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The first time I tried this avocado and shrimp salad recipe, I was at a friend's house during Christmas holidays. I was awed by this recipe's taste and presentation! Besides my friend said it was an easy healthy recipe to prepare! Don't you love when a recipe is easy, healthy and yummy! This is what you get with the avocado and shrimp salad!
Although this easy healthy recipe was served as a delicious appetizer during a holiday party, the greens in it make it a fantastic St. Patrick's Day recipe too! The great thing about shrimp is that its perfect any time of the year.
How to Make this Avocado & Shrimp Salad Easy Healthy Recipe
- 1 cup of shrimps uncooked. If you are lucky enough, use fresh shrimps, otherwise buy the frozen ones and make sure to thaw them
- 3 ripe avocados
- 1 red onion shredded
- 1 tomato diced
- ½ pepper cut into small pieces
- 2 TBSP of coriander
- ½ tsp of lemon juice
- Coriander for decoration
- salt and pepper
- Some shrimps to decorate
Directions for this easy healthy recipe:
- If you are using frozen shrimps: In a large pan, cook shrimps! (Don't eat them all after because this is what my kids do). Drain the water .
- If you are using fresh shrimps: in a large bowl, cook them for 10 to 15 minutes! Drain from water and clean! I don't like cooking fresh shrimps because it smells so bad after.
- Peel the avocado and dice it!
- In a large bowl, add avocado and lemon juice.
- Shred the onion.
- Add shrimps, onion, tomato and pepper and top with coriander.
- Add salt and pepper and mix all together.
- Serve in single cups for better presentation.
- Decorate with shrimps and coriander leaves.
This easy healthy recipe makes the perfect start to an amazing meal. Serve it with some delicious garlic bread and it works great as a light lunch too. What do you think of this delicious avocado & shrimp salad recipe? Do you have another favorite way to enjoy shrimp?


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Author: Mizuho Kusanagi
Imprint: Hana to Yume Comics
Magazine: Hana to Yume
Publisher: Hakuensha
Original Run: August 4, 2009 – TBD
Total Volumes: TBD
Condition: All manga in "New" condition come preshrink-wrapped by the manufacturer. All "Preowned" manga typically come in very good or like-new condition, but may vary due to the manga's age. Please refer to the dates specified in the title's original run for reference. Notably older titles may have slight yellowing on pages or slight cosmetic flaws. We will always send you the best condition available, and offer a 30 day return policy on all of our products.
Availability: Due to constant shifting stock, we cannot confirm each title's availability until after you place your order. Should a title you order not be available, you will have the option of receiving a full refund or allowing us to place the manga on backorder for you. Manga placed on backorder will take a few extra days to process before we can ship it to you.
- Backorders for "New" manga, especially recent titles, usually take 2~3 additional business days, while older titles can take 6~12 business days. Once a manga series has finished its run, backorder may no longer be possible.
- Backorders for "Preowned" manga usually take approximately 3 additional business days. Due to the rarity and popularity of certain manga, backorders for "Preowned" manga may not always be possible.

subset: commoncrawl


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Tuesday, 18 June 2013 03:54 PM EDT
Now a veteran of the international summit scene, President Barack Obama wielded significant influence over the agenda at this week's Group of Eight meetings, but had only modest success in achieving the results he sought.
It was Obama's recent move to arm Syria's rebel fighters that catapulted the two-year civil war to the top of the agenda as leaders gathered at a lakeside resort in Northern Ireland. But the president made little progress in pushing Russian President Vladimir Putin to drop his support for the Syrian government, resulting in a final statement from the leaders that endorsed a political solution to the violence but stopped short of calling for President Bashar Assad to leave power.
The president also was at the center of a breakthrough with European Union leaders on starting negotiations on a sweeping free trade pact eagerly sought by the White House. But the U.S. was unable to convince France to drop its demands that its film industry be off limits in an eventual deal, a hurdle that could prove problematic when negotiations begin next month.
Obama's mixed results underscore both the broad reach and the limitations of American power at a time when the president is grappling with an array of foreign policy problems, all with implications for U.S. national security. Among them: winding down the war in Afghanistan, combating alleged Chinese cyberhacking, and nuclear threats from Iran and North Korea.
The Syrian conflict, which has resulted in at least 93,000 deaths, has garnered the most attention, both in Washington and at the summit. Despite Obama's failure to break new ground with Putin, U.S. officials said the summit's final statement on Syria was the best that could be expected given the entrenched differences between Russia and a U.S.-Western European coalition.
"Given the various ways the G-8 could have gone, we believe that on the key issues of political transition, humanitarian support and chemical weapons investigation, it's very helpful to have this type of signal sent by these eight countries," Ben Rhodes, Obama's deputy national security adviser, told reporters traveling with Obama from Northern Ireland to Berlin following the summit's conclusion.
Political transitions — and sometimes political turmoil — have lifted Obama to veteran status among the G-8 leaders. The Northern Ireland summit marked his fifth appearance at the annual meeting of leading industrial nations and his first since winning re-election.
Obama's counterpart in the G-8, in both longevity and stature, is German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who has held power since 2005. The U.S. and German leaders are scheduled to meet in Berlin on Wednesday, with the global economy, the Afghan war and counterterrorism all on the agenda.
The centerpiece of Obama's 24-hour stop in Berlin will be a speech at the iconic Brandenburg Gate, which once divided East and West Germany. In a nod to the site's history, Obama is expected to extoll the deep ties between the U.S. and Europe, while also seeking to recast the relationship for modern times.
"He's seeking to summon the energy and legacy of what's been done in the past and apply it to the issues that we face today," said Rhodes, identifying nuclear non-proliferation, climate change and conflict resolution as some of those issues.
Obama's remarks in Berlin will inevitably draw comparisons to two previous speeches in the once-divided city: John F. Kennedy's famous "Ich bin ein Berliner" Cold War address almost exactly 50 years ago, and Obama's speech as a presidential candidate in 2008 before a sprawling crowd of 200,000 at the city's Victory Column.
Security concerns, combined with an overall dimming of enthusiasm for Obama in Europe, will result in a far smaller crowd for the president's address this time around. About 6,000 people have been invited to attend, including German political officials and students.
Obama's three days in Europe marked something of a respite from a flurry of controversies that have consumed Washington, including the Justice Department's seizure of journalists' phone records and the Internal Revenue Service's targeting of conservative political groups. Most recently Obama has faced questions about sweeping data-mining programs run by the National Security Agency that have resulted in broad collections of U.S. phone and Internet records.
The president escaped public criticism of the programs during the G-8 summit. Merkel, however, says she plans to raise the issue with Obama in Germany, which like most of Western Europe has stricter privacy laws than the U.S.
Merkel said she was "surprised" by the scope of the U.S. surveillance programs, but acknowledged that her country is "dependent" on cooperating with American spy services. She also credited U.S. intelligence with foiling a large-sale terror plot in Germany in 2007.
Ahead of Obama's arrival, a few dozen demonstrators gathered in the center of Berlin to protest the NSA's eavesdropping. The crowd waved placards reading "Yes, we scan" — a mocking reference to Obama's "Yes, we can" campaign slogan — during a demonstration at Checkpoint Charlie, the crossing point between the American and Soviet sectors during the Cold War.
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At Casa del Rey, you will meet a familiar atmosphere, spendind your time in relax with all the facilities you need (panoramic roofs, sofa, TV, air conditioning, internet, etc).
Casa del Rey, B&B and home holidays, is located in the center of Cagliari.
From Casa Del Rey, you can reach, in a few minutes by walk, the biggest tourist attractions of Cagliari (the Bastione di Saint Remy, the Anfiteatro romano, the Museo Archeologico Nazionale, the Necropoli punica di Tuvixeddu, the Giardini pubblici, the other historical Cagliari neighborhood (Castello, Stampace e Marina), the famous fish marketplace of San Benedetto, the shopping streets and the restaurants and pubs that liven up the Cagliari nightlife.
Given that Cagliari is in the middle of South Cost of Sardinia, you can reach too in a short time (by bus o by car) the crystal-clear water of ones of the most beautiful Sardinia beaches: at east the fantastic coast of Villasimius, at west and south the long white beaches of Nora, Pula and Chia, Teulada, Buggerru, Masua, Carloforte, Sant'Antioco, some of which enclose very important and relevant archeological areas.
Services Included:
private bathroom
Bed and Bath linen
Air conditioning
Internet wi-fi
Panoramic roof
use of the kitchen


text: After last week's focus on Battlestar Galactica's series finale, we turn to some items from other shows, that fell through the cracks. First up is a recent episode of Dollhouse, in which Echo, (played by Eliza Dushku) is imprinted so that she can infiltrate a cult's compound that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives happens to be very interested in. So that the ATF can keep tabs on what is going on, Echo has a device surgically implanted in her brain that allows the ATF to tap into what her eyes are seeing (for dramatic purposes, the implant's diversion of her optic signal renders Echo blind.) This is a technology that has already seen a proof-of-concept demonstration. In 1999, researchers from Berkley and Harvard inserted electrodes into the brains of anesthetized cats that monitored the activity of 177 neurons located in the lateral geniculate nucleus, a key visual processing center. Using a computer to process the signals from the brain, the researchers were able to reconstruct different test images places in front of the cat's eyes, albeit at a low resolution. While some people see this work as a possible pathway to give sight to the blind, by feeding images into the lateral geniculate nucleus instead of extracting them, it would require (as demonstrated on Dollhouse invasive brain surgery that would carry commensurate risk.


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{Note: this is part of an experimental series of short posts. My goal is to spark more discussion and post things that aren't fully thought out 1,500 word mega-entries I usually post.}
This tweet got me thinking today:
Being an asshole to people is generally a good sign you're not happy with yourself or your life
— Brian (@bmshirley) September 21, 2012
There are assholes and then there are people who have moments when they act like one. In a startup there is no room for the former, but we all have moments where we may be the latter.
I've found myself in the latter bucket a number of times since I got to SF because of the stresses I'm experience in adjusting to a new environment and starting over socially. Try as I might, I haven't always been able to leave issues at home and just be my usual working self. Fortunately, Hiten and others have been understanding of me. Team dynamics are hard to get right and when someone is being an asshole, it's poison to the environment. That's why I posit it is important for founders to care about their employees personal lives.
Of course, none of this is limited to just assholes; employees underperform for a multitude of reasons in a variety of ways. If you have a connection with your employees beyond their job description, you're likely to find out what may be the cause of an issue. And you wouldn't have to be their therapist to be helpful and understanding. At the least, you can help patch up some relations around the company by telling others on the team to cut that person some slack (without necessarily going into specifics) and making some recommendations of what the employee can do to help themselves.
What do you think?
Should founders care about their employees's personal lives?


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Thursday, August 30
Thursday Dose of Cute: Hay Bert (and The Whole Picture)
8 comments:
So just how does Bert, who can't be very tall, get himself up onto that high perch? :)ReplyDelete
I do hope you're in for some rain and I also hope that you're feeling better these days.
I hope Isaac is touching you gently and just with lots (not TOO much!)of rain and no wind. These pix of Bert make me want to nap on hay!ReplyDelete
'Just south of you in Arkansas, the rain has come! We are so very grateful for it. Please give Bert a hug for me. His pictures always make me smile! -MarciReplyDelete
Hooray for rain and Beagle Bert lookout perches!ReplyDelete
If all it takes is some clean laundry to make it rain, count me in! I'm hoping Isaac dumps a lot of rain your way!ReplyDelete
Bert is just too cute (as usual!) - we love him!
Thanks, too, for your last post about Farmhouse White - another favorite. Yum!
Happy Labor Day weekend to you!
Maybe give the truck a wash while you're at it and plan a big outdoor event. That ought to get the rain coming.ReplyDelete
We've been watching the Gulf and hoping you guys would get a terrific soaking out of this. Hallelujah! Enjoy every drop, you earned it (and then some))! Adorable Bert!ReplyDelete
Oh Burt is so adorable!! I am new to your blog and am so excited to have discovered it!ReplyDelete
December 2015 update: Hi! For some reason I can't figure out, Blogger hasn't been letting me leave comments on my own blog (!) for the last several months, so I've been unable to respond to your comments and questions. My apologies for any inconvenience! You're always welcome to email me: farmgirlfare AT gmail DOT com.
Hi! Thanks for visiting Farmgirl Fare and taking the time to write. While I'm not always able to reply to every comment, I receive and enjoy reading them all.
Your feedback is greatly appreciated, and I especially love hearing about your experiences with my recipes. Comments on older posts are always welcome!
Please note that I moderate comments, so if I'm away from the computer it may be a while before yours appears.
I try my best to answer all questions, though sometimes it takes me a few days. And sometimes, I'm sorry to say, they fall through the cracks, and for that I sincerely apologize.
I look forward to hearing from you and hope you enjoy your e-visits to our farm!


text:
Phantasia 2 by David Kellner (1670-1748)
David Kellner was a German composer of the baroque period and a contemporary of Bach. As well as compositions for the lute which are today highly regarded, he wrote on the theory of music, and particularly on writing for equal temperament.
Baroque. time signature 4/4. 50 measures. 9 pages. key of d. drop d.


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Thursday, August 9, 2007
Slusho! Avatars
I have turned all of the Slusho! characters into 60 x 60 icons so they can be used as avatars.
* To add an image to your Blogger account, right-click one of the images, select "copy image location", then paste that into the Photo URL box of your Profile Settings.
8 comments:
Hey guys.ReplyDelete
I Live in the UK and i went to see Transformers a few weeks ago on the week of the films release over here. During that time there was no Cloverfield trailer.
I went to see Transformers again today and low and behold there was the trailer. Watching it through. "Robs a main dude" Everthing goes black, big rumble all exactly the same until the end. When instead of 1-18-08 i get a bitch slap to the face when it just says "2008", which indicates 1-18-08 is not a worldwide release for the film, just in the US territory and also means im slightly annoyed :/
Other than that the whole trailer is the exact same over on the other side of the pond. Nothing else to report :(
...oh... and www.2008.com comes up with Olympic games crap lolReplyDelete
Another good reason why the movie WON'T be called "1-18-08"ReplyDelete
Damn. I was kinda looking forward to a movie with just a date as it's title. But oh well, hopefully we get something amazingReplyDelete
Thanks for the avatars; have (possibly obviously) nicked the Secret Ingredient lotus.ReplyDelete
Can you make one of the donkey with the hat sideways from the Slusho store page??ReplyDelete
Thanks for the icons!ReplyDelete


text:
Laws, Regulations and Annotations
Business Taxes Law Guide – Revision 2023
Sales and Use Tax Memorandum Opinions
Robert L. Reynolds and Donald R. Reynolds
A retailer is engaged in business in California, and must collect and remit the applicable use tax, if its finished goods are stored in California pending sale; a person in California acts on behalf of an out-of-state retailer for purposes of section 6203 if the person does something at retailer's specific or constructive request; a retailer must collect and remit the applicable California use tax as long as it holds a California seller's permit, without regard to whether there is any other basis for the requirement.
In the Matter of the Petition for Redetermination under the Sales and Use Tax Law of ROBERT L. REYNOLDS AND DONALD R. REYNOLDS
For Petitioner:
|Abe Golomb
|Jason Harrel
For Sales and Use Tax Department:
|Robert Stipe
Tax Counsel IV
For Appeals Division:
|David H. Levine
Tax Counsel IV
This opinion considers the merits of a petition for redetermination issued for the period July 1, 1998, through June 30, 2001. Petitioner is a partnership of Robert Reynolds and Donald Reynolds, dba Rogue Valley Bin Company. Petitioner has facilities in Oregon at which it manufactures fruit bins. It commenced this business in 1993, applying for and receiving a seller's permit in September 1993. Petitioner held that permit and filed quarterly returns during the period at issue here, reporting tax due on two of the returns and no tax due on its other quarterly returns. Petitioner contends it was not engaged in business in this state within the meaning of Revenue and Taxation Code section 6203 and is thus not indebted for the amount of use tax it would otherwise have been required to collect from its California purchasers and remit to the Board. We find three different bases under which petitioner was required to collect and remit the applicable California use tax.
Section 6203, subdivision (a), requires that a "retailer engaged in business in this state" collect the applicable use tax from its California purchasers. [13] Such amounts constitute debts that the retailer must pay to the Board. (Rev. & Tax. Code, § 6204.) As relevant here, "retailer engaged in business in this state" is defined by subdivision (c) of section 6203 to include:
"(1) Any retailer maintaining, occupying, or using, permanently or temporarily, directly or indirectly, or through a subsidiary, or agent, by whatever name called, an office, place of distribution, sales or sample room or place, warehouse or storage place, or other place of business.
"(2) Any retailer having any representative, agent, salesperson, canvasser, independent contractor, or solicitor operating in this state under the authority of the retailer or its subsidiary for the purpose of selling, delivering, installing, assembling, or the taking of orders for any tangible personal property."
If petitioner was engaged in business in California within the meaning of either, or both, of these definitions, then it is liable for the use tax it failed to collect from its customers and remit to the Board. Petitioner's owners reside in California and own businesses located in this state, at least one of which, Reynolds Nailing (RN), is involved in this dispute. However, petitioner asserts that petitioner's owners are absentee owners who do not participate in its business activities, and that petitioner is a separate legal entity from any of the related companies, including RN. Petitioner asserts that it has no physical location or other presence within California for purposes of section 6203.
There are two basic types of transactions included in the determination under consideration. One involved purchases by California consumers where petitioner shipped the property by common carrier from Oregon directly to the purchasers. These types of transactions, by themselves without more, would not be sufficient to find that petitioner had been engaged in business in California. However, petitioner also made sales to California purchasers where it shipped unassembled goods to RN in California, who completed assembly and effected delivery of the completed property to the purchaser (delivery was completed by RN's releasing the property at its location either to a common carrier or to the purchaser itself). It is undisputed that a physical location within California was in some way involved in these transactions, raising the issue of whether this California involvement is sufficient to bring petitioner within section 6203.
Business Location in California
Under subdivision (c)(1) of section 6203, a retailer is engaged in business in this state if it is regarded as having a business location in California. RN, of course, had a business location in California and thus was engaged in business in this state. If petitioner and RN were the same legal entity, such as two divisions of the same corporation, then petitioner would also have been engaged in business in this state since RN and petitioner would have been the same person for purposes of the Sales and Use Tax Law (Rev. & Tax. Code, § 6005). We accept petitioner's representation that the two were separate legal entities, so RN's status as a retailer engaged in business in this state is not determinative of petitioner's status. Rather, further analysis is required.
Based on petitioner's description of its business, petitioner did not have a permanent business location in this state in its own name. However, the business location requirement of subdivision (c)(1) is satisfied even where the retailer simply occupies or uses a place of distribution, warehouse, storage place, or other place of business in this state on a temporary basis, indirectly through an agent (regardless of characterization). The facts do not indicate that petitioner had an explicit agreement with RN that some portion of RN's California facilities would be reserved and dedicated to the use of petitioner, bringing petitioner within subdivision (c)(1) on that basis. Nevertheless, even in the absence of such an explicit agreement, the facts indicate that there was sufficient of petitioner's tangible personal property located at RN's California location and sufficient activity performed on petitioner's behalf that petitioner essentially had a place of business at RN's location in California. [14]
The present case does not come within the safe harbor situations discussed in the preceding footnote. Petitioner shipped goods to RN in California for assembly, and at the time of that shipment, it was known and intended that, upon completion of the in-state assembly, the goods would be transferred from RN's in-state location to California purchasers (directly or through common carriers). RN notified petitioner when assembly was completed, and then held petitioner's fully assembled goods until they were actually picked up by common carrier (hired by petitioner or its customer) or by the customer itself. Thus, for however long it took after assembly was completed, RN held petitioner's finished goods until the sale could be completed. Whether or not any prior storage by RN of petitioner's goods rose to the level of a storage place used by petitioner, we conclude that the storage of the finished products pending sale by petitioner constituted petitioner's use of a storage place for its stock of goods held on its behalf by its agent, within the meaning of subdivision (c)(1) of section 6203. We therefore conclude that petitioner was a retailer engaged in business in California on this basis, liable for the applicable use tax it failed to collect and remit to the Board.
Representative in California
Subdivision (c)(2) of section 6203 provides that a retailer is engaged in business in this state if it has any representative operating in this state under its authority "for the purpose of selling, delivering, installing, assembling, or the taking of orders for any tangible personal property." We first address the issue of authority. Petitioner contends that RN did nothing under the authority of petitioner. Besides the fact that RN and petitioner are related and share common ownership, [15] where a retailer hires another person to perform some act on the retailer's behalf, that person necessarily acts under the retailer's authority to the extent it performs the requested act on the retailer's behalf. Here, regardless of their relationship, petitioner hired RN to assemble goods and perform other acts on its behalf. RN was obviously authorized by petitioner to perform those acts that petitioner hired RN to perform on its behalf. That is all this term as used in section 6203 means: it does not in any way require a specific form of relationship (e.g., agency). Rather, as long as the in-state person is doing something at the out-of-state retailer's specific or constructive [16] request, the in-state person does so under the out-of-state retailer's authority, at least for purposes of section 6203.
Next we address certain circumstances which are not sufficient to bring an out-of-state retailer within section 6203, subdivision (c)(2). The activities listed in subdivision (c)(2) include delivery and assembly. When an out-of-state retailer hires a common carrier to transport and deliver goods to a California purchaser, on first blush that may appear to bring the retailer within section 6203. Under such circumstances, the common carrier is certainly delivering the property under authority of the retailer, as explained above. Nevertheless, we have not interpreted the delivery element of subdivision (c)(2) as having been satisfied solely by common carrier delivery. [17] Rather, the delivery must be tied to some other activity related to selling. Similarly, although assembly is listed as one of the activities in subdivision (c)(2), we have not regarded mere assembly, alone, as sufficient. That is, we have not regarded an out-of-state retailer as coming within section 6203 solely based on its hiring of a California fabricator to assemble goods that are then shipped back to the out-of-state retailer for its disposition of the assembled goods. However, when that assembly is tied to any additional activity in this state, we must determine whether the in-state fabricator is the out-of-state retailer's representative for purposes of assembly within the meaning of subdivision (c)(2).
Here, RN did not merely assemble petitioner's goods in this state and ship them back to petitioner for its disposition. Rather, RN was directly involved in the delivery of the goods to the California purchasers. Petitioner argued during its Board hearing that RN did nothing with petitioner's customers, who had no idea RN was involved, and specifically stated during the hearing that RN did not deliver the assembled goods to petitioner's California purchasers. However, in addition to information in the audit report regarding how delivery by RN was effected, petitioner itself stated, by letter from its attorney, that after RN notified petitioner that the bins were assembled, either the "customers or [petitioner] arranged for the delivery of the bins to the customers." Where the customer's arrangement for delivery was to pick up the goods from RN itself, then the customer necessarily had to know of RN's involvement, at least to the extent that the goods were in California at RN's location. Similarly, where the customer's arrangement for delivery was to hire a common carrier to pick up the goods from RN's location, the customer again had to at least know that the goods were in California at RN's location. When the customer or its common carrier picked up the goods, RN presumably ensured that an authorized person was accepting delivery of the fabricated goods RN held on petitioner's behalf.
To summarize the relevant facts, RN received petitioner's unassembled goods with ownership remaining with petitioner, RN assembled the goods, RN contacted petitioner upon completion, RN held petitioner's assembled goods until an authorized person arrived to accept possession, and RN then transferred possession of the goods, on petitioner's behalf, to a person who RN determined was authorized to accept such possession. We conclude that these facts are sufficient to regard RN as having acted under petitioner's authority as its California representative to assemble and deliver tangible personal property within the meaning of subdivision (c)(2) of section 6203. We therefore conclude that petitioner was a retailer engaged in business in California on this basis, liable for the applicable use tax it failed to collect and remit to the Board.
Holding of a Seller's Permit
As noted above, petitioner held a seller's permit. A person conducting business as a seller of tangible personal property of a kind whose retail sale is subject to tax, and only a person actively so engaged, is required to hold a seller's permit for each place of business in California at which transactions relating to sales are customarily negotiated. (Rev. & Tax. Code, § 6066, Cal. Code Regs., tit. 18, § 1699, subd. (a) (a person maintaining a stock of merchandise in this state for sale must hold at least one seller's permit, even if it does not have any location in this state at which negotiations are conducted).) That is, a retailer who properly holds a California seller's permit will always have a business location in this state, which means that a retailer who properly holds a California seller's permit will necessarily also come within the provisions of section 6203 as a retailer engaged in business in this state. (Rev. & Tax. Code, § 6203, subd. (c)(1).) If a retailer does not come within section 6203, it is not entitled to hold a seller's permit. Stated another way, a retailer's holding of a seller's permit is the retailer's representation that it is engaged in business in this state.
A retailer who has no business location in California should not hold a seller's permit even if it is required (or wishes) to collect use tax from its California purchasers. Rather, such a retailer should apply for a Certificate of Registration — Use Tax. This is the registration for a retailer engaged in business in this state who does not have a California location for which a seller's permit is required. A retailer holding such a certificate is required to collect the applicable use tax from its California purchasers and remit that tax to the Board, and must continue doing so as long as it holds the certificate. (Cal. Code Regs., tit. 18, § 1684, subd. (c).) This is true even if it had been a voluntary registrant or its activities changed such that it was no longer required to hold the certificate. (B&D Litho (BOE Memorandum Opinion issued 5/31/01).) There can be no lower standard for a person who applies for and holds a seller's permit, thereby representing to the Board that it is engaged in business in this state. Accordingly, we conclude that as long as such a retailer holds a seller's permit, it is required to comply with the requirements imposed on all holders of seller's permits, including the collecting and remitting of any applicable California use tax.
We note that the information included on petitioner's September 1993 application for seller's permit may have been sufficient to indicate petitioner should have been issued a Certificate of Registration—Use Tax rather than a seller's permit since there is no clear indication on the application that petitioner had any business location within California. In any event, our conclusion is the same: whether petitioner held a seller's permit under which it effectively represented that it was engaged in business in this state or it held a Certificate of Registration—Use Tax, petitioner is liable for the use tax it failed to collect and remit.
Adopted at Sacramento, California, on May 31, 2007.
Betty T. Yee, Chairwoman
Judy Chu, Ph.D., Member
Marcy Jo Mandel, Member*
* For John Chiang, pursuant to Government Code section 7.9.
[13] The issue of whether a retailer is engaged in business in this state is often phrased as whether the retailer has "nexus" with California. The term "nexus" in this context is derived from constitutional jurisprudence on the question of whether the retailer has a sufficient connection (i.e., nexus) with the taxing state to support that state's imposition of a use tax collection duty. While there is certainly a connection between the concept of engaged in business in this state for purposes of section 6203 and nexus for federal constitutional purposes, each concept requires a separate analysis. To avoid confusion, we refer herein only to the statutory definition of a retailer engaged in business in California under section 6203. We do not refer to the constitutional concept of nexus except to note our conclusion that any retailer who is engaged in business in California under section 6203 has constitutional nexus with this state for purposes of use tax collection since section 6203 requires a sufficient physical presence in this state to satisfy the constitutional requirements for use tax collection nexus.
[14] This issue can arise whenever property owned by an out-of-state retailer is processed through another person's California business location. We find that the mere flow of an out-of-state retailer's property through another person's California location is not alone sufficient to bring the out-of-state retailer within section 6203. For example, an out-of-state retailer would not be regarded as using a business location in California under section 6203 where, as part of the transport of the retailer's property, a common carrier moves such property through its California facility. Similarly, where an out-of-state retailer ships property by common carrier to an in-state fabricator solely for purposes of fabrication and the in-state fabricator ships the fabricated property back to the out-of-state retailer upon completion of fabrication, the out-of-state retailer would not generally be regarded as having a business location in this state as a result of the California fabrication. (Note that where the in-state fabricator maintains dedicated storage of the out-of-state retailer's uncommingled property at a California location, that dedicated storage might be regarded as a business location of the out-of-state retailer for purposes of section 6203, depending on the actual facts.)
[15] It is difficult to fathom a circumstance where a business that shares common ownership with another would perform acts on the other's behalf without being authorized in some manner by its relative to do so.
[16] See our memorandum decision in Borders Online (9/26/01) as well as the Court of Appeal decision in the same matter (Borders Online v. State Bd. of Equalization (2005) 129 Cal.App.4th 1179, 1189–90).
[17] Nor would such an interpretation be constitutional. (Quill Corp. v. North Dakota (1992) 504 U.S. 298; National Bellas Hess, Inc. v. Department of Revenue of Ill. (1967) 386 U.S. 753.) Nevertheless, if that is what the Legislature intended when adopting section 6203, we would be mandated to follow that meaning in the absence of an appellate court decision specifically stating that section 6203 as so interpreted is unconstitutional. (Cal. Const. Art. 3, section 3.5.) Fortunately, we are not faced with that troubling dilemma.


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By guest blogger Emily, who this week is blogging about Invisible Illness Week.
MPNs are "Invisible Illnesses". There really are not many outward signs that show we're sick, but boy do we feel it. I don't know about the rest of you, but , no matter how I look, sometimes I feel like I've been run over by a truck.
However well-intended the phrase may be, saying "but you don't LOOK sick…" to a sick person is pretty insulting. The implication being that we are faking it or that it's not real. We don't look sick? Well…what does sick look like, pray tell? Should we all be emaciated, bruised, or limping? What does it take to be acceptably sick? This may surprise some…but not all sick people look alike. Shocking, I'm sure. (insert snarky eye roll here).
We all have good days and bad, but for the Invisibly Ill, the bad days often outnumber the good. Most of us, though are obliged to put on the happy face and get on with things. If we didn't, we wouldn't be able get much done. I often feel like I am two completely different people; the one on the outside, who looks just fine, and deceives everyone around her; and the one on the inside who is exhausted, and battered and miserable.
I learned to put on the happy face real quick when I got my first "Grown-Up Job". I started at my office as the receptionist, so putting on the perky, bubbly personality, however fake it may have been, became a part of my daily life. Fatigued, sick, headache? Didn't matter. That smile was plastered on. Inside I might have been cursing the phone for ringing, but I'd still thank you for calling and inquire how I could help. If you didn't know I was sick…you would not know. There are days though when I just can't fake it anymore, my fatigue catches up with me and knocks me out. On those days, I tend to hear that dreaded "but you don't LOOK sick…". Also on those days my sarcastic side will often think(or sometimes say, depending on the audience) "And you don't LOOK like a jerk..but I guess appearances can be deceiving, can't they?"
Believe me, I am neither wanting nor expecting sympathy. Understanding would be wonderful though. Yes, it's true that we don't fit the picture in most people's heads of what sick should look like, but trust me while these illnesses may be invisible, we and our pain certainly are not.
Please, think twice before telling us we don't fit your image.


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"D-Link and Poul-Henning Kamp announced today that they have amicably
resolved their dispute regarding access to Mr. Kamp's GPS.Dix.dk
NTP Time Server site. D-Link's existing products will have
authorized access to Mr. Kamp's server, but all new D-Link
products will not use the GPS.Dix.dk NTP time server. D-Link is
dedicated to remaining a good corporate and network citizen."
Poul-Henning Kamp
email: email@example.com
phone: (+45) 58 56 10 59
Last updated: $Id: index.html,v 1.22 2006/04/27 08:49:05 phk Exp $


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Polenta Pizza with Broccoli Rabe, Sausage, Mushrooms and Tomatoes
A different kind of pizza crust made with Polenta.
There are hundreds of ways to make Polenta and it can be cooked with just about anything. Ever since I could remember about this growing up, my Grandmother would use leftovers from the meat sauce and lots of grated cheese, this medley was inspired by the tastes of those squares of Polenta and her baking this till crispy, so why not a pizza? Broccoli Rabe, Sausage and Mushrooms. Polenta can be baked, boiled fried, or used as a breading substitute, it's so versatile. If you like Polenta, you are in for a real treat!
For Italians, it always seems both pasta and pizza are the cornerstones of what makes Italian food "Italian". However, there is another staple food of Northern Italy that does not get the same recognition, but still is the third runner up of the Italian food trinity, a very versatile and satisfying food group, Polenta. Polenta was the staple food ( Corn meal) of the poor, in northern Italy, especially those that lived out in the country. Sometimes it was eaten three times a day.Many recipes were handed down through generations of Italian families and passed on to friends and neighbors. We loved it in our house as children and now this is a delicacy along with many other once called depression foods. In this way, Polenta is truly an Italian national dish, and may have a history much more ancient than either pizza or pasta. Some have called Polenta "Italian grits" and there are similarities to the hominy grits that is so popular here in the South.
Polenta Pizza
Layers of meat, greens, sliced tomato and mozzarella top this Polenta crust and ready to go back into the oven.
This has been in the refrigerator and will now go into the oven to precook for about 25 to 35 minutes till edges are crispy.
Polenta all cooked ready to go onto a greased olive oiled pan for further preparation.
Broccoli Rabe boiling in salt water for around an hour till tender.
Mushrooms, sausage and garlic sauteed in olive oil and Chablis.
Some of the wonderful ingredients for our Polenta crusted pizza.
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, more for oiling pan
½ cup whole milk
2½ cups water
1 cup coarse cornmeal
Freshly ground black pepper
2 cups ground loose Italian sausage cooked or links out the casings
1/4 cup white wine recommended Chablis
1 cup mushrooms sliced
2 cups broccoli rabe boiled cleaned or baby spinach if desired substitute however just saute with mushrooms and sausage step
1 or 2 tomatoes, sliced
2 cloves of minced garlic
1/2 cup of your favorite tomato sauce
1 cup mozzarella cheese
salt pepper cayenne pepper
Prepare pan by Brushing a layer of olive oil on a deep dish pizza pan or 12x8 inch pan. In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, combine milk, water and a 1/4 teaspoon of salt. Bring just about to a boil, reduce heat to medium, and add cornmeal in a steady stream, whisk quickly and the whole time to prevent lumps from forming. Turn heat to low and simmer, whisking frequently, until thick. If mixture becomes too thick, whisk some more bit water in to this, you will want a consistency of thick oatmeal.
Stir 1 tablespoon oil into cooked cornmeal (Polenta). Spread out quickly onto prepared pan, so Polenta does not stiffen; spread it evenly to a thickness of about ½ inch all over. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, cover baking sheet with plastic wrap and put it in refrigerator until it is firm, an hour or more, it doesn't matter if you leave this longer even overnight.
Heat oven to 450 degrees F. Put Polenta in oven and bake for 25 to 35 minutes, or until it crisps on edges. While that's cooking, start the toppings. Put two tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium heat, add the sliced mushrooms cut up and sausage loose and casing removed together, add 1/4 cup white Chablis and spinach if using, until most of the moisture is gone, about 10 minutes. Add boiled broccoli rabe after the sausage is cooked a dash of cayenne pepper stir till heated as this is already cooked.
Take Polenta out of oven, sprinkle with mozzarella cheese, then spread mixture of meat over the top of Polenta evenly add cheese then sliced tomatoes and dab sauce around the pizza. Put pizza back in oven, adding more mozzarella cheese to the top. Bake until cheese is thoroughly melted. Cut into slices and serve hot or at room temperature. Top with grated Romano and Parmesan blended cheese if desired.
20 comments
Yes indeed a poor poor food especially in winter in the unheated homes of mountain villages whether North, Central or South.ReplyDelete
Not everybody loved it then, when usually all there was to flavour it with was couple of salted anchovies that had to do for everyone. And if the polenta was tipped straight out on to the wooden table it was simply because crockery was scarce.
What a long way Italy - and polenta - have come since then!
@Carmelita Always loved this, and it really never seemed to us that we were poor, we didn't know. It was always wonderful, and its funny how later on we grow up only to find out they were the best foods and memories at all....thanks for your wonderful comment.ReplyDelete
Ha! It appears I am a real peasant in my tastes, because I am more than happy with a steaming bowl of polenta!! Love it as pizza, mmm.ReplyDelete
Oh how delizioso! I will be making polenta squares this week to go with some diners. Love the broccoli rabe addition - rapini is so hard to come by here and expensive.ReplyDelete
Oh my gosh I so love your blog... Every time I visit I leave with a smile and an appetite!ReplyDelete
Polenta was not served in our southern Italian home, but I developed a taste for it when I began cooking my own meals. The pizza is inspired and the ingredients--well, let's just say I never met a sausage I didn't like. With the broccoli rabe and mushrooms, I would be in heaven.ReplyDelete
Sounds amazing! Happy 2010 :-)ReplyDelete
Looks absolutely yummy!!ReplyDelete
I am so trying polenta for a pizza crust substitute!
this sounds amazing ... love the crust and the ingredients, oh wow = thank goodness I am a peasantReplyDelete
Interesting information on Polenta! Good idea for a pizza.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousJanuary 4, 2010 at 5:06 AM
I could never get into polenta or rather i never knew how to cook it properly. This sounds delicious though. Im going to have to try it. Fingers crossed and I will get it right this time.ReplyDelete
What a healthy way to start of 20101! Love the way you made the pizza. I've never tried out any polenta recipes, can't even find that ingredient over here. However, yours look really inviting. I'm about to salivate! haha.... Have a nice day at work, Claudia. And make it a great start at work! Best wishes.ReplyDelete
we had home made pizza last night ---and girl..it's nothing close to what you made! I never learn..I should look first at your blog before cooking ...!ReplyDelete
I love polenta - and this recipe has me craving Italian-style food. I love that you made pizza. Great job!ReplyDelete
That is such a good idea! I love broccoli rabe. I actually have some in the fridge and I was looking for some inspiration for it. I think I've got it! Thanks :)ReplyDelete
@french cooking for dummies
thank you all! appreciate all your kind comments
Congrats on a great FB Top 9!! I love this post. It's a great recipe and your photos and instructions really bring it to life..well done!ReplyDelete
Delicious idea for a twist on pizza! Looks fabulous!!!ReplyDelete
Wow, Claudia, this sounds really incredibly delicious! Love all these flavors and the idea of combining them with a polenta crust is just genius.ReplyDelete
Now you have got me craving polenta. This looks awesome!ReplyDelete
Remember to use the search option for a recipe you're looking for and thanks for all your kind words and support. We love our readers all the best Claudia


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Bill Loving, chairman of the Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) and president and CEO of Pendleton Community Bank in Franklin, W.Va., and Camden R. Fine, president and CEO of ICBA, issued this statement following the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations report that JPMorgan Chase used federally insured deposits for high-risk trades that resulted in hundreds of millions of dollars in losses it hid from regulators and taxpayers.
"The Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations report on JPMorgan Chase demonstrates the dangers of subsidizing too-big-to-fail financial institutions. Not only did JPMorgan use federally insured deposits to fund a portfolio of complex financial instruments used for high-risk, short-term trades, it misinformed investors, regulators, lawmakers and taxpayers about the nature of the 'London Whale' losses.
"This failure of oversight and risk management is yet another example of the moral hazard and reckless risk-taking that results when financial institutions are so large and complex that they enjoy an explicit government guarantee against failure. JPMorgan took significant risks with its $157 billion portfolio of synthetic credit derivatives funded in part with federally insured deposits, hid its losses, and dodged the limited regulatory inquiry that followed.
"Combined with recent testimony from U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder that the size of too-big-to-fail financial firms inhibits Justice Department prosecutions on Wall Street, the nation is again witness to the fact that the largest and most complex financial institutions play by a different set of rules than the rest of us. Too-big-to-fail and too-big-to-jail megabanks should not be allowed to operate above the law and engage in highly risky and complex financial gambles with the support of the federal safety net, while too-small-to-save community banks are left to pick up the pieces on Main Street.
"The nation's financial institutions should be required to operate on a level playing field. Too-big-to-fail and too-big-to-jail financial giants should be downsized and split up to reduce systemic risks, restore accountability in our financial system, and provide for a safer and more economically sound financial system."


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Frequent Contributors
We ask that you would also put a Totally Tutorials button on your blog, or link back to Totally Tutorials on a Favorite Blog list on your blog. Our buttons are found in the left hand column of our blog.
Once your two tutorials are featured, and your link to us is up, just leave a comment below with the name of your blog and the address.
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39 comments:
- AnonymousJuly 22, 2011 at 1:55 PM
I added your link to my page: (bottom left side)ReplyDelete
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I also have you on my favorite blog page:
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Hi Dotty I have added your link to my right sidebar at http://www.sewhappy.meReplyDelete
Will be submitting more tutorials to you. Excellent site. Thanks for all your hard work.
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Hi,I added your link on my blog.ReplyDelete
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Alicia from:
Added you both. Thanks!ReplyDelete
Hi Dotty,ReplyDelete
Thanks so much for adding my tutorial! I've added your link to my blog sidebar.
i added your button to my sidebar.so far its the only one there.ReplyDelete
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I added your link and just sent you an etsy convo before seeing this page so ignore that! Thank you and here's my blog address if you think mine's relavent enough!: http://aurorahandmade.blogspot.com xxReplyDelete
Linked back. Thanks Louise!ReplyDelete
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My blog's name is "Made by me"
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I've just added your link, would be honored to swap!ReplyDelete
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Thanks! Anna
thank you for adding me to your frequent contributor list!ReplyDelete
Emily- Our house now a home
Hi Kym,ReplyDelete
I see you've just published my second tutorial (yeey!) and I've added a button linking back to Totally Tutorials. Could you please add me to your frequent contributor list? Thanks!
I love your button and have put it on my blog http://sew-in-love.blogspot.co.uk/ to celebrate my 2nd tute being posted here. More to follow....ReplyDeleteReplies
Thanks for adding me to the list.=)Delete
Chris here from made by ChrissieD - you've featured me at least 4 times now and I've linked back to you on each featured posts and also on my Fave Linky Page :DReplyDelete
I've added your blog to the Frequent Contributors list. Thank you for submitting your tutorials.ReplyDelete
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In The Banner Saga 2, the sequel to the strategy-RPG hit, developer Stoic will continue the legacy and story of The Banner Saga with stunning 2D animation and art, a unique tactical combat system and a cast of unforgettable characters.
The award winning and BAFTA nominated saga continues in The Banner Saga 2. Continue your journey soon after the climactic events of The Banner Saga. The choices you made in the first game will affect who is alive and who is dead in this exciting sequel. As the world continues to crumble around you, only one bastion of hope remains, but getting there will require strong leadership, hard sacrifices, influencing new heroes, and, as always, sound strategy in combat.
• The epic Viking saga continues on – beautifully 2D hand drawn combat sequences and animations are further enhanced with special effects, once again accompanied by an evocative score from Grammy-nominated composer Austin Wintory
• Player choice that continues to drive your narrative – your story continues based on choices made in the first game as well as hard choices you have to make in this one.
• New Characters and a New Race – continue your epic journey interacting with new characters and a new race, the Horseborn.
• Improved Strategic combat with consequences – improved, more strategic battle boards enhance combat and permanent loss of characters will still weigh heavy on your mind long after the battle is over.
• The journey is as important as battle – your role in building and managing your caravan as you travel the vast landscape is critical to not only your own survival but the survival of an entire civilization.


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Asahel Curtis Nature Trail, Photo Gallery, Seattle - Alpine Lakes Wilderness - Snoqualmie Pass - Central Cascades, Washington
Asahel Curtis Nature Trail
Seattle - Alpine Lakes Wilderness - Snoqualmie Pass - Central Cascades
The Asahel Curtis Nature Trail showcases some of the last old growth forest in the I-90 / South Fork Snoqualmie Valley. The trail is named for an early glass plate photographer from Seattle who documented Washington's natural history and native cultures at the turn of the century. This trail shares a trailhead with the Lake Annette Trail.
|Related Trails:
|Asahel Curtis Nature Trail
Skunk Cabbage


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"In 15 or 20 years I believe 80 percent of us will be getting about 80 percent of our information through computers," I suggested in class about the future of journalism, as a community-based "lecturer" in the Communications Department (a notch or two above a teaching assistant, actually). My day job then was covering Palo Alto community news for the old Palo Alto Times.
My prediction was met with distinct incredulity. The class was still using non-electric typewriters in our writing lab, and struggling with how to insert carbon paper the right way -- not an easy task for Stanford seniors, it seemed at the time. (Did I hear someone ask, "What's carbon paper?")
But the aura of disbelief increased significantly when one bright student asked, "What if we want to keep a printed copy?"
Now I was in untried ground. Hadn't thought about it. So I winged it:
"Oh, I suppose we'll all have little printers in our homes that we can print stuff out on," I replied. The class looked at me as if I'd just stepped out of a flying saucer from another planet.
In today's keyboard era, of course, one needs to be a certain age to have ever used a typewriter, or even to know what a typewriter is. My bit of academic prescience, by the way, didn't extend to the dot-com mania that hit 15 years later, where virtual real estate became as valuable as the real stuff in Palo Alto, for a time, so I never got rich off my insights.
I left the PA Times in 1979, shortly after it became the Peninsula Times Tribune and began its painful, 14-year spiral into oblivion (in its centennial year, 1993). After nearly two years of consulting work and becoming involved in local non-profit organizations and some political issues (from which I had refrained as a journalist), I ultimately headed up the community relations/public affairs office of the then-new Palo Alto Medical Foundation, and became even more deeply involved in the world of local non-profit organizations, as a collaborative inter-agency team-builder.
By 1982, still fascinated with how computers might affect our lives, I chaired a multi-agency committee that created an experiment called the "Inter-Agency Communications Network," or ICNet. With the loan from Apple Computer of 20 rebuilt Apple IIs and 300-bits-per-second (translate to v-e-r-y s-l-o-w) modems, we linked 20 agencies that provided some type of services to seniors in northern Santa Clara County.
We soon found that the modem-to-modem dial-up was far less reliable and efficient than a simple phone call, and that the level of conversation more closely resembled the CB-band chatter between truckers than efficient business communications: "Hi, good buddy. What's new?" We concluded that we were a decade or two ahead of technology, and put the learning experience to a well-deserved rest.
Then came The WELL, the Whole Earth 'Lectronic Link, an outgrowth of Stewart Brand's Whole Earth Catalog, which emerged in the late 1980s as a Bay Area "bulletin board service," or BBS -- the way most people accessed the Internet in days before graphics became possible circa 1993-94. America Online (AOL) and other giant BBSs, later evolving into Internet service providers, ultimately overshadowed The WELL, except for diehards who still visit its conferences or keep @WELL.com e-mail addresses as a kind of virtual collector's item.
What set The WELL apart was its conferences -- in case you wondered where this was headed.
It had conferences on just about everything from current news events to what home printer was the best buy to varieties of adult fare worthy of triple-X rating, conducted discreetly behind closed, invitation-only screens. That, and monthly parties of WELL members in Sausalito, made it a special, almost personal experience. You actually knew the people who were running your Internet.
In 1991 I took time off from my day job at the Medical Foundation to serve as media coordinator for the First Conference on Computers, Freedom & Privacy, of CFP1, and later co-edited a book of transcripts that for a time served as textbooks in some colleges for this emerging field that today seems more relevant and immediate than ever. The dynamic dialogue between privacy zealots, academics, Libertarians, average people concerned about data security and computer hacking on one hand and representatives of the CIA, FBI, the Secret Service, police agencies and district attorneys' offices on the other was a phenomenal experience. This dialogue could not happen today, in our more entrenched times.
In 1994, the Internet "arrived" big time in Palo Alto. The city became the first to launch a municipal Web site, during its Centennial celebration. The Palo Alto Weekly became the first newspaper anywhere, to our knowledge, to post its entire editorial content directly onto the World Wide Web (without going through a limited-access BBS). At the Medical Foundation, I spearheaded the creation of the first (to my knowledge) community health care Web site.
And, beginning in late 1993, I and a couple of dozen others (including former Palo Alto head librarian Mary Jo Levy) co-founded the Palo Alto Community Network (PA-ComNet) listserv that began discussing ways to get something better and faster going than pokey dial-up modems, long before the community became entangled in an endless debate on whether to go to "fiber to the home."
In June 2000, when I was named editor of the Weekly, the staff had just begun talking about posting news stories online each day, which I wrote about in one of my first "On Deadline" columns in the Weekly. Former Editor Brian Aronstam completed a report on online postings, and we began with two or three postings a day. We now post between 35 and 50 news stories per week, everything from updates on community crime statistics to a streaker at a Stanford basketball game (which drew nearly 11,000 readers). Earlier big stories included the Fitzhugh murder case and when the mountain lion was wandering around Palo Alto neighborhoods looking for a free meal.
Now, a dozen years after the public discovered the Web, we arrive at blogs, Web logs -- a long step or two beyond the old text-only BBS conferences and the personal Web sites individuals and families have created since.
I still remain to be convinced that blogs are all that different from the hosted conferences of the early WELL days, except that in my blog at least one won't get "flamed" for posting too-long comments or ridiculed for not knowing proper Web protocol or procedures. I lurked around the WELL conferences for several months before venturing a comment, absorbing the give-and-take and learning the customs, like a timid anthropologist observing a new culture.
In this blog I will make some personal observations, provide historical anecdotes and tidbits from local history and make myself available to answer questions about the community -- which I began studying as something of a kid reporter in 1966. Every week, it seems, I discover something new about the community and its residents, mostly good, sometimes disappointing.
At age 16, working as a caretaker at a former summer camp in Los Altos, I discovered the Palo Alto Times and decided I wanted to work for that newspaper, finally landing a slot in 1964 covering Mountain View, Los Altos, Sunnyvale, Moffett Field and NASA-Ames. Two years later, I was promoted to the Palo Alto beat, as busy then as it is now, and the community grew upon me as I survived political battles over growth, antiwar and other demonstrations, the emerging environmental movement and even police and fire news.
As a longtime journalist, I'm more comfortable asking questions than answering them, but I have picked up historical detritus along the way. And, as with many journalists, I know whom to ask if I don't know the answer.
Ask me a question. Challenge my answers. Correct or enlarge upon my recollections. Tell me your stories.
Welcome to my blog.


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NEW YORK >> Passengers and witnesses to a horrific crash that sheared the top off a bus and killed 14 people told investigators that the driver's account of getting clipped by a tractor-trailer didn't match up to what they felt and saw before the vehicle slid off the road and into a sign pole.
Driver Ophadell Williams had told police that his bus was hit just as it crossed the New York City line early Saturday on a trip from the Mohegan Sun casino in in Connecticut.
But passengers said Williams had already swerved at times to the right for no reason before the accident, a law enforcement official said Sunday. The official wasn't authorized to speak publicly about the probe and spoke on condition of anonymity.
The bus was returning to Manhattan's Chinatown after a quick overnight trip to the casino. The official said that passengers said they didn't feel anything hit them and that other motorists on Interstate 95 said they didn't see the bus get hit. The official said police spoke to the tractor-trailer driver, who said he was following the bus.
Williams was hospitalized in stable condition after the crash and was released Sunday night, St. Barnabas Hospital spokesman Howard Matzner said. Williams hasn't commented publicly.
As many as 20 passengers were treated at hospitals following the accident. Several remained hospitalized early Monday. Most were in critical condition.
Officials at Jacobi Medical Center were still trying to identify one passenger, an Asian man in his 50s, spokeswoman Barbara DeIorio said.
"He's very injured. He's not able to communicate yet," she said, adding that the man was in the surgical intensive care unit.
The 14 victims — eight men and six women — all died of blunt force trauma, said Ellen Borakove, a spokeswoman for the New York City medical examiner's office. She said the office was working with family members to identify them.
The National Transportation Safety Board has interviewed two passengers from the bus, but it hasn't spoken to the bus driver or the driver of the truck, Vice Chairman Christopher Hart said at a news conference late Sunday.
He said the investigation was still in its early stages, but the NTSB plans to talk to the bus company to see what kind of fatigue management the company has in place. Investigators will also look into the casino's records to see whether the driver checked into a room there.
The NTSB will analyze three devices: a camera mounted in the bus facing the passengers; an engine control module, which may tell how fast the bus was going; and a GPS tracking device from the tractor-trailer, said Hart.
Some of the 31 passengers were still asleep when the bus crashed at 5:35 a.m. Saturday. The bus scraped along the guardrail for 300 feet, toppled and crashed into the support pole for a highway sign indicating the exit for the Hutchinson Parkway. The pole knifed through the bus front to back along the window line, peeling the roof off all the way to the back tires.
The bus was one of scores that travel daily between Chinatown and the Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun casinos in southeastern Connecticut.
Mohegan Sun, in Uncasville, Conn., has estimated a fifth of its business comes from Asian spending and caters to Chinese-American gamblers. Its website has a Chinese-language section offering gaming and bus promotions.
The trips between New York City's Chinatown and regional casinos are popular, said Eddie Chiu, who runs the Lin Sing Association, a community outreach group.
He said in the past three years, there have been a handful of serious accidents involving discount buses taking people from New York's Chinese community to casinos.
"The drivers tell me that they're often very tired," he said, adding that salaries are low and drivers work long hours.
Eric Brodie, a spokesman for the bus operator, World Wide Travel, said company officials met with NTSB and state police investigators and were cooperating fully. He declined to comment further.
The accident tossed passengers all around the bus, with most people hurled to the front of the bus on impact, authorities said.
Many of the passengers on the bus were Chinatown residents. They ranged in age from 20 to 50, officials said.
Chinatown community organizations offered to help victims' families cope with their loss.
Oanfa Quan, who runs a company that provides wigs and medical prostheses, said she was working with the Lin Sing Association to provide wigs in case some of the victims need them for burial.
"Usually the family wants it for their own peace of mind," she said. "Even if the casket is closed, they still want to know that their loved one looks the way they were prior to the accident."