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Winter training bikes & thieves
We were burgled last week. two winter trainers and my wifes Specialised Tarmac Elite Dura ace 2007 model. She's raced on it all over the world.
The Insurance (AXA) paid up via Wheelies.co.uk. to full new for old.
Putting aside the details, Julie suggested I go for a heavier trainer. I had a Trek 1.5. She has used a 10+kg Tommasini since 1996!!!. He is called Thomas and has a 50/34 to a 12/28. It's like doing weights all winter and when you get on your race bike (who was called Jensen (Button) ). You are even stronger. These days we are obsessed with weight and in a racer quite rightly. However , I have taken the plunge and ordered a Genesis @ just under 10kg net. In spring I shall expect to be smashing out some PB's or there will be trouble!


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subset: commoncrawl


text:
EUSA EUG2020 Convention
Belgrade, Serbia: May 30-June 1, 2019
In preparation for the next edition of the European Universities Games in Belgrade 2020, the local organising committee welcomed more than 80 participants to the EUSA EUG2020 Belgrade Convention in Serbia between May 30 and June 1, 2019.
EUSA's Technical Commission, EUSA Office Staff, the EUG2020 Organising Committee and representatives from Serbia's National and Regional Sport Federations all came together to prepare for 2020's major university sports event.
The convention participants were welcomed by OC General Director Mr Predrag Juskovic, University Sport Federation of Serbia (USSS) President Mr Dejan Madic, and EUSA Technical Commission Chair Mr Joerg Foerster.
Providing an introduction to the governing body of university sport in Europe, EUSA Sports Manager Mr Besim Aliti took to the stage before Mr Sandro Romanic, OC Accommodation and Catering Director presented the Organising Committee to the audience.
Mr Aliti returned to the stage to focus on the operational aspects of managing EUSA sport events, inviting Mr Liam Smith, EUSA Assistant Sports Manager, to discuss Result Management and Live Streaming.
Following a short break, EUSA Sports Assistant Ms Lea Medvesek presented the registration and accreditation system, process and related practicalities.
Ms Ana Todoric, OC Sports Director presented the proposed sport programme, as well as the steps taken so far in the sports sector. Closely linked to the sports sector, Mr Akim Komnenic, OC Venue Director, then discussed the proposed venues for the different sports.
Expert guest speaker Mr Neil Carney then spoke about event management, and the need to create a positive working culture in the organising committee.
Mr Joerg Foerster presented the role of the EUSA Technical Delegates and emphasised the need for open communication with all involved stakeholders.
To finish the first day, a Panel Discussion was organised, moderated by Mr Smith. Guests Mr Carney, Mr Foerster, Mr Aliti and Ms Todoric touched on many relevant topics such as volunteer management and how to engage the local community in the event.
The audience was also able to take part in the discussion, raising various questions ranging from ensuring participation to the future of sport.
On the second day of the event, the EUSA technical delegates and representatives from Serbia's National and Regional Sport Federations had the opportunity to visit the respective proposed sport venues.
The technical delegates had a chance to share their evaluation of the sport venues, including the renovations that are needed to improve certain venues so that they are in line with EUSA standards.
The Convention was part of the knowledge sharing process within the Supporting Mobility and Good Practice Exchange in University Sport, supported by the European Union.


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Today was the birthday of Milton Acorn, the People's Poet, who lived rough, and died before he was eligible for the Old Age Security, even under the old rules.
For those of you who have missed him until now, Milton Acorn is not only Canada's greatest poet, he may be our only great poet!
The first time I heard of Milton Acorn was back in the distant Sixties, or maybe it was the early Seventies, when some Chamber of Commerce type in Abbotsford, B.C., or thereabouts almost tumbled off his rocker because a poet who was a Communist (a self-described Communist, as the media used to say in those days) and who now and then put a profanity in his verse had been given some money by the federal government.
The Canada Council? Possible. But Unemployment Insurance, as it was known in those pre-Orwellian times, was more likely. Whatever. As for the occasional swear, there were precious few in Acorn's poems – as befit a rather prim old Red who'd had a little trouble with the Hard Life.
Milton Acorn even ended up an uncomfortable alcohol-fuelled pro-lifer, believing as he did in the nobility of Mankind, un-besmirched by Original Sin. Yet I likely imagine the Abbotsford ranter unfairly too, as a stout man sweating through a cheap polyester suit with a necktie knot as big as his head, which would have been filled with the Social Credit nostrums of that era and location. No doubt he too, just like Milton, was only trying to build a better world, according to his own lights.
Later, I lived on the same street in Toronto as did Milton Acorn, in the same stinky, exciting, historical, atmospheric, evocative working class neighbourhood. Like Milton, I have had a beer or two in the Waverly Hotel, where he lived, heard the clarinetist play Lili Marlene in the beer parlour there, hung around its sleazy Silver Dollar lounge, listened to the jazz at Grossman's, marveled at the strength and dignity of the working men and women of Chinatown next door, devoured a falafel at Moshe's next to El Mocambo, where poor Margaret Trudeau sat on the curb and gave us all way too much information.
I'm sure that I've heard some gunshots down there too. And I'm pretty sure I've also bought the bulldog edition of the Globe and Mail from what must have been that same newsie with his dirty pink chapped face, Acorn's description of whom never fails to move me.
Here is Milton Acorn on that person, and much more:
Knowing I Live in a Dark Age
Knowing I live in a dark age before history,
I watch my wallet and
am less struck by gunfights in the avenues
than by the newsie with his dirty pink chapped face
calling a shabby poet back for his change.
The crows mobbing the blinking, sun-stupid owl;
wolves eating a hamstrung calf hindend first,
keeping their meat alive and fresh … these
are marks of foresight, beginnings of wit:
but Jesus wearing thorns and sunstroke
beating his life and death into words
to break the rods and blunt the axes of Rome:
this and like things followed.
Knowing that in this advertising rainbow
I live like a trapeze artist with a headache,
my poems are no aspirins … they show
pale bayonets of grass waving thin on dunes;
the paralytic and his lyric secrets;
my friend Al, union builder and cynic,
hesitating to believe his own delicate poems
lest he believe in something better than himself:
and history, which is yet to begin,
will exceed this, exalt this
as a poem erases and rewrites its poet.
— Milton Acorn, c. 1960
Later I journeyed to Prince Edward Island, hoping to meet this most admired poet.
This and like things followed: I bought my ticket in July of 1986. Milton was dead – on Aug. 20 – a week before I got to Charlottetown. I saw the red earth, and the green gables, ate the white lobster. I left a red rose on his still unmarked grave.
On a later visit there was a simple gravestone, a carving of an acorn – the tiny nut whence grew this great Canadian oak, sturdy and inevitable; so fondly remembered – and another red rose.
Ignored by the Governor General's Award committee in 1970, Milton Acorn was declared The People's Poet, a more noble title, one title to aspire to. The GG's Award came belatedly, in 1976.
Milton James Rhode Acorn. Born on this day in 1923. Died on August 20, 1986. Named The People's Poet by his peers. Playwright. Worker. Writer. Carpenter. Socialist. Canadian. Canada's Greatest Poet. Born in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. Buried in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. Red earth to red earth.
Poetry is important. A culture that does not value the arts barely deserves the title of culture. For, after all, just as a poem erases and rewrites its poet, poetry erases and rewrites its society.
From time to time we need that.
This post also appears on David Climenhaga's blog, Alberta Diary.
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Welcome to a whole new adventure! Read on and, in the comments, vote for how you'd like to proceed. Choose wisely, for there are all sorts of unsavory types in the world. =)
Performers and Bounty Hunters
The night chirps with the familiar sounds of crickets and frogs. You lay on your back enjoying the cloudless expanse of stars winking at you like they're old friends.
To your left, Lenny snores softly under his wagon. You can tell by the gentle rumble of it that he didn't drink tonight. It wasn't loud enough to be his drunken snore.
On your right, Mira shuffles around putting everything away before she settles in for the night. Except for her perpetually hunched form, Mira's ageless and her movements are sure and subtle, quiet enough not to wake Genna and Roy with their newborn.
Genna and Roy sleep in their wagon across from where you lay. In about an hour or so, Regan, the newborn, will start to fuss but this is becoming a common sound for everyone and only Genna tends to wake to it anymore.
For the moment, the world slumbers peacefully. This is the most relaxed you've been in a long while.
You met the traveling performers six months before in a small town outside the capital. When you asked to accompany them, they didn't question you or treat you with suspicion although traveling performers are looked on as the dregs of society. No one asked to join them unless something was wrong.
But they never pried, never asked about your past, never looked at you with speculative eyes even when the king's soldiers passed through every town they performed in passing out fliers with your likeness drawn on them.
Instead, they painted you like a performer, gave you small tasks in each of their acts, and paraded you around in front of the soldiers like one of their own. If you hadn't been so tense the whole time, you would have found it funny.
The soldiers slowly faded the farther you got from the capital. At first, you planned to leave the performers once you thought it was safe to be on your own, but you've come to feel at home with them and each day you come up with an excuse to continue on with them.
A rustling in the trees disturbs the night's chirping. The crickets fall silent. Mira goes still with the teakettle midair in her hand. She hisses and pitches the kettle into the trees. There comes the clank of mettle on mettle.
This wasn't just Mira being eccentric, there was someone out there. You roll to your feet, shoving free of your bedroll as you move.
The night erupts into the rough shouting of men and the startled cries of those suddenly wakened. Regan's pitiable cries pierce the night above the other sounds.
At first you fear it's the King's soldiers but as one of them lifts a lantern to view the small clearing, you see the men surrounding you wear a mismatch of armor and carry everything from short swords to axes to bows.
Not soldiers. Mercenaries?
The man with the lantern spies you and holds up a sheet of paper. His lips split in a grin that displays his stained teeth.
"You're gonna make us a pretty penny," he says.
Bounty hunters, you realize with a sinking in your stomach.
The man gestures and one of his men grabs your arms and ties your wrists behind you.
Lenny steps forward and hesitates. He's a big man and, for once, sober, but he's no match for five at once. He gives you an apologetic grimace.
Several of the bounty hunters laugh at him and then they shove you into the forest away from your friends.
"Wait!" Mira calls. She runs toward you, stooping more than usual and twisting her face to make it look like that of an old hag. It's one of her performance faces.
The bounty hunters are caught off guard enough that she crashes into you and gives you a hug. "Safe travels." She sniffs and steps away just as one of the men moves to grab her.
He misses and, before he can try again, Mira's moving back toward her wagon with an exaggerated shuffle.
It's a long night. Finally, at sunrise, the bounty hunters stop for some breakfast and tie you to the trunk of a pine. You're bemoaning that the princess' cruelness has caught up to you when one of the bounty hunters approaches and drops a chunk of bread by your knee. He unties you and gestures at the bread, then he sits back to watch you eat.
The bread's hard and, although you're hungry, the knot in your stomach makes the little you eat roll in your stomach like a boat tossed at sea. You hold the rest of the bread up for the man to see and then tuck it into your pocket.
Your fingers encounter something other than the bread there.
You keep a smile from bursting across your face. Good old Mira. From the long, cylindrical shape of the object, you can tell it's her penknife.
Before withdrawing your hand, you slide the knife into your sleeve, trusting your leather bracelet to hold it against your skin.
Not long after, the bounty hunters tie you to the pine again and lay down to catch a few winks.
One stays awake and finds a large rock to sit on to keep watch. His back is to you but you're sure any sound and he'll swing around to check on you.
You could cut the ropes now and try to slip away but admittedly, your woodcraft isn't great and it'd be a bit of luck to escape without the man hearing.
Or you could wait, hoping for a more opportune moment, maybe at night, to slip away.
Do you attempt…
Escape now?
Escape later?
Performers and Bounty Hunters-Escape Later
The thought of sitting still and simply waiting for a better moment sticks in your throat like dry bread you can't quite swallow. However, the sentry keeps stirring like he's fighting to stay awake, which means he's looking you're way more often than you'd like.
You decide to bide your time even though every day of travel brings you closer to a very angry King.
You thought working in the palace would be the perfect job for you. However, when the princess lost her tiara and blamed you, it turned into a nightmare. Now, the King won't stop until you're found and punished. You don't even want to guess at the reward these hunters were in for when they returned you.
But there's at least a week in between now and when you reach the capital if you head directly there. That should be more than enough time to find a different escape.
You relax against the tree, letting the press of the penknife against your skin reassure you.
After a while, the sentry stands and wakes another. They switch places, barely glancing your way to make sure you're still where you should be. You relax back and eventually drift into a light sleep.
You wake to the soft tread of booted feet near you. Squinting up, you see it's another of the bounty hunters. A quick glance around tells you he must be the current sentry, which means you've slept for at least a few hours and missed the last change over.
The man's heavier than his companions and carries double swords over his shoulders. His mouth droops and his face is soft, reminding you of the few dimwits you've met. But the likeness stops there. His eyes glitter with an intelligence that's more than a little frightening.
He crouches beside you so you're eye to eye. Then he holds up the wanted poster with your likeness drawn in the middle. With a
thick finger, he points to the word tiara.
"You give me this, I let you go," he whispers so softly you barely pick up his words.
You don't have the tiara but he doesn't know that. Can you play it off long enough to escape?
Do you…
Nod agreement?
Shake You Head in Refusal?
Performers and Bounty Hunters-Nod Agreement
Escaping one man will be far easier than five, you decide, although this man's hard eyes make you want to shiver.
You nod agreement and a toothy grin breaks out on his rough face. He places a finger to his lips for your silence, and then slices through the rope that holds you to the tree. He leaves your hands tied behind your back.
The two of you head off quietly into the trees. When you think about taking a moment to breathe, he points for you to keep going. The corners of his mouth turn down and his eyes sparkle dangerously. You keep moving.
Finally, after what must be about an hour of hiking, he places a hand on your shoulder for you to stop.
"Where we headed?" he asks.
You've been thinking about this the entire time you've been walking. Under no circumstances do you want him headed toward the performers. They welcomed you in and helped you every step of the way. You've no desire to bring this type of danger to them.
"Didn't feel safe carrying the thing," you answer. "Found a good spot to stash it in the last town we performed."
"Hayden?" he guesses.
You nod.
Without further conversation, he pushes for you to lead the way to Hayden.
It's just after dusk when you reach the edges of Hayden. The town's small and the only noises along the main drag come from the one tavern on the far side. Everything else sits still like the sidewalks rolled up after dinner and the inhabitants turned blind eyes on the night.
You couldn't ask for a better situation.
The town's folk set up a stage in the main square for the performers when they passed through. That was only two days ago and the stage still stands like a skeleton in the gathering shadows.
The bounty hunter gives you a questioning look and you nod toward that hulking structure.
He grunts and shoves you forward. In the dim light from the street lanterns, you catch the dangerous narrowing of his eyes. He's starting to suspect you. Perhaps it's because the stage comes apart and, if you hid the tiara there, the chances of someone finding it would be high.
"Old stages like that," you say, "always tend to have hidey holes. Little boxes tucked into the planking where performers can pass news to other troops without the town's folk knowing. Handy when you want to hide something. Especially when there aren't many troops in these parts."
The man grunts again. You've no idea if you allayed his fears or not but you don't want to press your luck, so you keep your mouth shut.
The bit about hidey-holes isn't entirely untrue. However, you could care less if this stage actually has one. What you care about is the stage is broken…kind of.
Lenny found the default in the wood in the middle of his juggling act. He went straight through the flooring. He didn't break it. He fell through because two of the boards were set on pivots for some long forgotten magician's show. The great part about it though, is there wasn't a way to escape from under the boards without an assistant on the outside.
You reach the stage without running into anyone. On the way, you slide Mira's penknife into your palm. If something goes wrong, you'd prefer to have your hands free.
The knife's tiny and cutting through the rope makes for slow work but you can't make large gestures without the Hunter noticing anyway, so you keep at it until you feel a slight give in the tension around your wrists.
The planking of the stage thuds softly under your boots. The Hunter, although he's got heavy boots on too, moves silently. You try to ignore how disturbing this is.
"Where's this hidey-hole?" he asks.
You tilt your head toward the back of the stage where there's a slight roof to allow for props.
He takes five steps until he's at the corner you just indicated.
You stomach hits your throat. He just walked directly over the spot Lenny fell through. With sinking realization, you conclude the town's folk must have fixed the stage. That's why it hasn't been taken down yet.
He's looking at you, waiting for further instructions. The glitter in his eyes tells you he's seriously starting to suspect you've been lying.
With little time to consider, you see there's a stage chandelier directly above him. If you move fast enough, you might be able to drop it on him. Or you can run. There might be a few places you can hide if you get a big enough lead on him.
Do you:
Drop a stage prop on him?
Run for your life?
Performers and Bounty Hunters-Drop a Stage Prop on Him
The Bounty Hunter's a hard built man. One of those people who, just by looking at him, you know he's lived a hard life and hasn't complained about it. Without something to slow him down, you highly doubt you'll be able to outrun him.
Penknife in hand, you lunge for the rope holding the chandelier in place.
One slice and the rope pops, but it's not enough to drop the stage prop.
Behind you there's a grunt of surprise or perhaps rage but you don't look back to see for sure. You slice at the rope again and it snaps like a violin string.
Then you look to see what you've accomplished.
The chandelier drops with a crash of splintering wood. It catches the Bounty Hunter by the legs and sinks him through the floor.
But he's not out of the game. With a beast like growl, he pulls one of his swords free and starts to cut himself loose of the wreckage. The intense determination on his face convinces you, you shouldn't be around when he gets free.
You bolt, jumping off the stage and hitting the ground running in a plume of dust.
Not long after, there's a thud of feet behind you.
You dart down the next road and randomly start zigzagging your way through the streets.
No matter how sporadic you are though, you can still hear the Bounty Hunter closing on you. The one time you glance back, you see he's got both swords out now, held in such a way that they aren't slowing him much.
If he catches you, he's not going to wait for you to say something. You're sure he'll use the swords and gain the bounty with your dead body.
You reach the edge of town sooner than you wanted. There's a stretch of open ground between the buildings and the trees. By now, though, you doubt even reaching the trees will save you.
But you've got to try. You've always been a fighter. So you put everything into reaching those pines before the Bounty Hunter catches you.
Breath heaves in and out of your chest and your legs start to shake in exhaustion. You reach the dark trunks just as your legs give beneath you. A few feeble attempts to get to your feet tell you, you've got nothing left.
Huddling, you wait for the bite of those swords.
There's a whoosh…and a heavy thud.
Nothing touches you.
Startled, you look over your shoulder to see a heavy shouldered man standing there. He doesn't have swords but a heavy cudgel.
At Lenny's feet lays the Bounty Hunter. Out cold with a rapidly growing welt on his left temple.
"Felt good," Lenny says, giving you a hand up. Then, more serious, "looks like we should find different ground to perform on for awhile."
You're so shocked to see him, you just grin wordlessly. He offers you a drink from his flask as he turns you into the trees. You shake your head and he gladly takes a sip for you. "Rest of the troop's that-a-ways," he gestures. "Let's go home."
You just grin even wider in agreement.
The End
Congratulations! You not only survived but it looks like you've got a new family =)
Thanks for joining in the adventure. If you enjoyed this one, look for a whole new adventure starting on the 3rd of February.


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Tool Helps Hospital Staff Improve Communications for Patients with Limited English SkillsBy Carolyn M. Clancy, M.D.
November 9, 2012
If you're sick or need emergency care, being unable to communicate effectively can be a serious, even life-threatening, situation.
Take the tragic case of Willie Ramirez, a healthy, Spanish-speaking 18 year old who developed a sudden and intense headache.
Willie, in a coma, was taken to a hospital. His Spanish-speaking family members told the emergency room doctor that they thought he was "intoxicado." Among Cubans, that word can mean a person feels ill because of something they ate or drank. Willie had gone to a fast-food restaurant earlier that day.
However, the ER doctor assumed "intoxicado" meant that Willie had overdosed on drugs. Based on that information and on a physical exam, he treated Willie for an overdose.
The family didn't believe that Willie's illness was brought on by drugs, as the ER doctor did. In fact, Willie was an athlete, and his family knew he didn't use drugs. But they were reluctant to challenge an authority figure's opinion and did not do so.
They did not ask for an interpreter because some information was being provided to the doctor in English by Willie's 15-year-old girlfriend.
In fact, Willie had not suffered from a drug overdose or food poisoning, but he had experienced serious bleeding in his brain (a stroke). As a result of getting the wrong treatment, Willie suffered severe brain damage that left him unable to use his arms or legs.
This tragedy occurred in 1980. But it continues to hold valuable lessons that doctors, nurses, and patients can use to prevent a similar event from taking place.
The United States has a growing number of people with limited English skills. About 25 million people, or nearly 9 percent of the U.S. population, have limited proficiency in English, meaning they speak English "less than very well," according to the U.S. Census.
Research has shown that patients with limited English proficiency are more likely to be harmed by adverse events in the hospital than patients who speak English very well. Further, this harm is likely to be more severe compared with errors that affect English-speaking patients.
To help address this issue, AHRQ has developed a new training module that teaches hospital staff how to work more effectively as a team to reduce the risk for communication errors. The module uses a scientifically tested teamwork system that has been show to improve communication among hospital staff and reduce adverse events.
If you or a loved one do not speak or understand English very well, you can play an important role in making sure that you are being fully understood. You should —
- Ask for a professional interpreter. Hospitals may have interpreters on staff. Interpreter services should be available by telephone or video. You will not be charged for this service.
- Don't rely on a friend or family member to translate medical information. It is difficult and stressful to interpret for someone else. Research shows that professional interpreters are less likely to make important mistakes than people who have not been trained to interpret. Even if a friend or family member has good English skills, he or she may still be unfamiliar with certain medical terms. Never ask a child to interpret.
- Take it in stride if your doctor uses an interpreter. Don't be offended. Your doctor wants to make sure that he or she can get all the needed information and can answer all of your questions completely.
- Ask questions about your follow-up care. Errors due to poor communication can also happen when you go home from the hospital. Make sure you ask questions about how to take your medicines, when you need to come back for follow-up appointments, and other issues. You can find a handy list of 10 questions you should ask here, available in English and Spanish.
I'm Dr. Carolyn Clancy, and that's my advice on how to navigate the health care system.
ResourcesAgency for Healthcare Research and Quality
TeamSTEPPS® Enhancing Safety for Patients with Limited English Proficiency Module
AHRQ Publication No. 12-0041. Improving Patient Safety Systems for Patients with Limited English Proficiency: A Guide for Hospitals. September 2012
Questions for Your Health Care Provider (Questions are the Answer):
Health Affairs Blog. Language, Culture and Medical Tragedy: The Case of Willie Ramirez.
Current as of November 2012
Internet Citation:
Tool Helps Hospital Staff Improve Communications for Patients with Limited English Skills . Navigating the Health Care System: Advice Columns from Dr. Carolyn Clancy, November 9, 2012. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/consumer/cc/cc110912.htm
Navigating the Health Care System
Advice Columns from Dr. Carolyn Clancy
|AHRQ Director Carolyn Clancy, M.D., has prepared brief, easy-to-understand advice columns for consumers to help navigate the health care system. They will address important issues such as how to recognize high-quality health care, how to be an informed health care consumer, and how to choose a hospital, doctor, and health plan. Check back regularly for new columns.
Dr. Clancy, a general internist and researcher, is an expert in engaging consumers in their health care.
Select for Previous Columns.
Select to view Navigating the Health Care Video Advice Columns from Dr. Clancy.


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Kit For the Day – Germany, 2020
In a bid to stay topical, we've decided to tie posts to something from the day or date in question when there's no specific article planned.
As we write this, Germany are comfortably winning in Kiev against the Ukraine in their Nations League clash. They're wearing the kit that was launched last November and intended to receive wider attention at Euro 2020 but best-laid plans and all that.
The kit has come in for some criticism, with the horizontal stripes too much for some, but it's way of modern kits that there is a need to change things up with each new offering.
With Germany in the same Nations League group as Spain, the shirt has already been worn with white shorts, just as the 2018 shirt was similarly mashed up. Not so long ago, such a notion would seem strange – even allowing for the fact that all-white isn't a completely alien look for Germany – but the 2014 World Cup win changed all that.
There was a school of thought that suggested the proliferation of single-coloured kits at that tournament was down to a Fifa edict, but Daniel Gellatley wrote a comprehensive article for this site which blew a few holes in that theory and confirmation came recently from Jürgen Rank, adidas's senior design director (football apparel).
Jürgen was the guest on the first episode of The Football Kit Podcast, a new venture from your correspondent and Les Motherby of Hull City Kits. If you haven't listened already, you can do so by clicking the link below – as well as that Germany kits, Jürgen talks about the new Arsenal away and Manchester United third shirts, among a variety of other things. We're biased, but we'd definitely recommend it.


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End of the line for Psystar
It's now officially the end of the line for Florida-based Mac-clone maker Psystar as the court slaps a permanent injunction on the company, prohibiting it from selling PCs with Mac OS X Leopard or Snow Leopard installed.
U.S. District Court Judge William Alsup has given Psystar has until midnight, December 31, 2009 to comply with the injunction, and made it clear that the "defendant must immediately begin this process, and take the quickest path to compliance."
This is all pretty much irrelevant as Psystar has already pulled from sale all Mac clone systems.
However, Psystar continues to sell an application called Rebel EFI, a $50 utility that allows customers to install Mac OS X onto their own PCs. But this application hasn't been missed by Judge Alsup, who had the following to say:
"Whether Rebel EFI violates the terms of the injunction set forth in this order is a factual issue more appropriate for a contempt action ... this order declines to 'bless' a product about which it knows little of substance ... and Psystar - if it continues to do so - sells Rebel EFI at its peril."
Alsup goes on too say:
"What is certain, however, is that until such a motion is brought, Psystar will be selling Rebel EFI at its peril, and risks finding itself held in contempt if its new venture falls within the scope of the injunction."
That's it. It's been an interesting legal wrangle but it's ended pretty much as expected.


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Another whirlwind doc roundup…
Time for another whirlwind doc roundup.
I got back from Big Sky Documentary Film Festival on Tuesday. I think a good time was had by all. The locals are thrilled to have guests. And the guests are thrilled to be visiting the 60,000 person town. I stayed at the Red Lion Inn. Sounds fancy, I know. They're all about your comfort. In the middle of the night I was dreaming about trains and woke up to find this.
I had a lot of shorts to watch over the course of 4 days as a member of the documentary shorts jury and I dove right in on Friday as the festival kicked into full swing. The festival played a whole program of films from the International Documentary Challenge. It's very cool. Teams sign up, get a genre and then have 5 days to make a short doc. It's pretty amazing that anything works out at all. The 2007 edition of the Challenge is just around the corner and runs March 1-5.
I spent the evening doing a movie and dinner. And really I think it's a great thing for the festival to market as an activity. I went to see The War Tapes and then joined some fellow jurors and friends for dinner at 515. We ate in the wine bar, which has a different menu than the upstairs la-de-da restaurant. But we managed to eat everything (maybe a few too many things) and gorge on two orders of wild boar short ribs from the upstairs menu as well. Ooooh…what a waitstaff will do to keep a group of 7 from up and leaving.
The rest of the fest included more films, panels, parties and even a late night of bowling at Liberty Lanes (Steve James is a pretty good bowler!). My last night in Missoula I spent two hours deliberating with the shorts jury while Can Mr. Smith Get to Washington Anymore? screened in the 1,100 seat Wilma Theatre. By the time my co-jurors and I emerged with our Big Sky winners freshly picked I watched Mr. Smith producer Mike Kime answer questions about the film and from what I could tell from the Q&A and major audience response Mr. Smith picked up some new fans.
Here are the 2007 Big Sky Documentary Film Festival Award Winners:
Best Feature
The Cats of Mirikitani

Director: Linda Hattendorf
Best Short
A Revolving Door

Director: Marilyn Braverman
Best Mini Doc
Ha Ha Ha America

Director: JD Ligon
Big Sky Award

Salvation Mountain

Director: Travis Peterson
Artistic Vision Award
 Feature
The Colour of Olives

Director: Carolina Rivas
Artistic Vision Award
 Short
Director: Wojciech Kasperski
The festival staff and volunteers were incredibly accommodating. It was great to watch docs with friends and make new ones in the friendly town.
Wednesday night I attended the International Documentary Association's annual celebration of Academy Award nominated docs. It was a nice evening. And quick too!
On Saturday the IDA will be showing all the nominated films at the Writer's Guild Theatre. It usually sells out. I'm planning on seeing Iraq in Fragments. It's my only missing film from the category. See you there.
A week from today I'll be at True/False in Columbia, MO. They're showing The Fighting Cholitas along with a whole slew of great docs. I'm looking forward to another great time there! They've also started some cool interactive stuff on their website (the T/F Experience). Oooooooooh…
SXSW is fast approaching. Have fun! I won't be there this year. So I'll be looking to my fellow bloggers for news and inspiration.
Oh – AND – be sure to set your Tivo, program your VCR or just plain plop yourself down on the couch with a snack and watch Can Mr. Smith Get to Washington Anymore? on Independent Lens. It premieres February 27th. Check local listings.


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Avery Flynn arrives at her Uncle Tam's house, for the long summer visit that has been part of her life since she was a young girl. She's now in her late teens, and late last summer, she and her old friend, Daniel, took the first hesitant steps toward romance. She's hoping they can pick up where they left off.
But strange things have happened, and Daniel isn't Daniel anymore. At first she just thinks he's changed. Then she thinks--this really isn't Daniel. It's someone else in his body, and she needs to get him back.
Even once she's reached that conclusion, what's really going on is stranger and more frightening that she thinks. She's about to discover that the world of the Fae is real, and dangerous.
In her quest to rescue Daniel, Avery learns startling things about her father, her uncle, her own mental health conditions for which she's been treated and medicated most of her life. Her background isn't what she thinks it is, and her father and uncle aren't who she thinks they are.
Avery learns to understand herself, and learns a lot about judging character--of both humans and Fae.
Most of all, she faces a dangerous test, when she finds abilities she didn't know she possessed, and has to decide how to use that power to deal with those who have helped or harmed her.
I don't think I'm doing this book justice. I found it much deeper and stronger than I expected. Highly recommended.
I received a free copy of this audiobook via Authors XP Elite Readers, and am reviewing it voluntarily.


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The Atlas Tiny Home (a.k.a Blake's Tiny House) will be featured on HGTV tonight. You can learn more about this tiny house on the Atlas Tiny Home website and see how it was built.
Rochester native Alex Gore and his business partner stayed busy this summer building a tiny home that will be featured on HGTV's "Tiny House: Big Living" on Monday at 8." – PostBulletin.com
Source: Home on the range: Rochester native's 'tiny house' gets airing on HGTV – PostBulletin.com


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Animating your UI (XAML)
You can integrate the Windows look and feel into your app by using the library of animations discussed in this topic. This topic provides a summary of the animations and examples of typical scenarios where each is used.
The Windows Runtime controls for XAML include certain types of animations as built-in behaviors that come from an animation library. Controls such as the ListView control, the FlipView control, the Flyout control, and the AppBar control all use these animations as built-in behavior. By using these controls in your app, you can get the animated look and feel without having to program it yourself.
Animations from the Windows Runtime animation library provide these benefits:
- Motions that align to animation principles
- Fast, fluid transitions between UI states that inform but do not distract the user
- Visual behavior that indicates transitions within an app to the user
For example, when the user adds an item to a list, instead of the new item instantly appearing in the list, the new item animates into place. The other items in the list animate to their new positions over a short period of time, making room for the added item. The transition behavior here makes the control interaction more apparent to the user.
The animation library does not provide animations for every possible scenario. There are cases where you might wish to create a custom animation in XAML. For more info, see Storyboarded animations.
For example code using the APIs discussed in this topic, see the XAML animation sample, XAML personality animations sample, or Quickstart: Animating your UI using library animations.
Types of animations
The Windows Runtime animation system and the animation library serve the larger goal of enabling controls and other parts of UI to have an animated behavior. There are several distinct types of animations.
- Theme transitions are applied automatically when certain conditions change in the UI, involving controls or elements from the predefined Windows Runtime XAML UI types. These are termed theme transitions because the animations support the Windows look and feel, and define what all apps do for particular UI scenarios when they change from one interaction mode to another. The theme transitions are part of the animation library.
- Theme animations are animations to one or more properties of predefined Windows Runtime XAML UI types. Theme animations differ from theme transitions because theme animations target one specific element and exist in specific visual states within a control, whereas the theme transitions are assigned to properties of the control that exist outside of the visual states and influence the transitions between those states. Many of the Windows Runtime XAML controls include theme animations within storyboards that are part of their control template, with the animations triggered by visual states. So long as you're not modifying the templates, you'll have those built-in theme animations available for the controls in your UI. However, if you do replace templates, then you'll be removing the built-in control theme animations too. To get them back, you must define a storyboard that includes theme animations within the control's set of visual states. You can also run theme animations from storyboards that aren't within visual states and start them with the Begin method, but that's less common. Theme animations are part of the animation library.
- Visual transitions are applied when a control transitions from one of its defined visual states to another state. These are custom animations that you write, and are typically related to the custom template you write for a control and the visual state definitions within that template. The animation only runs during the time between states, and that's typically a short amount of time, a few seconds at most. For more info, see "VisualTransition" section of Storyboarded animations for visual states.
- Storyboarded animations are applied when they are specifically started by your app code, or by code that comes with a component like a control that you've included. Storyboarded animations can change the value of any Windows Runtime dependency property over time. Storyboarded animations aren't limited to UI scenarios; in fact it might be useful to think of them as a state machine technique, if you're familiar with that concept. A storyboarded animation is not limited to the transition time between visual states; it could be run at any time regardless of a control state change, and the animation can potentially run continuously. For more info, see Storyboarded animations. For more info about dependency properties and where they exist, see Dependency properties overview.
Animations available in the library
The following animations are supplied in the animation library. Click on the name of an animation to learn more about their main usage scenarios, how to define them, and to see an example of the animation.
- Content and entrance transition: Animates one piece or set of content into or out of view.
- Fade in/out, and crossfade: Shows transient elements or controls, or refreshes a content area.
- Pointer up/down: Gives visual feedback of a tap or click on a tile.
- Reposition: Moves an element into a new position.
- Show/hide popup: Displays contextual UI on top of the view.
- Show/hide edge UI: Slides edge-based UI, including large UI such as a panel, into or out of view.
- List item changes: Adds or deletes an item from a list, or reordering of the items.
- Drag/drop: Gives visual feedback during a drag-and-drop operation.
- Swipe gestures: Hints that a tile supports the swipe interaction, or indicates swipe-selected state
Note The expand, peek, badge, and search list animations provided through the JavaScript animation library are not available for XAML.
Windows 8 behavior
For Windows 8, XAML theme transitions and various other automatic animated behaviors in the animation library didn't honor a particular Microsoft Windows Ease of Access setting that enables users to turn off "unnecessary animations".
Starting with Windows 8.1, theme transitions, theme animations, and visual transitions all honor the Turn off all unnecessary animations (when possible) setting in Ease of Access. The animations won't run and the control state changes or visual changes are instantaneous.
If you migrate your app code from Windows 8 to Windows 8.1, you might want to test your animation behaviors with Turn off all unnecessary animations (when possible) setting enabled. Because some of these animations are controlled by storyboards, and because you sometimes chain up custom animations to start after visual transitions or theme animations are complete, the Turn off all unnecessary animations (when possible) setting might affect the timings of your animations. Also, if you've implemented something as a VisualTransition in a visual state rather than as a storyboarded animation, you might want to switch it to be a true custom animation, so that the Turn off all unnecessary animations (when possible) setting won't disable it.
Apps that were compiled for Windows 8 but running on Windows 8.1 continue to use the Windows 8 behavior for theme animations and visual transitions. However, theme transitions are disabled by the setting on Windows 8.1, even if an app is not recompiled.
Content transition and entrance transition
Use content transition animations (ContentThemeTransition) to move a piece or a set of content into or out of the current view. For example, the content transition animations show content that was not ready to display when the page was first loaded, or when the content changes on a section of a page.
The XAML animation library doesn't have a concept of an animation that applies to the entire page when the page is loaded, but it does have a separate transition (EntranceThemeTransition) that can apply to content when the page containing the content is first loaded and that part of content is rendered. Thus the first appearance of content can offer different feedback than a change to content does.
For more info, see Animating content and entrance transitions.
Fade in/out, and crossfade
Use fade in and fade out animations to show or hide transient UI or controls. In XAML these are represented as FadeInThemeAnimation and FadeOutThemeAnimation. One example is in an app bar in which new controls can appear due to user interaction. Another example is a transient scroll bar or panning indicator that is faded out after no user input has been detected for some amount of time. Apps should also use the fade in animation when they transition from a placeholder item to the final item as content loads dynamically.
Use a crossfade animation to smooth the transition when an item's state is changing; for example, when the app refreshes the current contents of a view. The XAML animation library does not supply a dedicated crossfade animation (no equivalent for crossFade), but you can achieve the same result using FadeInThemeAnimation and FadeOutThemeAnimation with overlapped timing.
For more info, see Animating fades.
Pointer up/down
Use the PointerUpThemeAnimation and PointerDownThemeAnimation animations to give the user feedback for a successful tap or click on a tile. For example, when a user clicks or taps down on a tile, the pointer down animation is played. Once the click or tap has been released, the pointer up animation is played.
For more info, see Animating pointer actions.
Use the reposition animations (RepositionThemeAnimation or RepositionThemeTransition) to move an element into a new position. For example, moving the headers in a headerd items control uses the reposition animation.
For more info, see Animating repositions.
Show/hide popup
Use the PopInThemeAnimation and PopOutThemeAnimation when you show and hide a Popup or similar contextual UI on top of the current view. PopupThemeTransition is a theme transition that's useful feedback if you want to light dismiss a popup.
For more info, see Animating popup UI.
Show/hide edge UI
Use the EdgeUIThemeTransition animation to slide small, edge-based UI into and out of view. For example, use these animations when you show a custom app bar at the top or bottom of the screen or a UI surface for errors and warnings at the top of the screen.
Use the PaneThemeTransition animation to show and hide a pane or panel. This is for large edge-based UI such as a custom keyboard or a task pane.
For more info, see Animating edge-based UI.
List item changes
Use the AddDeleteThemeTransition animation to add animated behavior when you add or delete an item in an existing list. For add, the transition will first reposition existing items in the list to make space for the new items, and then add the new items. For delete, the transition removes items from a list and, if necessary, repositions the remaining list items once the deleted items have been removed.
There's also a separate ReorderThemeTransition that you apply if an item changes position in a list. This is animated differently than deleting an item and adding it in a new place with the associated delete/add animations.
For more info, see Animating list item changes.
Use the drag animations (DragItemThemeAnimation, DragOverThemeAnimation) and drop animation (DropTargetItemThemeAnimation) to give visual feedback when the user drags or drops an item.
When active, the animations show the user that the list can be rearranged around a dropped item. It is helpful for users to know where the item will be placed in a list if it is dropped at the current location. The animations give visual feedback that an item being dragged can be dropped between two other items in the list and that those items will move out of the way.
For more info, see Animating drag-and-drop sequences.
Swipe gestures
Use the SwipeHintThemeAnimation animation to show that a tile supports the swipe interaction. Users can swipe downwards to select a tile. If a user does not know if they can swipe on a tile, a press and hold gesture on the tile will play the swipe hint animation to suggest that the user should interact with the tile through a swipe.
Use the SwipeBackThemeAnimation animation to show that the tile has been selected, and to return the tile to its rest location.
For more info, see Animating swipe gestures.
Using animations with custom controls
The following table summarizes our recommendations for which animation you should use when you create a custom version of these Windows Runtime controls:
|UI type
|Recommended animation
|Dialog box
|FadeInThemeAnimation and FadeOutThemeAnimation
|PopInThemeAnimation and PopOutThemeAnimation
|FadeInThemeAnimation and FadeOutThemeAnimation
|Context menu
|PopInThemeAnimation and PopOutThemeAnimation
|Command bar
|Task pane or edge-based panel
|Contents of any UI container
|For controls or if no other animation applies
|FadeInThemeAnimation and FadeOutThemeAnimation
Related topics
Roadmap for Windows Runtime apps using C# or Visual Basic
XAML personality animations sample


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(All pics below courtesy of Ahmad Sarji)
VISITING Tun Ahmad Sarji's office feels like taking a walk through Malaysian history. Photographs of national icons such as Tunku Abdul Rahman and Tan Sri P Ramlee line the walls, alongside old family portraits and pictures of Ahmad Sarji in the many roles he has played over the years.
Ahmad Sarji has been Permodalan Nasional Bhd chairperson since 1996, after retiring from the highest position in the civil service. He was chief secretary to the government from 1990 to 1996. Aside from his PNB duties and other corporate appointments, Ahmad Sarji is also Badan Warisan Malaysia president, pro-chancellor of Universiti Tun Abdul Razak and Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, and Malaysia Lawn Bowls Federation president. He is also an avid fan of P Ramlee and has authored and co-authored books on him.
Despite his hectic schedule, Ahmad Sarji meticulously prepared answers to The Nut Graph's questions, complete with handwritten notes, prior to his 2 Feb 2010 interview at his office in Kuala Lumpur.
At two and a half years oldWhere were you born, and where did you grow up?
I was born in my maternal grandmother's house at Kampung Batu Tiga, Jalan Temoh, Tapah in 1938.
I grew up mainly in Tapah and Ipoh. I went to Sekolah Melayu Pasir Puteh in Ipoh in 1946 but moved back to Tapah in 1947. I attended a co-educational school in Tapah, the Government English School. In 1956, I went back to Ipoh to complete my Higher School Certificate at the Anderson School.
Can you trace your ancestry? Where were your parents/grandparents from?
My father is from Perak, he was born in Kampar. His ancestors were orang Perak. [My cousin has traced our family lineage up to the 1700s.] One of our ancestors was the Datuk Panglima Teja di Bandar, one of the 16 Perak chiefs. His father was Datuk Panglima Kukut, better known in Kota Baru as the Keramat Panglima. His mother was Andak Ulum, of Bugis descent, one of the original Bugis migrants to Perak in 1743.
My mother was born three miles from Tapah in Kampung Batu Tiga. Her ancestry can be traced back to Rao, Sumatera in Indonesia. The Rawanese came to Malaya in the 19th century to trade. I was named by my maternal grandfather, Haji Mohd Sidek Zainal Abidin, who was of Rawanese origin.
My father was a civil servant, my mother a housewife. My father always encouraged me to speak English … I spoke to him in English and to my mother, who didn't speak a word of English, in Malay. My parents really complemented each other. My father encouraged us to study hard and my mother taught us to be religious. To read the Quran, not to miss prayers, not to have jealousy among siblings and cousins, and to visit our relatives.
They had eight children, four boys and four girls. I'm the eldest.
Family portrait. Ahmad Sarji is seated, far right
What do you remember of school?
I had classmates of all races — Malay, Indian, Chinese, Eurasians, and even one or two [Orang Asli]. The atmosphere in class was very cordial and harmonious. We always had a mixed composition in our activities. We were friends. We respected each other's cultures.
It was quite normal to be presented with mandarin oranges by our Chinese friends. We looked forward to Deepavali, occasions when we savoured curry. Likewise, my Chinese and Indian friends would come to my grandmother's house to savour lemang and ketupat.
When we had hockey trials or soccer trials, selection was based purely on merit, not race. We never had thoughts like, "He'll win the elocution contest because he's Malay", or "He's better in maths because he's Chinese."
Being in a co-ed school, we mixed freely between boys and girls. However, there were only [a] few romantic relationships. We were so close we felt like we were brothers and sisters. You can't possibly marry your own brother or sister.
Ahmad Sarji's wedding, 1962
What is your strongest memory of the place in which you grew up?
My father built our family's wooden house in 1945. It was along the Batang Padang river, a two-minute walk from Tapah town. There were lots of fruit trees, and we didn't have electricity and water until 1959. I had to fill pails of water from my school nearby and carry them home.
We used kerosene lamps at night. The sparkling water of the river provided good baths for us. Sometimes, there was severe flooding during the rainy season which could even reach the floor of our home, which was raised nearly seven feet off the ground.
Tapah town had several rows of shophouses in the centre. The district office building, where my father worked, was very imposing. He played many football and cricket matches in the large padang surrounding the office.
Tapah also had a cinema, rest house and police station built in 1936. In another part of town were the hospital and Government English School. I was disappointed when the school padang was partially taken over to build an outpatient department. It was the training and breeding ground of national hockey and cricket stars such as my father Abdul Hamid Aroop, Aladad Khan, Aminulah Karim, R Yogeswaran and Ahmad Harun.
Ahmad Sarji's grandfather, Mohd AroopWhat are some stories you hold on to from your parents/grandparents?
A family story that's always repeated is how my paternal grandfather was murdered by his own men. He was a mining assistant in Bidor, and he owned a car and a motorbike. One night, a group of his men came to his house in the middle of the night with torches demanding for jewellery from him and my step-grandmother.
My uncle, who was then in his teens, was also in the house. My grandfather stubbornly refused, and the men killed him. I was told he was slashed. They spared my step-grandmother, and my uncle jumped into a well nearby to escape.
How do you connect with these stories as a Malaysian?
We were driven with a lot of ambition in school. Teachers would tell us, "We are under the British. Tunku Abdul Rahman is fighting for independence. You should study hard and get positions in the civil service so you can really own and manage this country."
We had a lot of zeal to serve the country. In my case, I wanted to be a district officer, which in those days was the representative of the British and state government.
Now, times are different. I do not know whether the young generation are fired up with zeal to manage the country … Times are changing, values change also. Now we find issues such as communal issues creeping up; people are becoming conscious of their identity as Malays, Chinese and all that. Not that we were not conscious before, but we did not allow the consciousness to create rifts in our friendships or to cause animosity, grudges or envy. Those years were honestly quite different.
With Tunku Abdul Rahman
The younger generation need to know this country's history, icons and national heroes. There needs to be serious rethinking of the critical values that Malaysians should adhere and subscribe to for the country's future.
We've seen many problems in the recent past due to ugly Malaysians betraying the trust and duty entrusted to them. Projects not completed in time, buildings built not according to specifications, poor services, lawyers absconding with clients' monies, and corruption by all classes of people. People have forgotten basic values of trust, honesty, truth, responsibility and justice.
What aspects of your identity do you struggle with the most as a Malaysian?
I am very comfortable with my identity and my skin. I speak Malay and also English. I have friends and make friends with everybody regardless of their ethnicity or creed.
Describe the kind of Malaysia you would like for yourself and future generations.
I hope to see a prosperous and developed Malaysia where [its] people are religious, morally upright, skillful, compassionate, corruption-free and intensely patriotic.
We need to be proud of our country. We need to know our origins — how we fought for independence, beat the communists … how we solved the confrontation with Indonesia, our model of economic development. We need to know our heroes, who include civil servants, religious leaders, literary giants, sports[persons], top generals, police officers, community leaders, and now scientists who have developed the country. There are other heroes who fought for independence, the professionals who developed the economy, our diplomats who fostered good international relationships.
Every American knows Thomas Jefferson and George Washington. Every British student knows their literary giants like Shakespeare. I don't know whether our students know Samad Said, Tongkat Waran, Za'ba and others.
As pro-chancellor of Universiti Tun Abdul RazakAny country's future lies with the younger generations. The education system is the way forward. The study of hard sciences and soft subjects should be reviewed. There should be a balance.
We need scientists to know history, to know about Datuk Onn Jaafar, Tunku Abdul Rahman, Tun Tan Cheng Lock, Tun (V) Sambanthan. Everybody must know this. Now, I don't even see the Father of Independence (Tunku Abdul Rahman)'s picture hung in government officers prominently. He is one among the prime ministers. He should be given a special place so people know him and the values he conveyed: racial harmony and religious tolerance.
Read other Found in Malaysia interviews
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Two people died on the Shell Auger Tension Leg Platform this morning, a company spokeswoman tells KATC.
Here's the company's full statement:
It is with deep sadness that we report two fatalities as a result of an incident this morning at the Shell Auger Tension Leg Platform (TLP). One other non-life-threatening injury was sustained, and that individual is being treated at a nearby hospital.
The incident occurred at approximately 9 AM (CST) this morning, during a routine and mandatory test of our lifeboat launch and retrieval capabilities at Auger TLP, which is located 214 miles south of New Orleans in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.
Shell representatives have informed family members of those involved and are providing support. Out of respect to those families and their privacy, names are not being released.
In the over forty years that Shell has operated in the deep water Gulf of Mexico we have strived, above all, to ensure our people go home safely to their loved ones. It's devastating when they do not. We deeply regret this loss of life within our Shell family and community.


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I promise, one of these weeks, I am going to try to highlight a defensive play. For the fourth week in a row, though, I feel compelled to look back at one of the team's highlight plays on offense. The play being highlighted is an 18-yard catch-and-run to RB Trent Richardson.
It was the first play on Cleveland's third offensive possession in the first quarter, with the score still tied at 0-0. It is also the first play after LB Craig Robertson intercepted Joe Flacco's pass in the end zone for a touchback, which also means that Joshua Cribbs had already been knocked out of the game. Let's take a look at how things unfolded in the screenshots below.
Picture 1: Let's talk about the personnel for the Browns first. Everyone is lined up tight. There are two wide receivers in the game -- Travis Benjamin at the top of the screen and Greg Little at the bottom of the screen. Tight end Benjamin Watson originally lined up on the line next to Benjamin, but Brandon Weeden already sent him in motion toward Little. Owen Marecic and Trent Richardson are lined up behind Weeden in the I-formation.
The Ravens have stacked the box here; there are eight defenders within five yards of the line of scrimmage. Ed Reed is one of the guys showing blitz near Benjamin, meaning there is only one safety up top.
Picture 2: The big key for this play working is the block that Trent Richardson effectively takes the blitzing Ed Reed out of the play with a good cut block after Brandon Weeden's playaction fake. The Ravens only have three defensive backs in coverage against two of our wide receivers. The rest of the players on offense are doing a good job holding their blocks. Weeden rolls out to the right, and the blockers shift with him a little bit. It does not look like your typical screen pass.
Picture 3: Instead of looking for his receivers, Brandon Weeden now looks back toward Trent Richardson, who is starting to get back up after the cut block he delivered at the 15-yard line.
Picture 4: The pass has been delivered to Trent Richardson and the guards, Shawn Lauvao and Jason Pinkston, each instinctively know to get out in front as lead blockers.
Picture 5: With all of the space in front of Trent Richardson, he doesn't wait for his two guards and decides to take off down the field. Wide receiver Greg Little ended up over here and is about to deliver a firm block to OLB Jameel McClain, helping spring Richardson for extra yardage.
Picture 6: SS Bernard Pollard takes the first shot at tackling Trent Richardson, but he will have none of it and just shakes him off. The final line of defense is CB Ladarius Webb, and he does the wise thing -- knock Richardson out of bounds so he doesn't get blown up too. That finishes the 18-yard pickup for Richardson.
Picture 7: The interesting question here is this: should Brandon Weeden have made a different decision? In the yellow circle near midfield, you can see Greg Little running a crossing pattern. Granted, there's no guarantee that he is going to catch the pass, but he is wide open nonetheless. If Weeden hits Little, he'd already have 15 yards. Based on how far Bernard Pollard is (circled to the far right), Little almost certainly would have gained more than Richardson's 18 yards.
Picture 8: Let's take a look at one more screenshot. At this point, Trent Richardson already has the ball and is running up the field. Greg Little was praised on television for the block he made, but could he have made a better decision here? Little goes after McClain, but my guess is that Richardson would have been able to blow by him anyway. If Little blocks one of the other two guys instead, Richardson might only need to make one guy miss for this play to gain a lot more yardage, or even a touchdown.
Are you fine with the decision that Weeden made? I am. Even though Little is open, my assumption is that the play was meant for Richardson. He was wide open with a lot of room to run, and we saw the damage he did in the open field against the Bengals a few weeks ago.


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How to buy repossessed vehicles
Where can I get/view the repossessed cars from the bank?
Auntie's answer: I have to admit that this question makes me a bit sad. I cannot fault you for inquiring about repossessed cars but it does conjure images of people who have fallen on hard times, which is especially upsetting as we get nearer to Christmas..
Anyway, here is what I have found out. Cayman National holds repossessed cars at the Elgin Avenue Customer Service Centre parking lot. To get more information and to arrange to view a car, call 949-4655 and ask to speak to someone in the Debt Collection Unit.
CIBC First Caribbean advises those interested in reviewing and bidding on the vehicles to call the bailiff, Josh Lewis, at 917-4363.
Fidelity does not have any repossessed cars, but in the interest of being thorough I have included them as well.
I have reached out to the other retail banks in Cayman but have not yet received a response. I would be happy to include their information if they contact me.
Send questions to firstname.lastname@example.com
Recent answers from Auntie
I want to donate some of my son's toys to charity. Can you tell me where I can do this? Auntie's answer: While I am always happy to find the answers to difficult questions and help people solve problems, I cannot deny it is also nice to be able to deal with a query such […]
Is pollution monitored in Cayman?
Do we have any pollution monitoring here on the island? Ocean water quality, air quality, anything? Are there any statistics, on any topic? On the WHO website it seemed we are the only country that is not proactive in regards to these matters. Auntie's answer: This is one of those questions that necessitated input from […]
Preventing release of personal information
I've been hearing a lot about GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) lately, most recently on the '60 Minutes' programme. The list of registered voters in Cayman is public, with voters' names, residential addresses, and occupations. Doesn't that fall afoul of GDPR, or the local data protection laws? Auntie's answer: Actually, a representative of the Office […]
Trucks need to be better regulated
Are there any rules that apply to the increasing number of large, poorly driven and maintained trucks that
Category: Ask Auntie, Banking Questions


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These two people are my absolute heart and soul! They are the most amazing friends on the planet and I feel so blessed to have them in my life. We normally all see each other every time we go to the mill. In case you don't know I'm the one in the Steelers jacket.
Another thing we do every time we're at the mill is go to the Jane Lew truckstop. They have a restaurant there that has this painting on the wall. The painting is of the Civil War. You can see the blue side and the gray side. The meaning of signed by what we think is a local artist Charlotte Gerstack. We eat here every time we're here and we get a picture in front of Jesus. As you can see in the picture below Laura is pointing to Jesus. Right in the middle of the fighting there is a man in all white with sandals. He's holding a gun and fighting right along with both the blue and gray man. Has to be Jesus right? This is a bone of contention for everyone except me… I know it is Jesus. I just don't know why he is holding a gun.
And here's a close-up… Jesus, right?
I received a few check-in's from my cat sitter. She came twice a day to take care of the food and shots for Nermal. He did so great for her - here's a screen capture of some of her texting…
So she texted me each time she came and said he was great with the shots every time. I am so blessed to have such a wonderful cat sitter! She definitely loves my cats (and my home) like they're her own.
I really love this old picture below… It was the three of us that I told you hang out together plus a gentleman named Vaughn. Vaughn passed away last year and he is so missed! The guy smiling in the back row is another guy we see all the time at the mill. Vaughn brought everyone so much laughter and joy. Love you Vaughn!
After that weekend of so much relaxation… I came home hearing about a snowstorm that was on the way to Pittsburgh. We made it home before any snow fell and I hunkered down to get ready to watch my Steelers beat the Chiefs. As you all know that did not happen… The Steelers are out of the playoffs. We lost to the Chiefs… Actually they killed us! But it seems like we might have a shot because of this guy… TJ Watt! He was amazing! The rest of the team just sucked- ha!
And here's the snow when I woke up. I think we may be got 6 inches? Like I said I'm super blessed because I didn't have to go anywhere and I hope everyone else stayed safe as well!
The absolute best decision we've made in this condo building is the assigned parking spaces. Soon as it finished snowing I went out and shoveled my space and shoveled the hump that the snow plow makes behind the cars. I have a nice, clean, reserved spot just for me! Yay! Every year before this I would shovel a spot, leave and someone would take my spot. Finally, last winter I ended up shoveling the whole freaking parking lot. But I'm happy to report… I only have to shovel my spot now.
I also made a big pot of homemade chili. It was wonderful to watch the snowfall and eat chili. I had it for dinner last night and lunch today. I'm now heating a bowl for dinner today. I think I'm going to freeze the rest of it because how many days in a row and how many meals in a row can you eat chili? Ha ha
And finally… I'm going to spend the rest of my evening prepping for my first class tomorrow. On Tuesdays I have Nur210 -Nursing Leadership and Management principles. We have some videos to watch and some reading to do. Then later in the week on Thursday I will have my first clinical for maternity. We will be working on Thursday from 2 PM to midnight at a hospital in the Pittsburgh area. I'm super excited for this first maternity clinical- I will let you know how it goes!!!
I hope everyone had A great weekend and has an even better week!


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With the twenty-third pick in the SBNation Mock Draft, the Sacramento Kings, represented by SBN's very own Ziller over at Sactown Royalty, select... (Drum Roll please)
From Ziller: At this point in the draft, there's no sense moving down if you see a player you like on the board: just erase the risk and take him. I feel that way about that bolt of a point guard named Patrick Mills. Even if the Kings do select a point guard (or a combo guard) with the No. 4 pick, it makes sense to add another here: this is a great PG draft, and let's hope against hope some other team tries to save Beno Udrih in the coming years.
The 2009 SB Nation Mock Draft thus far:
1. Los Angeles Clippers - Clips Nation: Blake Griffin
2. Memphis Grizzlies - 3 Shades of Blue: Ricky Rubio
3. Oklahoma City Thunder - Welcome to Loud City: James Harden
4. Sacramento Kings - Sactown Royalty: Tyreke Evans
5. Washington Wizards - Bullets Forever: Hasheem Thabeet
6. Minnesota Timberwolves - Canis Hoopus: Stephen Curry


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This is the second image from my photo shoot back in January when I captured the sunset and the Pennybacker Bridge. What attracted me to this location was the silhouetted trees reflecting in the water. I created a panorama photo from three photos in order to capture the entire scene. The clouds were more interesting than some of the other photos I have taken at this location.
This Pennybacker Bridge (aka 360 Bridge) connects the North and South sides of Austin. The cliff overlook is a perennial favorite for locals looking to practice their photography, or just enjoy a beautiful sunset. A quick five-minute hike from the road, the overlook provides stunning views of Lake Austin, Pennybraker Bridge, and the city of Austin skyline in the distance. The overlook is also a great place for a picnic or an early morning coffee. I often see couples using this location for their engagement photos.
This image was taken with my Canon EOS 5DS using my Canon EF 16-35mm f/4 Lens set on 35 mm. The camera was set on Manual mode with the aperture set at f/22, shutter speed at 1/25th of a second and the ISO set at 100. This is a 3-image panorama cropped down to a 3×2 format. I stitched the panorama in Lightroom and finished the processing in Photoshop.
You can access other images of Austin by clicking here and of other landscapes by clicking here. Please use the section below to post your comments, questions or suggestions.
PS: Please don't respond to this message as it will not reach me. Either post a comment or forward your response to my email address (firstname.lastname@example.com)


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China's New Backyard
Does Washington realize how deeply Beijing has planted a flag in Latin America?
For the past decade, Washington has looked with discomfort at China's growing interest in Latin America. But while Beijing's diplomats bulked up on their Spanish and Portuguese, most U.S. policymakers slept soundly, confident that the United States still held a dominant position in the minds of its southern neighbors. In April 2005, the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere held a hearing on China's influence in the hemisphere and concluded that the U.S. position in the Western Hemisphere was much stronger than China's and, moreover, that Beijing's economic engagement in the region did not present a security threat. But that was 2005.
For the past decade, Washington has looked with discomfort at China's growing interest in Latin America. But while Beijing's diplomats bulked up on their Spanish and Portuguese, most U.S. policymakers slept soundly, confident that the United States still held a dominant position in the minds of its southern neighbors. In April 2005, the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere held a hearing on China's influence in the hemisphere and concluded that the U.S. position in the Western Hemisphere was much stronger than China's and, moreover, that Beijing's economic engagement in the region did not present a security threat. But that was 2005.
In late May of this year, when U.S. Vice President Joe Biden went to Latin America for a three-day, three-country tour, Beijing was hot on his heels. Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Trinidad and Tobago just days after Biden left: Whereas Trinidad and Tobago's prime minister, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, characterized her discussions with Biden as "at times brutal," Xi's stop in Trinidad and Tobago included the unveiling of a children's hospital funded with $150 million from the Chinese government, discussion of energy projects, and meetings with seven Caribbean heads of state. Xi's itinerary took him to Costa Rica and Mexico on June 4 to 6, but his shadow followed Biden all the way to Brazil. In Rio de Janeiro, Biden referred to a new "strategic partnership" between the United States and Brazil, yet his words' impact was undercut by the strategic partnership that Brazil has had with China since 1993 and the much-publicized fact that China overtook the United States as Brazil's largest trading partner in 2009 (trade between China and Brazil exceeded $75 billion in 2012). It's not an accident that Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff made a state visit to China in April 2011, prior to paying one to the United States.
Make no mistake: China is now a presence in the region. Xi's trip to Trinidad and Tobago is only the second visit by a Chinese president to the Caribbean — his predecessor, Hu Jintao, visited communist Cuba in November 2008 — but China and the Caribbean's economic and political ties have been growing rapidly. On this trip, Xi promised more than $3 billion in loans to 10 Caribbean countries and Costa Rica. Xi's choice of three destinations near the United States, followed by a "shirt-sleeves" summit with U.S. President Barack Obama on June 7 and 8 at the Sunnylands resort in California, sends a subtle message that the new Chinese leadership seeks to engage the United States globally as an equal — without the deference shown in the past to the United States in countries close to its borders.
Ironically, it's the Latin American country closest to the United States where Xi might be able to make up the most ground. Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto's engagement with the Chinese president, both at the April summit in Boao, China, and this week in Mexico City, allow him to differentiate himself from his pro-U.S. predecessor, Felipe Calderón. Similarly, Mexico's role in forming the Pacific Alliance, a new subregional organization built around a group of four pro-market, pro-trade countries (Chile, Colombia, Mexico, and Peru) allows Mexico to reassert a leadership role in the Americas, relatively independent of the United States.
The challenges arising from China's global engagement should not, however, be confused with the struggle between the United States and the Soviet Union that characterized the Cold War, in which each side actively promoted different, competing concepts for a global order. China does not seek to impose a new ideology on the world, yet the mercantilist way in which it promotes its economic development, combined with its lack of commitment to international norms that it didn't create, makes it more difficult for the United States to conduct business and pursue policy goals in Latin America and other parts of the world.
Consider China's ties with the eight countries that make up the leftist Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas (ALBA). Since 2007, China has loaned $50 billion to Ecuador and Venezuela, the alliance's two largest countries, giving them the financial wherewithal to continue sustaining anti-U.S. policies at home and to advance their cause in the region — from funding oil alliance Petrocaribe, to setting up teleSUR and Banco del Sur, to sending suitcases of cash to politicians in Argentina. And the willingness of Chinese companies to invest in Venezuela and Ecuador has made it easier for those countries' regimes to nationalize industries and displace undesired Western corporations. China's indifference to those countries' political systems has cleared the way for their devolution to less democratic practices, from the legal actions taken against the leadership of El Universo and other Ecuadorean media, to forcing RCTV off the air in Venezuela and persecuting Venezuelan opponents from Manuel Rosales (now in exile) to former armed forces head Raúl Baduel (now incarcerated). China's no-strings-attached investments enable the regimes to thumb their noses at Western institutions and prevailing international norms regarding respect for contracts, freedom of expression, democracy, and human rights.
The challenge to Washington from China's presence in the region also extends beyond economics and policy objectives. The U.S. Defense Department's critical posture regarding Chinese cyberattacks is a reminder that hostilities between the United States and China, though highly improbable and undesirable, are not unthinkable. In such a conflict, China-operated ports, airports, telecommunications infrastructure, and other parts of the Chinese commercial presence in Latin America would represent potential assets in a global asymmetric warfare campaign against the United States.
It is ironic that, after his meetings in Mexico, Xi will meet with Obama in California. But for the difficulty in getting Xi's entourage of Chinese luxury cars across the border, he could almost have driven the last leg of the journey. But perhaps that is the point: It has taken a leader coming from the other side of the world to remind the U.S. leadership that Latin America is connected to the United States, in physical, economic, and human terms. Thus, what happens in the region is of profound importance for the United States and, hopefully, will be at least one of the topics of conversation between President Xi and President Obama after they shake hands at Sunnylands.
More from Foreign Policy
No, the World Is Not Multipolar
The idea of emerging power centers is popular but wrong—and could lead to serious policy mistakes.
America Prepares for a Pacific War With China It Doesn't Want
Embedded with U.S. forces in the Pacific, I saw the dilemmas of deterrence firsthand.
America Can't Stop China's Rise
And it should stop trying.
The Morality of Ukraine's War Is Very Murky
The ethical calculations are less clear than you might think.


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How to download videos from Flickr
Flickr's online video is concise, higher quality than similar web-sharing sites. Of course, you can browse and watch videos shared by others. But some Flickr videos are not allowed to download directly. Then, how to download from Flickr? Follow this article to get some easy and useful ways to download videos from Flickr.
1. Method 1: Download Video from Flickr Directly
Actually, as long as the uploader allows, you can download the Flickr video as you like
Step 1. Access Flickr and play the video you like
Step 2. Click on the Download icon in the lower right corner of the video to download the Flickr video directly.
If this download button is unavailable or clickable, it means that the video author does not allow others to download it in the Privacy and permissions settings. In this case, you can use other methods to download Flickr videos
2. Method 2: Download videos from Flickr with Flickr Video Downloader
As we said before, if a video author does not have permission to download open, you cannot download video directly from Flickr. But with this online download web application, you can easily download these videos.
Way 1: Simply download via Freedownloadvideo.net
This site is the simplest free media conversion and downloads web app online that lets you convert and then download any video/audio file or link into various formats while eliminating the need of installing any software on your laptop or computer.
Step 1: First of all, you need to search for the video you want to download from Flickr.com. After you have found the video, all you need now is to Copy / Cut the URL from the URL box/address box.
Step 2: Visit Freedownloadvideo.net at address https://fbvideodownload.net/flickr-video-downloader/. Now at the homepage of Freedownloadvideo.net, you can see a text box all you need now is to paste the URL in that box. Then, click Download or just press Enter.
Step 3: It will take a few seconds to extract the download file from the URL you just paste. And after the process finishes, you can see various media file formats & quality sizes, all you now is to select the one which you need and click on the Download icon.
Way 2: Use the free Freedownloadvideo.net plugin to download
This plugin is a bookmarklet which is a tiny program stored inside a browser bookmark, and it's typically executed by clicking a button in the browser's bookmarks/ favorites toolbar.
This plugin is the best convenient and fastest way to convert & download videos. To use this method, please visit https://Freedownloadvideo.net.com/get-plugin.
To use this bookmarklet, navigate to VK, choose the video you like, click to play it in large screen. Now click on the DL with fbvideodownload.net bookmarklet (on your bookmarks bar). A new tab will open in your browser where the video will automatically be downloaded or converted for you.
It helps you download and convert video experiences that are simpler than expected. With Flickr Video Downloader, you will not be required to pay, register or install extra programs. Moreover, Flickr Video Downloader, a powerful downloader that works smoothly in any browser from Chrome / Firefox/Safari/Opera, is able to download Flickr videos more efficiently.
What's Flickr?
For all you photo fans, Flickr is an awesome social media site! Whether you want to share photos of your church's Sunday service, show some pics of an outreach project, or photos of missionaries in the field… whatever it may be, Flickr is for you.
Flickr is a social media website that specializes in photo sharing between its users. It is also used by bloggers to host images used on their sites. Flickr is free to sign up for and use; all you need is a yahoo account. By uploading images to Flickr, you are granting the site a non-exclusive, royalty-free license. This means that you're agreeing to allow the site to display your images without paying any money to you, regardless of how much traffic is drawn to the page. You own the image and can put it on any other site you like. You may also delete the image at any time you'd like.
Flickr's streaming videos are concise, higher-quality than similar vid-sharing sites, and hard to download using web-based converters. Of course, you can browse and view videos shared by others. But some Flickr videos are not allowed to directly download. Then, how to download from Flickr? Follow this article to get several easy and useful ways to download video from Flickr.
Videos for everyone right now! As a member of Flickr, you can upload and share videos just like you do with photos, backup your video at full resolution to Flickr. Since Flickr offers 1 TB of free space, members can now upload videos up to 1GB. The process of downloading photos and videos to Flickr is exactly the same. How you browse and upload photos to Flickr is how you upload videos to Flickr. You can upload videos to Flickr through the web interface or through the tools. Basically, all Flickr uploaders are similar in use and they are very easy to use.
fbvideodownload.net proves to be a useful and practical solution when it comes to downloading Flickr video files and saving them to your computer by selecting your favorite output size. You want to download Flickr videos online, the tools introduced can help you do the job efficiently. It turns out that downloading Flickr videos without using any software is only with the help of fbvideodownload.net very easy! Let's try it!


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Do You Feel Healthier Yet?
Among the many provision of the new health care reform law—more IRS agents!
I'll happily send you to the Honolulu Star-Bulletin for a discussion about the tensions between the newly passed federal health care reform and Hawaii's existing health care laws. And to healthreform.gov for details on what ObamaCare is supposed to bring to Hawaii.
Meanwhile, I couldn't help but notice that the health care reform act calls for hiring an additional 16,500 IRS agents.
Why? Because the act requires anyone who isn't covered through their workplace to purchase their own individual policy, under force of law, and somebody has to enforce our compliance.
Remember when Candidate Barack Obama totally slammed Hillary Clinton for backing exactly the same individual mandate? A good reminder that campaign promises and pick-up lines exist in the same category of speech.
The newly passed health care reform also introduces 19 new tax increases, hence further complicating the tax code, hence requiring more Watchers to Watch Over Us.
I'm sure the IRS agents' examinations will be thorough and probing, but they're unlikely to leave any American feeling healthier. What kind of health-care reform tells Americans, "You'll die horribly of an untreated illness if we don't pass this bill. Here. Have some audits."
Imagine these 16,500 IRS agents distributed evenly throughout the states. Hawaii would get 330 of them. Imagine instead if we were given 330 case managers for our higher-than-average diabetic population. Or 330 elder care nurses for our senior population. Or a federal free clinic staffed with 330 professionals standing ready to heal to the poor and afflicted. Instead … we'll get tax code cops.
I just don't know what to make of this reform. It seems to simultaneously betray both the left and right sides of American political philosophy. Democrats depicted this reform as a way to protect America's most vulnerable citizens from the depravations of the Evil Insurance Companies, a rather progressive sentiment—but then they passed a law that requires people to buy insurance from Evil Insurance Companies. So … insurance is good? The resulting reform is … progressive? Or just corporatist?
As for those who think that the best governments are those that govern least; well, the objections are obvious. The reform vastly increases the cost of the state, the size of its workforce, the complexity of its laws while claiming jurisdiction over increasingly private aspects of our lives. Come to think of it, I don't understand why this doesn't freak out progressives and much as it does small-government conservatives. They seemed so fearful of expansive federal government when Bush-Cheney were in charge. Now it's just fine, because Obama is president? That seems awfully convenient.
ObamaCare is expected to require $497 billion in tax increases over its first decade alone. To save lives? I'd have more expectation of that if every dollar of health care reform's cost were instead given as competitive grants to independent researchers devoted to curing cancer and heart disease, fighting antibiotic-resistant bacteria, preventing Alheizmers and dementia, and more. These things afflict and kill people every day, all day—yes, even people who are fully insured.
I've yet to hear a single claim that ObamaCare will do much to change that, beyond the benefits of earlier screening for these as yet uncured diseases. No matter what we think we've just been handed by Obama and Congress, insurance does not equal health, access does not equal cure, no matter how many IRS agents they hire to convince us otherwise.


text: 2018 KBF National Championship Recap by Rocky Ly | Apr 10, 2018 | Event Coverage, Events, Fishing, Fishing Tournament, Internationalisation, Tournaments, United States, Video | 0 comments The best 751 anglers from all over the the country competed for the 2018 National Championship title on Kentucky Lake. It was not an easy tournament. Catching a 5 fish limit each day would've gotten you in the runnings for a check. Here's my 2018 KBF National Championship recap. Submit a Comment Cancel replyYour email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *Comment * Name * Email * Website Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Δ