text: My shuttlecraft projects are still alive and progressive...albeit sometimes in a seemingly glacial manner. At any rate even as I continue working on my TOS Class F shuttlecraft schematics and scratchbuild model I've also been keeping a hand in pushing my TAS adaptations forward. Those of you who have been following my shuttlecraft works may recall that I gone through easily four major design concepts in trying to fashion a "realistic' TOS live-action version of the shuttlecraft designs seen in TAS' "The Slaver Weapon," "Mudd's Passion" and the aquashuttle in "The Ambergris Element." Previous versions all had something to recommend them...except a major element always bothered me to some extent or other: no matter how interesting the design it just didn't resonate enough to evoke the original TAS design. And so I'd go back to the drawing board and sketchpad to try again. This time I swore to make it work and not commit to detailed and scaled drawings until I got something I was satisfied with. It's understood that a "real" version of the TAS shuttlecraft will never be exactly as seen onscreen. The TAS designs are way off scale, being much too large and with exaggerated proportions. They also lack a lot of detail. But I still think I can make them work. Even though they will depart from the onscreen versions to some extent they should still be immediately recognizable. And here is my final attempt: Note this is not the only drawing I have. While still a work-in-progress it's just one image from the multiple view schematics that are nearing completion. And I will be rendering them in the same sheet styles as my TOS shuttlecraft drawings. Note also there is still some intended detail yet to be added to this drawing. I can say that like the onscreen version it has an aft access hatch, but it doesn't function like the one seen onscreen. That one operated like many of the familiar doors seen aboard the Enterprise. Instead this one opens in two parts with a swing down gangway and an upward swinging upper panel. The vehicle's interior is meant to accommodate up to four people since this is meant as a small fast transport craft. The onscreen versions tended to be rather sharp edged looking designs and spare in detail. My intention is to soften the overall look to some extent, round off the edges some and add some much needed detail where appropriate. The crewman included in the image represents someone about 5'-10" or 1.778m. to give the image a sense of scale. I don't have any hard dimensions yet, but they are forthcoming. Presently I estimate this design to be perhaps 35ft. in length. I've given the craft a starbase registry to underline the idea that these designs are specialized craft assigned to starbases and outposts and loaned out to deep space starships for specific missions. Stay tuned.

subset: commoncrawl


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Happy Bday Images Download
Happy Bday Images Download: Expressing best wishes for bday has never been easier with these 100 best Happy Bday Wishes for family and friends. We are curiously waiting for out birthday and want it to be more special from the previous one. Here in this article I am going to share the Happy Bday Images… Read More »


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Looking as good as you feel has never been more possible. The innovations in cosmetic surgery over the past decade have enabled women and men to look their very best at any age. Our goal is to help our patients feel better about their appearance, and to provide the best care before, during and following their procedure. We know that the decision to have a cosmetic procedure is an important and sometimes difficult one. To that end, we provide information, education and responsive care to insure our patients' physical and emotional comfort every step of the way. We are dedicated to making sure that each patient has the best results and experience.
Sometimes even subtle changes in facial balance can make a very significant difference in the overall appearance. Often, a patient will tell us, "When I look in the mirror, all I see is my nose." What they really want is to see balance in their appearance.
"I see cosmetic surgery as much more than a technical skill. It involves an artistic aesthetic, combined with the ability to understand and listen to the desires of the individual. Translating those desires into the improved result in one's appearance often produces much more than a physical change — it can change a life." --Dr. Barry Silberg


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bad shooting night for gay
bad shooting night for gay
I'm late but DAMN Rudy Gay! Nice oop!
Why are the referees always allowing Indiana to fucking maul people?
Wow they're letting them play physical
val got away with one there
Gah. Rudy Gay having a tough time here in the 1st. Rudy will still get his though.
Twitter: @ReubenJRD NBA, Raptors writer for Daily Hive Vancouver, Toronto.
Too many 3's. We're gonna fall behind.
I love the Amir/JV combo on the floor
Yeah, Gay needs to calm down with 3s...he's averaging like 6 a game...I'd be ok with 4
Link #2 on Firstrowsports has the Raptors raw feed. During commercials you can listed to what Matt & Jack are saying during commercials. They haven't said anything interesting yet. Jack likes his water room temperature, not cold.
How many missed jumpers does it take?
Get to the line please .....someone.
Jonas playing REALLY well to start off
Valanciunas is swinging his elbows HARD.
Twitter: @ReubenJRD NBA, Raptors writer for Daily Hive Vancouver, Toronto.
God damnit alan anderson is awful
Bargs passed to AA late. You can see he's not used to that.
WHAT?! offensive rebound and putback???? is it a full moon?
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"This year's three-day conference offered more than 50 technical sessions by GE Transportation software engineers and subject matter experts, giving best-practices and instruction to maximize the use of GE Transportation's software," said Vice President of Global Services Pete McCabe. Topics included advanced analytics, mobility, revenue management, operational efficiency, and asset optimization. In addition, the conference included more than 15 customer feedback forums and panel discussions, providing an open exchange of ideas and customer feedback.
McCabe highlighted RailConnect™ 360, "a connected suite of solutions that provides railroads with data-driven insights to address key customer pain points like velocity, fuel, reliability, productivity, and dwell. The RailConnect™ 360 suite leverages GE Transportation's Predix platform to use advanced software, powerful analytics, and mobility to enable better decisions and improve outcomes along the entire rail enterprise. This is part of our billion-dollar investment in software to create an open, global network that connects people, data, and machines, the 'Industrial Internet.'"
GE Transportation introduced several enhancements RailConnect™ 360 software products and services:
• RailConnect Transportation Management System and RailConnect Revenue Management System, "a new user-friendly interface with intuitive menus for easy navigation, time-saving custom quick links to regularly-used tools, and report automation, plus connectivity available from multiple browsers and devices."
• Revenue Management Advanced Analytics, "a new business intelligence offering that delivers powerful analytics and KPIs to help railroad accounting and management personnel work more effectively, improve decision making, and optimize revenue management performance."
• ShipperConnect Yard & Transload Management, which "offers graphical representation and multiple work views of facilities, track layout, and customized process flows to significantly improve the process of managing rail assets and inventory within a plant or transload facility. With a single click, users can view details on shipments, move railcars within their plants, and load, unload, or transfer inventory in railcars, piles, silos, bins, or containers, controlling inventory and managing customer orders. Integration with ERP systems and EDI data sources provides seamless inventory management and control.
GE Transportation also announced the addition of new capabilities for railcar demurrage management with the acquisition of Demurrage Management Systems Inc. "This technology acquisition expands and strengthens software capabilities in our ShipperConnect Demurrage Management system," said McCabe. "This comprehensive offering will manage and calculate railcar demurrage, detention, and storage charges, administer complex demurrage rules and contracts, automate demurrage calculation methods, administer complex rating structures, and manage unlimited exception criteria."
In addition, GE Transportation honored a group of customers "who are leaders in the rail and rail shipper industry," said McCabe. "These companies have raised the standard for operating performance by utilizing GE Transportation's rail software and solutions to drive automation, increase productivity, and address mission-critical business issues: Ferrocarril y Terminal del Valle de Mexico S.A. de C.V. (Ferrovalle); Genesee & Wyoming Inc. – Portland & Western Railroad; New York & Atlantic Railway; Pan Am Railways; R.J. Corman Railroad Co.; Hi-Crush; and Iron Horse Logistics Services
Companies in every major segment of the rail industry attended the conference and included short line and regional railroads, Class I railroads, railcar leasing companies, rail shippers, and intermodal terminal operators.


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Richard Herring always writes and performs interesting and sometimes controversial sets. This title is about followers of religion rather than the religion itself. Stimulating and food for thought!
©2011 PIAS Comedy (P)2013 Redbush Entertainment Ltd
"Brilliant !"
I love it, I am biased, I love everything Richard Herring does, but the research he has done for this is remarkable.
"So disappointing"
I loved Herring's "Hitler Mustache" and couldn't believe how unfunny this is. It feels like he was in the early stages of developing this act and it just is not funny at all.
Report Inappropriate Content
If you find this review inappropriate and think it should be removed from our site, let us know. This report will be reviewed by Audible and we will take appropriate action.


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Sierra Nevada > Lake Tahoe Basin > Lovers Leap > Corrugation Corner > Climber's Log
Corrugation Corner Climber's Log
[ Sign the Climber's Log ]
Date Climbed: Sep 10, 2011
|Cold, windy day. Fun none the least.
|Posted Dec 7, 2011 11:50 pm
|Vitaliy M.
|link up
Date Climbed: Oct 21, 2011
|Linked up with surrealistic pillar and bear's reach. Swing leads all day
|Posted Oct 24, 2011 11:43 am
|great route
|Climbed this and Surrealistic Pillar with Erich in a morning cruise. Wanted to make sure my back was good to go again after an injury....definitely had a few "move it like bernie" moments (the roof on 3rd pitch, super fun!).
Without a doubt the most entertaining and exhilarating 5.7 I have ever done!
|Posted Sep 5, 2011 9:55 pm
|5/5 stars
|Notable exposure
|Posted Oct 1, 2010 7:36 am
|Personal Fav
Date Climbed: Jun 2, 2010
|Led 1st and 3rd pitches in first go. Led the 2nd pitch during my second attempt. All three pitches are fun and steep (except for most of 3rd). Definitely worth a go if you make it out to the Leap!
|Posted Sep 14, 2010 1:13 am
|Deserves the stars
Date Climbed: Jun 7, 2010
|What an incredible climb. Led p1, which was some fun and exciting stemming. But p2 was the real highlight. The traverse on p3 was definitely exciting.
9/26/2010 Repeated with Roger. Great link up with Surrealistic Pillar.
|Posted Jun 11, 2010 4:08 pm
|Led last two pitches
Date Climbed: Jun 7, 2010
|Climbed with Justin on a nice breezy late spring day.
Wanted to do the Surrealistic Pillar-Corrugation Corner linkup, but Surrealistic Pillar had a party on it, so we did The Groove (5.8) that morning instead. Good stuff.
Also climbed in 2006.
|Posted Jun 8, 2010 9:39 am
|Good, Great, Awesome
Date Climbed: Jun 2, 2010
|Sustained, steep, varied, exciting and fun beyond belief. What an awesome line. 5 stars far and away.
Did the route with Paul-Wall after discoveing his car had been broken into that morning. Making the best of it, we drove down in my ride to Strawberry where we discovered that he had left one (1) of his rock shoes at the rock gym the previous day. Again, making the best of it, we traded off shoes to the leader each pitch while the follower sported a tennis shoe. That third pitch traverse sucks with a regular right-footed shoe!
|Posted Jun 3, 2010 12:04 pm
|so fun
|good times with Ritwik!
|Posted May 28, 2010 12:32 pm
|Giggling at the exposure...
Date Climbed: May 16, 2009
|my partner Chris led the first pitch after dropping the big cams and her backpack on me (not quite literally). wasn't used to carrying a rack of trad gear ;-). i led P2 and 3, giggling at the exposure on the arete and cussing at the chimney. uwjennie wasn't kidding about the P3 traverse; i wiggled in a small nut (#3 BD wedge?) to try and protect my second but it was a shallow placement and came right out when she got to it =/. i think i remember a piton nearby but you take your chances with stuff like that... FUN @$$ ROUTE!!
|Posted Jul 6, 2009 6:04 pm
|Excellent Route
Date Climbed: Oct 28, 2008
|I could do the second pitch every day.
|Posted Dec 27, 2008 1:35 am
Date Climbed: Oct 19, 2008
|A fun, challenging 5.7
|Posted Oct 27, 2008 11:20 am
|Great climb!
Date Climbed: Sep 7, 2006
|2nd pitch can give you the willies.
|Posted Oct 17, 2007 7:15 pm
Date Climbed: Sep 2, 2007
|I lead the first pitch (5.6) and Brian my partner lead P2&3. One of the more challenging 5.7s around. Really fun and worth doing. The traverse on P3 is really a no-fall situation for the follower so make sure they are solid and don't belay them too tight when they are following.
|Posted Sep 4, 2007 4:31 pm
|The Best
|I think this is the coolest 5.7 that i have ever done and i lived in Yosemite for 2yrs.
|Posted Feb 17, 2007 1:09 am
|Corrugation Corner
Date Climbed: Aug 12, 2006
|Deservedly recognized as one of the best 5.7 in North America.
|Posted Feb 2, 2007 3:58 am
|One of the best routes I've done
Date Climbed: Jul 7, 1998
|We did Pop Bottle the previous day, which was my first lead in over ten years. The next day we did Corrugation Corner. It was very exciting!
|Posted Nov 21, 2006 6:02 am
|Corrugation Corner
Date Climbed: Aug 12, 2006
|Did the 5.8 variation on the third pitch - after exiting the chimney, go left and straight up to a nice hand crack with moderate difficulty and good protection. Either traverse right at the top and belay from the regular position, or setup a belay on the left. Fun morning with P and a group of friends (2 rope teams), then we went to chill at South Lake.
|Posted Sep 2, 2006 10:54 pm


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Home | Academics | Our Schools | Rowland School of Business | Rowland School of Business News and Features
On September 2, 2011, Point Park M.B.A. alumnus Ron Meyer's Blessed2Play radio show debuted on the EWTN Global Catholic Radio Network. The network has the potential to reach 100 million people through its Sirius/XM satellite radio channel 130 and 190 domestic AM/FM affiliates. Blessed2Play airs on Fridays at 2:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.
Job Titles: Mid-Atlantic marketing manager and creator, producer and host of Blessed2PlayEmployer: EWTNDegrees: Bachelor of Arts in communications (with emphasis in journalism) from Franciscan University; M.B.A. from Point Park UniversityGraduation Years: B.A. in 1993; M.B.A. in 2002Hometown: Manalapan, N.J.Now living in: Bloomingdale, Ohio
Working for EWTN, I participate in our mission to engage folks from around the world to help deepen their faith lives as Catholics. As a marketing manager, I truly believe in the product that I market and enjoy combining my passion and creativity. As the host of Blessed2Play, I enjoy getting into the life of my guests and uncovering what truly is at the heart of these champions of faith and sports. So far I've had the opportunity to interview a variety of individuals in the sports world like Bobby Allison (Nascar Hall of Fame inductee), Mike Sweeney (Major League Baseball all-star), Gerry Faust (former Notre Dame head football coach), Sal Bando (Oakland Athletics World Series champion), Rebecca Dussault (Nordic Olympic skier), Chris Godfrey (New York Giants Super Bowl champion) and Olympian Kirsten Holum, who later chose to leave speed skating to become a Catholic nun.
I've played competitive sports my whole life and discovered there were a large segment of Catholic athletes out there who had a willingness to share their faith journeys as well as talk about their careers in sports. I came up with the name of the show after reflecting one evening on my own athletic pursuits and realized it's a blessing to perform athletically, hence Blessed2Play.
My M.B.A. degree added to my journalism and communications background by helping me to think more on a business level. For example, I'm able to understand business and financial information when working with major cable systems. When faced with a business issue, I often remember the discussions I had with my M.B.A. classmates and think back to the different case studies we perused.
It was a close commute and I liked that Point Park offered an accelerated M.B.A. program. The accelerated program allows for professionals who are busy during the week to pursue a degree on Saturdays.
I really enjoyed the theory classes, case studies and collaborating on group projects. We studied the different models of business, various management styles and evaluated companies who succeeded and failed. The classes really benefited me in learning how an organization works. Also, my classmates came from varied professions and had a wide range of experiences that helped me to broaden how I looked at the business world. Overall, my experience at Point Park was very gratifying.
First ask yourself "How is an M.B.A. degree going to benefit me?" It has been said all knowledge is good knowledge. However, individuals have to be willing to commit to the program and be open to transforming themselves to established and successful business principles. An M.B.A. degree will put you more in touch with specific aspects of the business sector. It's an important degree, especially for those who want to lead others in right business practices.
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KEXP Reviews
|Browse by one of the following:
- (Rykodisc)
Second album from this Sumner, Washington native is a potent set of acoustic country blues that mixes strong originals with well-chosen covers. Phelps taps into the music's spiritual power by combining evocative slide playing and guitar picking with his own gentle moan. 8/19/1997 - Don Yates
Other Kelly Joe Phelps album reviews:
Sky Like a Broken Clock - 6/15/2001
Shine Eyed Mister Zen - 7/15/1999


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In the Garden:
Pacific Northwest
April, 2009
Regional Report
My favorite peony is the one that's currently in bloom. I think they are all gorgeous!
There's a Peony for Every Garden
I think peonies are a theatrical bunch. Their foliage emerges in late spring, followed by big, fat flower buds. Then they wait, poised at the brink of performance, until the weather suits them to burst into their full glory. I wait too, in great anticipation of the spectacular and fragrant blooms that will eventually unfold.
Peony Choices
There are two kinds of peonies available. Herbaceous peonies have tender foliage that dies to the ground at first frost. These plants grow 2 to 4 feet tall and about 2 feet wide. The tree peony grows to a height of 4 to 6 feet. I've always had better success with herbaceous peonies because tree peonies are woody and since their stems live through winter, they are susceptible to winter injury.
Flower Types
Peony flowers are grouped according to the shape of the petals. There are five types: single, semi-double, double, Japanese, and anemone. There are many varieties within these types and by selecting different varieties, you can effectively prolong the blooming season of peonies in your garden.
Planting Peonies
Peonies grow from tubers and are best planted in fall but I have also had success planting them in very early spring. The tubers should be bright red in color and have three to five buds (called eyes). Plant the tubers so the buds face upward and are only 1 to 2 inches below the soil surface. If planted too deep, few flowers will be produced. Shallow planting also increases the chances of winter injury. Water plants thoroughly after planting and add a 3-inch-thick layer of organic mulch over the top of the soil. Straw, shredded bark, or wood chips are good organic mulch options.
Peonies are relatively easy to grow, and perform best in cool climates where they receive a winter chill. Provide rich, well-drained soil, and a site that receives 6 to 8 hours of sunlight each day for best blooming. The plants will grow and produce handsome foliage in a shady location, but will not flower as freely. Good air circulation will reduce the chances of disease problems, especially during flowering.
Care and Maintenance
When plants start to grow in spring and shoots are 4 to 6 inches tall, I apply 1/2 cup per stem of a granular 5-10-10 fertilizer, scratch it into the soil surface and water well. It's tempting to apply more plant food to encourage even more growth, but it's important to resist the urge to overfeed. Overfertilization results in weak stems and reduces flowering. To keep the plant producing more flowers through the summer, I remove faded flowers as soon as they're spent. At the end of the season, when frost kills the foliage, cut it away and mulch over the soil to protect the roots during winter.
Following these simple steps will keep your peonies healthy and at peak performance all summer long.
Care to share your gardening thoughts, insights, triumphs, or disappointments with your fellow gardening enthusiasts? Join the lively discussions on our FaceBook page and receive free daily tips!


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AMERICAN STORM Revue Debuts at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, 11/30
A storm is coming…an American Storm to be exact. The sizzling male revue show will make its debut at DB's inside the Miracle Mile Shops at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino this Friday, Nov. 30. The show will perform Fridays and Saturdays at 9:00 p.m.
Now entering its 8th year of teasing and tantalizing the Las Vegas Strip, American Storm's home-grown men take audiences on a wild ride through the land of the free and the home of the brave. Featuring fearless cowboys and hard bodied men in uniform, the 70-minute choreographed production leaves little to the imagination and is sure to have audiences wanting more.
"American Storm is excited about returning to the heart of the Las Vegas Strip inside Planet Hollywood's famed Miracle Mile Shops," said Alex Schechter VP of SPI Entertainment, Inc. "This incarnation of the show has many changes including new cast members, today's music, and elaborate costumes all while keeping the charm and appeal that has made this show a favorite among women in Las Vegas for years."
The handsome cast of American Storm includes Mike Kelly, Terry Cress, Tommy Gainer, Cody Anders and Justin Kurtis. Some members of the cast originated as the winners of VH1's "Strip Search" reality show and have been featured on a variety of programs including "EXTRA!" "Entertainment Tonight," "Rehab Party at the Hard Rock Hotel," and more. Many have also graced the covers of magazines such as Muscle and Fitness, RX Fitness and Playgirl.
Tickets are $49.95 plus taxes and fees. Guests must be 18 or older to attend. Men are welcome. Tickets are available by phone at 702-701-7778. For more information on American Storm, visit www.American-Storm.com, become a fan on Facebook or follow on Twitter.
SPI Entertainment, Inc. is a leading Production Company & Talent Agency with six successful resident award-winning shows in the entertainment capital of the world, Las Vegas, and more than 10 shows touring internationally. With a successful track record of building entertainment brands and partnering with world class entertainers, SPI has become the preeminent Theatrical Producer & Talent Agency in Las Vegas and beyond. Current Productions include Smokey Robinson Presents: Human Nature - The Motown Show, Mike Tyson: Undisputed Truth, Australia's Thunder From Down Under, Divas - Starring Frank Marino, The Australian Bee Gees Show, and American Storm. For more info, go to www.SPIentertainment.com.


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Freeland gets first win while Wall goes yard
By Teddy Cahill / MLB.com
Left-hander Kyle Freeland and second baseman Forrest Wall, the Rockies' first two picks in the 2014 First-Year Player Draft, both achieved significant firsts in their professional careers Thursday with Rookie-level Grand Junction. Freeland earned his first win and Wall hit his first home run, as the duo helped lead Grand Junction to an 8-5 victory against Idaho Falls.
Freeland, the Rockies' No. 4 prospect, started the game and threw five scoreless innings. He struck out five batters and held the Chukars to three hits and one walk.
Wall, the Rockies' No. 9 prospect, went 2-for-3 with three runs, two walks, a stolen base and an RBI. His home run came off Eric Skoglund, the Royals' third-round pick this year.
Both Freeland and Wall have made smooth transitions to the professional ranks. Freeland, ranked No. 75 on MLBPipeline.com's Top 100 Prospects list, signed quickly after the Rockies selected him eighth overall last month. In five starts with Grand Junction, he has allowed just four runs (three earned) and struck out 15 batters in 17 1/3 innings.
The Rockies picked Wall with the first pick of Competitive Balance Round A, 35th overall. In 16 games with Grand Junction, the 18-year old is hitting .362/.443/.464 with seven stolen bases.
Teddy Cahill is a reporter for MLB.com. Follow him on Twitter at @tedcahill. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


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Women's Alfred Dunhill
1 Fragrances
Men's Alfred Dunhill
20 Fragrances
History and background of Alfred Dunhill. With over 100 years of history, Alfred Dunhill is a brand which is rich, yet complex in its perception. It began with the dream of one man- Alfred Dunhill- the quintessential English investor. Obsessed with detail, fanatical about quality and craftsmanship, his talent lay in creating exquisitely designed, ingenious accessories for the perfect gentleman.
Learn more about Alfred Dunhill
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Women's Perfume List by Letter
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Join coupon list


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I'd much prefer to renew my ZoneAlarm using Paypal. Unfortunately, the only option that I see with Paypal includes a mandatory Auto Renewal. I think this is very sneaky and deceptive - I expected better from ZoneAlarm.
I'm not sure what to do, I guess I'll not complete the Paypal and reconsider. Seems like there may be a way to cancel the auto renew from the Paypal side, but I'm not sure.
Long-time ZoneAlarm customer expected better.
Similar thread here:


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Guys, I have been having the worst case of body flu ever contracted, and it sucks that it happens to me when I finally get to Texas, which in my humble opinion, kicks New York's ass. My mind is working, but I have to say that my body is feeble, and I have no idea what to do. If any of you is a doctor, and can give me an idea of what kind of Over the Counter medication I could take to combat this, let me know. We are talking temperature rise, cold sweats, hellucination in sleep (I had a dream where I was part of a competition, where democrats had to roll me like a bucket down hills or else I will get worse. I know, my brain is a scary place!), alternations between feeling cold and hot and a bronchital cough, not to mention an upset stomach. I have been living off of Dayquil so far. Any ideas, recommendations or home remedies welcome.
Let me know!


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Morning all!
I put a book trailer together for one of our picture books yesterday. It's come out quite well. I've just got to double check it with Rochelle and the author and I'll be able to upload it. So that's one good thing. I only need to do about an hour's worth of work for her today and then I'm done!
Sean - I'm sorry to hear things are hard for you at the moment. Write some fan fic and see if that helps. I've got to do more of mine.
marielle - I'm certainly writing what my heart tells me at the moment. And make sure you enjoy that chocolate. Chocolate is a joy that shouldn't be undervalued.
Songbird - *sigh* no, if anything, it will get worse, especially once the book is launched. Then I will be doing book signings, etc (I am NOT looking forward to that!) and just about anything else to sell some copies.


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The Small Banner in Leather and House Check
- The Banner in grainy leather with House check panels. A compact shape, it works as an everyday bag for your essentials, and features an inner pouch for your phone. Wear on your shoulder or as a crossbody, or carry by hand.
- 25 x 12 x 19cm/9.8 x 4.7 x 7.5in
- Min. shoulder strap length: 101cm/39.8in
- Max. shoulder strap length: 111cm/43.7in
- Outer: 100% calf leather with cotton trim
- Lining: 100% cotton
- One interior zip pocket, two interior pouch pockets
- Rolled leather handles
- Detachable leather shoulder strap
- Double magnetic press-stud closure, press-stud clip on handles
- Hand-painted edges
- Polished metal hardware
- Made in Italy


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DETROIT - If you looked at the 2013 baseball season -- which opened Sunday night -- on paper, some fans might want to just skip the regular season and go straight to the World Series.
And if you did that, most would have the Detroit Tigers and Washington Nationals in the Fall Classic.
After all, both squads have pitching to die for. And we know pitching and defense wins in October, not hitting.
There's only one thing standing in the Tigers' way to a second straight appearance in the World Series.
It's not just the idea that they will try to get there with a bullpen by committee plan rather than a bona fide closer.
It's the American League as a whole. It will not be that easy to conquer this season.
Not for the Tigers, not for any team.
The AL got better from a year ago. In fact, if you talk to some involved, many say it's a toss-up -- for real.
How tough will the AL be in 2013? Even the Kansas City Royals won't be a pushover.
"I don't think anybody understands how good this competition is going to be in the American League, all throughout every division this year," Tigers' manager Jim Leyland said. "It's going to be unbelievable.
"I don't see anybody running away with anything. You can pick it and be right. But I'll guarantee you. Whoever you pick, you may not be right."
Yankees' general manager Brian Cashman agrees with Leyland when he looks at the AL landscape.
"Everybody's getting better," Cashman said. "There are not really any teams getting worse - except some are saying we're getting worse.''
Indeed, some have downgraded the Yankees -- who are here for Opening Day in Detroit on Friday -- because of all the injuries to start the season. Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Curtis Granderson and Mark Teixeira will all probably be on the disabled list.
But the Yankees are going to be in the mix because of their pitching. Their rotation is solid with CC Sabathia, Hiroki Kuroda and Andy Pettitte at the top of it. In the bullpen, they have Mariano Rivera, the best-ever closer, in his final year.
The same can be said for the Tampa Bay Rays, who had the best pitching staff in the league a year ago. Starters posted a 3.19 ERA and relievers had a stingy 2.88 ERA.
Baltimore almost won the AL East, but did make the playoffs.
And the Blue Jays are contenders after adding Mark Buhrle, R.A. Dickey, Jim Johnson and Jose Reyes.
"The AL is wild," joked Sabathia. "I might have signed in the wrong league a couple of years ago.''
Sabathia laughed, but he's right. Enough with pitching. Some of the lineups AL starters will have to face will be no joke.
Enter the L.A. Angels, who added free-agent slugger Josh Hamilton to a lineup that already has Albert Pujols. They have enough firepower to win.
Last season, the Oakland A's shocked the AL West by winning division on last day of the season. The Texas Rangers, another loaded team, got knocked out of playoffs in first round.
In the Central, the Chicago White Sox held first place almost all season until stumbling in the final 10 days and finishing in second place, three games behind Detroit. The Royals picked up big-time pitching help with additions of James Shields and Wade Davis. They are now in play.
"We're a very capable team," Leyland said. "But there's a bunch of capable teams in the American League this year. Don't sell anybody short because it's going to be a dogfight. I can promise you that."
The Tigers, who swept the Yankees in the ALCS to get to World Series, improved.
They not only got DH Victor Martinez back, who missed all of last season with a left knee injury, but also signed free-agent Torii Hunter to play right field. "Detroit got better, if you believe that," Sabathia said. "Torii makes their defense that much better."
The Tigers -- who have the last two AL MVPs in Miguel Cabrera last year and Justin Verlander in 2011 -- have everything except an experienced closer. Still, they should get able to get to the World Series again.
"That's our goal," Tigers' centerfielder Austin Jackson said. "Especially getting there last year, we think we're capable of getting back there.
"The goal is to make the playoffs first and then try to get our way back to the World Series like last year."
- Parker's 2013 Baseball Predictions
- AL -- Blue Jays, Tigers and A's
- AL Wild Cards -- Yankees, Angels
- NL -- Nationals, Reds, Dodgers
- NL Wild Cards -- Giants, Cardinals
- World Series -- Dodgers over Tigers.
Copyright 2013 by ClickOnDetroit.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


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Police and utility representatives are warning area customers to be wary of a scam making the rounds that could leave them broke and in the dark.
Police and utility representatives are warning area customers to be wary of a scam making the rounds that could leave them broke and in the dark.
The scam attempts to get people to make a credit card payment or face having their electricity turned off immediately, said Derrick Roberts, an operations manager with Progress Energy.
Then, after paying money to a fake utility representative, some customers don�t pay their real bill, leaving them without power, Roberts said.
It goes like this: A person claiming to be from Progress Energy or Jones-Onslow Electric Membership Corporation calls a Jacksonville business owner or resident and claims their power bill hasn�t been paid. The caller threatens to turn the power off to the business or residence within hours unless payment is made immediately by credit card, Green dot card or Moneypak, said Jacksonville Police detective Derek Simmons in a warning to members of the Jacksonville-Onslow Chamber of Commerce.
�The caller sounds convincing and even provides a call back number with a Progress Energy answering machine message,� Simmons said. He warns everyone not to provide personal information, credit card numbers or bank information to anyone over the phone that they don�t know personally.
Representatives from both Progress and Jones-Onslow said their companies would never call and ask for account or personal information. If anyone ever doubts the identity of a caller, they should hang up and call their utility provider using the number on a bill or other formal document.
At least four Jones-Onslow customers received such calls this week, said Steve Goodson, a spokesman for the utility.
If anyone has lost money due to this scam, they are encouraged to file a police report with their local law enforcement agency. If anyone has received a call but did not to provide their financial information, they are asked to contact their utility company, said Beth Purcell, media liaison for the Jacksonville Department of Public Safety.
Want to go? An investor education specialist with the N.C. Secretary of State Securities Division will present information about scams from 3 to 4 p.m.Monday at Onslow Senior Services. Participants will learn the warning signs of fraud and other ways to protect themselves. For more information, call 910-455-2747.
Contact Daily News Senior Reporter Lindell Kay at 910-219-8455 or email@example.com. Follow him on Twitter and friend him on Facebook @ 1lindell.


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Are you a rock 'n' roller of a 'certain age'? Did you see the big names in Scarborough in the 50s and 60s? If so, Scarborough Art Gallery would like to hear from you.
This spring, the Gallery is playing host to a touring exhibition of rock photographs from the Victoria and Albert, Museum, London's. Halfway to Paradise: The Birth of British Rock comprises over 100 photographs by Harry Hammond from the V&A collection, capturing the emergence of British rock. Hammond (1920-2009) was the first great photographer of British rock 'n' roll. Starting in the late 1940s, he captured definitive images of virtually every leading British musician.
The exhibition features many of Hammond's most famous images of leading British artists, including The Beatles, Cliff Richard and Shirley Bassey, as well as those of many visiting American artists including Buddy Holly and Little Richard.
The Gallery would like to enhance the collection with local memorabilia from the period, and is asking for local rock 'n' rol lveterans to come forward and lend their treasures.
"We're looking for anything relating to the big artists of the period who played at Scarborough venues like the Futurist and the Spa," says Scarborough Museums Trust Head of Collections Karen Snowden. "People might still have tickets, programmes, scrapbooks, or articles of clothing – we'd love to borrow them for Gallery visitors to enjoy when they visit the exhibition."
Anyone who has items they would be willing to lend is asked to contact Karen on 01723 384506 or firstname.lastname@example.com
Halfway to Paradise: The Birth of British Rock can be seen at Scarborough Art Gallery from Saturday 9th March to Sunday 14th 2013.
As well as photos of artistes performing, it provides an insight into the wider music industry – Tin Pan Alley, recording studios, disc jockeys and TV shows such as Oh Boy! The photographs are set against a soundtrack of rock music from the 50s and the 60s.
Born in the East End of London, Hammond began his career as a promising society portrait photographer. During the Second World War Hammond served as a reconnaissance photographer with the RAF. On his return to London he found himself increasingly drawn to the music industry. Using his talent and professionalism as a portrait photographer he began to photograph a new breed of celebrity – the rock 'n' roll generation.
Hammond captured the liberal, post-war public attitude that embraced the popular music culture of rock 'n' roll and earned respect not only for the innovative way he shot their performances, but also for his respect of his sitters' private lives. In 1952 New Musical Express (NME) magazine was relaunced and Hammond soon became its primary photographer, taking some of the most famous images of the era and setting the standard of pop photography for the following generations.


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PG&E E9 Timing (California)
PG&E E9 Timing (California)
Nice visual spreadsheet. I'm not in the PG&E area, but that really helps illustrate the various rates.
Thanks on this. I looked into this in CT and as far as I can tell the "cheap" night rate on the two rate plan was higher than the fixed third party 24/7 rate I have. It was also a floating rate subject to summer spikes with two months notice needed to switch (so by the time you realize it spiked it's too late). I think I also needed a new expensive meter. What savings are people seeing for night rates vs lowest available primary/third party lock/other rates and what is the upfront cost to be able to use the night rate?
Great spreadsheet and very helpful .... Thanks!
Your chart seems to show peak hours during summer weekends. From the E-9 pdf on the PG&E website, it would seem that Saturdays and Sundays are off peak except for 5 PM to 9PM that are partial peak. Do you have more recent information?
PG&E now has a "Green Button" on the PG&E My Energy web site that will allow you to download your energy use - both gas and electricity. Combined with the PG&E smartmeter this will give you a graph of your electricity use in 15 minute intervals. By reviewing this data, it is possible to calculate which tariff program makes most sense for each individual.
Now we just need someone to write a program that will allow you to plug in your usage history and it will tell you which rate program is most economical.
Yes. a program would be nice. I spent hours on a spreadsheet formula which proved my suspicion. That suspicion was that the flat rate would be cheaper because we use enough energy in the peak time that the insane rates under TOU more than outweigh the benefit of charging at night to the tune of about $70/mo. My recommendation, if you expect the charging to increase your consumption by 40% or LESS, you are likely to be better off with a flat rate (or at least you should definitely do the math).
The best deal if installation cost is manage-able is a second meter just for the charger which is on TOU (E-9b rate schedule for those with PG&E).
Don't let the provider talk you into a TOU rate. If you are concerned just do the math. Yes it's a pain until someone writes a program, for sure.
PG&E will be offering new EV rate schedules around June 1st. These will eliminate the tiers and baseline quantity and allow for unlimited off peak charging just under $0.10 per kwh. I personally cannot wait because I am usually in the highest tier due to EV charging and that's about $0.30 per kwh on the E-6 TOU schedule. The baseline is only 11.7 kwh per day, which is completely used up with a little over one hour of charging at 40A. I have solar and generate about 17 kwh a day average, but even with a TOU schedule I am often in the highest off peak tier due to EV charging. I plan to install a separate meter and get the EV-B schedule on that meter.
Any program to calculate which plan is better would be very complicated. I looked at this for my setup: I've had solar for several years, and am on the E6 rate plan.
I looked at the E9-B plan, but decided against it for a couple of reasons: 1- the extra cost for installation, and 2- the credits for our solar system wouldn't apply to the second meter (EV) charges.
When looking at switching to the E9-A plan, I had to do a lot of guessing. Our smart meter was just installed last Nov, so I only have hourly consumption information from then. I do have our solar generation information, and the E6 TOU records, so I made some educated guesses about the differences in our TOU between E6 and E9. Then adding in our estimated EV usage (my wife just got a Volt, and I'm waiting on my Model S). For me, it looks like E9-A comes out better than E6. But this depends on several factors:
- When and how much do you use your electricity (hour by hour)?
- If you generate, when and how much do you generate?
- What rate tier do you get into?
- Hour much electricity do you need for your EV?
For me, it looks like I'll lose an hour of peak generation and eat 2 more hours of peak usage. I used to generate more electricity in the summer than I used, but hit tier 4 in the winter (but now with the EV's, I'll be using more in the summer, though in Off Peak).
Yet another factor to consider- the cost in the lower tiers of E9-A Partial Peak is lower than E6 Off Peak, though that changes in the upper tiers.
Then there's the new EV rate plans coming, which eliminates the tiers, but adds a Peak time in the winter. I haven't really looked at these yet, but they look like they might be better if you are in the higher usage tiers.
great spreadsheet, thank you!!!
Have you looked at the usage and cost charts available under pge.com/myusage? They don't seem to properly account for the Daylight Savings Time adjustment described in this paragraph from the referenced PG&E document:
"DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME ADJUSTMENT: The time periods shown above will
begin and end one hour later for the period between the second Sunday in March and the first Sunday in April, and for the period between the last Sunday in October and the first Sunday in November."
I haven't compared my actual bill to the "myusage" numbers, but I now suspect that they don't agree 100% because of this oversight in PG&E's charts.
In the myusage charts, I'm seeing only "off-peak" rates plotted from midnight to 7 am, for every single date in all bills, despite the indication that I should have been charged partial peak rates from 1 am to 8 am, weekdays, from 10 Mar through 6 Apr, as shown in the spreadsheet.
Schedule EV will eliminate the 4 tiers, which is good, but it bumps up the off-peak charging rate from $.03-04/kWh to $0.10-11/kWh, and other rates even more, which is bad.
I downloaded three months of usage data into a spreadsheet and tried to calculate what I would have paid under the proposed EV rates vs. E-9A for the same usage (ignoring DST adjustment). The cost savings for me (only 10K miles/year) was a measly $10/month in favor of Schedule EV.
PG&E documents describe the new proposed schedule EV rates as "revenue neutral," which is hard to understand since they get about double the revenue from EV owners compared to non-EV owners, with no change to infrastructure.
Since pge started reporting daily usage up to previous day in an excel format, I checked my rates on the E9 plan.
Strange thing I noticed: I pay just 6c a kwh if I charge between 12am and 1 am ( my commute is only 30 miles rt)
I switched to charge from 1 am 4 days ago. When I recalculated, I saw that the rate went UP to 15c per wh.
Naturally I reset back to charge at 12 am.
Don't know why this us the case. I live in Fremont.
@RedShift, I'm in Fremont and on E9a plan. I charge my car at 1:00 AM and see the rate of 6c/Kwh. I'm viewing my daily usage on their website not downloading to excel. Can check what rate does it display on their site?
I will check tonight, from home.
@RedShift You may have exceeded your baseline.
I've been on E-9 since February 1st but the bills still reflect the old baseline rates. PG&E says they will be correcting this in my next bill. I am looking forward to a noticeable refund. I'll keep you posted.
@RedShift, increase in usage beyond baseline might trigger the increase to Tier 3 which is at approx. 16c/Kwh. Probably that's what's happening in your case.
The increase in hourly rate could be tied to the change from Tier 1 to Tier 2 or Tier 2 to Tier 3.
Within a billing period, we are allowed a "baseline". In my case (E-9 rate plan), my baseline is 351kWh. During baseline, I pay 4.82 cents/kWh (winter off-peak which is between 12M and 7am not taking account for DST). After I burn through baseline I move the Tier 2, which I pay 6.69 cents/kWh during off-peak. At Tier 3, I pay 16.056 cents/kWh.
The switch from one tier to the next could occur on an hourly basis (which I've confirmed by looking at my historical data on the PG&E website).
In that it does not take too much charging to blow through the baseline amount, the new EV-A and EV-B plans that have a flat rate, for a given time of use, but no baseline, might well be the better deal.
@all who advised about baseline: thanks! That certainly seems plausible.
Next month I should get my permit to charge free at work, so I might start staying within my baseline from next month. We will see.
Am I misunderstanding?
I thought E9 was a TOU (time of use) plan. Is there also a baseline?
Yes, as far as I know, all of the TOU plans have a baseline, except the proposed EV-A and B rates that should become available on June 1. The problem is that if I understand it correctly, your total usage for a month goes over baseline, then you are charged the higher rates (higher tiers) for usage in all of your tiers. Not sure how they calculate that. Probably will find out soon as my usage is up thanks to all the miles we are putting on the car. It is easy to be seduced by the very low tier 1 rates, but since a few hours of charging blow away your baseline....
I think the E9-A makes little sense to average users, if they don't have free employer( in my case, client) provided charging at work.
My usage is roughly 10-15 kwh per day, and I reached my baseline within 2 weeks. I am only getting permission to charge at my client location from next month, and will exclusively charge there. However come summer, I will reach the baseline again, I fear.
Adding to the confusion is the higher rates in summer and TOU shifting around, it's not a very good plan for many people.
When will the EV rate be available and is it advantageous?
"Am I misunderstanding?
I thought E9 was a TOU (time of use) plan. Is there also a baseline?"
Absolutely. I get totally hosed by E9a and tiers, so I'm sure.
My billing cycle starts April 9, and I'm charging my Model S at midnight for about 6 cents a KWh, but climbs very quickly as I go through the tiers. Bear in mind, I had a $420 electric bill before I got a Tesla (work from home with staff) so there's other consumption.
You can see how, by April 23, I'm paying 20 cents an hour. And I'm paying 34 cents for my daytime consumption. It'll get worse in summer when peak pricing kicks in.
I still think this is better than the conventional non TOU I had before, because I was able to switch my THREE big consumers to midnight: Tesla, spa, & pool. But the math is bloody complicated when you overlap TOU with Tiers, seasonal rates, etc.
I'm looking forward to the new EV rates, and also will put in a big solar plant later this year.
As I mentioned above, the PG&E EV-A and EV-Brates should be available on June 1. With the current EV E-9A rate schedule, the baseline rate summer off peak is ~4 cents a kWh. Trouble is if you use twice the baseline, the rate goes to ~20 cents a kWh. With the non-tiered EV-A rate schedule all off peak use will be billed at ~10 cents a kWh. So if you can stay within baseline or not above twice baseline, the E-9 rate is probably better (or E6). Keep in mind that a bit more than an hour charging a day on average will use up your baseline. In my case, since my heat is electric and I do plan to drive enough to blow through the baseline, I think I'll be better off with the proposed EV-A rate. The good news is that with solar the higher rates in the summer during the day are not all bad as you will build credits in higher cents/kWh during most of that time.
Solar is a must if you switch to a TOU plan for most people. We installed solar last fall. I switched us from E-6 which is the TOU most solar customers are on to E-9 to get those really low off peak rates. Our electric bill this month was only $14. With the solar panels offsetting usage we came in under the baseline so I got all my MS charging in at 0.0482/kwh.
As others have posted else where, switching from E-6 to E-9 for solar panel/electric car families is not a slam dunk. The periods of the day that are defined as peak/partial peak/off peak are different between the E-6 and E-9 rate schedules.
For example, the summer peak for E-9 is extended to 9pm versus 7pm for E-6. That will take a bite out of the savings we are getting with that super low off peak rate of E-9 because we produce very little solar energy after 7pm and none after the sun goes down.
Unfortunately, the proposed Schedule EV-A will not save us much compared to the current Schedule E-9A. With schedule E-9A you get very cheap rates ($0.04 - $0.05/kWh) off-peak, but only for a limited time at the beginning of your billing period, before you use up your baseline. This takes only a few days to two weeks, depending on your daily driving needs. With the proposed schedule EV-A, there are no baseline usages, and no tiers, but you will never pay less than $0.09-0.10 kWh, no matter when you charge the car.
Based on my usage (driving only about 40 miles / day, charging only off peak), my average cost per kWh will only drop about one penny per kWh when I switch from Schedule E-9A to Schedule EV-A.
Before switching from E-6 to E-9A I ran PG&E's PEV Calculator, but I don't think it accounted for the our tiered rates, because it vastly underestimated what my electricity cost would be (click the Advanced Options button, bottom right corner, for available options).
Based on this California Public Utilities Commission document, it seems that Schedule EV won't really go into effect until December 31st, 2014 (!), but I may be reading it wrong.
Can anyone add a reference to a document that says Schedule EV will actually go into effect June 1, 2013?


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The presidential campaign is in turmoil less than a month before Election Day, with women coming forward to accuse Donald Trump of accosting them and Trump stepping up efforts to portray Bill Clinton as a sexual predator. The week started out nasty, got worse as it went on and some of Trump's fellow Republicans are determined that he never gets to the White House.
"I will try to gut Donald Trump with a dull deerhandler," said John Stipanovich, a Republican lobbyist with Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney in Florida who has called Trump a racist, misogynistic and ultra-nationalistic boor and a bully. "I think this election is that important. I think the country faces a significant danger from a Trump presidency."
Republicans are fighting for the soul of the party and the soul of the United States, he said. A worse candidate for president could not be imagined, he said.
"We're going to learn that being off-the-wall crazy does not produce victory," he said.
Trump's campaign has been in turmoil since Friday, when a tape recording surfaced of him talking about groping women without their consent. He was egged on by Billy Bush, then the co-host of "Access Hollywood," which is owned and distributed by NBCUniversal, the parent company of NBC News, MSNBC and this station. Bush has since been suspended.
The fallout continued after The New York Times late Wednesday quoted two women who accused Trump of grabbing or kissing them inappropriately, a People magazine reporter wrote about being pushed against a wall as he kissed her, and a fourth woman told the Palm Beach Post that he had grabbed her from behind.
"These vicious claims about me of inappropriate conduct with women are totally and absolutely false, and the Clintons know it and they know it very well," Trump said at a rally in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Thursday. "These claims are all fabricated, they're pure fiction and they're outright lies. These events never, ever happened."
None of the claims, one of which is more than 30 years old, has been independently confirmed by NBC News.
Trump is trying to turn attention to Bill Clinton's sexual misconduct and Hillary Clinton's role in silencing his victims and at his rally on Thursday he accused the media of being a political special interest group conspiring with the Clintons.
"Their agenda is to elect crooked Hillary Clinton at any cost, at any price, no matter how many lives they destroy," he said. "For them, it's a war and for them, nothing at all is out of bounds. This is a struggle for the survival of our nation."
And Trump has increasingly been warning that the election could be stolen from him.
Even before the women made their allegations, prominent Republicans were abandoning their candidate. Emails obtained by NBC News showed that two unidentified big-money donors to Trump were asking for their money back. Both of Alaska's U.S. senators, Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, resigned from leadership positions in the state Republican party, becoming the latest Republicans to say Trump should step aside.
The Ohio GOP chairman said Thursday morning that he did not know whether he would continue to support Trump.
"He clearly has lost it," said Katie Packer, who was a deputy campaign manager for the GOP's 2012 presidential candidate, Mitt Romney, and founded an anti-Trump super PAC during the primaries.
The worst case scenario has Trump doing so much damage that Clinton wins in a landslide and she has a Democratic Congress to carry out a mandate, said Packer, a partner at Burning Glass Consulting, an all-female Republican consulting firm specializing in messaging to women. The best case, which Packer does not anticipate: Trump wins and faces a hostile Congress to work with.
"This is a guy who has some very serious neurotic tendencies," she said. "He very clearly can't handle any criticism and acts of disloyalty and so he lashes out at people in a very destructive way, not just destructive to them but in a very self-destructive way. And it also feeds into the argument for why we shouldn't give him the nuclear codes."
Trump's lewd, crude comments — which he is brushing off as "locker room talk" — were widely condemned. House Speaker Paul Ryan said he would no longer appear with the nominee, instead focusing on defending the party's majority in Congress. U.S. Sen. John McCain said he was parting company with Trump because, "I have daughters, I have friends, I have so many wonderful people on my staff. They cannot be degraded and demeaned in that fashion."
Trump singled out both men in his Twitter attacks on Tuesday.
"Our very weak and ineffective leader, Paul Ryan, had a bad conference call where his members went wild at his disloyalty," Trump tweeted about the Wisconsin congressman.
And, of McCain, he wrote, "The very foul mouthed Sen. John McCain begged for my support during his primary (I gave, he won), then dropped me over locker room remarks!"
A new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll released on Tuesday showed Hillary Clinton holding a 9-point lead over Trump after the second presidential debate on Sunday. In a four-way race, Clinton had the support of 46 percent of likely voters to 37 percent for Trump, 8 percent for Libertarian Party candidate Gary Johnson and 2 percent for the Green Party's Jill Stein. In a head-to-head contest, Clinton beat Trump by 10 points, 50 percent to 40 percent.
To be sure, some Republicans remained in Trump's corner. At the Trump rally on Thursday, former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, also accused the media, including The New York Times, of being part of a conspiracy. On Fox News, Jerry Falwell Jr., the president of Liberty University, continued to defend Trump saying, "He's a different man from the man you saw on that videotape a few years ago, 11 years ago."
The chairman of the Republican National Committee, Reince Priebus, in a conference call with RNC committee members earlier in the week, said that its support for Trump was unchanged. Other Republicans were threatening retribution against party members who did withdraw their support. Diana Orrock, Nevada's Republican National committeewoman and a candidate for the Nevada state assembly said that if Trump did not win the White House, nothing else mattered.
"We have far more important things to be concerned about rather than some boy talk that these guys had 11 years ago," she told CNBC on Monday.
On Thursday, she said her support was as strong now as when she first endorsed him.
Matt Mackowiak a Republican political consultant from Texas and founder of the Potomac Strategy Group in Washington, D.C., said that the remainder of the campaign would resemble a circus. There is no playbook for a race in which the nominee and the party are at war, he said.
"Reince Priebus is trying to hold it together with duct tape at this point," he said. "I'm sympathetic to his challenge but it's every man for himself right now. We have an undisciplined, unhinged nominee surrounded by nut cases and sycophants — with a couple of exceptions."
Clinton is the most flawed Democratic candidate in at least 20 years and could have been beaten had Republicans put principles and ethics over money, power and celebrity, he said. Now, Republicans such as New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, former Rep. Newt Gingrich and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani should be held to account, he said.
"He's become a crazy ex-boyfriend essentially at this point," Mackowiak said of Trump's attacks on Clinton. "Doesn't care about moving on his life. Doesn't genuinely want the other person to have a good life but is consumed by negative energy and by vendettas."
Stipanovich said that half of Trump's supporters were as deplorable as Hillary Clinton labeled them, "ugly folks from the underbelly of America," Stipanovich said. "There's nothing to be done with them other than to thrash them every time we go to the polls."
To win back the other half, who believe the government has let them down, the Republican party will need to take its share of the blame, he said.
"Is the government my enemy, is it part of some great conspiracy to ruin my life and enslave my grandchildren, no, that's ridiculous and we need to start saying that," he said.
The new Republican party must stop being restrictive and afraid, and instead shape the future as best it can.
So far, the most loyal Trump followers have not shown they are a political force beyond their candidate. The one House candidate whom Trump endorsed in the primary, Renee Ellmers of North Carolina, lost, Packer noted. After the election, Republicans will need to come together to repair the damage done to their party and choose a presidential candidate who can win a general election.
"I do think the party is in the middle of a civil war right now," she said. "The good news is that we'll be trying to accomplish that with Hillary Clinton as president. Nothing brings Republicans together like Hillary Clinton."


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29th April 2013
New Suitcase 'Hop' Can Follow Its Owner
Carrying luggage through the airport can be a pain, as any frequent traveler will tell you. A new suitcase called "Hop" is looking to change all of that,by using signals from your cell phone to go hands-free. According to its inventor Rodrigo García, the suitcase comes equipped with three sensors to identify and triangulate the Bluetooth signal from your phone, using those to pick you out of a crowd.To function uses Bluetooth connectivity, and through various sensors calculated over the phone triangulation to define the orientation and layout of displacement. On the mechanical side, has a caterpillar system based on […]


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For more than two decades, Gerald Albright has graced the landscape of instrumental Jazz music with his saxophone.
"I make music that makes people feel good," said Albright who was born and raised in California but currently resides in Colorado. "We musicians are missionaries. We are here to help people feel good."
Recently Albright returned to Pittsburgh to perform along with fellow horn players Dave Koz, Mindi Abair and Richard Elliot for Dave Koz's "Summer Horns" tour.
"It's been a real special adventure for us to do this tour," Albright said. "We picked the cream of the crop songs to feature on the album (of the same name) and the tour.
"We take people back to good times through familiar songs. We're just having a big party and Dave Koz is a class act who brings geniality to the music," Albright continued.
The last time Albright performed in Pittsburgh was alongside Anita Baker as part of the singer's "Rapture" tour in the mid 1980's
"I haven't worked with Anita for about a year and a half, but it was a unique tour because I toured with her as a bass guitarist and a lot of people didn't know that I play bass guitar that puzzled people," Albright said with a laugh. "We were out there for two years and we had to continue to return to cities due to popular demand."
Albright became fascinated with the saxophone after his parents wanted him to play the piano but he wasn't feeling the instrument.
"After about a year my piano teacher put me on an old saxophone he had. He said we'd try something new and I was puzzled but I took to it pretty fast. It was like a toy to me," Albright recalled."
From elementary school on, Albright performed in school and church concerts throughout California.
After college, Albright began working with some of the music industry's top musicians including Patrice Rushen, Ray Parker Jr., The Winans and Olivia Newton-John.


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On December 16
the board of directors of the National Lesbian and Gay
Journalists Association sent out an e-mail to its members,
who are mostly working writers, editors, and
photographers in outlets as varied as national
magazines and local radio stations. The e-mail was not a
Happy Holidays message or even an electronic pep talk
to its many members working at media companies who are
facing layoffs, budget cuts, or worse.
The e-mail did
not "bury the lede," to use a journalistic
term that describes putting the big kicker at the end
of a story. "We need your help,"
NLGJA's national president, David Steinberg, wrote
bluntly. "Today, we ask all NLGJA members to
join together to show support for our mission and
programs by making a gift of at least $25 by the
year's end."
The money will be
used to help fund NLGJA's ongoing education program,
a newsroom outreach project, internships, and its
Rapid Response Task Force, which works
behind-the-scenes to ensure fair and accurate coverage
of LGBT issues. In years past NLGJA had the money to cover
all these programs through dues plus corporate and
foundation grants, but in today's economy
that's no longer possible.
"It's been rough, no question about
it," Steinberg said on the phone a few days
after the e-mail went out. "I don't think it
was a surprise to many of us -- we've been
in a recession for a year. And next year is going to
be really tough as well."
First off, some
disclosure; I am a former NLGJA Los Angeles chapter
president and I serve on the local chapter's board.
NLGJA was an important organization for me when I
began to write full-time about eight years ago.
Founded in 1991 by the late Leroy Aarons, NLGJA was an
outgrowth of a survey Aarons did for the American Society of
Newspaper Editors of LGBT journalists in newsrooms
(Aarons, the senior vice president for news at TheOakland Tribune at the time, publicly came out
when he presented the report). In 1992, NLGJA held its
first national convention, where The New York Times
announced it was adding domestic-partner benefits.
Over the years the annual NLGJA conventions have been
must-attend events for networking, socializing, and even
newsmaking; major media players like Dan Rather, Tom Brokaw,
Judy Woodruff, and Harry Smith showed up to moderate
and participate in panels. And along the way NLGJA
helped develop style guides and worked with media
companies as they added nondiscrimination policies and
addressed domestic-partnership issues.
As a working
journalist who freelances for a number of different outlets,
I'm more than aware it's a tough time in the
media industry. Thanks to the explosive success of
websites like Craigslist, there has been a precipitous
decline in classified advertising revenue at big daily
newspapers, devastating the bottom line of outlets from
The San Diego Union-Tribune to The New York
Times. Add to that the general advertising
malaise, which has depressed revenues in not just print but
also TV and radio media. The current issue of TheNew Yorker noted newspaper readership has been
dropping modestly for decades, "but the Internet
helped turn that slow puncture into a blowout."
The Advocate has not been immune to
changing times; as part of a major redesign the print
magazine is going from biweekly to monthly publication.
explained that two major sources of cash for NLGJA have
pretty much dried up: grants from news companies and
convention revenues. A decade ago NLGJA could rely on
big checks from big media players like NBC, Gannett or
the now-disbanded Knight-Ridder newspaper chain.
wanted to support their employees," Steinberg said,
"but a lot of the companies have reduced their
funding or gone out of business."
Steinberg noted
that NLGJA had been ahead of the curve on sponsorships,
going to LGBT-savvy companies like JetBlue and a variety of
hotel chains to diversify its funding, but even there
NLGJA had issues; one previous funder was automaker
General Motors, which has major financial troubles of
its own.
The annual NLGJA
convention had always been a steady source of money, but
the 2007 convention in San Diego and this year's
convention in Washington, D.C., saw dwindling
attendance, which cost the organization money.
"We signed
contracts that committed us to certain room blocks at
certain prices," Steinberg explained, noting
that conventions are contracted out years before with
host hotels. "No one really foresaw the degree the
industry was going to be hit."
There was a time
when NLGJA could expect 650 people to show up for a
convention, but with that number down to around 500 or even
less, the organization is scrambling to renegotiate
the terms of its 2009 convention, which is scheduled
to take place in Montreal.
"If those
rooms don't sell, we are still contractually
obligated to pay for it," he said.
David Barre,
NLGJA's executive director, noted that attendance was
greater at the D.C. convention than at San Diego, but
attendees were less likely to book at the host hotel
and instead find cheaper lodgings or stay with
"The big
question is if the convention is going to be the central
thing going forward," Barre said. "Over
the next two years we're coming up with new
game plans, things that are a little bit more reliable when
things are tough."
Barre said the
organization has been changing since he arrived in 2006.
Mostly through attrition, the organization has gone from
having seven paid staffers to two, which has saved
money. But the overall downward trend in membership is
alarming. At the beginning of 2008 there were about
1,200 members. As 2009 approaches, that number is down
to about 1,000.
jobs in newsrooms are being cut, our members are going in
different directions," Barre said, explaining that
whether they wanted to or not, many NLGJA stalwarts
have become part-time journalists, begun blogging,
shifted into PR jobs, or left the industry completely.
challenge now is, How do we serve swaths of
membership?" he said. "If we
don't offer them anything, why do they stay?"
Barre is trying
to offer different kinds of options to a changing
membership. NLGJA has loosened its membership guidelines to
include part-timers, launched a career watch
newsletter, and instituted distance learning calls,
where a dozen or so members can talk part in a
phone-based seminar on different subjects. In terms of
revenue, NLGJA has debuted OutNewsWire, an opt-in news
distribution service that charges firms interested in
getting their message out to LGBT journalists.
"We're not forcing it on our
members," Barre said. "We're looking at
other things like that, that don't take as many
resources on the staff side."
Alex Davidson,
the NLGJA chapter president for New York and New Jersey,
said if the organization wants to survive the transition, he
and other local leaders need to do more fund-raising
and membership retention. He's also been
thinking about having a one-day regional conference.
"We can't assume anymore people are
going to come to our events," he said, adding
that NLGJA is more relevant now than ever. "If
you need a job, this is an organization you need to be
a member of."
need to be more proactive, and I'm excited about
that," he added. "It's making
lemonade out of lemons, and that's how we're
looking at that."


text:
After much anticipation by an eager San Francisco Bay Area, transportation leaders Thursday morning voted unanimously to open the eastern span of the Bay Bridge the day after Labor Day.
"Labor Day it is!" Steve Heminger, executive director of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, said after the vote, though technically, the bridge will open the day after the holiday on Sept. 3.
Despite the news, the big party that had once been planned on Labor Day is now going to be replaced by a simple chain-cutting ceremony. And the bike path will have a temporary route until the upper deck of the old bridge is removed.
The decision, which was made by the Bay Area Toll Authority citing the fact that the old Bay Bridge span is not seismically safe, also means that the bridge will be shut down for five days from the evening of Aug. 28 to the morning of Sept. 3. Crews will have to pave and stripe, as well as demolish and connect the new span to the Oakland touchdown and Yerba Buena Island.
BART spokesman Jim Allison said there will be limited round-the-clock service to accommodate the bridge closure, but would not be running trains overnight Sept. 2 to Sept. 3 in the morning.
Oakland's mayor Jean Quan expressed some dissatisfaction with the five-day bridge closure at the meeting, saying 30,000 people are expected in the East Bay that weekend for a Gay Pride event on Sept. 1.
Jim Fink was one of the only other critics at the meeting who had urged the delay of the opening.
But the bridge authority members stated that Labor Day holiday traffic is typically lighter, which gives them good reason to shut the bridge down during that time.
And Freider Seible, chair of the Seismic Safety Peer Review Panel, was one of the many others urging the toll bridge group in a letter (PDF) that the state is "taking on a higher risk in delaying the opening of the New Bridge" than in opening it at the "earliest possible date" while continuing the retrofit.
Thursday's vote - which included installing temporary bearing shims - came after the Federal Highway Administration signed off on the temporary fix in a Aug. 9 letter (PDF). The approval stated it was okay to open the bridge with the temporary solution in place before a permanent fix could be built. In July, the MTC had held off opening the bridge indefinitely because of these bolt issues.
The temporary fix involves installing steel plates in the area of the broken bolts to help prevent movement during an earthquake. The cracked bolts have derailed the opening of the eastern span and led to millions of dollars in cost overruns on the $6.4 billion project.
The existing bridge, built in the 1930s, is not considered earthquake-safe, and years of cost overruns and construction and design delays have plagued the new project.
The current problems started in March, when 32 of the 17-foot-long bolts that secure earthquake shock absorbers to the deck of the bridge were tightened.
Tests found that hydrogen had infected the bolts, which were also made of poor quality steel, making them brittle. When tightened to high tension, the brittleness gave way, causing the cracks.
The permanent repair is a steel saddle that would replace the clinching function of the failed bolts.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
More Bay Area Stories:


text:
Repairs aim to get Lyn Lowry cross lit by EasterWritten by Colby Dunn
- font size decrease font size increase font size
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- One shot to win money for your business plan
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- Despite outcry, Swain not in the running to house Smokies' artifacts
The cross on Mount Lyn Lowry still lies dormant, but repairs are under way with hopes that the bulbs will be shining again by Easter.
The 60-foot cross is a nighttime landmark in the Balsam mountains between Waynesville and Sylva. It went dark last November — the first time in its nearly 50 year history. Repairmen couldn't make it up the road to the 6,000-foot peak until winter had passed. When they did, they discovered the culprit was a lightning strike that left the icon's electrical systems damaged, said its longtime caretaker Marvin Bolick.
"The lightning strike, it just messed everything up," said Bolick. Electricians have been working with Progress Energy to fix the components fried by the strike, as part of the damage was to the company's systems.
Judy Meyers, who can see the cross shining from several rooms in her house nearby, said she feared the cross had shut off permanently.
"At first we thought it was due to clouds or fog coverage which sometimes occur, but then we noticed on the clear nights that it was still dark on top of the mountain. We kept watching to see if the lights would come back on but they didn't," said Meyers.
She was pleased, she said, to learn that the problems were simply electrical.
It was erected in 1965 by General Sumter Lowry, as a monument to his 15-year-old daughter Lyn who died of leukemia. It's now maintained by the family through a foundation.


text:
Ergon GS1 Grip - Leichtbau - Road Bike Shop
Road Bike Shop
Product Search Results For "Ergon GS1 Grip - Leichtbau"
|Ergon GA1 Evo Grips
Designed for all-mountain and gravity-oriented disciplines, the Ergon GA1 Evo Grips feature a rounder, more traditional profile. The shape is subtler, than Ergon's other grips, yet they still feature a position- and hand-specific design. For function, the grips have been contoured for easy...
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Whether you want a pop of bright color or a more muted approach, the Ergon GE1 Grips provide a traditional grip style with an ever so slightly sculpted angle for a comfy, controlled flight down the trail.
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|Ergon GP1 Grip
The Ergon GP1 grip is a great starting point for an exploration of Ergon's wares. The grip has two kinds of rubber, a harder rubber on the outside and a soft, patterned and textured Kraton rubber pad that both grips the hand or glove and offers great support. Each grip is held in place by a...
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|Ergon GS1 Grip
Ergon counts its GS series grips as its premium endurance race model. This isn't a stretch considering it's been ridden to multiple world and national championships. With a palatable price, the GS1 has a relatively simple design, the key features of which are two internal supports built into the...
|Ergon GS2 Grip
Bar ends may not be all that popular anymore, but there is definitely something to be said for having a grip that allows multiple hand positions. Ergon's GS2 Grip has a small, composite three-finger 'hook' that provides additional hand positions and control when climbing out of the saddle without...
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Ergon's grips were developed to reduce pressure on your hands, namely your ulnar nerve which, in turn, helps to mitigate numbness from long stretches in the saddle. The GS3 grip is the ideal compromise between its lightweight GX race grips and its plusher GP series grips. The GS grips are a...
Price: $59.95
|Ergon GX1 Grips
Technical XC racing calls for low-profile grips that will work with you, not against you, in situations where small mistakes cost significant time. Ergon understands this well, and the company engineered its GX1 Grips with fast grip changes that leave little room for slipping around on the bars...


text:
They had known each other since the third grade at Lincoln County Elementary School, but it wasn't until Cheryl Gracey came home on a break from school that she began to hang out with Eli Clark.
"At first it was just like really close friends," Cheryl Clark said. "And then we started spending more and more time together and talking more. Then we started thinking about marriage."
They got married July 21, 2008, at the courthouse with just the judge and a woman from the clerk's office to stand in as a witness.
"She took two or three pictures and my eyes were closed," Cheryl Clark said. "But Eli looked good, Eli and the judge. That's the main thing we miss is not having the pictures and not having our family there."
They plan to renew their wedding vows next month, but they face some mounting challenges.
In March 2010, Eli suffered a seizure. The hospital thought he was having a reaction to a medication. It turned out to be a brain tumor that after radiation therapy became small and fairly stable. That is, up until a year ago.
"Eli started feeling different and he knew something was wrong," Cheryl said inside a darkened room in the Emergency Department of Georgia Regents Medical Center, as Eli lay on a bed nearby recovering from a seizure.
The tumor was growing again and eventually the couple would get a biopsy at Duke University in April confirming that it was an aggressive brain tumor called glioblastoma multiforme.
Eli was started on chemotherapy and he is shuttling back and forth between Georgia Regents University Cancer Center and Duke for
treatments and scans. He has now lost the use of his right hand but has taught himself to eat with his left, even as the tumor claims more of the right side of his body.
"My leg's giving out now," he said. He was hospitalized a month ago for seizures, then seemed to recover with new drug therapy and even danced at his sister's wedding last weekend.
"And Eli hates dancing," Cheryl said.
Then early Monday morning, he woke up his wife "and all he could say was seizure," Cheryl said. He has bounced back and forth from the hospital this week as the seizures became more frequent and his doctors
tried to get them under control with medication.
Back in Lincoln County, while Eli is being treated, friends and family are planning a ceremony for Sept. 14 so that the couple can renew their vows.
"We talk about it every year but we never do it," Cheryl said.
"They always planned to do it at a later date," said Michele Mongrue, who is helping to bring it together in her backyard. Eli calls her "Ma" because his mother was killed in a car accident when he was 10 and she then helped look after the family.
"I think of him like a son," Mongrue said.
The couple's finances have been devastated by Eli's medical bills and they are staying with family so Mongrue is trying to find people who will donate items or services to help them out.
The date, Sept. 14, isn't special yet.
"It's convenient," Cheryl said, but Eli grunted from the bed.
"It's bow-hunting season," he said, adding that's the opening day.
"He and my brother are like, 'Cheryl, you had to pick that day out of every other day,' because Eli loves hunting," Cheryl said, laughing.
It will be a simple ceremony and that is fine with her, "as long as we have our close family and friends," Cheryl said. "And I do want pictures. That way we can have something to remember and maybe if we have kids, show our kids."
"That's my main thing," Eli said.


text:
A Public Crime, or a Bad Publicity Stunt?
There has been more than one mention in a local circle that a local Morning Show from a Tampa-based radio station first posted and provided these photos, are probably the culprits in this whole sham episode.How many Rays fans remember a few years back when M J and a show cohort pulled off a possible marriage photo in the local fish wrap, The St. Petersburg Times weekly Wedding section. No one was any the wiser before the Morning Show came out and confessed that it was a staged stunt and that it was done to attract listeners.
I suspect this is another dysfunctional adventure in the ever-changing escapades of M J and his bunch of co-hosts. There are too many holes and inconsistent actions by the photographer (Gabriels wife) who took these photos to be anything but either a staged event, or one where the cooperation and participation of the two subjects (one a minor, the other an adult) might have netted them a bit of notoriety, but not Internet stardom…sorry.
First, it was stated that Gabriel (if that is your real name) saw the young Rays fan during last Saturday night's game with a golden-colored beverage in his hand after the adult in attendance with him at the game came back with two beverages. The first thing that puzzles me is the positioning of "Gabriel" to the two subjects in question ( 1 row behind them). If you are that close, wouldn't you as an adult question the other adult for making such a blatant mistake in judgment as to giving a child a beverage he can not have for possibly another 11 years?
According to "Gabriel", the adult told the child "Here is yours". That in itself doesn't bring a huge amount of credibility to it being an alcoholic beverage at all. And gold-colored drinks are not always what you might expect. If you really take a sharp look at the photos, there is not presence of beer bubbles lining the sides or bottom of the cup at all, which as all adults know, is the fun additive of CO2 to perk up our favorite concoctions.
The St. Petersburg Timesarticle states that "Gabriel" did not confront the adult in question even though the action itself is considered a crime called "Contributing to the Delinquency of a Minor". But another neighboring Rays concerned fan contacted a member of Rays Security, probably after some prodding and chatter from "Gabriel".
Secondly, Rays Security did look into the situation and probably found that the beverage was not what it appeared to be, and left it at that. If it had been a alcoholic beverage, you can be sure there are Rays game day procedures in place for a Rays Security Supervisor to investigate the situation, then make his recommendation to either discard the issue, or consult with the multitudes of St. Petersburg Police Department personnel at every Rays game.
Deadspin/M J Morning Show
If the beverage in question was (allegedly) beer, the proper authorities, like the St. Petersburg Police and Rays Fan Host personnel would have escorted both the adult and child to another location to conclude their evaluation of the event.
Third, as a former Pepsi Special Events Coordinator who had Tropicana Field as one of my major accounts for many years, I know that the bar areas of Tropicana Field do not put Ginger Ale, Club Soda or Tonic Water in regular Pepsi paper cups that are used primarily for Pepsi carbonated soda beverages. The Trop. does however use a clear plastic 16 oz cup for beverages purchased in the bar locations in conjunction with a fountain gun system connected to either to a 5-gallon post-mix Bag-in-the-Box, or a 5-gallon pre-mix tank located somewhere in that bar area.
I sometimes personally buy a cranberry and pineapple juice from one of the bar locations in Tropicana Field. It doesn't have a lick of alcohol, but does have a indication of being a mixed drink. But if I was to let me daughter or a small child drink from that beverage, I can see it being misidentified as an adult beverage and the level of concern would rise accordingly.
Centerplate also used to buy from my Pepsi location Ginger Ale, Tonic and Club Soda by the case in 10 oz glass bottles for use mainly in their party areas as mixers for adult beverages. But they have also been put into cups and given to children who might have upset stomach or ate too much cotton candy. This could be a secondary origin of the (alleged) adult beverage in question.
Deadspin/ M J Morning Show
Glass bottles are not permitted in the seating bowl of Tropicana Field, so it could have been poured into that size cup by a stadium concession stand worker or a Rays bartender. In stadium beer vendor in the stands do not carry that size cups with them, or have access to that size cups for beverages. Either way, it is highly unlikely that with more than one adult near this child that a (alleged(beer) would have been given and consumed within plain sight at a Rays game.
Also, we are forgetting that it might have been a beverage, like apple juice brought in by the adult since sealed juice items can be brought into Tropicana Field for consumption by the Rays young fans. The adult could have gotten the cup from a bar stand vendor after purchasing his own adult beverage. My personal opinion, it is another promotional sham/scam by M J and his cronies, and this one is not funny at all.
Under age drinking is a crime, and carries some heavy penalties and future restrictions for adults violating such restrictions. No one in their right mind would give a full cup, or even a sip of their beer to a minor in a controlled environment like A Rays game unless they either wanted to be caught, or were trying to pull the wool over someone's eyes. Sorry M J, the sober Rays fans see right through you……clearly.
12 Comments
This is just… weird. I smell a sham… a sham WOW perhaps. BAM!
Sometimes it is a shame that an aging disc jockey has to resort to such trickery toget people to listen to his broadcasts. Usually that is a sign that you have lost touch with your audience. But then again, why would a guy older than 50 want to be on a Top 40, bubble gum pop station?
I truly think there are enough safe guards and also adults who are firm in their belief systems for a kid to not be swigging a beer in the stands at a baseball game.
Rays Renegade
Thank you for the comments. And, even more so, for being so gracious in the face of some of my offhanded remarks about your guys. It IS magnified within the division.
kind regards in baseball,
Everyone say things in the heat of battle, or within the guest of contests that can be taken either with ot without a grain of salt.
I am not teflon to comments about the Rays, but I also recognize and accept that everyone doesn't see the world or even my part of the globe in the same way.
You are welcome. I do not get on a huge bandwagon of rants and raves unless the spirit moves me.
But then again, it is a divisional fight, and those are vital to each of our teams successes past the first week in October.
Rays Renegade
As someone who can knowingly put almost anything in almost anyone hand or put almost anyone in almost any situation and make it look real, I have to say these look set up, fake like an ex's smile…. they need better pr not picture playground….
Phillies Outside
I would never have thought of you as the prankster or the guy to put someone in a ackward position…but you learn something every day.
I agree totally that if you wanted to make it look real, then you make sure you have a confrontation at some moment in the situation to draw attention and a bit of clarity and reality to it.
Could have been worse…..They could have given him a glass of merlot that they sell in the stadium. Wine would have sealed the deal…
Rays Renegade
I see you've added another dimension to your blogging, Renegade. In addition to being an expert in baseball, music and travel, you're now a full-fledged detective! I love how you tried to get to the bottom of this story and reveal the facts!
Btw, I love your profile pic with David Price!
I am just a jack of all trades, and a master of none. Plain and simple.
But because I know the beverage industry, it was easy for me to decypher this one to be bogus and not an issue.
But, the worst part is it made a national website and a blog column on the "St. Petersburg Times".
Guess this blog shows that things are not always as they appear……most of the time.
Rays Renegade
It was taken recently, and I loved that he wore an "Josie Altidore" English Premier League Hull City jersey to the event.
I suspect this was the soccer jersey of choice for the Rays recent soccer jersey flight to Atlanta. I am still a bit miffed no one wanted to wear my Tampa Bay Rowdies old style Rodney Marsh jersey….He was the "Clown Prince of Soccer".
Rays Renegade
I am not totally sure, but I would think that if it did anywhere, it would be in that small stand just after the escalator coming up to the First Base Food Court area.
Still the photo shows not bubbles or even the froth that most beers tend to leave on the plastic.
I truly think we will find soon enough that this is a ruse and that the St. Pete Time took it hook, line and sinker.
Rays Renegade
Does the Trop sell non-alcoholic beer ? Just thought that could be another answer to the beer-colored beverage in a plastic cup only used in the bar areas.


text:
Photo Essay
EurasiaNet's 2014 Photos of the Year
The year-long unrest and conflict in Ukraine that first escalated and then subsided had repercussions from Turkey in the west to Kyrgyzstan in the east, with governments attempting to stifle their own dissent at home or dealing in uncertainty with Putin's Russia. Even as the value of the ruble tumbled, Russia continued to flex its political muscles in the region, securing the Moscow-led Eurasian Economic Union and influencing decision-making in several former Soviet republics.
These, and hundreds of other stories, were covered by our contributing photojournalists and documentary photographers in 2014. It is through their eyes and by capturing with their cameras that EurasiaNet.org can present unique stories of people, events, and humanity in the South Caucasus, throughout Central Asia, across the Anatolian Plain, and over the rolling steppe of Mongolia. These images are a look back at EurasiaNet's best photo coverage of news and stories from 2014.
Although all of the excellent photos and hard work from our photographers cannot be featured on this select gallery of images, you can review all of our posted Photo Essays here and our posted Audio Slideshows here.
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text: AirAsia & AirAsia X begin operations at klia2 on 9 May Arrive at klia2 3 hours prior to departure Perform self-check in via web or mobile Strict enforcement of only one (1) cabin baggage per guest SEPANG, 7 May 2014 AirAsia would like to remind all guests that all AirAsia & AirAsia X flights will be fully operating from klia2 on 9 May 2014 (Friday) onwards. It is highly advisable for all guests with flights departing from the new airport to arrive 3 hours prior to departure of their flights and clear all travel formalities as early as possible, as the new klia2 covers a large area and additional time is required to get from one point to another in the airport. Guests are recommended to perform self check-in, available via web or mobile, before arriving at the airport. Self check-in is available from 14 days and up to 1 hour prior to departure for all AirAsia flights, and up to 4 hours prior to departure for AirAsia X flights. Baggage drop counters at klia2 opens 3 (three) hours before scheduled time of departure, and closes 1 (one) hour before scheduled time of departure for all international and domestic flights. The airline continues to strictly enforce the 'one cabin baggage policy' to ensure smooth boarding and disembarkation process at klia2. AirAsia's ground staff will be available to assist guests and ensure a smooth transition to the new airport. AirAsia will also deploy additional volunteers to assist guests at the new airport. For further queries, guests may get in touch with AirAsia via the following channels: 1. AskAirAsia via www.airasia.com/ask 2. Online form at http://www.airasia.com/kh/en/e-form.page 3. Live Chat (available via AskAirAsia after login using the AirAsia member ID). For any enquiries pertaining to other services at klia2 not related to the airline, visit the airport's official website at www.malaysiaairports.com.my.


text:
Well I was working on this all day yesterday and I finally got it to work!
Lets say you are sending out a newsletter or something to people in your DB. Chances are you are going to get some bounces. Now, why would you do nothing with these bounced emails? You should unsubscribe them from your DB or something! Here's how to do it:
Step 1: Make a php file and call it whatever you want.
Step 2: Paste the following code into it:
Step 3: Configure the following:PHP Code:
#!/usr/local/bin/php -q
$con = mysql_connect("localhost","xxxxxxxx","xxxxxxx");
if (!$con)
die('Could not connect: ' . mysql_error());
mysql_select_db("xxxxxxx", $con);
/* Read the message from STDIN */
$fd = fopen("php://stdin", "r");
$email = ""; // This will be the variable holding the data.
while (!feof($fd)) {
$email .= fread($fd, 1024);
/* Script start */
$start_limiter = '-0400
To: ';
$end_limiter = 'Subject: RapidCashGPT Newsletter';
$start_pos = strpos($email,$start_limiter);
$end_pos = strpos($email,$end_limiter,$start_pos);
$needle = substr($email, $start_pos+10, ($end_pos-11)-$start_pos);
//do action here
- Change your database info on lines 4 & 10
- On line 21/22, make sure that text appears in a bounced email. It may be different for everyone else
- On line 23, change the subject to whatever the subject is of the outgoing email you sent
- Code an action where it says //do action here. this could be a mysql query, or even writing it to a text document for later use
Step 4: In cpanel, go to "Account Level Filtering", click Create New Filter.
Name it whatever you like, then set up how you want them filtered. I set it up as "Subject Equals: Mail delivery failed: returning message to sender"
Step 5: Under Actions, click pipe to program, and put this:
Be sure to change "username" to your account, and "FILE" to whatever you named the php file.Quote:
/usr/bin/php -q /home/USERNAME/public_html/FILE.php
Step 6: Testing and fixing! There is only one problem with the code above, on line 26 you see 2 numerical values.. This is what deletes extra characters from the substring. When you change the start and ending limiters to fir your needs, the numbers will be off. Just play around with the numbers until you get no extra characters (or any accidentally deleted characters) at the end or beginning of the email!
Step 7: Save everything! It will now be working. Please note that "testing" the filter does not work correctly, and nothing will happen why you try to do so. If you really want to test it, send an email to your main account with the title filter you chose and the same body as a bounced email and see if it works! Also, there may be a better way to strip the email out of the email, so be my guest to change it and let me know! You might be able to pass a header when you're sending your emails to make your life a little easier.
Thanks would be appreciated :D Please let me know of any customization to this script that make it easier to use! :)