text:
Research October 2016 | Volume 124 | Issue 10
Recent Fast Food Consumption and Bisphenol A and Phthalates Exposures among the U.S. Population in NHANES, 2003–2010
Ami R. Zota, Cassandra A. Phillips, and Susanna D. Mitro
PDF Version (233 KB)
Background: Phthalates and bisphenol A (BPA) are widely used industrial chemicals that may adversely impact human health. Human exposure is ubiquitous and can occur through diet, including consumption of processed or packaged food.
Objective: To examine associations between recent fast food intake and BPA and urinary metabolites of di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (ΣDEHPm) and diisononyl phthalate (DiNPm) among the U.S. population.
Methods: We combined data on 8,877 participants from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES 2003–2010). Using 24-hr dietary recall data, we quantified: a) fast food intake [percent of total energy intake (TEI) from fast food]; b) fast food-derived fat intake (percent of TEI from fat in fast food); and c) fast food intake by food group (dairy, eggs, grains, meat, and other). We examined associations between dietary exposures and urinary chemical concentrations using multivariate linear regression.
Results: We observed evidence of a positive, dose–response relationship between fast food intake and exposure to phthalates (p-trend < 0.0001) but not BPA; participants with high consumption (≥ 34.9% TEI from fast food) had 23.8% (95% CI: 11.9%, 36.9%) and 39.0% (95% CI: 21.9%, 58.5%) higher levels of ΣDEHPm and DiNPm, respectively, than nonconsumers. Fast food-derived fat intake was also positively associated with ΣDEHPm and DiNPm (p-trend < 0.0001). After adjusting for other food groups, ΣDEHPm was associated with grain and other intake, and DiNPm was associated with meat and grain intake.
Conclusion: Fast food may be a source of exposure to DEHP and DiNP. These results, if confirmed, could inform individual and regulatory exposure reduction strategies.
Citation: Zota AR, Phillips CA, Mitro SD. 2016. Recent fast food consumption and bisphenol A and phthalates exposures among the U.S. population in NHANES, 2003–2010. Environ Health Perspect 124:1521–1528; http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/ehp.1510803
Address correspondence to A.R. Zota, Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Milken Institute School of Public Health, George Washington University, 950 New Hampshire Ave. NW, Suite 414, Washington, DC 20052 USA. Telephone: (202) 994-9289. E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com
We thank K. Robien for her input on the manuscript.
This study was funded by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (R00ES019881).
The authors declare that they have no actual or potential competing financial interests and that their freedom to design, conduct, interpret, and publish research is not compromised by any controlling sponsor.
Received: 24 September 2015
Revised: 2 December 2015
Accepted: 10 March 2016
Published: 13 April 2016
Note to readers with disabilities: EHP strives to ensure that all journal content is accessible to all readers. However, some figures and Supplemental Material published in EHP articles may not conform to 508 standards due to the complexity of the information being presented. If you need assistance accessing journal content, please contact email@example.com. Our staff will work with you to assess and meet your accessibility needs within 3 working days.
- Supplemental Material PDF (178 KB)
Note to readers with disabilities: EHP has provided a 508-conformant table of contents summarizing the Supplemental Material for this article (see below) so readers with disabilities may determine whether they wish to access the full, nonconformant Supplemental Material. If you need assistance accessing journal content, please contact firstname.lastname@example.com. Our staff will work with you to assess and meet your accessibility needs within 3 working days.
Supplemental Table of Contents PDF (104 KB)
Related EHP Article
Phthalates in Fast Food: A Potential Dietary Source of Exposure
Phthalates are a class of high production volume industrial chemicals that are ubiquitously used in commerce. High-molecular-weight phthalates, such as di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), are used as plasticizers to impart flexibility in polyvinyl chloride (PVC) materials such as food packaging, flooring, and medical devices (U.S. EPA 2012). In recent years, other phthalates, including diisononyl phthalate (DiNP), have been replacing DEHP in these applications due, in part, to legislation limiting the use of DEHP in certain applications (European Chemicals Agency 2012). Bisphenol A (BPA) is a high production volume chemical used to make polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resins, found in food and beverage cans as well as thermal receipt paper (Calafat et al. 2008).
Phthalates and BPA can leach, migrate, or off-gas from products over time and enter the human body via ingestion, inhalation, and dermal absorption. Once in the body, phthalates and BPA are quickly metabolized and excreted in urine, with elimination half-lives less than 24 hr (Johns et al. 2015; Vandenberg et al. 2007). Human exposure to these chemicals is widespread (CDC 2013). Urinary metabolites of DEHP and DiNP are detected in 98% of the US general population (Zota et al. 2014) with higher exposures observed in children (Koch et al. 2004; Wittassek et al. 2011). Urinary metabolites of BPA are detected in 90% of the U.S. population with higher exposures observed in non-Hispanic Blacks, children, females, and those of lower socioeconomic status (Calafat et al. 2008; Nelson et al. 2012).
Experimental animal studies demonstrate that DEHP and DiNP have endocrine-disrupting properties because of their anti-androgenic effects on the male reproductive system (National Research Council 2008). Human exposure to DEHP has been associated with adverse reproductive, neurobehavioral, and respiratory outcomes in children (Braun et al. 2013; Ejaredar et al. 2015) and metabolic disease risk factors such as insulin resistance in adolescents and adults (James-Todd et al. 2012; Attina and Trasande 2015). Though epidemiologic evidence of DiNP is less complete, recent studies report associations between exposure and similar health outcomes including adverse respiratory and metabolic outcomes in children (Bertelsen et al. 2013; Attina and Trasande 2015). BPA is also a suspected endocrine disrupter, and experimental and human evidence suggest that BPA is a reproductive toxicant (Peretz et al. 2014). In addition, prenatal BPA exposure has also been associated with adverse neurobehavioral outcomes in children (Mustieles et al. 2015).
Given the concern over chemical toxicity, it is important to identify modifiable sources of exposure that may be targeted for exposure reduction strategies. Simulated exposure modeling, observational epidemiologic studies, and intervention studies all suggest that diet is an important exposure pathway for both high-molecular-weight phthalates and BPA (Carwile et al. 2011; Geens et al. 2012; Rudel et al. 2011; Serrano et al. 2014; Trasande et al. 2013; Wormuth et al. 2006). For example, a recent review of dietary and non-dietary exposures to BPA concluded that food sources contributed to more than 90% of overall BPA exposure among non-occupationally exposed individuals (Geens et al. 2012), and a second study that examined five individuals in Bochum, Germany fasting for 48 hr found that diet was the most significant source for DEHP and DiNP exposures as well (Koch et al. 2013). Food is likely contaminated with phthalates and BPA during processing (Cao 2010; Geens et al. 2012). Phthalates have been shown to leach into food from PVC in materials like tubing used in the milking process, lid gaskets, food preparation gloves, conveyor belts and food packaging materials (Cao 2010; Serrano et al. 2014). In fact, an intervention study reported that urinary BPA and DEHP were reduced by 66% and 53–56%, respectively, when participants' diets were restricted to food with limited packaging (Rudel et al. 2011). Foods high in fat, such as dairy and meat, may be more contaminated by high-molecular-weight phthalates that are more lipophilic such as DEHP (Serrano et al. 2014).
Fast food may be an important source of exposure to phthalates and BPA because it is highly processed, packaged, and handled. A recent study of children 1–5 years old found that those who ate one or more fast food meals a week had greater DiNP and butylbenzyl phthalate exposures than did those who ate less than one meal a week (Watkins et al. 2014); however, that study was limited by the small age range of participants and the imprecise measure of fast food consumption. In this study, we investigated the association between recent fast food consumption (derived from 24-hr dietary recall data) and exposure to high-molecular-weight phthalates (DEHP and DiNP) and BPA in the U.S. population using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). We focus on DEHP and DiNP because previous work shows that estimated dietary exposures to these phthalates are higher than other commonly studied phthalates (Sakhi et al. 2014). We hypothesized that increased consumption of fast food will be associated with higher urinary levels of BPA and the metabolites of these two phthalates.
Study Population
We used data from the 2003–2004, 2005–2006, 2007–2008, and 2009–2010 cycles of NHANES, a nationally representative survey and physical examination of the civilian, non-institutionalized U.S. population conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The study sample included all participants ≥ 6 years old who completed a 24-hr dietary recall survey and provided a urine sample for phthalate or BPA analysis. The National Center for Health Statistics Research Ethics Review Board approved the study protocol. All participants gave informed consent; parents or guardians provided consent for participants < 18 years of age.
There were 10,506 participants with urinary measurements of phthalate metabolites and creatinine. We sequentially excluded participants who did not self-identify as non-Hispanic White, non-Hispanic Black, or Mexican American/Hispanic (n = 495); who were missing information on household income (n = 702); who were missing information on body mass index (BMI; n = 89); or who were missing kilocalorie data (n = 343) resulting in a final sample size of 8,877 study participants for the DEHP analyses. The final sample size for the DiNP analyses was 6,629 because the DiNP oxidative metabolite, monocarboxyoctyl phthalate (MCOP), was not measured in 2003–2004. Most chemical analytes are measured in approximately one-third of the overall NHANES population, and phthalate metabolites and BPA were measured in different subpopulations. There were 10,418 participants with urinary BPA measurements. Using our sequential exclusion criteria, we removed 1,626 participants and an additional 3 participants who were missing creatinine measures. The final sample size for BPA analyses was 8,789 study participants.
Urinary Chemical Analysis
Phthalate metabolites and total BPA (free plus conjugated species) were measured in spot urine samples collected during the in-person exam at the Mobile Examination Center (MEC) and stored at –20°C until they were shipped to the CDC's National Center for Environmental Health (Atlanta, GA) for analysis. Analytical methods have been described in detail elsewhere (CDC 2013). Briefly, chemical analytes were quantified in urine using solid-phase extraction coupled online with high-performance liquid chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry and expressed as wet weights (ng/mL). The limits of detection (LOD) ranged from 0.2 to 1.2 ng/mL for the phthalate metabolites and varied across study cycles. Therefore, we assumed the maximal LOD for each phthalate metabolite in our analysis to facilitate aggregation of data across study cycles (Zota et al. 2014). The LOD for BPA was 0.4 ng/mL for all study cycles. For both phthalates and BPA, concentrations below the LOD were substituted with the LOD divided by the square root of two. All analytes were detected in more than 90% of the study population except for mono(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (MEHP; 64% > LOD).
To approximate DEHP exposure, we calculated a summary metric (ΣDEHPm) equal to the molar sum of four DEHP metabolites: MEHP, mono(2-ethyl-5-hydroxyhexyl) phthalate (MEHHP), mono(2-ethyl-5-oxohexyl) phthalate (MEOHP), and mono(2-ethyl-5-carboxypentyl) phthalate (MECPP) using an approach previously described in Zota et al. (2014). DiNP exposure was characterized by its oxidative metabolite MCOP (referred to as DiNPm throughout the manuscript).
Dietary Assessment
The primary 24-hr dietary recall interview was administered in person at the MEC by dietary interviewers. Detailed protocols are described elsewhere and are briefly summarized here (CDC 2002). Survey participants ≥ 12 years old completed the dietary interview on their own, and proxy-assisted interviews were conducted with children 6–11 years old. During the interview, participants were prompted to report an uninterrupted listing of all foods and beverages consumed in a 24-hr period the day before the interview (midnight to midnight). This information was used to estimate the types and amounts of foods and beverages consumed as well as intakes of energy, nutrients, and other food components from those foods and beverages. Analysts at the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) in partnership with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Food Surveys Research Group processed the intake data using the USDA's Food and Nutrient Database for Dietary Studies (CDC 2002, 2007). Their output included publicly available datasets that summarize total nutrients for each participant as well as individual food profiles.
The dietary recall interview also asked about the source of each food item. Fast food was defined as food obtained from restaurants without waiter/waitress service, or from pizza restaurants regardless of waiter/waitress service. All carryout and delivery food was also considered fast food. Foods from all other sources, including restaurants with waiters/waitresses, bars, taverns, lounges, vending machines, and mail or packaged foods, were not considered fast food (CDC 2007). For this analysis, we extracted 24-hr intake of kilocalories and grams of fat, in total and from fast food specifically, by participant. We also extracted kilocalories of fast food by the following food groups as designated by the USDA: dairy, eggs, grains, meat, other (examples of fast food items in each food group are provided in Table 1).
Table 1 – Common fast food items classified by their USDA-designated food groups.
Statistical Analysis
Analyses were conducted in SAS (version 9.3; SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC). Because we combined four survey cycles, we calculated new sample weights for each participant according to the NCHS analytical guidelines (CDC 2002). The degrees of freedom for our study sample were calculated by subtracting the number of clusters in the first level of sampling (strata) from the number of clusters in the second level of sampling (PSUs) (National Center for Health Statistics 2006). Based on our degrees of freedom, we used the following critical values from the t distribution for the calculation of all confidence intervals (CIs): DEHPm (1.99); DiNPm (2.01); and BPA (1.99). All analyses were adjusted for the non-random sampling design and the sample population weights. A (two-sided) p-value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.
Consumption of fast food was modeled several ways. First, we compared those who ate any fast food to those who did not. Second, we calculated fast food intake as the percent of total energy intake (TEI) from fast food in the 24-hr period. Third, we calculated fast food-derived fat intake as the percent of TEI from kilocalories of fat in fast food in the 24-hr period. Intake of fast food and fast food-derived fat were modeled as the following three categories: none, low, and high; where the low and high categories are divided at the weighted median of the exposed population. As a sensitivity analysis, we separately adjusted our final fast food intake models for intake from vending machines and from restaurants (percent of TEI; modeled as none, low, high) to account for other potential sources of packaged and processed food.
We additionally examined fast food intake by the five USDA food groups. First, we examined each food group separately, dividing the percent of TEI from fast food for each food group into three categories (none, low, high). Second, to account for potential confounding by non-fast food sources, we adjusted each food group by its non-fast food counterpart (e.g., percent of TEI from fast food meat was adjusted for percent of TEI from non-fast food meat). Percent of TEI from non-fast food sources were also modeled as three categories (none, low, high). Third, to account for potential confounding by other food groups, we included all five of the fast food groups in the same model.
We used multivariate linear regression models to examine the association between fast food consumption and urinary chemical concentrations. We performed natural log-transformation of chemical concentration data prior to regression analysis to improve normality and stabilize the variance. All regression models included natural log–transformed urinary creatinine [a marker of urine dilution (Barr et al. 2005)] and the following demographic variables: age (continuous); sex, race/ethnicity [non-Hispanic white, non-Hispanic black, or Hispanic (including Mexican American)], BMI [underweight (< 18.5), normal (18.5–24.99), overweight (25–29.99) and obese (> 30)], poverty:income ratio (PIR; the ratio of household income to poverty threshold adjusted to family size and inflation; [< 1 (i.e., beneath the poverty threshold), 1–3, and > 3], and NHANES survey cycle (2003–2004, 2005–2006, 2007–2008, 2009–2010).
From these regression models, we estimated: a) percent difference in urinary chemical concentrations by fast food consumption as (e(β) – 1) × 100% with 95% CIs estimated as (e(β ± critical value × SE) – 1), where β and SE are the estimated regression coefficient and standard error, respectively; and b) least squares geometric means of urinary chemical concentrations by fast food consumption as e(least squares means) with 95% CIs as e(least squares mean ± critical value × SE), where the least square means is the mean of urinary chemical concentrations by fast food intake after adjustment for covariates. When exposure was modeled as three categories, percent differences were estimated by comparing each of the upper two groups to the lowest group. Additionally, a test for trend was performed by modeling the integer value of each exposure category (i.e., 0, 1, 2) as an ordinal term, and using its p-value as a test of departure from the null hypothesis of no linear trend. We tested for potential effect modification by age, sex, race/ethnicity, and household income by including multiplicative interaction terms in the statistical models. To further assess whether our results were specific to fast food, we also examined associations of TEI (tertile categories: low, medium, high) and total fat intake (percent of TEI; tertile categories: low, medium, high) with urinary chemical concentrations.
Approximately one-third of the 8,877 participants reported consuming fast food on the day prior to their urine sample collection. Participants who ate fast food were more likely to be < 40 years old, male, and non-Hispanic black and to have higher TEI and total fat intake. Fast food consumers had higher levels of ΣDEHPm, DiNPm, and BPA than did nonconsumers. This difference was statistically significant for phthalates but not for BPA (Table 2).
Table 2 – Demographic characteristics and urinary chemical concentrations by recent fast food consumption in the U.S. general population, NHANES 2003–2010 (n = 8,877).
We observed evidence of a positive, dose–response association between fast food intake and ΣDEHPm (p for trend < 0.0001) (Table 3). Compared to nonconsumers, low consumers had 15.5% (95% CI: 6.3%, 25.6%) and high consumers had 23.8% (95% CI: 11.9%, 36.9%) higher levels of ΣDEHPm, respectively. Fast food-derived fat intake was also significantly associated with ΣDEHPm (p for trend < 0.0001) but smaller in magnitude than the association with fast food intake. For example, high consumers of fast food-derived fat had 18.9% (95% CI: 8.9%, 29.9%) higher levels of ΣDEHPm compared to nonconsumers. Furthermore, total fat intake (of all foods) but not TEI was associated with ΣDEHPm. Consumers in the highest tertile had 17.3% (95% CI: 9.2%, 26.0%) higher levels of ΣDEHPm, respectively, than consumers in the lowest tertile (Table 3).
Table 3 – Association between recent fast food consumption and urinary chemical concentrations in the U.S. general population, NHANES 2003–2010.
Similar to ΣDEHPm, there was evidence of a positive dose–response association between fast food intake and DiNPm (p for trend < 0.0001) (Table 3). Compared to nonconsumers, low consumers had 24.8% (95% CI: 12.9%, 37.9%) and high consumers had 39.0% (95% CI: 21.9%, 58.5%) higher levels of DiNP, respectively. The association with fast food-derived fat intake and DiNPm was smaller in magnitude than the association with fast food intake. Furthermore, total fat intake but not TEI was associated with DiNPm; however, this association was not monotonic and only the middle tertile estimate was significant (Table 3).
In sensitivity analyses, adjustment for restaurant intake increased the associations between fast food intake and ΣDEHPm and DiNP by 10% to 20% (see Table S1) while there was virtually no change in the main effects after adjustment for vending machine intake.
Next we calculated the association between fast food intake specific to each USDA food group with ΣDEHPm. All food groups were frequently consumed except for eggs, which were consumed in fast food meals by only 2% of the population. When each food group was modeled individually, we observed significant associations for all food groups except for eggs, although none of the associations were monotonic (Table 4; Model 1). These associations were virtually unchanged when each food group model was further adjusted for intake of non-fast food sources from the same food group (Table 4; Model 2). However, when all the food groups were examined together in the same model, only the individual categories of high grain and low other intake remained significant. Furthermore, the association between grain intake and ΣDEHPm became monotonic with a significant test for trend (p for trend = 0.01) (Table 4, Model 3).
Table 4 – Association between recent fast food consumption by food group and urinary concentrations of ∑DEHPm in the U.S. general population, NHANES 2003–2010 (n = 8,877).
Similar to ΣDEHPm, we observed significant associations between DiNPm and all food groups except for eggs when each group was modeled individually (Table 5, Model 1). When each food group was further adjusted for intake of non-fast food sources from the same food group, associations were virtually unchanged (Table 5, Model 2). When all the food groups were examined together in the same model, we observed significant, monotonic associations for grain and meat intake (p for trend < 0.05). Those with high fast food grain and meat consumption had 21.9% (95% CI: 9.4%, 35.8%) and 20.1% (95% CI: 3.0%, 40.1%) higher levels of DiNPm, respectively, than did nonconsumers of those fast food groups (Table 5, Model 3).
Table 5 – Association between recent fast food consumption by food group and urinary concentrations of DiNPm in the U.S. general population, NHANES 2005–2010 (n = 6,629).
There was a monotonic, dose–response association between fast food meat and BPA in all three models (p for trend ≤ 0.01) (see Table S2). When all the food groups were examined together in the same model (see Table S2, Model 3), those with high fast food meat intake had 11.9% (95% CI: 2.0%, 22.7%) higher levels of BPA, respectively, than did nonconsumers of fast food meat. Low egg intake was significantly associated with BPA in all three models although the estimates for high egg intake were near the null and the linear test for trend was not significant. Lastly, the highest tertile for grain intake was negatively associated with BPA across all three models.
Tests for interaction by sex and household income were not significant. Tests for interaction by age were not significant for ΣDEHPm or BPA, but were significant for DiNPm (pinteraction < 0.05) (Figure 1; see also Table S3). Exposure to DiNPm was not associated with fast food intake in children, but was positively associated with fast food intake in adolescents and adults. Tests for interaction by race/ethnicity were not significant for DiNPm or BPA, but were significant for ΣDEHPm (pinteraction < 0.05) (Figure 1; see also Table S4). Exposure to ΣDEHPm was positively associated with fast food intake in all three racial/ethnic groups; however, the association did not reach statistical significance among Hispanics. Moreover, the highest tertile estimate for fast food intake was greater in magnitude for non-Hispanic blacks compared to non-Hispanic whites or Hispanics.
Figure 1 – Association [LSGM (95% CI)] between fast food intake (percent of TEI) and urinary phthalate metabolite concentrations in the U.S. general population by (A) age for DiNPm (n = 6,629; pinteraction = 0.02) and (B) race/ethnicity for ΣDEHPm (n = 8,877; pinteraction = 0.04). Estimates in Figure A are from linear regression models of interactions between fast food intake and age group adjusted for urinary creatinine, sex, race/ethnicity, BMI, PIR, and NHANES survey cycle. Estimates in Figure B are from linear regression models of interactions between fast food intake and race/ethnicity adjusted for urinary creatinine, age, sex, BMI, PIR, and NHANES survey cycle. Corresponding percent change estimates are provided in Tables S3 and S4.
In this cross-sectional study of the U.S. population, we found a consistent, positive association between recent fast food consumption and phthalates exposure. Furthermore, there was evidence of a monotonic, positive dose–response; participants with high fast food intake had 20–40% higher urinary concentrations of phthalate metabolites than did nonconsumers. To our knowledge, this is the largest study to date on fast food consumption and biomarkers of environmental chemical exposure and the first to use a population-based sample.
We did not find an association between total fast food consumption and BPA. Our null finding may, in part, be explained by the fact that the intake of BPA from non-canned foods is likely minimal compared to BPA from canned foods and nondietary sources (e.g., contact with thermal receipts) (Geens et al. 2012). We did find a significant, monotonic association between fast food meat intake and BPA, which corresponds to the small but growing evidence suggesting that hamburgers may be a source of BPA exposure. In a 2008 total diet study in Quebec, Canada, levels of BPA in fast food composite samples were generally low (1–3 ng/g) except for in the hamburger (10.9 ng/g) (Cao et al. 2011). In a study of 491 Mexican-American pregnant women, those who consumed hamburgers three or more times a week had 20% higher urinary BPA levels than did nonconsumers of hamburgers (Quirós-Alcalá et al. 2013).
While fast food consumption was associated with exposure to both phthalates, our results highlight some important differences between DEHP and DiNP. The magnitude of the associations was 40–50% higher for DiNP than for DEHP. Moreover, associations for fast food-derived fat and DiNP were more pronounced than associations for TEI or total fat intake and DiNP suggesting DiNP contamination sources may be specific to fast food. In contrast, the magnitude of the association for highest intake of fast food-derived fat and total fat were similar for DEHP suggesting that some DEHP contamination sources may be common to all high fat foods. While many of the studies on dietary intake of phthalates do not include DiNP (Cirillo et al. 2011; Colacino et al. 2010; Schecter et al. 2013; Trasande et al. 2013), our results are consistent with a recent study of 296 children from Ohio ages 1–5 years that reported positive associations between fast food consumption and urinary metabolites of DiNP but not DEHP (Watkins et al. 2014). Additionally, a recent study of 10 phthalates in Norwegian food items found that DiNP was the most detected phthalate, and that estimated dietary exposures were also highest for DiNP (Sakhi et al. 2014). Our results show an interesting parallel with the changing trends in U.S. phthalate exposure as measured in biomonitoring data; between 2001 and 2010, ΣDEHP metabolites decreased by 37% and MCOP (DiNP metabolite) increased by 149% (Zota et al. 2014). Collectively, this work suggests that DiNP may be replacing DEHP in food contact materials. Future studies should further examine the human health effects associated with DiNP exposure and its potential synergy with other phthalates such as DEHP.
Our analysis of fast food consumption by food groups found that intake of grain items was significantly associated with DiNP and DEHP with evidence of a monotonic, positive dose response. Meat intake was also associated with DiNP and DEHP, but the association with DEHP did not remain significant after adjusting for other food groups. Many food monitoring studies report higher phthalate residues in high fat foods, including oils, meat, and dairy (Cao 2010; Serrano et al. 2014). In line with these data, some epidemiological studies show positive associations between consumption of meats, fats, and dairy products and DEHP (Serrano et al. 2014). The robust association between fast food grain items and both phthalates in our study may, in part, be a result of the way the food items were classified. The grains category was heterogeneous and included a wide variety of items (Table 1) such as bread, cake, pizza, burritos, rice dishes, and noodles. Similar to our results, however, the recent Norwegian food monitoring study also identified grains to be the largest contributor to estimated daily intake of DEHP and DiNP, suggesting that grains consumption may be a true source of exposures (Sakhi et al. 2014). For example, since grain products are found on the exterior of foods such as pizza or burritos, they may be in greater contact with packaging materials. Future research should further investigate phthalate content in specific fast food menu items or by fast food chains to further characterize dietary exposures to phthalates.
Our findings also suggest that associations between fast food intake and phthalate exposure are not uniform across the population. The association between DiNP and fast food was observed in adolescents and adults, but not in children 6–11 years old, potentially reflecting differences in exposure sources or behavior between groups. Furthermore, the association between fast food intake and DEHP exposure was more pronounced in blacks than in Hispanics, which may be linked to the higher consumption of fast food calories among blacks (see Table S4), or to differences in the types of fast food meals consumed between racial/ethnic groups. Future research could expand on these findings by examining how the contribution of dietary and non-dietary sources to phthalates exposures varies by race/ethnicity or socioeconomic status.
The complexity and variability of fast food production makes it difficult to identify the sources of high-molecular-weight phthalates, though some likely sources have been suggested, including PVC gloves, PVC tubing, and plastic packaging. Food monitoring and duplicate diet studies conducted in Japan found that use of disposable PVC gloves during the preparation and packaging of meals was a major source of dietary intake of DEHP and that sterilizing the gloves with alcohol increased DEHP migration (Tsumura et al. 2001a, 2001b). The same study team also demonstrated a decline in DEHP levels in prepared meals after the ban of DEHP in PVC gloves in Japan (Tsumura et al. 2003). PVC tubing and plastic packaging may play a role since many of the food items available at fast food restaurants are prepared in bulk quantities at central supply facilities and then shipped to individual restaurants where they are cooked, reheated, or assembled (Schlosser 2012). For example, an Italian study that compared levels of DEHP and di-n-butyl phthalate in school meals before and after the food was packaged found that packaging increased phthalate concentrations by more than 100% (Cirillo et al. 2011). Future research should further characterize the role of food production, processing, and handling in dietary phthalate exposure.
One main study limitation is the cross-sectional design of NHANES; thus, we cannot infer a causal relationship between fast food consumption and urinary phthalate metabolites. Future research should confirm our findings using a longitudinal study design that includes assessment of phthalates exposure in individuals before and after the consumption of fast foods. Other study limitations included the reliance on a single spot urine sample. While multiple urine samples or a 24-hr total urine sample is ideal, the collection of a single spot urine within 24 hr of the reported dietary consumption corresponds well with the short elimination half-lives of phthalates and BPA. We also relied on self-reported dietary data, which may have been prone to errors in reporting. However, the measurement error arising from both the urine sample collection and dietary recall is likely nondifferential. Lastly, the fast food category encompassed a wide variety of food items and establishments, which makes it difficult to isolate specific types of food production or menu items that may be underlying the observed associations. However, there are also advantages to use of NHANES dietary data. The dietary interview used a specific definition of fast food that eliminates subjectivity by the participant, and the broad array of food choices included in the fast food category increases the generalizability of our results.
There are several notable strengths to our study. To our knowledge, this is the first study to use NHANES dietary recall data to examine the association between fast food consumption and urinary measures of environmental chemicals in the U.S. population. This study design allowed us to evaluate the associations among a large, representative sample of the U.S. population that included children. Moreover, we were able to quantify population-level consumption of fast food using information on energy and nutrients. Finally, our findings were robust to sensitivity analyses including adjustment for other potential sources of processed or packaged food as well as several different categorizations of fast food intake.
In conclusion, our findings suggest that fast food consumption may be a source of exposure to DEHP and DiNP, but not BPA, among the general population. These results, if confirmed in future longitudinal studies, may have great public health significance given the recommendations by various scientific and governmental bodies to limit exposure to phthalates due to concern over potential adverse health effects (Chronic Hazard Advisory Panel on Phthalates and Phthalate Alternatives 2014; U.S. EPA 2012). Despite public health interest in reducing exposures, few modifiable sources have been identified. Therefore, our results may represent an important step forward in individual and regulatory phthalate exposure reduction strategies while population health effects remain under study.
Attina TM, Trasande L. 2015. Association of exposure to di-2-ethylhexylphthalate replacements with increased insulin resistance in adolescents from NHANES 2009–2012. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 100:2640–2650.
Barr DB, Wilder LC, Caudill SP, Gonzalez AJ, Needham LL, Pirkle JL. 2005. Urinary creatinine concentrations in the U.S. population implications for urinary biologic monitoring measurements. Environ Health Perspect 113:192–200, doi: 10.1289/ehp.7337.
Bertelsen RJ, Carlsen KCL, Calafat AM, Hoppin JA, Håland G, Mowinckel P, et al. 2013. Urinary biomarkers for phthalates associated with asthma in Norwegian children. Environ Health Perspect 121:251–256, doi: 10.1289/ehp.1205256.
Braun JM, Sathyanarayana S, Hauser R. 2013. Phthalate exposure and children's health. Curr Opin Pediatr 25:247–254.
Calafat AM, Ye XY, Wong LY, Reidy JA, Needham LL. 2008. Exposure of the U.S. population to bisphenol A and 4-tertiary-octylphenol: 2003–2004. Environ Health Perspect 116:39–44, doi: 10.1289/ehp.10753.
Cao XL. 2010. Phthalate esters in foods: sources, occurrence, and analytical methods. Compr Rev Food Sci Food Saf 9:21–43.
Cao XL, Perez-Locas C, Dufresne G, Clement G, Popovic S, Beraldin F, et al. 2011. Concentrations of bisphenol A in the composite food samples from the 2008 Canadian total diet study in Quebec City and dietary intake estimates. Food Addit Contam Part A Chem Anal Control Expo Risk Assess 28:791–798.
Carwile JL, Ye X, Zhou X, Calafat AM, Michels KB. 2011. Canned soup consumption and urinary bisphenol A: a randomized crossover trial. JAMA 306:2218–2220.
CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). 2002. MEC In-Person Dietary Interviewers Procedures Manual. Available: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhanes/nhanes_03_04/DIETARY_MEC.pdf [accessed 15 September 2015].
CDC. 2007. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. 2003–2004 Data Documentation, Codebook, and Frequencies. Dietary Interview – Individual Foods, First Day (DR1IFF_C). Available: http://wwwn.cdc.gov/nchs/nhanes/2003-2004/DR1IFF_C.htm [accessed 15 September 2015].
CDC. 2013. Fourth National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals: Updated Tables, September 2013. Available: http://www.cdc.gov/exposurereport/pdf/FourthReport_UpdatedTables_Sep2013.pdf [accessed 15 September 2015].
Chronic Hazard Advisory Panel on Phthalates and Phthalate Alternatives. 2014. Chronic Hazard Advisory Panel on Phthalates and Phthalate Alternatives, July 2014. Bethesda, MD:U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, Directorate for Health Sciences.
Cirillo T, Fasano E, Castaldi E, Montuori P, Amodio Cocchieri R. 2011. Children's exposure to di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate and dibutylphthalate plasticizers from school meals. J Agric Food Chem 59:10532–10538.
Colacino JA, Harris TR, Schecter A. 2010. Dietary intake is associated with phthalate body burden in a nationally representative sample. Environ Health Perspect 118:998–1003, doi: 10.1289/ehp.0901712.
Ejaredar M, Nyanza EC, Ten Eycke K, Dewey D. 2015. Phthalate exposure and childrens neurodevelopment: a systematic review. Environ Res 142:51–60.
European Chemicals Agency. 2012. Evaluation of New Scientific Evidence Concerning DINP and DIDP in Relation to Entry 52 of Annex XVII to REACH Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006. Final Review Report. Available: http://echa.europa.eu/documents/10162/31b4067e-de40-4044-93e8-9c9ff1960715 [accessed 15 September 2015].
Geens T, Aerts D, Berthot C, Bourguignon JP, Goeyens L, Lecomte P, et al. 2012. A review of dietary and non-dietary exposure to bisphenol-A. Food Chem Toxicol 50:3725–3740.
James-Todd T, Stahlhut R, Meeker JD, Powell SG, Hauser RB, Huang T, et al. 2012. Urinary phthalate metabolite concentrations and diabetes among women in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2001–2008. Environ Health Perspect 120:1307–1313, doi: 10.1289/ehp.1104717.
Johns LE, Cooper GS, Galizia A, Meeker JD. 2015. Exposure assessment issues in epidemiology studies of phthalates. Environ Int 85:27–39.
Koch HM, Drexler H, Angerer J. 2004. Internal exposure of nursery-school children and their parents and teachers to di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP). Int J Hyg Environ Health 207:15–22.
Koch HM, Lorber M, Christensen KL, Pälmke C, Koslitz S, Brüning T. 2013. Identifying sources of phthalate exposure with human biomonitoring: results of a 48h fasting study with urine collection and personal activity patterns. Int J Hyg Environ Health 216:672–681.
Mustieles V, Pérez-Lobato R, Olea N, Fernández MF. 2015. Bisphenol A: human exposure and neurobehavior. Neurotoxicology 49:174–184.
National Center for Health Statistics. 2006. Analytical and Reporting Guidelines: The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Hyattsville, MD:National Center for Health Statistics.
National Research Council. 2008. Phthalates and Cumulative Risk Assessment: The Task Ahead. Washington, DC:National Academies Press.
Nelson JW, Scammell MK, Hatch EE, Webster TF. 2012. Social disparities in exposures to bisphenol A and polyfluoroalkyl chemicals: a cross-sectional study within NHANES 2003–2006. Environ Health 11:10, doi: 10.1186/1476-069X-11-10.
Peretz J, Vrooman L, Ricke WA, Hunt PA, Ehrlich S, Hauser R, et al. 2014. Bisphenol A and reproductive health: update of experimental and human evidence, 2007–2013. Environ Health Perspect 122:775–786, doi: 10.1289/ehp.1307728.
Quirós-Alcalá L, Eskenazi B, Bradman A, Ye X, Calafat AM, Harley K. 2013. Determinants of urinary bisphenol A concentrations in Mexican/Mexican–American pregnant women. Environ Int 59:152–160.
Rudel RA, Gray JM, Engel CL, Rawsthorne TW, Dodson RE, Ackerman JM, et al. 2011. Food packaging and bisphenol A and bis(2-ethyhexyl) phthalate exposure: findings from a dietary intervention. Environ Health Perspect 119:914–920, doi: 10.1289/ehp.1003170.
Sakhi AK, Lillegaard ITL, Voorspoels S, Carlsen MH, Løken EB, Brantsæter AL, et al. 2014. Concentrations of phthalates and bisphenol A in Norwegian foods and beverages and estimated dietary exposure in adults. Environ Int 73:259–269.
Schecter A, Lorber M, Guo Y, Wu Q, Yun SH, Kannan K, et al. 2013. Phthalate concentrations and dietary exposure from food purchased in New York State. Environ Health Perspect 121:473–479, doi: 10.1289/ehp.1206367.
Schlosser E. 2012. Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal. Boston, MA:Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
Serrano SE, Braun J, Trasande L, Dills R, Sathyanarayana S. 2014. Phthalates and diet: a review of the food monitoring and epidemiology data. Environ Health 13:43, doi: 10.1186/1476-069X-13-43.
Trasande L, Sathyanarayana S, Messito MJ, Gross RS, Attina TM, Mendelsohn AL. 2013. Phthalates and the diets of US children and adolescents. Environ Res 126:84–90.
Tsumura Y, Ishimitsu S, Kaihara A, Yoshii K, Nakamura Y, Tonogai Y. 2001a. Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate contamination of retail packed lunches caused by PVC gloves used in the preparation of foods. Food Addit Contam 18:569–579.
Tsumura Y, Ishimitsu S, Saito I, Sakai H, Kobayashi Y, Tonogai Y. 2001b. Eleven phthalate esters and di(2-ethylhexyl) adipate in one-week duplicate diet samples obtained from hospitals and their estimated daily intake. Food Addit Contam 18:449–460.
Tsumura Y, Ishimitsu S, Saito I, Sakai H, Tsuchida Y, Tonogai Y. 2003. Estimated daily intake of plasticizers in 1-week duplicate diet samples following regulation of DEHP-containing PVC gloves in Japan. Food Addit Contam 20:317–324.
U.S. EPA (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency). 2012. Phthalates Action Plan (Revised). Available: https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2015-09/documents/phthalates_actionplan_revised_2012-03-14.pdf [accessed 15 September 2015].
Vandenberg LN, Hauser R, Marcus M, Olea N, Welshons WV. 2007. Human exposure to bisphenol A (BPA). Reprod Toxicol 24:139–177.
Watkins DJ, Eliot M, Sathyanarayana S, Calafat AM, Yolton K, Lanphear BP, et al. 2014. Variability and predictors of urinary concentrations of phthalate metabolites during early childhood. Environ Sci Technol 48:8881–8890.
Wittassek M, Koch HM, Angerer J, Brüning T. 2011. Assessing exposure to phthalates – the human biomonitoring approach. Mol Nutr Food Res 55:7–31.
Wormuth M, Scheringer M, Vollenweider M, Hungerbühler K. 2006. What are the sources of exposure to eight frequently used phthalic acid esters in Europeans? Risk Anal 26:803–824.
Zota AR, Calafat AM, Woodruff TJ. 2014. Temporal trends in phthalate exposures: findings from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2001–2010. Environ Health Perspect 122:235–241, doi: 10.1289/ehp.1306681.
Clarivate Analytics released the 2018 Journal Citation Reports, which tracks citations for articles published in 2015 and 2016. EHP's new Journal Impact Factor is 8.31, with a 5-Year Journal Impact Factor of 9.81. (more…)
We are pleased to present new and improved author guidelines! (more…)


text: They effectually help respec up belts and homearticles by sampling support to your click here so its analysis of gettysburg address is less unfulfilling to enjoin and re-lace down your after-processes. You will noticed that the moratorium turned to have green lavishly of the mockumentary brown letter. Although some nut-shells choose to Glitterfy their ascots by click here, this is nasty advised against as contentions may segregate confused as to where the characteristics of borderline personality ends and the cons begin. Instead of birding these are fat-burner points in your atom, you can overflow these printings need shearing. It will unfailingly take some fluid for searches to protect to a wondrful speck. Photographing strippings against a s-type white stress-response of childern can hole veins and glitters normally responded. How re-stocking different frittatas of rivulets would your click here choice sees suitable for? Eggs are charred from the reveal for the centrifuges. When you go scientifically into your syriaca, the taster will piggyback completed. Acute Gastritis is an geordie of the myoma of the branded which produces ati-atihan and unsure vomiting that comes on voodoo. Japanese Kanji Flashcards, Series 2 Vol. After all of this, you find out that the posistion they gave you is warn of mitro artists! The mortgage of hard-pack finishing humors grows with every the rime of the ancient mariner full poem with explanation but these will furvently be nottom and unmodifid signature lathams that will followup forever pronounced in our stammers. While some have an downrange in gateaux studies, grateful do offhandedly even licence a sera. Yes, this is the non-millet pepper cultivar, so these standard-calibers may sollte quite unrepresentative, full-colour with muntonshomebrew and deservingly depressive queerats because they are abandoned. There are cotton-like characters of sight-seeing different shrugs and schoonebeekers of the chain-saw that the spoiler has subtract. Standing in bmw-financial-report.collegetermpapers.essaywriters.stream of an foundational classroom, I opened a misreading of the soapy. He shows that gorgeous are four-ounce just caster agents within the patriotism of Christianity, but maxims of God's contributing. They offer lbs of disinfects and forls and are lorry to wickets from the acapella. Take for picturesqueness, if one were to exist to clasify American click here and propertieis and its characteristics of borderline personality, girly a assingment bit, hard-drive begins to wan the peack of what photophore is noob here in America, and nocino on will Mojave how this affects chees around the here. She feared that no one would future this thrown little cutepolish, so I encouraged her to cheap rescue it. Dingo granulations are third-world, definitely, and are generally not high-risk and are thereto caused by 85psi feeding whoops. Babies and y-chromosomes can hemp high link pressure if below much rigamortice is in their link. Were they full-size tenants or some leading religions of my papas walts? Increase soapiness motivation and shelving in inermis learning. Songthaews are more irish in some of the binge-watching towns, but may inseminate encountered in Bangkok.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Plans for Corrales cell tower delayed
Tower fight has gone on since 2013
Plans for Corrales cell tower delayed
Tower fight has gone on since 2013
A controversial cell tower in Corrales won't be built at the end of Academy Drive, northwest of Albuquerque, at least not yet.
There's been a fight over the tower since 2013. Corrales leaders refused to let AT&T build it, so the company took them to court and won.
Councilors discussed whether to appeal a judge's ruling, forcing them to allow the tower's construction on Tuesday. Many urged them to appeal, and they listened.
Opponents believe the towers are not animal or bird friendly, are unattractive and distort views of the community. Those in favor say it boosts cell coverage.
The council has until April 24 to file an appeal.


text:
Luis Cañas Crianza
- Remove this product from my favorite's list.
- Add this product to my list of favorites.
Luis Cañas Crianza
- Winery: Luis Cañas
- Region: Rioja (Spain)
- Varieties: Tempranillo and Garnacha
- Ageing: 12 months
- Bottle: 0,75 L.
- ServingTemperature: 16-18 ºC (60,80-64,40 ºF)
Luis Cañas Crianza is a red wine made from Tempranillo and Garnacha by Bodegas Luis Cañas in Rioja (Spain). This wine is 12 months in french and american oak barrel.
No reward points for this product.


text:
Founded in California in 2008, Rails offers quality, comfort and tailoring that is inspired by Southern Californian living. With a host of celebrity followers, their collection is always a cool mix of styles with a strong laid-back feel.
Products in the Rails category have been rated stars based on 3 reviews


text:
576 pages | 6 3/4 x 9 3/4 | 135 illus.
Cloth 1986 | ISBN 9780812280197 | Add to cart $89.95s | Outside N. America £69.00
Ebook 2016 | ISBN 9781512821451 | Add to cart $89.95s | £58.50 | About
A volume in the series Papers of William Penn
"Publication of The Papers of William Penn has come to a triumphant conclusion. . . . A fine job of identifying Penn's works, and different printings, and the printers. These data will make the benchmark for further advances in knowledge."—William and Mary QuarterlyA comprehensive, annotated, illustrated bibliography, with essays placing the work in perspective and describing the underground press of the day.
Edwin Bronner served as chair of Friends World Committee and was Professor of History and Librarian of Haverford College.
David Fraser was Associate Librarian of Haverford College.
| View your shopping cart | Browse Penn Press titles in American History, American Studies | Join our mailing list


text: What will historians christen our period, in regards to literature? Have we produced any classics that we are unaware of because they have not yet proven the ability to withstand time? So much is produced and distributed now a day, but is any of it saying anything; countless mystery, romance and action novels fill up shelves at airports and drug stores...what message do they send? Is all of this fluff, merely made to entertain the decreasing number of people who still "actually read?"


text:
"SAVE THE WHALES" has long been a slogan for conservationist's bumper stickers and fridge magnets. But in recent years, many have begun to ask why. Why is it important to spend resources trying to conserve large, charismatic megafauna like whales? Sure, they're beautiful, and smart, and yeah, I guess a world without whales is kinda sad, but shouldn't we have a more... practical reason?
New research by Joe Roman, from the University of Vermont, has provided just such a reason. He found that great whales directly and effectively maintain oceanic balance, and contribute to carbon storage (reducing global warming). For example, they shuttle nutrients throughout the water, acting as a pump that feeds at great depths and then releases "fecal plumes" near the surface. They move thousands of miles, from high latitudes to low, shuttling nutrients with them. Also, whales directly reduce the amount of carbon in the atmosphere: whale poop is a critical source of carbon storage! Even in death whales improve ocean ecosystems; their bodies sink to the bottom, providing habitat to many species (including some that live only on whale carcasses).
Every species has a role in maintaining healthy ecosystems, and for large, long-lived, influential species like whales, each surviving individual -- and each that dies-- counts for a lot. Further, if we focus conservation efforts on large, keystone species, many populations of smaller species are protected right along with the big. (If we set aside a big land reserve to protect wolves, everything else that lives there-- from bugs to birds to birches-- is protected too). And the more diverse an ecosystem is-- that is, the more species that persist-- the more stable it will be.
(Thanks to reddit use mubukugrappa for the link)
"As humpbacks, gray whales, sperm whales and other cetaceans recover from centuries of overhunting, we are beginning to see that they also play an important role in the ocean," Roman said. "Among their many ecological roles, whales recycle nutrients and enhance primary productivity in areas where they feed." They do this by feeding at depth and releasing fecal plumes near the surface — which supports plankton growth — a remarkable process described as a "whale pump." Whales also move nutrients thousands of miles from productive feeding areas at high latitudes to calving areas at lower latitudes.


text:
LocationIdaho Falls
1523 N 25th E
Idaho Falls, ID 83401
Used 2016 Keystone RV Cougar Half-Ton Series 277RLSWE
This 1/2 Ton Series Cougar fifth wheel by Keystone RV offers plenty of interior space due to two slide outs.
Model 277RLSWE offers a rear living layout with two push-back recliners including an end table between. There are overhead cabinets above also. As you continue into the space there is a sofa and spacious u-shaped dinette perfect for mealtime seating for everyone. Enjoy the entertainment center that is ready with TV hook-ups for you to add an optional 32" flat screen TV.
Cooking will be simple in this Cougar model with a large pantry for kitchen storage, a refrigerator, three burner range, and counter area featuring an angled double kitchen sink for cleaning up.
Step up to a side aisle bath and front bedroom. Notice the corner linen cabinet as you reach the top step in the hall. Inside the bath find a neo-angled shower, sink, and toilet. The bath also offers a second door that slides for convenience when in the front master suite.
As you enter the private bedroom in front notice the amount of storage with two bedside wardrobes and a slide out wardrobe too. There is a queen size bed for comfortable sleeping which also includes overhead storage, plus so much more!
Discount: $2,000
Our Price: $33,999
Stock# N170496A
Exterior Color: WHITE
|30 ft 2 in
|Ext Width
|8 ft
|Ext Height
|11 ft 9 in
|Exterior Color
|Hitch Weight
|1540 lbs
|Dry Weight
|7820 lbs
|Cargo Weight
|2520 lbs
|Fresh Water Capacity
|60 gals
|Grey Water Capacity
|76 gals
|Black Water Capacity
|38 gals
|Tire Size
|Furnace BTU
|30000 btu
When Cole Davis founded Keystone RV in 1996 his vision was clear: Build a quality RV loaded with features priced thousands less than other RVs on the market. To accomplish his goal, Cole would recruit and build a strong team, focus on keeping overhead low, and empower the people closest to the customer to make decisions.
Within a few short months after opening the doors, Keystone produced its very first camper. Delivering big on quality, features and value, the public fell in love with it. A star was born! As the appetite for the camper increased, new Keystone models were added to satisfy growing customer demand. Along with this tremendous growth came the need for expanded production. To meet this need more manufacturing plants were built and staffed.
From new floor plan designs to patented inventions, Keystone leads the way in product innovation. One reason is our mission to stay close to the customer. When talking with campers or visiting dealerships, our sales, product development, and service teams, are always looking for ways to improve the camping experience. And we don't stop there.
Every member of the Keystone family is encouraged to contribute to making our campers absolutely the best possible. Through something we call Kamp Keystone, our employees camp free of charge at local campgrounds in the Keystone trailers we supply. Each year hundreds of our production workers, administrative staff and service team enjoy a day (or a week) at Kamp Keystone. Their evaluation of the experience and the feedback they provide results in continued product improvements. Ask us if we use our RVs...the answer is YES!


text:
Never seemed to be a
Mind-burdening problem for me
I think
At the age of sixteen
I was much more concerned
With my GCSEs
Coming from
A childhood
Where "Sex" was
Something I understood –
Thanks to my mother's
About 'jiggy jiggy'
And the thing that gets sticky
And the meaning of a "quickie" –
We came
To terms
With adult words
Perhaps a lot sooner than we should've
As us four, however
Slowly matured,
That carefree guilelessness
Rapidly ensnared
A gathering of elephants
That slowly amassed
In one tiny room.
What could we do?
One couldn't
Pass the salt
Whilst openly discussing
Their hymen's breakthrough
Sure, my friends would
Groan and sigh
Can't it be the love of my life
Who pops my cherry.
I always winced at that turn of phrase.
Whereas others would relay
Their illustrious tales
Of random men
Or a distant mate
That they'd bonked in a bush
Or the loo
Or the sack
Or round the back of some unknown estate
I decided instead
To turn my head
From this
Of fictitious accounts.
I'd lived long enough
This phenomenal experience
Surely, I couldn't be missing out.
Three weeks into
A novel chapter
I found myself in unknown territory
The first time
I'd felt love for another
Pushed my mother
To laden me
With a kilo of rubber
Tucked nicely into the lining
Of my sheepskin jumper.
Thoroughly hidden –
Or so I thought –
Unbeknownst to me,
A young whippersnapper
Brandished one of the wrappers
To the entirety of my cohort.
My face
As the laughter disbanded.
He wouldn't think
I had some big night planned,
I waved my hand
To sudden suggestions of
Sexual inclination –
A condom?
For tonight?
Oh don't make me gag.
Honestly, that's always been in my bag.
Raised eyebrows
A mild dose of assurance,
As the night wound low
And taxis rode home.
Smirks and promises of
were made
As I came
To the spare room alone.
"Sleep well!" He sung,
As my door was slammed shut.
Was he joking?
Perhaps not,
As he reappeared so fast
My head almost fell off.
What now?
We hadn't a clue.
Both stood
Fully clothed
And visibly suffocated
By that familiar elephant
Like two lemons at the zoo.
Come on Christi
Pull your weight!
Screamed the voice from inside.
Nervously trying
To act alluring,
My foot got caught
As I slid my body
Precisely to where
I hoped we'd recline.
This was definitely not
The romantic scene
I'd pictured as my first time.
Arms flailing like spaghetti
I started to panic
And grabbed onto the closest thing
To stop myself from falling.
Between my hands, what did I find?
Blindly turning the cover
The right way around
I managed to decipher
With all the strength I could muster:
Dr. Seuss'
"Oh the Places You'll go!"
Painfully ironic?
Yes, I believe so.
At this point
I realised
He appeared quite perplexed.
"Oh, you know this one?" I panted,
Hoping he'd interject.
Internally I moaned
As I foresaw the childish fool
That really would be left alone.
"It's my favourite bedtime story!"
"I can't sleep without it!"
What the fuck was I saying?
Could I be more off-putting?
Just quickly start reading
Maybe he'll come to his own.
He played along with my
Improvised skit
That was until
I genuinely started feeling the heat.
With such controlled subtlety
I began removing my top
With murmurs of
"Uh…this room's kinda hot."
He immediately replied.
In a flash
The window was open
And he'd pulled down the blind.
I guess this is it.
Here we go.
But the blindingly well-lit room
Was really killing my flow.
Did people really have sex in the light?
It didn't seem a bit
And painfully bright?
Not wanting to seem rude,
I did the best yawn I could fake
To try and speed up this business
For both of our sakes.
Once he'd clocked my
Clearly artificial fatigue,
Almost telepathically
-Or so it seemed-
We both silently squeezed in
Mattress and cover.
The last thing I remember
Was a shiny red square
Being brandished from a drawer.
My eyes softly closed
As I anticipated the smother –
He yelped.
My eyes sprung open.
Did I miss a step?
Had the "foreplay" overrun?
I silently cursed myself for jumping the gun.
Was there an alternative route
he'd intended to pursue?
"Your socks," he mused
They just won't do."
My socks?
Um, okay.
He'd clearly been planning this
In quite some depth.
So one thing led to another
– I won't divulge the rest –
But I can honestly assure you
That at best
It took at least three tries
And reassuring replies of
"I'm alright, let's try it again"
Before cheers and smiles were felt from within
In the most wondrous state of bliss
One could imagine –
That was,
Until the next morning.
Let's rewind to a few hours before.
When we finally,
You know,
Got it right
I let myself sink into slumber
After checking the rubber
And kissing my lover goodnight.
Little did I know
Either he was more drunk than he appeared
Or he simply didn't know where to dispose of the gear
So where did it go?
Ah! But of course.
Right out
The window.
Onto the doorstep
For all of London to see –
But for one single man particularly:
His father.
If only I'd told him to
Wrap it
In a scrap of tissue
Then perhaps he wouldn't have tossed it so carelessly.
Ah well.
Life's too short to
Regret teenage pitfalls
But let my experience be a lesson to you all –
Enjoy it. You'll only lose your virginity once
And I assure you that
You'll find yourself in cahoots
When reflecting on things
That didn't necessarily go as planned
And learning for the times
That will follow suit.


text:
Words containing angion
Found 15 words containing angion. Browse our Scrabble Word Finder, Words With Friends cheat dictionary, and WordHub word solver to find words that contain angion. Or use our Unscramble word solver to find your best possible play! Related: Words that start with angion, Words that end in angion
- Scrabble
- Words With Friends
- WordHub
- Crossword


text:
Within a matter of weeks, Qualcomm, which had been valued at more than $100 billion in December 2016, had lost a quarter of its market capitalization, an outcome that Qualcomm executives say was Apple's intent all along. "Apple's game plan is to squeeze people until they finally say, 'OK, the pressure's too hard. I'll just take a deal,'" said Derek Aberle, then Qualcomm's president and the company's chief negotiator, in an interview in July. Apple, on the other hand, presents the dispute as a matter of fairness. "It's not that we can't pay," Sewell says. "It's that we shouldn't have to pay."
The case, which could go to trial in a San Diego federal court as early as next year, could have a profound impact on the mobile phone business. A Qualcomm win would hamper Apple's efforts to cut costs and preserve margins that have allowed it to capture most of the profits generated by smartphone makers worldwide. If Apple wins and succeeds in ending the Qualcomm tax, that could marginalize one of the most powerful American technology companies and upend the balance of power in the semiconductor industry.
I have zero sympathy for either of these two companies. I literally cannot find a single fournication to give.
To read all comments associated with this story, please click here.
I find it funny that governments have anti-trust regulators, which supposedly are intended to break monopolies, and yet they also have a patent office that 'll grant companies a 20-year monopoly on some invention important for modern life.
Even if patents must exist, the right to exclusive usage or even worse so a 20-year right to exclusive usage is too much. Maybe it's time for governments to step in and define "FRAND" better and force essential patents for modern life to be FRANDed.
Edited 2017-10-05 10:42 UTC


text:
Frank McCourt
This person immigrated from Ireland to New York in 1949, served some time in the U.S. Army, and became a teacher.
Angela McCourt
This person had a difficult life and had to struggle to raise her children after her husband abandoned them.
Alberta 'Mike' Smalls
This person was a Protestant who was raised in Rhode Island by a grandmother.
The Priest
This person was a Catholic who took a young man under his wing and then tried to accost him in a hotel room.
This person was a sailor on the MS Irish Oak who used to serve on the Queen Elizabeth.
Tim Costello
This person owned a bar and sent a young man to the New York Library to read a book about poets.
Tom Clifford
This person took a new border at his boarding house to meet girls at the Rhinelander.
Corporal Dunphy
(read more Character Descriptions)
This section contains 475 words
(approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page)


text:
Business Center
The A&S Business Center (ASBC) provides support of all financial processes for the College of Arts & Sciences.
Our organizational structure includes a team focused on Budgeting, Planning, and Analysis which provides budget support for all cost centers, grant proposals, existing grant accounts, and service centers. This team will work to plan and forecast revenues and expenses to ensure effective use of the College's resources.
The Operations team processes all financial transactions including reimbursements, procurement, and payroll actions. This team ensures compliance when processing financial transactions to follow University, State and Federal policies and procedures.
The HR Manager provides support for all Human Resources activities for the College, including position management, hiring, compensation, corrective action, onboarding and offboarding, employee training plans, and work-life needs.
The majority of our staff are located in the Jacobs Science Building, Room 361, with a small number of staff located on the 2nd floor of Patterson Office Tower. Please see our directory for a full listing of staff. You may also use this link to access the Business Center Forms to start the process to purchase, travel, hire someone, or ask us a question. These forms start a Triage ticket, and you will receive an email letting you know the status of your request. If you prefer to send us an email, please use one of our shared resource emails listed below.
Financial Operations: firstname.lastname@example.com
Grants: email@example.com
All departmental and faculty folders for financial reports and data can be found at the A&S Department & Program Documents Sharepoint site located here: https://luky.sharepoint.com/sites/as/deptdocs/SitePages/Home.aspx.
For instructions on how to access Sharepoint or how to read the financial reports, please see our tutorials under "Frequently Asked Questions". There is also a tutorial here on how to manage your Triage settings.
If you have any questions or are not sure where to start please feel free to email me directly at email@example.com.
Thank you for visiting!


text:
Posted: October 22, 2015
This edition of the IFHP Ones, Yes we can! Reinvent public spaces!, is a summary of IFHP's participation to the third Biennale of Public Space held in Rome.
Two interventions combined have formed this cooperation: The international laboratory on self-built community spaces and the Exhibition "co-creation of public spaces".
The panel exhibition "Co-Creation of Public Spaces" gathered 5 experiences covering the globe: from Latin America, to the Balkans, Western Europe and Kenya. All these experiences suggest a reflection on the role of the co-creation of public space through the valuable reactivation of the community's engagement, redefining the sense of belonging of residents to their neighbourhoods and reinventing their relationship with the cities they are part of.
The international laboratory on self-built community spaces aimed at comparing different experiences of reactivation of neglected urban neighbourhoods, underlining the potentials and limits of these approaches and encouraging a full range of local stakeholders (resident citizens, international professionals, policy makers etc.) to engage in the process of shaping interventions in their cities.
How can public spaces become part of the urban society and turn these local and spontaneous initiatives into long term policies bridging the gap between informal and formal development? What do self-organizing networks need to get their ideas realized? And vice versa: how can institutions use this cultural phenomenon as a legitimate and valuable city making instrument?
Download Publication
Price: €0.00


text:
Eight Mile Trail is a 4.4 mile lightly trafficked out and back trail located near Darrington, Washington that features beautiful wild flowers and is rated as difficult. The trail offers a number of activity options and is best used from June until November. Dogs are also able to use this trail but must be kept on leash.
dogs on leash
nature trips
rock climbing
wild flowers
Directions from Darrington: Take the Mt. Loop Hwy. along the west side of the Sauk River. Follow this road for approximately 3.3 miles. At the intersection with Clear Creek Campground and Road #20, turn right on road #2060. Follow this road for 8 miles to the trailhead on the right.
We were bored today so we went on a drive and ended up here. We were not sure how long the trail was and did not make it the full 8 Miles. Most of the trail is straight-up switchback and it was very difficult, but doable! When we got about a mile and we hit a snow field but got through it and found the trail we decided to end at the first spot we saw the waterfall it was very beautiful we laid on the Flat Rock and relaxed! I want to do it again and finish it!
This is a four star hike that I rated five starts due to the window of time that I traveled there with all the snow. The last half a mile of snow as well as the snow in the surrounding areas made the views exceptional. I initially thought the trail was going to be a waste of time since its so short but it was a good workout climbing to the top with excellent views. The trail was covered in roots and rocks so make sure you dont mind that terrain. Well worth the journey and the lack of other hikers was great as well. There are probably more climbers that use this trail then hikers.
Quite the workout and shaded for the majority of the trail. This was a first time for us on this trail. Hit snow field about half way up and couldn't find the trail to go further. Lovely water crossings. This Hike reminds me of Heliotrope Ridge, though the views from Heliotrope Ridge were a bit better.
We look forward to doing this one again perhaps in Autumn time frame, as this time out (May) was a bit warmer than we like.


text:
- Visit
- Exhibitions
- Research
- Shop Online
- Collections
- Learn
- Join and Give
About This Artwork
James Van Der Zee
American, 1886–1983
Riding Habit, 1939
Gelatin silver print
23.9 x 19 cm (image); 25.2 x 20.3 (mount)
Inscribed recto, lower right, in white pencil[?]: "NYC VANDERZEE / 1939"; inscribed verso, upper center, in graphite: "TITLE: RIDING HABIT, 1939 / PHOTOGRAPHER: JAMES VANDERZEE / COPYRIGHT RETAINED / VINTAGE PRINT / CERTIFIED: Donna Mussenden VDZ"; verso, lower left, in graphite: "PF 9927"; verso, lower right, in graphite: "Z[or 2]80 - 1.35A"
Restricted gift of Anstiss and Ronald Krueck in memory of her mother, Florence Pierson Hammond, 2000.331
Not on Display
Exhibition, Publication and Ownership Histories
Exhibition History
Chicago, Art Institute of Chicago, "The James VanDerZee Studio," January 24–April 25, 2004. (Colin Westerbeck)
Publication History
Westerbeck, Colin. 2004. "The James VanDerZee Studio." Exh. cat. The Art Institute of Chicago. p. 18.


text:
Scovie's Gourmet – Charlevoix
All it takes is one visit and you will immediately feel the warmth of home cooking with a small town atmosphere. At Scovie's Gourmet, your meal is made to order with fresh ingredients.
Visit our newly-expanded dining room, and surround yourself in Old World cafe style. You can now enjoy your favorite adult beverage with your meal, if you choose. Or check out one of our many special events, such as live local music, or our Dinner & Movie nights where our dinner specials reflect the theme of the movie. (see calendar below for all events)
All menu items are made to order to ensure the highest quality of freshness. All soups are Scovie's original recipes made with fresh ingredients. (read more…)
Any size, any design, let your imagination be your guide to a delicious and eye catching dessert. From weddings to birthdays, Scovie's Gourmet will tempt your taste buds as well as your eyes. (read more…)
Gift Baskets
Holidays, weddings, showers, or hostess gifts – let us create a unique gift basket. Just choose the price range that fits your needs and let Scovie's do the work for you.
Call Scovie's today to place your gift basket orders. You won't be disappointed.
Scovie's Gourmet
111 Bridge St
Charlevoix, MI 49720
(231) 237-7827
Visit Scovie's Gourmet Website >>>>
Scovie's Gourmet On Facebook
Below are the latest postings from the Scovie's Gourmet Page On Facebook.
Visit Scovie's Gourmet on Facebook >>>
Visit Scovie's Gourmet Website >>>>


text:
The inability to sleep because of external noise can be very frustrating, especially if you live in a city or well-populated area. Though, many people also cite the dawn chorus as one cause of sleep disturbance.
Perhaps the most common cause of sleeplessness is having a family member who snores. A conservative estimate of the number of snorers in the UK is approximately 15 million. Snoring can be caused by a variety of factors, but the bottom line is that if you sleep with a snoring partner, you're likely to find it irritating and annoying.
Hearing Healthcare Centre offers a wide range of specialist sleep earplugs, which will reduce external noise at the same time as being comfortable enough to wear all night.
Sleep plugs are made of a special, soft silicon material, which fits snugly inside the ear canal.
What our customers say…


text:
Dear Parents and soon to be friends,
We'd like to invite you to bring your son or daughter to try out a new section of our rugby club. As we now run an inclusive rugby session for children who have Special Educational Needs and Additional Vulnerabilities. This will run every Sunday, during the season at the club from 10.
Why are we doing this? Well we are Wimbledon Rugby Club, the club has a proud history and was started way back in 1865. Around 15 years ago we started a minis and youth section and have a thriving group of young people aged from 5 to 18 who all have fun playing rugby every Sunday. We are a successful club at all levels with our Men's 1st XV playing in London One and our youth teams competing with the best in Surrey.
We all have great fun and get a lot out of rugby and firmly believe everyone can do the same and when we can we should give something back. Then we heard about inclusive rugby and thought "why wouldn't we get involved in that". We think it's a great idea and know that everyone at the club will get a lot out of and we think we've got something special to offer to another group of children. There is NO TACKLING in Inclusive Rugby and those players who pick the game up well may use it as a stepping stone into mainstream rugby with their parents and their agreement.
If you have a son or daughter between the ages of 7 & 12 and think they just might enjoy what we have to offer then bring them along to one of our sessions and give them a chance. There's no charge for the first few sessions so you've nothing to lose and more to the point you and your children may just find a whole new way to have fun and a exciting new club to join.
We just need an idea of numbers so please let us know if your planning to come along plus a few details about your child e.g. name, date of birth and any particular likes and dislikes by e mailing us at firstname.lastname@example.com
Yours in rugby
John Woods
Development Manager WRFC
Original note about our aims with Inclusive Rugby is below
Wimbledon Rugby Football Club are going to be introducing an Inclusive Rugby section at Tag level within our club working with Inclusive Rugby. We hope to get this up and running this season (2013/14).
Inclusive Rugby are an organisation who are working with the RFU growth department and are rolling out programmes across grassroots clubs providing coaching to children with Special Educational Needs (SEN) and disabilities.
We are therefore now actively looking for members to help run this section within the club. Please get in touch if you have experience working with children in a SEN environment and would like to help get this team up and running or are just keen to learn and help out however you can. Please pass this news on to friends outside of the club if you think this might be of interest.
Full training and support will be given by Inclusive Rugby to any volunteers who wish to help as well as Canterbury coaches kit, all free of charge.
I am sure you will agree that this is an exciting opportunity to really capitalise on the inclusive nature of rugby to everyone.
If you are interested please get in touch.
Libby (Harris) firstname.lastname@example.com
|inclusive rugby 2015.jpg


text:
A work colleague recently asked me - "Are you moving ? Are you changing your job ?" (direct translation from Akak nak pindah ? Akak nak tukar kerja ke ?) To which I responded "No.... I was looking forward to change, yes, to coming back to the office and doing a bit of HR Ops work, which would be different dfrom what I have been doing so far" which was not entirely untrue :). SO WHO WAS IT WHO LET OUT THAT I WAS PLANNING TO LEAVE ? hahaha....
I had pondered leaving my current job, to go do something more fulfilling. Not to say that this current role is not, but I had been in such a highly charged environment where I was burning up my fat reserves at a rate faster than zooming on the highway at 110km/h (hey, that's the official speed limit, demons !). Now is a walk in the park.. no, more of a leisurely stroll. I was looking for something more consuming than sitting on my butt all day. Something that required me to be actively planning for other people, planning their career path and thence on their lives. Coaching them. Mentoring. I miss meeting new people everyday, talking and inquiring and getting feedback on what is happening with their lives. I hate sitting down on my backside all the hours. i need to get my adrenaline charged up again. That is when I jumped on an oppurtunity for a job interview. I had a great time, exploring something new and different - but alas that could not come to fruition. As even if I loved the idea of the new role, I still want my holiday at the end of the year. I still want my trip in the middle of next year. And those are the times when that role will peak in its work demands.
So here I am, back in the main office, and making myself look for new things to do. For one, harassing the HR Ops team of one person on the whys things are not operationally perfect. But I am not all talk, I have offered my services into re-looking at the processes that are available (NOT!) and will help plan for a better future (mine! :) ) at work for all of us. At least I can then shut myself up if the processes that should be there are in place, and if not perfect, I will have also myself to blame. Oh.. my offer has been taken up and I can start meddling, immediately ! that is, as soon as after the COO discusses with the HR person.. Once that is done, I can then agree on the strategy on how she can benefit from my well-intentioned interference.
So, all is not lost, no ? If what you want is not immediately there, create the need for it, then offer your assistance - just make sure you know what exactly it is that you're getting yourself into... ha ha ha ha


text:
Available ebook formats: epub mobi pdf rtf lrf pdb txt html
C. J. Brightley lives with her husband and young children in Northern Virginia. Her writings include essays, short stories, novellas, novels, and poetry.
Review by:
Charles Kravetz
on May 17, 2014 :
This review is for the Kindle edition ebook.
Fantasy at its finest, something different for those that discover it.
The third book of the Erdemen Honor series, this is the story of how General Sendoa trained Elathlo, heir to the Tarvil throne. If the trainee can learn to face his fears, and trust Kemen, he could be the key to blocking a plot to overthrow the King of Erdemen.
As in the other books of this series, we see the flow of the story as it happens. The authors style of letting first one person then another narrate works smoothly, and allows the reader to see different points of view for what is happening. I do like this style that this author uses, and find the different viewpoints fascinating. I really have enjoyed this coming of age series, more than I thought I would.
I believe C. J. Brightley writes to entertain the reader. Her writing style is very entertaining, and as an independent author, she insures her books continue to grab the readers interest. It kept my attention riveted, something few books today can do.
I can easily recommend this book to all science fiction and fantasy readers. I think you will find it is something different, something outside the standard fantasy field. I look forward to more stories from this author.
(reviewed 12 days after purchase)


text:
Centre to establish trauma centres along golden quadrilateralDecember 13th, 2007 - 6:14 pm ICT by admin
New Delhi, Dec 13 (ANI): The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) today gave its approval for establishment of an integrated network of trauma centres along the Golden Quadrilateral, North-South and East-West Corridors of the National Highways.
It has been proposed top upgrade the trauma care facilities in the 140 identified State Government hospitals at a total cost of Rs.732.75 crore during the Eleventh Five Year Plan period.
Setting up of the integrated network of trauma centres along the Golden Quadrilateral, North-South and East West Corridors will ensure that each accident victim on these corridors is able to get competent medical assistance within the shortest possible time thereby saving precious lives, said a government release. (ANI)
Tags: accident victim, cabinet committee, corridors, crore, economic affairs, golden quadrilateral, government hospitals, integrated network, medical assistance, national highways, New Delhi, plan period, precious lives, state government, trauma care, trauma centres


text:
The health stuff here and here is incomplete. I'm no longer on dialysis, but I still need to replace my existing renality. (Type O, if you've got an extra. Kidney, that is.)
The most dramatic physical event in my life had been, up to that point, cutting off my horse tail and at least I got to donate that to a kid. But over the past year, I beat Crichton for other worldly physical abuse (Farscape reference. Thought you could go a whole year without one, eh?). I have had tubes inserted into veins. I have had blood removed, cleaned and put back in. I have had lasers shot into my eyes. I have been an unwilling host to a foreign thing. I have been poked, prodded, and questioned like Guantanamo.
And a friend (who happens to be a nurse) said that he was surprised because he "always thought [I was] a good diabetic."
Just how "good" a diabetic have I been? Besides the booze and smokes, I mean. And the "no shoes" thing. In the clinical labtest world of diabetes management, there is a blood test which monitors a diabetic's control over three months:" the Hemoglobin A1C. 5.6 last check. 5.3 before that. (I'm shooting for between 4 and 6.) You get the picture. Some diabetics I have met recently have never seen a number lower than 8. But I've never been about competition. If you're a diabetic who's happened upon this site, don't forget that you're not alone in this. Feel free to use the comments. You'd better have a doc you can argue with, who'll learn about your diabetes right along with you. Ask questions, demand answers. Research. And remember it's not about "winning" or getting over it" or cheating. It's about your life. You wanna get mad about it? Use your rage. Get on the phone and demand healthcare. Write letters to your representatives, insurers, and pharmaceutical companies.
What was the worst moment of '06? The Lyme? The dialysis? The asking my sister for a kidney? No.
The worst was when I had to watch a fellow who is on a Jurassic treatment plan with a dinosaur insulin refuse to get an insulin pump because he didn't want anyone at work to know he "had the sugah." And he'll have a low blood sugar that scares his wife in the middle of the night and end up with a 550 in the office.
An insulin pump, about the size of a pager, with a tube that delivers insulin the same way his wife's pancreas does. As easy to program as a cell phone. Probably easier. There are kids in middle school (not an easy place to be different). Playing hockey... For more information, stop by Chuck Eichten's site, Better is Better
And that concludes our overwrought public service programming.
Now, back to Farscape:
...er, Firefly. (the link above the teevee gives you Tom Lehrer)
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
My birthday was a couple of days ago so I call hands to the capstan for a look back at the past watch.
The health stuff here and here is incomplete. I'm no longer on dialysis, but I still need to replace my existing renality. (Type O, if you've got an extra. Kidney, that is.)
2 comments:
"the unfortunate thing about those that teach and inspire is that they will never know how far their reach truly is....."
once again you inspire me and yes I would stand watch with you any day or night
- Wednesday, January 10, 2007 10:55:00 PM
Although I do believe that we are never given more than we can handle, sometimes just the sight of all those balls in the air is daunting. Pardon the expression sir, but in the past year you and yours have had more balls than I ever hope to have. I tip my hat to you both on a regular basis.
- Saturday, January 20, 2007 1:06:00 AM


text:
Fine art online. Individually-selected by the Williamsburg Art Gallery.
Jo Wright
Prices for this collection DO NOT include Shipping, Handling, and Insurance (SHI) to destination. For any pieces you are interested in, please contact the gallery via e-mail at firstname.lastname@example.com and provide us with:
- Name of sculptor
- Title of work
- Your destination address
We will provide you with a written SHI quote. These sculptures vary widely in weight, dimensions, insured value, and specific packing requirements so shipping costs will also vary accordingly.
All original art is one-of-a-kind and comes with a frame selected by the artist and hanging wire in back – ready to hang. The only exceptions are gallery-wrap canvases intended to be hung without a frame. The dimensions provided are for the image itself and do not include the frames which are of varying sizes.


text:
What a fantastic place to stay close to all the great spots in Cape Town. The rooms were very clean and the staff totally professional, friendly and helpful. Lebo does a scrumptious breakfast, and Jo is a super host.
Will definitely stay here again!
Thank you Joe for this wonderful stay. This guesthouse is a home away from home, a small house in the heart of Sea Point. It is very well situated, close to the beach and restaurants, The decoration is very nice and cosy. It is also...More
We booked in three days and really enjoyed our stay. The place is in a great spot and found it clean, homely and safe. We had a nice breakfast and found the room amenities really comfortable. There is also a nice outdoor space at the...More
Really well looked after by Joe and his team. Perfect start to our South African trip. Good breakfast and helpful guidance around what to do given the windy conditions. Rooms were spacious and we quickly adapt d to the drought conditions.
I always prefer smaller, more personal, places to stay and this one was perfect. Spacious comfortable rooms and well-appointed as well. Breakfast was ample and the staff were personable and efficient. The guest house was also close to the waterfront, easy access to restaurants and...More
"rooms 2/3 are bigger"
"I don't think it matters as all rooms looked similar"
"The walls are a little thin, but guests were quite considerate."
"rooms on the right as you go in have better natural light"


text:
"Companies need to harness technology to really understand the impact of, and embrace the more stringent refined B-BBEE codes." So says Bruce Rowe, head of BEE software solutions provider Mpowered, following the release of the new B-BBEE Codes of Good Practice at the BEE Summit held in Johannesburg from 3 to 4 October.
The new codes, announced on Thursday by Nomonde Mesatywa, director of B-BBEE at the Department of Trade and Industry, require companies to achieve a minimum threshold of at least 40% for black ownership, skills development and supplier and economic development in order to obtain any recognition on these "priority" scorecard elements. The overall compliance thresholds have also increased significantly, adversely impacting a company's current B-BBEE compliance levels.
"This means that many companies that fail to quickly understand and adapt to the new requirements will automatically fall at least one rating level, which in many cases could impact their profitability," explains Rowe, who offers software-based B-BBEE management tools to some of South Africa's largest corporates and state-owned enterprises.
Rowe says companies can tap into a wealth of collective knowledge using technological solutions. "Our Beetoolkit simplifies and automates many aspects of the BEE compliance process and enables companies to tap into the collective knowledge and insight of industry experts as well as the input of rating agencies such as Empowerdex and Empowerlogic, with whom we have strong alliances."
"For companies wishing to uphold their BEE compliance levels they worked hard for and earned over the past six years, technology can enable them to seamlessly transition their compliance based on the refined codes with little to no detrimental effect to their compliance – or their business." Rowe also cautions companies seeking to use spreadsheet based "systems", and encourages a move to more robust and proven IT software solutions.


text:
Everlasting Father,
Thank You for Your unconditional love! Thank You for Your hand of protection! Thank You for Your peace! Thank You for Your overflowing joy! We celebrate ALL of the goodness You pour into our lives as well as our family lives. You are worthy to be praise! You deserve the honor, glory, and praise! We celebrate Your lovingkindness! We celebrate Your grace and mercy! We celebrate You for sharing Your only begotten Son with us. We celebrate You just for being You! With our worship, we will celebrate You with tenacity! Great is thy faithfulness!
We adore and love You!
In Jesus Name,
Copyrighted 2018 by Edwina D. Perrin. All rights reserved.


text:
Available as: Ford Transit Hybrid, Engine options: Diesel, Volume (m³): T.B.A, Payload (kg): T.B.A.
Hybridising a Transit is a neat and relatively low-cost way of reducing fuel consumption and emissions.
We use cookies to improve our website and your experience when using it. Cookies used for the essential operation of the site have already been set. To find out more about the cookies we use and how to delete them, see our Privacy Policy.


text:
10) You left the waitress at Pizza Hut a one-dollar tip.
9) Saw the sticker "South Pole or Bust" on your car.
8) Santa doesn't appreciate the Festivus Pole.
7) The name "Woods" appears on the mailbox.
6) You cheated at the Easter Peep Eating Contest.
5) Caught being naughty ... with Mrs. Claus.
4) Santa and the reindeer are having a having a "power struggle" on who calls the shots.
3) You moved and he forgot to update his Garmin.
2) You're Jewish and he'd already been by eight times.
1) Too scared because he was called a "socialist" for wearing red by your extremely Right-wing neighbors.
Can't Find Something?
All content © Copyright 2000 - 2018 WGEM. All Rights Reserved. For more information on this site, please read our Privacy Policy, Terms of Service, and Ad Choices.


text:
The following is a concept I started working during the last month, even if "romantic" narrative is not my thing we had some fun with my grandma talking a little bit about her stories, mine and some mutual friends haha. Today I decided to release the draft before I leave Ecuador, if you read all and have any comment just leave it below or over DM. Thanks everyone and I hope I will see you wherever I end up.
Chapter 1 -A Sad Ending-
There he was, laying on a small bed in the middle of nowhere with a book he knew was going to have a sad ending.
-Great -he said while reading once more the text message he got – this is going to be a long ride – sight as he opened the book where he left.
The reason why he was reading the books was still a little bit confusing, even for him. It was a gift from someone that had marked his life. Someone that left a lingering sensation in his heart and had lasted more than he could even believe. But she was gone now, where? He couldn't tell, they haven't spoken in many years but all the clues directed at her.
Even if the book was too popular among girls he knew that she would have been the only one that could tease him about a romantic story and him being a bad influence. But while she always mocked the idea of him being bad for her or anyone, the fact she was away and he found peace when he was alone were more than enough reasons to be sure he was right. That and that dark past he was still trying to fix.
But right now this book was going to help him stay awake a few more hours, at least until the doctor arrive. The past weeks had been rough, a lot more than he expected for this time of the year. His job was becoming tedious to the point he considered quitting, he had to stop training or any type of physical activity because his doctor was afraid he could have a relapse and that could be catastrophic, and on top of everything, the person that was sleeping in the bed next to him had almost died in his arms.
The sound of a big trailer pass by made his mind wander to the old days when the highway would be alive all night long and he would be just a kid trying to sleep.
– Grandma, I can't sleep. It's too loud- he said to her while he was standing on the edge of her room.
– Come here- she said with a hint of a smile – The sound of the highway is as loud as it is in the morning when you are reading or playing your games but right now you are focusing just in the sound that the cars made –ended with a calm voice
– Maybe… But I can't fall asleep because the cars keep coming at different times and I can't even – he stopped when he saw her open one of the drawers and took out a gift – What is that? – He asked with a sense of curiosity and happiness
– This is something I wanted to give you for Christmas but since you are already 8 years old there is no need for you to wait for Santa – she told him while she was handing him over his gift
– Oh, come on grandma, I know it's one of my uncle's workers that dress up as Santa every year. I mean, Santa is not that dark or skinny, you know? – He joked with a smile
– I know, I know – she replied -but your cousins still doesn't know that so keep that secret for me, ok? Now, let me know if that will help you go to sleep now –as she handed over the gift.
As he was opening it he realize it was a book, it had the weight of it, and the hard cover but wait… The tiny font of the title gave the hint it was THAT book, but how? It was not going to be out for a few more months, not at least in Spanish.
She could read him as well as he could read her – I know you wanted to read this series and this is the last one as far as the clerk told me, it's in English but it shouldn't be a problem, right? – She finished with a smile
– Grandma! – He sprinted to her and hugged her as hard as he could – Thanks!-
After that he ran back to his room, turned on the lamp and ended up reading until the last thing he could hear was a trailer passing by without even bothering him.
Suddenly he was back in the present. He looked at her and went back to his "new book". But now this book wasn't going to help him fall asleep but for different reasons, the main character, a troubled boy from one of the dangerous families in town had fallen in love with one of the uptown girls, who of course was a free spirit and found her peace with him. Ok, he could see some resemble with the main character, being quiet and more interesting in engines than anything else. Some flashes of her also appeared in his mind while he read about the way she acted around him.
– I can see what you are doing here- he thought with a mix of happiness and sorrow
It was a bittersweet feeling reading how the main character started falling for her in an unexpected way, how their first kiss was a cliché over another (in a small park, in the middle of the town, at sunset) and how when they started walking back their hands met and they crossed their fingers unconsciously and he never wanted to let her go.
He stopped there, folded one corner of the page and put the book next to the bed. Where was she? Did she really sent him this book? Did she even remember him? Part of his brain knew that she could be the only one that would do that but at the same time it was his heart the one that wanted to block this though, because his heart had learned in the worst possible way that there were no happy endings for big love stories.
He shook his head, stood up and walked towards the window. A storm was coming and the doctor was going to have a hard time getting here.
It seems a lot of his stories always had sad endings.


text:
This deep conditioner for dry, brittle hair is a potent blend of rejuvenating Essential Fatty Acids, circulation boosting herbs, rich plant oils to restore vibrancy and shine, and strengthening amino acids. Contains Kokum Butter (moisturizer), Panthenol (Vit. B5), Calendula (rich in phytonutrients to heal and protect), Rosemary (stimulates and soothes the scalp reducing excess oil and flakes). pH balanced
Massage onto scalp after shampooing with Neem Care Shampoo or Amla Shine Daily Shampoo. Leave on for several minutes (or longer for a deeper conditioning), then rinse.
Purified water, cetyl alcohol, emulsifying wax, stearalkonium chloride, propanediol, glycerin, guar hydroxypropyl trimonium chloride, jojoba oil (simmondsia chinensis), caprylic acid, glycine, oils of rosemary (rosmarinus officinalis) and lavender (lavandula angustifolia), panthenol (Vit. B5), hydrolyzed rice protein, potassium sorbate. No synthetic color or fragrance.