problems, when we control the results"; "Our ideological demands do not cause difficulties"; "We have no obligation to fix the system ... you're not the boss of us."
Individually, most delegates are nice people. But when packed together, a terrible herd mentality takes over. Without any concern to damaging the Republican brand, angry rhetoric and thoughtless actions ensue (i.e., disparaging the noble and visionary Utah Compact on Immigration). In such conditions, there is little enlightenment to abandon their power for the benefit of the party.
Webb: Political power in Utah is manifested most fundamentally in the caucus/convention system. A relatively small number of party activists wield enormous power in selecting candidates, and thus disproportionately influence public policy — and not many of them want to share that power among all Republican voters.
Delegates are mostly fine people who are sometimes more passionate and extreme in their political views than Republicans in general. Some, unfortunately, have even stated in public meetings that they don't want increased participation in the political process. They believe they are better informed, have the right answers, and they don't want anyone but themselves selecting candidates or influencing public policy. I believe that attitude is elitist and arrogant, and I trust Utahns, in general, not just activists, to make wise candidate and policy choices.
What's next? Will the Count My Vote group proposing reforms resort to a ballot initiative and will this effort be successful? (Ballot measures don't have a strong record of success.)
Pignanelli: Utahns want changes to the current system, but only a handful will sacrifice a Saturday in front of a grocery store to gather petition signatures. Many affluent Utahns hate the delegate process but few will contribute serious money to the effort (at least $400,000 will be needed to pay professional signature gatherers). Further, legal obstacles for initiatives are so burdensome that there is no realistic chance of success for any effort. The signature requirement is a logistical nightmare: 10 percent of the presidential voter turnout in 26 of 29 Senate districts.
I commend the Count My Vote effort, but there is no chance for success. If proven wrong in 2014, I shall proclaim in this column that LaVarr is the smartest and most erudite person on the planet, and then I will eat the printed pages of this column.
Webb: Frank's pledge, alone, makes this effort worthwhile. I have been involved in the Count My Vote initiative for several months. Our desire is to increase participation in the political process. We have worked closely with concerned and supportive party leaders. We have also consulted with a number of sympathetic state legislators, who all said they saw little chance of reforms being approved by lawmakers.
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I'm having a problem with getting the position of a div after
rotate filter is applied to it. I have the position of one end, its height, and the angle by which it is rotated, but after checking what this filter actually does on MDN ("[cos(angle) sin(angle) -sin(angle) cos(angle) 0 0]") I still don't know how to crack it.
Example :
The div I'm interested in is the dashed line. Its styling at that moment was :
left: 80px; top: 12px; height: 69.5122px; width: 2px; -moz-transform: rotate(-1.21366rad);
left describe the position of its beginning.) I'm trying to get the
left position of its end.


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<?xml version="1.0" ?> <!DOCTYPE book PUBLIC "-//KDE//DTD DocBook XML V4.2-Based Variant V1.1//EN" "dtd/kdex.dtd" [ <!-- Define an entity for your application if it is not part of KDE CVS --> <!ENTITY <replaceable>kmyapplication</replaceable> "<application>KMyApp</application>"> <!ENTITY kappname "<replaceable>&kmyapplication;</replaceable>"><!-- replace kmyapplication here do *not* replace kappname--> <!ENTITY package "<replaceable>kde-module</replaceable>"><!-- kdebase, kdeadmin, etc. Leave this unchanged if your application is not maintained in KDE CVS --> <!ENTITY % addindex "IGNORE"> <!ENTITY % English "INCLUDE"> <!-- ONLY If you are writing non-English original documentation, change the language here --> ]>
In general, this needs minimal changing from the template. The items you must change are the entities "kappname", "package", and "English".
The entity "kappname" looks like it's redundant (as the comment in the template notes), but it is important. This allows us to use one global text in all documents, and still refer to the specific application by its correct name. So it should be changed to refer to this new entity, but this time you should only change the part in quotes ("&kmyapplication;") as follow:
From: <!ENTITY kappname "&kmyapplication;" -- this only *seems* redundant --> To: <!ENTITY kappname "&kate;" -- this only *seems* redundant -->
In short: change any occurrence of "kmyapplication" to the real name of your application. Do not use "kappname" or "kapp" directly in a document yourself.
The entity "package" is used similarly. It allows us to insert a single piece of "boilerplate" text into every document, and have the correct package name inserted when the document is compiled. Use the cvs module name, in lower case, ⪚ "kdeedu" or "kdebase".
The entity %addindex; is a toggle. If set to "INCLUDE" a document index will be automatically generated. It is normally set instead to "IGNORE", and should not be changed unless you really do want to generate an index. You can find out more about indexes in References, indexes, and glossaries.
<?xml version="1.0" ?> <!DOCTYPE book PUBLIC "-//KDE//DTD DocBook XML V4.2-Based Variant V1.1//EN" "dtd/kdex.dtd" [ <!ENTITY kappname "&amor;"> <!ENTITY package "kdetoys"> <!ENTITY % addindex "IGNORE"> <!ENTITY % English "INCLUDE"> ]>


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For which manifolds or varieties is quantum cohomology known to converge? Are there any manifolds for which quantum cohomology is known to not converge? I seem to have the impression that quantum cohomology is known to converge for Fano manifolds or maybe toric Fano manifolds, but I don't know if this is actually true.
By "convergence" I mean convergence of, e.g., the genus 0 Gromov-Witten potential.


text: Pictures: Leading up to the criminal trial of Casey Anthony Courtroom images leading up to the criminal trial of Casey Anthony. Photos: Trial begins | Complete trial coverage This photo gallery is featured in these articles: latimes.com Long-awaited opening statements in Casey Anthony trial begin today latimes.com Casey Anthony's tears: Sincere emotion or manipulation? latimes.com Casey Anthony trial: Court swears in jury


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CIAC football changes coming
Today could be a landmark day in the history of Connecticut high school football.
The CIAC football committee will meet this afternoon with an agenda highlighted by one major item: potentially sweeping changes to the state's regular and postseason formats.
Momentum toward playoff changes began last December when a snowstorm wreaked havoc on championship weekend, which was scheduled for Dec. 13-14.
Two of the four title games were moved away from Central Connecticut, and the final game was not played until Dec. 19 — the day after opening night of basketball season.
In addition, the 2013 season was the first to see some teams play 15 games. Five squads, including Ansonia and Woodland, squeezed those unprecedented slates into just 14 weeks.
Those issues have the CIAC on the brink of making the first major changes since moving to the four-class, three-round postseason system in 2010.
Wolcott principal Joe Monroe sits on the CIAC football committee, which could come up with its recommended changes by the end of today's meeting.
Monroe said there are no official proposals on the table, but he expects many ideas to be shared among the 24-member group.
"Paul (Hoey, the CIAC's associate executive director) has sent out some various scenarios for us to think about," Monroe said. "I don't really know what's going to happen until we enter the meeting, but I know there will be talk about the playoffs."
The current playoff structure is a three-round format that begins with quarterfinals the Tuesday after Thanksgiving.
Semifinals are the following Saturday, and the championship games are the next weekend. Eight teams qualify in each of the four classes.
Some think the second weekend of December is too late to end the football season, particularly after snow impacted last year's championship games. But in four of the previous eight years, Connecticut saw its first measurable snowfall in November.
"I think it's a little bit of a knee-jerk reaction to the games getting postponed," said Ansonia coach Tom Brockett, who is not on the committee but is one of the state's more outspoken coaches.
Part of the issue last year stemmed from the lateness of Thanksgiving, which fell on Nov. 28. That allowed for an 11-game regular season and forced the playoffs to end later than ever. Under the current plan, that will happen again this year with Thanksgiving on Nov. 27.
"I wouldn't mind us seeing us go down to a 10-game (regular) season," Brockett said about a scenario that could allow for bye weeks. "I don't think we should be playing more than 13 games in a season. How do you get there? I don't know."
Many new plans have floated around on social media since the end of last season, and the most contentious point for all of them is how to handle Thanksgiving. Some want to begin the playoffs before the holiday, pause for the rivalry games and play championships the following weekend. Some want Thanksgiving to be a playoff date. But most still want the holiday to end the regular season.
"Thanksgiving just has a different feeling to it. It's my favorite day of the year," Brockett said. "I love the great Thanksgiving atmosphere where the winner plays and the loser goes home. Every year there are upsets all over the place. Thanksgiving is a great day for family and alumni."
"I am not a proponent of taking away Thanksgiving," Monroe agreed. "You can't just tell those teams they're not going to play anymore, and you can't have one of the two teams affected if they do play on Thanksgiving. If someone tells me that we can't play Holy Cross anymore, I don't know what I would do."
Woodland athletic director Brian Fell likes the idea of starting the playoffs on Thanksgiving.
"If some teams can't play their Thanksgiving teams one year, is that the end of the world? I don't think so," Fell said. "I don't think it destroys the Thanksgiving tradition. But I can see how people would be upset that Naugatuck wouldn't be able to play Ansonia because Ansonia's always in the playoffs."
Fell is on the CIAC Board of Control, which will make the final decision on whatever recommendation the football committee makes. He said he senses the committee wants to leave Thanksgiving intact.
"They want to make a playoff schedule that everyone is happy with and keep Thanksgiving," Fell said. "It's almost a no-win for everybody involved."
Brockett, based on conversations with other coaches, said it appears likely that the usual Tuesday playoff game after Thanksgiving will be eliminated. That would leave time for two rounds to be played on weekends after Thanksgiving and necessitate an increase back to six or eight divisions, each with four qualifiers.
"There are no easy answers," Brockett said. "You want to balance not eliminating playoff teams. My guess that it will end up back at six (divisions). I know they don't want to give up teams getting in the playoffs, so I don't know how they're going to do that."
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25 Nov 2012 1:48 AM #1
Unanswered: Extjs 4.1 deploy application by minfied JS files - Sencha Cmd
Hi All,
I want to deploy an application which is build using Extjs 4.1.
I followed below link to deploy but its not working.
Then i came to know about Sencha Cmd, but i am not understanding how to deploy it by minified JS files.
Need help on how to deploy application by minifying JS files.
26 Nov 2012 3:46 PM #2
- Join Date
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When you do a build with Cmd via
sencha app build
it will build the app and you can then copy the directory to wherever you need it.Mitchell Simoens @LikelyMitch
Sencha Inc, Senior Software Engineer
Check out my GitHub, lots of nice things for Ext JS 4 and Sencha Touch 2
Think my support is good? Get more personalized support via a support subscription. https://www.sencha.com/store/
Need more help with your app? Hire Sencha Services firstname.lastname@example.com
Want to learn Sencha Touch 2? Check out Sencha Touch in Action that is in print!
When posting code, please use BBCode's CODE tags.
5 Jan 2013 5:54 AM #3
What if the app was not built using the MVC pattern?


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Presentation......of a 32 year old swede.
Posted 07 January 2008 - 12:32 PM
My name is Thomas Koos, I am 32 years old and live with my lovely wife in Stockholm, Sweden.
I think that my reason for loving ballet as much as I do, is the time machine effect.
I visit the ballet, sit down in the red velvet chair and everywhere I look I see people who tried to look at their best this night. That is a good start which is followed by the silence of expectation of the audience. Then, suddely the ballet. Not a single move is neglected, when falling from a chair the only audible noice is the rattle of feet on the floor.
It is the single most opposite experience to my everyday life, where it is all about beeing effective, running to trams and closing deals no matter what it takes. No one ever stops to consider "why do we not try to do this as pleasant for everyone else as possible".
Ballet is pain hidden behind smiles and a great deal of "let us try to do this as pleasant for the audience as possible"-spirit.
I used to dance myself at age 8-12, before an injury ended that.
Is there anything else you would like to know, please ask.
Oh, if you find any typos, please feel free to keep them.
Best regards,
Thomas Koos
Posted 07 January 2008 - 01:31 PM
Posted 29 January 2008 - 03:39 PM
Hope you will post what you see in Stockholm - I never go there these days and my local opera house (Gothenburg) only does modern which I dont appreciate much.
Posted 29 January 2008 - 08:49 PM
Posted 29 January 2008 - 10:06 PM
Well said, sir!
It's TRUE.
Ballet is a fantasy of ideally frictionless interaction, like it must be in the world above us, in hte heavens. Grace abounding, wit in overplus. This applies to behavior as well as to jumps and turns and lifts -- and if htere's no generosity when the boy offers his hand to the girl, there's something wrong right there at hte start...
I's wonderful that you just came right out and said that -- after acknowledging that it makes hte heart beat faster to have something like this to profess, you then do espouse it. It takes courage to do that. Thank you.
Posted 26 March 2008 - 05:03 PM
I agree with your opinion on modern ballet, it never really touches me the way a real classic ballet does.
I will try to post when i visit something good in Stockholm.
Takk! ;)
Paul Parish:
Thank you, sir! *blush*
Ballet truly is what life really should be, wonderful.
Best regards,
Thomas Koos
Posted 26 March 2008 - 05:21 PM
Welcome to BalletTalk, SpanCox. I identify completely with what you say.
I think that my reason for loving ballet as much as I do, is the time machine effect.
[ ... ]
It is the single most opposite experience to my everyday life, where it is all about beeing effective, running to trams and closing deals no matter what it takes.
I attend operas and plays, but it's at the ballet that I experience these feelings most -- freedom from time; the disappearance of daily concerns. I don't know why. Perhaps it's the lack of words in a talk-filled world.
On the other hand, when the performance is OVER, it's good to have friends to talk with about the experience. I hope Ballet Talk will be one of the places where you will feel free to do that.
Posted 27 March 2008 - 03:51 AM
I suspect the otherworldliness that attracts so many ballet lovers is that it is really removed from this world. The creatures of ballet are extremely beautiful move or even when still show amazing grace and perfection. We just don't experience other humans moving and interacting as they do on a stage.
When a ballet is a story ballet we can recognize reality abstracted and see how meaning can be communicated in abstract movement.
Ballet is a trip out of this world! We don't need to be high to go there, and in fact the more intensely we observe the ballet the more we are taken away!
I wonder how the performers experience it from either side of the proscenium. It must be very different.
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Ok, I've become comfortable brewing all grains but I want to start experimenting. Where do I start? Should I start experimenting at the primary fermentation stage and brew a bunch of small different batches? Or should is it better to start when transferring to the secondary? If you'd recommend this approach what do you use for fermenters? Do they make small 1 gallon fermenters? I'd like to have my experiments beside each other for testing.
Although I don't do all grain yet, as you do, I have taken quite a bit of time to start creating my own recipes. The best thing That I can recommend is this:
http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/1-gallon-jug.html. A word of caution. If you are brewing high gravity beers, make sure to set these up with blow off tubes large enough to fit the bottleneck.
Once you've nailed down what works, make that your de facto recipe and rinse/repeat.
Depending on your knowledge of the different tastes and qualities imparted by the various components of the brew and how scientific/casual you want to be about it, I would recommend starting with different types of yeast. They can produce vastly different flavors in the same brew, and it's one of the easiest things to tweak in a recipe. Try making a solid base recipe like a pale ale, split it in half, then pitch one half with something standard like California Ale Yeast and the other half with a Belgian or German Lager Yeast. Adjust your fermentation temp appropriately for the strains for best results. You'll be surprised by how different the end results will be :)
The same method can apply to many post-boil additives, too. You can try things like taking the whole batch through primary, then bottling half and racking the other half onto some dark Candi sugar and letting it go through secondary. Just make sure to boil the additives to sterilize them (best method is to draw some of the beer into a pot and use that to boil, so you don't dilute it with more water) and make sure to chill it so it doesn't shock the yeast when you put it in the fermenter.
When it comes to grains, you can't go "wrong" very easily. Chances are you will always come out with a good tasty brew, it just won't necessarily fit a particular style guideline. It's like a domestic dog, just because it's not pure-bred doesn't mean it can't be a great pet if you take care of it :)
Edit: From the advice of Tobias Patton - There are some general grain guidelines (for the most part there are just some you shouldn't use too much of, IE: Black Patent), you can find many resources for that at sites like this
I read over the other responses very briefly so sorry if I repeat a few things. I am really excited because I am doing almost the same thing right now! I started by deciding what I wanted to discover; hops, grains, yeast, and so on (I started with hops). One thing I think is difficult but really important is to have a "control" type of recipe, for example (I'm all grain) my first batch was just two row base malt (calculated to a medium to low ABV) and CTZ hops. All the future batches in this experiment will have the same grain bill, same hop addition times, yeast, and fermentation temps... but different hops.
Don't know what you are looking to experiment with, but if it is secondary stuff (dry hop, fruit, wood/oak...) then ya brew a batch and split it up but keep things as "common" as possible.
In doing this experiment I have really understood beer in a new light, the first beer was surprisingly good without a thousand grains and a mash of hops, maybe one of the most simple and fastest poured out of all the beers I have brewed. It is so much easier to pin point each flavor when there are only two ingredients, so I guess my advice is to keep it simple, clean, and as similar as possible. Good luck! Keep us posted (REALLY! REALLY!) and if you have more questions throw them out! CHEERS!


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A Kentucky State Trooper and members of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms sensed a strong chemical odor coming from a truck on Russellville Road in Bowling Green around 4:45 p.m. Thursday. When they stopped the truck, they found an anhydrous tank in the cab, along with components of a meth lab.
They arrested 38-year-old Randall Gilleland and 37-year-old Roger Haney for manufacturing meth. They are lodged in the Warren County Regional Jail on $25,000 cash bonds each.
wbko.com Extended Web Coverage
National Meth Lab Seizures
Drug Use in the U.S.
Source: www.usdoj.gov (U.S. Department of Justice Web site) contributed to this report.


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Hi to all experts here my name is Tanja Puduporial valitariath param maluda
Hi to all experts
Hi and welcome to the forum
Also if you self promote your services in posts then your site could get banned. You can use the signatures to promote your site.
Your site is now banned and if this continue the same would be to your account.


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Nike Slim Fit Women's Training Shorts
The Nike Slim Fit Training Shorts are Body Shaping Comfort. They will give you the support and movement needed during any workout. These sweat-wicking training shorts are everything you are looking for when you are going all out. Don't let your gear hold you back from your best. Look cute and work hard in the Nike Slim FIt Training Shorts.


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I usually design in Illustrator, which appears to be vector so I don't really care about the
.ai size, scaling wouldn't be a problem, but Photoshop uses Bitmap and scaling can mess up the image quality. So how would you set your
file > new's Width, height, resolution, etc so that you can play it safe?
I usually design in Illustrator, which appears to be vector so I don't really care about the
It depends on the usage the final file will be put to.
If it's for web, definite dimensions could be similar or proportionately higher (never lower) to the dimensions expected to be shown in the final webpage (it can then exported in required dimensions using "Save for Web" functionality.
If it's for print, it will again depend upon the quality of the print expected. Minimum suggested resolution for print would be 300 ppi and can definitely go much higher in accordance with the quality of the print expected. Hope it helps.
It depends...
But here is a start:
The dimensions certainly depend on the project, so the possibilites are endless. You can always change the canvas size later, but a precise set-up is a good start. Keep in mind that there are some restrictions for brushes or certain layer effects, so anything beyond ~2600px can get problematic (unless of course you do many smaller things in a lager canvas).
So, how do you play it safe? By finding out the requirements first.
If line quality is important, even 300 dpi (at final size) can be a little lackluster. Fortunately, Pshop has been building up it's vector cred too. It's not the most pleasant tool for the job when vector is required, but it is scalable and you can send your paths over to AI if needed.
Here are a few resources to get you started with Pshop vectors.
A very basic video intro if you prefer not to read.
A detailed walkthrough of creating an illustration with vector tools.
A quick video on changes in CS6.


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Grand National Roadster Show - 'Ol GranddaddyWritten by on June 1, 2008 Contributors: Rob Fortier The 59th Grand National Roadster Show
t's hard to believe that it's been well over half a century since the very first Grand National Roadster Show was held at the Oakland Coliseum. The year was 1950, and the very first recipient of the soon-to-be prestigious America's Most Beautiful Roadster award was Bill Niekamp's track-nosed '29 Ford, which was also a piece of hot rodding history in the making. Just a few years after its inception, the show featured a roadster pickup that would eventually become the first and only two-time consecutive AMBR winner--the Barris-built "Ala Kart."
Now in its 59th year and being held a bit south of Oakland in Pomona, California, the GNRS went out of its way to showcase the 50th anniversary of the "Ala Kart's" show debut. Meticulously restored by Roy Brizio, the famous roadster pickup (once thought to be lost forever) was set up in the main show building amongst all the current AMBR contenders just as it was displayed back in 1958--complete with foil-covered jackstands!
Of course, the show was packed with tons of additional feature attractions, not the least of which was an array of SoCal pickups. Everything from full show trucks right down to primered drivers were showcased in the revamped Suede Palace building that's been gaining more and more popularity in the last couple years. Some of the other highlights of the show included appearances by ZZ Top's Billy F. Gibbons, 2008 Builder of the Year Troy Trepanier, and the overly anticipated, long-time in the making, fullsize Hot Wheels "Twin Mill" among other things.
While the competition for AMBR may have gotten a bit over the top in recent years, the Grand National Roadster Show is still one of, if not the best indoor show California has to offer. Guess that's why it's still the world's longest running indoor car show, huh? Well, seeing that next year's event celebrates the 60th anniversary of the GNRS (promoters are planning to have every AMBR winner on display), you can count on us being there for all the action--stay tuned for further developments. CT
More Photos From This Article View Slideshow
The freshly restored Barris-built Ala Kart was on display and in the running to hopefully win the AMBR award for the third time, but to the chagrin of many, it was not to be. The heavily modified '29 Model A pickup won the prestigious award consecutively in 1958 and 1959.By now, many of you have seen Jimmy Shine's '34 Ford truck that he built nearly a decade ago, and is still being imitated by more than a few today. The little truck is host to many superbly executed nips and tucks.It was an unlikely place to see a restored '41 Hudson like Danny Spadaro's, but we weren't complaining! The gloss-black stocker is supposedly one of nine left in the world according to its show card.Former CLASSIC TRUCKS feature star Mike Russ entered his slick '57 Chevy big window in this year's show, decked out in a pair of fender skirts.This ultra-clean Blazer/roadster had a stout 572 big-block Chevy motor under its flawless tangerine paint, and featured a full-custom charcoal leather interior and requisite big wheels and brakes.Jack Rudy brought his '53 Chevy to the show again this year, but this time he and many of his fellow Beatniks club members had their rides inside the ropes and under the roof on display. Jack's truck is a work in progress and was wearing a snazzy new set of gloss scallops on its light purple suede basecoat.Dave and Betty Patterson from Apple Valley, CA, had their stunning '37 Chevy on display. The truck was built by Heath Coat Fabrication and has a venerable 350/700-R4 combo under its four-piece hood.Remember the '38 Ford that was on our May '07 cover? Well, its owner Dan Collins built this little '27 Chevy modified roadster in a decidedly late '60s style, complete with a groovy panel paint job by Nick `O' Teen.
Jerry and Jackie Johnston from Fallbrook, CA, entered their big-window '56 Ford F-100 in the show and had people drooling over it all weekend. The small-block Chevy-powered Ford was built by the steady hands at Buxton Motorsports in nearby Irvine.This '69 C-10 named "The Infidel" is finished in a "custom puke-green suede basecoat" and has an unusual 425ci Buick Nailhead V-8 under the hood! The modified stock frame is full of goodies from Air Ride Technologies and McGaughy's to help get it on the ground.Immaculate body and paintwork, supercharged V-8, blinding chrome, and a perfect stance--this Chevy had it all!Outside, between the buildings and the rain, we got a shot of this custom Chevy in the Toyo Tires display area wearing a set of huge (what else) Toyos and custom wheels.


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ANDERSON, S.C. – Anderson University Director of Athletics Nancy Simpson announced on Friday that Michael Zion, a Trojan assistant for the past three season, has been promoted as the men's soccer head coach, replacing John Murphy, who accepted the Associate Head Coaching position at Division I's Boston College.
Zion will be the third coach of the men's soccer program in the last five years as he takes over a team that finished 12-7-3 a year ago and advanced to its fourth straight Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Tournament championship match. Despite falling in the title match to conference newcomer, Queens, Anderson advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2011 when it dropped to eventual national runner-up Carson-Newman in the opening round.
"I am thrilled that Michael Zion will be taking the reins for our men's soccer program," Simpson said. "Michael is a talented and passionate coach, and I look forward to the future continued success of the program under his leadership. As an alumnus and former assistant coach, Michael is tremendously loyal to Anderson University and the soccer program, and has earned a great deal of respect from his student-athletes."
The Spartanburg, S.C. native has been a part of four Trojans squads that have combined for 50 wins, including 23 in the SAC regular season and 11 SAC Tournament victories. Zion has also coached 16 players over his four seasons that have been named to postseason SAC honors, including two-time SAC Player of the Year, Lasse Sohrweide.
Away from the competition, Zion has organized youth camps throughout his tenure at AU. He has been a part of the annual Murphy Law Goalkeeper Summit along with other camps held on campus to help grow youth soccer throughout the Upstate.
"I would like to thank AU president Dr. Whitaker, Director of Athletics Nancy Simpson, and the entire search committee for presenting me with this opportunity," Zion said. "This program has been rich with success in recent years and I am very thankful to have been a part of the process as a player and as a coach. This is an incredibly exciting opportunity and I am committed to continue building a program on and off the field that will make the University, alumni, and community proud. I want to give a special thanks to former AU head coach John Murphy for his mentorship over the last two years."
Prior to coaching, Zion graduated from Anderson in 2006 with a degree in kinesiology. During his playing career, Zion scored nearly two dozen goals, including four game-winners and recorded 21 assists, while leading the Trojans to 27 wins in his final three seasons. After his graduation, Zion played for multiple semi-professional clubs throughout the Southeast, as well as internationally.
|Assistant Coach
|SAC Tournament Champions, Sweet 16 Appearance
|Assistant Coach
|SAC Regular Season Champions, SAC Tournament Champions, NCAA Southeast Regional
|Assistant Coach
|SAC Tournament Champions
|Assistant Coach
|SAC Tournament Runner-Up, NCAA Southeast Regional


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State officials in Kentucky have revoked the licenses of 18 child care centers in Louisville after a yearlong investigation.
Media reported the Cabinet for Health and Family Services cited allegations of fraud in letters on Wednesday ordering the centers to close.
Cabinet officials declined to discuss the investigation, but released letters sent to the centers after The Courier-Journal filed an open records request.
The letters stated that the 18 centers "failed to assure that each mandatory record ... has not been altered or falsified."
The cabinet declined to elaborate beyond what the letters stated. It was unclear how many children would be affected.
The centers have 20 days to appeal. If no appeal is filed, the revocations become final.


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If I have a race in decline and choose to decline my current race, do I score both races or just the new race in decline? I am assuming that just the new race, since we (normally) cannot have two races in decline.
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You are correct, when you choose to decline your current race, the previous markers of the previous race in decline are immediately removed and not scored (Unless of course the previous race in decline has the Spirit special power.)
See Entering in Decline on page 6 of the rulebook. Emphasis mine.