text:
I'm trying to install CentOS 6.5 in Virtual Box. The problem is, the installation hangs on the first screen after waiting about 10 seconds.
How can I pass this screen?
The steps I installed:
1) Create virtual machine
2) Start it
It shows "Automatic boot in 10 seconds" and count down, then it freezes as below
After many times failing, I tried to press Print key. It shows multiple options, choosing any option causes hanging. The only selectable option is "Install (Text Mode)", press it, it shows
"This kernel requires an x86-64 CPU, but only detected an i686 CPU. Unable to boot - please use a kernel appropriate for your CPU".


text:
Once Charles Woodson saw the mob of Oakland Raiders fans awaiting his arrival at the team facility Tuesday, he pretty much knew he had to walk out of the building with a new contract in hand.
"I think I was actually scared of leaving the facility and not having a deal done," Woodson joked Wednesday, according to Bay Area News Group. "I don't know if I would have made it out of there. But that was a big deal, and receiving that kind of welcome, it definitely put me in a mindset that it would be a good decision to make it happen."
Woodson signed a one-year deal Tuesday, reuniting him with the team that took him with the fourth overall pick in the 1998 NFL Draft. Woodson expects to play the same safety role he moved to late in his tenure with the Green Bay Packers and said his troublesome collarbone is "great."
Woodson also explained why he chose the Raiders. He said early in his free-agent process that he wanted to catch on with a team in contention for the Super Bowl. This would not be a popular way to describe the 2013 Raiders.
"Well, that was definitely my sentiment going into free agency, that I wanted to go and finish up somewhere that was on the verge," Woodson said. "Certainly, a couple of teams that brought me in, San Francisco and Denver, obviously two teams that have that chance. Those two places didn't work out. Just as the process kind of rolled on, I knew I wanted to play football, regardless of really where I played.
"At that point, I had to figure out what I wanted to do, and playing football was what I wanted to do, so it was going to be somewhere, if it was a team that wasn't quite there but still is a team that is looking on the up, then I was going to do it. And I feel that the Raiders are a team that are looking on the up."
Woodson spins the Raiders as a team on the rise because, well, what else is he supposed to do? In reality, this feels like a sentimental move by a player who already has accomplished everything he wanted to do in the NFL.
If it's a victory lap, it's certainly well-earned.
Follow Dan Hanzus on Twitter @DanHanzus.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
The Lowcountry was spared of Hurricane Irene's wrath last week, but Sun City took the storm seriously and was prepared to batten down the hatches if the threat of a hurricane hitting the area became a reality.
Community Association staff monitored the storm and began preparations for Hurricane Irene early last week with several formal meetings to implement the Community Associations' Hurricane Preparedness Plan, which covers preseason planning, all the way up to evacuation, said Damon Williams, the assistant executive director.
Planning for Hurricane Irene reached the notification stage locally early last week. All Sun City directors reviewed departmental standard operating procedures as a group to ensure there were no holes in the plan and all responsibilities were clear. The Community Association was lucky that Hurricane Irene swayed eastward and Sun City never reached the hurricane watch/standby mode, Williams added.
"This was a close call for our area and I sincerely hope all of our residents used this opportunity to prepare for future storms," Williams said. "Rest assured that staff takes these scenarios very seriously and it is our goal to protect the infrastructure of the Community Association, as well as assisting in the safe evacuation of all residents when a storm decides to not be so nice to the Lowcountry."
In preparation for a possible hit of Hurricane Irene, the Facilities Services Department stocked its emergency preparedness trailer, fueled vehicles, secured barricades and other heavy equipment, readied storm panels and arranged for delivery of the emergency generator for Sun City's recovery headquarters. Staff also confirmed operation of satellite phones and other communication devices, and readied fuel tanks for filling, and procured storage boxes, trash bags and other supplies.
The Community Association also sent out daily Hurricane Irene updates to residents via email, encouraging them to be prepared for the storm.
"Resident safety is our No. 1 priority," said Martin Smith, Director of Communication and PR. "It was important to continuously notify residents about the storm even as it became less of a threat. Hurricane Irene was a good practice run and we hope residents took the storm as seriously as we did."
By Monday last week, Hurricane Irene appeared to be on track to smack into the Lowcountry. The storm veered further east as the week wore on. Coastal South Carolina to the north of Beaufort County, from Edisto Beach to the border of North Carolina, was under a tropical storm warning as of last Thursday afternoon, according to the National Hurricane Center. Locally, there was a high risk of rip currents along the coastal waters on Friday, according to the National Weather Service.
North Carolina all the up to northeast Atlantic states were affected by Hurricane Irene and sustained power outages, fallen trees and flooding.
The Sun City Community Association will step up communication to residents when an impending situation calls for it. Residents can receive information through:
• Hurricane updates delivered via email once or more a day, depending on how frequently the situation changes
• The latest news available in the lead position in News Brief each Monday and eNews Weekly on Thursday
• Recorded information updated as the news changes on the Sun City Hilton Head Emergency News Hotlines, 705-4054 or 888-775-7015 (in the case of an evacuation, the 888-775-7015 line will continue to be updated. Residents are encouraged to record this number with the important numbers in their evacuation plan)
• Alerts and notices on SCTV Channel 5 (Time Warner), Channel 238 (Hargray) and www.schhtv.com
• The community website, www.schhnews.com, will be updated daily with the latest hurricane updates
• The Sun City Community Association Facebook page (www.facebook.com/groups/schhca) will be updated continuously throughout the alert period
If you do not receive the Community Association emails, you may subscribe by logging onto www.schhnews.com and the clicking on the "personal" tab, then "information". Provide your e-mail address and click "subscribe" to receive future emails. If you have a friend or neighbor who does not receive Community Association emails or does not have internet access at their home, please print out communications and deliver it to them.


text:
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Using Social Media
Some use it to converse and interact with people that they know very well. Either professionally or socially.
Some people use it to network with mere acquaintances. Some with people they do not know at all. Sometimes peoples motives for using social media aren't apparent.
The reasons I use social media are wide and varied. I use my personal Facebook account to converse and share with family and friends. I also use it to create Groups pages for my personal family history interests. I've had quite a few previously unknown family members and/or fellow researchers contact me as a result.
I manage a professional Facebook account (Auckland Research Centre) I use to promote my specialist subject and collection (family history) and my library.
My personal Facebook account has strict security controls, so that I can control who sees what exactly. The professional account has very few security controls - I want as many people to find and interact with us as possible.
I use my Twitter account (@genebrarian) for the widest reasons: to converse with friends and colleagues, network with professionals, to promote my library and collection and for my learning. There's an amazing amount to be learned by clicking on someone's link. I also follow people "for the hell of it". Their "Tweets" interest and inspire me.
I manage and write for the Kintalk blog for work, and I've just started this blog.
LinkedIn is still relatively new for me, I'm dabbling to see what I can get out of it.
I suspect I can learn alot from it, as well as network.
My personal and professional interests are not just family history and libraries,
they are also graphic design and print (my old career), marketing, digital preservation/digitisation, internet and the web, and yes social media. So I hook up with as many contacts on there as I can.
I also use delicious to store the many hundreds of useful bookmarks I find when trawling the internet. They are portable, I can access them from any computer any time, and I can share them with people - I can "follow" others with similar interests as me, so I can share their bookmarks too.
Its great how you can link with people from one Social Media account to another. Someone you follow on Twitter, you feel you get to know them, so you then feel you can follow them on LinkedIn etc.
I think the Social Media explosion is definitely a boon for us family historians - as evidenced by the amount of blogging (and microblogging) being done out there!
7 comments:
As another Social media tragic I am making valuable connections through Twitter and Blogs. I feel that I know more about you from your blog posts than from Twitter.ReplyDelete
I need to find you on Linkedin and Delicious.
What are your user names on those services??
Are you on Quora yet??
Hiya, and thanks for your comments!ReplyDelete
I am Seonaid Harvey Lewis and genebrarian
No, not on Quora yet. Only found out about it recently, and haven't had a chance to evaluate it. My Social Media products are spiralling out of control (had a Flickr account for a while, but only just recently became very active - actually forgot to mention it on my blog LOL! - am genebrarian on Flickr too)
Thanks heaps SEONAID
There was discussion in the US over the holidays that delicious may be shut down. I don't know what was rumor and what was fact, but it's best to have a back-up plan in regard to that service.ReplyDelete
How are you finding LinkedIn? I have a profile but don't do much there. Not sure how much value it has in such a small library community here in New Zealand but I thought I'd make one anyway :)ReplyDelete
Yeah, Amy I heard the rumour about delicious. However, I also heard that other peeps were wanting to rescue it. All my bookmarks are backed up offline. I will need to find an alternative if the unthinkable happens.ReplyDelete
Penny, just dabbling with LinkedIn so far. Have joined a couple of genealogy and history interest discussion groups. Not looking for a job, but imagine it might be useful if you were. I am not in it just for the Library community, I am also a family historian, so my network is international too. Still evaluating it though.
whats a library community? AND A LIBRARY COLLECTION, BOOKS? It sounds like you have a lot of fun.ReplyDelete
Hi rootdigger: A library community is a community of library enthusiasts, which may or may not include library professionals (i.e. librarians).ReplyDelete
A library collection is not just books, a whole host of resources, both borrowable and also reference:- CDa, DVDs, magazines, newspapers, microfilm, microfiche etc etc.
And yes, I have fun. My job is the best fun that you can have as a job!


text:
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text:
The Minnesota Timberwolves go into the season with only five black players on their 15-man roster, and some people are calling it a conspiracy.
From Jerry Zgoda and Dennis Brackin of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune:
"How did we get a roster that resembles the 1955 Lakers?" asked Tyrone Terrell, chairman of St. Paul's African American leadership council. "I think everything is a strategy. Nothing happens by happenstance."
That strategy, Terrell and others in the black community believe, is to sell tickets to the Wolves' fan base, which is overwhelmingly white.
Lou Amundson, JJ Barea, Chase Budinger, Andrei Kirilenko, Kevin Love, Nikola Pekovic, Luke Ridnour, Ricky Rubio, Alexey Shved, and Greg Stiemsma make up 2/3 of the T-Wolves roster, and they are all white.
Minnesota civil rights activist Ron Edwards thinks something is up too, and he told the paper, "It raises some real questions to me about what's really intended. I think, personally, that it was calculated. Is this an attempt to get fans back in the stands? Minnesota, after all, is a pretty white state.''
There are a few problems with this theory.
First of all, the T-Wolves sold 90.4% of their tickets last year, which ranked 14th in the league. Only two other non-playoff teams ranked in the top 15. And they did it with a majority black roster (8 out of 15 players). So they didn't have an attendance problem at all.
In addition, it's clear that the T-Wolves think there is a market inefficiency when it comes to international players. Five players on their roster are from other countries, which is double the league average (~2.5 in 2011-12). Since international players come from predominantly European countries, developing a team with an international focus is inherently going to shift the racial makeup of your roster.
It's not a race conspiracy, it's a calculated move to identify under-the-radar players that the rest of the league isn't looking at.
The theory that basketball fans are more likely to pay to watch white players than black players has been debunked by the last 30 years of NBA history. There's no chance the T-Wolves have a racist master plan in the works.


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Land value tax would benefit New London
What do the Fort Trumbull, Neighborhood Envisioning and Reconnecting New London projects and city councilors' new initiatives for home buyers all have in common? And why is it important that our state legislators know about these?
In recent months, New London has been immersed in examining neighborhoods through a series of envisioning sessions. These projects are attracting active citizen participation and yielding defining views of how New Londoners envision improving the city. So far, initiatives include the Neighborhood Envisioning project - addressing a part of the downtown waterfront and adjacent neighborhoods and Reconnecting New London - seeking to re-establish ties along Williams Street and Hodges Square, between downtown and Connecticut College and the Coast Guard Academy.
A similar effort is happening in the Fort Trumbull area - focusing on how best to develop and integrate this area into the larger New London tapestry. Separate but related activity includes two initiatives by city councilors that create financial incentives for individuals buying homes in the city.
The big question arising from all this activity is: How does the City of New London plan to finance the development that comes from the envisioning projects or the City Council initiatives and then how does it sustain these on-going revitalization efforts into the future?
One important way that already exists is for New London to follow through on the state's endorsement for the city to initiate a pilot for property tax reform. This pilot will gradually shift taxation from buildings and other improvements to land.
A petition of more than 90 signatures of New London residents and businesses support the planning of the Land Value Taxation pilot. Supporters know that land value tax or LVT incentivizes home improvement without burdening homeowners with higher taxes. A pilot plan which includes concrete details showing how LVT will help New London is needed, as is some clarification about what Land Value Tax is and is not.
Some facts about Land Value Tax:
• LVT is not another tax. LVT is the reformation of the existing property tax - away from improvements in buildings toward value of land itself.
• LVT does not punish improving property. LVT rewards improvement.
• LVT does not impact non-taxable open-space, wetlands or parks. LVT affects property now taxed.
• LVT does not assess property. LVT is based on decisions of the City Assessor's Office, as is now the case.
• LVT does not determine highest and best use. LVT is carried out within the policies of the city's planning and zoning regimen.
• LVT does not determine the city's budget requirements. LVT is carried out within the city's present regime for development and adoption of annual budget.
• LVT does not supersede resident rights to petition for a budget referendum or individual assessment appeals. LVT upholds owners' property rights to petition, ballot through referendum, and appeal of individual property tax decisions.
While LVT is not a silver bullet it does offer a workable approach to creating a fair, effective and sustainable source of revenue to realize New Londoners' burgeoning visions for a vibrant, re-vitalized city. With an effective LVT program in place, existing tools such as enterprise zones, abatements, grants and loans (when available) can be employed strategically to supplement an LVT program.
In order for New London to proceed with the LVT pilot, we need the state's renewed authorization. Last spring, the City Council requested an extension of the state's deadline for New London to propose a pilot Land Value Tax program to the state for its approval. The city now needs this extension from our state representatives.
To learn more and to encourage our state legislators to support the City Council's request to allow a pilot to proceed, visit www.re-newlondoncouncil.org for information on how you can help.
There's no doubt that as a city we need to incorporate a sustainable element into our plan, if we want to realize the visions that are being generated by these neighborhood discussions. Smart Land Value Tax is just that - a strategic way for the city to use its revenue resources in a sustainable way.
It's time for state legislators to act on city councilors' request to extend the deadline so we can create a LVT pilot for New London.
Kathleen Barrett lives in New London. Fellow New London residents Lorraine E. Allen, Sandy Chalk, Art Costa, Mongi Dhaouadi, Hugh Griffin, Ken Hanson, John Lauderdale, Jerry Sinnamon, Ronna Stuller, and Nat Trumbull endorsed this commentary.
Supreme Court Justice Ginsburg undergoes treatment for tumor on pancreas
East Lyme traffic concerns allayed after 'all-hands-on-deck' meeting
Florida man who cited 'stand your ground' law for shooting found guilty by jury


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Can't get gumble-grumble ComicGen to post this correctly.
Hi there. Due to RL issues, nocona will be delayed until Wednesday. This should not be a common occurrence, but at this point due to scheduling issues, we're running updates a little close to their creation. Efforts are being made to rectify the situation.


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Northeast Community College is located in Norfolk, Nebraska - the heart of the Midwest – but we welcome students from around the world! View our Brochure
An "International Student" is any student whose country of citizenship
is outside the United States of America and who is present (or wishes to be present) in the U.S. because
he/she possesses a current F-1 visa.
International applicants must complete all general and international student admission requirements before they will obtain a Form I-20 (Certificate of Eligibility), which is necessary to acquire an F-1 visa.
We recommended that international applicants begin the application process six months prior to their anticipated enrollment date. All application materials must be received by the Admissions Office by June 1 if you plan to enroll in the fall (August) semester and November 1 if you plan to enroll in the spring (January) semester.
To be considered for admission, you must follow the steps below:
If you are a new international student, print the International Application Form and send to the International Student Advisor (Address below). You are not able to apply on-line at this time.
Send your high school transcripts, with English translation, to the International Student Advisor (Address below).
If you have attended another college or university, send your previous college transcripts, with English translation, to the International Student Advisor (Address below).
If you are transferring from another U.S. college, you need to complete an F-1 Student Transfer Form and send to the International Student Advisor (Address below).
You must submit official scores from the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). To be acceptable, your total score must be a minimum of 500 on the paper exam, 173 on the computer exam or 61 on the ibTOEFL. Northeast Community College's institutional code for TOEFL is 6473. In lieu of TOEFL scores, you may submit: (1) an official transcript verifying successful completion of a college English course, at the 1000 level or higher, with a grade of "C" or better, at an accredited U.S. educational institution; (2) completion of the Michigan Placement Test with a score of 71 or better, and qualified writing sample; (3) an official SAT score report with a verbal sub-score of 430 or better; or (4) an official ACT score report with an English sub-score of 18 or better. "TOEFL Waivers" will not be accepted. All test scores must be verifiable and current within 5 years.
Foreign students who are in the United States on another type of visa and wish to enroll in courses at Northeast must follow the English Proficiency requirements. For further assistance, please contact the International Student Advisor (ISA).
You must send written verification that you have the equivalent of $15,392.00 (U.S. dollars) available to you. This is the estimated amount of attending one year at Northeast. These documents should include affidavits of financial support and bank statement. These documents must be originals; photocopies will not be accepted.
All application materials must be sent to:
International Student Advisor,
Admissions Office
Northeast Community College
801 East Benjamin Avenue
P.O. Box 469
Norfolk, NE 68702-0469
When all documentation has been received, we review each application to determine if admission can be granted. If admission is granted, the ISA will issue a Form I-20 to the applicant.
Prior to beginning classes, you must attend an Orientation/Registration session and complete a COMPASS or ASSET placement test. You should make travel plans accordingly and plan to arrive on campus at least 5 days prior to the first day of classes.
International students are eligible to apply for scholarships through Northeast Community College, but at this time, there are no scholarship opportunities specifically for international (F-1) students.
The deadline to apply for scholarships is March 1. The scholarship application is on-line at Northeast Scholarships.
You can find information about international financial aid and college scholarships at these sites:
Northeast was established by the state legislature in 1973 as a comprehensive community college offering vocational/technical, liberal arts, college transfer and continuing education. Today Northeast Community College offers over 80 programs of study.
Here are some web sites to learn more about northeast Nebraska:
Here are some links that you may find helpful when applying for a Nonimmigrant Visa:
To maintain F-1 status, you must:
As an international student, you are only allowed to work on-campus in part-time (less than 20 hours a week), non-work-study jobs. For more information about on-campus employment opportunities, make an appointment to see the ISA. You must get a Social Security Number if hired on campus.
It is against the law to work off campus while in F-1 status without authorization/permission from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and/or the ISA. You may apply for one of the following options after you have been in F-1 status for one academic year:
A) Employment based on Severe Economic Hardship: This option is available to students who are experiencing extreme financial difficulties due to unforeseen changes that severely affect their financial resources.
B) Curricular Practical Training (CPT): This is defined as employment pursuant to a required or optional internship which is an integral part of the established curriculum of a specific major/program of study. CPT is available before completion of studies.
C) Optional Practical Training (OPT): This is defined as employment related to a student's field of study. It is authorized in variable increments to be deducted from the maximum of one year of OPT per educational level.
If interested in seeking off-campus employment, you should make an appointment to see the ISA.
The Application for a Social Security Number can be used by anyone who has never been issued a SSN, needs a replacement card or has legally changed his or her name. This service is free. International students are not able to apply for a SSN until they have secured on-campus employment. A SSN is only necessary for getting a job; for other purposes (i.e. getting a cell phone), a passport, drivers license, or student ID can be used as valid identification documents.
Steps to obtain a Social Security Number:
When you have finished your program of study at Northeast, you must choose one of the following options:
If you need help contact the International Student Advisor.
Advising & Academic Support Center
College Welcome Center, room 1283
(402) 844-7270
Northeast Community College, 801 East Benjamin Ave, Norfolk,
Nebraska 68701
phone: 402-371-2020 | tollfree: 1-800-348-9033 | email:
© Northeast Community College 2019. All Rights Reserved.
Northeast does not discriminate based upon any protected status. Please refer to our nondiscrimination section and privacy statement for more information.


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Given Halloween and all, this entry from Tanking Tips is a sad reminder of friends we no longer have with us: [/caption
Archives for October 2008
How Appropriate
October 22, 2008 By
Patch 3.0
October 14, 2008 By
What to do what to do? So many new juicy talents, so few talent points to spend! It is so exciting to see all the new talents and think about the new possibilities. Even though I am a tank at heart, one of the things I kept thinking when going over the new protection talent […]
Goals Before Wrath Hits
October 1, 2008 By
So we're roughly 6 weeks away from the Wrath of the Lich King expansion and the timer is ticking. I would assume everyone has some goals in mind they want to complete before the expac hits and I am no exception. As a raid leader and a tank, my biggest goals before the expac were […]


text:
Judging by the lack of horrendous traffic jams, many of the more than 1 million expected visitors heeded the warnings to keep their automobiles at home while the weekend's giant roster of events unfolded.
"This weekend is complete craziness, and I love it," Danielle Dowers, 53, of Richmond, said as she got off BART at the Montgomery Station to walk to the Giants baseball game. "I like how it shows the diversity of who we are – makes me very happy that I live in this place, because we're all allowed to do what we want and we all get along."
And what a lot of busy doings there were.
Sunday's lineup included the final day of Fleet Week with the Blue Angels jet team, the America's Cup World Series and the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival, plus a 49ers game and the Giants' second playoff game. There was also the Italian Heritage Parade in North Beach, the Castro Street Fair and a cruise ship offloading hordes of passengers to take in the sights.
Shoulder-to-shoulder people
On any other weekend, just one of those events would have been enough to jam the streets to a crawl.
Police prepared heavily not only for extra traffic and crowd control, but also for folks bent on spoiling the fun, such as a group of rock-tossing anarchists who briefly rampaged downtown Saturday.
Transit agencies and passengers reported jam-packed buses and trains as people trolled the events – some BART trains and buses were so full that people had to wait for several to pass before boarding – but nothing happened that authorities didn't at least warily expect.
In some traditionally crammed areas such as Market and Mission streets, the lanes surprisingly flowed like water compared with the usual sludge. But that was a clear contrast to places where the action was thick, from the Castro neighborhood and Golden Gate Park to Fisherman's Wharf.
Around the wharf, several streets were closed off to traffic for much of the day to accommodate the shoulder-to-shoulder crowds gathered to watch the Blue Angels air show and the Italian Heritage Parade and to head up to Marina Green to watch the America's Cup World Series.
The main draw along the waterfront was the Blue Angels, which thundered to life about an hour late in the afternoon after waiting for fog to clear at the Golden Gate. The noisy display of military prowess turned heads from one end of the city to the other.
"We had large crowds all day, but people were patient and it seemed like everyone enjoyed themselves," said San Francisco police Officer Gordon Shyy. "We didn't have any major issues."
Fishnets and fun
In the Castro, thousands turned out for the annual fest of beer, disco, aviator sunglasses and fishnets known as the Castro Street Fair.
The big news was the sailors. In the first fair since the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell," the federal ban on openly gay military members, dozens of sailors in town for Fleet Week flooded the Castro – not as gawkers this time, but as gay folk seeking other gay folk.
"It's been a wonderful scene," said Paul Boneberg, director of the GLBT History Museum on 18th Street. "Seeing so many young people here of all stripes living their lives, falling in love, having fun – this is the dream that we all dreamt."
Kyle Holland, 23, a designer in San Francisco, had a different dream: A nose free of hair. He was among the hordes lined up for free nose-hair waxing on the sidewalk by Steve Crovo, professional waxer.
"It's awesome," Holland said. "You don't have that tickly feeling in your nose anymore, and it's great to support the community."
The most thorough dose of old San Francisco on Sunday was the 144th annual Italian Heritage Parade. A solid line of onlookers watched more than 1,500 participants troop from Fisherman's Wharf up Columbus Avenue to Washington Square.
As the name indicates, the event celebrates the ethnic roots of North Beach, and the first float was a festive ship holding Joseph M. Cervetto, this year's honorary Christopher Columbus. Among those watching were three native San Franciscans, Joan Shader and her adult children Jenny and George.
"We do this every year," Joan Shader said. "Mass at St. Peter and Paul, watch the parade, and then there's still time to head to the Blue Angels."
Anyone selling anything in the heavily trod areas looked even happier than the tourists.
"Fantastic," San Francisco Senior Center Director Sue Horst said at the nonprofit's concession stands along the waterfront. "We were very busy … and everyone was in a really good mood, a real family event."
Saturday mostly smooth
Things also went fairly smoothly on the similarly jam-packed Saturday – with a couple of notable exceptions.
Two men tried to run over a park police officer as they fled the scene of a car break-in in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, and the officer shot at them in defense, authorities said. Police were still searching for the pair Sunday.
Also Saturday, a march through the Financial District by 100 demonstrators – many clad in black and wearing masks – turned ugly when several threw rocks, paint and flares at police. One officer suffered a cut on his head, and 22 marchers were arrested and booked on charges including felony rioting and conspiracy.
Some Internet postings indicated the march may have been against "colonialism" and capitalism, but Officer Shyy said the motives were not clear to authorities.
San Francisco Chronicle staff writer Michael Cabanatuan contributed to this report. John King, Kevin Fagan and Carolyn Jones are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com, email@example.com, email@example.com


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by Lois M. Quinn and John Pawasarat, Employment and Training Institute, School of Continuing Education, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, June 2001.
Working with the Helen Bader Foundation and the Milwaukee Department of City Development, the Employment and Training Institute has developed purchasing power profiles for Milwaukee neighborhoods and commercial districts. The profiles are posted on the City of Milwaukee website at www.mkedcd.org/PurchasingPower. These profiles utilize current state income tax records, local property files, business phone listings, state driver's license files, motor vehicle records, and state and federal mortgage lending databases to identify the purchasing power that comes from urban population densities and concentrations of income and to describe economic trends of interest to retailers and other commercial businesses. As part of the project, ETI examined the information reports and stereotypes about Milwaukee neighborhoods presented by national and international marketing firms. This paper examines the methodologies firms use to develop marketing information on Milwaukee neighborhoods, traces the history of marketing clustering systems, and explores the damage marketing stereotypes pose for Milwaukee and other cities. See also, the Brookings Institution discussion paper on "Exposing Urban Legends: The Real Purchasing Power of Central City Neighborhoods."
Computer-Generated Stereotypes Hinder Economic Development
Early ETI reviews of commercial marketing firm reports focused on two neighborhoods - -Mitchell Street on the southside and Fond du Lac and North avenues on the northside. At the request of the Helen Bader Foundation, the Employment and Training Institute prepared a purchasing power profile for the neighborhood around Fond du Lac and North for a national site selection team from Kmart. The site is at the center of one of Milwaukee's most densely populated neighborhoods, with a growing labor force, rising incomes and available workers. A suitable 14.7-acre tract of vacant land was available on two heavily-traveled arterials and served by three bus routes. The site had much to recommend it -- except for its perceived reputation as an inner city area. An urban neighborhood like this, which could potentially benefit from the 300 jobs and modestly-priced retail goods a Super Kmart might bring, is plagued by deficit-based marketing stereotypes and urban legends that lead companies to avoid the central city.
Consider the description of this neighborhood offered by CACI Marketing Systems, an international firm headquartered in London, England. CACI described the neighborhood as "distressed" and "characterized by youth, single parenthood, poverty, high unemployment, and public assistance." Its residents, CACI announced on its website, "splurge on fast food and spend leisure time going to bars and dancing." "Unemployment is high," CACI reported, "those who do work have only part-time jobs."(1) A similarly negative portrait was provided by Claritas, Inc., a subsidiary of VNU Marketing Information Services, a Netherlands- based media conglomerate. Claritas labeled the neighborhood "Difficult Times" where residents "buy video games, dine at fast food chicken restaurants, [and] use non-prescription cough syrup." Another Claritas marketing scheme labeled the area as a combination of "Inner Cities" (a type it ranked 47th in desirability), "Single City Blues" (ranked 45th) and "Mid-City Mix" (ranked 30th).(2)
If the Kmart team were to consider locating in the nearby suburb of Oak Creek, they would learn from CACI Marketing Systems that the residents there are "a prosperous population who have opted for semirural locales and lifestyles." As for leisure time activities, CACI reported: "As homebodies, they are interested in reading, needlework, and cooking." Claritas offered a similarly positive description of Oak Creek: supposedly 33.81% of residents are a "Family Ties" population who "eat at fast food pizza restaurants, shop at Builder's Square, and own a bowling ball," while 33.77% fall in the "Great Beginnings" category, meaning residents who "dine at fast food Asian and Mexican restaurants, shop at 7-Eleven, and lease their car," and 17.82% are in the "White Picket Fence" grouping, where residents "play softball [and] eat at Dairy Queen."
It would appear from the Internet that a host of international marketing firms have traveled to Milwaukee's central city and surveyed neighborhood residents, but no such visits have occurred. A review of neighborhoods around the country from Robert Taylor Homes in Chicago to Scottsdale, Arizona --uncovered identical descriptions (and dozens like them) used to characterize hundreds of urban neighborhoods around the country. When the methodology used to create these "market segments" was examined in detail, it was discovered that most of the marketing statistics and stereotypes are based on ten-year-old census data and broad assumptions about purchasing habits of minorities and urban residents. Average household income was used as the primary factor in rating neighborhoods while income density was ignored.
For example, 1999 state income tax returns showed that the residents in the Fond du Lac and North area (zipcode 53206) had 10,166 working age single and married tax filers, or 3,737 filers per square mile. This is one of the highest concentrations of working age income tax filers in the Milwaukee area. By contrast, Oak Creek had 405 tax filers per square mile. Working age families and single persons in zipcode 53206 reported $183 million in total adjusted gross income in 1999, or $67.3 million per square mile, a concentration of income more than three times that earned by "prosperous" Oak Creek residents -- $20 million. When the 1999 adjusted gross income of Wisconsin tax filers was examined for the four zipcode areas that CACI Marketing Systems describes as "distressed" where employment is supposedly only part-time, the income totaled $804 million. Income earned in 1999 per square mile in these neighborhoods ranged from $36.9 to $75.1 million well above that of Oak Creek and Franklin and comparable to other suburban neighborhoods.
Research by the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey (CEX) finds that lower-income families spend far more of their income on retail purchases than higher income earners. Using detailed income tax data from the Wisconsin Department of Revenue by neighborhood and block area, ETI estimated the purchasing power of zipcodes and blocks in Milwaukee County based on patterns of spending found by the CEX for large cities in the Midwest by income range and family composition. The model for this work was developed by Frank Stetzer and John Pawasarat of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee after a review of five quarters of CEX data, state income tax data and HCFA (Health Care Financing Act) files on the elderly population. The data showed that residents in zipcodes 53205, 53206, 53208 and 53212 annually spend over $373 million for retail purchases. These central city residents are spending about $29 million per square mile on retail expenditures.
When purchasing power per square mile is examined for the Milwaukee area, it becomes immediately apparent that central city neighborhoods show high concentrations of annual income and offer important economic opportunities for retailers. These opportunities have yet to be realized by many national marketing firms. By ignoring the income density of the nation's cities and focusing their neighborhood rankings on average household income, marketing firms mislead retailers and other businesses into thinking that central city neighborhoods are a "distressed" market where business is unprofitable. A case in point is the work performed by Claritas, Inc. for the National Retail Hardware Association described below.
Steering Business From the Central City
In the last three decades a host of national and international marketing companies have created neighborhood descriptions based on cluster analysis of census tracts, zipcodes, block groups and ZIP+4 areas. Typically, the population of the entire United States is segmented into 40-60 groupings (see detailed discussion below) which are then grouped and/or ranked according to their market potential. For example, Claritas, Inc. used its 50 "MicroVision" clusters (which included the "Difficult Times," "Great Beginnings," "Family Ties," and "White Picket Fences" descriptions cited above) to advise the National Retail Hardware Association on where its members should locate and expand their businesses. Based on the Claritas research, home improvement center owners throughout the country are encouraged to target suburban neighborhoods while ignoring urban centers. Fourteen market segments were identified by Claritas as "suburban" and all fourteen were recommended as good business prospects. Meanwhile, only 2 of the 18 market segments identified as "urban" or "urban/suburban" were recommended as neighborhoods to target for home improvement retail business.
The Claritas rationale for its recommendations was explained in a marketing article on the NRHA website: "The reason for identifying these marketing targets is based on two tried and true observations. First, the best customers are existing customers. The people who are already shopping these stores or other people similar to existing customers are most likely the best customers. Secondly, birds of a feather flock together. In choosing a place to live, people tend to seek out neighborhoods compatible with their lifestyles. ... By identifying the types of neighborhoods in which they find existing independent stores' shoppers, researchers can accurately predict the types of neighborhoods where the industry can find future customers."(3)
Again, the data on Milwaukee neighborhoods call these marketing assumptions into question. The estimated purchasing power for the CEX category of household furnishings and equipment was calculated for each Milwaukee neighborhood based on 1999 income tax data and other current files on the population. In the central city Milwaukee neighborhoods given category labels dismissed by Claritas as low-priority markets for home improvement stores, spending for household furnishings and equipment ranged from $1.6 million (in zipcode 53233) to $5.6 million per square mile (in zipcode 53210). In suburban neighborhoods with types recommended by Claritas as prime customer areas for home improvement sales, spending for these categories ranged from $0.6 million per square mile in Franklin to $3 million per square mile in South Milwaukee.
"Discrimination in the Digital Age"
Milwaukee is not alone in feeling the effects of marketing stereotypes that inaccurately describe urban communities. In June 2000, the Acorn Housing Corporation announced a lawsuit against the Wells Fargo Bank for linking Internet users exploring housing moves to websites with racial stereotypes designed by CACI. The housing group objected to the description of inner city and African American neighborhoods as "distressed" and to such quotes as, "They splurge on fast-food and chicken restaurant take-out. They listen to urban contemporary music and read Playboy magazine." According to Mike Shay, executive director of the advocacy agency, the Wells Fargo website "brought the old discriminatory practices of block-busting and racial steering into the digital age." Shay explained, "If you were moving from one city to another they'd ask what zip code you currently lived in, and then they'd refer you only to similar zip codes with similar racial characteristics in the new city."(4) In an immediate response, Wells Fargo dropped the website link to the CACI data. The lawsuit is ongoing.
In Richmond, Virginia, a jury returned a $100.5 million verdict against Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company, a decision based in part on the insurance company's use of marketing strategies to rank each zipcode in the metropolitan area according to its Claritas "MicroVision" category. Agents were encouraged to target zipcodes with more desirable "MicroVision" rankings. All of the City of Richmond zipcodes which were predominantly minority were excluded from the list of targeted areas. In a divided opinion, the decision was overturned on appeal on the grounds that the fair housing organization bringing the suit, Housing Opportunities Made Equal of Richmond, lacked standing under Virginia law.(5)
The two marketing firms whose clustering plans were the basis for the housing lawsuits (Claritas and CACI) now team up with non-profit organizations to sell special "inner city" databases and analyses to promote urban communities; at the same time these firms' websites and client reports continue to denigrate central city neighborhoods. The housing lawsuits may represent the tip of the iceberg as cities identify the negative impacts of marketing stereotypes commonly provided to Fortune 500 companies, local entrepreneurs and Internet surfers by international marketing companies. For cities like Milwaukee, the negative marketing stereotypes associated with city neighborhoods amount to computer-generated "urban legends" that have to be overcome in order to attract new businesses. The scientific nature of the statistics presented lead credibility to the reports, even when these statistics are contradicted by local, more accurate data, as seen in the example below.
A "Weighted Statistical Average": Crime Risk, Crime Reality
The most popular crime indices use a demographic-based model which estimates crime risk based on the kinds of people who reside in neighborhoods where crime is often committed rather than using current data on where crimes actually occur. Data companies use national statistics from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the decennial census population reports and other sources, in order to make broad generalizations about the type of people who are more likely to live in areas with certain types of crimes. Once this crime "risk index" is developed for the country, the crimes reported nationally (or in some cases by metropolitan area) are then "reallocated" to each neighborhood based on the characteristics of its residents. New crime indices are issued each year even though the demographic characteristics of the neighborhood population may be ten or more years old.
Using this methodology, the APB News website reports that the risk of homicide, rape or robbery around Milwaukee County Stadium (now Miller Park) is 3 to 4 times the national average. In this case, the crime risk is based on the CAP Index statistical model applied to the 1990 demographic characteristics of residents living within a 12-square mile circle around the stadium. Given the methodology used, it is not surprising that twenty-seven major league baseball stadiums in the U.S. are designated as in high crime risk areas. According to the CAP Index, only the Texas Rangers play in a "safe" area Arlington, Texas. Indeed, almost any place urban will show up as dangerous, irrespective of the actual crimes that occur against college students or baseball fans.(6)
The CAP Index, the leading provider of these risk numbers, goes so far as to claim, "Police Reports and the FBI Uniform Crime Report (UCR) are useful compliments to CAP Index scores, but are not thorough enough by themselves."(7) Local residents are admonished, "If your risk surprises you, keep in mind this is a weighted statistical average for the entire ZIP code."(8) Samples of crime risk maps displayed on the Internet typically portray hundreds of square miles of city neighborhoods as dangerous places. Parents logging onto the Internet are told, for example, that the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee is in a "high risk" crime area. The CAP Index rates the UWM campus as having "risk" of violent crime at five to nine times the national average, not because of reported crime around the campus but because there are census tracts with large numbers of poor people living within five miles of the school.(9)
The level of neighborhood specificity helps give these crime indices their believability --to parents debating whether to allow their high school graduate to attend an urban university or to a business executive considering locating a retail operation in a highly populated neighborhood. Yet they are far from accurate. To test the accuracy of crime information offered by marketers for Milwaukee neighborhoods, the Employment and Training Institute reviewed Milwaukee police department reports and selected 22 census tracts with the same number of violent crimes (murders, rapes and robberies) in 1998. The CAP Index ranked six of these tracts as "low risk" for violent crimes (i.e., less than one-half of the national average), seven tracts as "moderate risk" (at the national average), eight tracts as "moderately high risk" (two to four times the national average) and one tract as "high risk" (five to nine times the national average). Thus, the maps of these neighborhoods on the APB News website shaded some census tracts in red for "dangerous," some in yellow for "caution," and some in green for "safe." The maps suggested the risk of violent crime was up to 18 times higher in some tracts than in others. In fact, the true crime level, as measured by official police statistics on violent crimes committed, was the same in all 22 census tracts.
Selling crime vulnerability statistics (and giving away even worse data) has become a thriving Internet activity particularly on websites advertising security systems, car locks and homeowners insurance. The impact of these "statistics" in scaring away potential businesses, homeowners and other development is impossible to estimate but it could hardly be a positive one. Other data about urban areas are equally suspect, as seen in the case study below.
"Complex Methodology": Portraying Stable Neighborhoods As in Decline
While preparing a purchasing power profile report for zipcode 53204 on the near southside, ETI compared the data it had amassed for the Milwaukee Neighborhood Indicators Project with reports offered by commercial firms. The demand for annually updated, geographically detailed demographic estimates by neighborhood has resulted in the proliferation of marketing databases. Nearly all marketing firms construct their current estimates based on 1990 demographic data from the decennial census updated from an impressive array of public and private data sources. These sources are usually fed into a formula to estimate the current and projected demographic and purchasing patterns but in some cases these databases have serious limitations that impact negatively on measures of neighborhood well-being.
An exhaustive examination of data sources revealed a number of commercially developed sources that were in serious conflict with local institutional sources of data for zipcode 53204. One very popular commercial source of recent, detailed demographic data was Claritas, which for $99 offered a 12-page demographic report with 1999 data and projections for 2004 as well. The Claritas data, however, portrayed 53204 as a neighborhood with declining population, home ownership, housing units, vehicles and working families. For example, while Claritas secured tract level data from the Milwaukee Department of City Development, which showed a 3 percent decline in housing units from 1990 to 1999, the firm "adjusted" the data to report a 9 percent decline in housing units -- triple the city counted loss. The firm also reported that the area had 36 percent fewer owner-occupied housing units than the City of Milwaukee property file showed.
The Wisconsin Department of Transportation file showed 14,135 registered vehicles but Claritas reported 10,141, or 29 percent fewer vehicles. The state's motor vehicle file showed that 10,303 households had valid license plates for their vehicles, but Claritas estimated that 6,998 households had vehicles, or 32 percent fewer. A total of 6,756 working age single and married tax filers with dependents submitted income tax returns to the state Department of Revenue in 1998, but Claritas reported only 5,703 working families, or 16 percent fewer.
Claritas reported a 10.1 percent decline in population, from 40,530 in the 1990 Census to 36,430 in 1999, and projected a further decline to 34,643 by 2004. CACI Marketing Systems estimated an even larger decrease of 10.9 percent over the nine-year period, with the 1999 population estimated at 36,102. Yet, almost all sources of data assembled by ETI showed a stable neighborhood with indicators pointing in a positive direction over time. Births had remained stable, with 1,026 in 1993 and 1,031 in 1998. The school census showed a 4 percent increase in the school age population. State income tax filings showed a 6.3 percent increase in working age tax filers from 1993 to 1998 and a 22 percent increase in adjusted gross income. When questioned about the serious discrepancies in their population data for 53204, researchers at Claritas responded that they had rechecked their sources and methodology. They explained that they utilize "a complex methodology that uses post-1990 inputs (Donnelley) to create accurate block group estimates." They stated further that "Every source of data that we have shows this ZIP code as declining."(10) The 2000 Census data confirmed the observations of residents and local data findings: the 2000 Census population count totaled 42,747, a 5.5 percent increase over 1990.
Puzzled why a marketing firm would alter current administrative databases (like the city property file and the state department of transportation motor vehicle files), ETI began examining the statistical models used to drive the generation of city statistics by the marketing firms. Ensuing discussions with Claritas revealed that many of the sources used by Claritas/Donnelley were federal, state and local databases commonly accessed by marketing firms: city housing units at the tract level, state department of transportation vehicle files, and files from the United State Postal Service, U.S. Census, Internal Revenue Service, and the Health Care Financing Administration. ETI purchased or obtained these data files and then compared them to the Claritas estimates. The institutional data sources provided by federal, state and city agencies were compared to the results of the "complex methodology" used in the 1999 demographic and housing statistics for 53204. In reviewing methodologies used by Claritas and other marketing firms to adjust local and state administrative databases with zipcode data, Employment and Training Institute researchers identified several critical areas where the population and economic assets of urban neighborhoods are often undercounted.
A primary factor in explaining the discrepancies in data produced by marketing firms is their heavy reliance placed on historically under counted U.S. census data. Many firms compound urban undercount problems by utilizing other databases which are often less accurate in urban areas. For example, monthly statistics on active U.S. Postal Service delivery route addresses and postal boxes are often used to "update" census counts, but postal workers warn that these counts are not intended for this purpose and tend to be less accurate in city neighborhoods with high residential mobility and several families sharing the same postal address. The Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) count of the Medicare population is another valuable national database, but it must be used with caution in neighborhoods with large numbers of immigrants and other elderly persons not eligible for Medicare. Also, telephone counts are frequently used as population trend factors, yet a lower percentage of low-income households have listed phones and many may use cell phones if they have poor credit history. Likewise, driver's license files, while valuable data sources, should be used with caution in states like Wisconsin where license suspensions are used as a method of collecting unpaid fines and civil forfeitures unrelated to driving. Other limitations of generating neighborhood reports by computer (one researcher called it "as easy as printing money") become evident once the history of cluster marketing is understood.
History of Cluster Marketing: "You Are Where You Live"
The methodology used to warn retailers, college applicants and even baseball fans away from central city neighborhoods had its ironic genesis in research funded by the U.S. Office on Economic Opportunity, as part of the War on Poverty. In 1966 the OEO funded Jonathan Robbin, a developer of multivariate computer software for the IBM 360 and former sociology professor at New York University, to prepare descriptions of the demographic and economic characteristics of U.S. counties utilizing 1960 census files and other federal statistical data. Robbin developed indices to compare areas of need across the country including a "Poverty Index" and an "Index of Susceptibility to Civil Disorder" that was used by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to select cities for "Model Cities" anti-riot funds.(11)
Robbin saw the potential for analyses of decennial census data at the zipcode level to help identify desirable markets for mass mailings and advertising firms. Robbin's oft-stated premise for the neighborhood clusters he created was simple "Birds of a feather flock together." Michael Weiss, who has written three books promoting the Claritas clustering model, quoted Robbin's philosophy: "Basically, people seek out neighborhoods that are most congenial to them. At each stage in their life cycle, people tend to join their peers in appropriate communities, whether it's in high-rise city apartments or single homes out in suburbia."(12) The 36,000 U.S. Postal Service zipcodes, initiated in 1963, proved an ideal geographic area for Robbin's clusters. By linking his cluster groupings with consumer files and client mailing addresses, Robbin could identify new zipcode markets for products and target consumers for direct mail and retailing efforts.
Robbin founded a marketing firm, Claritas, to sell his databases to business and government clients. Initially, Claritas created 40 PRIZM (Potential Ratings in ZIP Markets) clusters using 1970 U.S. Census data. This approach provided a model for numerous competitive systems that have evolved since 1974. Once the clusters were created, each zipcode, census tract and census block group was assigned to one of these categories. The clusters were ranked from most to least prosperous, and given catchy titles to convey their market potential or lack of it. The result was to effectively divide up the nation's total market into clusters of winners and losers.
After the 1980 census, Claritas' cluster groupings were modified slightly, with some renamed and others added or subtracted. The market winners in the 1980s groupings began with "Blue Blood Estates" ("America's wealthiest neighborhoods suburban homes and one in ten millionaires"), "Money & Brains" ("posh big-city enclaves of townhouses, condos and apartments"), "Furs & Station Wagons" ("new money in metropolitan bedroom suburbs"), and "Urban Gold Coast" ("upscale urban high-rise districts"). The last of the forty clusters were the losers: "Share Croppers" ("primarily southern hamlets devoted to farming and light industry"), "Downtown Dixie Style" ("aging, predominantly black neighborhoods, typically in southern cities"), "Hispanic Mix" ("America's Hispanic barrios"), "Tobacco Road" ("predominantly black farm communities throughout the South"), "Hard Scrabble" ("the nation's poorest rural settlements"), and the neighborhoods ranked at the very bottom, "Public Assistance" ("America's inner-city ghettos").(13)
While Robbin spoke of reviewing over six hundred variables and millions of market records, three variables appear to be critical to his model: PLACE (big city, suburban community, small town, or rural), RACE (white, black, Hispanic, older white immigrant or young recent immigrant), and INCOME.(14) Claritas now offers 62 PRIZM rankings based on groupings which include some age and family type variables derived from the 1990 census in addition to place, race and income to help identify popular markets for retirees, empty nesters and young professionals. The cluster stereotypes are also now applied to the twenty-two million ZIP+4 delivery areas (i.e., smaller geographic units that typically include several blocks, a group of streets, an apartment building or small geographic areas within each zipcode). The basic division of the American marketplace into the most attractive and least attractive residents is retained: "Blue Blood Estates" remains at the top of the cluster rankings; the three bottom groups are "Hispanic Mix" ("urban Hispanic singles and families") "Inner Cities" ("inner-city solo-parent families") and "Southside City" ("African American service workers").(15)
After Robbin had divided the nation's zipcodes into PRIZM clusters, he began collecting customer databases and client address lists to determine which clusters had households more apt to buy specific types of products and services. Thus, the residents of "Inner Cities," according to a Claritas website, are most likely to "buy baby food, buy soul/r&b/black music, pay bills by phone, watch pay-per-view sports, read the National Enquirer." By contrast, "Old Yankee Rows" residents ("Empty-Nest, Middle-Class Families") are most likely to "belong to a union, believe ad campaigns, buy pop music, watch bowling, and read Spin."
Even in their crude state, these marketing generalizations proved to have utility for Claritas's customers. As Weiss pointed out, a direct mailing campaign would be considered phenomenally successful if it raised the customer response rate from two percent to three percent, even though 97 percent of those targeted did not respond.(16) One Claritas website concedes that PRIZM "is not intended to predict with absolute certainty how every neighborhood's household lives or what they buy or don't buy, rather it is used to predict the likelihood that a certain type of behavior or purchasing preference drink diet soda or go skiing, for instance would be found in higher concentrations within that neighborhood versus another."(17)
Other marketing firms copied the Claritas approach. The CACI Marketing Systems produced 42 unique neighborhood clusters from "Top One Percent" to "Distressed Neighborhoods." Internet surfers are told that "Top One Percent" residents typically "drive luxury cars and visit museums" and are interested in "civic activities, volunteer work, contributions, and travel" while "Urban Hispanics" a group that is far down on the list of clusters "read religious books" in their leisure time.(18)
The Claritas "MicroVision" scheme presents a softer image with more subtle negative stereotypes. The "Close Knit Families" webpage (MicroVision Segment 41) shows a smiling Hispanic family; the population is described as "low income young adults, age 18-34, with a large number of children, seven or more people." They "dine at midscale Mexican restaurants, attend movies 2-3 times a month, purchase doll toys, and had transmission service done in the last year." An African American family with three children is pictured for "City Ties" (MicroVision Segment 24). They are described as "medium-income families, age 22-29, with a relatively large number of children." They "eat at fast food chicken restaurants, smoke menthol cigarettes, and shop at Lady Foot Locker." A visual review of the photographs for each of the "MicroVision" rankings shows minorities pictured in eight of the ten worst clusters and in only one of the ten best clusters.(19)
The market segmentation approach has become so easily and widely duplicated that Global MOSAIC by Experian (the United Kingdom's largest crediting and marketing information firm) now purports to cluster much of the entire world -- over 779 million consumers in 18 countries. Global MOSAIC divides the world population into 14 lifestyle types that it says "can be found in every modernized country based on a simple proposition that the world's cities share common patterns of residential segregation." All 18 nations, according Experian, "have their ghettos of 'Inner City Melting Pot,' suburbs of 'Midscale Metro Office Workers' and communities of 'Educated Cosmopolitans.'"(20) Ethnic stereotypes are common within these classifications. "Chicano Blues" residents are "very reflective of the Hispanic culture (listen to Spanish radio, buy Latin music, travel to Mexico and Central and South America)....[and] rank first for visiting gambling casinos, playing the lottery, and eating fast food 14 or more times in the last month." "Motowners" are "predominantly young, Black (77%) renters with low incomes. They rank second for single parent families and total unemployment. Notable purchases include foods that are directed at children such as powdered soft drinks, bubble gum, Hostess Twinkies, and Kellogg's Froot Loops."(21)
National advertisers were among the first users of the cluster markets running ads in "zoned" editions of news and entertainment magazines to target zipcode areas most likely to buy their products. Governments followed suit. In 1980 the Defense Department contracted with Claritas for help in locating areas where it might find better success in recruiting for the all-volunteer army. Claritas matched zipcode data on three years of Army recruits with their home address's cluster classification and determined that lower-income Southern and rural areas (Shotguns & Pickups, Mines & Mills, Blue-Collar Nursery, Coalburg & Corntown) were top recruitment areas rather than the urban neighborhoods previously targeted. The Army increased the number of recruiting centers in these cluster areas, set new enlistment quotas based on the findings, and increased advertising in selected magazines (Field & Stream, Sports Afield, Outdoor Life, Mechanics Illustrated) commonly sold to residents in the clusters identified. Claritas also analyzed the zipcodes of Americans killed in highway accidents for the U.S. Department of Transportation to determine where the department should concentrate its "buckle up" campaigns (Norma Rae-ville and Grain Belt).(22)
"You are where you live" the Claritas motto takes on self-fulfilling prophecy as institutions target customers based on cluster descriptions. According to Weiss's examples, a West Coast bank used clusters to decide whether to offer area residents a charge card with $500 or $1,000 credit or no card at all. An East Coast developer decided where to locate shopping malls and which stores to seek as anchors. A college in Nebraska sent different recruitment materials inquiring high school students depending upon their zipcode address. Students from higher- ranking marketing clusters were mailed a brochure on "A Stepping Stone to Your Future" while students from lower-ranking clusters were sent a brochure on "An Affordable Education." A college in Maryland assigned roommates based on their zipcode cluster "to reduce conflicts."(23)
Competing Images of City Life
"Tell me someone's zipcode, and I can predict what they eat, drink, drive -- even think," promised Jonathan Robbin, creator of the first Claritas clustering system.(24) As observed above, marketing companies use computer programs to crunch decennial census data looking for pockets of homogeneity, the leitmotif of the advertising world, and then to label neighborhood residents according to pre-packaged cluster stereotypes. While this approach may work fairly well in some relatively homogeneous rural and suburban areas, city populations tend to be far more diverse, with city blocks including people of many backgrounds and lifestyles. Consider this description of the area along Lincoln Avenue on Milwaukee's near southside, described by Milwaukee Magazine senior editor Kurt Chandler: "From third-generation Europeans to first-generation Mexicans to Puerto Ricans, African Americans, American Indians, Hmong, professionals, blue-collar workers, gays and straights there has to be more diversity along this street than any other in the city. On the street, a woman in full leathers rides a Harley down the center line, while a wiry Asian boy kicks a rubber ball along the sidewalk. Lincoln Village is self-sustaining in many ways, a foreign land a city within a city with a different set of cultures and traditions, different faces, too rarely known by outsiders."(25)
Log onto Internet sites of international marketing companies and a very different image of this area is given. CACI Marketing Systems website defines the population as "Low Income: Young & Old." This consumer type, says CACI, "incorporates the extremes of the age distribution, the very young and the elderly, which is reflected in their lifestyles: purchases of infant toys, toy cars and trucks, jewelry, and household items such as flatware and washing machines."(24) The Claritas "MicroVision" model reports that the zipcode area has three major populations. Exactly "28.80%" of the households are "Close-Knit Families," defined as "low income young adults, age 18-34 with a large number of children, seven or more people." Another "25.36%" are labeled "Trying Metro Times," described as "very low income young single adults with young children, age 25-34, and seniors, over 75 years, one to six people." The third group, making up precisely "17.89%" of the population, is catalogued as "Metro Singles" who are "medium-low income young singles and some couples, age 25-39, with few children, one to two people." On its website entitled "A Zip Code Can Make Your Company Lots of Money!" Claritas claims that each of these market segments "consists of households that have similar demographic characteristics, lifestyles, interests, media habits, and purchasing behaviors."(27) Others find city neighborhoods a bit more complex.
National and international marketing firms currently exert great influence on business decisions in the United States. The largest firms amass incredible amounts of information on individuals and localities from public databases (like driver's license and motor vehicle files, postal service route information, federal Medicare files and federal census files) and from private sources (like loan application data, credit card receipts, medical histories and warranty card returns). These databases are fed into national modeling programs used to generate reports for clients in any locality or subpopulation market. Given the mass production nature of the industry, local residents are not consulted on whether the resulting statistics are accurate for a given neighborhood and data inconsistencies are often adjusted to fit the model used. As Jonathan Robbin, the founder of Claritas, envisioned, the data sets are packaged as "expert systems" where the user is not given information on the research methodology, the data sources used or the age of the data sources.(28) Error rates for the demographic estimates are not shown, if ever calculated.
The experience in Milwaukee neighborhoods shows that these data reports should be used with caution both for the accuracy of the information reported and for the stereotypes perpetuated. Increasingly, local agencies will need to "fact check" the profiles being created to describe their neighborhoods and challenge the assumptions on which they are based.
The typical market research firm uses a deficit-based model of city neighborhoods overlooking the income density attributes that could make them attractive to retailers. Retailers who base their decisions on these deficit models will continue to lose out on valuable economic opportunities. At the same time, central city residents will be forced to drive longer distances for products they need and miss opportunities for employment in their neighborhoods. Hopefully, as Milwaukee takes leadership in developing its own marketing data to map neighborhood assets, the negative influences of international marketing firms can be diminished and the strengths of central city areas recognized.
(1) "CACI Free Samples: Results of ZIP Search" at www.demographics.caci.com/scripts/zipsearch.cfm accessed February 24, 2000; "Free Zip Code Report" at www.infods.com/freedata accessed April 26, 2001. [Note: the website locations and descriptions are constantly changing as companies merge and new data (and stereotypes) are promoted.]
(2) "MicroVision Segments" at laguna.natdecys.com accessed March 20, 2000; "About Claritas" at yawyl.claritas.com/ziplookup.asp accessed March 28, 2000; "MicroVision Segments" at www.delluke.claritas.com accessed May 2, 2001.
(3) Walter E. Johnson, "Who's Shopping Your Store? Identifying the Behaviors and Lifestyles of Hardware Store Customers," Do-It-Yourself Retailing, August 2000 at www.diyretailing.com/pdfs/aug.pdf accessed May 4, 2001.
(4) Marketplace newscast for Friday, June 23, 2000 posted on www.marketplace.org/archives/rundown/2000/06.23/html accessed June 26, 2000.
(5) "Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co., et al. v. Housing Opportunities Made Equal, Inc." Record No. 990733, January 14, 2000, at www.lawyersweekly.com/vasup/1990733.htm accessed April 30, 2001.
(6) "Baseball" at www.apbnews.com/resourcecenter accessed May 25, 2001.
(7) "Some Differences between CAP Index Reports and UCR Data" at www.capindex.com/cap_vrs_ucr.htm accessed May 26, 2001.
(8) "APB Data Center" at wysiwyg://6http://www.apbnews.com accessed March 23, 2000.
(9) "Check the Crime Risk in Your College Community" at www.apbnews.com accessed March 23, 2000.
(10) Correspondence with John Pawasarat, December 20, 1999.
(11) "Jonathan Robbin Curriculum Vitae" at ricercar.com/JRCV-D.html, accessed February 28, 2000.
(12) Michael J. Weiss, The Clustering of America (New York: Harper & Row, 1999), p. 14.
(13) Weiss, Clustering of America, pp. 4-5. Robin Page developed the cluster names for the three largest clustering firms (Claritas, Experian and Compusearch). Weiss writes of Page, "He alone is responsible for appellations such as Kids & Cul-de- Sacs (PRIZM), Country Clubbers (US MOSAIC), and Gerberville (PSYTE USA) a feat comparable to one person's naming every car model produced by Detroit's Big Three automakers." Michael J. Weiss, The Clustered World: How We Live, What We Buy, and What It All Means About Who We Are (Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 2000), p. 8.
(14) "Jonathan Robbin Curriculum Vitae." See the quiz on how to locate your cluster in Clustering of America, pp. 393-404.
(15) Weiss, Clustered World.
(16) Weiss, Clustering of America, p. 26.
(17) "About Prizm" at yawyl.claritas.com/faq.asp, accessed March 22, 2000.
(18) "Acorn Lifestyle Segments" at www.premierinsights.com/acorn.html [a discontinued site] accessed February 28, 2000. See also, www.demographics.caci.com/acorn_segments.pdf accessed accessed April 27, 2001.
(19) Descriptions obtained for various zipcodes from laguna.natdecsys.com [a discontinued site] accessed March 15, 2000. As of May 3, 2001 the photgraphs for each of the "MicroVision" segments were stored on the Internet at www.delluke.claritas.com:80/AWYL/segmentlookup_mv.wjsp?segment=1. Not included in the photo analysis are two clusters (Segment 49 "Anomolies" and Segment 50 "Unclassified") that are not used for marketing and do not have photographs displayed.
(20) Only one type, "Shack & Shanty," is not used for the United States. "Global by Experian Demographic Data" at www.cmcus.com/catalog/globalmos.htm accessed February 28, 2000.
(21) "Mosaic Group Descriptions" at www.cmcus.com/catalog/usmgrps.htm accessed February 28, 2000.
(22) Weiss, Clustering of America, pp. 15-16, 74, 89.
(23) Weiss, Clustered World, pp. 26, 34-35.
(24) Weiss, Clustering of America, p.1.
(25) Kurt Chandler, "The Rhythm of Change," Milwaukee Magazine, June 2000.
(26) "CACI Free Samples: Results of ZIP Search" for zipcode 53204 at www.demographics.caci.com/scripts/zipsearch.cfm accessed February 24, 2000.
(27) "Lifestyle Game" for zipcode 53204 at laguna.natdecsys.com accessed October 3, 2000.
(28) "Jonathan Robbin Curriculum Vitae" at ricercar.com/JRCV-D.html accessed February 28, 2000.
Funding for the Milwaukee Purchasing Power Project was provided by the Helen Bader Foundation, the Milwaukee Neighborhood Improvement Development Corporation, and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
Direct comments to firstname.lastname@example.com


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[1] Marienplatz Named after the column of the Virgin Mary, the square is famous for its neo-Gothic Town Hall, whose mechanical clock, or Glockenspiel, plays at 11am, 12 pm (always), and 5pm (summer only). It starts with a Bavarian jouster fighting a French one (guess who wins), followed by a Coopers Dance to keep the plague away. The tower of the nearby oldest church in Munich (12th century) is named "Alter Peter". From its gallery you have the greatest view over Munich including a stunning panorama of the Alps on a clear day. The EUR 1.50 won't so much take you aback as the app. 300 steps you have to climb. Also harness yourself against the Devil who tries to pull it down sometimes.
[2] Viktualienmarkt and its adjacent beer garden is also a nice place to check out. It is the farmers' market and right at Marienplatz. Beware! The shop men go nuts if you dare to touch their goods!
[3] Odeonsplatz & Ludwigstraße When Bavaria teamed up with Napoleon against what was left of Germany, Maximilian I was adequately rewarded – he could call himself "king" now. King of a backwater, but still: king! The following wars turned out to be flops, but the winners (Prussia and Austria) wanted to avoid pissing off Max – they already were planning a war against each other and needed allies – so his power was left untouched and his kingdom became even a tad bit bigger. In 1816, he commissioned a project to reflect his ambitions: the Odeonsplatz square was built with the Feldherrnhalle, a monument honoring Bavaria's ever-unsuccessful military commanders (by the way, Hitler's "Beer Hall Putsch" was stopped here in 1923) and Ludwigstraße (named after his son, Ludwig I) with an array of neo-classical buildings. On its northern end, the Siegestor triumph arc was finished in 1852 to honor the victory over Napoleon. Err… wait! He was our ally! We lost! See, we already had spin doctors here when American presidents still brought their goats to the White House!
[6] Nymphenburg Palace (Tram 17 from Hauptbahnhof, get off at Schloss Nymphenburg). When the Bavarian royals packed up to leave town, this is where they headed. The spacious palace park – a true kingdom for people out walking – enchants with watercourses and pavilions.


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Starting on Friday November 29, 2013 for 13-hours, receive 25% off your purchase at both Great Skate and Greatskate.com. If you are going to be shopping online you can take advantage of early shopping and In-Store pickup. When shopping online please use Promotional Code GS2013 (Please note that your discount will be deducted at the time of shipping)
Great Skate will be opening a bit early on Friday morning starting at 8am, so if you or someone you know is out shopping at Best Buy, Target, and Kohl's tell them to stop by and check out our great deals. Choose from all major manufacturers such as Bauer, CCM, Easton, Reebok, Warrior, & Vaughn. If a Bauer APX stick is on your list this year you won't find a better deal than at Great Skate!
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When it comes down to Fit, Feel, Performance, Dedication look no further than Great Skate. Stop by Friday morning at 3395 Sheridan Drive / Amherst / NY / 14226. If you aren't from WNY give us a call at 1-800-828-7496. As always some restrictions may apply (MAP) click here or call for details.
Take advantage of this sale today. It wont last long. GAME ON!
Happy Thanksgiving
Great Skate Staff


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Since the Players Amateur moved from Belfair Plantation last year, the staff at Berkeley Hall has encouraged the community's homeowners to open their doors to contestants who need a place to stay during the tournament.
Wayne and Kathy Corley and Tom and Paulette Henderson were among the first families that volunteered to house players in 2012. In fact, the Hendersons enjoyed it so much they decided to house three golfers this year.
"We have three bedrooms," Paulette Henderson said. "We did it last year and enjoyed it very much. We wanted to do it again. They're such nice young men."
Having empty bedrooms is anything but normal for the couple, whose four daughters have grown up and moved away from home.
"Having three full bedrooms wasn't really a new experience other than the fact that it has been a while since all four girls lived with us," Paulette Henderson said.
Last year, the couple hosted returning competitor and University of Virginia student Ji Soo Park and Temple University graduate Andrew Mason. This year, the Hendersons welcome Geoff Drakeford from Australia, Compton Pikari from New Zealand and Tom Lovelady from Alabama.
The Corleys are hosting Michael Weaver, a rising senior at the University of California, for the second consecutive year.
"I think Michael found himself at home. He said in a text a couple weeks ago that he was looking forward to seeing Wayne, Rosebud (the family's parrot) and me," Kathy Corley said, laughing. "That was the order."
The couple enjoyed tracking Weaver's progress at last year's Players Amateur and even continued doing so after Weaver left their home. Weaver went on to compete in the 2012 U.S. Amateur Championship at Cherry Hills Country Club in Colorado - a tournament the Corleys followed closely.
"One of the perks associated with being a host family is that historically a number of these young men, whether they win here or not, go on to bigger and better things," Wayne Corely said. "In our case, it was extremely exciting because Michael actually led the U.S. Amateur up until the 18 th hole when his putt got diverted."
Weaver led the tournament and had a two-stroke lead going into the 36th hole. He saw a putt lip out, forcing a playoff Weaver lost to Steven Fox. Weaver's play last year earned him a spot at the Masters and the U.S. Open, where he made the cut.
In the NCAA tournament this year, Weaver led his top-seeded California Golden Bears against the University of Illinois - Kathy Corley's alma matter. The Fighting Illini pulled off the upset, ending Weaver's season in the semifinals.
"I sent him a text message - the only text he hasn't responded to - and said 'Michael, I love my Illini, but how did this happen?'" she said jokingly.
With Berkeley Hall set to host the Players Amateur for the next several years, the Corleys and Hendersons plan to continue hosting these top-ranked amateur golfers in the future.
"Generally speaking, one of the things I think is most impressive is that these young men are really nice," Wayne Corley said. "They are very respectful. They bend over backwards to be accommodating. When you've got people like that that you're hosting, how could you not enjoy it and look forward to it?"
"It has been a real pleasure hosting," Paulette Henderson said. "And we'll do it again next year."


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Office of Labor-Management Standards (OLMS)
U.S. Department of Labor
Employment Standards Administration
Office of Labor-Management Standards
Pittsburgh District Office
1000 Liberty Avenue
Room 1411
Pittsburgh, PA 15222
(412)395-6925 Fax: (412)395-5409
April 27, 2007
Mr. Vigil Boone, Business Manager
Plumbers AFL-CIO
Local 152
100 Richard Avenue
Morgantown, WV 26501
Re: Case Number
LM File Number 018-594
Dear Mr. Boone:
This office has recently completed an audit of Plumbers LU 152 under the Compliance Audit Program (CAP) to determine your organization's compliance with the provisions of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 (LMRDA). As discussed during the exit interview with you and Office Secretary, on April 26, 2007, the following problems were disclosed during the CAP. The matters listed below are not an exhaustive list of all possible problem areas since the audit conducted was limited in scope.
The CAP disclosed a violation of LMRDA Section 201(a) which requires that a union submit a copy of its revised constitution and bylaws with its LM report when constitution or bylaw changes are made. Local 152 amended its constitution and bylaws in 2005, but a copy was not filed with its LM report for that year.
A copy of Local 152's constitution and bylaws has now been filed. As discussed, any future bylaw changes will be electronically filed with the LM-2 report.
Title II of the LMRDA establishes certain reporting and recordkeeping requirements. Section 206 requires, among other things, that adequate records be maintained for at least 5 years by which each receipt and disbursement of funds, as well as all account balances, can be verified, explained, and clarified. As a general rule, all records used or received in the course of union business must be retained. This includes, in the case of disbursements, not only the retention of original bills, invoices, receipts, and vouchers, but also adequate additional documentation, if necessary, showing the nature of the union business requiring the disbursement, the goods or services received, and the identity of the recipient(s) of the goods or services. In most instances, this documentation requirement can be satisfied with a sufficiently descriptive expense receipt or invoice. If an expense receipt is not sufficiently descriptive, a note can be written on it providing the additional information. An exception may be made only in those cases where 1) other equally descriptive documentation has been maintained, and 2) there is evidence of actual oversight and control over disbursements.
In the case of receipts, the date, amount, purpose, and source of all money received by the union must be recorded in at least one union record. Bank records must also be retained for all accounts.
The audit of Local 152's 2006 records revealed the following recordkeeping violations:
Local 152 failed to include some reimbursements to officers in Schedule 11 (All Officers and Disbursements to Officers). Such payments appear to have been erroneously reported in Schedules 15 through 19.
Direct disbursements to officers for reimbursement of expenses incurred while conducting union business must be reported in Column F of Schedule 11 (Disbursements for Official Business). In addition, indirect disbursements made to another party (such as a credit card company) for business expenses incurred by union personnel must also be reported in Column F of Schedule 11. However, indirect disbursements for business expenses incurred for transportation by public carrier (such as an airline) and for temporary lodging expenses incurred while traveling on union business must be reported in Schedules 15 through 19. Any direct or indirect disbursements to union personnel for expenses not necessary for conducting union business must be reported in Column G (Other Disbursements) of Schedule 11.
I am not requiring that Local 152 file an amended LM report for 2006 to correct the deficient items, but as agreed, Local 152 will properly report the deficient items on all future reports filed with this agency.
I want to extend my personal appreciation to Plumbers LU 152 for the cooperation and courtesy extended during this compliance audit. I strongly recommend that you make sure this letter and the compliance assistance materials provided to you are passed on to future officers. If we can provide any additional assistance, please do not hesitate to call.
cc: lathes Rowan, Financial Secretary/ Treasurer, with compliance assistance seminar schedule


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Welcome to the ECHOES project
ECHOES is a technology-enhanced learning environment where 5-to-7-year-old children on the Autism Spectrum and their typically developing peers can explore and improve social and communicative skills through interacting and collaborating with virtual characters (agents) and digital objects. ECHOES provides developmentally appropriate goals and methods of intervention that are meaningful to the individual child, and prioritises communicative skills such as joint attention. read on >>
[ Partners - Publications - News & upcoming events ]
The project is jointly led by Oliver Lemon and Kaska Porayska-Pomsta.
Grant number: RES-139-25-0395
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Update to Sky Break solves the problem with a black screen at startup.
First thing to check for all drivers.
First, you need to check your PC for dll libraries and other errors.
Download: PСKeeper
You must click "Fix Items". PСKeeper check all the "dll" files needed for the game.
If the drivers are installed go further.
UpDate 1.1.32 does not add any content to the game and does not affect the mechanics of the game.
-UpDate 1.1.32 It helps the game to determine the different types of graphics cards and drivers for them. As a result, it solves the problem with a black screen in the Sky Break.
Download – UpDate 1.1.32_Sky Break


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As it slowly melts, wonderful things are emerging, some frozen for tens of thousands of years.
Baby mammoths are sometimes found in an extraordinary state of preservation.
"As the Earth warms, scientists worry that some of the carbon in permafrost could escape to the atmosphere as carbon dioxide or methane.
Increasing the amount of these gases in the atmosphere could make Earth's climate warm up even more."
Arctic permafrost – ground that has been frozen for many thousands of years – is now thawing because of global climate change.
There are many effects of global warming, including melting permafrost, discussed in this useful document:
The results of melting permafrost could be disastrous and irreversible.


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Homemade Snow Globes
Total TimePrep: 1 hour + standing
Makes6 snow globes
- 2 cups confectioners' sugar
- 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons water
- 4-1/2 teaspoons meringue powder
- 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 6 sugar cookies (about 3-1/2 inches)
- Assorted decorations: miniature marshmallows, orange and brown jimmies, Fruit Roll-Ups, spearmint leaves, peppermint candies, edible glitter and holiday sprinkles
- 3 clear plastic ornaments (3 inches)
- In a small bowl, combine the confectioners' sugar, water, meringue powder and cream of tartar; beat on low speed just until combined. Beat on high for 4-5 minutes or until stiff peaks form. Cover frosting with a damp cloth between uses. If necessary, beat again on high speed to restore texture.
- Working with one cookie at a time, spread 2 tablespoons frosting over the top of cookie.
- For snowman, cut two miniature marshmallows in half. Attach three halves with a small amount of frosting. Decorate face with jimmies. For scarf, trim a thin 1-1/2-in. strip from a Fruit Roll-Up. Shape a toboggan from a strip of Fruit Roll-Up; attach toboggan to cookie. Attach snowman to toboggan. Add spearmint leaves for trees.
- With a dab of frosting, attach four peppermint candies to the bottom of each cookie. Let stand overnight to dry completely.
- To assemble, separate ornaments into halves. Working with one cookie at a time, spread edge of ornament half with frosting. Place 1 teaspoon edible glitter and 1 teaspoon holiday sprinkles inside ornament; carefully invert decorated cookie onto ornament half, sealing edges. Use frosting and a star tip to pipe a decorative edge around globe. Let stand until set. Store in an airtight container.
Recommended Video
My Review
Dec 23, 2013
Loved these and everyone who has seen them loves them too! I couldn't find the spearmint leaves so I used green and red fruit slices but you could use green gum drops or pipe them on yourself. The icing does harden up so everything stays together BUT yes you can still eat these if you want b.c. the icing is just royal icing and will melt in your mouth and taste sweet. Next time I will be using my icing recipe that doesn't harden b.c. we want to eat ours right away so we don't need it to harden. I will also be using my piping skills to pipe on a Christmas tree and use festive sprinkles for the ornaments and colored sugar for the base of the cookie. I still will use the marshmallow snowman b.c. I LOVED that but I will pipe on his nose and eyes. And addition pipe on his scarf and buttons. This was time consuming but fun and well worth the time!
Dec 26, 2011
These were totally a hit. I used them as placemarkers for my Christmas dinner table and put name tags inside. Couldn't find spearmint trees, so I found some suckers that were small enough to fit perfectly inside the dome.
Dec 23, 2011
@grannyof11 It says 3 clear plastic ornaments, separated into halves
Dec 5, 2011
Made these last year with my teenage neice, to give to the younger cousins, and we had a ball. A little time consuming but but well worth the results. Very impressive looking!
Dec 19, 2010
You need 6 half domes not 3
Nov 28, 2010
Haven't made these yet but can't wait! I have gingerbread flavored gingermen marshmallows that I plan on using for the snowmen instead. I have a 1 year old grandson so will be careful what I use for decor and to remove candies he can't have.
Dec 11, 2009
This is so darling, I can't wait to make it, I will write another review when I am done, my grandchildren will love this. Thank you so much


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Contact Info
Amherst, NY 14226
- Phone:
- 716-839-4040
- Category:
- Hotel
- Rooms:
- 137
All of our spacious guestrooms feature our plush Hyatt Grand Bed and state-of-the-art media and work centers. You'll love the 42" HDTV, Cozy Corner with sofa or sofa-sleeper, and bathroom vanities with granite countertops and complimentary amenities. Get connected with free Wi-Fi and remote printing. Forget something? Odds & Ends has you covered with must-have items you can buy, borrow or enjoy for free.


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Security WordPress Themes
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text: The Souderton Area School District (SASD) includes an area of 49 square miles in Upper Montgomery County. It is the largest school district, in square miles, in the county. The district is situated midway between the cities of Allentown and Philadelphia. Due to its locale the district has the best of both worlds: proximity to the city, while in a semi-rural setting. Six municipalities are within the boundaries of the SASD: the two boroughs of Souderton and Telford and the four townships of Franconia, Lower Salford, Upper Salford and Salford. The population of the school district exceeded 43,109 according to the 2010 census. Read more about Souderton Area School District.


text: Mirillis Action 1.31.2 Serial Key Plus Crack Free DownloadMirillis Action Serial Key Plus Crack Free Download Mirillis Action Serial Key Free Download is the perfect program to do recording of the desktop videos and real time recording of the gameplay in the HD videos quality. Either you are about to record gameplay or the activities going on screen. It records perfectly …Read More »


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Idaho Hunt Planner We got game.
No hunts found for 2019. Displaying results for 2018. The dates and locations of hunting opportunities do change but are not modified greatly from year to year.
New seasons are posted at different times depending on the species:
New seasons are posted at different times depending on the species:
- March: Moose, Sheep, Goat (odd years)
- April: Deer, Elk, Pronghorn, Bear, Wolf, Turkey (odd years)
- July: Migratory Birds (annually)
- May: Upland Game (even years)
Your hunting opportunities.
Select an area from the right-hand side to view the details of each hunt including restrictions, statistics, public access, services and more.
Special Notes (follow hunt link for details)
¹ Youth hunting opportunity.
² Limited Access.
³ Motor Vehicle Restriction in all or part of this hunt.
Dove Seasons
General Any Weapon
Statewide Unlimited tags
|Either-sex Mourning Dove
|Shotgun, Archery or Falconry
|Idaho Statewide


text:
In a 0-0 game.
Each team had 10 shots tonight at Buckshaw Stadium in San Jose. The Sol could only manage one shot on target; FC Gold Pride had three.
Sol XI: Karina LeBlanc; Manya Makoski, Sharlota Nonen; Brittany Bock, Keri Sanchez, Aly Wagner (77: McCall Zerboni), Camille Abily, Lisa Sari (46: Shannon Boxx), Aya Miyama, Han Duan, Marta.
There are still three weeks left in the regular season to determine who the Sol will face in the title game.
Tickets for the WPS Championshp game Aug. 22 at Home Depot Center go on sale Wednesday; the price for the first couple of days is $20.