text:
One of the strange things this election has spawned is uncovering the hypocrisy of modern-day evangelicalism. For years, the so-called "faithful" — you know, the "only ones going to heaven" — have denigrated and despised the "cult" of Mormonism (this is the faithful's definition). For years, they have heaped scorn on Joseph Smith's vision.
And now? And now the "faithful" are doing cartwheels for Mitt Romney! A Mormon! If that isn't hypocrisy, I know now what else to call it.
How can evangelicals believe, as they do, that Mormonism is devil-inspired, and then without blinking turn around and embrace a man who belongs to that religion? If that isn't hypocrisy, I know not what else to call it.
Caution to the evangelicals is simple. You cannot have it both ways, brethren. You must hold to your original belief that Mormonism is wrong and that it is bad for America. Or you must stop preaching your insults of the Mormon faith. For if you continue to believe one way and behave another, well, that will be hypocrisy, and I know not what else to call it.
Hold on — I've got some news that will soon shake the medical world. I have come up with a sure-fire way to get America to stop smoking. The tobacco industry (aka the cancer and diseased heart industry) will not like this, but think of the lives it will save.
First, we get Congress to pass a law (this will be the hard part). The law will force the cancer and diseased heart industry to shape cigarettes into what they actually are — pacifiers!
Yes, friends, each time a person sticks a cancer stick into his head, that person will look like an overgrown 3-year-old young'un. No more "manly" Marlboro man riding off into the sunset. No sir, now everyone will resemble a child trying to escape from his playpen.
No rough-tough manliness there. How many smoking addicts would dare appear in public sucking on those ridiculous things?
We will have Congress also force the cancer industry into calling its new products "hypocrites" since this is an old Southern term for pacifiers. You know, because a kid can suck all day and won't get a drop of milk.
The only side effect may be an epidemic of "buck teeth," but the dentists of America will be happy to correct that.
Folks, listen up, please. Are you as fed up as I am with pundits, both local and national, writing convoluted columns on how we can make Washington, D.C., somehow vaguely better?
On Oct. 18, I read local resident Dawn Kucera's Be Our Guest column, "Many issues harken back to the Founders." It was a masterpiece of clear-cut writing. It was direct and to the point on how history has much to teach us. Kucera showed how our government leaders have faced the same choices throughout the ebb and flow of time.
She showed, too, what our Founding Fathers had in mind and how they actually did it. This will surprise a lot of folks who think they know the answer. Kucera tells us the truth, and we ought to listen.-
I want to recommend her for her column and also give you a chance to read what good writing is all about. In case you missed it, I will send you a copy if you will send me a self-addressed, stamped envelope. Send it to Stephen Black c/o the Times-News, P.O. Box 490, Hendersonville, N.C., 28793.
Dawn Kucera, take a bow, girl! You've done well.
Folks, do you want to know what a true Christian sounds like? One of my favorite letter writers is Robert Johnson of Hooterville. In his Oct. 26 letter, he tells us about Christ's actual focus. The letter, as with Ms. Kucera's column, is perfect writing and courageous. I highly recommend if for a look at the real truth about Christianity. Send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to me at the address listed in the previous item, and I'll send you a copy.
God bless you, Robert Johnson. If we had more people like you, the world would be a better place.
They're putting their faith in hypocrisy
One of the strange things this election has spawned is uncovering the hypocrisy of modern-day evangelicalism. For years, the so-called "faithful" — you know, the "only ones going to heaven" — have denigrated and despised the "cult" of Mormonism (this is the faithful's definition). For years, they have heaped scorn on Joseph Smith's vision.


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Lil Tip: Create Warm Milk and Cookie Memories
For many people, warm cookies dunked in milk evoke childhood memories. And, though you may be a mother on the move without as much time to set aside for baking as past generations of mamas did, here's a lil trick that will help you give your kids the same delicious treat. Spend some quality time with your tots making their favorite cookie dough.
Then, using a small ice cream scoop, spoon cookie sized portions on to a baking sheet, cover with cellophane and chill until the dough is firm. Finally, take the individual portions and place the rounds in a zip loc bag before storing them in the freezer. When you want to bake up the sweets for your tots, take a few out and toss them in the oven.

subset: commoncrawl


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Thai blast: 28 people injured in anti-government protest
A blast erupted in the middle of an anti-government protest parade on Friday afternoon, injuring 28 people, as violence escalates in the Thai capital.
The rally was being led by protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban through central Bangkok as an explosive device, probably a grenade, was hurled from the balcony of a disused building, witnesses said.
Thai television reported that 28 injured were taken to three hospitals.
Dramatic footage showed protesters running into the building in the hunt for the person responsible.
Police said the perpetrator remains at-large.
Mr Suthep, a 64 year-old former deputy prime minister, was about 100 metres away from the blast and was unhurt.
Hours earlier a similar device was thrown outside an historic palace occupied by Bangkok's Governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra and another was thrown near protesters camped out in the city's Lumpini Park.
No-one was injured in these attacks.
Friday's parade attack was the first on protesters in daylight hours after a pattern of after-dark drive-by shootings and attacks by unidentified gunmen on motor bikes over the past week.
Foreign tourists have been warned to stay away from protest sites but Thai media has carried reports of a number of Australians joining protesters demanding the resignation of caretaker prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra and the cancellation of elections set for February 2.
Thailand's army chief Prayuth Chan-ocha has urged all sides to exercise restraint in the crisis that some analysts fear could lead to a prolonged period of violence, saying he is worried about violence near protest sites.
He said through a spokesman that resorting to violence to end the political stand-off will only fuel hatred.
"This is very dangerous for the country," he said.
Thousands of protesters are occupying key intersections and are blocking public servants going to work, which has crippled key ministries.
The protesters claim Ms Yingluck's government is being corruptly run by her billionaire brother Thaksin Shinawatra from abroad and they want to appoint a "people's council" to run the country for at least two years.
Ms Yingluck is refusing to resign and has pleaded with Mr Suthep to participate in talks to end the crisis but he has refused.
Warrants have been issued from the arrests of Mr Suthep, who is heavily guarded, and other protest leaders, but police have not tried to approach him, fearing violence.
Lindsay Murdoch is a three-time winner of the Walkley Award, Australia's top award for journalistic excellence. Lindsay is a former correspondent based in Singapore, Jakarta and Darwin. In 1999 he covered the tumultuous events in East Timor, and in 2003 he covered the Iraq war while embedded with US Marines.
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Sign up for our daily wrap of the news you need to start your day.


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Trina Michaels
Trina Michaels is back! It's been awhile, but Trina is happy to be back at Bangbros. She is one sexy milf with a bad ass body! Huge tits, a thick pussy and an ass that's more than a hand full. And who else to welcome her back with open arms but MIke. We kind of interrupted her workout but she didn't mind at all. Trina Michaels was ready to put on a great show for all the hungry craving milf fans. And that in deed she did! She took the dick like a champ! Not only did she enjoy sucking the cock, Trina had her asshole and pussy rammed by Mike's huge cock. Fucking amazing! Welcome back Trina Michaels!
Anita Blue
Milf cravers! You're going to love this one! Today's Milf Lessons update features a blonde bombshell by the name of Anita Blue. For those of you who don't know who Anita Blue is. Here's your chance to get to know her. She's fucking sexy and comes stacked with lots of goodies. Anita Blue has a nice body with huge massive Double D's and an ass that's out of this world. Mama mia! This babe is down for what ever. Anal is just one of them and Mike gets the absolute enjoyment of having his cock stuffed inside of her juicy ass. Don't miss out! Come watch Anita Blue work that ass!
Ray Veness
Milf lovers! Today's Milf Lessons update is a must see. This episode features the sexy Ray Veness. This milf has a fucking hot body! Nice big tits, a phat ass and a juicy pussy. She gave Mike what most young men wish they can do to a sexy milf like Ray Veness. Anal! Mike fuck Ray Veness in her ass while she shoved a huge dildo down her butterfly pussy. Lovely! Mike fucked her with pure grace until he busted a huge load of cum all over her face. Ceck itout. Ray Veness does wonders! Enjoy!
Samantha Ryan
We have a fine ass milf singing her ass off for some cock. Samantha Ryan is drop-dead gorgeous. She's sexy, slim and has a body of a goddess. They way she hit them high notes almost had me nutting on myself. But, we'll leave that part to Mike! Singing is one of Samantha's many talents. Not only can she take dick, but can also suck a mean cock and boy! She can deep-throat like a motherfucker! Mike fucked Samantha so good. He had her hitting those high notes like she's never done before. Driving his big cock in and out of her tight pink pussy is something to witness. Don't waste anymore time. Come and watch Samantha Ryan in action. She's amazing! Enjoy!
Lexi Love
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text:
THIS HOT NEW BOOK discusses economic and financial instability, the controversies behind the Federal Reserve System, and how to achieve economic and financial success through the Word of God. Find out today how to get out of a system you were never designed to be a part of…
Read More about Thy Kingdom Come, Overcoming in a Failing Economy Right Here
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Bagwell looking for bump in Hall of Fame support
Former Astros superstar finished third last year with 59.6 percent of the BBWAA vote
By Brian McTaggart / MLB.com
Jeff Bagwell is a candidate on the National Baseball Hall of Fame ballot. The Class of 2014 results will be announced exclusively on MLB Network and simulcast on MLB.com live on Wednesday at 1 p.m. CT as part of a three-hour live show beginning at 11 a.m. On Thursday, MLB.com and MLB Network will air the news conferences featuring the electees live from New York at 10 a.m. CT.
HOUSTON -- After inching closer to being elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in the previous two years, Jeff Bagwell's fourth time on the ballot could be the one that pushes him towards baseball immortality.
Bagwell, who retired following the Astros' 2005 World Series run because of a degenerative shoulder condition, received the third-highest vote total last year by the Baseball Writers' Association of American with 59.6 percent. That was a slight increase from the 56 percent he received in his second time on the ballot in 2012.
Bagwell has said repeatedly through the years he doesn't expect to get voted into the Hall of Fame, but he certainly produced the kind of numbers during his 15 years with the Astros that could wind up seeing him bronzed in Cooperstown.
"To me, he's a Hall of Famer and he deserves to be in the Hall of Fame," said longtime teammate Craig Biggio, who finished 39 votes shy of the Hall in his first time on the ballot last year.
A candidate must receive 75 percent of the vote to gain election to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. No player received enough votes to get elected last year, with Biggio's 68.2 percent leading the way. Jack Morris had 67.7 percent of the vote.
"The only thing I care about really is Wednesday is that Craig gets in," Bagwell told MLB.com on Monday.
Bagwell, 45, last appeared in an Astros uniform during the 2005 World Series, the crowning achievement in a career that included the National League Rookie of the Year Award in 1991, and the club's only NL Most Valuable Player Award three years later.
Bagwell played in four All-Star Games, had 2,314 hits, 449 home runs, 1,529 RBIs and helped Houston reach the playoffs six times. He was forced to retire after the shoulder condition made it impossible for him to throw a baseball and nearly impossible to swing a bat.
The early end to his career kept him from hitting 500 home runs, which almost certainly would have punched his ticket to the Hall, but he still has strong credentials.
"That's the thing that people are enamored with, power and RBIs -- and they're very important -- but this guy was one of the best baserunners I ever played with," said Tigers manager Brad Ausmus, Bagwell's former teammate. "Before his shoulder issue, he was one of the better defensive first basemen. He played the game the right way and led by example, and occasionally led by voice."
Bagwell has compared his Hall of Fame candidacy to Andre Dawson, a slugger with similar numbers who had to wait out nine years of eligibility to get the call from the Hall. Dawson was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2010 after receiving 45.3 percent of the vote in his first year of eligibility in '02. Bagwell got 41.7 percent of the vote his first time on the ballot.
"The thing about the Hall is, it's a process," Dawson said. "There's no protocol unless you have the automatic numbers they like to throw out. If you're a Hall of Famer, you're a Hall of Famer and should be elected when it comes time for you to seek election. Jeff Bagwell was a great ballplayer, a first baseman in the era I played, and undoubtedly put up Hall of Fame numbers."
Bagwell's case for Hall of Fame consideration goes beyond numbers and awards. He was one of the smartest players in the game and a tremendous baserunner, as well as a good defensive player.
"There's no doubt about it, he should be in the Hall of Fame," Biggio said. "His numbers speak for themselves when you compare them to other first basemen and other power hitters, in general. But the defensive side gets lost. To me, there's no doubt in my mind he deserves to be in there, and we'll cross our fingers and hope for the best."
The Astros acquired Bagwell at the Trade Deadline in 1990 in what will forever be remembered as one of the most lopsided trades in history. Houston got Bagwell, a skinny Minor League third baseman, from the Red Sox in exchange for relief pitcher Larry Andersen.
With Ken Caminiti established at third base, the Astros shifted Bagwell across the diamond to first base. Bagwell was in the Opening Day lineup in 1991, and he would be for 15 consecutive seasons. He hit .294 with 15 homers and 82 RBIs in 156 games in his rookie season, giving Houston a sign of things to come.
He had blossomed into one of the most feared sluggers in the league by 1994, hitting .368 with 39 homers and 116 RBIs in only 110 games, and winning his only Gold Glove Award en route to unanimously being named MVP in a strike-shortened season. Not that the work stoppage mattered to Bagwell, because his season ended Aug. 10 when he was hit by a pitch and broke his hand two days before the players went on strike.
"Baggy had great hands, and that's why he was able to win a Gold Glove," said Biggio, a four-time Gold Glove Award winner. "They just don't give those things away." Bagwell -- who also missed the final 20 games of the 1993 season after being hit by a pitch on the hand and was on the disabled list for a month in '95 with his third such hand break -- averaged 34 homers and 115 RBIs in his career, and hit .297. He stole 202 bases.
Bagwell drove in at least 100 runs in all but one season from 1996-2003, and slipped to 27 homers and 89 RBIs in '04, though he hit .286 with two homers and eight RBIs in the playoffs. Led by Bagwell, Biggio, Lance Berkman, Roy Oswalt, Andy Pettitte and Roger Clemens, the Astros made it to the World Series for the first time in franchise history in 2005.
The pain from his arthritic right shoulder forced Bagwell to undergo capsular release surgery in May 2005, and caused him to miss 115 games. He returned for the final few weeks of the regular season and served in a pinch-hit role because of the difficulty he had throwing a ball. He was the designated hitter for Houston in the World Series, going 1-for-8 in the Fall Classic in his final appearance in an Astros uniform as a player.
"The Hall of Fame is a great achievement and all that kind of stuff," Bagwell said. "The biggest achievement in my career is the friends I've taken out of here."
Brian McTaggart is a reporter for MLB.com and writes an MLBlog, Tag's Lines. Follow @brianmctaggart on Twitter. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


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All quotes tagged Motivation
(9076 quotes found)
"You are the embodiment of the information you choose to accept and act upon. To change your circumstances you need to change your thinking and subsequent actions."
"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn't serve the world. There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We are born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us, it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."
"Keep away from those who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you believe that you too can become great."
"Don't wait until everything is just right. It will never be perfect. There will always be challenges, obstacles and less than perfect conditions. So what. Get started now. With each step you take, you will grow stronger and stronger, more and more skilled, more and more self-confident and more and more successful."
"If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader."


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– Half of Berlin's remaining equivalent dwelling units (EDUs) will be released
for use as soon as the state approves the new capacity management plan, with
the second half released the year after.
Berlin Mayor and Council approved the capacity management plan at the Monday
night meeting. This type of plan is required by the state of Maryland whenever
a wastewater system is at 80 percent capacity.
required. It does explain how we're going to manage out existing capacity,"
said Berlin Administrative Director Linda Bambary.
Vice President Gee Williams added, "It really helps to quantify what we're
planning for."
not already in the plan will have to wait for the plant expansion to get sewer
service, estimated to be complete in two and a half years.
one else can get any capacity," Bambary said.
hundred EDUs worth of capacity is already reserved for the 218 infill lots in
town, according to the capacity plan.
five incompletely built subdivisions in the plan, Austin Acres, Buttercup,
Decatur Farm, Franklin Knoll and Walnut Hill, will use 114 EDUs.
other residential subdivisions, the Bay Street Duplexes, Cannery Village,
Nelson Avenue Townes, and Purnell Crossing, will share 157 EDUs. Those
developments are in the pipeline, but not yet fully approved by Berlin.
EDUs will be reserved for commercial development, including the new ACE
Printing location, the Crossroads offices, Nelson Avenue Townes commercial
spaces and the Seahorse Professional Center.
basically treats our reserve very conservatively," said Williams, explaining
the town wants to protect, not exploit, the remaining capacity.
used a more conservative method of averaging peak flows to determine the number
of unused EDUs.
to the capacity management plan, the current plant can handle another 432 EDUs
of flow, with 216 EDUs available the first year, and 216 the next year.
will be spread out over residential infill, commercial, new and existing
subdivisions and institutional uses.
town will create an allocation ordinance to handle the new capacity from the
plant expansion.
do have the skeleton of it but it'll still need some work," said Bambary.
She expects the
allocation ordinance to be presented this summer.


text:
Person... EVER
Astronaut Tim Kopra will miss the forthcoming launch of Discovery on its STS-133 mission to the International Space Station, after falling off his bike over the weekend. There are reports that Kopra broke his hip in the mishap near his Houston home, but NASA remains tight-lipped. It said: "Tim is doing fine and expects a full …
Person... EVER
Michael Collins was going to be the command module pilot on Apollo 8 but needed an operation on his back so Jim Lovell took his slot instead (Collins was probably gutted and Lovell probably felt really lucky) although when Collins was fit he took Lovells spot on Apollo 11 and landed on the moon instead of Lovell.
So maybe Lovell was luckier/unluckier (mind you who remembers Collins even went there?), of course this twist and turn of fate put Lovell on Apollo 13, was that good or bad luck?
Just to point out that Collins *was* on Apollo 11 but didn't *land* on the moon; Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin did the blasty landy bit, whilst Mr Collins stayed aloft throughout.
Yes I do remember he went there. God bless them all and 'mankind's greatest adventure'.
Michael Collins never landed on the Moon. He was the CM pilot and was watching the show from the lunar orbit (but did not see very much) while Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin made the landing.
"although when Collins was fit he took Lovells spot on Apollo 11 and landed on the moon instead of Lovell."
Hmmm. Given that Collins stayed in the CSM in orbit while Armstrong and Aldrin landed on the surface in the LEM, it's a bit of a stretch to say that Collins landed on the moon. In reality he never got any closer than about 69 miles.
Only a typo, mean to be "went to" rather than "landed on" (although you could argue the point that Apollo 11 was the mission, the mission landed on the moon, in the same way as mung bean, petuli oil parents say "we're pregnant", but it's not what I meant, just a typo), maybe Lovell was the lucky one, after all, he was made commander of the backup team (was this a consolation prize?), I guess it's all butterfly effect from the back surgery onward, who knows what the space program would have been like if he'd delayed the operation, would Apollo 13 got back OK? it was touch and go, decisions made at different times could have changed it.
What (on the face of it) might seem bad luck, could be good and vice versa, cancelling Apollo 18-20 sounds bad, but it allowed skylab which was great for the skylab teams (can't think of anyone except Pete Conrad that was on an apollo team?).
...to kick himself with.
Poor guy.
Whenever I'm up for space travel, I'll make sure to stay indoors, in a padded room, and have my meals brought up to me and my personal needs attended by carefully chosen professionals. I'll also will not take the opportunity to taste any new foods nor practice any new activity, regardless of how attractive or pleasurable it may promise to be.
No need to increase risk of missing my mission.
...then you get kicked off the mission for failing the final fitness test. Unlucky.
See bottom right hand corner of pic - clearly the shuttle is begin repaired in the finest traditions of all bodgers everywhere
He could be the luckiest
...had this on their front page in the slightly jokey "Also in the news" section, but I don't think it's amusing at all. Can you imagine how gutted you would be?
As a mere 50+ person I am surprised how old the "technicians" appear to be who are working on this fuel tank. I suppose they were quite young when the Shuttle programme started.
Paris Hilton as she was quite young when she started...
When I was coming up, I was always told that experience was worth a lot. So I expect that's what the techs in the photo have.
I only wish my experience was worth more than it is.
"I think Steve will fit in well with this crew. He obviously doesn't have time to make a huge impact"
That's just as well. Making a huge impact is where Tim went wrong.
Nice to see they're using a frickin' Dremel tool there on the shuttle tank. At least it's the latest model.
"he will not be able to support the launch"
Talk English. He is not a piece of software, and I don't suppose he was ever going to hold anything up in the air.
For Goodness sake: is it rocket science?
My God, it's full of stars!
Only 10 years later than Clarke has predicted...
According to the NASA website, he's spent 2 months in space in the past and done a space walk, so he's not missing his only chance to ever get into space
falling off the space shuttle and missing his bike ride
Where does NASA find those geniuses who write their press releases ?...
I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks this stuff is crap.
is what astronauts do best.
The trick is , of course, to miss the ground.


text:
After some testing with Mario Bross we were indeed able to get a AMD 7970 working with QE under Mac OS X 10.8.3 using DSDT injection method.
Important Note :
You need a working SLEEP system because a bug ...and also you will need your 7970 injected in the DSDT to have 100% support in any app....( your 7970 will also work partially without DSDT injection.. but without any FB loaded ), if you have a White o black screen after boot.. just put your system to sleep and later wake up.. it will make work your 7970.
Note: If you have problems whit the boot loader screen ( like a funny characters ) Just update your boot loader ! ( i test whit the last champlist and it work fine whit my 7970 )
Also this only work whit the 10.8.3 , the new 7***.kext can't work alone in 10.8.2.
Important: this also can apply to any AMD 7*** series GPU , just test and report


text:
I'm trying to load Zonealarm Seciruty Suite 10.1.035.000 onto a new Win 7 computer - I have a license for 3 machines & have only installed the software onto 2 machines so far. I have cut and paste the license key from my original order email but the system keeps on rejecting this as incorrect.
Does anyone have any suggestions? I'm probably doing something stupid but I have never had this sort of problem when loading ZA in the past.


text: Kindergarten Students At OC Elementary Get Involved In Magnets Feb 01,2012 by DispatchAdmin Kindergarten students in Christine Lieb's class from Ocean City Elementary are involved in a unit on magnets. Students Nevaeh Wilgus, Tatum Daubach, Daniel Karcheuski and Serenity Sanon are discovering what types of objects are attracted to magnets. ← Previous Next →


text:
Bourjos set to make most of return to starting lineup
Speedster was the odd man out of a crowded Angels outfield in 2013
By Alden Gonzalez / MLB.com
TEMPE, Ariz. -- So Peter Bourjos' situation finally appears to be resolved. After a litany of mentions in the rumor mill and little action in 2012, the 25-year-old burner appears primed to be the everyday center fielder of a potent offense and a dynamic outfield.
But how much patience will the Angels have with him?
If Bourjos starts off slow, like he did last season, Angels manager Mike Scioscia may be tempted to go more frequently with the seasoned bat of Vernon Wells, seemingly making it crucial for Bourjos -- perhaps more so than any other player -- to produce early.
"I'm not going to put that pressure on myself," Bourjos said. "I don't know if I have to or I don't. I don't know what they're thinking, Scioscia, the front office or the coaches. But I'm going to go out, play my game, and if I get off to a slow start, I get off to a slow start. That's it. But hopefully I put together some good at-bats and help the team win. That's all I can do."
When you're a center fielder in an organization with Mike Trout, then get only nine plate appearances in August and September, then watch as your team signs Josh Hamilton, your name is going to be in trade rumors. But that was put to a halt -- for now, at least -- when Angels general manager Jerry Dipoto decided to part with designated hitter Kendrys Morales and acquire Jason Vargas, making the lineup younger and more athletic.
"At the end of the day, I don't think they wanted to trade me," Bourjos said he now realizes -- though it wasn't always easy to maintain that mentality.
"I think some of the media doesn't realize it or they don't want to realize it. They just keep writing stories and stuff gets thrown around the locker room. That's how it goes."
Bourjos showed what he's capable of in 2011, batting .271 with a .327 on-base percentage, 12 homers, 11 triples, 22 steals and some of the best outfield defense around. Last April, though, Bourjos hit just .167 as the entire offense scuffled, then lost his job when Trout established himself as the everyday center fielder. Bourjos finished the year with about one-third of the plate appearances he got the season before.
Now, Bourjos has to ramp it back up and get going again.
"It's a tall order," Mark Trumbo said of his good friend during the offseason. "But there's not a person I know that's better-equipped at doing it than him. With his demeanor and how even-keeled he is, he's going to be just fine. The biggest thing that I think he's got going for him is his speed. Speed doesn't go into slumps. Despite the fact he maybe didn't get as many reps as he wanted last year, it's not going to hold him back at all going forward."
One thing going for Bourjos is that the Angels simply don't need that much out of him. They already have a leadoff hitter in Trout, so Bourjos figures to start out hitting towards the bottom of the lineup. And even amid a slump, he'd be providing plenty of value with his defense in center field and his game-changing speed.
But how much patience will Scioscia have with him if Bourjos struggles offensively, given how easy it is to simply put Wells in left field and move Trout back to center?
"Peter has the ability not to have the pressure to have to bring a ton of offense, or be off-the-charts offensively, because of the premium defensive look he gives your team and how he can help you win games out there," Scioscia said. "Peter's a good baseball player, and if he ends up playing at a level he can, there's no doubt he's going to get a tremendous amount of playing time and give us a deep look in the outfield on the defensive side. If it is where other guys are playing better or you mix and match, we'll cross that bridge when we get to it."
Bourjos lost some level of trust from Scioscia last year, but he apparently hasn't lost it in himself. The outfielder believes he can be the same player he was two years ago, or better, despite the lack of playing time he got a year ago.
Give him the reps, and Bourjos is confident he'll prove it to you.
"I just need to go out and play," Bourjos said. "I think I proved myself in 2011, and with consistent at-bats, I'm going to be able to repeat that. I believe that. I think I did that throughout the Minor Leagues. When I've had enough at-bats throughout a year, at least 400 or 500 at-bats, I've proven myself at every level I've been at. And the years where I haven't played, I haven't hit."
Alden Gonzalez is a reporter for MLB.com. Read his blog, Gonzo and "The Show", and follow him on Twitter @Alden_Gonzalez. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


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MADISON, Wis.– Blood donations through the local American Red Cross Blood Services Region have been declining this summer and supplies are currently less than sufficient. All blood types are needed to ensure blood supplies do not drop to emergency levels.
Summer blood donors can mean the difference between an adequate blood supply and a shortage. To help ensure sufficient blood supplies before and after the Labor Day holiday weekend, and to thank generous blood and platelet donors, the American Red Cross is raffling off a $500 gas gift card.
From August 30 through September 10, 2010, all presenting donors at Red Cross blood drives and blood donation centers in the Badger-Hawkeye Regionof the American Red Cross will automatically be entered for a chance to win a $500 gas gift card. All presenting donors will also receive a complimentary Red Cross Racing-themed can cooler while supplies last.
"Summer is drawing to a close and many people may now be focused on heading back to school and taking one last family vacation," said Greg Novinska, CEO of the Red Cross Badger-Hawkeye Blood Services Region. "However, the need for blood is constant. Please set aside one hour of your time to donate blood and help patients in need."
All blood types are needed to help maintain a sufficient supply for patients in need, especially types O negative, A negative and B negative. Type O negative blood, the universal blood type, is always in high demand because it can be transfused to patients with any blood type, especially in emergency situations.
How to Donate Blood
Simply call 1-800-GIVE-LIFE (448-3543) or visit redcrossblood.org to make an appointment or for more information. All blood types are needed to ensure a reliable supply for patients. A blood donor card or driver's license, or two other forms of identification are required at check-in. Individuals who are 17 years of age (16 with parental permission in some states), weigh at least 110 pounds and are in generally good health may be eligible to donate blood. High school students and other donors 18 years of age and younger also have to meet certain height and weight requirements.
About the American Red Cross
Governed by volunteers and supported by giving individuals and communities, the American Red Cross is the single largest supplier of blood products to hospitals throughout the United States. While local hospital needs are always met first, the Red Cross also helps ensure no patient goes without blood no matter where or when they need it. In addition to providing nearly half of the nation's blood supply, the Red Cross provides relief to victims of disaster, trains millions in lifesaving skills, serves as a communication link between U.S. military members and their families, and assists victims of international disasters or conflicts.


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February 27, 2009
When in Rome: Robert Pattinson & Hugh Jackman Sing Karaoke Together in Japan
According to E!Online, Robert Pattinson, Hugh Jackman and Baz Luhrmann apparently did karaoke together this week at a bar in Tokyo. Hugh is apparently in Japan doing promo for 'Australia' with Nicole Kidman.
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MC DK and his dope homemonkeys.
For some reason, King K. Rool, the evil kremling lizard, doesn't like apes. First, he takes Donkey Kong's horde of bananas. Then he kidnaps Donkey Kong's friends, locking them all up in dank cages. Finally, to add insult to injury, K. Rool has his giant Blast-O-Matic laser trained right on Donkey Kong Isle (that small island in the shape of Donkey Kong's head).
Perhaps when he was a young kremling, the monkeys all made fun of K. Rool in school. Or maybe chimpanzees killed his parents. Either way, K. Rool has a score to settle. So, it's up to Donkey Kong to fight back in his 64 bit iteration, Donkey Kong 64.
Startup the game and you'll be immediately treated to, definitively, the world's worst rap. Those of you too young to know Tupac from Puff Daddy will get a kick out of the sing along lyrics on the bottom, but most sane people will try to skip it as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, I've played it to friends (to prove my point) once too often and those lyrics are still in my head.
Characters and references are made to the past DK Country games, but with changes all across the board. Funky Kong, the former surfer dude, has gone all-out militant, a bit like that creepy shopkeeper in Pulp Fiction. Donkey Kong's girl friend, Candy Kong, seems to be coming on to everyone (A monkey with breasts just seems so very wrong to me). And that sweet granny Wrinkly Kong? Well… they killed her off, and brought her back as a shrieking, wailing ghost that dispenses helpful advice.
Of course, Donkey Kong and Diddy are back. In addition, there are three new playable characters you get after you rescue them. There's Tiny Kong and Chunky Kong -- the obligatory small and extra large members of the group. Their special abilities are to (respectively) grow smaller or larger. Lanky Kong, the long armed, orange orangutan can walk on his hands, thereby letting him climb sharp inclines. At first, I was ready to dismiss the new apes, but one look at Lanky's funny walk made them all bearable -- they were actually amusing.
Okay, so there's no real story or plot. Instead you are after 200 golden N64 brand bananas, hidden throughout the land. Whoop-dee-do. Bananas. But somehow, while you play, those yellow fruit seem as important as if you were placed in the one-track mind of a monkey. Every time you earn another one of the gold bananas a sound bite yelps out, "OOooOOH, BA-nah-NAA!" After awhile, you end up yelping with the game.
Play control is right on the money, straddling a large variety of different moves and techniques. The monkeys (apes?) each have unique moves that let them reach things the others can't. Each monkey also has a different color-coding that designates the items he can collect. Chunky, the proverbial idiot of the group loves those green bananas.
Every monkey can purchase a gun from Funky that shoots different types of ammo (coconuts, peanuts, pineapples-arrgh, there's that damn rap again.). The ammo can be used to trigger corresponding buttons as well as to shoot enemies. Every monkey can also play a different instrument. These are used for musical switches. Other buttons have face or color markings that can only be triggered by the correct primate. All of these things make up the keys to unlock the different gates. Do the math, and you end up with a whole lot of techniques to have to use.
It's redundant… it's repetitive… and it's... well... brilliant. While you play, you don't think about having to keep switching monkeys to get to an area. You don't think about having to shrink in size as Tiny Kong, and then open up a portal, so that Diddy can use his jet pack to reach a bonus. It just works.
Like the original Donkey Kong Country, there are countless mini games. These range from good puzzles and shoot-em-up challenges, to just-kind-of stupid tasks, like the Beaver Round-up. The original Donkey Kong arcade game and Rare's first game, Jet Pack, are also included. They aren't optional though... in order to reach the last boss, you must beat them both. All of the mini games give you unlimited chances to get it right. Usually the prize is another N64 banana. The many different goals help to keep the game going.
First boss to last, there's a similar pattern to defeat them: dodge then attack. For example, to defeat a giant dragon, you dodge his fireballs, and then throw the TNT barrel at him when he stops to rest. Once you understand the method of attack, it becomes a cakewalk. A more random quality in at least some of the bosses would have been appreciated.
Taking Banjo-Kazooie as the standard in beautiful platform graphics, Donkey Kong 64 nearly hits that mark… but adds in lots more lighting effects. Very cool. Just look at the mine-cart/ghost train mini game to see what power the N64 can still muster up. The early levels look alright, but the deeper you get in the game, the better the graphics get. And to view all this there's a pretty decent camera system based upon the Zelda design of "back that cam up."
The sound effects are well done, capturing that chittering-chattering monkey noise and the sharp rasping of the kremlings. Donkey Kong gives out a pained "Why me?" moan whenever he's shot out of a barrel. Most of the music does a good job setting the mood for the game. Listen for the opening of Creepy Castle, and hear a single piano play a slow, sad melody, while an old organ weaves it way into the piece. That's quality. After awhile, though, it trails into some more generic sounds. Notably, the original music from Donkey Kong Country made its way in here, slightly remixed.
Bottom line is you will get a lot of game for your dollar. Even after the 35-40 hours to complete every single last objective the game, there's still a simple, but worthy multiplayer mode to keep you occupied. The real problem is that right to the end, it's just more of the same. There isn't the sharp contrast that DKCountry brought to the SNES as most hoped and expected. While no major ground is broken from Banjo Kazooie, Donkey Kong is still all there as a 3D platform game. Ok, I'm done with the review, can I have my banana now?


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This study is provided by ICPSR. ICPSR provides leadership and training in data access, curation, and methods of analysis for a diverse and expanding social science research community.
Yearbook of World Energy Statistics, Master File, 1970-1979 (ICPSR 7893)
Principal Investigator(s): United Nations
This data collection contains energy commodity production statistics for approximately 200 United Nations reporting countries for the years 1970-1979. In this file, each record refers to an individual reporting country and the quantity of its various transactions (e.g., production, imports, exports, bunkers, additions to stocks, and capacity) for a given energy commodity in a given year. Only annual data are included. The 70 types of commodities reported include solid fuels (e.g., coal, peat, and charcoal), liquid fuels (e.g., crude petroleum, gasoline, and kerosene), gases, uranium, and both industrial and public types of geothermal, hydro, and nuclear generated electricity. Information is also included on the population (in thousands) of the reporting country, the quantity of the commodity per transaction, and the date of the transaction. Supplementary data not contained in this data collection are in the introduction and footnotes of the individual tables published in the YEARBOOK OF WORLD ENERGY STATISTICS, 1979.
Access Notes
Data in this collection are available only to users at ICPSR member institutions. Please log in so we can determine if you are with a member institution and have access to these data files.
Study Description
United Nations. Yearbook of World Energy Statistics, Master File, 1970-1979. ICPSR07893-v1. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 1982. https://doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR07893.v1
Persistent URL: https://doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR07893.v1
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Scope of Study
Subject Terms: coal, commodities, economic activity, economic behavior, economic trends, electric power, energy, energy production, exports, fuels, gasoline, imports, international trade, nations, natural gas, nuclear fuels, oil production, petroleum, production levels, productivity, trade
Geographic Coverage: Afghanistan, Africa, Albania, Algeria, American Samoa, Andorra, Angola, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Asia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bermuda Islands, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia-Hercegovina, Botswana, Brazil, British Virgin Islands, Brunei, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, Central America, Chad, Channel Islands, Chile, China (Peoples Republic), Christmas Island, Colombia, Comoros, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Czechoslovakia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, East Timor, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Europe, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Fiji, Finland, France, French Guiana, French Polynesia, Gabon, Gambia, Germany, Ghana, Gibralter, Global, Greece, Greenland, Guadeloupe, Guam, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Kiribati, Kuwait, Laos, Latin America, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macao, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Martinique, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Micronesia (Federated States), Middle East, Moldova, Monaco, Mongolia, Montserrat, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Netherlands, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, North America, North Korea, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Persian Gulf States, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Reunion, Romania, Rwanda, Saint Helena, Saint Kitts-Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, South America, South Korea, Southeast Asia, Soviet Union, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turks and Caicos Islands, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Venezuela, Vietnam (Socialist Republic), Virgin Islands of the United States, West Indies, Western Samoa, Yemen, Yugoslavia, Zambia, Zimbabwe
- 1970--1979
- 1970--1980
Universe: Countries reporting energy commodity production statistics that refer to transactions that took place between 1970 and 1979.
Each record refers to an individual reporting country and its quantity of production, trade, or other transactions relating to a particular commodity in a given year. When the transaction of trade is involved, it refers to total trade, i.e., excluding reference to countries of origin or destination. Furthermore, there is no aggregate record by reporting countries or by commodities. There is no instance of two or more records referring to the same reporting country and same commodity transaction in the same period, i.e., each record is uniquely identified by reporting country, transaction, commodity, and period code.
self-enumerated questionnaires, official published sources, and United Nations Statistical Office estimates
Original ICPSR Release: 1984-05-11
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LOS ANGELES (AP) — Randy Newman launched the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony Thursday with his ode to Los Angeles.
The singer-songwriter kicked off the 28th annual induction ceremony at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles with a performance of "I Love L.A." The inductee was joined by Jackson Browne, John Fogerty and Tom Petty.
Newman is among this year's eight inductees, which also includes rockers Heart and Rush, rap group Public Enemy, disco queen Donna Summer, bluesman Albert King, and producers Quincy Jones and Lou Adler.
The event marks the first time since 1993 that the Cleveland, Ohio, institution has held its induction ceremony on the West Coast.
The event will be broadcast May 18 on HBO.


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TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) — Conservation organizations are joining together to turn 2,500 acres along western Lake Erie back into wetlands.
The groups say restoring the wetlands east of Toledo near the Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge will help improve water quality and provide habitat for fish and birds.
It's one of many projects aimed at building wetlands along Lake Erie through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative.
The Nature Conservancy's Ohio program says it has received nearly $10 million from the Great Lakes project.
This week, the conservation groups marked the completion of turning a 100-acre wheat field into a coastal marsh at the Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge.
The project includes pumps and water control devices that can allow fish into the wetlands while also block out unwanted carp that can destroy the marsh.


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Read the full story here Web Link posted Monday, May 16, 2011, 4:02 PM
Town Square
McNerney to host forum Thursday evening on cyber-bullying
Original post made on May 17, 2011
Read the full story here Web Link posted Monday, May 16, 2011, 4:02 PM
Comments (11)
a resident of Danville
on May 17, 2011 at 7:16 am
This sounds like a topic best handled by local organizations. Why is a federal politician focusing on an issue like this?
a resident of Danville
on May 17, 2011 at 9:23 am
He should be working on reducing FEDERAL spending.
Go back to work Jerry
a resident of Danville
on May 17, 2011 at 10:10 am
Brian says it for me. Jerry, how about a town hall meeting? We're more concerned about Obamacare, deficits, national debt, illegal immigration, unemployment, muslim extremists, energy security and a third undeclared war.
a resident of Danville
on May 17, 2011 at 11:40 am
Hey dudes, I think you guys are cyber-bullying poor Jerry!
a resident of Danville
on May 17, 2011 at 1:56 pm
Aw Derek, We wouldn't do that. We just want our legislators to focus on solving our Country's real problems instead of poking into local issues that we can solve ourselves. After all, we should have the 10TH Ammendment going for us.
a resident of Danville
on May 17, 2011 at 2:01 pm
Correction: "Amendment". These sites should have spell checks.
a resident of San Ramon
on May 17, 2011 at 2:44 pm
This a an important issue and it looks like some great speakers will be included in the forum. It doesn't matter to me whether McNerney will host or someone else (in the course of his day, this likely took negligible time, if any)- but it matters that it takes place.
guynextdoor and spcwt - have you taken time to organize something similar? If not and you have the resources and knowledge to do so (as implied in your postings) why not?
a resident of Danville
on May 17, 2011 at 3:27 pm
Regardless of whether cyber-bullying is an important issue or not, it is perfectly valid to question whether it should be a "federal" issue and whether it should require the efforts and resources of our federal Congressman and his office staff.
(What exactly is Jerry going to be doing here anyway--in this claimed "hosting" of this seminar? The propaganda piece (news item) is unclear about that.)
It is this very lack of governmental restraint and correct prioritization to tasks that should be under its jurisdiction--the years of allowing government expansion into "everything" under the sun--that has grown the size and scope of liberal government into many areas that it shouldn't be involved in and into becoming an enormously expensive drain on the American taxpayer.
The size and scope of Government is killing off the free enterprise system. It is draining our time and money away from our own freedom of choice to run our own lives and make our own judgments about where to invest/commit our personal time.
We taxpayers "hire" Jerry to work on Federal issues: that is his job and his responsibility. I agree with most of the commenters here: fix the Federal government first.
"Cyber-bullying" should be so far down on his list of important, valid issues to resolve, that it should be "off the list entirely" until he has actually managed to fix the more pressing matters before him.
This is just "baby kissing" to look good!
a resident of Diablo
on May 17, 2011 at 6:09 pm
Jerry could cure cancer, whereupon somebody on this board would admonish him to get back to work on that deficit!
a resident of Danville
on May 17, 2011 at 7:06 pm
Hey Theresa and Cardinal, Nice to hear your point of view. But I' m sorry, Jerry is never going to cure cancer or accomplish anything important in Congress because he's a "party line" Democrat who does what the caucus decides. He's not a risk taker or an independant thinker. There's a large population in this CD that he makes no effort to represent. I agree that cyber-bullying may be a problem but it's not necessary for the Federal Government to create a new bureacracy to solve it. Just stay in communication with your kids and their friends and you'll know what to do to be part of the solution.
a resident of San Ramon
on May 17, 2011 at 8:12 pm
@guynextdoor - how is McNerney hosting an event to highlight cyber- bullying akin to the federal government creating a new bureaucracy? If he had pancakes for breakfast, is the government going to take over IHOP? Come on now.
My kids haven't dealt with cyber-bullying and for that I am grateful. However, I know of kids who have, whose parents are very involved in their lives - unfortunately, your relationship with your kids and their friends is only part of the equation. The complicating variable is the other kid(s) and their home environment, whether the bully has mental health issues, etc. Providing solutions to these issues is important to many.
I don't care who pulls the panel together and hosts the event, but it looks to me as though no one else stepped up.
Thanks Jerry!
Salami, Salami … Baloney
By Tom Cushing | 28 comments | 824 views


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Hi experts,
I am fairly new to C++ but what I am trying to do is read the text one character at a time (told not to use arrays yet) then if the user enters a word where a character occurs twice in a row then I am suppose to upper case the first occurrence and remove the second. example user enters "oops" output would be "Ops."
Any help on this subject or just string manipulation itself would be a great help. thank-you


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This is the same Water Blast game found at theme parks, state fairs, and arcades, complete with rapid water-shooting guns, flashing lights, lighted marquee, and arcade sounds. The game challenges up to two players to shoot streams of water at their respective bull's-eyes. Direct hits illuminate lights on the scoreboard to show players' progress; a victor is determined when all of a player's lights illuminate. A barker's voice initiates the contest, tells off-target shooters to "Aim your gun at the target," and declares a winner with "Awesome, you won. Let's play again." The guns are powered by continuous, 1/2-horsepower water pumps for fast action, and the guns swivel left, right, up, and down so you can adjust your shot. The only differences between this unit and the games in the arcades are you don't have to feed it quarters (authentic coin doors are disabled) and it does not award tickets for victories. A barker's voice initiates the contest, announces when a player is off-target, and declares a winner. The glass shields on the side and top of the targets keep water inside the cabinet and the self-contained water system is supplied by a 5-gallon water reservoir that refills easily through the front of the cabinet. Plugs into AC. Our white glove delivery includes in-home assembly and removal of packing materials. 108" H x 36" W x 99" D. (702 lbs.)
Only available for shipment within the Contiguous US and Canada.
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The Authentic Water Blast Arcade Game comes with The Hammacher Schlemmer Lifetime Guarantee. If this product ever disappoints you, for any reason, you may return your Hammacher Schlemmer purchase for exchange, credit, or refund.
Should you have any questions, we are available seven days a week (8:00 am – midnight EST). Please call 1-800-321-1484 to speak with a specialist or email us at email@example.com to receive a response within three business hours or less.
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It's that time of year, the time when thoughts turn to summer riding plans.
The group known as the NELDR (Northeast Long Distance Riders) are once again delighted to present the Minuteman 1000, 24hrs of New England.
Started in 2004, the Minuteman 1000 has evolved into one of the top endurance events in the Northeast and one of only rallies in North America where riders can earn a Saddle Sore 1000 certificate and experience all the challenges of an open rally at the same time.
The Minuteman 1000 is geared toward the novice LD Rider with plenty of opportunities for big dogs to "screw the pooch." Our rally staff is eager to help and with over 15 Iron Butt Rallies (including third in 2011) there aren't a whole lot of LD related questions we can't help with. Our goal is to welcome like minded folks with an event tailored to making your first 1k day fun and memorable.
Here is a map showing the 2010 rally.
The Saddle Sore Route is shown and the red flags represent bonus locations.
Saddle Sore riders are not required to obtain bonus locations or collect points.
The route is run clockwise to get the northern portion done in daylight.
Click map for larger image.
Friday afternoon we open with registration followed by a banquet. After dinner we have a brief meeting to go over details. The ride starts Saturday morning. Sunday morning we start with scoring and end with a wonderful brunch where we award certificates and prizes. Because the route has been certified by the IBA riders who complete the ride are presented with their certificate, pin and plate frame at brunch Sunday.
Thanks to our sponsor,
Max BMW Motorcycles riders get great meals,
prizes and swag.
To get a better feel of the weekend I suggest you read a blog post by Stephen Pivonka. The Minuteman was his first LD ride and he came away with second place in the Saddle Sore 1000 division. Read his blog.
If all you want is to get your first Saddle Sore certificate and instant membership in the Iron Butt Association we've got you covered, you don't need to take photos, hang a flag, answer questions or navigate to out of the way spots. We provide a base route, specific locations to obtain the receipts (and pint of real Vermont Maple Syrup) and all the information you need to have a successful ride. If that isn't enough our sponsor, Max BMW Motorcycles is only a mile or so off the Saddle Sore route and he stays open late to support the riders by providing food, drink and a place to rest for a bit.
Stop here for some syrup and say hi to the farmer, he rides an F650.
For all the details please visit the Minuteman 1000 website.
Have a kilo-mile day!
Rob Nye
Rallymaster, Minuteman 1000


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Editor's note: This review was written in March 2011 about the 2011 Audi A4. Little of substance has changed with this year's model. To see what's new for 2012, click here, or check out a side-by-side comparison of the two model years.
With sales more than double any of its brand siblings, the Audi A4 entry-luxury sedan is effectively Audi's ambassador in the U.S. The R8 supercar might grab more publicity, but the A4 is the car that average customers are most likely to encounter.
After driving the sporty A4 with its refined interior, it's clear that it's not entry-level: it's near the top of its class.
I tested an A4 sedan with Quattro all-wheel drive and the new-for-2011 eight-speed automatic transmission. This version starts at $34,500, but with options our as-tested price reached $43,220. To see a side-by-side comparison of the A4 and some of its competitors, click here.
Turbocharged Power
Audi has wrung quite a bit of performance from its turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder, which powers all versions of the A4. Whether accelerating from a stoplight or merging on the highway, the engine feels bigger than it is, bringing you up to speed more quickly than its specs suggest. There's even a little power in reserve on the highway when a burst is needed. All in all, it feels just as strong as the BMW 328i with its inline-six-cylinder engine. Credit the turbo four-cylinder's healthy 258 pounds-feet of torque at a low 1,500 rpm.
Our test car had the newly optional eight-speed automatic transmission. Despite the high gear count, the transmission doesn't seem overly busy, and that's partly because of its relatively seamless shifts. However, one editor noted that the transmission had a tendency to hesitate under light acceleration.
Downshifts come quickly enough with a jab of the gas pedal. If it needs to, the transmission will skip a few gears to get to the one it needs, rather than step down one at a time. A Sport mode holds the transmission in lower gears longer, and there's a clutchless-manual mode for driver-controlled shifts.
The A4 gets better gas mileage with the new transmission, which is especially welcome because the car requires premium gas. The all-wheel-drive A4 is rated at 21/29 mpg city/highway with the eight-speed automatic, which represents a 2 mpg improvement in highway fuel economy compared with the six-speed 2010 model. Meanwhile, the front-wheel-drive A4 with a continuously variable automatic transmission gets an EPA-estimated 22/30 mpg.
The A4's four-wheel disc brakes quickly shed speed, but the brake pedal doesn't offer the greatest feel. I thought the brakes were a little grabby, while another editor commented on the lack of pedal linearity when braking.
Ride & Handling
The A4's regular suspension (a Sport suspension is optional) is stiff, which keeps body roll in check, but the tuning isn't so firm that driving on rough pavement is jarring. There's no question the emphasis is on sporty driving, but Audi wisely realizes that a car like the A4 also has to keep its occupants comfortable during daily commutes. With the regular suspension, it does.
It's worth noting that our test car had winter tires. While appropriate for the conditions, they likely affected the car's character compared with the all-season tires it normally wears. Winter tires have softer rubber compounds for better grip in cold weather — along with more aggressive tread patterns — which affects handling, acceleration and road-noise levels, among other things.
While the firm suspension tuning is common among German luxury cars, the steering feels like it's been sourced from Lexus. At low and midrange speeds, the wheel turns easily and with little effort. Unfortunately, there's also little feedback. However, a pronounced change occurs when you reach highway speeds, where the steering firms up and feels sharper.
The A4's Quattro all-wheel-drive system features rear-biased torque distribution for improved dynamics. Even though it powers out of corners without feeling nose-heavy, it's still not as engaging as a rear-wheel-drive BMW 3 Series or Infiniti G37.
A Classy Cabin
Audi cabin quality has long been among the best in the industry, and the A4's interior continues that trend. What distinguishes Audi interiors isn't just the use of high-quality materials, like real aluminum accents, but also the finish of the various trim pieces and the way they fit together well. Then you have the little touches, like a center armrest that not only slides forward and back, but also ratchets up and down.
In the past few years we've seen more attention to interior quality from brands like Cadillac (with its CTS) and Infiniti (with the G37), but the A4's cabin remains one of the nicest spaces in the class.
The front bucket seats are finished in standard leather upholstery. By comparison, many competitors like the 3 Series, Mercedes-Benz C-Class and CTS make do with simulated leather upholstery in base models. The A4's firm seat cushions provide good support and comfort, and the front of the cabin is big enough for my 6-foot-1 frame.
The backseat, though, is a little cramped. Just getting into it is difficult for taller adults, because the door opening isn't very large. Once seated, I didn't have much room to spare with the driver's seat adjusted for me, though indentations in the backs of the front seats provide some extra knee clearance. Taller people sit with their knees elevated some, which doesn't bode well for long-drive comfort. Still, it's more comfortable than the backseat of a 3 Series sedan.
The A4's trunk measures 12 cubic feet, which is similar to what competitors offer. The trunk has a nice rectangular shape for fitting luggage, and the split-folding backseat — previously standard but now optional like it is on the 3 Series and C-Class — creates a sizable opening for carrying longer items.
The A4 was recognized as a 2011 Top Safety Pick by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. It received the highest possible overall score from IIHS — Good — in frontal-offset, side-impact, roof-strength and rear-impact testing.
Standard safety features include antilock brakes, side-impact airbags for the front seats, side curtain airbags for both rows of seats, and an electronic stability system. Rear-seat side-impact airbags are optional.
For a full list of safety features, check out the Standard Equipment & Specs page.
A4 in the Market
One of the A4's biggest strengths is that it appeals to luxury shoppers in a number of ways. If you're concerned about gas mileage, it's comparatively thrifty. If you like fine furnishings, the cabin will feel like home. Plus, there are a number of available high-end features to interest technophiles. It may not offer the pure driving experience of a 3 Series, but in the areas that matter most in this part of the luxury segment, the entry-level A4 stands tall.
|Send Mike an email


text:
Miley Cyrus Isn't Sure What to Do With Her Ring From Liam Hemsworth
Liam Hemsworth told Miley Cyrus to keep her engagement ring as a memento of their relationship (which can be either sweet or douchey depending on how you look at it), but the 'We Can't Stop' singer isn't sure exactly what she wants to do with it just yet — and the reasons for that vary.
E! Online sources say Cyrus is "doing good" (so much for adverbs) and that she's excited for her album to drop, but that she's "not sure" what she'll do with the Neil Lane sparkler.
That may be because she's still hung up on Hemsworth.
"She texts him so much, especially super late at night," a source told Life & Style (via Hollywood Life). "His friends joke about it. Liam doesn't want to be mean — but he wants to be single."
Another source told Hollywood Life, "Liam feels totally alive and no longer trapped in a relationship that wasn't working for a while. He is loving being the single man on the prowl, he is young and has to fulfill those needs, which would be something he would have zero chance to do if was married."
Is it us or does that sound creepy and predatory? Whatever.
Other sources say that Cyrus is over the whole thing too, because Hemsworth doesn't like her "urban" new image.
"Miley's all about empowerment and having a strong sexy image, so being with a guy that's not willing to be there for her publicly and stand by her looks really bad," a source said.
"Miley's telling everyone it's over for good this time. She's been trying for so long to fix things with Liam but it just doesn't seem like Liam's willing to fight for her and she doesn't see why she should be the one putting in all the effort," the source added. "They fight so much, and it's been taking a huge toll on her, all the drama and the negativity is not good for her health. And it's terrible for her career!"
But it's great for 'Wrecking Ball' promotion, right?


text:
Damien Williams didn't make the Rivals.com list of the top 50 junior college football recruits in the nation this season. Obviously, Arizona Western coach Tom Minnick didn't get a vote.
Williams, a 6-foot, 210-pound running back, reopened his recruitment when Arizona State fired head coach Dennis Erickson in late November. He quickly attracted scholarship offers from Arkansas, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Texas Tech, where he has a visit scheduled this weekend. Williams rushed for nearly 2,000 yards this season for a Yuma, Ariz., program that finished 11-1 and ranked No. 3.
"He'll be in the NFL in a couple of years, put it that way," Minnick said. "He's a very special kid. Can run. Can catch the ball. He's physical. He's probably the best junior college football player, all-around kid, in the U.S. this year."
In the NJCAA championship game, Williams ran for 145 yards and two touchdowns in a loss to East Mississippi, a team that has defensive linemen committed to Florida, Texas and Mississippi State.
"By far, he was the best kid overall on the field that day," Minnick said. "They had a couple of defensive tackles going to Florida and places like that, but everybody wanted to know where the running back was going."
Williams committed to Arizona State twice — coming out of high school, when he failed to meet NCAA academic requirements, and again in November 2011.
"He was placed here by Arizona State," Minnick said, "so that's where he was going to go, and we didn't let anybody talk to him until coach Erickson got let go at Arizona State. Once we said he's open, everybody came in on him."
In 12 games, Williams carried 259 times for an NJCAA-leading 1,931 yards and 26 touchdowns, caught 20 passes for 317 yards and four TDs and threw two touchdown passes.
Williams went to Mira Mesa High School in San Diego, Calif., where he had eight 200-yard rushing games and six games of three or more touchdowns as a senior. Rivals.com ranked him the No. 75 prospect in California at the time.
In Williams' two years at Arizona Western, Minnick said his versatility and effort in all areas stood out. He could be the team's best receiver if he played receiver, Minnick said, and on top of being the team's top rusher, he blocks hard.
"The play I tell people about that was his best play is he was back on punt return, the other team ran a fake punt, and he came flying from about 30 yards away and knocked a kid out as he was running through the line with the fake punt," Minnick said. "He just plays with that attitude when he's on the field."
Newbold still solid
Lancaster cornerback La'Darius Newbold visited Baylor last weekend, but said he remains committed to Texas Tech. Newbold pledged to the Red Raiders last summer.
Newbold said he's heard from Baylor, TCU and Utah State recently. Newbold said his coach received a text message Tuesday from Texas inquiring about him, but he wasn't sure the Longhorns' level of interest.
"I'm still staying with Texas Tech," Newbold said. "People are still calling, so I don't know what they're going to say, but it would be kind of hard to change my mind at this point."
Newbold played almost exclusively on defense as a senior and said he was credited with 86 tackles and about 15 pass breakups. He said he was measured at 6-1 and 190 pounds during his visit at Baylor.
Vols make move
Texas Tech pledge Chase Robison, a 6-4, 225-pound defensive end, will visit Tennessee this weekend, according to published reports. Robison visited Tech last weekend, which was his third trip to Lubbock — he'd also been to a Tech football camp and a Tech junior day.
Robison is from Memphis, Tenn., Christian Brothers. When he committed to Tech in August, the Red Raiders were the biggest program to offer him a scholarship. Since then, he's picked up offers from Louisville, Colorado, North Carolina and now Tennessee.
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text:
$2.9M project should be complete nine months from start date
By Whitney Snipes
Those who have been awaiting the long-talked-about expansion of North Phoenix Avenue can now start counting down the time to construction in terms of days, rather than months or years.
Public Works Director Michael Oakes said bids for the project had been received, and Mayor Bill Eaton was expected to sign a $2.9 million contract with Bowden Specialties of Dardanelle as early as Monday. Once the contract is complete, construction should begin within about a week, Oakes said.
The contract calls for construction to be complete within nine months of the project's start. The biggest challenge the contractors will face, Oakes said, is the construction of the bridge over Prairie Creek.
"The main issue for the contractor is to get there and start working on that bridge quickly," he said.
The bridge will be two lanes with wide shoulders and bike lanes and will be built for a 100-year flood at Prairie Creek. It will also feature stacked stone architectural enhancements.
"It is a three-span bridge," Kurt Jones, an independent engineer who contracts with the city, said. "It'll be 90 feet in length."
One thing that won't be a part of the North Phoenix expansion project is a roundabout where the street is planned to intersect with State Highway 7. Although he indicated earlier this year a roundabout would be part of the project, Oakes said the idea was not able to garner approval from all necessary parties.
Instead, the intersection is now expected to have a stoplight - a feature which will be the fourth light on State Highway 7 North between Arkansas Tech University and the north side of Interstate 40.
For a light to be installed, Oakes said a traffic study must be conducted and approved by the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department (AHTD). Jones said a preliminary study indicates a light will be warranted. The cost of a light signal is not included in the project bid and is expected to cost close to $150,000 to $200,000, a price Oakes said is comparable to what a roundabout would cost.
Once construction is complete, Oakes said drivers can expect a road with a 35-mph speed limit that is lit at night.
Jones said the expansion will not affect flooding in the area, and noted the project received approval from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
The project, funded with proceeds from the city's one-cent sales tax, will provide more direct access to Highway 7 from West Main Street and improve response time for emergency vehicles. The expansion has been on the books since 2003, but has been held up by delays in obtaining permits and right-of-way acquisitions from Arkansas Tech.
Another project being considered on North Phoenix is the development of an overpass of the Union Pacific railroad tracks. Oakes said although the city previously looked at an underpass to bypass the railroad, he believes an overpass could work better and possibly cost less. The overpass is not included in the current project to expand North Phoenix Avenue.


text:
Every couple days, I get an email asking when the Angels will sign Crawford, or why it's taking so long to sign Crawford, or something along those lines. Who knows. But here's a timeline of all the significant offseason moves (not counting extensions, arbitration, etc) that the Angels have made in the Arte Moreno era:
Interesting that the Angels signed Hunter a year to the day after Matthews, huh? Basically, sometimes the Angels strike quickly, and sometimes, they wait, and most often they sign guys in December. Sorry there's not more to it than that.


text: To me the whole argument can only be based around whether Roddick took offense or not. IMHO, he could care less. So if his opponent wasn't bothered by it why should we be? I do think Andy did take a little offense to Roger saying "I know how you feel" as was evidenced by his passive-aggressive joking response. But if I had to guess back in the locker room they both have a lot of respect for one another. You shouldn't judge a man based upon one or two incidents if he has a long track record of being a sportsman and gentleman. How many years has Fed been voted the best sportsman by his peers? +5?


text:
Our InformationWeek Analytics survey of 326 business technology professionals suggests that C-level executives not only recognize the importance of information security, but they actively support their IT organizations' efforts to protect corporate assets and reduce risk.
Frankly, we're a bit surprised by these results. We hear rants from IT pros about stingy executives who are ignorant of critical security issues and regard security as an impediment to doing business.
Indeed, conflicts between executives and IT organizations are still common, our follow-up interviews reveal. Moneymaking opportunities that present considerable security risks still go forward over the objections of information security teams. Conversely, security teams don't always appreciate that risk can't be entirely eliminated, or that some security measures go so far as to make information and technology too cumbersome to be useful.
McNabb's goal: "bombproof from the get-go"
Photo by Chris Crisman
We see four reasons for this high level of executive support. First is the rise of high-volume theft of credit card information, Social Security numbers, and other personal data. Such attacks began to make headlines in 2005, when DSW Shoe Warehouse and ChoicePoint were hit. In the DSW case, thieves stole 1.4 million credit card numbers from stores in 25 states. Meanwhile, poor controls at ChoicePoint enabled scam artists posing as legitimate businesses to access consumer records and perpetrate identity theft. Since then, a string of larger information thefts from the likes of the Hannaford Bros. grocery chain, job site Monster.com, retailer TJX, and, most recently, Heartland Payment Systems has put executives on notice: Such breaches can no longer be dismissed as merely isolated incidents.
Second, the high-profile thefts have triggered a number of state breach-disclosure laws, which compel companies to publicize the theft or loss of personally identifiable information. Companies also face industry data-protection standards, the most prominent of which is the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard, which requires a variety of security measures for businesses that accept and process credit cards.
U.S. companies paid an average of $202 per exposed record in 2008, up from $197 in 2007, according to a report by the Ponemon Institute, a privacy management researcher. The report also says the average total cost per breach for each company was $6.6 million in 2008, up from $6.3 million in 2007 and $4.7 million in 2006.
The fourth major trend is the damage to a company's brand and reputation. While it's hard to put a price on the loss of customer trust or efforts to repair a brand, no CEO wants to have to try to do that math.


text:
Found this Crinoid on the Holderness coast a long time ago and was wondering if the crown was inside of the rock.
Don't know wether to have a go at prepping it because all of the arms seem to be going to the center after i removed some of the outer matrix.
That's a tough one, Tabfish.
Yes Mike I agree, don't know were to start!
Hi Mike.
Been told to start from the other side and work in towards what you can see! don't think I have the time for that!
...I suggest not!
If you work in from the other side, and if there is not much fossil, by the time you have prepped it, there won't be enough stone left to support it - it will be very likely to break.
Personally, I'd work from the side you started, and see (test first) if you can get any differential action with acids applied to both fossil and matrix, and/or paint acid carefully only on the matrix to weaken it, and/or abrade the matrix away with a dental drill.
Good luck,
Hi Tabfish,
Interesting - I am having trouble viewing the details of the arms, so cannot be absolutely certain from the photograph there may be another possibility. Perhaps a more detailed photograph might help - however, it seems very likely you have a crinoid crown. Crinoids are found in similar orientation from two possible forms:
1. Crinoids are often found with the cup in an upturned position, with arms splayed out, branching and dividing. If your specimen is a crinoid crown (head) then is is upturned and you are looking at a weathered, upturned cup - the stem would have broken off. There would be no point in trying to prepare it out further. Can you see any details on the large mass in the middle as this is the cup (Calyx or theca), if you can - we might be able to identify it further from the features of the cup and the branching arms (brachials). A clearer photo, with higher magnification on the arm in clear focus on the arms?
Other possibilities are ....
2. Crinoid attachment structures or holdfasts are found and look like miniature tree-roots.Crinoids anchor or attach themselves to the seafloor, bryozoans or substrate by a number of different mechanisms such as:
You can find more about the different structures of crinoid attachments structurs on page 51 of the online paper I wrote, published in Scripta Geologica 136 which you can find by copying the title below in google search.
Towards a systematic standard approach to describing fossil crinoids, illustrated by the redescription of a Scottish Silurian Pisocrinus de Koninck -
F.E. Fearnhead
I hope this has been interesting to you.
Happy New Year!
Great comment; I knew there was something different about those 'arms' - holdfasts - of course!
Also, nice to hear from you!
Hi Fiona
Good to here from you, I cannot doubt what conclusions you have come to over this specimen because I know very little of fossils from the chalk.
If we find one on the Holderness it is interesting and usually get's put in my shed for a closer look when i come across it again.
I will post some more clearer images of the specimen in the daylite, unfortunately christmas and new year is still on the go and we are very bussey, usually the only time I have at the minute comes after 9pm !
I have another specimen that I recently posted an image of that I would say was a certain 'holdfast', I will start a new post with images of this Crinoid.
Thank's again.
Regards Harry
Hello again Fiona.
Thank you for the direction towards the paper you wrote about different structures of crinoid attachments, I will follow it up.
When we find something different on the Holderness coast after many years of collecting from the area it usually turns out to be very interesting, but if I only had time.
Hi Fiona
I have take some more images of the specimen unfortunately I used my phone and not my camera so I hope they are ok.
The first couple of images are of the 'other side' and the others are of the original side but a bit closer.
I think it's either a Crinoid head or a coral.


text:
February 20, 2009
Holy Crow!! Ashley Greene's Super-Sexy Maxim Shoot -- A Side to Alice Cullen We Haven't Seen
Well, THIS is a side of Alice Cullen that I haven't seen! Ashley looks *amazing*. Check out these new scans of this old Maxim photoshoot at ifelthope.net.
10 comments:
umm wow dont most of the twilight cast have stuff like this like kellan lutz and nikki reed ut its suprising for ashely greenReplyDelete
- AnonymousSeptember 15, 2009 at 6:47 AM
hahaha not really suprising. i mean she does have nude pics of her floating around too.ReplyDelete
*cue britney spears's "i'm a slave 4 u"* dear smashley: you iz a hot bitch. i love you. let's make out. kthanxbai!ReplyDelete
- AnonymousDecember 31, 2009 at 12:48 AM
- AnonymousJanuary 4, 2010 at 7:26 AM
- AnonymousJanuary 4, 2010 at 7:27 AM
And Twilight is for FAGGOTS.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousApril 20, 2010 at 10:43 PM
ashley is so fucking hot, i dot really like twilight but daim she is sexyReplyDelete
- AnonymousMay 16, 2010 at 3:34 AM
- AnonymousMay 16, 2010 at 3:34 AM
id tap that assReplyDelete
- AnonymousJune 6, 2010 at 9:49 AM
I love you ashReplyDelete
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text:
Rays not in running for stolen base lead
By Tony Meale / MLB.com
CHICAGO -- If you haven't seen the Rays steal many bases this year, that's because they haven't attempted many. In fact, they've attempted just 10 entering Friday's series opener against the White Sox, which is tied with Toronto for fewest in the majors.
"It's the evolution of the Rays," manager Joe Maddon said. "It's just a different team. I mean, you have one legitimate base-stealing threat on the team, where in the past we might have had four or five. You don't try to put the square peg in the round hole. You don't want to run yourself into outs just because you want to steal more bases."
Desmond Jennings leads Tampa Bay with three steals, while Ben Zobrist has two. As a team, the Rays have just eight steals -- the second-fewest in the majors.
Maddon doesn't mind.
"If we're in the top five as a base-running team, I'll take that over the fact that I don't care where we are regarding stolen bases," he said. "But if our decision-making -- taking the extra base, going first to third -- if those things are in order and we're not making stupid outs on the bases, then that's a positive.
"I'm all about [steals]," Maddon continued. "I love them. But if you don't have it, don't try it -- because you're just going to be giving up outs."
Rays need replacement starters to pitch in
CHICAGO -- Odds are there's not a team in the Majors that would trade injury woes with Tampa Bay. With injuries to Matt Moore, Alex Cobb and Jeremy Hellickson, the Rays have fielded a patchwork rotation seemingly all season.
Joe Maddon, however, refuses to use that as an excuse for his team's 10-12 start.
"You plan for these different things, and you know it's going to happen," Maddon said. "You don't like when it happens all at one time, but everybody [goes through this]. [The White Sox are] missing [Chris] Sale right now. I mean, there's a lot of teams that are missing some players."
Tampa Bay has dropped three of four entering Friday's series opener against the White Sox, as fill-in starters Cesar Ramos, Jake Odorizzi and Erik Bedard have all been unable to last more than five innings.
"i think it's my Minor League background; I think it's how I grew up," Maddon said. "But when you work in the Minor Leagues, you may not have the best team out there on a nightly basis, but you still believe you're going to win. You got to figure out how to win somehow on that night, whether it's lineup composition, making sure you use your bullpen properly, maybe just inspiring your players and talking to them in a way that gets them ready. There's a whole bunch of different ways to win on a nightly bases. So for me, I don't want us utilizing any excuses.
"The only thing that I would concede is that I've often said this game could have been called pitching as opposed to baseball -- and right now we're not getting the pitching that we normally get."
Maddon hoped that changeed with Chris Archer's start against the White Sox on Friday. Archer (2-1, 3.65 ERA) has thrown at least six innings in three of his first four starts this season and allowed just one run in a 16-1 win over the Yankees last Saturday.
"He very much so has the capability of pitching deep into this game," Maddon said. "I'll probably give him a little bit more latitude pitch-wise because he's been at 90-95 almost every start out. He's in pretty good shape when it comes to that."
Tony Meale is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


text:
Submit News
Apple Patent for "Slap Bracelet" Wearable Device Discovered
Tiffany Kaiser
February 21, 2013 11:17 AM
Recipient E-mail
Sender E-mail
The patent application is for a "Bi-stable spring with flexible display"
A patent application filed by Apple indicates that it certainly is working on a wearable device, but it will work much like a "slap bracelet."
The patent application, discovered Thursday, was for a "Bi-stable spring with flexible display." It was filed in August 2011.
According to the application, the bi-stable spring would be made out of thin steel and wrapped in fabric covering, then heat-sealed. The display would be located on one side of the bracelet (overlaid with an adhesive) and the logic board and battery would be placed on the other side. Another idea shows that display mounted
right to the bracelet
and framed by a thicker fabric.
It is made for universal fit of any wrist (or other body part where the user wishes to wear it). The patent described sensors for "end-detection," which means these sensors can turn off an unused portion of the bracelet (for smaller wrists) that is covered by the bracelet overlap.
Other on-board sensors, like gyroscopes and accelerometers, can be used while the bracelet is in curved form (around the wrist) to detect when it is being worn and provide an uninterrupted screen. This would also make sure the screen's information is in the right position for the user to see it.
As far as the information provided on the display, the patent says this:
"With a touch screen user input a user can accomplish a number of different tasks including adjusting the order of a current playlist, and reviewing a list of recent phone calls. A response to a current text message can even be managed given a simple virtual keyboard configuration across the face of the flexible display."
Further, the battery could be powered by solar panels and kinetic energy to increase efficiency. It will also likely feature wireless charging for the internal battery.
Just last week, it was reported that Apple was working on
a smart watch device
The tech giant is already in talks with manufacturer Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., and Hon Hai has been working on new technologies for wearable devices, such as more efficient displays and chips at that size.
Apple Insider
"There is a single light of science, and to brighten it anywhere is to brighten it everywhere." -- Isaac Asimov
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February 11, 2013, 11:50 AM
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I could feel the venom and the veiled racism, as I read his sarcastic rant about our President. There are many Republicans who once railed against this kind of attack on a sitting U.S. President, and called it unpatriotic. My father, who died a couple of years ago, lived with me over the last several years of his life. He called himself a conservative and a Republican. My father was a WWII veteran, a business owner and a great role model.
We had political discussions or debates just about every evening when I came home from work. He would have agreed with some of the points that Mr. Daughtry made, but as a whole, I believe he would have been saddened by the tone, would have disagreed with many of the points and recognized others as blatantly false.
My father was a thinking Republican, an open-minded searcher for the truth, a student of history and a life-long learner. He hated the idea of illegal immigrants coming into the USA. However, as he learned more about the issue, he came to support the Dream Act, as legislation would have given a pathway to citizenship for the innocent.
My dad was a conservative, but he was not an ignorant hater. He studied the issue of homosexuality and by the time he died at the age of 88, he had come around to support full and equal rights for all gay citizens. He supported the idea of civil unions for loving and committed gay couples, as long as it was not called "marriage."
Dad was a conservative but he understood the positive impact of many progressive programs such as public schools, the GI Bill, Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security, Civil Rights, gender equality laws, clean air and water legislation, child labor laws, and welfare help for the truly needy.
He was a Christian who took me to church every Sunday, when I was a child. He supported the concept of separation of church and state because he understood the history and importance of this radical idea that has helped create a free-market place for religious thought and expression in America.
My dad had a hard time believing some white people were upset we had elected, as Mr. Daughtry said, "our first black president." He really believed that that kind of prejudice had disappeared in America. I was raised by my father to judge a person by their actions, by their character, and not by the color of their skin or their ethnic background, and I thank him for this lesson.
My father would not recognize, nor be comfortable with the brand of Republican politics Gene Daughtry is pitching in our local newspaper. I miss my dad and I wish he were still alive, so we could discuss Mr. Daughtry's comments face to face.


text:
This is amusing, though darn it, I wish I'd captured screenshots before the inevitable happened. (Some folks say they have done so.)
So this youth minister, who does the usual thing of framing moral issues strictly in terms of self-denial and guilt, writes a blog post in which he says, among other funny things, "I have never met anyone who is actually happy about having sex before they were married. All I've ever seen and heard is massive regret."
A number of folks, including myself, LOLed, and fearing Mr. Buer just wasn't getting out of the house enough, left comments on his blog introducing ourselves as regret-free sex-positive people who saw no need for either a Bible nor a ring before making hay whilst the sun shines. And gosh darn, wouldn't you know it? He just up and deleted all our comments and closed the whole article to further comments!
Well, now we know he's lying when he says he's never met people like us. But I guess if he wants to inculcate guilt among his readers, he has to keep pretending he hasn't.
Funny how, in insisting that the Bible mandates "sex is for marriage and nowhere else," Aaron's forgotten some of its freakier Brazzers moments, like the time Lot's daughters got him drunk and incestuously double-teamed him, all with God's apparent approval. The Bible is absolute this and absolute that, except for the inconvenient parts you can pretend to ignore (rather like inconvenient comments)!