text:
Popular lore has it that the Italian merchant Marco Polo was responsible for introducing the noodle to China. This legend appeals to Italians, but if you ask the Chinese, they may beg to differ.
In her latest book, On the Noodle Road, author Jen Lin-Liu chronicles a six-month journey along the historic Silk Road from eastern China, through central Asia, Turkey, Iran and eventually arriving in Italy, in search of the true origin of the noodle.
As Lin-Liu tells NPR's Linda Wertheimer, the myth of pasta traveling from West to East was first popularized by Macaroni Journal, the official trade journal of the pasta manufacturers of the U.S. In 1929, the journal had a story "about how Marco Polo arrived at a destination that seemed more South Pacific than Chinese and came across natives drying strands of dough."
But this couldn't possibly be correct. "As it turns out, the Chinese don't dry their pasta the way that Italians do," she says.
So what are the historical origins of noodles in China?
"China has had a longer tradition of bread than noodles, and the ripping of dough — either boiled or cooked — into a wok of boiling water was how noodles first originated in China," says Lin-Liu.
In the Tibetan province of Qinghai, Lin-Liu finds women in a restaurant kitchen ripping long, flat strands of noodles by hand to make the square-shaped noodles that are typical to the region. Boiled in water, they are served up in a light mutton broth.
"They're the right texture, chewy; just the right size, like a large postage stamp; and they're stir-fried in a spicy broth with bits of green peppers and onions and either lamb or beef. And they're delicious," Lin-Liu says.
Heading further west, she comes across all manner of small dough parcels containing spiced meats, vegetables and cheeses. The wontons and dumplings of China give way to the manta of Central Asia, the similarly named manti of Turkey, and finally, the tortellini of Italy.
"Some people theorized that Ghengis Khan was responsible for carrying these filled pasta dishes all the way from China through Eastern Europe, where of course you have pierogies and other similar dishes," says Lin-Liu.
But who does pasta best?
"I think that there's a real toss-up between Italy and China," Lin-Liu says. "At both ends of the Silk Road, you really get a refinement of pasta and noodles that you don't really see in the central part of the route."
But this diversity along the way is what Lin-Liu believes make noodles so pleasurable. Not only can they be prepared in such different ways, but they can be topped with almost anything.
This is WEEKEND EDITION from NPR News. I'm Linda Wertheimer sitting in for Scott Simon.
WERTHEIMER: The Silk Road, the centuries-old trade route that the West traditionally associates with Marco Polo, is believed to have brought silk and pasta from China all the way to Italy. Of course, it didn't happen quite like that. History always depends upon the teller of the story. And we have a new version from Jen Lin-Liu. She's an American food writer who lives and works in China.
WERTHEIMER: She's written a book called "On the Noodle Road," and she joins us now from our bureau in Beijing. Welcome to the program.
JEN LIN-LIU: Thank you, Linda.
WERTHEIMER: Now, first of all, your road, the Noodle Road, is it the same general route as what we think of as the Silk Road?
LIN-LIU: Yes. I traveled from Beijing all the way across northwestern China, Central Asia, Iran, Turkey, through the Mediterranean coast all the way to Italy.
WERTHEIMER: And along the way you looked into the popular idea that Marco Polo is the one who brought pasta to the West. Is there anything to that?
LIN-LIU: I did. I looked into that myth. And it's so amazing how widespread that has become, that myth. It turns out that the Marco Polo story of him bringing noodles from China to Italy actually originated in a trade publication in the United States by the pasta manufacturers of the U.S. It was called The Macaroni Journal. And in it was a story about how Marco Polo arrived at a destination that seemed more South Pacific than Chinese really and comes across natives drying strands of dough. As it turns out, Chinese don't dry their pasta the same way Italians do.
WERTHEIMER: This book is, of course, a travel book, but it's part history, it's part anthropology and about food. But one of the things that was so striking to me was that there were lots of descriptions about the way that women work, the way women are treated, a lot of cooking lessons from women. Did you begin this project thinking that you'd spend so much time listening to women tell their stories while they taught you to cook their recipes?
LIN-LIU: No. That was actually one of the most unexpected and happy surprises of the book, was that I was able to bond and learn from so many different kinds of women along the road. I was invited into cooking schools in Uzbekistan, a cooking school that prepared women for marriage. I was invited into a women's-only cooking school in Iran where, you know, everyone took off their head scarves and revealed, you know, very racy clothing beneath their dark hijabs. It didn't start out that way. I mean, I think it really fit in with what was also going on in my life. I had just gotten married and I was trying to figure out what it meant to be a wife and how I felt a little uncomfortable with that word. And, you know, I just met all kinds of women all along the route who were struggling with that balance between family and selves, tradition and breaking free of those traditions, that it kept them in the kitchens.
WERTHEIMER: What was your favorite noodle recipe from this trip?
LIN-LIU: Can I just say my favorite three, perhaps?
LIN-LIU: Would be the dumplings that I see all along the path, the manta of central Asia, which are these large steamed dumplings filled with pumpkin or lamb and served with a clotted cream. And that dish becomes manti in Turkey and the dumplings become much smaller, like tortellini. And they're filled with beef and onions there, and then they're served with a yogurt sauce drizzled with mint and paprika. And then in Italy is tortellini, and those were often sold with ricotta cheese, parsley and served in this amazing sage butter sauce.
WERTHEIMER: Now that you've been all the way along this Silk Road or the Noodle Road, did you reach any conclusions about who does it best?
LIN-LIU: It's a real toss-up between Italy and China. I mean, both ends of the Silk Road you get a refinement of pasta noodles that you don't really see in the central part of the route. And that is really one of the pleasures of noodles, is that they come in so many different forms. They can be steamed or, you know, stir-fried or boiled and, you know, covered in everything from bread crumbs in Italy and anchovies and turnip tops in, you know, Southern Italy to China, where noodles are stretched magically thin by hand. So, it's amazing what you see on both ends.
WERTHEIMER: Did you gain 20 pounds while you did this?
LIN-LIU: I definitely gained some weight.
WERTHEIMER: Jen Lin-Liu's book is called "On the Noodle Road: From Beijing to Rome with Love and Pasta."
WERTHEIMER: Thank you very much.
LIN-LIU: Thank you, Linda. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.


text:
The odds were stacked against Lesley Ingram.
The 29-year-old, addicted to crystal meth and alcohol, faced a handful of serious charges in Jefferson County's 1st Judicial District.
Ingram, unemployed and without prospects, was nonetheless given an unexpected second chance — a transfer to the newly established Jefferson County Recovery Court, a program designed to help struggling addicts overcome abusive habits and give back to the community.
But Ingram faltered. She failed drug tests and skipped routine appointments with therapists and caseworkers. She was sent to jail but ultimately was not removed from the budding program.
More than a year into Recovery Court, Ingram was still wavering, but something changed. Her mother died. Months later, both of her grandmothers also passed away.
On Aug. 12, Ingram, now 31, stood before Judge Tamara S. Russell, her eyes welling with tears and her voice shaky.
Family members and friends stood among more than 70 people packed into the courtroom, each silent, listening as the judge recounted the young woman's missteps.
Then Russell noted Ingram's 318 days of sobriety, recent success at work and a community-service project she established.
Rather than a sentence, Russell dismissed the pending charges. She stepped down from her bench, walked toward Ingram and hugged her. The audience, circulating a half-dozen tissue boxes, broke into cheers and applause.
Grinning, Russell presented the young woman with two framed photographs, one highlighting the person she is becoming and other showing from where she came. One was a recent glamour shot in which Ingram was dressed and made up to resemble Marilyn Monroe. The latter was her booking photo from the Jefferson County jail.
"She's taught me a lot about patience, a lot about second chances," Russell said to the attendees. Then, addressing Ingram personally: "It's been a pleasure just watching you gather all your strength."
Eight success stories
In its two years, the Recovery Court has graduated eight former defendants, each having attained sobriety and given back to the community in their own ways, part of the "restorative justice" component of the curriculum. In response, the court cleared the defendants of charges.
Though there are nearly 20 similar drug courts in Colorado, Jeffco's is the only one to include a community service component.
At the Aug. 12 hearings, three participants graduated — the most the program has seen in a single session.
"I hated every moment of it for the first year," said Ingram, who since joining the program has become the manager of a Honey Baked Ham store and created a program to donate expired but salvageable hams to homeless shelters. "But it's made me a stronger person. It saved my life."
Judges refer prospective participants to the voluntary program in lieu of immediate sentencing. A six-member panel then decides if a defendant is a good fit for Recovery Court.
The program includes four steps through which participants ascend before graduating. Urine-analysis tests are mandatory, as are almost-daily meetings with caseworkers and therapists, and participants are expected to meet every Friday afternoon in Russell's courtroom.
Those who have no documented slip-ups end up on the court's "rocket docket," meaning Russell hears their cases first. Toward the end of the exhausting schedule are those who did not fare as well.
'A big day'
On Aug. 19, about 35 names crowd the rocket docket alone.
"All right, folks, big day," Russell said as she entered the courtroom. "I don't remember the last time we had this many people moving phases. And as you can see on the rocket docket, we have a lot of people at 100 percent."
Unlike most criminal proceedings, Recovery Court is unusually informal.
Among the 70 participants in attendance, many sit with arms around their partners. A few young children sit in laps, playing with toys or grasping sippy-cups. As Russell calls the lengthy roll, some of the defendants enthusiastically greet her.
Before cases proceed, caseworkers draw a name out of a hat for a prize, a King Soopers gift card. The participants sit with fingers crossed, some chanting hopefully, "Pick me. Pick me."
The short hearings progress quickly. For every participant moving up a level, Russell presents a certificate and a hug.
More than three hours later, few people dot the courtroom benches.
A young mother sits before Russell. She admits using crystal meth — the most commonly abused drug, largely due to its availability and low street price — once during the previous weekend.
Glancing over her reading glasses and resting her head in her hand, Russell casts doubt on the assertion that the woman used the drug only once. She points to recent drug tests. Reluctantly, the woman admits using meth at least four days during the week.
The woman's speech becomes slightly frantic, and she points to a bad living situation at home. The father of her children doesn't let her come home if she smokes meth, so she stays away for days at a time.
Russell responds, her voice sympathetic.
"It seems to me that if you were sober, you'd be able to see your kids more, and things would be better at home," Russell said. "You're not honoring your commitments to the program. … I fear that you don't understand how important this is, not only to your sobriety, but to your freedom."
She orders the woman to the front of the courtroom, where a deputy awaits with handcuffs.
"I have to sanction you today. … I'm going to give you three days in jail for it," Russell said. "You seem sad, and that's OK. … I hate seeing you like this."
A man in his late 30s follows in the next case. He too claims having used meth once over the last week. Russell again points to his drug test results, drawing out the truth. Reluctantly, he admits using the drug nearly every day.
In addition, he missed several appointments during the week. At the recommendation of caseworkers, Russell gives him four days in jail.
"You seem to be kind of down. … I want you to have every opportunity to succeed," she said, as a deputy begins to escort the man out of the courtroom. "Come on. Let's start again."
'Things you don't learn in law school'
Though Russell has presided over the Recovery Court for its two years, another judge, M.J. Menendez, created the program. However, Menendez left the bench after the Recovery Court's first day to pursue a job with the U.S. Attorney's Office, leaving the nascent program without a judge.
"I'd be a liar if I told you that this program wasn't life changing," Russell said, pointing to her own transformation. "I've had to stop and look at the little things along the way. … A lot of these folks have never had anybody say, 'Good job.' "
Along with the high points, such as Ingram's tearful graduation, there have been a few lows, she said.
In one instance, a single mother had violated the program's terms, and Russell sentenced her to a short jail term. The mother had brought her infant child to court, and no friends or family accompanied her. While protective service workers were en route to the court, Russell sat and watched the baby.
"This place was empty, and I was standing here holding this woman's 2-week-old baby," she said. "Those are the things that you don't learn in law school."
But the positive elements — the informal nature of the court, the camaraderie participants develop with one another — outweigh the difficult parts of the job.
"Whatever challenges I've had in my life are nothing compared to what these folks have had," Russell said. "When they cry because they've had four weeks of sobriety, it's humbling."
Even if participants slip up and fail a drug test, they may not necessarily be sent to jail the following Friday. Russell holds honesty and reliable attendance at appointments above relapse in what is often an agonizing recovery process.
"You have to have some sort of rapport with the folks in the courtroom, because I'm doing something that is completely counterintuitive, which is to be honest about when they used," Russell said. "We have to have a bit of informality. We call them by their first names. … I expect them to tell me things that they don't tell their own family."
An alternative to prison
Most of the defendants in the program would otherwise be facing prison sentences. And the approach of assisted rehabilitation rather than punitive repercussion seems to be working, though the court has not decided how it defines success.
Since Recover Court is typically an 18-month program, most people who have entered it have yet to graduate.
"I don't know what success is yet. … But we celebrate every little success along the way," Russell said. "This is completely not business as usual. … I in fact never hug, except when they graduate."
For Ingram, the idea of success is clear. Honoring the memories of her mother and grandmothers, she's picking up the pieces of her life and isn't making excuses anymore. She plans to go back to school to become a nurse.
"I kept going, for them and for myself. … I see a future. I want to go to school," she said. "For once in my life, I'm happy."
Contact Emile Hallez Williams at firstname.lastname@example.com 303-933-2233, ext. 22. For updates, check www.ColumbineCourier.com.
Add new comment
Read and share your thoughts on this story

subset: commoncrawl


text:
James F. Kottnauer, Jr., 86, of Hawley, PA, a veteran of World War II and retired printer, died Monday, October 29, 2012 at his home.
Born in the Bronx, NY on August 18, 1926 to the late James F., Sr. and Marie (Archard) Kottnauer, Jim moved Hawley, PA in 1994 to enjoy his retirement in the country.
A veteran of World War II, Jim served in the U.S. Navy from 1941 to 1945. He worked for Arrow Printing Press as a printer for many years.
Jim enjoyed fishing and taking trips all over the country. In his leisure time, he also enjoyed reading on his computer and watching his beloved New York Yankees play baseball.
Surviving are his wife, Dolores "Dee" (Nevins) Kottnauer; his daughter and son-in-law, Georgeanne and Fred Sklenar of Staten Island, NY; two stepsons, Steven Nevins of CA and James Nevins of Long Island, NY; two granddaughters, Lauren Chiafullo of Staten Island, NY and Maureen Azzarello of Staten Island, NY; and three great grandsons, James Chiafullo, Andrew Azzarello and Jack Chiafullo.
A funeral prayer service will take place on Saturday, Nov. 17 at 10 a.m. At Teeters Chapel, 505 Church Street, Hawley, PA. Cremation will take place at Lake Region Crematory, Lake Ariel, PA
For further information, directions or to leave a Memorial Remembrance (Candle) visit
www.TeetersFuneralChapel.com.Arrangements by Teeters' Funeral Chapel, 505 Church St., Hawley, PA 18428.


text:
Allergies Defined
Solution Guides
Health Tips
Allergy & Asthma News
Allergy & Asthma Links
Allergy & Asthma Blog
Solution Guides
Health Tips
Allergy & Asthma News
Allergy & Asthma Links
Allergy & Asthma Blog
- Allergy Bedding
- Air Purifiers
- Allergy Masks
- Asthma Treatment
- Babies and Children
- Bath and Body Products
- Bed Bug Prevention
- Cleaning Products
- Dehumidifiers
- Dust Mite Control
- Eczema Control
- Furnace Filters
- Humidifiers
- Pet Allergy Control
- Sinus Care
- UV Sanitizers
- Vacuum Cleaners
Special Offers
New Products
Mite Free Comforters
Mite Free Comforters keep you warm and cozy without causing allergies
For a long time, allergy sufferers were unable to find hypoallergenic comforters. And the softness and comfort of down bedding has been off limits for anyone who needed allergy bedding! But, with the latest developments in the cleaning and blending of down, even those with the worst allergies can now enjoy the luxury of down. READ MORE
|Mite Free Down Comforters
|Hypodown Hypoallergenic Comforters
|Mite Free Down Alternative Comforters


text:
Set your desired dimension then copy the code below to your blog/website.
Support page for the animal abuser Kisha Curtis - the woman in Newark, NJ who starved Patrick and threw him down a garbage chute
To continue, complete human verification below.
We need to make sure that you are not a malicious bot or virus.
Complete the puzzle to download the document. If you got confused by the question, click reload button to change the puzzle.


text:
In a time when many people expect to have two or three careers in their lives, Gladys Crandall of Hudson stood out.
Crandall, 93, who died Wednesday, worked 74 years for the Brown-Van Hemert Funeral Home in Hudson.
"She just plain liked the people," said David Van Hemert, manager of the funeral home, who worked with Crandall from 1954 when he came to the funeral home until Crandall had a heart attack this spring and could no longer work.
Crandall, who started working at the funeral home in 1938 when it still was the Charles E. Brown and Son Funeral Home, was a receptionist but also helped prepare deceased women's hair, cleaned and did whatever else needed to be done, Van Hemert said. In the early days, when some funeral homes operated ambulance services, Crandall even went on ambulance runs, he said.
"She didn't shy away from anything that had to be done around here," he said.
More than longevity on the job made Crandall exceptional, Van Hemert said. Her knowledge of the community and its people was a major asset.
"She was a local girl; she knew everybody all those years," Van Hemert said. "So that was the biggest thing."
Crandall also had "a great outlook, always happy," and he called her an inspiration to her fellow workers and the families they serve.
"This was her life, the funeral home and helping people," Van Hemert said.
Crandall was born June 2, 1919, in Wheatland Township in Hillsdale County. She attended Taylor Country School and graduated from Hudson High School in 1938.
She married Lawrence Crandall on June 1, 1941. Lawrence Crandall died in 1964. The couple had a daughter, Corlis, and a son, Paul, both of whom also are deceased.
Crandall is survived by three grandchildren, five great-grandchildren, a nephew and numerous friends.
Crandall's granddaughter Abbie Fox, who lives in Hudson, said her grandmother was remarkable for her strength and for her willingness to help and comfort others.
"She's the one who held our family together," Fox said. "She was a giver, not a receiver."
How did her grandmother manage such a long career at the funeral home?
"I just think the fact that she was happy, she liked the people she worked with, she liked the interaction with people," Fox said.
Her grandmother will be missed, and not just by her family, Fox said.
"She meant so much to the whole community," she said.
Longtime funeral home employee helped people cope with loss for 74 years
In a time when many people expect to have two or three careers in their lives, Gladys Crandall of Hudson stood out.


text:
Amtrak names two to operations positionsWritten by Mischa Wanek-Libman, editor
Amtrak named Thomas Hall chief of customer services and Jay Commer general manager of state-supported services. Both will report directly to Vice President of Operations DJ Stadtler, effective immediately.
As chief of customer services, Hall will be in charge of ensuring that Amtrak provides service that meets the wants, needs and expectations of its customers. He will oversee system operations functions, including the Consolidated National Operations Center, crew management services, intermodal connectivity, administration of special trains and food and beverage services. In addition, he will be responsible for setting and maintaining standards for station and on-board service. He will be based in Wilmington, Del.
As general manager of state-supported services, Commer will be responsible for providing Amtrak state partners and their customers with excellent service, while meeting financial goals and other performance targets. It is a critical position that supports the corporate goals of Amtrak's Strategic Plan.
Commer has been with Amtrak since 1987, initially as locomotive engineer and most recently as general superintendent, Pacific Division, where he was responsible for financial, operational, service-oriented, safety and business goals. He has also served as principal officer, state contracts, overseeing agreements with the Washington and Oregon Departments of Transportation, general manager for the California Corridor product line and superintendent of commuter operations for Caltrain, among other roles. He will be based in Oakland, Calif.


text:
MOTERA, India — Men lay prostrate on the floor in front of the elevated seat of their guru — the man they who they call Asaram Bapu. Pictures of his avuncular face, with its flowing white beard, hang everywhere in this sprawling 30-acre ashram in Western India.
But these days the guru's enclosed wood-carved altar, where millions once worshiped him, is empty. All that's left behind is a large photograph, an air purifier, blingy lights and fake red roses.
The guru, whose real name is Asumal Harpalani, is languishing in a Jodhpur jail, arrested last month on charges of sexually assaulting the 16-year-old daughter of two followers.
In recent weeks, the allegations against the mega-guru — who runs a massive network of 20 million devotees in hundreds of ashrams worth an estimated $760 million — have stunned and split India.
The scandal has raised questions about the unprecedented boom in spiritual gurus in the world's largest democracy — and the enormous power and wealth they wield. Harpalani is not alone among them in amassing riches or getting in scrapes with the law. One holy man, Sathya Sai Baba, died in 2011 leaving behind a treasure trove of nearly $8 million in gold, silver and cash. In recent years, other gurus have faced charges of murder, sexual abuse, running prostitution rackets and illegal land acquisition.
Yet the guru phenomenon has continued to grow — buoyed by the 24-hour religious programming on television and an increasingly stressed-out middle-class seeking easy, prepackaged bliss.
"He has blessed my family all these years. Now it is my turn to pray for him," said Anjali Chand, 42, who brought marigolds to the ashram with her children. "He is like a beautiful lotus and the allegations are like muck and dirty water."
The ashram, once a place of peace, is now under siege. Devotees look at every newcomer with suspicion. News television crews are chased away by the guards. And there is talk of a grand conspiracy to defame their guru.
"Devotees are calling all day, asking, 'What do we do, what do we do?' We tell them to have faith and chant to get rid of the false allegations," said Venkat Aravala, an Indian-born software engineer now based in Nashville, who was giving a rare tour of the grounds recently. Aravala, 34, a follower of Harpalani's since his teens, comes from the United States to volunteer at the ashram once a year.
Allegations of sexual abuse of female followers, shady land acquisition and even murder have dogged Harpalani for over a decade, but even he could not escape the most recent allegation, when two of his followers turned up at a police station on Aug. 18, saying he had sexually assaulted their daughter.
The teen, a student in one of the ashram schools, told the police that the "godman" called her into his room late one night to exorcize evil spirits. He gave her a glass of milk, switched off the lights and started molesting her, according to charging documents.
"I kept crying for about one and a half hours," the girl told police, according to the documents. "He told me not to tell anybody or he would get my father killed."
Police charged Harpalani with sexual assault of a juvenile, but bringing him in was not easy.
In a telling sign of his immense clout, Harpalani avoided arrest for days. He made the police trying to serve him with summons wait while he meditated and gave sermons and media interviews. He skipped out on interrogations by hopping between some of his more than 400 ashrams.
Finally it took about 300 policemen in riot gear to arrest him at one of his ashrams in the central city of Indore. Angry devotees blocked rail and road traffic in protest and beat up journalists.
Harpalani has continued to proclaim his innocence.
"Bigger allegations have been made against me in the past; they didn't stick," Harpalani said in an interview to the ABP TV channel. "But this is a dirty allegation, and a baseless one. I am so old, the girl is like my granddaughter."
In the last two decades, spiritual life in the country has undergone a transformation as Indians embrace hectic urban lifestyles and move away from their cultural roots of village-based worship.
The result is that many have sought solace by flocking to the ashrams of gurus who offer self-evident spiritual truisms, chanting routines, yoga lessons and herbal cures — or by watching them on TV, where they appear on shows like the ones televangelists have in the United States.
These modern-day mega-gurus are nothing like the wandering saints of ancient Hindu religious texts, who meditated and lived on alms, renouncing all worldly possessions.
They've built hundreds of ashrams across the globe and run flourishing businesses in everything from herbal medicine to meditation and yoga workshops. They travel in luxury cars, glide past airport security and are guarded by gun-toting policemen and bouncers. Some have criminal pasts.
"There is a mushrooming of these gurus who offer black-and-white spirituality without much depth to people who want short cuts in their fast-paced, urban lives," said Katharina Poggendorf-Kakar, an anthropologist in Goa, India, who studies comparative religion and has studied controversial gurus.
Harpalani, 72, is no different, she suggested. He was born in a village that is now part of Pakistan and spent time working in a tea stall and as a bootlegger before and founding his own ashram in 1971, according to local reports.
His empire eventually grew to millions of followers, including high-profile businessmen and politicians. But for some who grew disenchanted, allegations of sexual dalliances are not a surprise, even though the best-selling item in his ashram's bookstore is his booklet on celibacy, "The Secret of Eternal Youth."
"I saw him with my own eyes in a sexual position with a female disciple. Otherwise, I would not have believed it, either," said Amritbhai Prajapati, who was Harpalani's personal physician for 12 years. "The women are told that they are lucky to be touched by him, that he is an avatar of Lord Krishna and the women were his consorts from a previous birth."
Other, darker charges dog him.
In 2008, the bodies of two young students of the ashram — cousins, aged 9 and 10 — were discovered lying disemboweled on the banks of a river not far from the ashram. The boys' relatives accused the guru of practicing black magic rituals; he suggested the boys had drowned. A judicial report on the tragedy has not yet been made public.
In the days since the arrest, worshippers are still flocking to the ashram here, and faith remains high.
Inside the sprawling 30-acre complex, devotees sit, turning their string of prayer beads and chanting, pray to a holy fire with fragrant camphor and flowers, or walk barefoot around the wish-granting tree.
Conversations with these followers are sprinkled with tales of how his teachings and herbal medicines have cured them of ailments ranging from indigestion to cancer.
On the recent morning tour, Aravala, the Nashville-based software engineer, said this was a moment of immense pain for the followers.
"I am not stupid," he said when asked about the charge of sexual assault. "Would I leave everything, give up business contracts worth $200,000 in the United States, for a guru who indulges in all this?"
But for now, text messages from the ashram are about as much communication as his followers can hope to receive on him, except for a note released Friday that was written from jail.
He cautioned his followers not to do anything illegal and tasked them to keep chanting, stay peaceful and to have faith in Indian legal system.
"The truth is fearless," Harpalani wrote, somewhat inscrutably. "Lies are without legs. May God bless you all."


text:
Sponsored by Programming
Luther College student volunteers will help Decorah area residents with fall house cleaning, repair and winterizing chores Saturday, October 23 when Luther College Ministries conducts its annual Fall Fling community assistance day.
Luther students will provide assistance with light-duty household work, including yard raking, house and yard cleaning, gutter cleaning, installing storm windows, washing windows and similar tasks.
Any member of the Decorah community who is elderly, handicapped, or simply in need of assistance may participate in this event. To schedule workers or to sign up to participate, contact Luther College Campus Ministries, telephone (563) 387-1040, by Friday, October 15.
There is no charge for the Fall Fling services, however participating households often offer to give a donation. This year's donations have been designated by the Luther College Student Congregation to benefit the Decorah Area Free Clinic and Lutheran World Relief for efforts in responding to the devastating floods in Pakistan.
Questions? Contact Susan Peterson, 563-387-1291


text:
It's likely that your weeklong family trip out of town to the beach or the in-laws' place was scheduled months ago. But for those looking for fun things to do the rest of the summer, Hudson County offers several fun "staycation" options – even for those who want to "get away from it all" while still sticking close to home.
One available option is the lineup of summer programming offered by Weehawken Rowing, which was recently featured in the Weehawken Reporter. (To find that story online, visit HudsonReporter.com.) Other options are the many programs offered by the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission (NJMC). The state agency located in Lyndhurst has an event schedule chock full guided bird walks, butterfly sightings, and other opportunities for you to get lost in nature.
The New Jersey Meadowlands is on the cusp of peak bird watching season, thus "birding" is a major staple of the NJMC's late summer/early fall calendar, as it is each year during migration season.
Jim Wright, who leads guided bird walks through the state agency's campus along the Hackensack River, said this is a particularly exciting time for the hobby.
"The shorebirds are coming through now and they'll be coming through fairly late. And then, starting in September, we start getting more and more raptors," said Wright.
But bird watchers, both novices and those who have been active in the hobby for years, don't have to wait until September to spot great finds flying through.
The NJMC, in conjunction with the Bergen County Audubon Society, offers their "first Sunday of the month" bird walk series, which began earlier this month and will allow participants to enjoy two-hour guided tours through the NJMC campus, looking for Bald Eagles and other rare finds.
All this bird watching will culminate on Aug. 10, when the NJMC will co-host a day of birding events with noted shorebird expert and nature photographer Kevin Karlson. This is the third year the NJMC will co-host, with the Bergen County Audubon Society, its annual "Kevin Karlson Day." Beginning at 8:15 a.m. Karlson, co-author of "The Shorebird Guide," will lead two 90-minute bird walks. Later that day, at 1:45 p.m., he'll give a talk on how nature lovers can improve their bird watching skills.
"He'll give tips on how to identify specific birds better, how to see better," said Wright. "When you're bird watching you have to have a different pair of eyes than what you use when you're just walking around. You have to be much more aware and focused on details."
Karlson will finish up the day with a photography workshop with Lloyd Spitalnik at 2:30 p.m.
All of the events with Karlson are free, although the NJMC requests that those interested in participating register to participate.
On Tuesday, July 16, the NJMC will host a "birding by boat" cruise.
"We did one earlier in the year, and we saw a lot of great birds. But it was high tide," said Wright. "This time when we go out it will be low tide. We're going to go into some of these marshes and get some of these neat shorebirds as they migrate. They hang out on the mud flats."
The two-hour cruise costs $15.
Not just for the birds
Birding isn't all the Meadowlands has to offer.
For those who couldn't give two feathers about the difference between a parakeet and a pigeon, the NJMC has many other interesting events on tap, notably its signature event – Butterfly Day, which will be held Sunday, July 28 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.—and a line-up of programming in the William D. McDowell Observatory. Part of the NJMC's Meadowlands Environment Center, the observatory features a 20-inch Cassegrain Telescope.
The agency's annual Butterfly Day is a festival dedicated to the beauty of butterflies. The day includes educational slide shows, butterfly walks, and educational talks for children and adults of all ages. Last year, this event attracted more than 700 participants.
The NJMC has already begun its Summer Learning Seminar Series, Let's Talk Astronomy, which will continue through August 20. The remaining seminars will focus on "Planets Orbiting other Stars" (July 23); "Celestial Navigation: How the Skies Steered the Ships" (August 6); and "Constellations & Stars of Late Summer Their Lore and Meaning" (August 20). These programs, which run from 7 to 9 p.m., are free for members and $5 for nonmembers.
For more information about these programs, visit www.njmeadowlands.gov, or call (201) 777-2416.
E-mail E. Assata Wright at firstname.lastname@example.com.


text:
Sponsored by Music Department
The concert is open to the public and there is no charge for admission.
The program will consist entirely of original pieces created by Mandat. His musical focus is primarily on solo and chamber pieces for the clarinet. The compositions utilize extended techniques within a framework largely influenced by jazz and traditional music of non-Western cultures. His music is featured in concerts and recordings by clarinetists throughout the world.
Known for his groundbreaking contributions to contemporary clarinet music, Mandat has premiered his works at international conferences in Chicago, Stockholm, Tokyo and Vancouver. He has also appeared as a soloist with the Latvian National Chamber Orchestra, the Chicago Chamber Orchestra and the Cleveland Chamber Symphony.
Mandat received his education at the University of North Texas, the Yale School of Music and the Eastman School of Music. He is professor of music and distinguished scholar at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, where he teaches clarinet and graduate courses in musical analysis.
Questions? Contact [email protected]


text:
I need all the Horde members. They are my favorite evil group followed closely by the Snakemen, Skelly and crew come in almost last, but the good-doers take last place!
My for sale items:200X moc figures Roboto,Kobra Khan,Syklone,PrinceAdam,Whiplash,Beastman,Rattlor, Man at Arms,Orko,Trapjaw,Two Bad, Buzz Off,etc.Gi Joe 25th anniv moc figures for sale, vehicles, multi-packs, Neca staction figures series 1-6 moc. Castlevania 20th anniversarty Artbook pack $35, Living Dead Dolls, 3' Frankenstein.[/COLOR
I do not like the 2002 series, but in this case the new version looks more like the cartoon than the old! Features such as the body very slender, and then vote for the 2002 version, with the head but a little smaller
For all the Mantenna fans...
The Fwoosh
4. We know that MOTUC takes most of its stylistic cues from the classic 80s line, but what about Mantenna? If/when you get around to doing him for the line, would his four legs be connected two by two like the old figure, or all for individual like he has been portrayed in the 200x and She-Ra cartoons?
Its too early to tell, but likely Ill try to go for 4 legs since he would need new legs anyway to show the 2 combined legs like the vintage figure had. I might also give him two heads, one with eyes up, one with eyes down.
As a big Mantenna fan, I would be happy with the four separate legs rather than two combined legs.
Yeah, I hope they'd give him 4 articulated legs, as the old design just wouldn't translate well into the articulated versions we're getting today. I see him as looking more like his staction though, as the original was rather goofy looking.
Good Traders:
fbiagentcooper, The_Donster, Captain Miro, Satonic, grimghost, robb
I vote for the 200x influence in the Mantenna figure for the Classics line. To me, I love the overall look. I remember watching that ep in the MYP series where they had Mantenna and he let out that shriek....CREEPY!!!
Very happy about the legs. Very sad about the eyes. The head will be a new mold anyway. Would it be so complicated to give him pop out eyes? No doubt it would be no more complicated than Triklops spinning visor.
I gotta say that I'm all for him looking as much like the staction as possible.
I'm hoping for a Disco Skeletor for the next subscription exclusive! Fully flocked!
"I don't like to feel good! I like to feel EVIL!"
I really like the Staction and if they could articulate it I think it'd be the way to go.
Gwildor: Moo? Moo.
He-Man: Gwildor!
Gwildor: I'm going, I'm going...Moo!
The Mantenna staction looks almost just like the character from the Filmation cartoon, so I really hope the MOTUC figure looks like that.
I'm mostly an MotU 80s look fan all the way, However I hope on this figure they do use a bit more of the 200X design for Mantenna. He still looks goofy to me.
Teela the Warrior Goddess is my homegirl.
Personally I never like the style of MOTU 200X, but in case of Mantena 200X looks better that the classic one.
Although I generally fall into the "classic inspiration" camp for 98.5% of MOTUC, I think that the 200x staction version looked much better (though not perfect). The original looks rather silly, almost childish (okay, it was a child's toy... but I hope you get what I mean!)
I'm not the biggest Horde memeber at the best of times (I'm much more of a pre-Filmation fan), and I have to admit personally that ol' Mantenna was never a favourite of mine (although I did have the toy as a kid). But I'm sure whatever they come up with for a Classics version will be good.
Not sure how they'd handle his four legs though.
~jay firestorm~
http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/pj-firesto...id=p4340.l2562 FS: MIB first release Classics, MIB 200x, COMPLETE VINTAGE FIGURE SET, 2009 SDCC Art Book, more...
I'd like to see him in his 80's toy style. I really like the bloodshot eyes.
Although, I also hope he has his four legs seperated.
Give me him with four legs and he can keep his old look. I'd rather have a bit more 200x in his appearance but if he has four legs not put together like the old one, but the rest of him is the old look i'm good too.
200X all the way, but the reason I love Mantenna so much is that he always comes off as this incredibly wussy, lame henchman, but despite that he's so frikkin' evil, I love it!
"Whoever says money is evil...doesn't have it"- Boiler Room
I agree, the 2002 version really did capture the character better than the original toy. I definitely don't want to see two fused legs.
And, as many have pointed out, a four legged hip joint could be re-used for Modulock and even Multibot (they could even fudge it with three openings for the legs, if the rear legs for old buggy eyes were fully jointed together at the hip).
"I will use this power for all the good that can be done, to work for peace, to encourage virtue, and above all, to preserve life in all its forms..." Superman
First of all, Mantenna is either gonna need three different heads, or two different heads, and one of those heads with eyeball extensions to "re-create" the action feature; correct me if I'm wrong on that.
Second of all, I was thinking about everyone wondering about Gy-Gor, and why Mattel had him go "turncoat"...I almost find it an interesting tribute to Tri-Klops, as Roger Sweet originally planned for him to be a heroic warrior, and he wound up being in Skeletor's crew.
"Whoever says money is evil...doesn't have it"- Boiler Room
or possibly 2, one with eyeball extensions.
Face it, the guy's got three distinct looks:
vintage head
vintage head with bulging eyeballs
modern head
he's gonna need at least two heads; and unless they do eyeball extensions, he'll need 3.
"Whoever says money is evil...doesn't have it"- Boiler Room
And then the Filmation head...
...one with eyes extended and one without...
Mantenna is an example of where this 'no action feature' rule hits lunacy.
Mantenna doesn't need multiple heads for an eyes in and eyes out look, he needs retractable eyes like the vintage figure!
Grayskull needs its Cardboard Spacesuit MOTUCized
Voice your support in the Cardboard Spacesuit/Robot thread:


text:
We are waiting for You! Welcome to the hottest erotic dating service!
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "domain name search" group.
To post to this group, send email to firstname.lastname@example.com.
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to email@example.com.
For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/domain-name-search?hl=en.


text:
The legal fight over Casey Kasem is far from over.
More than a month after the legendary radio personality's death, daughter Kerri Kasem is seeking an autopsy and TMZ is reporting that family sources say Jean Kasem has removed her late husband's body from the funeral home.
The latest chapter in the Kasem drama started Wednesday when a Washington state judge granted Kerri Kasem a temporary restraining order blocking Jean Kasem from cremating or removing her husband's remains from the funeral home. Kerri sought the restraining order in a bid to have an autopsy performed on her father, who suffered from Lewy body dementia before his death.
Kasem's three adult children from his first wife waged a battle with Jean Kasem over control of their father's medical care during his final months. TMZ reports that Santa Monica police are investigating Jean Kasem for allegations of elder abuse, which included her transporting him across multiple states, resulting in bed sores that became infected.
TMZ also reports that a day before the judge issued the temporary restraining order, Jean Kasem allegedly has his body moved to a secret location.
Calls to Jean Kasem's attorney Friday morning were not returned, CBS reports.
A hearing on the autopsy petition is scheduled for July 25.
Ann Tatko-Peterson provides celebrity commentary for the Bay Area News Group. Follow her at twitter.com/atatkopeterson.


text:
In 2008, as scientists documented a record melt in the Arctic ice and Al Gore's film An Inconvenient Truth was in theaters, a half dozen major investment houses launched mutual funds designed to take advantage of financial opportunities offered by climate change.
In Windfall: The Booming Business of Global Warming, journalist McKenzie Funk looks into how some entrepreneurs and even some nations stand to benefit from a changing climate. He talks with Fresh Air's Dave Davies about some of his subjects, ranging from investors buying water rights and farmland around the world, to private wildfire protection services for affluent homeowners, to the nation of Greenland, which will be able to exploit new mineral deposits as its ice melts.
Interview Highlights
On the oil and gas resources now available because of melting in the arctic
Up to a quarter of the world's remaining oil and gas is in the Arctic and there has been a major push to go get it. We've seen that with Shell in the Alaskan Arctic and a bunch of oil block sales in Greenland.
One thing that's happened is we've kind of gotten all of the easy oil everywhere else in the world, and what's left is the Arctic. At the same time, there's no question that the ice pulling back helps for exploration and it helps for drilling. It allows for them to have a longer summer season. No one is going to be doing oil exploration when the Arctic is covered in thick ice, but if you look at Shell's case in Alaska, they had a longer season because the ice wasn't there.
On how climate change affects urban infrastructure
Permafrost is basically when the earth itself freezes. It forms a very solid thing for a foundation. Now imagine it melting and it turns into a muck. If you built a building on top of that, that building starts to shift and roads start to buckle and the entire infrastructure starts melting away. Pipes break and entire buildings can fall over. That is beginning to happen all across the arctic. And Russia has a particularly big problem due to the muddy soil they have in the north.
On the disagreement over who owns the Northwest Passage, where new shipping lanes are opening up as the ice melts
This is something that explorers were trying to find for years, for centuries ... 1700s, 1800s, everyone wanted to find a way that wasn't the Panama Canal to go to the Pacific and they hoped this would be it, and until now, it wasn't.
[The Canadians] want the world to recognize these waters as Canadian; first and foremost, it's a lot about national pride. Secondarily, there could be some real economic benefits. Russia does charge fees to have you bring icebreakers along the way [through their Arctic passage], Canada could conceivably do the same thing. In the case of the Canadians, I think it's mostly about not being pushed around.
On "agreeing to disagree" over sovereignty in the past
For a long time we've had a sort of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy in the Northwest Passage. Basically, [the U.S. has] mentioned to Canada, sort of informally, 'Hey we're going to send a ship across,' and Canada says, 'Well, we're not giving you permission, but that's been noted.' That allows the two countries to agree to disagree about who owns the Northwest Passage.
The basic issue is that [for] international straits all over the world — it's written into the law of the sea and other international conventions that ships have free passage in international straits. ... Any ship can go through them without paying the country on either side a transit fee. Canada's position is that the Northwest Passage has not historically been a strait, it hasn't been used, it has been iced over and those are the two sides of the issue. If every time a ship goes through the Northwest Passage without asking Canada permission, it undermines the Canadian position. So they want to have everyone ask them for permission.
On metal gates that close off ports during a surge of water to protect cities
[In the Netherlands] it's called the Maeslant Storm Surge Barrier and it's these two Eiffel Tower-sized gates. They swing closed and close the Port of Rotterdam, which is the most important port in all of Europe. It's where most of the oil and gas come in and it's where most of everything leaves. They have a huge computer warning system that says, 'OK, the tides are surging. We need to close the barrier.' And that actually happened for the second time in history late in 2013, just a few months ago.
... It basically swings closed from both sides and they meet in the middle, these two massive gates and then this piece comes up from below and it closes off the entire harbor — water can't get in, water can't get out.
... [The proposed gates to protect Manhattan] would go across the narrows, the area below the Verrazano Bridge. ... The storm comes, warning system warns, and the gates swing closed and Manhattan is protected. ... We're talking Statue of Liberty [height] . ... Prices are pretty variant at the moment, but [it's] in the order of $10 billion.
In 2008, as scientists documented a record melt in the Arctic ice, and Al Gore's film, "An Inconvenient Truth," was in theaters, a half a dozen major investment houses launched global warming-themed mutual funds designed to take advantage of financial opportunities offered by climate change.
That's one trend noted in a new book by my guest, journalist McKenzie Funk, who has looked into how some entrepreneurs - and even sound nations - stand to benefit from climate change. His subjects range from investors buying water rights and farmland around the world, to private wildfire protection services for affluent American homeowners, to the nation of Greenland, which will be able to exploit new mineral deposits as its ice melts.
McKenzie Funk's work has appeared in Harper's, National Geographic and The New York Times. His new book is called "Windfall: The Booming Business of Global Warming."
Well, McKenzie Funk, welcome to FRESH AIR. You begin the book with describing being on a Canadian military vessel which is firing weapons into the water. What on earth was going on?
MCKENZIE FUNK: I think the Canadians were trying to look tough for everyone defending the Northwest Passage, which they would like to claim as their own internal waters. It's a disagreement over basically who owns that patch of the Arctic and it matters because of, well, the shipping lanes that are opening up as the ice pulls back. There's also oil.
DAVIES: Right. So we're talking about new shipping routes that are now going to be open to commercial shipping because the melting of ice in the Arctic. Give us a sense of sort of the scale of the melt and the shipping opportunities it presents.
FUNK: I started reporting this book in 2006. At that point, they were saying, you know, maybe 20-30 years in the future we will see an ice free Arctic in summer. We might be able to use the Northwest Passage then. And point of fact, by the next summer, there was an opening seen by satellites in the Northwest Passage. The summer of 2007 was a massive ice loss; I want to say it was the size of Texas was missing from the usual summertime shrinkage, and it has only accelerated, I think.
There are three different ways you can ship over the top of the world. You could go through the Northwest Passage, which is through the Canadian archipelago, north of Canada, North of North America. It leads to...
DAVIES: And we're talking about a passage from where to where?
FUNK: It would go from the Eastern Seaboard, basically, from the Atlantic to the Pacific over the top of the world. This is something that explorers had tried to find for centuries - 1700s, 1800s, everyone wanted to find a way that wasn't the Panama Canal to go to the Pacific and they hoped this would be it. And until now it wasn't.
The other main shipping route across the top of the Arctic would be the Northeast Passage or the Northern Sea Route, which goes across the top of Russia, and this one's proven to be the most viable economically. We've seen a massive growth in shipping already - 20-fold, 30-fold since 2007.
DAVIES: And again, we're talking about vessels that go from where, the Atlantic ports of the U.S.?
FUNK: These vessels are mostly going to and from Western Europe - or Northern Europe and Asia, China. The big excitement over the shipping routes is that they'll save a ton of time versus the Suez Canal for the Panama Canal. And so that most of the big shipments that it happened now have come from basically northern ports within China, and they'll go over the top of Russia and they'll end up in Europe or Northern Europe. And eventually, we may see the same thing happening in the Northwest Passage, which so far hasn't been used as much commercially.
DAVIES: So when the Canadian government asserts some military authority over the Northwest Passage, the sea route across the top of the ocean from the Atlantic to the Pacific, what are they saying, that they want to charge folks for going there or they want to restrict it in some way?
FUNK: I think it's both of those. I think there could be some real economic benefits. Russia does charge fees to have icebreakers help you along the way. Canada can conceivably do that same thing. But in the case of the Canadians, I think it's mostly about not being pushed around and having this part of their country that they find to be very important to them and wanting the U.S. to not use it when we feel like it.
DAVIES: So if you have a circumstance where the melting of the Arctic ice which, you know, to many is a catastrophic development, in fact, opens commercial possibilities for some countries in the Arctic, it raises another question which is what are some other ways that this would benefit countries in the Arctic? What are some of the ways that Arctic countries may stand to benefit economically from climate change, from global morning?
FUNK: I think the main benefit for the North - there is some question to whether fishing will help and a lot of those economies and right now are based on fishing, whether fish docks will in fact move further north, and if fishing will be better. But I think that is an open question scientifically. The main benefit right now is oil and gas. Up to a quarter of the world's remaining oil and gas is in the Arctic and there's been a major push to go get it.
DAVIES: So we're talking about oil and gas deposits which were inaccessible when they were frozen over, is that right? And now they're going to be reachable?
FUNK: I think that's right. The oil companies will say, look, we've drilled for oil in the Arctic before; it's not just that the ice is pulling back, that's not the only thing that's happening. And I think that's true. You know, one thing that's happened is we've kind of gotten all the easy oil everywhere else in the world, and what's left is the Arctic. At the same time, there's no question that the ice pulling back helps for exploration and it helps for drilling. It allows them to have a longer summer season, you know, no one's going to be doing ice exploration or oil exploration when the Arctic is covered in thick ice. But if you look at Shell's case in Alaska, they had a longer season because the, you know, the ice wasn't there.
DAVIES: You write that Royal Dutch Shell did some thinking and planning about the prospects for and consequences of climate change and came up with two scenarios, one called Blueprint, the other Scramble. Let's go through them. What's the Blueprint scenario and what does it dictate in terms of their activity?
FUNK: In 2007, they came out with these scenarios, and they said these are how we're thinking the world could turn out over the next 40 years. And Blueprints is the world sort of what we want it to be. We want the governments of the world, especially at a local level, to start putting a price on carbon. We want there to be carbon taxes or cap-and-trade. We want that to push innovation to move to a greener economy. There'll be wind. There'll be solar energy. That'll be a big mix of energies certainly, because in both of these scenarios they draw out and they think that the world will be using more energy. And at the same time, they think there will be more natural gas than, say, coal.
DAVIES: So that scenario, which they called Blueprints, essentially posits that the world responds aggressively to climate change and begins to change the way we do things. If the world does that, how did Shell think its business model would change?
FUNK: Well, it was already positioning itself to be heavier in natural gas than it was in oil. And so it assumed that its business would move toward a higher natural gas mix. It had invested in things like the London Array, which is a giant wind farm off the coast of the U.K. It was looking at all sorts of advanced biofuels, things down in Brazil. And at the same time, it didn't think that its fundamental business would change, it would still be an energy company, it would still be an oil and gas company. It would just be one that was perhaps smarter and ahead of the curve than the other one. It basically assumed that regulations would and should come and then at some point its business would be undermined by the fact that the world is worried about climate change, and so it might as well get ahead of this curve.
DAVIES: And then there was this other scenario that it's, you know, think tank came up with called Scramble. Well, what the Scramble predict for the world?
FUNK: Well, I think the description of it was to say that events would outpace actions in Scramble. That we basically wouldn't do anything about climate change, we wouldn't do anything about the coming energy shortage, that we would sort of just let things happen and we would have a bunch of band-aids. We would scramble for coal when we needed coal and we would scramble to find more oil. And we wouldn't really sort of at a governmental level - or even especially international level - have some sort of way to get to where we need to go in terms of the energy system.
DAVIES: And so if that's the world we're heading into, the company sees its business model differently too, right?
FUNK: Yeah. I think that means being part of this scramble. Also, sort of trying to gobble up the world's oil, also trying to kind of go ahead and do what they're doing.
DAVIES: And so when you looked at what the company is up to and talked to some of its executives, what was your sense of which they see coming true?
FUNK: Well, I asked, Jeremy Bentham is the head of their Scenario team now. He's their sort of in-house futurist. And I asked him, is it the view that the Scramble scenario is the one that's come true so far? And he said, yes. Absolutely. That's what's been happening. You know, nothing really happened at the Copenhagen Climate Accords in 2009. They were expecting that the world would come up with a treaty and would start moving toward arresting climate change. There was a push around that same time to do a climate bill in Congress and that died on the vine. And so all these sort of top-level regulatory actions that they thought would push this - push this more blueprintsy(ph) kind of scenario didn't happen. And because of that it, yeah, it does look like a scramble. It doesn't look like any action is being taken at an international or a national level to arrest climate change. And because of that, you know, Shell thinks, well, we're not being regulated in the way we thought we were. This looks more like a scramble.
DAVIES: So go get the oil.
FUNK: Yeah.
DAVIES: McKenzie Funk's book is called "Windfall: The Booming Business of Global Warming." We'll continue our conversation after a short break. This is FRESH AIR.
DAVIES: This is FRESH AIR. And if you're just joining us, we're speaking with journalist McKenzie Funk. His new book, "Windfall" is about new commercial opportunities that have been opened up by climate change. It's called "The Booming Business of Global Warming."
Greenland is particularly an interesting case. You traveled to Greenland. Tell us about what you saw there in terms of the effects of climate change and what its - how its future seems to be changing.
FUNK: I think Greenland is the most interesting case of all here because it's hard not to root for them. You know, it's a very massive country with a tiny population. It has about 57,000 people and it's beautiful. And then they were longtime, they've longtime been dependent on Denmark, which as colonists goes, been a benevolent country. And yet, Greenland wants to have its own independence. It wants to be in charge of what it does. And they think their path forward is to earn enough money from oil and gas and from mining that they don't have to get their annual subsidy from Denmark. And Denmark says, well, if you can pay your own way you're free to go, you're free to be free.
So I went there on a road show with most of the leading politicians in Greenland. In advance of a vote - they were going to have what they call self-governance, which was a degree of independence that they hope will lead to full independence. This involved getting in helicopters, flying from village to village and having meetings with all these citizens who were wondering about this upcoming vote and saying. OK, what's this mean for us? How much money are we going to get from minerals if we do this? Who is going to be in charge of defense? And all the politicians from the main four parties - including the premier - and the leaders of the other parties would sit there and answer questions. And three out of four were very much in favor of this self-governance and eventual independence.
Along the way, we spent a lot of time with citizens, you know, your average Greenlanders who by and large didn't seem too concerned with what was happening with climate change. And I don't mean that they were happy about not being able to hunt in the winter, probably because the ice was too brittle, but new fish stocks were moving in and they did seem to want independence. The vote wasn't even close. In some of the villages I went to, I think they voted 97 percent in favor of self-governance. And the country as a whole, it does now have self-governance, which means almost everything but defense is being handled by Greenland itself.
DAVIES: And did the citizens of Greenland that you spoke to, and did you see, I mean physical changes in the landscape from climate change? What's actually happening there?
FUNK: Yeah, absolutely. The most stark examples where it came from, one fisherman who told me about some new fish species that had freaked everyone out when it appeared five years ago and now it was the basis of their economy. It's because the waters had warmed and the species was moving, moving up. Another friend lived in a village that in wintertime they used to be able to travel to and from a larger city via taxi on the ice. It would get so frozen in the sound that they would have an ice road, it would go to and from and it was much cheaper. And some...
DAVIES: This was crossing a body of water on a taxi?
FUNK: Exactly. Well, which really isn't that scary when they're, you know, 20 feet thick of ice below you. But this, I think two winters ago, they had such a warm winter that there was no ice and they had to get to and from the village they had to take helicopters. It was still too dangerous to do boats because there would be little icebergs and that's obviously horrible. The seal hunters have a harder time because they're going out on the ice. If the ice is brittle, they can't hunt as they traditionally did.
But the other big example was one of the mines called the Black Angel. Black Angel has what was once the highest grade zinc in the world and may still be. It did run up in the '70s and then shut down because they thought they'd gotten all the good stuff. And maybe five years ago, some British geologists were out there walking around the defunct mine and they saw that a glacier had pulled back and they sampled some of the rocks below that glacier and they found a zinc deposit just as good as the first one.
Just as big. It was enough to open up the mine. And they now have a shipping season that's two months longer to and from that mine because the ice isn't there in the fjord as much. So a very clear case of climate change causing the ice to go away and that helping the local economy. And for Greenlanders who have been very well educated by Denmark and who are remarkably worldly, who have a very good Internet connection and have better fashion sense than I do, you know, these were all good things. They're excited to have their independence.
DAVIES: Yeah. Does anybody worry about, you know, having a zinc mine expand? I mean, that may not be the most pleasant neighbor.
FUNK: Yeah. And this is a big issue. They just had an election, in fact, and one of the big questions in the election was how much should be endanger our environment which we've depended on forever in order to fund this independence? And there was a big protest vote. A lot of people said, no, we can't just say yes to any oil company that comes.
And at the same time, the party that was voted back into power, the prime minister, she's pushing for allowing uranium mining. And that's because that's the way she sees forward to independence. But, you know, they are very aware of the dangers of particularly the zinc mine. That mine had left a bunch of tailings in the fjord before and they said any mine that comes in now, we need to have strong regulations to stop that.
They are very worried about the oil companies and about what could happen in a spill. Oil spills are extremely hard to clean up in ice. It's very remote. You know, you can't respond to a spill up there like you could in the Gulf of Mexico. And they're aware of that. But it's a small country and they need money, so I think there's an open question still.
DAVIES: We're speaking with McKenzie Funk. His book "Windfall" is about commercial interests that see possibilities for profit in global warming. We'll continue our conversation after a short break. This is FRESH AIR.
DAVIES: This is FRESH AIR, and if you're just joining us, we're speaking with journalist McKenzie Funk. He has a book about new commercial opportunities that are being exploited with climate change. It's called "Windfall: The Booming Business of Global Warming." You know, one country that's been dealing with rising seas for centuries is the Netherlands, and, you know, you write about some Dutch companies that see opportunities to export their water management technology around the world as the seas rise.
And you describe a visit to Rotterdam and this enormous storm surge barrier there. Can you just describe it?
FUNK: Sure. You've done well by calling it enormous. It's called the Maeslantkering or Maeslant Storm Surge Barrier and it's these two Eiffel Tower-sized gates. They swing open - or, rather, swing closed and close the Port of Rotterdam which is the most important port in all of Europe. It's where most of the oil and gas come in and most of everything leaves.
And they have a huge warning system. It's this computer warning system that says, OK, the tides are surging, we need to close the barrier. And that actually happened for the second time in history late in 2013, just a few months ago.
DAVIES: So we're talking about a huge metal gate that's as long as the Eiffel Tower is wide but it moves through the water on hinges so that in effect it kind of closes off the water, closes off the port.
FUNK: Yeah. And there's also something that comes up from the bed of the canal there, the passage there. And so it basically just swings closed from both sides and they meet in the middle, these two massive gates. And then this piece comes up from below and it closes it off the entire harbor. Water can't get in, water can't get out.
DAVIES: And the company that built this took a look at New York. What would it take to protect New York, right? Now, tell us what they came up with.
FUNK: They did. Well, a few companies have worked on these. The company that worked in New York was Aracdis, the Dutch company that made, I think, the most amazing presentation at one of these meetings I went to with a bunch of engineers. And it's basically the Maeslantkering, the Maeslant Barrier, modified for New York. And it would go across the narrows. That's the area below the barriers on a bridge. And it would do the same thing. It would swing closed.
Now, that gap across the narrows is actually larger than what they had to span in Rotterdam and, you know, the basic mechanism is the same, though. Storm comes, warning system warns, and the gates swing closed, and Manhattan is protected.
DAVIES: And how big would these gates be?
FUNK: I don't know the exact numbers but they're, again, we're talking Statue of Liberty or more. And that's just for the gates. I mean, if you've ever driven across the Verrazano Bridge you know that it's a massive span and especially if there's traffic it takes a long time to go across. And these are gates that have to swing across and close most of that gap.
DAVIES: And what would it cost, do we know?
FUNK: Estimates are pretty varied at the moment but in the order of $10 billion.
DAVIES: Right. Now, there's a downside. If you have something like, say, Superstorm Sandy or something worse and a storm surge coming, you close the gates, the gates work. The water doesn't disappear, right?
FUNK: Yeah. And I think that that was something that the engineers at Arcadis and in general in Holland they are not slow to point out. I think they're very aware of the fact that when water hits something like this, it spreads out. So if you build gates that block off the Verrazano, then those areas in Brooklyn and Staten Island on either side - on, basically, on the wrong side of that gate - they're going to get a bigger storm surge, I think about two feet or more.
It means that you're protecting Manhattan but you're flooding these generally poorer areas on the outside. I mean, it's sort of a metaphor for a lot of these things with climate change.
DAVIES: Right. But it's one thing to offer an idea to New York which would save Manhattan at the risk of flooding Staten Island. I mean, that would be politically problematic and they haven't put money into that. Are there places in the world where people have bought the technology and are installing it?
FUNK: There are storm surge barriers already in St. Petersburg, Russia. There's one helping protect London. There's - Singapore has something of the sort. There are sea walls outside of Shanghai, although not something quite like this. So - and then of course Venice. That one's quite well known, although that's more because Venice is sinking than because sea levels are rising.
But, yeah, these are being installed. Arcadis, this same company we've talked about, has done a lot of work in New Orleans, in fact, on levies and smaller storm surge barriers. And so this, you know, in recent storms it's worked quite well.
DAVIES: You know, your book describes, you know, private interests that see a chance to make money from the effects of climate change and sovereign states that appear to be positioned to profit. Do you see either the private interests or the governments deliberately influencing public policy to discourage efforts to halt global warming? Are we seeing people who will, you know, happily destroy the planet to make a buck?
FUNK: I have not seen that, no. I think it's an important point to say that the people I have talked to, I don't think they were necessarily bad people. Now, they were looking to make a buck but I don't think many of them were wanting, OK, let's let the planet burn so I can make this buck. It's more that they were sort of hopeless about the prospects. And I don't think there's any lobbying against sort of climate action.
But I wouldn't doubt that the fact that many of us are not going to be as bad off as, say, your average Bangladeshi slows action on climate change. There's - the charge levied at, say, Halliburton that it likes war. I always find that a bit dubious. I think that's the same for these companies. I don't think that they like climate change. I think they're looking to make money in it and I think if there was more of their bottom line at risk that maybe they'd be more pro-climate action. Maybe they'd be pushing harder to stop it.
But actively working against it, I never saw any evidence of that. No. That, for me, after years working on this book was the major takeaway, was this sort of imbalance, the idea of this unevenness of the effects. You know, some of us will get rich off climate change. Some of us will at least be able to pay for the technologies that can protect us.
You know, Manhattan versus Staten Island. That, on a global scale, is pretty important if you want to understand why are we not doing anything about climate change. Sure, there are skeptics but there's also the fact that we in the north and in the west are either going to be fine or even better off, in some rare cases with climate change, or we're going to be able to protect ourselves with these technologies and we can pay for them.
But you're not going to see a lot of the world being able to afford a giant $10 billion sea barrier. You're not going to see a lot of the world being able to afford desalination plants to get water if they're running dry. And you're not going to see all the world being able to buy up farmland if theirs goes fallow. And I think that explains a lot about climate inaction and really raises the moral stakes.
DAVIES: Well, McKenzie Funk, I want to thank you so much for spending some time with us.
FUNK: Well, thank you.
DAVIES: McKenzie Funk's new book is called "Windfall: The Booming Business of Global Warming." You can download podcasts of our show at freshair.npr.org. Follow us on Twitter at nprfreshair and on Tumblr at nprfreshair.tumblr.com. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.


text:
Monday, October 25, 2010
Fifty-two words on John Farrell
34 comments:
- Peter D said...
Even though he doesn't have the one criteria that I demanded (managing experience), I'll proceed with the belief that the man pulling the strings behind the curtain knows what he is doing.
- October 25, 2010 at 8:44 AM
- Greg said...
The 52 words fit neatly into a haiku:
John Farrell, G.M.?
Good enough chops for the job?
I guess we'll see, eh.
- October 25, 2010 at 8:48 AM
- sarah said...
If he had Sal Fasano's moustache, he would be perfect.
- October 25, 2010 at 9:05 AM
- Tao of Stieb said...
In terms of Farrell's lack of managerial chops, I actually get the impression that he might have been TOO SMART to be a manager.
If he's a good enough talent assessor to play a big part in building a team that was twice named organization of the year by Baseball America, I'm sure that's he'll be able to figure his way around a lineup card.
And moreover, I bet you that he does it in a way that isn't according to a long-held collection of myths and legends that are handed down from one manager to another.
This is going to be fun.
Down with the orthodoxy!
- October 25, 2010 at 9:09 AM
- Peter D said...
In all honesty I don't think any of us (fans) have a clue as to how effective Will Farrell :) will be as a manager and that regardless of who AA picked we would have focused on the positive aspects of that choice. Regardless it will bring some entertainment value for all of us this year (good or bad).
- October 25, 2010 at 9:24 AM
- Peter D said...
This is a classic picture of the Jays new manager!
- October 25, 2010 at 9:41 AM
- William Tasker - Caribou, ME said...
Clever, Peter. I think this is a great hire by the Blue Jays. Plus it won't hurt that he knows the Red Sox personnel when it comes to those 18 games in 2011.
I think the choice is perfect, but reserve the right to say I never said that if the Blue Jays don't succeed (but I think they will).
- October 25, 2010 at 10:12 AM
So it's agreed. He's awesome unless he sucks.
- October 25, 2010 at 10:53 AM
Wow, talk about a bunch of good little soldiers. If AA told you guys the sky was falling, would you run for shelter?
- October 25, 2010 at 11:03 AM
- Darren Priest said...
I am going to assume AA makes the right decision until he makes a few bad decisions.
Although, I hear he had a Double-Down for lunch last week. Consider my faith shaken.
- October 25, 2010 at 11:24 AM
Hey, Anonymous 11:03 -- if AA went out and made a bad choice, I'm pretty sure this and many other blogs would immediately call him out on it. Like, say, if he hired Don Baylor or something stupid like that.
As for this hiring, it is legitimately difficult to find something bad to say about it. Although I presume you have something up your sleeve, so let's hear it. I'm gonna go ahead and guess it's something inane like "HE'S GOT NO MAJOR LEAGUE MANAGERIAL EXPERIENCE!"
- October 25, 2010 at 11:24 AM
- Tao of Stieb said...
If AA had hired some retread or some dude because he was Canadian, I would have had worry.
As it stands, I still do a bit. But I like the process, and I like some of the highlights of Farrell's resume.
As for "being good soldiers", you can look around and find lots of asshole cynics who are going to shit all over everything because they want to assume a pose of the contrarian. Those are fucking BOOOOORRRINNG people to listen to, and I'm glad I'm not one of them.
Good soldiers, my eye.
- October 25, 2010 at 11:43 AM
Hey Mike from Ottawa. With all due respect, fuck you. I have nothing up my sleeve and I have no idea about how this guy is going to do as a mangager. But thanks for being so presumptious in assuming that what I have to say will be so inane.
Big surprise your from Ottawa.
- October 25, 2010 at 11:45 AM
- Drew said...
- October 25, 2010 at 11:49 AM
Wow guys, I didn't mean to shit on your little love parade so let's be clear.
I'm simply referring to the context of this article that proposes that "this is a good thing" because........
We have no evidence if this is a good hiring or not, but because the God AA made the decision, then it must be.
Thanks for the little caps lock crying spree Drew, you sure got your point across.
- October 25, 2010 at 12:02 PM
- The Ack said...
Anon, lemme ask a question and be clear I'm not baiting - who would have been your choice? Is your beef with the selection of Farrell or just with the general acceptance of the choice?
b/c if it's just the "acceptance" that's sticking in your craw, I kinda' wonder the point of a blog post that would just be all "well, y'know, maybe it's good, maybe it's bad, I dunno."
....then again, that's pretty much what I seem to do, so there you go.
- October 25, 2010 at 12:09 PM
- Drew GROF said...
@anon - Let the punishment fit the crime
- October 25, 2010 at 12:25 PM
Hey, nice leap to me being from Ottawa. Makes perfect sense to insult me based on geography. Maybe I should have said I was from Alberta where I grew up, but who fucking cares?
You came on here accusing people of being "good soldiers" based on nothing but a bit of optimism from the blogger and the commenters. Instead of posting something more thoughtful like your second comment, you decided to take the piss out of everyone who might have something positive to say. I don't know what you might have expected in response to that, but surely it wasn't, "Hey, that guy's right! We're a bunch of gullible morons!"
- October 25, 2010 at 12:32 PM
My choice would have been someone with more experience and not a "learn on the job" candidate. However, that explanation is irrelevant given that I wasn't privy to the interview process. None of us were.
I'm just not a proponent of blind endorsements of individuals that we have zero information about. I mean, if Cito comes out tomorrow in the Toronto Sun and endorses this guy, will the prevailing good feeling be the same.
I'm not trying to be a contrarian or anything, I'm just a little concerned with this free ride Anthopoulus has been getting over the past year.
- October 25, 2010 at 12:32 PM
Wow...Some passion!!! Nice...Almost thought this was a post about the friggin' leafs for a second.
I'm sold on this hire, but you know what... They could have hired Joe fucking blow from who gives a rats ass.... I'm still buying seasons tickets & supporting the shit out of this team!!!
- October 25, 2010 at 12:58 PM
- Darren Priest said...
I'd say AA is getting a "free ride" because in his first year, he made some excellent moves and the team performed beyond most fans' very modest expectations.
If the Jays finish 4th in the standings for the next two seasons, the ride will get significantly more bumpy.
Anyone wanting AA to be called out at this juncture probably hasn't been paying attention.
- October 25, 2010 at 1:05 PM
Sorry to disappoint you Darren, but I caught about 150 games this year, and kept abreast of the media and team reports daily. No one is suggesting calling out AA, but the quality of his body of work cannot yet be determined. Nobody knows yet whether Gose for Wallace will work out. Nobody knows if Escobar will turn into the headcase he was in Atlanta (Although that's still a good deal even if he does). We have no indication at all whether the assets we got from the Halladay deal are going to pan out.
These are just a few examples, but please, go on insulting me if that makes you feel better.
- October 25, 2010 at 1:19 PM
- Darren Priest said...
- This comment has been removed by the author.
- October 25, 2010 at 1:25 PM
Anon -- if your point was to say that the jury is still out on AA's body of work, then maybe you should have just said that. It's a fair point, and you could have made it without the snarky "good soldiers" bullshit.
- October 25, 2010 at 1:56 PM
- Tao of Stieb said...
Oh, fucking "free ride", my balls.
The fucking point of this post - and yes, I'm just thrilled to have to spell it out - is that given the paucity of information that we have on Farrell, the elements of his resume which stand out are very interesting, very compelling, and don't read anything like the list of qualifications of all sorts of other retreads who've been around or lifelong minor league managers who are getting the bump from someone's first base coaches' box.
So what am I supposed to do: Put my boot up Anthopoulos' ass, just because somehow, someone figures that's what my duty is?
The whole fucking point here is that WE DON'T KNOW HOW THIS IS GOING TO TURN OUT. So I'm not about to give AA shit because I don't know, because there is no way TO KNOW.
I just like the fact that there was a different, exhaustive approach, and that they came up with a candidate that very few people saw coming. And maybe it is audacious, but yeah, I'll make a pretty preliminary judgment that I like what I have heard.
I'm not signing off on this somehow, as though I'm going to give full indemnification to Farrell and the front office if this turns into a shit show. I just don't see the need to do it preemptively.
And BTW: I'm from Ottawa. Feel free to never come back to the blog again if that offends you.
- October 25, 2010 at 2:20 PM
Gee, take a pill Tao.
You want an example of a free ride. What about the Wallace for Gose deal. We were sold by AA that this was a major league ready bonified first baseman and everyone was drooling the entire first half of the season about when he was going to play, when were we going to see him? Then boom, gone at the trade deadline for someone who's a minimum 3 years away from the majors.
If JP would have pulled that switch, the media and bloggers in this town would have been screaming bloody murder. But because wonder boy explained that centre fielders like this don't come along everyday, we had our eye on him from the start blah blah blah everything was rainbows and puppy dogs. In the meantime, we might as well welcome back Lyle Overbay and watch him shit his pants when hitters in front of him get past first base.
- October 25, 2010 at 7:37 PM
Lets all calm down here. Nobody needs to be putting a boot up anyone's ass and nobody should be dissing people for where they choose to live.
In the immortal words of Rodney King. "Can we all just get along"?
- October 25, 2010 at 7:49 PM
- Tao of Stieb said...
Really? I gave AA a free ride over the Wallace-Gose trade?
Would anyone care to pull out the tweets that I sent on that day? It certainly wasn't a free ride.
The jury is still out on this trade, and I've said that while I'm willing to accept the rationale, I want to see how it plays out.
For now, Wallace has gone on to have a somewhat underwhelming major league start. Maybe that's something the Jays had identified before. I dunno.
Frnakly, if you go through what I've written on AA, I've reserved judgment on a lot, not because I agree with it, but because there's too little to go on to form a really clear opinion. I don't think that means I'm in the tank for him, or that I've shut off my critical faculties because I've got a big stupid crush on him.
I'm a fan who wants to believe that this part of the journey is leading us to some place where we need to go. So if I'm not tearing these decisions down straight away, it's because I'd like to collect some evidence on them before I trash them.
And if I do say that some elements of Farrell's resume appeal to me, and I judge them to be good, I'm really just talking in that context.
But I take great offense to being labeled as a thoughtless ditto head for this administration. That's not what I'm here for.
- October 25, 2010 at 10:40 PM
- DaveC said...
The "we'd hate JP if he did this" schtick is just as tiring as the "hating JP" shtick, so maybe we retire that meme, yes?
It doesn't take a Mensa member to say we don't have any clue how this Farrell thing is going to turn out with 0 games played (or the Gose/Wallace trade until either of them collect much major league time, for that matter), but much like with AA, we can look at the available information and say we're optimistic.
Farrell's had success as a player evaluator, success as a pitching coach, and seems to be a well spoken, intelligent, thoughtful man based on what's out there. I'd say there's reason to like that hiring.
If someone needs to take a pill, it's a guy who's posting without a name and refusing to be anything but cynical and bitter about things.
If the Jays go 62-100 and Farrell proves to be as clueless as Cito, then we have some reason to be grumpy. Until then, everyone's speculating.
- October 26, 2010 at 12:59 AM
I for one hold no grievance with the Farrell hiring. As some of the saner minds have stated, it is too soon to speculate on whether AA should be fed to the jackals for hiring John Farrell.
Besides, there are bigger problems to tame that lie beyond the scope of Farrell's position, such as getting better productivity out of the corner infield positions and getting the bullpen staff sorted.
What I do like about the hiring is that Farrell views the position as very much a dialogue with his fellow coaches and GM, in that he doesn't hold fast to a dogmatic notion of how a team should be managed. In a word, I like that he will cater his decisions to the players he has on hand rather than trying to ram them through some kind of template he sees fit.
2011 will be a year of tinkering. I expect greater strides to be made in 2012.
- October 26, 2010 at 9:03 AM
I chose to post this anonymously.
- October 26, 2010 at 2:27 PM
Glad to see you're a real standup guy Dave C. I mean, if you weren't so ANONYMOUS would you be referring to someone as "clueless". You want to take issues with Gaston for some of the moves or non moves he made this year, there's a case for that. But to refer to someone that has dedicated his entire adult life to baseball as clueless shows very little class on your part.
- October 26, 2010 at 5:59 PM
"bonified"? Wow no wonder he was dealt.
- October 26, 2010 at 8:26 PM
- DaveC said...
"Clueless" was probably the wrong word to describe Cito- or perhaps I should have been specific about what he was clueless about. Not sure why my shared namesake got so uppity about it ("No, honey, I can't come to dinner. Someone is WRONG on the INTERNET!"), but he's probably right ultimately. Appreciate the intent, if not the delivery.
Cito's strengths (VETERANS, HITTING) and weaknesses (YOUNGINS, TALENT, BULLPEN) are well documented at this point, and have nothing to do with what I posted before, which was more about the new guy than the old guy. In my angrier days, I wanted him fired immediately, but he was part of two World Series teams.
I had my nostalgic moments on the send off night- he's obviously had some very positive impacts on the Jays in the past. But at this point, perhaps earlier, that's where he belongs.
The Manager is gone. Long live the manager!
- October 26, 2010 at 11:44 PM


text:
Applications are currently being accepted for the Ryan R. Wagner Memorial Scholarship.
Applications are currently being accepted for the Ryan R. Wagner Memorial Scholarship.
The scholarship honors Townsend resident Ryan Wagner, a 17-year-old senior at Middletown High School, who died Feb. 24, 2011.
Applicants for the scholarship must be a graduating senior from Middletown, Appoquinimink or St. Georges Technical High School who have been accepted at the University of Delaware and plan to study engineering.
A letters of recommendation from a guidance counselor and teacher must accompany applications.
A committee will evaluate applicants based on academic achievement, community service and involvement in school activities or athletics.
The deadline for applications is April 1.
The number and dollar amount of scholarships varies, and students may reapply for continued support. Last year, $5,000 was awarded between two applicants.
Applications can be downloaded at www.delcf.org.
More information and a complete listing of available scholarships can be found in each school's guidance office.
The third-annual 5K Run/Walk For Ryan, which raises for money for the scholarship, will be held at Middletown High School on May 19.
Check www.flylikeryan.com for more details.


text:
Back in the Kitchen
After a week long whirlwind adventure in Seattle and Vancouver I am back in my closet sized kitchen!
It all started with the International Food Bloggers Conference (IFBC) in Seattle which was filled with amazing people and tasty food. I was absolutely thrilled to have the chance to meet some food bloggers in person that I had previously only known online. I also had the opportunity to meet many new friends and the conversations were never dull. The weekend was filled with seminars, some of which I felt did not really apply to me, but I learned a bit and I look forward to trying to improve Closet Cooking with what I have learned. In between all of the seminars was of course a ton of food and drink. Out of all of the great food, I have to say that the food truck lunch was my favorite. There are no food trucks here in Toronto and I had really been looking forward to trying out some taco truck tacos and Seattle's taco trucks did not disappointed! You can see some of my photos from the IFBC here:
International Food Bloggers Conference (IFBC) Gallery
After the IFBC was over, I stayed in Seattle for a few days to explore everything foodie in Seattle and thanks to your amazing suggestions, I had a very delicious time! I got to try some classics like dungeness crab cakes, Pike Place chowder, Beecher's mac and cheese, the Crumpet Shop and the Salumi mozzarella mole sandwich. For those that are interested you can see more of my adventures in Seattle here:
Seattle 2010 Gallery
Next up was a trip back to Canada to visit Vancouver BC and was it ever an adventure! Day one included a visit to Canada Place followed by the Lonsdale Market where I got to try a Canadian treat, the beaver tail, and I finished the day off with a stop in Chinatown. Up next was a quick walk through Stanley park followed by an afternoon in the Granville Market. Although my trip was full of great food, I have to say that the meal that night at Vij's was by far the best even though there was a two hour wait to get a seat! The next day it was back to Chinatown to walk through the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden followed by a quick walk through Yale Town and Gas Town and then it was off to the Richmond night market. The night market was amazing and just packed with tasty food. I got the chance to try both takoyaki and taiyaki which I have been wanting to try for a while. On my final day in BC it was up to Whistler to experience some of BC's natural beauty and to scale to the top of the mountain.
For those that are interested you can see more of my adventures in Vancouver here:
Vancouver 2010 Gallery
Time to get cooking!


text:
Sponsored by Basketball (men)
The University of Dubuque remained unbeaten as it handed Luther a 79-69 loss in the Stoltz Sports Center.
The Spartans put together a 23-6 run in the final eight minutes of the first half that proved to be the difference in the game en route to a 45-30 halftime lead.
Luther was led by John Androus and Jake Martin who tallied 21 and 18 points respectively. This duo also led the Norse on the boards collecting nearly half of the team's 42 total rebounds. Martin was credited with nine rebounds, while Androus grabbed eight.
Chris Frazier paced the Spartans with a game high 25 points. Andre Norris recorded a double-double, thanks to 17 points and 10 rebounds, and Gage Heffernan chipped in 15.
The loss drops Luther's Iowa Conference record to 0-3, 8-6 overall. Dubuque moved to 3-0, 14-0 overall.
Luther travels to Simpson College (0-3, 2-12) on Saturday. Tip-off will take place at 4:00 p.m.
Questions? Contact David Blanchard, post_to_results, 563-387-1586


text:
In a rematch from the Ron Pritchard Invitational, the Live Oak Lions' varsity basketball team lost a close one to the Lindhurst Blazers.
In a rematch from the Ron Pritchard Invitational, the Live Oak Lions' varsity basketball team lost a close one to the Lindhurst Blazers. The Lions (6-3) faced the Blazers from Lindhurst (5-3) in the semi-finals, but Live Oak was topped by a score of 56-47.
On Wednesday of last week, the Lions fell in a similar setting but this time in Lindhurst. The Lions led by 11 points going into the 4th quarter by a score of 58-47. The Blazers rallied during the final period by putting together a 17-0 run at one point. Acosta led the Lions with 22 points, and Aaron Pamma finished with an impressive 21 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Tyler Raymond had a great night as well and put up 15 points.
Live Oak now will shift their focus to the Sacramento Valley League. In their first SVL matchup against the Honkers out of Willows, the Lions won by a score of 52-48.
Tuesday night, the Lions crushed the visiting Trojans from Durham by a score of 47-35. I wouldn't say the score really reflected how the game went however. Romario Acosta led the scoring for the Lions with 19 points—including three 3-pointers in the first half—along with five steals. Gurbeer Kooner finished with seven points, while Tony Arrellano, Aaron Pamma, Simeren Pamma, Pardeep Ginda each had four points. Aaron Pamma also grabbed seven rebounds and had five assists. Tyler Raymond picked up three points and six rebounds.
The Lions will take on East Nicholas (2-5, 1-0) on Friday. Coach Zach Wilson is confident with the teams' performance going into their next SVL matchup.