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Discussion in 'Vendors' started by sanjoh, Aug 5, 2010.
Please check your PM's
Sanjoh ... need a new lens i cracked mine ... new clear cover aswell and some H/D mounts ...i found the mounts on your site but no clear lens .. i did find the protectors ......are you out of clear len's
Please contact me via email email@example.com.
2009 Kawasaki KLR650
I have read most of this entire thread over the past week. I do all city and or slab riding and would like somethng like the 44's for daytime visibility. I just don't think I would ever need all the light 60's give! I understand running these at 100% at night on city streets would not be very considerate of oncoming vehicles so you recommend one of your LED Dimmers with High Beam Bypass which sounds promising. I don't think I need another key FOB in my collection so I was looking at the Rotary one. I have also checked out the Skene product also. A few questions for you and sorry if they have been answered somewhere else in this great thread.
Where or how exactly does the Rotary LED Dimmer mount? To the bars? On a panel?
I understand the Model 44 Flood Light is a glass lens. Does the Xpel Light Protection slip-on to the flood light housing to protect the glass from breakage? Is the Xpel a replacement lens?
Morning, it can take a while to get through a thread like this :).
The Xpels are a round (lens-fitting) material that apply directly to the front of the lens. I would say they can be removed if they get damaged or you want a different color. Right now I have yellows on my LEDS, but you can get blue and clear. Mine have some noticeable road-wear and I should be getting some new ones myself, so as to how difficult it is to get them off, someone else can comment, and I would appreciate a good tip on how to start the process myself, lol. Tweezers? :). See link below. I know they USED to have yellow, I hope they still carry it.
So the Xpels are like a plexiglass slip-on to the glass lens on the light?
Yes, made of urethane I believe.
email sent no answer :huh
OK....I did a youtube search on Xpel and I see it is a film type of product. Sort of like a window tint type of film. I thought it was more like a clear lens cap like you would install over the light housing.
Any answers to the question on the rotary LED switch and how it mounts to the bike?
Have a look at this page starting at post # 2833.
OK...ummmm....looking for something that will give me a bit cleaner install like the Clearwaters use. Something a bit more clean mountable instead of Velcro or 2-sided tape. Love the lights! Already have a pair of Twin Headlight Ernie brackets for the Gen 2 KLR650. Just trying to figure out the rest so I can get this rolling! I'll have to sleep on that ADVmonster rotary switch. Thinking I may be able to panel mount that thing but will I be able to turn it with gloves? I can't wait to order the ADVmonster lights!
It's a very big knob about one inch across. You can adjust it with one single finger. Gloved or not.
That's what SHE said.
And once you've set a lower setting to be traffic friendly, you don't need to change it. High beams give you full power.
The rotary dimmer is surface mount. You can mount it anywhere you have the space. I like mine mounted behind either the brake or clutch (if equipped) master. Like this
The xpel lens protection is a product developed by 3m to protect aircraft windshields. It is not a replacement lens, it is attached with adhesive and becomes permanent about 20 minutes after application. Here is what it is made of.
A guys gotta ride
Email coming with PP invoice.
the plastic knob on the dimmer broke off. Is there anything I can splice in to replace the switch? It still works but the adjuster is flush to the housing and I can only turn it by sticking a key in there.
How did you break the lens? Flying rock, or crash?
I always worry about trashing out my lights cause I tend to ride pretty close sometimes to the buddy in front of me to avoid dust. Plays hell on equipment though.
I found these GREAT covers for the lights I built and they also fit these Monster lights as well to protect them from rock hits and probably crashes to a lesser extent....will have to post a picture.
They are silicon and can be had in clear (which really let the light through pretty well too), or red. When installed they are kind of tight fitting so hold some air pressure as well and that really acts as a nice air cushion to keep them in one piece.
sanjoh, you might want to buy some of these and offer as an option too!
The clear ones are available from Caplugs and mostly used as masks for when plating or painting things. Real nice stretchy and tough 100% silicone so it stands up to heat real well too. I think they said up to 500 degrees?
Unfortunately to get them from Caplugs you have to buy a huge quantity.
The red ones are available through McMaster Carr and you still have to buy 10 but for only 1.60 apiece they are a great deal.
Here is the part number: 92805K47
I cut the red covers down about an inch as my two outside lights are not as long as the monster ones. Monster cover one is full length as delivered.
well done
dvgonzo.......i crash sometimes ...i like to push the pace a lil bit till my skills runout
there's a few vids floating round this place of my exploits on my xrr
That is funny, maybe it is some sort of virus or disease?
I seem to be afflicted with the same thing and it comes on all of a sudden!


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The Russellville City Council voted to pay outgoing interim police chief Kyn Wilson $924.25 in severance pay after the city's legal authority said Wilson was entitled to it.
City Attorney Trey Smith said state law does not clarify guidelines related to interim employees, and Wilson was hired with the understanding that he was entitled to full benefits. In his four months as interim chief, Wilson earned approximately $16,000 in salary.
The vote came during Thursday night's City Council meeting after it was discussed at a city personnel committee meeting an hour before. Even with Smith's opinion, the issue narrowly passed.
Aldermen voted 5-2 with Ronnie Tripp and Robert Wiley voting against the expenditure. Alderman Tyrone Williamson abstained. Five votes were needed to pass the funding request.
Aldermen split 4-4 on Wilson's request to pay incoming police chief James Bacon six days of "training pay" so Wilson can personally train Bacon. Mayor Raye Turner then cast the deciding vote, allowing the city to spend $1,246.50 for Bacon at a rate of $25.96 per hour.
Voting for the training expense, Alderman Paul Gray said Bacon needed to be trained by Wilson. Opposing aldermen Wiley and Williamson said training could be provided by police officers already being paid.
Aldermen Rick Harrell, Faye Abernathy and Tripp joined Gray and Turner, while aldermen Cliff Kirchner and Andrea Lea joined Wiley and Williamson against the expense.
Bacon is to begin Sept. 2, although his training will begin today.
Wilson's severance pay is the amount of money Wilson accumulated in vacation time while he was interim chief. Wilson said he did not use any vacation time during his time as police chief.
City policy dictates a temporary employee is not entitled to any fringe benefits, including vacation or severance pay. It defines a temporary employee as "seasonal and part-time employees who have been appointed a specific job lasting for a specific period of time."
Turner said Wilson was not a temporary employee because he was not hired for a specific period of time. Lea disagreed with Turner, and a series of verbal volleys began between the two.
Lea contended Wilson was hired for "a specific period of time" because he was to serve as police chief until Turner hired a police chief. He replaced Ron Stobaugh, who resigned April 30.
"Would you agree with me that he was hired for a specific period of time?" Lea asked Turner.
"No ma'am, I wouldn't," the mayor responded.
Turner said Wilson wasn't hired for a specific period of time because his appointment didn't include a specific number of days or weeks and a specific end date. He was hired for an open-ended amount of time until Stobaugh's replacement was selected.
Lea then asked Wilson if he knew he would just work for a temporary amount of time. Yes, Wilson responded, "But I had no idea when that would be.
"If the council doesn't want to pay me for the time I've accrued, that's fine," he continued. "But I think I'm entitled to it."
Smith said Wilson didn't qualify as a temporary employee because he was neither seasonal nor part-time, making the disagreement surrounding the "specific period of time" moot.
Lea also suggested changing the city's personnel policy to require a second in command at the fire and police departments serve as interim chief in the future to save the city expense of hiring an outside employee as interim chief. Turner said such an action would be illegal because the mayor, as the CEO of the city, is the only one who can hire interim chiefs.
"If you want that authority, you can run for mayor," Turner told Lea.
In other business, the council:
Received a report from the city's Revenue Task Force. The report suggested the city consider alcohol sales inside city limits, along with other revenue-producing ideas. More information concerning the report will be Saturday's Courier.
Passed an ordinance changing the fee charged to people who drop off animals at the Russellville Animal Shelter. People who live in Russellville will be charged a $5 fee, people who live outside Russellville in Pope County will be charged a $10 fee, and people who live outside of Pope County will be charged a $15 fee for dropping off animals.
Set Sept. 9 at 5 p.m. to conduct a public tour of Russellville City Hall. Council members are considering their options concerning the old building, as some have suggested either renovating the building or building a new facility. Plans are in preliminary stages, however.
Approved a resolution to put City Clerk Kathy Collins under the APERS retirement system.
Acknowledged a directive to the Planning Commission for study of an amendment to the city's Land Subdivision and Development Code that would require underground wiring in new subdivisions.
Authorized Turner to submit an application for grant funds to the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism for trails.

subset: commoncrawl


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Terror returns with Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterfly, the sequel to the highly popular survival horror title, Fatal Frame. This time the terrifying journey takes you to a whole new creepy setting, an abandoned village, where you play the role of Mio Amakura, a young girl who is gifted with a strong sixth sense and her twin sister Mayu, who notices a crimson butterfly faintly glowing in the sky.
Mayu, feeling mysteriously compelled to follow the butterfly, chases it into the dark forest. Mio unwillingly follows her sister into the forest's depths. After chasing the crimson butterfly to a clearing in the forest, the two sisters stumble upon a deserted village. Unknown to either sister is that this lost village will become the spooky setting for yet another horrifying tale guaranteed keep you up at night.


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The U.S. cotton industry generates about 200,000 jobs among the various sectors from farm to textile mill and accounts for more than $25 billion in products and services annually. Cotton is produced in 17 southern States from Virginia to California. Major concentrations include areas of:
- the Texas High and Rolling Plains;
- the Mississippi, Arkansas, and Louisiana Delta;
- Southern Georgia; and
- California's San Joaquin Valley.
U.S. cotton is grown as an annual from seed planted each year, although cotton can be grown as a perennial in tropical climates. Given the vast differences across the U.S. production area, the cotton growing season varies dramatically, as typical planting occurs between March and June and typical harvesting occurs between August and December.
The predominant type of cotton grown in the United States is American Upland (Gossypium hirsutum). The upland type, which usually has a staple length of 1 to 1 1/4 inches, accounts for about 97 percent of the annual U.S. cotton crop. Upland cotton is grown throughout the U.S. Cotton Belt, as well as in most major cotton-producing countries. The balance of U.S.-grown cotton is American Pima or extra-long staple (ELS) (Gossypium barbadense). ELS cotton, which has a staple length of 1 1/2 inches or longer, is produced predominantly in California, where it is particularly well adapted to environmental conditions. ELS cotton is also grown in the arid regions of southwest Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. The markets for ELS cotton are mainly high-value products, such as sewing thread and expensive apparel, although it is also used in home items, such as bath towels and rugs.
Cotton acreage in the United States rose slightly during the first half of the 2000s, which continued a multi-decade trend. In the 1970s and 1980s, area planted to cotton averaged about 12 million acres. Area rose to about 14 million acres in the 1990s and averaged over 14.5 million acres during the first half of the 2000s. Since 2006, however, U.S. cotton planted area has been considerably lower as relative prices have favored the planting of alternative crops, such as corn and soybeans. All regions of the Cotton Belt have experienced significant declines as compared with the first half of the 2000s.
According to the Census of Agriculture, U.S. cotton farms numbered 18,605 in 2007, down from 24,805 in 2002. While the number has fallen, cotton acreage per farm has risen, averaging 564 acres per farm in 2007 compared with 502 acres in 2002. The percentage of large cotton farms (over 1,000 acres) has continued to increase while the share of small cotton farms (under 100 acres) declines.
Similar to area, cotton production in the United States during the first half of the 2000s continued a rising trend, paralleling advances in technology (seed varieties, fertilizers, pesticides, and machinery) and production practices (reduced tillage, irrigation, crop rotations, and pest management systems). The impact of these changes has been particularly evident, with yields and production reaching new highs. While U.S. cotton production decreased considerably following the area reductions of the late 2000s, consistently higher yields helped limit the effect of these acreage declines.
Consumption of cotton by U.S. textile mills peaked in 1997. Since then, U.S. mill use of cotton has plummeted, dropping about 50 percent by 2005 and nearly 70 percent by 2009. While the end of the Multifibre Arrangement's (MFA) quotas in 2005 was a factor, much of the decline in U.S. textile production occurred before then. See this publication for more details about the MFA:The Forces Shaping World Cotton Consumption After the Multifiber Arrangement
Capital investment by global textile suppliers near the turn of the century provided increased concentration and market share, accelerating a long-standing trend of textile production moving to developing countries. Despite the decline of U.S. textile production, U.S. consumer demand for cotton products remains strong, but imported clothing now accounts for most purchases by U.S. consumers. (See U.S. Textile and Apparel Industries and Rural America for more information about the impact of changes in textile trade on the U.S. textile industry from the mid-1990s to the mid-2000s.)
The world's four largest cotton-producing countries are China, India, the United States, and Pakistan, which together account for nearly 75 percent of world production. Other major producers include Brazil, Uzbekistan, and Turkey. While cotton is generally a Northern Hemisphere crop, about 8 percent of the world's output comes from south of the equator (primarily Brazil and Australia) and is harvested during the Northern Hemisphere's spring.
Many of the leading cotton producers are also leading mill users of raw cotton. The top three consumers are China, India, and Pakistan, which together account for two-thirds of world consumption. Turkey and Brazil are the fourth and fifth largest mill users of cotton, bumping the United States to sixth place among consuming nations.
Trade is particularly important for cotton. About 30 percent of the world's consumption of cotton fiber crosses international borders before processing, a larger share than for wheat, corn, soybeans, or rice. Through trade in yarn, fabric, and clothing, much of the world's cotton again crosses international borders at least once more before reaching the final consumer.
The cotton industry continues to face many of the supply and demand concerns confronting other field crops. However, since cotton is used primarily in manufactured products, such as clothing and home furnishings, the industry faces additional challenges associated with the economic well-being of downstream manufacturing industries, as well as the economic well-being of the final consumer.


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Product Features:
Auto-fill water boiler
Integral 7 day programmable timer
Programmable filter change warning (when used with Instanta water treatment)
Stylish, compact, reliable and long lasting
Energy saving ECO mode on all models
Electronically controlled for constant temperature (between 80°C and 98°C)
Integral stainless steel drip tray included
Large non-drip taps
Easy installation and maintenance
Insulated for economy and safety
Low voltage switching on all controls
Stainless steel boilers
Minimal steam escape
LCD read out
Five water level sensors
Safety cut-out on overflow and element
2 years on-site parts and labour guarantee
Heat Up Time (From Cold): 60min
Rapid Draw Off: 17ltr
Min. Hourly Output: 28ltr (168 cups)
Recovery per Minute: 0.5ltr
Power Loading (Single Phase): 3kW
Av. Standby Power Consumption: 0.13kW/hr
Allow up to 45mm depth for connection
Electrical - Mains Powered: Yes (UK Plug Supplied)
Brand: Instanta
Product Help: Instruction Manual for CPF Models
Manufacturer Part Number:
Height: 610mm
Width: 360mm
Depth: 555mm
Drip Tray to Tap Height: 200mm
Weight (empty): 18.5kg
Weight (full): 40kg


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Lakewood Ranch High School alum and current University of South Florida Sun Doll Tiffany Blevins has been chosen to represent USF and the Big East in the first round of the Athlon Sports Sideline Spirit Competition.
The Web-based competition features more than 30 cheerleaders and dancers from throughout the country. Every three weeks, Athlon selects one person from each of the major college conferences. Photos and profiles are displayed on the Web site, and visitors can vote on their favorite. The contest runs through the end of the regular season in December.
Blevins will be competing in the first round, which runs Aug. 29 through Sept. 18, against girls from Troy, Michigan State, Alabama, Oregon, Boston College and Alabama. Prizes include $2,000, a JVC HD Everio Camera and a JVC Micro System with iPod Dock.
Those interested in voting for Blevins must first register at AthlonSports.com. Votes also can be submitted via Athlon's Facebook page. Users can vote up to 20 times a day, per account, at the Web site, and up to 10 times a day on Facebook.


text: Picked it up last night and so far I'm enjoying it. The first thing I noticed is the graphics, absolutely gorgeous. Between the cut scene's and the game they are virtually seamless. The actual game play is a bit different than I'm used to but it's pretty easy to figure out. I'm not too far into is so far because I'm pretty much getting my ass handed to me, might have to bump it down to medium.


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August 25, 2009
Humans on their way... and falling for Robsten rumours?!
This video disturbs and confuses me on many levels :/
Thanks TwiFans via Radar Online
- Lorabell *ducks and covers*
P.s. It's my pet theory that all this "Robsten" coverage may actually have an effect on Rob and Kristen's relationship, even if they're not dating... think about it: you're working in close proximity with the same schmexy person every day; you're pretending you can't live without each other; everywhere you look people are suggesting you're hooking up; you only have so many smooth ways of avoiding the building embarrassment between you; you start thinking "s/he can't think it's such a bad idea, can they?!"; before you know it the tension's building; as you're hiding out away from the paps one night you have a few too many drinks aaand... Robsten!
18 comments:
- icrodriguezAugust 26, 2009 at 12:02 AM
The interviewer was definitely trying to trap them into confirming a romantic relationship between Rob & Kristen, and not too successfully. The only one who kind of faltered was Mike Welch, and even then it was an uncertain response. NICE TRY THOUGH!ReplyDelete
Lol. That was awkwardReplyDelete
I kind of thought Christian was the one who came closest to saying 'YES' because she said, "I didn't know it had been confirmed" or something close to that, so that sounds as if there may be something that WASN'T confirmed (OR it could mean that she didn't know the RUMORS were confirmed, not the actual relationship.)ReplyDelete
Does that even make sense? LOL.
They cut Mike off, so I'd like to know what he said after that.
Either way, I don't think I could say, "we have solid confirmation" on anything.
I feel bad for these guys, though - - no one ever asks them about their acting plans or their characters. I'd be so tired of answering Robsten questions!
- AnonymousAugust 26, 2009 at 12:30 AM
They all said they hadn't even seen Rob and Kristen since Comic Con, so obviously they wouldn't know either way....I think it was silly! Why even ask them about it. And I agree with the last post...they should ask the poor actors some questions about themselves, not about people they haven't even kept in touch with.ReplyDelete
- Jamik_hhpAugust 26, 2009 at 12:39 AM
I would have 2 say that Mike seemed like if u say it's been confirmed, like the reporter said then okay it has been. He seemed kind of lost for words. Christin' said basicly u know more then I do. If u say it's confirmed then it's confirmed. That was about it. The other guy said if it is then good on them. So the reporter guy said it's been confirmed & basicly they all just agreed by saying If U Say So Then Okay...Yet News 2 Us!!! Plus I Agree w/ JennJam. People need 2 find out what's going on w/ them & lay off the Rob & Kristen relationship!!!ReplyDelete
- AnonymousAugust 26, 2009 at 12:53 AM
robsten is so on !!! i mean come on can't you see!!!ReplyDelete
That interviewer needs to be kicked in the manips. Horrible!ReplyDelete
- faithstarsAugust 26, 2009 at 1:32 AM
I get the facination but, come on, really!!!! I think it beyond rude and annoying that these paps feel they have a right to invade a persons private relationships.ReplyDelete
It is nobodys business what goes on between those two! It is also more than a little creepy to be so facinated with two peoples romantic lives(if there is one).
Is anyone else tired of these sleezy, so called "journalists" total invasion of privacy?
- AnonymousAugust 26, 2009 at 2:21 AM
I just feel bad for these three getting questioned like this (probably yet again) and rarely being recognized for their own work in the films. I think it's disgusting how this interviewer obviously set out to have them answer "Robsten" relationship questions.ReplyDelete
Besides, as much as we want to know (myself included) and are fascinated and drooling at every new snippet of information, truth is, it's NONE of our business. They are young, probably younger (maybe even MUCH younger) than most of us who adore Twicrack. They are going to do what young people do. I doubt either of them is looking for a serious relationship right now. We all know that. We all love them, respect them and I just think that the PAPS should too.
It seriously makes me sick (if you can't tell hee hee). Don't even get me started on the recent "zombie" Rob and "awkward" Kristen personas and how much they've changed in their interviews these past months, from all of the "Stalkarazzi" harassment. I just hope it doesn't change them for the worse, as they both seem like very nice, witty, intelligent and talented actors. This kind of thing can really mess people up. I know we adore all of them too much to see that happen!
They haven't seen anyone since comic-con. They don't know what's going on anymore than we do.ReplyDelete
LOL at Mike- "Kristin was in full JJ mode-so it will be interesting to see her now" Hee Hee he must of thought she was a little out there too!!!
Shame shame shame on that "reporter". Being so sneaky, presenting the subject as if it were fact & not rumorReplyDelete
- AnonymousAugust 26, 2009 at 4:03 AM
This whole thing is beyond juvenile and ridiculous. They're together. Who cares.ReplyDelete
I'm so farking sick of hearing about this, I can't tell you.ReplyDelete
I really don't give a rat's ass and wish people would just stop talking about it.
Who cares?? Seriously!! I just hope that if they are sleeping together that a) they're practicing safe sex and b) it doesn't take away from the on-screen heat.
Personally, I hate watching real life couples in love scenes - I feel like I'm peeking in their bedroom windows. This nonsense better not ruin New Moon or Eclipse for me....
LMFAO justin is high as a kite. i'm sure of it. i love that kid.ReplyDelete
p.s. i have said it before and i will say it again, i sure as hell hope rob and kristen are fucking. they are both sexy and young and famous, so i say, GET IT ON. hahaha.
- AnonymousAugust 26, 2009 at 2:23 PM
It's okay to ask about Rob and Krisrten since they are the big stars of these movies, but it's not ok to ask about 'Robsten' and keep asking about it after they say'I dunno'.ReplyDelete
I dont really care if they are going out or not. All i want to know about is the movie, and the movies characters, she can do whatever she wants, and he can as well.ReplyDelete
Dont know why this interviewer is asking their casts mates, they obviously were uncomfortable with the questioning.
- Danish Twi-loverAugust 26, 2009 at 5:43 PM
Schych.... Lorabell, sorry but I totally disagree with your theory. I fear, that all this talk and rumors will ruin if there's something genuine going on. If there's something and it's serious, then they will go public eventually and THEN we can celebrate :-DReplyDelete
Oh this review just makes me feel uncomfortable on so many levels. Poor Mike, Christian, and Justin!ReplyDelete
PS - my veri word was "SCRUDE" as in, that interviewer was downright scRUDE!"


text:
" Brand: Lamaze / Type: Baby Bath Toys "
* Prices may differ from that shown
For Christmas I bought my niece a few toys as she is now 9 months and is showing more interest in them.
I bought the Lamaze Octopus from Amazon and paid £18. It was a little pricer than other toys I bought but it did look colourful and interesting so was worth a try. The Octopus has a little handle of the top so you can hold it or hang it up. It has 8 legs which are all different colours and also different textures which is great for learning. You can squeeze each of the legs and they make different sounds. The legs are easy to squeeze so my niece of 9 months is able to play with this without needing support. She loves the different sounds and likes feeling the different textures.
She is quite advanced for her age however I would say the toy is suitable from about 6 months - 14 months as it does have several learning opportunities.
I do really like the toy and my niece enjoys it however it will only keep her interested for short periods of time. I would recommend however I would say have a shop around as I think £18 is rather expensive for what it actually does.
My brother brought my daughter this for her first christmas (she would have been around 8 weeks old) Already a huge fan of lamaze toys, I was really impressed with Octotunes, with his bright colours, textures and his musical tentacles which each play a different note. Octotunes is vanilla scented and smells lovely. Octotunes has a handle so he can be carried, however I'm guessing initially this is more the the parents benefit as although not particularly heavy would be difficult for a baby to move.
Octotunes is extremely well made and durable.
This toy is aimed at babies from birth 2 years, but I can see it lasting far longer than this. My daughter can't squeeze the tentacles to make the sounds as yet but she loves it when we do this for her. Its a very interactive toy, and both myself and my partner love playing with it with her. My daughter also loves playing with all the different textures. Octotunes has a smiley happy face and comes complete colour-coded instructions attached detailing how to use the toy to play nursery rhymes.
I think this toy grows this the child, smaller babies can play with the textures and enjoy the bright colours, as baby grows they will enjoy playing with their parents to make sounds and as they are older still will love creating tunes themselves.
Highly recommend this toy. It can be brought on Amazon for £15-£20 and in my opinion is worth every penny.
This review also appears on CIAO under the same username.
We got this as a birthday present when my son turned 1. I certaintly had a little fun playing with it, doing some basic nursery rhymes but my son wasnt intrested. Now at 18 months he loves making things make noises but he still cant squeeze them properly (hes either too soft or too slow I'm not sure so I wouldnt reccomend this toy until the child is around 2! Its a nice toy but I've had more play out of it than him!
Its a yellow octopus with 8 (of course) legs. The legs are a variety of colours and textures and have different coloured tips. It has soft felt tags coming from the neck. The handle is multicoloured and makes a crinkly sound when you squeeze it.
All my toddler can really do is explore the textures and hold it by the handle at the moment, which is a little heavy.
The legs play musical notes which is cool as you can play basic nursery rhymes on them. Before 2 years though Id say its more of an parent/child toy as youd have to take the lead with this and make the sounds. Unfortunatly my child is at the age where hes quite frustrated that he cant make the sounds himself so he looses patience quite quickly.
As it has a variety of colours it can provide a good talking point to toddlers who are learning their colours "what colours this? can you show me the red leg?". As they get older you can also discuss the differences in the sounds each leg makes.
I think this toy is a great idea but I dont think its worth buying for any child under 2, I like this toy more than my son does if I'm honest!
I might change my mind when he is older if he becomes more intrested with it but right now I dont think its really worth even £15 (which is the cheapest I've seen it go for).
Personally I love this toy! It was a present for my son when he was born and was basically as big as him to begin. I guess at around 6 weeks old he became more aware of the toy, as I think he was watching and listening and certainly kept him quite at the same time as entertaining my daughter who was almost three.
I am really into music and play several instruments and like to find ways of passing my musical enjoyment onto my kids. This is a fun way of getting small children interested in music and learning tunes.
Octotones has eight tentacles, well he is an octopus! But conveniently there are also eight notes in a music octave, doh, rah, me, fah, soh, la, te, doh. This means one is able to play - well if you have some musical knowledge - simple nursery rhymes such as twinkle twinkle, three blind mice, row the boat etc on Octotones. I also make up tunes and do harmonies - press two tentacles at once. I think the fact my kids can sing along to Octotones makes it so enjoyable.
This friendly musical octopus is quite big in baby toy terms. I think it must be made as an interactive parent child play toy, not only because of its size, but also it's quite hard to squeeze the octopus' tentacles to make the sound. The "squeaker" is inside the toy at the end of each tentacle. It is a squeaky kind of noise, but it has a very definite pitch to each note.
The toy is made out of lovely brightly coloured, patterned, soft textured material, using the primary and secondary colours. It is edged with a black and white stripy silky material and has a big bulging head with a friendly face. There is a handle at the top to hold it with. I think this toy looks really attractive. The tentacles are in a sort cone shape, with the widest part at the end of the tentacle where the squeaker is. For a baby of around six months onwards I feel this is very attractive, it feels nice, has different textures, it's very bright and the sounds are capturing.
We play games with this toy. Counting the legs is a basic one, as is talking about the colours and a little bit more complex is talking about textures. Harder games include guessing which is the higher sound I played, the first or the second? My son at nearly three still gets this toy out, however at five my daughter is now past it.
I think this toy costs around £20, and although it really is designed for babies it does seem to have a lasting appeal probably until around 3 and a halfish in age. It's certainly the only "baby" toy we still have, so I think that proves it's been very good value.
Thank you to my friend who bought it for my son, this was a lovely gift!
My recently brought my little girl one of these .. having had one for her little girl when she was a baby. Being at an age now where shes just starting to learn new things every day and discover new things this toy was perfect for her. I was a bit worried at first that she may not like it but i was so wrong lol. Lamaze definitly have a thankyou from me and my little girl for making this wonderful toy.
The first thing that attracted me to this toy as a first time worrying parent was just how soft and child friendly it was. The octotunes is so soft and is made up of so many bright colours which are brilliant for the childs eyes. Octotunes always has also been given a wonderful smell of vanilla scent.. which was not too overpowering but just strong enough for my little girl to notice as shes always smelling it and snuggling her nose into it .
The simple but clever design of the ocotunes is what makes it so unique. Obviously being a octotunes The design is based on a octopus. . The octounes is made up of tons of bright eye catching colours to attract the child or baby. It has eight bright coloured muscial tenactles and each brightly coloured tenactle plays a different musical note which keeps the child or baby entertained for hours. My little girl is also teething at the moment and the tenactles make for awesome teething toys .
There are only two downsides to the octotunes. First one being that because it is a big soft toy it, it is actually suprisingly heavy for what youd expect of a childs toy well babys toy. The second downside is the price of the soft toy .. compared to some other toys it isn't that cheap i purchased mine for £20 from argos. But to be honest seeing my little girls face light up with a huge smile everytime she plays with it ... makes it worth every penny..
Overall I do think this is one of Lamazes best toys that they have created. Inspite of some of its floors and the price, i do not regret buying it and would definitly recommend it for any parent or parent to be :) as im sure there child will love it just as much as mine does. Thumbs up from me and my little girl Lamaze.
This was bought as a gift for my newborn son at the start of this year. Here's the lowdown....
Design - large main body/head with eight legs coming off of it. The face has large clear eyes and a smile which my son loves. They come in different colours but our main head section is yellow. Each leg is then covered in its owns fabric. The legs ar wall differently covered. Different, colour, texture, pattern. Each foot then has its assigned colour and the colour dictates a note. Insides and tops of the legs have an attractive black and white pattern-good for babies to see. At the point where the legs join the base there are small knots and pieces of fabric for baby to grab onto. Again, all different colours and feels. In the top of the head is a fabric handle. It's makes a rustling noise which baby loves.
Usage - it would be fair to say I have played with this more than my son has. Whilst he loves it dearly he doesn't know how to get the sound out. You need to grasp each floor fairly tightly for it to make a noise and at 7 months old he just can't do it. If he could, he would still not be able to play the songs written on the tag. The tag Mary had a little lamb and twinkle twinkle. I mastered both pretty quickly and was very proud of myself. Imagine my excitement when I read on the tag that more song guides could be downloaded from the Lamaze website. If I could manage to find them online I'd be very pleased but I can't. I also had to remove the tag before letting my son play on his own with it so I now have no music to play and just squeeze random note.
Value - as this was a gift we didn't fork out the cash. I'm likely to buy this for future babies that come into my life. Whilst my son cannot take full advantage of its features right now I have no doubt that he has many months or even years of fun to come with this toy. Right now he is able to enjoy the bright colours and the way it moves when he picks it up. As time passes he will be able to make his own sweet music and continue to amuse himself. Who knows, one day we might even get to counting the legs!
My daughter Emilie loves CBeebies and one of her favourite shows at the minute is Woolly And Me which features the everyday adventures of a young girl with her cuddly toy spider. This musical Octopus from Lamaze was one of several baby toys that we were going to get rid of recently, thinking our daughter had long grown out of it, but, because it reminds her of Woolly, she now insists on keeping it. Which is fine with both me and her mum because actually you know what, this toy is really quite cute!
The idea behind it is a simple one. Basically each of its eight tentacles is a slightly different colour and each one makes a different and individual musical note. When bought from new, this Octopus also had a slight, pleasing vanilla scent but this has since faded into obscurity over time. Brightly coloured in order to attract your baby's attention, the Octopus also features lots of different textures to keep them interested and a big smiley face that always looks welcoming!
By playing the notes in a certain order, you can just about manage to get the first few lines of Twinkle, Twinkle or Mary Had A Little Lamb out of it but this does take practice and a few of the tentacles are a little bit hard to squeeze for a young baby's delicate hands but that is okay because really this toy is just a bit of fun and just the fact that it makes any musical noise at all makes it instantly appealing to the very young. Likewise, a few people on Amazon have complained that it is not pitch perfect but I think this is just being picky ~ it's a kids toy for chrissakes, what do you expect?
Overall, this toy is as well made as you would expect from Lamaze and is both strong, cuddly and versatile. It is designed for ages 0-2 but like I say, my daughter is 4 and still loves playing with this now. One of her favourite pastimes is giving it to one of her dollies to play with so you can see, it is something that could well be around in ytour house for quite awhile!
At around £20, this toy is great value for money and as well as being lots of fun, is also quite useful for building your baby's development skills at the same time! I think it is saafe to say then that this toy comes highly recommended from me!
I love Lamaze baby toys, they are bright and colourful and lots of fun and luckily we are the owners of quite a few of these baby toys. One of the ones that we received for my baby boy was this octopus which has been big hit with both him and my little girl. Its great to now see him at 8 months of age really interacting with this toy in a way he didn't when he was a few months younger even though it did stimulate him when he was younger.
The toy is great. What I really like about it is that it has so many different aspects to it and learning possibilities as well as just being a cute toy that it is fun for adults to play with too and a lot more fun than just a regular soft toy that doesn't do that much.
The toy basically looks like a big octopus although its a lot more colourful. The face is at the toy of the toy and then underneath it are, yes, you've guessed it 8 legs. The face is lovely and bright and yellow and has a big smile on it which I think is a bit misleading as aren't octopuses supposed to be quite mean, scary animals or are they fish?? Anyway...... At the top of the head there is a little multicoloured fabric handle which is well placed I think as you can carry the toy around with this handle and it also enables you to play with his legs easily as well.
The eight legs or tentacles to give them their proper name fan out underneath the head so you can actually stand this toy up and he stays where you put him. All the tentacles are different colours and so have different textures on them as well so not only does this toy promote visual stimulation but it promotes the touch sensation as well. The tentacles are quite thin at the top where they attach to the head and then they get bigger as you go down, they almost look a bit like a bowling pin, that kind of shape. Now, here's the fun part about them, when squeezed the tentacles play a musical note and each tentacle plays a different note so you can actually play tunes on them. Now, my kids just like squeezing them but if I can get hold of the toy and actually play with it myself without it being taken away by one of them I can play Twinkle twinkle as you have the right musical notes included in the tentacles but I have to say it is quite hard and I rally need to pay attention to which one is which, a little tip, its a good idea to write the order down if you want to impress people with your musical talents!!
The material of the octopus also has a slight vanilla smell to it which after about 8 months is still there and gets a bit stronger if you touch the octopus and play with it. Its a nice fragrant smell and not too overpowering, its really nice and must be quite appealing to little ones who often familiarise smells with different memories, etc.
This toy is quite pricey, its in the £20 region although I would recommend searching around as I think Tesco direct sells it cheaper sometimes as does maybe Asda but it is a fun toy and well worth the money in my opinion.
Lamaze octotunes was kindly brought for our little girl for her first Christmas when she was 7months old. It was brought for her as Lamaze as a company is very well known for the cleverly designed toys to aid child development, they liked the fact it had big bright bold colours and you could make tunes with it.
****the product****
so what is the product? Well octotunes is an octopus who's tentacles are designed in tubes that when squeezed the let out a note, so if pressed in the correct order they will sing "Mary had a little lamb" "twinkle twinkle little star" and so on. The legs all have different colour ends so they arecolour coded making it easy to follow the note book to play the tune. (I hope you areable to follow what I am saying). Ghost his very complicated for a baby toy.
Octotunes is a fabric make unsure of the exact materials but has a felty feel to the legs and body. The head has a happy smiley face with a sensory feel to it. The tenticles have a silky feel to the bottom. The product is made to a very high specification and that you could not fault. It comes in a variety of colours our is yellow but I have seen them in red and blue.
Octotunes is quite a big toy and heavy fir age it is designed for. The legs are thick and very difficult to squeeze. It comes with a little note book (in paper) that has the colour coded notes to play in order to play the tunes. Unfortunately my little girl managed to chew it off within the first day so we have not been able to play the tunes very well for her.
The idea of this toy is good, it is designed to encourage young children to interact in musical activities and begin to make there own tunes, the reality is the legs are too thick for young children to squeeze and definitely to heavy to play with. I think once she gets to an age where she could squeeze the legs she will be too old to want to do it.
This was brought for us but having done some research it is on the market for approximately £22.99-£30. This is about average for the size and make of the toy as it is made to a very high standard. Octotunes will last a long time as it is hardly aged, it is as good as new yet we have had it 18months that could be because it is hardly played with though. I am unsure whether you can put it in the washing machine.
**** summary*****
I have only given this one star as I think I have enjoyed it more than my little girl and I definitely would not recommend this product to anyone as it is surplus to requirement.
Octotunes can be purchased from Amazon for £15.99 (May 2012). I was given Octotunes two years ago when my baby was born and thought it would be a nice toy for him to play with.
Octotunes is approximately 34 X 33 X 20cms, is brightly coloured and looks great, he has a cute little face. A multi coloured handle on his head so he can be picked up easily and carried around and cute little tied bits of material running around his neck. He has 8 tentacles which when squeezed make a different musical note and you can apparently, though I have never mastered it, can play the beginning of Twinkle Twinkle little Star. He is suitable from birth up to 2 years old, though I'm sure older children would love to play with him.
Octotunes is designed to encourage your child to become a music maestro at an early age, by stimulating their senses and encouraging them to play tunes.
My son has enjoyed playing with Octotunes since he was few months old, at first he would feel it and try putting the tentacles in his mouth and then he would try picking it up, it is quite heavy though and also quite big, so it is not the easiest toy to carry around, it does make a good doorstop though! The tentacles are quite difficult to get a tune out of at first, as you need a bit of strength to squeeze them, overall my son, now 2 years old, still plays with Octotunes on occasion, I personally think that it is a bit advanced and that he will not be able to get a decent tune out of it until he is 3-4, therefore I would give Octotunes 3 stars. It looks great and is fun to play with; however, it is heavy and quite cumbersome.
My daughter is starting to get a little tired of some of her very babyish toys and certainly doesn't spend as much time playing with her teethers etc as she used to. She is much more into the all singing all dancing toys at the moment, however I felt that I wanted her to have something durable that didn't require batteries and would be of interest as she grows. Since I am a big fan of the Lamaze range of toys I had a look on Amazon, which was where I first seen this toy the Lamaze Octotunes, which is essentially a large octopus soft toy that creates tunes with its feet.
This isn't a cheap toy, costing around £16 on amazon, but unlike some of the battery driven toys, I think this will be the kind of toy that will last more than one child and could be put away in the attic for any future grandchildren (!) and so is therefore worth its money in my opinion.
What initially caught my attention with this toy was that it looked very very cute, with its big eyes, happy smile and colourful legs. The material of the toy has also been given a vanilla scent which is meant to relax the child. I can't really say I have noticed whether this has worked or not with my daughter, but since I like the smell of vanilla it is lovely to smell.
Like a real octopus this Octotunes soft toy has eight legs/tentacles. Each tentacle is a brightly coloured with various patterns and textures for baby to chew on or feel. The key attraction of this toy however is the fact that each tentacle plays a different musical note when it is squeezed. With all these different notes, you can actually play a tune just by squeezing the legs, such as frere jacquez or twinkle twinkle. My daughter absolutely loves hearing the tentacles being pressed. At almost 8 months she is unable to press the legs herself, although she does like to feel the legs and loves me or her daddy playing a tune of them.
There is one downside to this product and it is the size of it. It is not a toy that is easily carried around as it is heavy for a child to carry and too difficult to move easily as a child plays. I do think my daughter finds this a little frustrating as she is at the stage of picking things up and throwing them down only to do the same thing seconds later. Obviously she cannot do that with this toy, so sometimes she gets bored quickly. However, the funny thing is, is that she could be happily playing with one of her other toys and suddenly with Octotunes appears she drops everything to try and play with this toy, and she instantly lights up!
All in all, I do think this is a super toy. Although it is big and heavy for a child, it is very attractive and colourful catching the eye of a baby with its patterned tentacles, and when they are pressed to play tunes together, this is great for making my little girl smile and I do think it will be much more durable than some battery operated toys. Another great product from Lamaze.


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- 18 & over
- Two item minimum
Five Minutes to Funny Graduation Show
The DC Improv Comedy School along with instructor Chris Coccia are proud to host the "Five Minutes to Funny" Graduation Showcase. After four weeks of comedy school these newly armed comics are ready to showcase everything they learned in front of a live audience. With Chris Coccia as the host for the evening, this promises to be a hilarious night for everyone.
Native Philadelphian Chris Coccia is one of America's busiest comedians -- at home and on the road. Besides being a favorite at America's top clubs like the Improv and Catch a Rising Star, Chris has been called upon to entertain American troops on military bases in Korea, Japan, and Guam. Chris has been seen on Comedy Central's "Stand and Deliver" as well on Las Vegas' best stages where he has worked as an opening act for (among others) David Sanborn, Chicago, and the Oak Ridge Boys. Chris won the Purina pet comedy challenge 2008, and was a finalist at the inaugural Great American Comedy Festival in Norfork, NE hosted by Eddie Brill. He can also be spotted on The Game Show Network.
PERFORMERS ON BOARD (in no particular order):
Anil Hemrajani
Chuck Udzinski
Jeremy Yanowitz
Brian Duss
Andrew Kelenpe
Lena Aburdene Derhally
Shak M.J.
Hugo Cruz
Jose Baig
Noah Hall
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- Door Time: 6:30 PM
- Show Type: Stand Up
- Showroom: Main Showroom
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The first show of any night is the "early" show. All other shows are "late" shows. Early shows are seated by time of arrival. The earlier you get to the club, the better your seat will be. Late shows have assigned seating by time of ticket purchase. The earlier you buy tickets, the better your seats will be.
DOOR TIMES: Doors usually open at 6:30 for an early show. (When the early show is at 7, we open at 6.) Seating for late shows usually begins 30 minutes before showtime. If you purchased tickets to a late show and would like to be seated together with another party, call the Improv at 202-296-7008 and inform us ahead of time.


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[Photo blog] The other side of being a child -- through the lens of sponsored children
Photography is an art.
Photography is a skill.
Photography is a form of communication.
A single picture can tell a story that crosses cultural and linguistic boundaries. It can evoke emotion or engagement (think National Geographic, Afghan refugee), freeze a moment in history (think WWII), or even start a revolution (think Arab Spring).
Pictures tell stories, not only about what is within the frame, but also about those behind the camera. What we, as photographers, choose to focus on, include, or not include in an image says a lot about who is behind the camera.
Recently, 70 sponsored children from three World Vision Area Development Programs in Mexico were given some basic photography training, a camera and the chance to tell their community's story through their own lens. Their assignment: "show the other side of being a child: not poor, not indigenous, but a happy child."
These are some of their images.
* * *
Photo by Ivan Sanchez, 16. | Through our lens -- Mexico.
Photo by Gerardo Torres, 14. | Through our lens -- Mexico.
Photo by Julissa Xicahua, 15. | Through our lens -- Mexico.
Photo by Misael Santiago Cruz, 14. | Through our lens -- Mexico.
In Mexico, 70 sponsored children participate in a photography workshop with the objective to capture "the other side of being a child."
Giving kids the power and the tools to tell their story through images is just one way World Vision is helping to build a better world for children—one photo at a time.
You can see more photos from your sponsored child's community on the new MyWorldVision. Not yet a sponsor? Find a child to sponsor today.


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Origins of Life
The origin of life is a scientific problem which is not yet solved. There are plenty of ideas, but few established facts. It is generally agreed that all life today evolved by common descent from a single primitive life form. We do not know how this early form came about, but scientists think it was a natural process which took place perhaps 3.9 billion years ago. Researchers in the Evolutionary Bioinformatics Laboratory at the University of Illinois in collaboration with German scientists have been using bioinformatics techniques to probe the world of proteins for answers to questions about the origins of life. Proteins are formed from chains of amino acids and fold into three-dimensional structures that determine their function. According to crop sciences professor Gustavo Caetano-Anollés, very little is known about the evolutionary drivers for this folding.
To do this, they looked at all known protein structures as defined in the Structural Classification of Proteins (SCOP) database and mined their presence in 989 fully sequenced genomes. In a previous study, researchers in Caetano-Anollés's group used SCOP and genomic information to reconstruct phylogenomic trees that describe the history of the protein world. The current research is based on these types of trees.
Proteins are long-chain molecules built from small units known as amino acids. They are joined together with peptide bonds. They are biochemical compounds consisting of one or more polypeptides folded into a round or fibrous shape.
Proteins are essential to all cells. Like other biological macromolecules (polysaccharides and nucleic acids), proteins take part in virtually every process in cells.
"They are not the standard trees that people see in phylogenetic analysis," he said. "In phylogenetic analysis, usually the tips of the trees, the leaves, are organisms or microbes. In these, they are entire biological systems." In contrast, the leaves of these new trees are protein domains, which are compact evolutionary units of structure and function. Proteins are usually complex combinations of several domains.
"We have a world of about 90,000 of these structures, but they seem to be always producing the same designs," he said. Over the last 10 years, he has been part of the effort to map these designs, or folds, because they are determined by the way the protein chains fold on themselves. To date, approximately 1,300 folds have been characterized.
For the current study, the researchers identified protein sequences in the genomes that had the same folding structure as known proteins. They then used bioinformatics techniques to compare them to each other on a time scale to determine when proteins became part of a particular organism.
This allowed them to map protein structures and organisms onto a timeline. Directly calculating the folding speed for all of these proteins would be impossible with today's technology, so the researchers took advantage of the fact that a protein always folds at the same points and used a measure called Size Modified Contact Order (SMCO). Contact order is the ability of a protein to establish links between segments of the polypeptide chain. When points that are close together on the chain come together, they generally form helical structures; when distant points come together, they form beta strands that interact with each other and form sheets.
Contact order measures how many of the connections are local and how many are distant. Experimental studies have shown that it is correlated with folding speed. The measure is normalized (size modified) to take protein length, which affects folding speed, into account. They saw a peculiar pattern in the results.
"What we see is an hourglass," said Caetano-Anollés. "At the beginning, proteins seem not to be folding so fast. And then, as time progresses, there's a tendency to fold faster and faster. And then it reaches a critical point, and at this point we have a tendency that reverses, that seems to go back again to slow folding."
However, the tendency toward higher speed dominates. This point coincides with what he calls the Big Bang in protein evolution. Approximately 1.5 billion years ago, more complex domain structures and multi-domain proteins emerged with the appearance of multicellular organisms. Amino acid chains, which make up proteins, also became shorter at this point in time.
Why does folding speed matter? "If the protein does not fold, in the vast majority of cases it will not have a function. So folding implies functionality. And speed of folding implies speed of achieving that functionality," he explained.
"For a cell, that's very important, because if proteins are very slow folders, there is a time lag to when that function will be accessible to the cell." Fast folders are also less susceptible to aggregation, or clumping together, so they work faster. Moreover, proteins that fold rapidly are more likely to fold correctly.
"The complexities of the biological functions of molecules are still poorly understood," he said. "If we mix the world of molecular dynamics with the world of molecular evolution, we can then determine what aspects of sequences are important for molecular dynamics, and therefore, we can apply them to genetic engineering, synthetic biology, and so on."
For further information see Origins.
DNA image via Wikipedia.


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It's so easy to knock down straw men. Kinda fun sometimes, too.
If only I had known that that liberals are driven by "wishful thinking" and and "the notion that we can make life on Earth perfect" and "[maybe] we can all have a Star Trek like existence". Gosh, even though I've never met a single liberal who espouses such a view, clearly you, Pudge, the Champion of Truth and Light, have revealed to me the Way. Never again shall I be so shallow as to believe that differences in core values might lead peopl
Agreed that you didn't say "all liberals". My apologies. However, you presented the viewpoint of what describe as "many liberals" and you quite failed to make it clear that this is a minority viewpoint. Instead, you presented a viewpoint that is clearly your own, you mocked it ("Star Trek like existence"?), and used a minority opinion -- one I don't hear -- as a contrast to conservative opinion. You might think it's fair to contrast a minority opinion with what you clearly view as the rational conservat
So to contrast this, I could make the following statement:
Many conservatives are racist bastards who feel that non-white people are less intelligent than white people and are genetically predisposed to commit crime. Liberals, quite rightly, reject this notion.
One problem with that statement is that I've now lumped all liberals in the same category. I doubt that many liberals would agree with the "many conservatives" viewpoint I present, but I'm sure that some do. However, my statement about conservat
But why compare non-pervasive ridiculous notions in the first place?
Because that's what the question asked in the first place.
Perhaps a better wording would have been "a significant number of liberals" instead of "many liberals."
Instead, you presented a viewpoint that is clearly your own, you mocked it ("Star Trek like existence"?)
Have you listened to Ask Pudge episode 1? Because one of the questions was this [slashdot.org]. So in the full context of Ask Pudge, the whole "Star Trek post economy, everyone's needs could be filled if we'd just abandon capitalism/conservatism/greed" has been referenced before and is being referenced again.
Well, I certainly wouldn't say that many conservatives are motivated by fear. In fact, I don't think the neo-cons who've hijacked (in my opinion) the conservative party are motivated by fear. (Like many, I feel they find fear is a great tool for public manipulation). So no, I don't think the comparison is unfair for this reason.
And for the record, my general opinion of what I view as "true" conservatives tends to be people who think that smaller government works better and the government should be stay
And for the record, my general opinion of what I view as "true" conservatives tends to be people who think that smaller government works better and the government should be staying the hell out of people's lives unless absolutely necessary. That's a viewpoint I have a lot of sympathy for. It's not a viewpoint that the current administration seems to share.
You and I are in complete agreement on that. Which is why I've basically exited the Republican Party. Of course, my belief in small government event
To clarify previous post, you and I are in complete definition over that definition of conservatism. I don't think we're in complete agreement in both accepting that as our own personal viewpoint, because I don't think (but could be wrong) that it's your viewpoint.
The problem I have with some conservatives is the same problem I have with some Christians. Basically, what they preach and what they practice aren't the same thing. This is hypocricy. Frankly, I don't mind a little hypocricy now and then so long as the practitioner is willing to admit the error of their ways and tries to be better. However, when they refuse to admit they are wrong, I have strong issues with this. Unfortunately, while these might be minority positions, they seem to have had a dispropor
I think I can find examples to contradict what pudge said, but I don't think the example you gave qualifies. Letter of the law/spirit of the law is orthogonal to the issue of whether or not you impose the law on anyone else. So is hypocrisy.
Everything you just said sounds like it could've come straight out of my mouth. My wife and I talk about this all the time. We believe God specifically prohibits Christians from governing others. (And the maximum penalty church government can impose is putting people out of the church.) I use the phrase "right to sin" a lot, with the same logic you do: God gives us the right to sin. God believes in the right to sin.
Frankly, I don't mind a little hypocricy now and then so long as the practitioner is
It's not about complaining. It's about persuading people that they don't have the moral authority to rule over one another, even if they vote on it. And I will continue to say so.
Incidentally, I'm still casting ballots. I'm just not voting for any politicians. I'm voting against referendum measures, and voting "none of the above," "other," or writein against every single candidate running. I'd like for a majority of people to discover they have no right to rule others, either, and join me. Elections are never won by true majorities since that many people rarely vote. I think every registered voter who doesn't show up ought to count as a "no" or "none of the above" vote, to make
Sure I am. I'm teaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which is a far more effective way to combat every problem people want to solve with government. And as I understand that Gospel, abandoning any claims we have of the right to govern each other is essential.
From a secular point of view, persuading people to relinquish this claim is also the way to eventual success. You cannot achieve a society that doesn't believe it has a right to vote on each other's affairs by voting. I saw a comment recently from


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I saw this referenced on Grantland today in an article about the NHL, but as the author states it could be applied equally well to basketball.
If you don't have 15 minutes to spare, basically the idea is to determine draft order by the number of wins a team gets after it has been eliminated from playoff contention, thus creating a sort of mini-tournament for the top pick where the worst teams would have the advantage because they are the first to be eliminated and so would have a head start. At first glance, seems like a cool idea that would eliminate tanking (at least after a team has been eliminated from the playoffs) and greatly enhance competition at the end of the season. What do y'all think?


text: We realize that this, being the art forum, is going to have an expectation of heavier image use than most of the other fora, but we still need to observe both netiquette and common sense. Lately, there have been a number of instances where images were embedded in threads that either probably or definitely should not have been. 1. Do not embed images that are not hosted on your own space (i.e. your personal website or an account like Flickr or the variety of free image-hosting websites out there). Embedding images from other people's or companies' websites is bandwidth theft. This is addressed in the rules for the TrekBBS, and reiterated in the TrekArt FAQ, pinned at the top of this forum. 2. Please keep the maximum width of embedded images to no more than about 800 - 1024 pixels; even the latter can stretch the thread beyond the limits of many users' browsers, necessitating horizontal scrolling and generally making the thread more difficult to comprehend. This is a matter of courtesy, but the moderator retains the right to replace embedded images with links if he wishes to. Some leeway may be afforded, but it's generally best to use this as a guideline when posting images. Thanks!


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Mozilla's app Marketplace tempts HTML5 worshippers
Prays for devs at telco bash
MWC 2012 Mozilla takes the open web to Microsoft, Google, Apple and others next week with an invitation to developers to start coding for its technology-agnostic apps store.
The Mozilla Foundation said it's using the spotlight of the mega Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, to open its planned Mozilla Marketplace to developer submissions for apps built using HTML5, Javascript, CSS and similar web technologies.
Mozilla said the Marketplace will mean "write once, deploy anywhere" for web apps – "anywhere" being any HTML5-capable device or operating system.
Mozilla revealed its plans for a platform-neutral Marketplace in its roadmap for 2012, which said the store would open in June.
The Marketplace is founded on its Web Platform and Apps/WebRT that will deliver networking, layout, programming and identity and a chrome-free and browser-independent installation and runtime environment. It will use existing rendering engines such as Mozilla's Gecko and WebKit that are used by Google's Chrome and Apple's Safari on iOS as well as on Google's Android and Amazon's Kindle Fire browser.
Mozilla is a champion of the open web, both from a technology and philosophical perspective. In recent years, the trend – thanks to Apple – has been for web apps and data served from closed stores to the vendor's own device or platform.
This is a problem for two reasons: it goes against the spirit of the open web, as far as Mozilla is concerned, while it also means more cost and time for developers, whose apps must be tweaked and re-worked for different platforms.
Explaining its forthcoming Marketplace, Mozilla said: "The nature of the platform will massively reduce the cost of creating, versioning and maintaining applications, enabling a truly open, standards-based web that advances opportunity and innovation for all." ®
Sponsored: Minds Mastering Machines - Call for papers now open


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It doesn't look to me at all that it wants parameters. That's just to say that that part comes from one of the params.
However you found the most likely answer for yourself: the xmlns is undefined! You're not at all sending what the other end is expecting, you're sending a completely different set of elements (they have no namespace).
-- Robin Berjon [berjon.com]
I'm sorry but I have no idea, I haven't used SOAP in ages... it may be a bug, or you may need to set an option. Perhaps that posting to the perl-xml list would yield some answers there.
-- Robin Berjon [berjon.com]


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On HBO's "Game of Thrones," King Joffrey Baratheon is the most horrific ruler any seven kingdoms could wish for. Equal parts sniveling coward and demented sadist, Joffrey — as played by young star Jack Gleeson — has become a cult icon of jaw dropping behavior.
[Video: See 'Game of Thrones' Star Jack Gleeson as a Little Kid in 'Batman Begins']
Off-screen, Gleeson has been thus far the most reclusive of stars; declining almost all interview requests and rarely making public appearances, while he continues his studies in Philosophy at Dublin's Trinity College. In fact, Joffrey might be the only role fans ever see Gleeson in. Last year he told the Irish Independent newspaper that he would be "happy to do some amateur plays but I don't think I want to do any more professional acting." Gleeson said that instead he would "like to be an academic, a philosophy lecturer if possible. I'd do a Masters in Ancient Hebrew maybe, and a PhD hopefully, if I get in." And so while Gleeson himself has stood quietly off-stage, doing his homework in the wings, the image of the psychopathic Joffrey he created has been unsullied.
Until now.
This week, Gleeson joined his young "Game of Thrones" co-stars Maisie Williams and Sophie Turner in what is becoming a "GoT" conquest of the social video site Vine. However, he did so in a way that will have some fans of Joffrey's loathsomeness appalled, doing the least Joffrey-like thing imaginable: hugging a puppy.
The puppy question, in fact, has been taken up by the King on "GoT" from an extremely non-cuddly direction. "Killed a few puppies today?" Joffrey's uncle Tyrion (played by Peter Dinklage) asked him in one episode, a query that viewers found entirely plausible.
Watch the scene:
But apparently beneath the canine murdering sneer, beats the heart of a puppy lover. Take a look at the video above but be prepared never again to look at the manical Joffrey without just a little "awww" in your heart.
Check out photos from "Game of Thrones":


text: Techniques of Public Health Education (3 cr.) Skill building in health promotion program planning. The course reviews different models of program planning, methods of needs assessment, theories of behavior change, types of community organization, the principles of social marketing, the steps of program implementation, the techniques of evaluation, and the basics of presenting a proposal.


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Cortisol blood test
The cortisol blood test measures the level of cortisol in the blood. Cortisol is a steroid (glucocorticoid) hormone produced by the adrenal gland.
Cortisol can also be measured using a urine test.
How is the Test Performed?
A blood sample is needed.
Preparation for the Test
Your doctor will likely have you do the test early in the morning. This is important, because cortisol level varies throughout the day.
You may be asked not to do any vigorous exercising the day before the test.
You may also be told to temporarily stop taking medicines that can affect the test, including:
- Anti-seizure drugs
- Estrogen
- Human-made (synthetic) glucocorticoids, such as hydrocortisone, prednisone and prednisolone
- Androgens
How the Test will Feel
When the needle is inserted to draw blood, some people feel moderate pain. Others feel only a prick or stinging. Afterward, there may be some throbbing or slight bruising. This soon goes away.
Why is the Test Performed?
The test is done to check for increased or decreased cortisol production. Cortisol is a glucocorticoid (steroid) hormone released from the adrenal gland in response to adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH). This is a hormone released from the pituitary gland in the brain.
Cortisol affects many different body systems. It plays a role in:
- Bone growth
- Blood pressure control
- Immune system function
- Metabolism of fats, carbohydrates, and protein
- Nervous system function
- Stress response
Different diseases, such as Cushing syndrome and Addison disease, can lead to either too much or too little production of cortisol. Measuring blood cortisol level can help diagnose these conditions. It is also measured to evaluate how well the pituitary and adrenal glands are working.
Normal Results for Cortisol blood test
Normal values for a blood sample taken at 8 in the morning are 6 to 23 micrograms per deciliter (mcg/dL).
Normal value ranges may vary slightly among different laboratories. Some labs use different measurements or may test different specimens. Talk to your doctor about the meaning of your specific test results.
What Abnormal Results Mean
A higher than normal level may indicate:
- Cushing disease, in which the pituitary gland makes too much ACTH because of excess growth of the pituitary gland or a tumor in the pituitary gland
- Ectopic Cushing syndrome, in which a tumor outside the pituitary or adrenal glands makes too much ACTH
- Tumor of the adrenal gland that is producing too much cortisol
A lower than normal level may indicate:
- Addison disease, in which the adrenal glands do not produce enough cortisol
- Hypopituitarism, in which the pituitary gland does not signal the adrenal gland to produce enough cortisol
- Suppression of normal pituitary or adrenal function by glucocorticoid medications including pills, skin creams, eyedrops, inhalers, joint injections, chemotherapy
Other conditions for which the test may be ordered include:
- Acute adrenal crisis
Cortisol blood test Risks
Veins and arteries vary in size from one patient to another and from one side of the body to the other. Obtaining a blood sample from some people may be more difficult than from others.
Other risks associated with having blood drawn are slight but may include:
- Excessive bleeding
- Fainting or feeling light-headed
- Hematoma (blood accumulating under the skin)
- Infection (a slight risk any time the skin is broken)
Guber HA, Farag AF. Evaluation of endocrine function. In: McPherson RA, Pincus MR, eds. Henry's Clinical Diagnosis and Management by Laboratory Methods. 22nd ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Elsevier Saunders; 2011:chap 24.
Stewart PM, Krone NP. The adrenal cortex. In: Melmed S, Polonsky KS, Larsen PR, Kronenberg HM, eds. Williams Textbook of Endocrinology. 12th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Elsevier Saunders; 2011:chap 15.
|Review Date: 11/7/2013
Reviewed By: Brent Wisse, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine, Division of Metabolism, Endocrinology & Nutrition, University of Washington School of Medicine. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Bethanne Black, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.


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Sitting in the dark - not quite yet
0 comments post a comment
This week the European plant engineers' association VGB has urged European Union countries to quickly build new power generation plants to put in an additional 400,000 MW, or half the current total again, by 2020.
So keeping your fingers crossed does work then.
Last week I was doing just that to help CERN's Large Hadron Collider, LHC, switch on successfully and lo and behold the project started up with no major problems.
But it is still early days yet for the LHC and we are not likely to see full power particle beam collisions for months if not years.
That is if we ever see full power being used at all given the parlous state of the European Union's power industry.
In fact maybe we should all start crossing our fingers again in the hope that we will not all be sitting in the dark during the next few years.
This week the European plant engineers' association VGB has urged European Union countries to quickly build new power generation plants to put in an additional 400,000 MW, or half the current total again, by 2020.
Installed power capacity in the bloc's 27 members states currently stands at around 780,000 MW and VGB projects a rise in electricity consumption by 15 percent to 4,000 terawatt hours (TWh) in 2020. The jump in demand seems to come mainly from more electrical gadgets being used in households, especially in eastern European countries.
New areas of power use in Western Europe are also emerging despite savings drives and efficiency gains. Developments like heat pumps and electric vehicles are now starting to contribute to the power drain.
The rise in demand is all happening at the same time as the EU's executive Commission is pushing for reductions in carbon dioxide emissions from manufacturers and the energy sector. The EU wants a fall by 21 percent by 2020 from 2005 levels.
The VGB and a number of other organizations across Europe reckon the pace of renewable energy sources deployment will not be enough to keep step with rising demand, which would necessitate huge amounts of thermal capacity.
The VGB calculates that out of the envisaged total 400,000 MW, some 170,000 MW should be gas fired or coal fired plants.
Well I suppose the good news is that power management design engineers are going to be in demand for the next few years as everyone tries to squeeze the last drop of power out of their equipment.
So I guess we might all have to get used to working with our fingers crossed for the foreseeable future and hope that technologies such as International Rectifier's gallium nitride (GaN)-based power devices quickly transfer out of the prototype phase and into finished products.


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WellCare Health Plans, Inc. today announced that the WellCare Community Foundation has awarded a $50,000 grant to the Georgia Academy of Family Physicians (GAFP) to help fund the organization's Patient Centered Medical Home University. The grant will be used for workshops that help selected Georgia primary care practices achieve recognition by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) as Patient Centered Medical Homes (PCMHs).
A PCMH is a health care setting that facilitates partnerships between patients and their personal physicians, and when appropriate, with the patient's family. Care is facilitated by registries, information technology, health information exchange and other means to ensure that patients get the care they need, when and where they need and want it, and in a culturally and linguistically appropriate manner.
"WellCare recognizes that primary care providers who transform their practices into functioning PCMHs return higher quality of care and improved preventive care for patients," said Pamme Taylor, WellCare's vice president, advocacy and community-based programs. "We look forward to working with the GAFP to help primary care partners advance their practices to better serve Georgians."
At the end of 2011, only five primary care practices in Georgia were recognized by the NCQA as Patient Centered Medical Homes. The GAFP created its Patient Centered Medical Home University to increase the number of qualifying facilities in the state.
"We are pleased that WellCare has joined our efforts to advance primary care practices in Georgia and help patients receive optimal, ongoing care," said Fay Fulton Brown, executive vice president of GAFP. "With WellCare's support, GAFP is committed to raising the number of PCMHs across our state."
Those selected to participate will include family physicians, pediatricians and general internists specializing in primary care. They will be recruited by GAFP and medical association leaders. WellCare will also identify physicians from its provider network and recommend them for participation.
As of September 30, 2013, WellCare serves approximately 552,000 Medicaid and PeachCare for Kids® plan members, 27,000 Medicare Advantage plan members and 34,000 Medicare Prescription Drug Plan members in Georgia.


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Start Slideshow
- Frame House (2)Saddled in a field overlooking the landscape Invermere, British Columbia, this contemporary home's noble goal is to provide expansive views while using precious little energy. The home is really a box within a box that features five opaque sides and one that is completely open to the south. Architect Marc Boutin takes full advantage of solar heat from the minimal Northwest daylight, and when the sun doesn't shine or cooling breezes are absent the house runs on a ground source heat pump. One thing that is always at hand is the magnificent view framed by the wall of windows.1
- Frame House (5)The single-minded design sensibility works hand-in-glove with passive solar building strategies to reduce and often eliminate the need for supplemental heat and light.2
- Frame House (4)Huge 18 foot glass doors open out to the deck, allowing the home to take advantage of cooling prevailing breezes.3
- Frame House (3)This also extends the living space outdoors, where residents can lounge beneath a generous overhang.4
- Frame House (7)A solar thermal hot water system cuts down the home's reliance on fossil fuels.5
- Frame House (6)The interior consists of a single vaulted room, with private spaces tucked in separate boxes within the mass. Stacked above the kitchen are bedrooms and bathrooms for five occupants, and the great room balances the other end.6
- Frame House (1)Tucked below is a family room and lap pool.7


text:
Garden Talk: May 26, 2005
From NGA Editors
ARS Member's Choice Rose
Since 2003 The American Rose Society (ARS) has awarded a Member?s Choice Award each year to the rose that receives the highest kudos from ARS members. The award covers roses introduced to the public since the year 2000. ARS members evaluate the roses on characteristics such as overall growth, flowering, vigor, and pest resistance. Based on reports from nearly 800 members in 2004, ?Gemini? hybrid tea rose received the highest rating (8.2 out of 10) of those new roses and was awarded the Member?s Choice Award for 2005.
?Gemini? features densely packed, 4- to 5-inch-diameter flowers in coral pink with cream tones. The flowers have a slight papaya scent. The vigorous plant grows 5 to 6 feet tall and can be purchased as a grafted rose or one grown on its own rootstock. ?Gemini? won the 2000 All-America Rose Selections award and now adds this Member?s Choice Award to its trophy chest.
?Gemini? is available through Jackson & Perkins Roses.
Click here for more information about the ARS Member?s Choice Award.
Grow Bigger Potatoes
If you?re hoping to grow the biggest potatoes possible this summer, try adding more calcium to the soil. Researchers at the University of Wisconsin in Madison grew ?Russet Burbank? potatoes in test plots with supplemental calcium fertilizer. They fed plants 3.5 pounds per 1,000 square feet of either calcium nitrate or calcium chloride split equally over four treatments and applied at 4-, 6-, 8-, and 10-week intervals after planting.
The results were fewer but larger tubers in the test plots when compared to the control plots, which received no calcium supplementation. The overall yield in both calcium-amended plots was the same.
To make sure your soil has enough calcium, test the soil early in the season. If your soil is deficient, incorporate a calcium fertilizer, such as gypsum, before planting.
For more information on this potato fertilization research, contact the University of Wisconsin.
Simpler Seeding
Planting your garden from seed just got a little simpler. SeedBallz is a new product that features seeds encased in a marble-sized clay and sand ball. To plant, just spread the balls on top of the soil, then water. The water helps the ball break down, and the fertilizer contained inside the ball helps the young seedling get started. SeedBallz can be used in containers or in the ground. If gardening in the ground, prepare the seedbed as you normally would before ?planting? the SeedBallz.
SeedBallz are an easy way to garden with kids, since the balls are easier to handle than individual seeds. They also are a good idea for elderly gardeners who have stiff joints. SeedBallz varieties include a hummingbird mix, wildflower mix, poppy mix, and cosmos mix.
For more information on SeedBallz, contact the Garden Basket Company.
Rebecca's Garden Helps Seniors
Gardening continues to be one of the most important pastimes for older adults, but even healthy seniors can lose interest in this hobby because of brief illness, injury, or lack of companionship. That's why the support and help of a family member or professional caregiver can be so important. It?s a message that?s being spread nationally by Rebecca Kolls, host of the nationally syndicated Rebecca?s Garden television show.
Earlier this spring Kolls was a guest at NGA's National Garden Month kickoff celebration in Washington, D.C. She spoke about her public education campaign with Home Instead Senior Care, an international, non-medical, senior care company. The theme of the campaign is "Making gardening fun again for seniors." Home Instead offers guidance and a senior?s gardening guide for those engaged in gardening activities.
Call Home Instead Senior Care at (866)375-4218 for a free copy of the gardening guide for seniors. For more information about their senior gardening program, contact Home Instead and click on the media room.


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Philanthropist from each club to be recognized in St. Louis
By Jesse Sanchez / MLB.com
Fans are invited to vote in the All-Stars Among Us campaign, a presentation of People Magazine and Major League Baseball, for the 30 winners from June 8-24. One winner will be chosen as a representative of every club, and all 30 will be honored Busch Stadium in St. Louis for the July 14 All-Star Game. One club representative also will be featured in People Magazine.
Here are the finalists for Washington:
Jennifer Skolochenko-Platt of Edgewater, Md., is an executive director of Most Valuable Kids DC and works to improve the lives of under-served children. Her Washington-area nonprofit supplies tickets to live sporting and cultural events for kids from low-income households. In addition, she contributes to her community doing charitable fundraising and delivering food to those in need.
Ryan Kules of Bowie, Md., was severely injured in Iraq when a blast severed his right arm and left leg and now runs Wounded Warrior Project's "Warriors to Work." The program helps injured veterans find new careers and successfully reintegrate back into civilian society.
Dr.John Glaspy of Northridge, Calif., is an oncologist and UCLA Professor of Medicine who pushes the boundaries of his role. A strong voice for patients, he speaks out to dispel the social isolation that affects cancer patients and their families. He believes the battle against cancer will soon be won, and he is helping to make that happen. His ideas inspired Stand Up to Cancer, a program of the Entertainment Industry Foundation that awards grants to researchers who could change the face of cancer treatment.
Meanwhile, vote for your favorite players with the 2009 All-Star Game Sprint Online Ballot at MLB.com and all 30 sites, and look for Walt Disney Pictures G-Force All-Star Game ballots at Major League and Minor League ballparks.
The 80th Major League Baseball All-Star Game will be televised nationally by FOX Sports, in Canada by Rogers Sportsnet and Sportsnet HD and televised around the world by Major League Baseball International, with pregame ceremonies beginning at 8 p.m. ET. ESPN Radio will provide exclusive national radio coverage, while MLB.com will provide extensive online coverage.
Jesse Sanchez is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


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Thank you to all who contributed to an exciting and informative ISAM2013 Congress!
The organizing committee thanks our sponsors, speakers, and participants for a successful 19th ISAM Congress. The meeting brought together multidisciplinary excellence in both research and treatment of disease with aerosols, as represented by industry, regulatory agencies, scientists, and clinicians.
The program for ISAM 2013 included three exciting, state-of the-field pre-Congress symposia/workshops: 1) a discussion with experts from the regulatory, scientific, and clinical fields on the needs and methods to enhance accordance between outcomes of laboratory and clinical testing of orally inhaled drug products, 2) a symposium on the dual nature of inhaled nano-particles as both toxicants and potential therapeutic agents, and 3) a workshop on the basic theory and practice of aerosols for drug delivery aimed at newer members to the aerosols-in-medicine community. A full and comprehensive congress program was prepared with the help of multitudes, including the chairs of the networking groups. For this congress we also tried to enhance the participation in our networking groups by including poster discussions as part of their organizational meetings.
We are especially thankful to our corporate sponsors and encourage all to learn more about their aerosol products and services. Finally, we hope you enjoyed the company of old and new friends in the comfort of Chapel Hill, North Carolina (or as the locals like to call it the "Southern Part of Heaven").
On behalf of the ISAM 2013 Organizing Committee,
William D. Bennett
Congress President


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STAT is beastin.....love the intensity by him
They finally gave him the ball in a good spot. When all he needs is 1 dribble to the rim, he's too quick.
WTF? I guess no one like playing for Antoni except Lin.
Real Talk
Amar'e looking 5 years younger, need to crash boards better and we have this game in the bag.


text:
About the Disaster Information Management Research Center
- Fact Sheet
- News
- Publications and Presentations about the Disaster Information Management Research Center
- Staff Publications
- Promotional Materials
- NLM Disaster Information Management Coordinating Committee
- Charge (PDF, 23KB)
- Committee Members (PDF, 12KB)
- Charting a Course for the 21st Century: NLMs Long Range Plan 2006-2016
- NLM Long Range Plan 2006-2016: Seamless, Uninterrupted Access to Expanding Collections of Biomedical Data, Medical Knowledge, and Health Information
- Recommendation 1.5. Ensure continuous access to health information and effective use of libraries and librarians when disasters occur.
- Recommendation 1.6. Establish a Disaster Information Management Research Center at NLM to make a strong commitment to disaster remediation and to provide a platform for demonstrating how libraries and librarians can be part of the solution to this national problem.
- Contact the Center
PDF formats are best viewed with Adobe Reader®.


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I just re-uploaded iRedMail-0.7.0 moment ago. You can download it here: http://www.iredmail.org/download.html
I'm so sorry that there's a bug in iRedAPD rc script, it causes iRedAPD can't start automatically when system startup on Debian and Ubuntu (works well on RHEL/CentOS/openSUSE/FreeBSD), and you will get error message like below in postfix maillog when sending out mails:
Apr 2 04:36:00 fornax postfix/smtpd[2387]: warning: connect to 127.0.0.1:7777: Connection refused
Apr 2 04:36:00 fornax postfix/smtpd[2387]: warning: problem talking to server 127.0.0.1:7777: Connection refused
If you already met this issue, you can solve it with steps mentioned here: http://www.iredmail.org/forum/post8507.html#p8507
Since this is just a quick fix without new features/improvements, we keep the version number as v0.7.0 to avoid confusion questions like "How to upgrade from 0.7.0 to 0.7.1".
Sorry about this trouble.]]>


text:
The New Second Home
By JENNIFER A. KINGSON
Published: June 28, 2012
MANY of them have carpeting, heating and air-conditioning, indoor and outdoor lighting, elaborate music and entertainment systems. Some are even eco-friendly, with solar panels or planted green roofs.
In fact, the only superfluous accessory in the modern doghouse may be the dog.
Take, for instance, the Palladian-style mini-mansion that Glenna and Ed Hall bought at a charity auction three years ago for about $300. With Jeffersonian columns that match the ones on their home in Roanoke, Va., the two-foot-tall doghouse makes a perfect accent for the garden. No one seems to mind that the garden is off-limits to Maggie May, their 28-pound whippet-borzoi mix -- least of all Maggie May.
''We bought the house because it looks a lot like our house,'' said Mrs. Hall, 66, a retired interior designer. ''Maggie's never been in it. She's a house dog.''
Traditionally, doghouses were where dogs actually lived, separate from the family. But now that dogs are increasingly considered members of the family, their homes are becoming more like second homes -- and in some cases, they're entirely ornamental. Sure, there are still plenty of doghouses built for dogs to live in. But there are also an impressive number built the way Christian Louboutin makes shoes: you can walk in them (sort of), but clearly that's not the point.
As Michelle Pollak, an interior designer who creates custom doghouses under the name La Petite Maison, observed: ''Half our clients say, 'Hey, we'd like a replica of our home for the dog,' and half say, 'This is the dream house we've always envisioned but couldn't afford in real life' -- like a French palace for the French poodle.''
No detail is too small, right down to the hand-painted portrait of the dog in residence. For the supermodel Rachel Hunter's showpiece doghouse in the Los Angeles area, Ms. Pollak supplied hand-painted wallcovering dotted with pawprints and bones, as well as framed pictures of dogs. Her business partner, a builder named Alan Mowrer, installed wrought-iron light fixtures and terra-cotta flooring. ''Alan had to hand-make every tile of the Mediterranean roof,'' Ms. Pollak said.
The average price of their doghouses is about $5,000 or $6,000, she said, though it's not unheard of for people to spend north of $25,000. (Ms. Hunter's was more than $16,000, Ms. Pollak said, although she could not recall an exact figure.)
Another client, Guillermo Gonz?s, is a 43-year-old entrepreneur who lives outside Austin, Tex., in a 5,000-square-foot Victorian-inspired home with four pet pigs. The ''boys,'' as Mr. Gonz?s refers to them, are 4-year-old Vietnamese potbellieds, Augustus (120 pounds) and Vito (95 pounds), who have fearsome tusks but sweet dispositions, he says. They live in a specially built 300-square-foot addition to the house furnished with hay and blankets.
But the ''girls,'' Cherry and Abby, 6-month-old micro-minis that weigh no more than seven pounds each, sleep in a six-foot-square replica of Mr. Gonz?s's home that sits in the corner of his safari-themed living room, not far from taxidermied busts of a zebra and an impala.
''The corner I put it in, it looks like kind of a plantation farm in a safari in South Africa,'' Mr. Gonz?s said.
The back story? Mr. Gonz?s had a business partner with a bulldog named Tank, and envisioned the doghouse, for which he paid $2,500 at a charity auction, as a gift for them. But Tank died before he could move in, so the house went to the pigs.
''Originally, I was just going to put it in the backyard,'' Mr. Gonz?s said. ''But it's so beautiful that I didn't want it to get destroyed by the weather.''
Such excess can be an invitation to criticism, but Ms. Pollak, the interior designer, offered a quick rebuttal. ''People will come and say, 'This is such a waste of money, why would anybody do this?' '' she said. ''All I can say is that if you have the money, what's the difference between spending it on a pet house or on a piece of diamond jewelry?''
Besides, she said, many of her clients build houses for dogs they have either rescued or adopted from shelters. One client, in fact, had a disabled rescue dog for which Ms. Pollak and Mr. Mowrer created a handicapped-accessible home. ''Alan adjusted all of the windows and the doors to allow the dog to see out the window,'' she said, ''even if he was lying down.''
DOGHOUSE design tends to be popular with architects and home builders, who sometimes refer to it as ''barkitecture'' and donate their creations to charity auctions that raise money for animal shelters. Designers say they love doghouses because they're small and fun and allow lots of room for creativity.
As Brian Pickard, an architect in Philadelphia, put it: ''If I build a doghouse and somebody is anticipating that it's going to last 10 years in their backyard, it's different from designing a house that somebody is expecting will last for 50 years. I can be more experimental.''
Mr. Pickard, 29, got his start as an architecture student at Ohio State University, designing a modernist doghouse inspired by the work of the Swiss architect Mario Botta. He called it the (Sub)urban doghouse and gave it to his parents for their chocolate lab, Nash.