text:
David Alvis is a Lead Technologist with the Technology Strategy Board with co-responsibility for the Sustainable Agriculture and Food Innovation Platform. He represents the TSB on the GO-Science Food Research Partnership and is a member of the FRP Research Translation sub-group and the Dairy Science Forum.
David has a BSc in Agriculture from Wye College, University of London and an MBA from Cranfield School of Management. He is also a Nuffield Scholar with over 20 years management experience in the agricultural industry ranging from farm management to commercial and general management roles in the fresh produce sector, with Greenvale AP and in the agricultural supply sector with the Roullier group.
David worked for the TSB as a consultant from February 2010 and from May 2012 joined the organisation as Lead technologist on a part-time basis, dividing his time between his TSB role and his own business, Winstone Agribusiness Consulting Ltd.
Calum Murray is a lead technologist with the Technology Strategy Board with co-responsibility for the Sustainable Agriculture and Food Innovation Platform. He represents the TSB on the Programme Coordination Group of BBSRC's Global Food Security initiative and the International sub-group of the Food Research Partnership and a member of the LEAF Advisory Board.
Calum graduated from Aberdeen University with an honours degree in agriculture in 1982. His career started with ADAS in Suffolk, moved into farm business consultancy before joining SAC back in Scotland in 1990. In 1995 he was appointed by Bank of Scotland as national agricultural specialist. In 2006 he was appointed Regional Director for NFU Mutual Finance, a Bank of Scotland JV.
Following the merger of HBoS and Lloyds, Calum joined the Technology Strategy Board in Feb 2010.


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"I just want to go to the beach... look at rainbows and eat ice cream" ~M.Carey~
Sunday, December 1, 2013
Tell Me How You Feel...
what year was this? gee... i dunno... (i don't want to back date myself) lol!
but i do remember very strongly as a young pre teen... this music video was what started my infamous infatuation with tanktops...
i had dreams about being her in a music video....being all pretty ,wearing a tube top and dancing flirtatiously with a hot sweaty skater guy fresh off the half pipes.. oooooo
well here it is... a classic vintage pop video that literally helped shaped my tank top desires....
Joy Enriquez ~ Tell Me How You Feel (Music Video)
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Download EBOOK The White Deer PDF for free
Category: Humour
The author of the book: James Thurber
Format files: PDF, EPUB, TXT, DOCX
The size of the: 749 KB
Language: English
Edition: Mariner Books
Date of issue: 1 September 1984
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Local Effects of Pregnancy on Connexin Proteins That Mediate Ca2+-Associated Uterine Endothelial NO Synthesis
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Uterine artery adaptations during gestation facilitate increases in uterine blood flow and fetal growth. Hypothesis: local expression and distribution of uterine artery connexins play roles in mediating in vivo gestational eNOS activation and NO production. We established an ovine model restricting pregnancy to a single uterine horn and measured uterine blood flow, uterine artery shear stress, connexins 37/43, and P635eNOS protein levels in uterine artery and systemic artery (omental and renal) endothelium and connexins in vascular smooth muscle. Uterine blood flow and shear stress were locally (unilaterally) and substantially elevated by gestation. During pregnancy, uterine artery endothelial gap junction proteins connexins 37/43 were locally regulated in the gravid horn and elevated 10.3- and 25.6-fold; uterine artery endothelial P635eNOS and total eNOS were elevated 3.3- and 2.9-fold; whereas uterine artery vascular smooth muscle connexins 37/43 were locally elevated 12.5- and 5.9-fold, respectively. Less pronounced changes were observed in systemic vasculature except for significant pregnancy-associated increases in omental artery vascular smooth muscle connexin 43 and omental artery endothelial P635eNOS and total eNOS. Gap junction blockade using connexin 43, but not connexin 37–specific Gap peptides, abrogated uterine artery endothelial ATP-induced Ca2+-mediated NO production. Thus, uterine artery endothelial connexin 43, but not connexin 37, regulates Ca2+-mediated NO production required for the vasodilation to accommodate increases in uterine blood flow and shear stress during healthy pregnancies.
Pregnancy is characterized by dramatic cardiovascular adaptations, the most substantial being the 30- to 50-fold increase in the uterine blood flow (UBF) to meet the metabolic demands of developing fetuses.1,2 Women with endothelial dysfunction have pregnancies with increased susceptibility to preeclampsia.3 When compared with normal uterine artery (UA) Doppler ultrasounds at 23- to 25-week gestation, preeclamptic women with fetal growth restriction have reduced UBF.4 Pregnant women who exhibit proteinuric hypertension and reductions in UBF also have aberrant levels of circulating estrogens and their metabolites5 and in some6,7 but not all studies8,9 NO metabolites.
During the ovarian follicular phase and normal pregnancy, elevations in UBF are associated with higher endogenous estrogen2,10 and UA endothelial (UAendo) elevations in estrogen receptors,11,12 endothelial NO synthase (eNOS), and NO.9,13–15 Local estrogen receptor and NO-mediated regulation of UBF were demonstrated by decreases in UBF in response to unilateral infusion of estrogen receptor antagonist (ICI-182 780) or NOS inhibitor (L-NAME).10,16–18 To better understand local UBF and eNOS regulation, we developed a unilateral model of pregnancy by isolating one uterine horn (nongravid), so that pregnancy is restricted only to the other horn (gravid) throughout gestation.19,20 UA endothelial cells from pregnant ewes (P-UAECs)21 have sustained excitatory eNOS phosphorylation at serine 635 (P635) with ATP treatment, suggesting that this site is an important index of eNOS activity.22,23 A better understanding of in vivo regulation of eNOS activation is important for deciphering gestational regulation of UBF. For instance, the frictional force of flowing blood that is exerted on the endothelium, shear stress, is a very potent powerful physiological stimulus of endothelial NO production and needs additional scrutiny in the UAs in vivo24,25
Emerging literature has defined important interactions between Gap junctions and NO signaling for the development of hypertension.26 Various connexin (Cx) isoforms have been reported in vascular smooth muscle (VSM)27 and endometrium.28 Cx43, but not Cx37 or 40, was detectable in passage 4 P-UAECs and we showed that when Cx43 Gap junction channels were blocked with Gap27 (a Cx43-specific extracellular loop mimetic peptide), normal pregnancy-associated Ca2+ bursts and eNOS activation upon ATP stimulation were abrogated.29
We hypothesize that associated with physiological rises in UBF and UA shear stress, ex vivo expressions of UAendo and UAvsm Gap junction proteins are elevated during pregnancy versus the nonpregnant luteal and follicular phase, and that restricting pregnancy to a single uterine horn only induces local unilateral ipsilateral increases in UBF, UA shear stress, and UAendo/UAvsm Cx expression. We evaluated (1) UBF, UA shear stress, and expressions of Cx37/Cx43 in UAs (endo versus VSM), as well as UAendo serine P635 and total eNOS during the ovarian cycle and pregnancy; (2) if changes in UBF, UA shear stress, and Cx/eNOS expressions are unilaterally and locally specific to the gravid uterine vascular bed or also noted in systemic (omental artery [OA] and renal artery [RA]) arteries; and (3) if Cx37 or Cx43 ex vivo are functionally responsible for modulating Ca2+-induced NO production by UAendo during gestation.
Materials and Methods
See the online-only Data Supplement.
Animal Ethical Approval
We used 54 multiparous ewes (Ovis aries). Protocols were approved by the Animal Care and Use Committee.
Tissue Collection and Ex Vivo Endothelium Versus VSM Isolation
Nonsurvival surgery was performed on nonpregnant (luteal, n=8; follicular, n=8), unilateral pregnant (nongravid versus gravid sides, n=15), and control pregnant (n=23) groups. Using transonic flow probes, bilateral UBF was determined,16,25 and arteries were obtained and frozen. Endothelial-isolated proteins from UAendo, OAendo, RAendo, and adjacent VSM11–15 were prepared. Western analysis was performed using Cx37, Cx43, P635eNOS, and total eNOS antibodies.
Calculation of Shear Stress
Shear stress was calculated using 4 Qη/πr3, where Q is UBF, η is viscosity, and r is radius.25
Simultaneous In Situ Measurement of [Ca]2+i and NO in Intact UAendo
[Ca]2+i and NO imaging were performed using fura-2-acetoxymethyl ester (AM) and diaminofluorescein (DAF)-2 diacetate29 comparing control versus ATP (100 μmol/L) treatments with or without (43, 37)Gap27 (300 μmol/L) to inhibit Cx43 Gap junctions. Additional control (40, 37)Gap26 and scrambled Gap27 were evaluated.
Statistical Analysis
ANOVA was performed (luteal, follicular, nongravid unilateral, gravid unilateral, and pregnant) followed by comparisons using protected Fisher least significant difference. Regression analyses were performed to determine the highest order (linear, quadratic, etc; Table S1 in the online-only Data Supplement) regression models among UBF, Cxs, and eNOS. Data are reported as mean±SEM (P<0.05).
UBF and Shear Stress
When compared with luteal UBF (21.8±1.4 mL/min), perfusion was elevated to 51.1±5.4 and 42.4±8.9 mL/min during the follicular phase and to the nongravid side of the unilateral pregnant ewes. UBF to unilateral gravid and control pregnant horns were equal (850±74 and 838±68 mL/min) and greater than nonpregnant and unilateral nongravid groups. When compared with luteal (4.1±0.35 dynes/cm2), follicular phase (8.0±0.85 dynes/cm2) and unilateral nongravid (6.4±1.76 dynes/cm2) shear stresses were elevated. Shear stress in both the unilateral gravid and the control pregnant groups was equal and significantly elevated (21.5±3.77 and 25.2±1.96 dynes/cm2; Figure 1).
Cx37 and Cx43 Expression in UAendo and UAvsm
UAendo Cx37 remained unchanged and relatively low in follicular and unilateral nongravid groups (2.1±0.8- and 1.5±0.5-fold of luteal; Figure 2A). UAendo Cx37 in the unilateral gravid and control pregnant groups was, respectively, 6.4±2.0- and 10.3±1.6-fold higher than luteal and greater than follicular and unilateral nongravid groups. UAendo Cx43 levels remained unchanged and were relatively low in nonpregnant follicular and unilateral nongravid groups (3.2±0.9- and 5.1±1.0-fold). Unlike Cx37, UAendo Cx43 levels were elevated similarly in the unilateral gravid (21.3±4.1-fold) and control pregnant groups (25.8±4.7-fold). UAendo Cx43 was correlated (P<0.001) more so than Cx37 with UBF (Figure S1A and S1B).
Follicular UAvsm Cx37 had intermediary values (2.2±1.8-fold) when compared with either nonpregnant luteal or unilateral nongravid groups (Figure 2B). The unilateral nongravid group was elevated 6.8±2.1-fold. UAvsm Cx37 was elevated similarly in the unilateral gravid and control pregnant animals 13.4±2.5- and 12.5±2.2-fold. UAvsm Cx43 was elevated in the unilateral nongravid, gravid, and pregnant groups 4.7±1.3-, 5.7±1.1-, and 5.8±1.3-fold, respectively. Follicular UAvsm Cx43 had intermediary values (3.2±1.1-fold) similar to the other 4 groups. UAvsm Cx37 was correlated (P<0.001) more so than Cx43 with UBF (Figure S1C and S1D).
Cx37 and Cx43 Expression in OAendo and RAendo
OAendo Cx37, OAendo Cx43, and RAendo Cx37 remained unchanged (Figure S2). RAendo Cx43 was lower in the unilateral group (P<0.012).
Cx37 and Cx43 Expression in OAvsm and RAvsm
OAvsm Cx37 and Cx43 were unchanged except Cx43 was elevated in pregnant controls (Figure S3). RAvsm Cx37 was decreased in follicular, unilateral, and pregnants. RAvsm Cx43 levels were similar among the 4 groups.
P635eNOS and Total eNOS Expression in UAendo, OAendo, and RAendo
Levels of the UAendo excitatory eNOS phosphorylation site P635 were relatively low and remained unchanged in the follicular and unilateral nongravids (2.4±0.8- and 1.1±0.4-fold; Figure 3A). UAendo P635eNOS levels were elevated 3.8±0.7- and 3.3±0.6-fold in the unilateral gravid and pregnant groups, respectively, which were greater than unilateral nongravid but not the folliculars (0.1>P>0.05). UAendo total eNOS for follicular and unilateral nongravids averaged 1.9±0.8- and 0.3±0.1-fold and was equally elevated in unilateral gravid (4.6±1.0-fold) and pregnants (2.9±0.6-fold). UAendo Cx37 and Cx43 were highly correlated with either UAendo P635eNOS or total eNOS more so in the unilateral gravid (P<0.007) than in the pregnant controls (Figure S4). OAendo P635eNOS remained unchanged in follicular and unilateral groups (1.4±0.4- and 1.1±0.15-fold; Figure 3B) but was elevated 3.0±0.6-fold in pregnant controls. OAendo total eNOS levels remained low in the follicular and unilateral groups (1.9±0.8- and 0.7±0.1-fold) and was elevated 5.8±1.5-fold in pregnant controls. RAendo P635eNOS and total eNOS levels did not change among the 4 groups (Figure 3C).
Simultaneous Ex Vivo Imaging of [Ca]2+i and NO in UAendo
To determine the role of Gap junctions on ATP-induced periodic [Ca]2+i bursts and rapid oscillations in UAendo (Figure 4), (43, 37)Gap2729 was used to interrupt Gap junction communication. Pretreatment (3 hours) with (43, 37)Gap27 had little effect on the ATP-induced maximal [Ca]2+i height or incidence of the initial [Ca]2+i peak but abrogated long-term [Ca]2+i bursts and oscillation responses. Because (43, 37)Gap27 (sequence SRPTEKTIFII) inhibits Cx43 and Cx37, we established peptide specificity using (40, 37)Gap26 (specific to Cx40 and Cx37; n=5; Figure 4) or (43, 37 scramble peptide)Gap27 (n=2).29 UAendo (43, 37)Gap27 treatment, not the other peptides, specifically blunted both overall NO production and maximum UAendo NO production rate by 49%.
Consistent with previous reports,2,10,16,17 follicular phase and late gestation UBFs were elevated. Restricting pregnancy to a single uterine horn19,20 only showed increased ipsilateral UBF possibly because of pregnancy-specific uterine adaptations to local endogenous hormone secretion (eg, estrogen, VEGF). Although there was a 25% to 50% reduction in total number of placentomes,19 UBF to the gravid unilateral and control pregnant horns was equal as reported in another study30 in which 1 horn was ligated on day 5 of pregnancy; however, they did not measure nongravid UBF. The mechanism(s) how UBF equilibrates in this unilateral model versus pregnant controls are important, even more so under the limited uterine tissue available before conception. One of the most potent mechanisms for controlling vasodilator production and vascular remodeling is laminar shear stress.24,25,31 We report the first in vivo estimates of ovine UA shear stress showing that it was substantially and equally elevated to the unilateral gravid and in control pregnancy. The pregnancy-induced fold change of UBF was greater than that of shear stress demonstrating that shear stress is normalized during pregnancy mainly because of the increase in UA radius but to a lesser extent reductions in viscosity (online-only Data Supplement).25 Shear stress is a very powerful physiological stimulator of eNOS25,31 and P635 eNOS,32 suggesting that NO produced by UAendo via local/unilateral increases in UA shear stress helps drive increases in UBF.
This is the first report showing that Cx37 and Cx43 are highly expressed and elevated in UAendo by pregnancy. Previously, we did not detect Cx37 in cultured P-UAECs and Cx43 showed equal expression in nonpregnant (NP)-UAECs and P-UAECs.29 Thus, Cx37 expression is lost and Cx43 is reduced by the fourth passage in culture. Alternatively, the observed UAendo Cx37 could be derived from another cell type present in the endothelial-isolated enriched tunica intimal proteins (eg, pericytes), which were removed during the UAEC isolation processes.15,21 Consistent with other vascular beds,33 we also noted significant UAvsm expression of Cx37 and Cx43. UAvsm Cx37 and Cx43 were elevated by the follicular phase but even more so by pregnancy; both are physiological states of high estrogen.2,5,10,12,16 The unilateral nongravid side also showed elevations in UAvsm Cx37 and Cx43, demonstrating that systemic circulating hormones (eg, estrogen) may partly regulate VSM Cxs. Myometrial Cx43 is upregulated when endogenous estrogen is elevated, and Cx43 is categorized as a contraction-associated protein increased in labor when the estrogen/progesterone ratio is high.34 Pregnancy-associated Cx37 was increased equally in UAendo and UAvsm (10.3- and 12.5-fold), suggesting that Cx37 synthesis may be coregulated for forming myoendothelial Gap junctions between UAendo and UAvsm.27,35 By contrast, pregnancy-induced Cx43 increases were much greater in UAendo than in UAvsm (25.5- and 5.8-fold).
Consistent with previous reports,9,11–15 we observed that UAendo total eNOS is elevated during the follicular phase and pregnancy reporting for the first time that surgically induced unilateral gravid, but not nongravid UAendo, had increases in eNOS expression. Stimulatory phosphorylation serine 635, an index of enzyme activity in UAendo,22,23 is also elevated unilaterally by pregnancy, suggesting that both expression capacity and activity of eNOS are increased. In addition, we observed pregnancy-associated adaptations in the nonreproductive OAendo, which showed increases in both P635 eNOS and total eNOS, the latter confirming our previous observation.15 This suggests a systemic OAendo adaptation to a vasorelaxation phenotype consistent with studies demonstrating that systemic and uterine resistance vessels show greater endothelium and NO-mediated vasorelaxation in pregnant versus nonpregnant rats36 and women.37
Using least squares regression analysis, we defined significant relationships between UA Cxs with UBF or eNOS. Cx37 or Cx43 relative to UBF (Figure S1) data points for pregnant controls and the unilateral gravid sides clustered in very similar patterns. Moreover, UBF was maintained in the unilateral model similar to that observed in the pregnant controls even though overall uterine space and tissue mass were reduced. R2 values for UAendo Cx37 and Cx 43 with UBF were 0.48 and 0.60, respectively, demonstrating a stronger relationship for UAendo Cx43 to regulate UBF. In contrast, UAvsm Cx37, not Cx43, showed a strong a relationship with UBF; R2 values of 0.43 and 0.18, respectively, suggesting that UAvsm Cx37 may, in part, be regulating vascular growth and remodeling.2,38 Correlations of UAendo Cx43 with P635eNOS and total eNOS were highly significant and greater than UAendo Cx37 (Figure S4). Within the gravid unilaterals, this relationship was greatly improved, demonstrating that Cx43 and eNOS are more correlated with the gravid side of the pregnancy (ie, R2 values increased to 0.43 for P635eNOS and 0.47 for total eNOS independent of the substantially lower control pregnant data points). Thus, UAendo Cx43, but not Cx37, has an intimate positive association with P635eNOS and total eNOS. This suggests that UBF maintenance, even in the face of greatly reduced uterine space, is adaptive via an eNOS mechanism to maintain UA delivery of nutrients and oxygen for fetal growth.
The current physiological functional ex vivo data showing that Cx43, but not Cx37, was a prerequisite requirement for ATP-mediated Ca2+ burst–associated NO production are consistent with our observations in passage 4 P-UAECs, but not NP-UAECs.29 Gap27, a Cx (43, 37)–specific peptide, did not alter the initial peak of calcium but reduced subsequent Ca2+ bursts seen on ATP treatment. As recently described,39 the ATP-stimulated [Ca]2+i response in individual UAendo cells is composed of an initial peak followed by transient calcium bursts that are required for the simultaneous and robust production of NO. We show herein that the ATP-stimulated pregnancy programmed burst pattern for Ca2+-mediated NO production was specifically abrogated by pretreatment with (43, 37)Gap27, but not (40, 37)Gap26, or scrambled Gap27. Moreover, (43, 37)Gap27 pretreatment of UAendo from pregnancy converted ATP-stimulated Ca2+ and NO responses to ones that were identical to those we previously observed from nonpregnant luteal or follicular UAendo.39
Gap junctions have a role in regulating vasodilatory pathways that modulate numerous cardiovascular functions, which when dysfunctional contribute to hypertension. The connection among endothelial dysfunction, reduced NO biosynthesis, and reduced UBF in preeclampsia was previously noted.4,6,7,9 We show the normal physiological rises in UBF and UA shear stress, Cx43, and eNOS are increased via local mechanisms only in the uterine vessels adjacent to the uterine horn that contain a fetoplacental unit. Understanding the mechanisms regulating UA function gives us greater understanding of the specific mechanisms controlling normal UBF during gestation which may function abnormally in preeclampsia. Mechanisms controlling UBF may be modulated by local steroid hormones or growth factors produced by the placenta, locally secreted into the uterine venous blood and reaching the tissues via arterial-venous shunts or the lymphatic drainage to cause unilateral vasodilation and vascular remodeling. We reported that UA endothelial ATP-induced eNOS activation and NO production is Ca2+ mediated and has an obligatory requirement for Cx43. Thus, even in conditions of uterine space limitations and placental insufficiency, uterine perfusion is partly maintained at control levels via the coregulation of Cx43 and eNOS for more robust NO production. The end result is to maintain UBF for nutrient and oxygen delivery and thus fetal growth in an albeit comprised in utero environment.
We thank S.O. Jobe, M.B. Pastore, M.Y. Sun, T.M. Phernetton, J.L. Austin, K.M. Grindle, and T. Taylor. This work was partial fulfillment of T.J.M.'s MS degree for the Endocrinology/Reproductive Physiology Training Program.
Sources of Funding
This work was supported by National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants HL49210, HL87144, HD38843, HL117341 (R.R. Magness), AA19446 (J. Ramadoss), and HL079020 (I.M. Bird).
Novelty and Significance
What Is New?
The Gap junction protein, Cx43, is crucial for local Ca2+-mediated eNOS activation and NO production by uterine artery endothelium. We demonstrated an important physiological mechanistic role for connexins and elevations in uterine artery shear stress to maintain uterine perfusion via NO during pregnancy.
What Is Relevant?
Preeclampsia with intrauterine growth restriction is a disorder of pregnancy seen in 5% to 13% of gestations and is associated with reduced uterine blood flow causing significant maternal and fetal morbidity and mortality, as well as greater susceptibility and earlier onset of future cardiovascular disease in both the mother and the baby.
In gravid uterine endothelium, we demonstrated that uterine artery shear stress, endothelial Cx43, and eNOS are locally elevated and that the gap junction protein Cx43 is crucial for Ca2+-mediated eNOS activation. These data demonstrate an important physiological mechanistic role for connexins in regulating the increases in ovine uterine blood flow during pregnancy that is needed for fetal development.
Current address for J.R.: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston.
The online-only Data Supplement is available with this article at http://hyper.ahajournals.org/lookup/suppl/doi:10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.113.01171/-/DC1.
- Received February 7, 2013.
- Revision received April 2, 2013.
- Accepted November 20, 2013.
- © 2013 American Heart Association, Inc.
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- Local Effects of Pregnancy on Connexin Proteins That Mediate Ca2+-Associated Uterine Endothelial NO SynthesisTimothy J. Morschauser, Jayanth Ramadoss, Jill M. Koch, Fu Xian Yi, Gladys E. Lopez, Ian M. Bird and Ronald R. MagnessHypertension. 2014;63:589-594, originally published February 12, 2014https://doi.org/10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.113.01171
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- Local Effects of Pregnancy on Connexin Proteins That Mediate Ca2+-Associated Uterine Endothelial NO SynthesisTimothy J. Morschauser, Jayanth Ramadoss, Jill M. Koch, Fu Xian Yi, Gladys E. Lopez, Ian M. Bird and Ronald R. MagnessHypertension. 2014;63:589-594, originally published February 12, 2014https://doi.org/10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.113.01171


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Bozeman, MT – Conservation groups, represented by Earthjustice, served notice that they will file a court challenge to the federal government's removal of Endangered Species Act (ESA) protections for Wyoming wolves. Earthjustice is representing Defenders of Wildlife, Center for Biological Diversity, Natural Resources Defense Council, and Sierra Club in this action.
This announcement by the conservation groups comes on the heels of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's decision to turn wolf management in Wyoming over to state officials, despite the fact that Wyoming's wolf management policies open the door to unlimited wolf killing throughout most of the state and provide inadequate protection for wolves even where killing is regulated. The Fish and Wildlife Service publicly announced the ESA delisting of wolves in Wyoming on August 31, 2012, but the agency's delisting rule was not officially published in the Federal Register until this morning.
"Wyoming's wolf management plan is poor policy, weak in its protection of wolves, and is based on flimsy science," said Franz Camenzind, a retired Ph.D. wildlife biologist who lives in the Jackson Hole area. "Wyoming's plan sets a very disturbing precedent for other states by abdicating management responsibility of a native wildlife species over nearly 90 percent of the state."
The conservation groups who plan to challenge the federal government's abandonment of wolf protection in Wyoming offered the following statements on today's action:
"Wyoming's anti‐wolf policies take the state backward, to the days when wolf massacres nearly wiped out wolves in the lower‐48 states. Our nation rejected such predator extermination efforts when we adopted the Endangered Species Act," said Earthjustice attorney Jenny Harbine. "The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has turned its back on Wyoming wolves, but we intend to ask the federal courts to make sure that wolves on the border of Yellowstone—our nation's first national park—have the protections they need to thrive."
"We will not stand by while the Obama administration allows Wyoming to eradicate wolves through an extreme shoot‐on‐sight predator policy across most of the state," said Mike Senatore, vice president of conservation law for Defenders of Wildlife. "It's extremely disheartening to watch the Obama administration unravel one of our country's great Endangered Species Act success stories by turning over the conservation of wolves to states such as Wyoming and Idaho that treat these animals like unwanted vermin."
"Removal of Endangered Species Act protections for Wyoming's wolves is a disaster for the state's wolf population and for recovery of wolves to Colorado and other parts of the west," said Noah Greenwald, endangered species director with the Center for Biological Diversity. "Like past versions of Wyoming's wolf plan that were rejected by the Fish and Wildlife Service, the current plan fails to ensure the long-term survival and recovery of the state's gray wolves. Today's decision to remove protections for Wyoming's wolves fails to rely on best science and represents the worst kind of political intrusion by Secretary Salazar into management of an endangered species."
"This plan allows Wyoming to manage wolves at the razor's edge of an already low number of wolves," said Sylvia Fallon, senior scientist at the Natural Resources Defense Council. "It fails to adequately regulate the kill‐on‐sight practices that drove wolves to endangerment in the first place. And it stands as yet another lost opportunity on the part of Fish and Wildlife Service to provide the leadership necessary to secure a legally and scientifically defensible delisting plan for wolves."
"Wyoming's plan is a wolf killing plan, not a management plan. It is essentially the same plan that has been rejected before because of the devastating impacts it would have on wolves in Wyoming and throughout the Northern Rockies. Allowing it to move forward now for political reasons could reverse one of the greatest endangered species recovery success stories of all time," said Bonnie Rice of the Sierra Club's Greater Yellowstone Resilient Habitats Campaign. "We need a return to the sound, science-based management practices that have for decades brought iconic animals back from the brink of extinction."


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NASCAR at Sonoma 2014: Complete Preview and Prediction for Save Mart 350June 19, 2014
NASCAR at Sonoma 2014: Complete Preview and Prediction for Save Mart 350
If you're looking for something different in NASCAR, the Save Mart 350 at Sonoma is the race for you. Sonoma is one of only two NASCAR Sprint Cup races on a road course. With 12 turns and frequent hills, it's a different test for drivers.
Located in California wine country, this race tends to favor the veteran drivers who have had more time to get used to road courses in their career.
This year, points leader Jeff Gordon will be trying to win a record sixth title at Sonoma. Other former champions—including Jimmie Johnson, Kurt Busch, Clint Bowyer and Martin Truex Jr.—will try to beat No. 24 to the finish line.
Here's everything you need to know about the ups, downs, twists and turns coming up in Sonoma.
By the Numbers: Sonoma Raceway
Place: Sonoma Raceway
Date: Sunday, June 22
Time: 3 p.m. ET
TV: TNT, 2 p.m. ET (Countdown to Green pre-race show)
Radio: Performance Racing Network (PRN), SiriusXM Ch. 90
Distance: 219 miles (110 laps)
Defending Race Winner: Martin Truex Jr.
Defending Pole Winner: Jamie McMurray
Race Record: Clint Bowyer, Toyota, 83.624 mph, 06-24-12
Qualifying Record: Marcos Ambrose, Ford, 95.262 mph, 06-22-12
Races Won from the Pole: Five
Last Race Won from the Pole: Jeff Gordon (2004)
Youngest Sonoma Pole Winner: Joey Logano (06/26/2011—21 years, 1 month, 2 days)
Oldest Sonoma Pole Winner: Rusty Wallace (06/25/2000—43 years, 10 months, 11 days)
Youngest Sonoma Winner: Kyle Busch (06/22/2008—23 years, 1 month, 20 days)
Oldest Sonoma Winner: Ricky Rudd (06/23/2002—45 years, 9 months, 11 days)
All-Time Winner: Jeff Gordon (five)
Key Storylines
Can Hendrick Motorsports Keep Its Streak Going?
Hendrick Motorsports drivers have won the last five races on the Sprint Cup schedule, and after last week's race, Nate Ryan of USA Today wrote, "Hendrick Motorsports seemed miles ahead of the competition Sunday at Michigan International Speedway."
The team will come to Sonoma looking to keep that winning feeling alive. The in-house engine program at Hendrick has given the team the horsepower advantage, but the road course at Sonoma is more about skill than speed.
However, Hendrick driver Jimmie Johnson is on a hot streak, having won three of the last four races, including last week's race in Michigan. Johnson wasn't great at road courses early in his career, but he has had a lot more success recently, finishing in the top 10 at Sonoma for the last five years, including a win in 2010.
The best bet from Hendrick is Jeff Gordon, who currently leads the Sprint Cup standings. He is the most successful driver in the history of the Sonoma Raceway, with five wins.
Can an Inexperienced Driver Break Through?
Road courses tend to favor experienced drivers, and Sonoma is no different. It's been five years since someone in his 20s won the Save Mart 350, and that was 29-year-old Kasey Kahne back in 2009.
This year, 2013 Rookie of the Year Kyle Larson will be looking to finally drive into Victory Lane. Larson is eighth in the standings and has three top-five finishes and seven top-10s this year. The 21-year-old is the best candidate for stopping the trend of veteran winners at Sonoma.
Can a Past Champion Repeat?
From 1998 to 2006, Jeff Gordon or Tony Stewart won seven of the nine races at Sonoma. Since 2007, there have been different winners each year. As mentioned above, Gordon has five wins at Sonoma but none since 2006. He's having a great season so far and will try to get back to the winner's circle on Sunday.
Stewart will be looking to win his third title, while Martin Truex Jr. will be seeking to defend his win from last year. Other past champions in the field include Johnson, Kahne, Clint Bowyer, Kurt Busch and Kyle Busch.
Drivers to Watch
Jimmie Johnson
Johnson had a slow start to 2014, failing to win any race until last month at the Coca-Cola 600.
But since the floodgates have opened, Johnson has been on fire. He's won three of his last four races and finished in the top 10 in his past five.
He's already up to No. 2 in the Sprint Cup standings and is nipping at his teammate Jeff Gordon's heels. Johnson won at Sonoma in 2010, but road courses aren't his specialty. Still, never count him out.
Kurt Busch
Busch has finished in the top five at Sonoma for the past three years, winning the race in 2011.
Now with Stewart-Haas racing, the 35-year-old is currently No. 26 in the standings, winning in Martinsville for the first time since 2002 and finishing third earlier this month at the Pocono 400.
His recent success at Sonoma means he's one to look out for.
Tony Stewart
Stewart has two wins at Sonoma, in 2001 and 2005, and has seven top-10 finishes at the course in his career.
He only has two top-five finishes and no victories this season, but with seven road-course wins in his career, the 43-year-old should definitely be viewed as a contender on this tricky track.
History of Sonoma Raceway
Opened in 1968, the Sonoma Raceway is a 2.52-mile road course and drag strip located about 30 miles north of San Francisco. Formerly known as Sears Point Raceway, it was built on 720 acres of land that used to belong to a dairy farm.
The road course features 12 turns and extreme hills, with 160 feet of total elevation change throughout. It is one of only two NASCAR Sprint Cup races that is held on a road course.
Ricky Rudd won the first NASCAR Sprint Cup race at the track back in 1989. Then, the race was 300 kilometers, but it was lengthened to 350 kilometers in 1998.
Gordon holds many course records, including the most wins (five) and consecutive wins (three). His start at Sonoma this weekend will be his 22nd at the course, which will be a course record, according to the Miami Herald. He's currently tied at 21 starts with Bobby Labonte, Terry Labonte and Mark Martin, but they aren't racing this weekend.
Marcos Ambrose
Despite all of the focus on Hendrick Motorsports this week, Ambrose is the odds-on favorite to win this race.
The 37-year-old is one of the best road-course drivers in the Sprint Cup series, with five top-eight finishes at Sonoma and two wins at the other NASCAR road course, Watkins Glen.
Jeff Gordon
Gordon's form this season and his historical success at Sonoma cannot be overlooked.
The 24 is a big threat to win his sixth race at Sonoma, which would be his first since 2006. The 42-year-old Sprint Cup points leader has recently added a new primary sponsor and shows no signs of slowing down.
Kevin Harvick
Harvick won at Watkins Glen in 2006 and has had good career results at Sonoma. He's finished in the top 10 three out of the past four years and was the runner-up in 2006.
The 38-year-old was incredibly frustrated with himself after winning the pole in Michigan and yet finishing in second place, so he will surely be a man on a mission this weekend in California.
Dark-Horse Pick
Clint Bowyer is a little bit under the radar right now, with no wins since 2012 and only two top-five finishes this season. But don't count him out at Sonoma.
Bowyer has had a lot of triumphs at this race in the past, finishing in the top five for the last three years and winning in 2012. His average finish at the race is 9.1, which is only bested by Gordon's 8.2.
According to Paddock Talk, the 35-year-old feels like his season is headed in the right direction as he heads to California:
The good news is that here lately we've really kind of got our feet back underneath us and got some consistency back. Really honed in on a 'B' right now. Got some room to improve, which is always good. More importantly, just like the direction that we're headed. We finally got our feet underneath us and hit our stride. That's good because we're out of mulligan's.
Qualifying Recap
Jamie McMurray will sit on the pole for the Save Mart 350 for the second straight year after winning qualifying Saturday morning at Sonoma Raceway.
McMurray, who set the course record with a speed of 76.350 miles per hour, made his one and only run in the final qualifying session in the last minutes of the 10-minute round. He'll be looking for his first NASCAR Sprint Cup victory since last October at Talladega.
Finishing in second place was AJ Allmendinger, who is still seeking his first-ever race victory, while third place went to Kyle Larson. McMurray and Larson give the Chip Ganassi team two of the top three drivers heading into Sunday's 3 p.m. ET race.
All 43 drivers began in the first 30-minute qualifying session, but only 12 moved on to take another shot at the 1.99-mile road course. Team Hendricks, which has been dominating the circuit the last few weeks, failed to send any drivers into the finals.
Marcos Ambrose and Jeff Gordon, two of the most accomplished road-course drivers in the field, both failed to make the final 12.
---Update by Brian Pedersen---
As tempting as it is to choose Jeff Gordon based on his career success at Sonoma, or Jimmie Johnson because he's won three of the last four races, I'm going with the oddsmakers on this one and picking Marcos Ambrose.
Ambrose is right at home on the road courses, and considering he currently sits 23rd in the Sprint Cup standings, he knows that he needs to win Sonoma if he wants to qualify for the Chase for the Sprint Cup.
Since the 37-year-old's contract with Richard Petty Motorsports is up at the end of the year and he has never qualified for the Chase before, Ambrose will have no lack of motivation.
Jerry Bonkowski of NBC Sports reports that Ambrose has prepared well and is focused in on this road course:
We know that the race here this weekend and in Watkins Glen, the two road races, are our best chance to win a race this year. That will automatically lock us into the Chase. Clearly there's a lot to race for at these two tracks for us.
We've put a lot of energy and effort into Sonoma. We went out there and did the Goodyear tire test earlier in the season. We've done some road course testing as well, so we feel we're as ready as we can be.
So while NASCAR's more high-profile drivers will try to keep Ambrose from celebrating, look for Richard Petty Motorsports' No. 9 car to cruise to victory.


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James Christopher Wilson
877-471-0048 (Toll Free)
J. Christopher (Chris) Wilson was born and raised in Bamberg, South Carolina. Chris is the first of three brothers born to lifelong Bamberg residents Jimmy and Garnett Wilson. His father Jimmy worked in quality control for over 30 years, and his mother Garnett taught school for over 40 years. They instilled in Chris the values of hard work, honesty, service and integrity – values he ascribes to in his law practice and everyday life.
Chris attended Bamberg public schools and graduated valedictorian from Bamberg-Ehrhardt High School in 1987. He then attended Wofford College where he graduated in 1991 with honors and as a Phi Beta Kappa inductee. While at Wofford College, Chris was active in numerous activities and service organizations and competed on Wofford's golf team.
Chris was admitted to the South Carolina Bar after receiving his Juris Doctorate degree from the University of South Carolina School of Law in 1994. Chris received several recognitions in Law School, including highest honors in Torts/Injury.
After Law School, he served as a Judicial Clerk for The Honorable Frank McGowan, South Carolina Circuit Court Judge. He then entered the private practice of law, working as an associate for the Bamberg law firm of Early & Ness until 1998 when he formed Wilson Law Firm. Later, he formed Wilson & Luginbill, LLC with Dan Luginbill.
Chris is an experienced attorney whose reputation for representing clients, including his trial work, is well known throughout South Carolina. He has an extensive practice focused primarily on personal injury claims.
Chris is married to Dana Price Wilson (formerly of Marion, SC) and has 3 children – Ansley, Graham and Price. In his spare time, he enjoys coaching youth sports, supporting his children's sporting events and school activities, volunteering on community boards and supporting local charities. Every once in a while, you can find him golfing – but not near as well as during his Wofford days.
Areas of Practice
- General Trial Practice
- Personal Injury (Wrecks, Med Mal, Work Comp, etc.)
- Trucking Accidents
- Motor Vehicle Accidents
- Wrongful Death
- Medical Malpractice/Nursing Home Neglect
- Products Liability
- Workers Compensation
- Criminal
- Insurance Bad Faith
- Traffic Violations
Bar Admissions
- South Carolina
- U.S. District Court District of South Carolina
- University of South Carolina School of Law, Columbia, South Carolina
- Wofford College, Spartanburg, South Carolina
- Honors: magna cum laude
- Honors: Phi Beta Kappa
- Major: Mathematics
Honors and Awards
- AIOPIA 10 Best Client Satisfaction Award
- Eagle Scout, Boy Scouts of America
Professional Associations and Memberships
- South Carolina Bar Association, 1994 - Present
- South Carolina Association for Justice, 2000 - Present
Past Employment Positions
- Hon. Frank McGowan, Circuit Judge, Clerk, 1994 - 1995
- Early & Ness Law Firm, Associate Attorney, 1995 - 1998
- Wilson Law Firm Attorney, Owner, 1998 - 2010
Pro Bono Activities
- Youth Sports League Coach
- Keep Bamberg County Beautiful Board, Chair
- TriCounty Alcohol and Drug Abuse Commission Board, Member
- Boy Scouts of America, Leader
- Skyhawk Board, Member
- Former Board Member, Southern Carolina Alliance Economic Development
- Former Board Member, Lower Savannah Council of Government Transportation Committee
Ancillary Businesses
- Member, Bamberg County Council (District One Elected Representative 2000 to January 1, 2013)


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Top Home Furnishings Retailer to Leverage IQ Intelligence Suite for Online and Offline Media Optimization
Needham, Mass. – March 11, 2014 - Visual IQ, the leading cross channel marketing attribution software provider, today announced that it has been selected as the exclusive marketing attribution provider for Euromarket Designs, Inc. (DBA Crate and Barrel), a multi-channel home furnishers retailer wholly owned by Otto GbmH. The brand will deploy the company's IQ Intelligence Suite to measure and optimize marketing spend across its myriad of online and offline marketing channels.
Like many retailers today, Crate and Barrel is no longer simply a brick-and-mortar operation; in addition to its 86 retail locations, the retailer sells a considerable variety of goods through its direct mail catalog and online e-commerce website. Though sales remain strong in each of these channels, the customer path to purchase is often extremely complex and poses a major challenge to track and measure. Crate and Barrel turned to Visual IQ to help understand if and how their marketing efforts are contributing to sales across each channel, as well as where they should be allocating future spend to maximize their budget and drive greater revenue.
Visual IQ's robust attribution management solution determines how much fractional credit should be given to each marketing touchpoint that contributes to a conversion, regardless of where the ultimate conversion occurs. By implementing the IQ Intelligence Suite, Crate and Barrel will be able to understand the intricate mix of channels, campaigns and tactics driving sales, and with this insight, optimize their media spend toward the marketing mix that will be most effective. The retailer will utilize both the IQ Envoy and IQ Sage products to manage marketing data and incorporate attribution recommendations into both its online and offline media planning and buying efforts, including direct mail, display advertising, paid and organic search and more.
Following a very competitive selection process, Crate and Barrel chose Visual IQ due to its technical capabilities in and proven experience with combining both online and offline marketing channels in its attribution modeling, which was a top criterion given the retailer's multiple sales channels and the multifaceted marketing mix that support them. The deployment will begin immediately across all of the retailer's U.S. marketing channels.
"In the era of bricks-and-clicks retailing, cross channel attribution is absolutely critical to understanding campaign effectiveness and maximizing media spend," said Manu Mathew, CEO and co-founder of Visual IQ. "Crate and Barrel has always been a trailblazer in the retail space and their decision to deploy attribution proves that pioneering spirit extends into their marketing efforts as well. We're excited to partner with them as they start this journey and begin to reap benefits."
Crate and Barrel is the latest in a long list of top U.S. retailers to select Visual IQ for their cross channel attribution needs. The IQ Intelligence Suite currently manages more than $6 billion in advertising spend on behalf of its clients, which include seven of the top 10 U.S. advertisers and two of the largest three advertising agencies in the world.
Visual IQ produces the world's most powerful cross channel marketing attribution software products. As a pioneer in the space, the company has been offering products since 2006. Its SaaS-based IQ Intelligence Suite reveals cross channel performance insights hidden deep within companies' marketing data, providing actionable recommendations and optimized media plans to improve marketing effectiveness. These recommendations enable marketers and agencies to adjust their advertising strategies and tactics to significantly increase marketing ROI across their entire marketing mix – both online and offline. The functionality behind these products combines a powerful, user-friendly interface with multi-dimensional fractional attribution science and predictive analytics that clearly and accurately show marketers where opportunities exist for improvement.
Visual IQ was named a leader in both interactive attribution and cross channel attribution by a leading market research firm in 2012, a finalist in the Best Sales & Marketing Intelligence Software category of the 2013 and 2014 CODiE Awards, and a finalist in the Most Influential Agency/Vendor category of the 2013 and 2014 Digital Analytics Association Excellence Awards. The company is a member of the Advertising Technology, Data, Public Policy and CFO Councils of the IAB, as well as on the Standards Committee of the Digital Analytics Association.


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The nation is three decades removed from the tragic events of May 4, 1970, when a confrontation between Ohio National Guard troops and demonstrators left four Kent State University students dead and nine wounded.
As part of the 30th commemoration of May 4, KSU will look to the future as well as the past by hosting a multidisciplinary symposium that will explore the limits of freedom of expression in American society.
"We cannot be content to only look to the past and mourn the dead," said Kent State President Carol A. Cartwright. "We have a responsibility to celebrate their lives by teaching the nation the value of civility, tolerance and civic duty. This year, as we enter the new century, we have a unique opportunity to emphasize the future and the values on which our democracy is based."
The symposium, "The Boundaries of Freedom of Expression and Order in a Democratic Society," will be held May 1-2 in Kent State's Student Center. The program will include three internationally known keynote speakers, and the presentation and discussion of nine papers, selected from more than 100 submitted.
Speakers will be Kathleen M. Sullivan, dean of the Stanford Law School, speaking on the past and present of freedom of expression in the United States, at 7:30 p.m., May 1; Cass Sunstein, the Karl N. Llewellyn Professor of Jurisprudence at the University of Chicago Law School, speaking on the future of freedom of expression, at 3:30 p.m., May 2; and Anthony Lewis, two-time Pulitzer Prize winning columnist for The New York Times, who will speak at a May 2 noon luncheon. The symposium is free and open to the public, although advance registration is required. To register or to obtain more information, check http:www.
The symposium is part of a series of programs coordinated by Kent State's 30th May 4 Commemoration Committee. The committee has selected as its theme "Experiencing Democracy: Inquire, Learn, Reflect." Activities on May 3-4 are coordinated by the May 4 Task Force, a student organization. For the most up-to-date information on all May 4-related activities, check www. May4.net or call 330-672-2727.
© 2015 Metro Monthly. All rights reserved.


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wearing white between Memorial Day and Labor Day was started according to the vacationing schedule of the elite, when there "was a dress code for practically every occasion." Those who could afford it would leave their homes behind and spend months at the sea or in the mountains, where they had a completely different type of wardrobe, including the light, bright white pieces often most associated with the summer months. When those fun-loving summer days were over, the white clothes were packed away and the people went back to their regular lives, having escaped the oppressive heat between the end of May and early September. Those white clothes that they loved during the summer months had no place in their "real life" wardrobes, so the cutoff for white clothing became Labor Day."
The elite created this rule to distinguish themselves from the "new rich" who were becoming more and more prosperous in large cities like New York. When they saw these women still dressed in white they knew that they were not part of the elite class and naturally made fun of them. This is why it became so VERY important to never be caught wearing white after Labor day.
My fashion advice has always been as follows:
1. Dress for the weather
2. Dress for the occasion.
3. Dress for comfort.
4. Dress for style.
White clothing should be chosen by the type of fabric. Denim is heavy so white jeans can be worn all year unless the weather is bad. It's difficult to get stains out of the hems of white pants so save them for sunny days. White linen is a warm weather fabric because it "breathes." It is usually thin so it doesn't work well in cold weather. White dinner jackets always look elegant and can be worn by men and women for semi-formal occasions. White shirts and blouses can be worn all year. White shoes don't work well in rain and or snow due to staining so save them for warm, dry months. I think white shoes make a woman's foot look larger. The exception is bridal shoes. I prefer "body match" shoes worn with all shades of white instead of trying to match white shoes to a garment. White hats are great for the Kentucky Oaks and Kentucky Derby because they don't absorb heat like black and other dark colored hats. White handbags are fine but they show dirt and pen marks very easily. White evening bags in satin, silk, beading or crystals are very pretty and should be stored in a protective bag. If you have fashion questions feel free to e-mail me at email@example.com


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What this is
A comparison of APR's Week 11 power rankings with ESPN's rankings for the same week of games. This acts as a sanity check (both ways) to see what teams are over- or underrated.
Only teams with the widest differential are listed. The number in parentheses is the difference between APR's rank and ESPN's rank.
Teams ESPN likes more than APR:
- Jets (+9)
- Another crushing road loss for the Jets brings their respective APR and ESPN rankings one place closer together. Maybe #25 is too low for a 5-5 team, but for a team that's 4-1 at home, they are really, really bad on the road.
- Colts (+7)
- APR and ESPN both hold the Colts steady on their bye week. Nothing to add beyond what I wrote last week about the Colts.
- On the bubble:
- Nobody closer than the Seahawks (+3)
Teams APR likes more than ESPN:
- On the bubble
- Nobody closer than the Cowboys (-5) and Giants (-5)


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Here's the deal. I secretly love going to Whole Foods… and it's a good thing too. For almost a year I went on weekly runs there because we needed lemongrass, personal pumpkins or seven tons of beet greens… well that, and I happened not to have a crippling fear of grocery stores. But luckily for all involved, former roommates included, my bark is worse than my bite…and as it turns out my bark was more for show than anything else. I'll go on record, right here and right now, and say that I love going to Whole Foods. I will be my loved ones' personal whole foods goer any day of the week!
There's something about its incredibly confusing and illogical layout that makes the veteran Whole Food shoppers relish the ease with which we turn down an aisle that would appear to contain only canned goods to find the tea leaves, pasta and rice. We also secretly cherish the forlorn and perplexed looks on the less seasoned shoppers' faces. Why would they put cereal so far away from the other grains and breads? Welcome to the next dimension, you're in our world now!
But I will say this: I will never return to Whole foods between the hours of 3pm and 8pm.
The 5-8pm timeframe makes sense. It's hectic and busy, people are off work and they are stopping in for things on the way home…. but 3-5pm? I'm not sure how to say this in a nice way, but it's when all hell breaks loose with the elderly customers. I won't pretend to understand why they've chosen this timeframe as their witching hour, but, mark my words, they're lurking.
I drove over to Whole Foods to pick up fresh thyme and gruyère… I actually stopped at the Dominick's on the corner of Fullerton and Sheffield, thinking: "What grocery store wouldn't carry a commonly used herb and some pretty ordinary cheese?" Well, I'll tell you who doesn't. It's Dominick's on the corner of Fullerton and Sheffield. You know, I don't know why I bother… I went there for lentils once and was disappointed then too.
But back to Whole Foods and the perils of shopping there between 3 and 5pm. I was waiting patiently for some lady in a minivan to pull out of her space. She was taking her sweet time unloading her cart. During this process, an older woman walked by with a bag which she loaded into the car parked directly besides where I was waiting. She made eye contact with me after shutting her trunk. The minivan's break lights came on as it prepared to emerge from its space. Just as Minivan starts backing out, I am startled by a new pair of break lights to my right. I think: she knows I'm here… though I secretly scan my surroundings. I can't pull up as Minivan is backing out. I can't reverse as someone else is right behind me. So I allow myself to trust that this fine elderly lady does indeed a) remember seeing my car as she walked right by me to hers b)remembers making eye contact with me as she shut her trunk and c) FREAKING SEE ME IN HER REARVIEW MIRROR.
None of the above turned out to be safe assumptions. She comes backing out of her space right into my car. Fortunately, I and two other people waiting for spaces honked in time for her to stop, but seriously. Who on EARTH renewed her driver's license? I want his or her name. I have an angry letter to write.
I've survived to tell the harrowing tale, so it's time to make my gougères using a ziplock bag as a pastry bag (sweet!) Update soon on those.
Enjoy the thunder storm, Chicago. I know I will.


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Aza's Meez
May 2, 2008 at 6:11 pm Leave a comment
Playing around with Meez… wanted to see how uploading her to the blog worked. Pretty painless and simple. She is set up to reflect changes in her appearance whenever I play with her. Online Barbie ftw!
Entry filed under: Aza's Meez. Tags: azareal, meez.
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Yes we love this game in and of itself, but we can appreciate the extra bonus of being a football fan at times like this. During Locker room post game interviews, Visanthe Shiancoe had a towel slip-up while the cameras were rolling and we are eternally grateful for it.
Female Football Fan's Dream
Posted by Eb the Celeb at 10:33 AM
Labels: NFL, Picture Play
3 comments:
- The NFL Chick said...
Ohhh... well.... *blushing* Umm.... can we get a name on that "face" LOL
- June 4, 2009 at 9:50 AM
- Kayos said...
Yeah well I saw this and of course a lot of good attributes don't show up on the field!
- June 4, 2009 at 10:57 AM
- DetroitRockCity said...
lawd jeesus!!!!!
- June 18, 2009 at 2:35 PM
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I am not a runner but my husband used to be. He explained the excitement of starting out fresh and full of energy. The beautiful brisk wind whisking across his face with each glide. The pace set and with every step, a reminder of what is passed and what is yet to come. Inner motivation chants, "You've got this. Stay focused. Keep the pace. Enjoy every moment." He reminds me of the rhythm that develops as you continue. But then after so much time, muscles feel fatigued, sweat clouds vision, and that inner voice screams "enough already!" Ahh, yes! He instructs that this is when one hits the proverbial "wall." He describes it by saying you just don't think you can go on anymore. A place where, despite all the training and preparing, you want to give up. It feels too hard.
When things are going smoothly in my walk with Christ and the call He has given me, I don't have to think about enduring. I'm good. I'm chanting, "This is fun! Let's do this thing!! Woohoo!!!" But then, time passes and the pavement becomes hot. I can feel it through the tread of my shoes. Hmm, what's this? I like cheering! I like jumping up and down. What's this and when is it over? Where's the party?
Hmmm, what was that my husband said? Oh, yes…runner…. meet…. wall. Enter the perseverance phase. Persevering is a term only used when we want to quit. This is when our faith becomes critical.
1 Peter 1:6-7 "In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith- of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire- may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory, and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed."
Perseverance is to produce more faith in us, not sabotage any faith we have. It is to give birth to a rising belief in Jesus Christ as we WAIT and watch how He provides and makes a way. How He strengthens us in the tarry of our labor- whether it is a troubled marriage, a difficult job or maybe recovering from a broken heart brought on by the forceful storms of life. Maybe we are facing a temptation and trying to hold our ground, recognizing that playing with fire will not only burn up our own peace of mind, but will affect others too. Sweet friends, we must persevere!! There is great glory at stake!! It is ever so close! Don't cave in!! Our Father reminds us of the fruitful harvest, if we will push through and not give up (Gal.6:9). He IS faithful. Let Him tell you what to think and what to do. Ask Him what hope means for a certain situation instead of defining it like you believe it to be. His Word holds true and His plan will prevail! The question is, "Will we persevere through to the end?"
But I want to look at another aspect of persevering. There are many things in life that God makes quite clear we will need to endure and then there are other things that He never asked us to take on. Yet we do and believe, because they are good, they are from God Himself. We persevere and ultimately putter out!
Enter the massive list of life! I often joke that we, women, should have a sign up sheet along with a birth certificate once entering the world. Probably for men too! Exodus 18:14, reveals the incredible amount of work Moses was doing alone! It was far too much! His father-in-law, urged him to ask others to help him out. What if Moses continued down that same path. What if he kept trying to "do it all?" I'm pretty certain that not only would Moses have suffered personally but others would have as well. In fact, this is exactly what his father-in-law, Jethro, says.
"What you are doing is not good. You are these people who to you will only wear yourselves out. the work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone!!" Ex. 18:17-18
Jethro continues to explain to him the beautiful benefits of not persevering in things that he should allow others to do. By doing this, Moses will endure in a way that will bring him rest and others peace too!
"If you do this thing and GOD SO COMMANDS you, then you will be able to endure, and all these people also will go to their place in peace." Ex. 18:23
The other misunderstanding about biblically persevering is the assumption that we need to do what everyone else thinks we should do. Remember, we are not here to bow to man's demands rather what God commands. We aren't called to do all the "superwoman" things we personally assume we should take on. We are called to do what GOD instructs us to. God. You know, the lover of our souls. God, our Father, who reminds us that if need be, He WILL "MAKE US lie down in green pastures." God, who calls us to "Come to Him so that He can give us rest." So, when and if, we hit this "runners wall," it might be that God does not permit us to go forward. He may force us to pause and take a rest. He may construct a pause, to bring us to prayer where He reminds us that He is God and we are not. He might teach us that He is the only one that gets full authority over our days and He has designed humans to only be able to do so much. To tell us that there are many things we can do but only a few that really matter…only a few that He places His favor on. He wants to infuse us with the reminder that He does desire JOY in our hearts and this is not a feeling but a fruit from His Spirit that is revealed through our attitude. We must remember that our feelings can affect and work against what the Spirit is wanting to do in us…the attitude of joy He wants to produce. If we are overloaded and miserable, there will be little joy in serving Him!
To endure well, we must be with our Father, shake out things on our list that are not from Him (no matter how good they are) and then persevere in the things that are most certainly a part of walking out life in faith. My hope is that we all evaluate what it is we are enduring? Persevere…YES! Persevere in that which Jesus has called us to not what others demand or what we "feel" like we have to do to be worthy.
Take care of yourselves. The Lord sure loves you and so do I!
In His Grace and Love,


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No, I don't think you've had the pleasure of seeing this gem:
This is what happens when the family is busy preparing Thanksgiving dinner and the 2 year old is left unsupervised while they think she is taking a nap. The slimy stuff? Kids toothpaste. (Click on the picture to enlarge it and get the full slime effect). I am so glad it isn't what I thought it was when I first found her!! (PS the lovely evening gown is actually Abby's shirt layered over a multi-fuctional onesie)


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You deserve someone who'll take you on cute breakfast dates and get you iced coffee. Someone who'll give you neck kisses, head massages, and play with your hair. Someone to sit with and talk about big ideas and life. Someone to remind you how dope you are when you aren't feeling so cool. Someone should do that for you. Because you shouldn't have to settle for anything less.
- We love breakfast and go on the best breakfast dates, and usually share. Yeah we're Marshall and Lily.
-I'm a tea drinker. Mostly. He actually has gotten me Ice Coffee and he works at Starbucks so he knows how to get my drinks right.
- He does all of this and more and I took a long time to find him. So I hope you do the same!


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Hey, look, another music review! Since I'm still listening almost exclusively to Beastie Boys right now (I can quit at any time... maybe), I thought I'd pick a band I know so well I probably won't even have to listen to most of these albums again to do my review.
Of all the bands I love, Nine Inch Nails is one that I normally don't go out of my way to turn people on to. They're popular enough that most people have already heard of them, and either you're a fan or you're not. While the sound has changed over time, it's still basically the same, and if you don't like industrial or Trent's voice, you never will, and I'm okay with that.
My awareness of Nine Inch Nails began shortly after The Downward Spiral had come out. "Closer" was played almost nightly during the alternative hour on my local radio station, and I used to listen to that while playing cards. Call me naive if you wish, but I actually did not realize what he was saying on the chorus at first. I simply liked the way the song sounded, and it was only until I decided to try to learn the words and attempt to sing along that I realized what it was about.
Not long after this, my friend Melanie who was all kinds of awesome and therefore into better music long before I was, brought the liner notes to school. For whatever reason I never actually went and looked at them, but I remember all the guys giggling over it, most likely to "Big Man With A Gun." Thirteen year old boys are the epitome of maturity, after all.
Fast forward a year or two and I'm in high school and have my very first boyfriend. He was very into Nine Inch Nails and when I told him I liked "Closer," he was happy to share with me the rest of the songs... though it wasn't long after that he regretted doing so. I became fully obsessed with both the music and Trent Reznor himself. I was so amazed with the idea that one man could create all this music alone, write lyrics that were expressing the cynicism and self loathing my own teen self was feeling at the time, and be incredibly hot too. I think it was that last part in particular that upset my boyfriend the most. This obsession would last through the turn of the century for me, and at least one year longer than that relationship.
Pretty Hate Machine
This album was released in 1989, so it's probably no surprise that it has a very strong 80s feel to it. While NIN is known as an industrial band, this album is only barely so, mostly being dominated by synthesizers heavily influenced by the darker side of new wave. It also has extremely nasal vocals throughout most of it that add to Reznor's reputation as a bit of a whiner. Even I, who have gained a sort of unconditional love for him at this point, can't help but sing along in mock nasal tones when I listen to the album.
This album had a total of three singles. You're no doubt most familiar with "Head Like A Hole," and I'm sure a lot of you also know "Down In It" and "Sin." I mostly mention this because of the way Trent Reznor liked to number his releases with "Halo X," X standing in for the current number in the sequence of releases. The "Down In It" single is actually Halo 1 and Pretty Hate Machine is Halo 2. This was a fairly genius idea, as it inspired those collectors among NIN fans, myself included, to get them all. Unfortunately I think this soured my feelings on remixes though, because most of the remix versions on the singles (and also his full remix albums) were disorganized messes that I barely consider music. However, I'll try to point out the good ones for any of you who want to expand your NIN knowledge and have already heard all the albums.
On the album itself, I enjoy all three songs mentioned above as well as "Terrible Lie," "Kinda I Want To," and "The Only Time." Ages ago I actually worked out a way in which "The Only Time" is actually a duet between a guy and girl, the guy just wanting sex and the girl substituting sex for love. Take a look at the lyrics and see if you think I'm crazy or not. There isn't really a bad song on the album, just a few I sometimes think are a little too slow for my current mood ("Sanctified," "Something I Can Never Have," and "That's What I Get").
Two rare songs you should hunt down from this era:
1. "Twist" - an alternate version of "Ringfinger," found on the Purest Feeling bootleg. A decent portion of the lyrics are different and I prefer this version quite a bit. The rest of Purest Feeling is also highly amusing to listen to at least once, as it features saxophone and movie quotes and is just, well, very bad.
2. "Get Down Make Love" - apparently not too rare anymore as it was included on the recent re-release of the album, this is a cover of a Queen song that is much more on the industrial side of things.
PHM's followup is pretty drastically different, being much more guitar heavy, angrier, and definitely more in line with the industrial sound. It is technically only an EP, with four full songs, two instrumental transitions, and two secret tracks that are covers. Despite this if you put a gun to my head and told me I could only keep one NIN album for the rest of my life, this is probably the one I would pick. I have had times when I was so angry that only the full out wrath of "Wish" would pacify me, and I have related to the meaning of the songs "Happiness in Slavery" and "Gave Up" more often than I'd care to recall. If you love loud, heavy, and angry music and have never listened to this EP, you owe it to yourself to do so now.
About those secret tracks - this CD actually has 99 tracks on it. Tracks 7-97 are one second a piece of silence, with "Suck" a song by industrial band Pig, at 98 and "Physical," an Adam Ant song, at 99. If there's anything sad about the mp3 age, it's that secret tracks are pretty much impossible to have now. The most you can do is add silence to the end of a song, but the extra long length of the file is going to tip you on to that.
It would probably be a disservice to not mention the Broken film at this point. It was essentially an urban legend, the kind of thing like Faces of Death that people would swore they had seen before, yet you never knew anyone who actually owned a copy, or maybe you were too afraid to ask if they did. It was basically a movie that strung music videos for the songs together, most of them being very graphic, snuff film type horror. It is apparently now available in high quality on BitTorrent, rumored to be leaked by Reznor himself. I've seen some of the videos from when they were released on Closure, and personally that is more than enough for me.
Broken was the first of the NIN albums to receive a followup remix album, cleverly titled Fixed. Unfortunately, it's a bit of a misnomer. The remix method employed here and on most NIN remixes usually follows a very electronica influenced pattern: chop a song to pieces, repeat certain lines numerous times, and create a cacophony of noise. Listening to it again after all these years, I found myself intrigued by some, but mostly turned off. The last track on the album, "Screaming Slave" could not be considered music at all. It's just straight noise for eight minutes.
The Downward Spiral
I would imagine those of you who grew up in the 90s like I did at least know of this album. "Closer" launched Nine Inch Nails into a new level of popularity and got lots of airplay on both radio stations and MTV. The controversy of its chorus and some of the images in the video certainly helped. In those early internet days, when there was no downloading of video possible, I remember people swearing that one of the "Scene Missing" signs was covering up a shot looking up the young girl's dress. Never mind that anyone involved with the video would have been arrested for child pornography if that was actually the case.
The album itself is definitely a progression for Reznor as an artist. A lot of the rawness of the earlier albums is gone and replaced with a lush industrial based atmosphere that now defines his sound. You can play a Trent Reznor produced track and I'll recognize it as such within 20 seconds, regardless if it's a NIN song or not, and this is where that sound really began. Perhaps the best example of this on the album is the song "The Becoming." It's created an image permanently in my mind of a haunted house that has demons coming out of the walls and hiding beneath the floors. Stay in the house too long, and one of the demons will possess you. I wish I had the drawing ability to share with you guys the animated music video that plays in my head every time I hear this song.
Yhe only song on this album I don't particularly care for is the title track. It's just a little too slow and hard to understand. It's also a song about suicide, and therefore something I don't personally want to think about too much.
Rare songs to listen to from this era:
1. "Closer to God" - Perhaps a little sick of the song himself, Trent did a very different version of the song on the "Closer" single (Halo 9). It rearranges the words quite a bit and simplifies the music. If you're sick of the original, I recommend giving this one a chance.
2. "Memorabilia" - Found on the same single as the one above, it's a cover of a Soft Cell song that uses a lot of sound bites and is rather unique.
Beyond the remix album Further Down the Spiral, they also released Closure a few years later. NIN toured for a long time following this album, and the VHS set contained two tapes - one including all of the released music videos up to that point and another that was a combination live show and documentary of backstage footage. The documentary includes appearances by Marilyn Manson, David Bowie, and Lou Reed among others. It shows the debauchery that went on behind the scenes. More than anything I think it is worth watching to see their live performances that are some of the wildest I've ever seen. Trent was known for bashing into his other band members and trashing the instruments almost every night. He's frequently said himself that he recorded The Downward Spiral, and then he lived it. While I don't endorse the rampant drug and alcohol abuse that fueled this tour, I'm glad someone got it all on tape. There was a planned DVD release of this set that never saw retail release, but it is also now available on BitTorrent sites.
The Perfect Drug
This was just a single and also appeared on The Lost Highway soundtrack, but since it never appeared on any NIN albums I think it deserves a mention. This was the first new release I experienced as a NIN fan and I remember rushing to the CD store in the mall and listening to it at one of the listening stations because I couldn't wait until I got home. The drums and bass on the song are just incredible and I absolutely love it. The video is also gorgeous to look at.
Slightly out of sequence, but more soundtrack only NIN songs you should hear:
1. "Dead Souls" - a cover of The Cure that appears on The Crow soundtrack. Closer to the PHM era because it features very nasal vocals.
2. "Burn" - on the Natural Born Killers soundtrack, which like The Lost Highway soundtrack, Trent Reznor produced. Another rage fueled industrial song that I love.
3. "Deep" - I recommend this one slightly begrudgingly, as I have very mixed feelings on it. Sometimes I like it, sometimes I hate it. I think I was more horrified by the video than anything else, which features Reznor attempting to act. It's on the Lara Craft: Tomb Raider soundtrack.
The Fragile
After a five year absence (ignoring "The Perfect Drug" single), Trent released this double album. It was his first time being a little more collaborative in recordings, but the sound of the album is still very much Nine Inch Nails. It's not exactly a happy album, though it is at least more positive than The Downward Spiral. Of course, so are most funerals. This album rates as one of those critical success but commercial failures, though it did premiere at number one on the charts. This album got the most repeated play for me, and that is saying a lot for a double album. I think disc one may have gotten played a little more often than disc two, but not by much. Personal favorite songs are "The Fragile," "Even Deeper," "No You Don't," "Into the Void," and "Where is Everybody?"
As much as I loved the album, my experiences from this time were eventually tainted. You see, I couldn't get enough Nine Inch Nails at that point. MTV showed a half hour special that was taken from their live performances in Europe and I taped it and watched it frequently. Their U.S. tour was coming up, and I was finally going to see NIN live and in person! I would be in the same room as Trent Reznor and hear all these songs I loved! But then that day finally arrived and guess what? I could have just stayed home and watched the tape. I don't know if it was because of my distance from the stage or what, but I sat there in the audience thinking, "This is the same exact show I've watched so many times already." There was nothing special about seeing it live. I was so disappointed. I know I wouldn't have had a better experience if I had been on the floor either, because I just would have been smooshed up against people taller than me and I wouldn't have been able to see anything.
It wasn't a bad show, but it did lack the chaotic energy you could see on the Downward Spiral tour. If you like The Fragile and want to see some live performances from this time, you can find them on And All That Could Have Been. Watching the DVD is pretty much exactly like how it was being there for me. And yes I do own it, so apparently despite my disappointment with the live show I still wanted to have another copy.
Rare songs to listen to from this era:
1. Still is an EP that contains stripped down versions of older NIN songs. It's worth checking out if you like to hear re-imagined versions of songs you've heard many times before.
With Teeth
You may not be surprised after I expressed my disappointment with the live show, but this album is where Trent and I broke up for awhile. It was a bitter breakup. At the time I listened to the whole album and the only one I liked was "The Hand That Feeds" and it still didn't feel like a Nine Inch Nails song to me. The word "love" has no place in Nine Inch Nails songs, I felt, and yet here we had two different songs with it being included in the title. The industrial sound had been greatly reduced to something more like generic rock. This from a guy who, in 1999, had swore up and down that he was not going to save rock and roll because he didn't even like it. I gave the album one or two listens and then tossed it aside in disgust.
A few years later, a friend of mine told me to give it another chance. "The Hand That Feeds" was in Rock Band, which I had been enjoying, and they had also released "The Collector" as DLC, and I had to admit I wasn't hating it. He told me to try listening to "Getting Smaller" and I had to admit its rhythm was quite infectious. I also fell in love with "Only" during my re-listen, giving it repeated listenings in a row. I still can't endorse any other song on this album beyond the ones I mentioned, but I'll admit its not 100% crap. The biggest issue I have with it beyond those mentioned above is that nearly all the songs end repeating one or two lines ad nauseum. It always says to me that the artist didn't actually know how to end the song and took the lazy way out.
As you would probably expect, I can't recommend any remixes or the live DVD, Beside You In Time, because I just don't care for it.
Year Zero
If With Teeth was my messy breakup with Trent, then Year Zero is where we ran into each other a few years later, talked over a cup of coffee, and agreed to be friends. By this point he was completely recovered from his addiction to drugs and alcohol and had much better control on his depression. I had grown up myself, and (mostly) kicked the habit of beating myself up for every little mistake. There was no need for either of us to be so focused on the negative all the time anymore.
Of course, I'm not saying this is a bright and happy album. This is a concept album, Reznor's vision for a post-Bush America. But regardless of whether you agree with that, there are some really good songs here. It blends the new rock direction he took on With Teeth with some of his more trademark industrial sounds. "Survivalism," "Capital G," and "The Good Soldier" stick out in particular as some of my favorites. The rest tend to range from good to just okay. While it's a little disappointing that we'll probably never hear the full on screaming rasp Trent was known for at one time, the more melodic tones here are enjoyable.
Y34RZ3R0R3M1X3D is the remix album for this one, and honestly I don't think I ever listened to it, though I did buy it. I bought it because it contained a bonus disc that included all the raw tracks for this album. You could load them up in GarageBand, Audacity, or any other recording software of your choice and remix to your heart's content. They even set up a website for you to upload to. That website also contained the raw tracks for "The Hand That Feeds" and "Only" from With Teeth.
Leading up to my birthday in 2007, I would call Jak and ask him what he was up to. "Nothing" was his frequent reply. Workaholic that he is, I found that hard to believe, and on my birthday I found out why. He was working on "nothing"... remixing recordings from Nothing Records, aka Trent's vanity label. These were done shortly after Jak got his first Mac, and as such are a little lo-fi, but still excellent, in my opinion. You could possibly argue that these are more "collaborations" than remixes since Jak added vocals and instruments in places, but since I don't care for the traditional remix, I'm not complaining.
All of these are available to listen to on Jak's site here. Ask nicely and I may make them available for you to download.
1. "Survivalism" - this one was titled "happybirthdayangiemix" on the original CD he gave me, and it's pretty much a dream come true for me - Jak and Trent singing together. Jak inserted one line into the song, a whispered "The party lines we draw in blood" which is sadly just a little too true these days.
2. "Me, I'm Not" - This one is probably the most drastically different from the original recording - he essentially hacked it to bits, added a ton of bass, and made a new song out of it. I happen to think this one is better than the original.
3. "My Violent Heart" - Jak took one listen to Trent's spoken verses and groaned. He created his own vocal melody and sang the lyrics instead. Trent still gets to appear on the chorus. For the record, I like Trent's original spoken vocals, but that's largely because I think his voice is sexy.
4. "Capital G" - Jak's overall comment of the album was that it was lacking balls. I'm inclined to agree. While I really, really love the original version of this song, there's no denying this version has far more balls, with its distortion heavy bass and one well placed metal scream.
5. "The Hand That Feeds" - Barely a remix at all, because he actually liked this one and couldn't find much of a way to "fix" it. I believe the main addition is that he added a vocal harmony and some guitar.
Ghosts I-IV
Finished with his record contract, at this point Trent Reznor pioneered the leap into the new era of the music industry, releasing the first volume of this album for free to all, and the other three for a small price point, unless you wanted deluxe physical versions containing his signature. It is entirely instrumental and contains his signature sound. As I mentioned in my previous music review, I'm not that big a fan of instrumentals so I never bought the other three volumes and the first one didn't get much play for me. It's had a little more life recently as background noise while I write, but that's about it. I listened to Ghosts II-IV via Spotify, and it's basically more of the same. They range from soft piano melodies to electronic/industrial, with some of them barely qualifying as music.
When I went to see them play at the Voodoo Music Festival in 2008, the middle of the set included songs from Ghosts. That was a very poor idea, in my opinion. When you're standing in the muddy grass at night, you're not interested in mellow songs with pretty visuals on large screens. The rest of the show wasn't too bad though, I have to say. Time and distance allowed me to enjoy it a bit more, though I kind of wanted to do violent things to the girls in front of us who must have thought they were the first people ever to shout at Trent to **** them like animals.
The Slip
Five months later he released yet another free album, and the lack of time spent on it really shows. In my memory, I thought most of the tracks were instrumentals. I was surprised to visit it again and find out that most of the songs do have vocals. But with the extreme repetition found on tracks like "Letting You" and "Echoplex" there might as well not be. I do enjoy the single, "Discipline," as well as "1,000,000" but neither really sounds like Nine Inch Nails to me. It was no big surprise to me that Trent announced the end of touring for the band and putting the name to rest for awhile. It was pretty clear to me his heart was no longer in it.
He has since switched his focus to creating soundtracks and won both a Golden Globe and an Oscar for his work on The Social Network. He's also doing this awful band that is just an excuse to give his wife a job, so we'll not speak of it. I'm looking forward to hearing what he does with The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.
Since I'd like to do one of these music posts a month, I thought it would be fun to ask who you guys would be interested in me covering next. I'll do my best to include some kind of multimedia content if I can. Here's some I know I could cover:
-The Beatles (I would probably break this into at least two posts, because I have heard just about everything they recorded and would want to cover all of it)
-Duran Duran


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Operation Fuller Memorial Service
The annual Memorial Service and Commemoration of the lives sacrificed during 'Operation Fuller' in February 1942, took place on a cold but dry day on Thursday 12 Feb at their Memorial on the seafront in Dover.
This operation, better known as the 'Channel Dash', was an attempt to stop a German battle fleet from making its way back to their home ports by making a 'Dash' through the Channel. The well protected capital ships 'Gneisenau', 'Scharnhorst', and 'Prinz Eugen', were engaged in this tri-service operation by 825 Naval Air Squadron, several Destroyers, MTB's and aircraft of Coastal Command, the Submarine Service, Royal Artillery, and the RAF fighter and Bomber Commands. The service remembers in particular the 13 airmen who were killed flying the 6 Fairey Swordfish, from RAF Manston, which were all shot down, the 27 members of HMS Worcester, and the 100 RAF aircrew who lost their lives in the unsuccessful attempt to prevent the German fleet escaping. A posthumous VC was awarded to the leader of the Swordfish, Lieutenant Commander Eugene Esmonde.
Our Branch and GBA Standards were paraded by 'Dusty' Miller and Jimmy Greene. Also attending were Ben Stones and Bob Davies.
Our thanks go to the members and staff at the RCPYC for their hospitality and buffet on conclusion of the service.
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Image Licensing
National Geographic Creative and Getty Images represent Jason Edwards globally.
If you have a specific image request please feel free to Contact Us and we will endeavour to assist you from our vast archives.
Jason's extensive catalogue is available upon request. For 25 years clients have been licensing Jason's work through Bio-Images. In 2017 the Bio-Images catalogue is undergoing extensive review and updating. For our past clients and those looking for something new thank you for your ongoing support. We look forward to continuing our relationships into the future.


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The Bronze Bow- an amazing book about love, war, and healing through Jesus.
The Alex Rider Adventures- James Bond for kids! Great series. Can't believe the last book's coming out soon :(
The Ranger's Apprentice James Bond in Medevial times crossed with Aragorn :D Lovable characters, great stories.
The Tunnels Series If you liked Journey to the Center of the Earth, here's your series! Adventure, Evil villains and LOTS of underground worlds make this totally worth it. Warning: These books are big and the villains can get pretty creepy. I wouldn't give this to anyone under 12 or 13. Just warning ya :)
Do Hard Things- Best Inspirational novel. Ever. Of. All. Time.


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If you'd like to see your name up in lights...well up in digital ink actually...then share your thoughts on the PCMA Annual Meeting on the blog. Simply send us an e-mail with your thoughts, and we'll post them to the blog in the coming days! Be sure to include a title for the post, as well as your name, title and organizational affiliation in your e-mail.
Also, if you have photos you'd like to see us include in our Flickr feed (which can be seen on the left side of the blog), please send us an e-mail and we'll send you the instructions for uploading them. Your perspectives on the meeting, expressed through either words or images, are invaluable. They help us better understand the uniqueness of your experiences, and contribute to the richness of the narrative we are trying to create on the blog. Thanks so much for your help!