text:
The executions of five
|Initial reports of the prison riot did not mention that anyone held the
guard while he was stabbed. Roberts, weighing 300 pounds, would have been difficult
to overlook by observers at the scene.
|Another guard told investigators that he was struggling with Roberts at
the time of the stabbing, far away from the murder scene.
|Roberts had no blood stains on his clothes. Margaret Phillips of
Missourians to Abolish the Death Penalty said that the attack "...was
bloody, just awful, and Roy Roberts� shirt did not have a drop of blood on
|In 1999, Pope John Paul II asked Governor Mel Carnahan to commute the
unrelated sentence of Darrell Mease who had been scheduled to be executed in a few
days. The governor agreed and was still receiving considerable flack for
that decision when Roberts' case came up for his consideration. The pressure
that he felt due to the Mease decision may
have swayed his response to Roberts' case.
Polygraph tests are generally inadmissible in courts. However, Livingston and Roberts hoped that the data would persuade the governor to commute the death sentence. It did not. Roberts was executed a few days later. His final words were: "You�re killing an innocent man and you can all kiss my..." 4
Larry Griffin was convicted in an case involving a drive-by killing of Quintin Moss, a 19-year-old drug dealer. The only witness testifying at Griffin's trial was Robert Fitzgerald, a criminal from Boston MA who was in St. Louis as part of the Federal Witness Protection Program.
Sam Gross, a University of Michigan Law School professor studied the case. He wrote that Fitzgerald had: "...developed a reputation as a snitch who couldn�t produce convictions because Boston juries wouldn�t believe him."
The first police officer who arrived at the murder scene now says that Fitzgerald's story is false. A second shooting victim now says that Fitzgerald was not present at the shooting. Prosecutor Jennifer Joyce has reopened the case. She said: "I don�t think there is a single prosecutor who wouldn�t take a second look at it. Hopefully [the investigation] will help protect the integrity of the system."
Griffin was executed in 1995. 4
Two Italian immigrants, Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti, were found guilty of murder and were executed in 1927 in the face of worldwide protests. As the 50th anniversary of their execution approached, an investigation was conducted into the defendants' innocence. According to Amnesty International the study concluded that:
|The prosecutor in the case had "knowingly...[used] unfair and
misleading evidence."
|The trial had taken place in an atmosphere of prejudice against
|The judge had presided over the case in a prejudicial manner.
In 1977, on the 50th anniversary of the executions, Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis directed that Sacco and Vanzetti's names be cleared. However, he stopped short of conceding that their innocence of had been established. 5
Equal Justice USA has prepared a report documenting sixteen probably innocent people who have been executed. 6 They are currently studying additional cases to add to their report.
Copyright � 2005 to 2010 by Ontario Consultants on Religious
Originally posted: 2005-AUG-07
Latest update: 2010-NOV-13
Author: B.A. Robinson
Page Translator:
This page translator works on Firefox,


text:
Science for Peace and Security
How to report
The information in this section is for experts who already hold a grant.
On events (applications submitted as of 2015)
- SPS Events Handbook (.pdf/157Kb)
- Final Report form (.docx/127Kb)
On Multi-year Projects (applications submitted before 2015)
This Management Handbook should be used by SfP Co-Directors who have successfully presented their full Project Plan and who have received the first Grant Letter for starting their SfP Project before 2015.
Please note recent changes to the Project Management handbook.
Complete management handbook (.pdf/305Kb)
- Project Quick Start (.pdf)
- Table of Threshold Amounts (.pdf)
- Payments
- Co-Director Operational Account Request Template (.docx)
- Supplier Registration Request Template (.docx)
- Payment Request (PRF) Template (.docx)
- Payment Request (PRF) Instructions (.pdf)
- Replenishment of Operational Account
- Competitive Bidding Template (.docx)
- Property Inventory Procedure (.pdf)
- Stipend Receipt Template (.docx)
- CV Template (.docx)
- Mission Expenses (.docx)
- Regulations and Accounting for Mission Expenses
- Mission Expense Form (MEF)
- MEF: Example
- Daily rates of subsistence allowance / NATO per diem rates 2015 (.pdf)
- Six-monthly Progress Reports (Templates and Budget)
- Project Closure
On Multi-year Projects (applications submitted as of 2015)
This Management Handbook should be used by SfP Co-Directors who have successfully presented their full Project Plan and who have received the first Grant Letter for starting their SfP Project as of 2015.
- Multi-Year Projects Handbook (.PDF/180Kb)
- Template for Progress Report (.docx/204Kb)
- Template for Final Report (.docx/227Kb)
Visual Identity Guidelines
All project partners participating in the Science for Peace and Security Programme are required to apply these guidelines to their respective communication tools. The visual identity comprises a signature banner which will be applied to all the communication tools (publications, posters, websites, notepaper, letterhead, etc.) created in the context of activities supported by the NATO SPS Programme.
- The English Guidelines (.pdf/1.708Kb)
- The French Guidelines (.pdf/1.872kb)
- The Russian Guidelines (.pdf/1.657kb)
- The Ukraine Guidelines (.pdf/1.658kb)
Below you will find all the graphic elements required for your respective communication tools. While a number of these files can be used with standard office PCs, there are also a range of files in formats that require professional soft and hardware as used by designers, printers and web designers.
- English Graphics (.zip/28.117kb)
- French Graphics (.zip/32.198kb)

subset: commoncrawl


text:
27 Dec 2017
Glossary: Fair trade
Fair trade is a social movement that promote greater equity in trade. It focuses, in particular, on exports from developing countries to developed countries, notably coffee, tea, chocolate, honey, handicrafts, etc. There are several recognized Fairtrade certifiers, including Fairtrade, IMO and Eco-Social.
Related articles:
- EU Trade Commissioner Reiterates EU's Commitment to Promoting Global "Fair and Ethical" Trade Conditions and Support for Fair Trade Schemes
- Sales of Fair Trade Products in Germany Experience Drastic Change, Paving Way for Retail Opportunities
- Sustainability and fair trade are key if you don't want your reputation in rags: social responsibility in vogue for the 2014 fashion industry


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STUDIO VISIT: The Glasgow School of Art
We posted a teaser on instagram of our tour around the Glasgow School of Art etching and silkscreen shops last week but now it's time for a much more satisfying peek into where the magic happens.
British art schools certainly take silkscreen more seriously then their US counterparts and always have proper vacuum graphics print tables (often British brand, Kippax) in studios. No messing around with hinges on tables here!
Also, love the guillotine in the washroom situation.


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July 5, 2016 § Leave a comment
Got some great short stories that form a cohesive unit? A dozen flash fiction pieces that explore a theme? Or just one, gorgeous longer short story?
I hope so, because we've just opened our 2016 Possibilities Period at Red Bird Chapbooks! For the duration of July and August, we'll be accepting collections of fiction, poetry, CNF, and everything in between, so send us your best. You can find the full guidelines here.
Didn't think chapbooks were for fiction? We've been trying to combat that misconception for years, and I think we're finally getting some traction. When I started with Red Bird, we had a handful of brave authors sending their manuscripts, while last year there were nearly a hundred fiction chapbooks to choose from, and even with Beth Mayer joining the team, I felt like there was more good work in the pool than we were able to choose for publication. Though I know how awful it feels to hear that as a writer, it is a great problem to have as an editor! We're publishing six incredible and diverse collections of fiction in 2016, whereas we didn't even have six submissions that first year. This year we've added a third fiction editor, so we will be publishing nine fiction chapbooks in 2016!
Interested in knowing more? Here's an interview I gave to Bonnie ZoBell at Everyday Fiction a few years ago, detailing what I'm looking for in a chapbook and what makes them such a great format for a fiction writer.
November 13, 2015 § Leave a comment
I thought I'd offer up a bit of an update after nearly a month away from the blog and my literary social media in general.
I'm proud to announce that Cedar Hart McDougal Kingston was born early on October 26th! It was a traumatic birth, though, and my wife, Cedar, and I had to spend the next ten days in the NICU. As a result, the only writing I've been doing lately has been updates to our Caring Bridge site (where you can hear Cedar's whole story, if interested).
I'm happy to report that he has been home for over a week now, though, and is doing great: eating, pooping, peeing, and screaming as well as any other baby I've seen. That said, I still haven't had much time to write, as he is ravenous for food and affection and too damn handsome to deny. I am having all sorts of crazy ideas for stories when he's got me up drinking coffee at two in the morning, though, so I am looking forward to putting them all to paper soon.
Lastly, I have had time to work on my editing for Red Bird (check out our new website!), picking a killer line-up of chapbooks to publish in 2016: an interdisciplinary (maybe even antidisciplinary) exploration of identity and power through discussions of Wolverine, Eazy-E, and Michel Foucault, among other diverse enthusiasms; a charmingly dreamlike collection of real person fan fiction pieces written in gorgeous prose; and a collection of perfectly composed short stories exploring beauty in ruin. Last but not least, I'm excited to announce that we'll also be publishing a print version of David Oppegaard's heretofore e-book only "Breakneck Cove". You should click on over to Onyx Neon Shorts and get yours right now–the story is such a stunner that I have no doubt that you'll be wanting to get the physical copy on your shelf anyway once it's available!
September 13, 2015 § 1 Comment
Hello Internet. Sorry it has been a while since the last time I posted saying I was sorry it has been a while since the last time I posted. It has been a hectic couple of months, as my wife and I moved into a new apartment while preparing for our first baby, which is due mid-October. I have been able to keep up writing on a couple of new novel-sized projects, but as usual, my internet writing has been pushed towards the back burner.
That should be changing soon, though, as I just cut back to part time at work in order to be a part-time homemaker once the baby comes. Hopefully this means that I'll be able to do a bit more of the sort of here-and-there, short attention span writing that the internet requires. So stay tuned to the blog, and my twitter; worst-case, I'll just start posting baby photos to keep my presence up.
(Here is a photo of my non-human babies, Louise (top) and Murray, to ease you all into the cuteness)
I was also recently interviewed by TJ Redig for his Scrivener's Soapbox podcast. The episode should be up by the end of September, but in the mean time, you should check out some of the older ones (Mark Rapacz and T.A. Wardrope were recently featured, for example).
Lastly, I'm able to go part-time, because my wife got a full-time position teaching at St. Kate's this year! She's got a cool new website you should check out here, and if you're a Harry Potter fan or scholar, you can read her essay "Doubting Dumbledore", in the awesome collection A Wizard of Their Age, available from SUNY press. I'm so proud of her and excited for this next chapter in our lives!
AWP in MN
April 6, 2015 § Leave a comment
Just a quick note to let it be known that I'll be attending The Associated Writing Programs Conference and Book Fair ( #AWP15 ) this week in big-time Minneapolis. I've been to five conferences, and they're always an inspiring and educating experience, so after having to miss last year's, I'm excited to have it in my own back yard this year.
I'll be resurrecting our #jokealong series for the week, too, tracking down all the best humor in the keynotes, panels, and hallway banter before nominating a best joke of the conference. If you've never been to an AWP before, check out the #jokealong from AWP Boston for sense of how much fun shooting the shit with a bunch of other writers can be.
I'll be working the Red Bird Chapbooks booth on Saturday from 1-5, closing down the book fair, so stop by to look at some gorgeous hand-made books, get info about submitting to us, or just to say hi and give me your best literary joke. I'll also have some copies of Slash in my backpack to sell—but honestly, if you go through the trouble of tracking me down, I'll probably be flattered into giving them to you for free!
Carol Mae
February 10, 2015 § 3 Comments
My grandma, Carol Van Deusen, passed away last week, so I want to share some of my favorite memories of her, and this blog seems like the right place for several reasons: first, I learned the value of a sense of humor from her (and my mother, who learned it from her), so these anecdotes are definitely on-topic for The Oldest Jokes in the World; second, they are too crass for a eulogy, so where the hell else am I going to share them?
My grandma traveled up to Canada to visit a few times when I was young, but it was only once I was seven, when we moved to Minnesota to be closer to my mom's family after my dad died, that I came to spend time enough with her to know who she was besides my mom's mom. We moved in with her for the summer and, while my mom was out job- and house-hunting, Grandma watched and entertained my brother and me.
And we needed entertainment: still devastated from losing our father, we were confused and afraid, not knowing what it really meant; and as we gradually figured it out, each new revelation was a fresh source of anxiety, grief, or anger; and then on top of it all, we moved to America, which seemed like a louder, meaner version of Canada, all the worse because it was away from every memory we had of our father.
So my grandma taught us German curses while we played board games. She must have learned them from her German-speaking parents, cursing in earnest at their own card games, but we learned to do it in jest. Whenever something bad happened to her in the game, she'd cuss with glee. A favorite was "shist auf der loof," which I'm sure, if I'm even remembering it perfectly, isn't proper German. Regardless, we were told it meant "poo on the roof"—a phrase whose meaning is every bit as obvious and mysterious to me today as it was then. My grandma made it clear that saying it was the funest way to lose, though, so soon we were joining in and learning new ones for variety. Being boys, "schwantz"—meaning penis, or as we said then "wiener" or "goo goo"—was soon our favorite, and it quickly became family tradition to say it, not when loosing, but before every dice roll for good luck.
When I think of why I love my grandma, past the general reasons we all love our grandmas, I think of that transformation: back then I was so scared of life that I used to stay awake in bed for as long as I could, as silently as I could, listening to my heartbeat so that, if it stopped, I could tell my mom before I died; but while with grandma, I was jumping out of my chair to joyfully scream German penis at the top of my lungs.
I'm sure that is where I learned to joke my way through tough times, an instinct that has helped me ever since. So as things got harder for my grandma with age, it was heartening to see that she always held on to her humor. Even this last Thanksgiving, when getting around was becoming more and more difficult, painful, and exhausting, she had us all laughing on several occasions. Carol had always been proficient with non sequiturs, so it was sometimes hard over the past few years to tell if she was changing the subject to be funny, because she couldn't hear what was just said, or if she'd just gotten bored of sober conversation. Regardless of why, as conversation flagged towards the end of dessert, she announced to the whole room: "I have a confession to make."
We all stopped to listen, and she started telling a story about a night shift she'd once worked in the hospital. She'd been a nurse her whole life, but this took place back when she was still a young woman. Mr. Wilkinson, one of her patients, however, was old.
"Oh Lord, he was old," she explained. "Old as dirt: he was older than I am now. So old he could hardly do anything. Couldn't walk around, or push his own wheel chair, couldn't even sit up in bed without some help. He was old, old, old—but at night, he slept as a young man…"
I think we were all a little confused by this turn of phrase, but a mischievous glimmer in her eyes gave me a clue as to what it might mean. Still, I could barely believe she was talking about what I thought she was talking about, even as she continued.
"Every night, making the rounds, I'd walk by his room to check on him, and there old Mr. Wilkinson would be: sleeping as a young man. All us nurses joked about it. It was terrible, one of those things you didn't want to look at but couldn't help it: there he was, every night, tenting the sheet."
She was! She was talking about Mr. Wilkinson's schwantz!
"And then one night, it was worse than ever before. It had tipped the sheet onto the floor and even parted his gown. And I couldn't help it: I ran out to the break room, peeled a sticker off a Chiquita banana, and snuck back into his room to put it on him. Then I told Eileen to go check on Mr. Wilkinson. She laughed so hard she could barely make it out of the room before she doubled over onto the floor."
In addition to raising some fine jokers, Carol raised some incredible health care professionals, so there was a bit of an outcry in the family about losing your license for playing the same prank today, but I just laughed. Or laughed and thought, as I usually do, about why we joke. This wasn't just some crass anecdote, but a chance to talk about what we were all afraid to talk about, a way to simultaneously look at and let go of that which had been haunting the whole evening: the pains and humiliations of aging.
Whether you're missing your dad or worried about your health, while laughing, all your sufferings and anxieties are briefly obliterated. Joking is a way for us to look at what we don't want to see but know we can't ignore; it is a way to put a bright sticker on the wrinkled schwantz we have to stare down every night. Joking keeps us whole. So thank you, Grandma, for teaching me how.
Through nearly a century of loss, pain, disappointment, and conflict, Carol Mae managed to not just keep a smile on her face, but put one on the faces of nearly everyone she met. So, if you'll excuse the turn of phrase, I'll end by saying that though she is now at rest, I know she rests as a young woman: full of love, hope, compassion, and mischief.
*For another remembrance of this lovely woman who touched so many people's lives, read my cousin, Toussaint Morrison's beautiful essay on his blog.
**A brief search of the internet has made me question whether the curses discussed are actually German. Maybe I am remembering/spelling them wrong, or maybe Carol, not wanting to actually teach us to curse, made up nonsense words? Any insight from foul-mouthed Germans would be greatly appreciated.
Too Lazy to Relax
July 23, 2014 § Leave a comment
It's become sort of a tradition around here for me to post a picture of my feet up in a hammock when we get back from our yearly Ontario cottage vacation–which has in turn led to all sorts of people getting googled over here in search of hammock jokes. This year, however, we reached a new height of relaxation and were too lazy to get out the ladders and hang up the hammock; we got off the boat, planted our faces in some books, and didn't look up until it was time to come back home.
I normally report on the funniness of the books I read while I'm up there, but it was all pretty serious stuff this time around, with a historical fiction bent, to help me scheme on the project I want to work on after Slash. (Which isn't to say it won't be funny, just that I wanted the best historical stuff I could find, whether they were funny or not). I read The King Must Die by Mary Renault and am almost done with Wolf Hall by Hillary Mantel. The Renault made for a great summer read, full of lusty adventure, but the Mantel in particular, is incredibly, and full of snort inducing quips that bring the verve and intelligence of the period to life in a much more visceral way than stale descriptions of clothes and furnishings. I also read the deadly serious Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood and The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin, starting two trilogies I'm already looking forward to continuing next summer. About the only comedic thing I read was Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town by Stephen Leacock, which lived up, for better or worse, to the "Canada's Mark Twain" blurb that got me to buy it. It did seem more like a watered-down version of Huckleberry Finn than something fresh of its own, but was certainly a fun way to spend an afternoon on a Canadian lake, especially with the lovely design and illustrations by Seth in the version I have. If you want to hear more about what I'm reading and what I think about it, friend me on Goodreads; I'm always curious to see what other readers are up to!
In any event, I'm excited to be back. Not happy–I really feel like I could just sit up there and read forever–but ready for a whole 'nother year of writing to bring you guys. With the final episode of Slash out in just a few weeks, I need to get the epilogue done by this weekend, and once that's complete, I'll be able to dedicate more time to this blog again. I already have a few tragicomic posts planed about the state of the industry and my adventures in self-publishing, and hope to read some real funny literary fiction to share with you all soon!


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West Coast Region
Rev. Peter Watts
Regional Vice President
Peter Watts was born and raised in South Los Angeles. He is a graduate of Cal State Dominguez Hills where he received his B.A. in Mass Communications. He received his Master's of Education in Administration and Leadership degree from University of Phoenix. He just graduated from Fuller Seminary with his Masters in Theology in Spring 2017. His educational career began 18 years ago in LAUSD at Compton Ave Elementary School. He then taught for 7 years at a charter organization (ICEF Public Schools) where he also was the founding director of Thurgood Marshall Leadership Academy Middle School, a blended learning school. Peter ended his career at ICEF as the Director of Blended Learning where he developed a comprehensive and innovative approach to education for this organization. Peter pastors The Rock Church and is currently the Regional Vice President for World Impact West Coast Region. He has been married to his wife Didi Watts for 23 years and has three children Jasmin Anderson, Avery Watts, and Imani Watts.
Michelle Milburn
regional Director of Operations
Michelle began her journey with World Impact-Chester Ministry in 1999 near Philadelphia, upon completing her final semester of college in Cairo, Egypt. She originally started as the girls' volleyball coach after being transferred to the Los Angeles region. In 2005, she became the Principal in both the elementary and middle schools. She was then named Regional Director of Operations for the Western Region of World Impact in August of 2013.


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He has been told it's the "honeymoon suite."
That said, there's not a lot of romance to Kevin Clark "Slim" Forsythe's roughly 12- by 20-foot room on the third floor of Nied's Hotel in Lawrenceville. It's accessed by a stairway featuring severely listing steps that double as the "Slim Forsythe Museum," decorated with old posters, his law degree from Pitt, photos and other memorabilia.
Inside the room, there's a bed, a new pair of sneakers to go with his cowboy boots, a clothes rack for his beautifully embroidered Western shirts and two acoustic guitars: a Fender named Mary for his stepmother and a solid mahogany Martin named for his mother, Betty, who died when he was 4.
After 20 years as a City Hall attorney, Kevin Forsythe quit his job to pursue his dream being a musician. Today, he goes by "Slim" and lives above a bar — his dream come true. (Video by Julia Rendleman; 1/11/2014)
And there's nowhere he'd rather be.
"I thank the good Lord for every day of health and strength I've been given, for landing in such a wonderful place as Nied's," said Mr. Forsythe, a former lawyer and rock band manager who worked in Pittsburgh city government for nearly two decades. In 2008, he moved into Nied's, known for its famous fish sandwich, and now, for Mr. Forsythe's Hank Williams Sr. tribute act.
Mr. Forsythe will celebrate his 58th birthday with a performance at 7 tonight at the hotel on Butler Street, where he will be joined by the Stillhouse Pickers and the Turpentines. But the spotlight will be on Slim and his guitar-slinging alter ego that has slowly but surely taken over his life.
"When it first started out, it was kind of an act," he said. Mr. Forsythe said he had just finished writing "The Three Boys," a novel set in his hometown of Bradford that he considered the sequel to Fyodor Dostoevsky's "The Brothers Karamazov."
The next thing to do seemed clear as day: Start an all-female Hank Williams tribute band, with himself in the starring role as the lanky, legendary country-western hell-raiser.
"I always wanted to be a singer in a band," said Mr. Forsythe, who managed the Pittsburgh rock group A.T.S. and really began to explore Mr. Williams' catalog with the guidance of A.T.S. guitarist Evan Knauer.
"I just wanted to do Hank Williams and be a good-time party band," said Mr. Forsythe, never thinking "Slim" would start writing his own tunes one day. "On my best night, I am a mediocre rhythm guitar player. I don't consider myself a musician. I consider myself an entertainer."
Though it seems obvious, given Mr. Forsythe's lean build, his nickname actually comes from stories his father, Frank, a Pittsburgh nightclub singer, told him about sharing the stage with Hoyt "Slim" Bryant and His Wildcats, a pre-eminent Pittsburgh country act of the 1940s and 1950s.
Frank Forsythe also was one of several models for a Duquesne beer ad campaign, and now the son of the "Prince of Pilsener" can see his father's face reflected in the Duquesne tap behind the bar at Nied's.
"He took me in like a stray dog," he said of owner Jim Nied. Mr. Forsythe has been married three times and has two adult sons. For a time, he lived with his second ex-wife — still a close friend, he says — to stay close to one of his sons, then 12. When his son left for college six years ago, he had to start looking for a place to hang his hat, which in this case is a Western-style Dorfman Pacific.
"The deal was, when he left, I had to leave," Mr. Forsythe said. "I had always had this idea of living above a bar."
His search for a new home led him to a third-floor room at Nied's, where Slim had become a familiar face for Mr. Nied, the third-generation owner of the family restaurant and bar, which has been on Butler Street since 1941.
"My wife's very particular about who I let up there," said Mr. Nied, who lives on the second floor. "Slim has enriched our lives here."
Mr. Forsythe, who had been working construction, got a job driving a school bus for A-1 Transit, which at the time had a lot just across Butler Street from the hotel.
"It's a wonderful job if the kids are behaving," he said. "For the most part I've had real good kids."
With its resident singing cowboy, Nied's Hotel has become a place where old, working-class Lawrenceville and its hip modern incarnation meld, said Lauren Byrne, executive director of Lawrenceville United, a neighborhood nonprofit.
"He's sort of just become part of the character of the neighborhood," Ms. Byrne said, adding that Mr. Forsythe and Nied's are always the first to help at various neighborhood events.
"I think people are drawn to Lawrenceville because of its unique character, and Slim and Nied's are part of that," she said.
"Everyone feels comfortable there."


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The Real Estate Solution's Story
Real Estate Solutions was created out of a combination of Experience, Inspiration and Perspiration.
After years in the multi-family and office side of the commercial business, I got a feeling about a year before the great recession that something was happening. People were moving out of California and office clients were asking for smaller space or cutting short their leases and moving back home.
To hedge my bet I decided to learn the single family home side of the business so I joined a large residential real estate firm that would also allow me to maintain my commercial endeavors. I learned a lot and despite starting at the same time the great recession was taking hold I did quite well.
During all of this, I was still involved with several land deals as a result of my association with the Open Space Authority of the Santa Clara Valley having been part of nearly 20,000 acres of land acquisitions.
Then in 2011 a building that I owned that had been rented by a local attorney for over 25 years became available. I took it as a sign that the time had come and along with some encouragement from other agents in the business, and opened Real Estate Solutions.
Why the name? We provide solutions to all of your real estate needs in one place.
Real Estate Solutions
17775 Monterey Street
Morgan Hill, CA 95037 USA
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Website: http://www.realestatesolutionsbayarea.com


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Mont Bell Super Stretch Down Hugger # 7
A good sleeping bag is the key to a good night's sleep outdoors, and the key requirements are general comfort coupled with adequate insulation. While most brands can keep you warm, only Mont Bell makes a sleeping bag that flexes and stretches as you move in the night, so that trapped pockets of air remain close to your body.
A World Patent protects the Mont Bell Super Stretch system, which incorporates horizontal elastic stitching. Mountain Equipment has used a similar system in a small section of its bags under licence from Mont Bell, but only the Mont Bell range has the stretch working throughout the length of the bag for the ultimate in thermal efficiency and comfort.
All this stretch keeps the insulation close to the body, no matter how much that body moves or what weird shapes it throws. The result is a much better night's sleep as warm air is always trapped close to you.
There is a wide choice of bags in the Mont Bell range, but the one I got to grips with was the Super Stretch Down Hugger #7. This has a temperature rating of 10 deg C, so it's not very warm. However, it packed down to little more than the size of a couple of pints of bitter and was so light I could forget I had it in my rucksack.
A spring cold snap meant it was not really warm enough for the conditions, but by wearing some extra base layers I got through the night. I liked the stretch, which allowed me to move quite unrestrictedly inside the bag. And as it is very easy to 'overpower' the stretch, I never felt like pea in a pod bursting to get out!
Another unusual feature is the foot drawcord, which can shorten the bag. I used this to achieve a closer fit around my ankles, and I quite liked this feature as it meant I kept my feet at the end of the bag, again for maximum efficiency. The hood is not the most profiled of designs, though it worked okay, and there is no shoulder baffle. This bag does not feel super-cosy either, basically because it has such a small amount of insulation. It tends to float around the body, rather than hug you like a winter duvet on a bed tends to do.
However, pack this bag into its stuffsack, crank down the compression and it disappears in a rucksack, making it ideal for summer trips in fine weather.
A sleeping bag like this will keep you warm enough in warm-ish weather, but what it's really about is providing a higher level of comfort than it suggests without weighing you down. For that reason I'd stick to something warmer during cold snaps, but I'd definitely put this at the top of my list for summer camping trips.
Size: 200x70cm
Insulation: 90/10 800 fill power down
Outer: Polkatex nylon
Inner: Polkatex nylon
Packed size: 25x11cm (compressed)
Weight: 548g (including stuffsack, 24g)
Temperature rating: 10 deg C
Made in: China
Verdict: A super-lightweight summer sleeping bag that is more comfortable than appearances suggest.


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Gloves in a Bottle
8 oz. of Gloves in a Bottle hand cream. Great for dry skin especially your hands after working with fabric that tends to dry out our hands. Try it, you will love it!
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text: Your first visit to our office is outlined to make you familiar with all the services that we offer, as well as getting to know Dr. Prasad and our professional staff who will cater to all your needs. We would suggest that you ask questions prior to beginning your procedure to ensure you a quality care that you deserve. Please take time to accomplish the patient forms so that we could assist you in the best way and in a timely manner. Please click on the New Patient Forms below to fill the patient forms. Thank you for entrusting your dental needs in our office and we look forward to serving you in the future.


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For the recent supermoon, I held a small party in Dolores Park to moonbathe, sip on moon juice, and be get waning and waxing. Here is a playlist of moon songs that accompanied the event.
Bow Chicka Mamma /
She's a Chinatown legend. The only bartender I know that will actually push drinks on you and won't take no for an answer. You bet she's trouble.
Syd's Amazing /
This song has been on repeat for me for more than a week. Amazing, pun intended.


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This is my second time in life doing the Lemonade cleansing fast. I first did it when I was in high school. My mom hooked me up with a professional massage from this lady, and she suggested a liquid-only diet with a strange mix of water, maple syrup, lemon juice and cayenne pepper.
I had been feeling really sick and had a real bad case of that high school acne, nahmean? Well, after a week, this fast completely emptied me out. Acne-b-gone. Illness-b-gone. Health returned.
Over the past year, especially, I've been having some fun-with-health issues. New pains. Crampiness. Bad time sleeping. Horrible headaches. I know my body has collected a lot of toxins, both physical and emotional (following the passing of my mother).
Three weeks ago, I treated myself to a deep tissue massage, and the fasting is the followup. I'm going for 5 - 10 days.
I started last night with a detox tea. This morning I cooked a delicious breakfast for my girlfriend (cause I'm the man) as I drank the spicey water.
About twenty minutes ago I started to feel hungry for the first time today. I'll let you know how it goes.


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Legal Downloads - So It Begins Again
Brad responded to me the same day promising that he would do a few preliminary things that would determine the next steps to get Trooper up and running in the digital world. Three and a half weeks passed. I emailed him today. The email bounced back. Since it was a 'reply' to his email, I knew the address was correct. I called Universal and found out that his mailbox was full. I asked the receptionist to alert him to this fact and gave her my email address so that he could let me know when he was once again operational. A few minutes later I got an email from the receptionist informing me that Brad's "last day" was September 29th.
So for the last two weeks, I've been waiting for a response from nobody. Maybe worse, it turns out that Brad promised to get back to me knowing that he only had ten more days with the company. Maybe worse yet, The President of the company directed me, and my questions, to Brad knowing that he was already cleaning out his desk.
I did actually laugh.
This is good, really. I recall trying to explain to my partner the lunacy I was experiencing while dealing with this company ten years ago. Often I wondered if he believed me. Staying with this in real time will be good for me as well. By documenting it, I can be sure, later, that it really happened.
So I have written back to the President:
Hi _______,
I've just learned that _________ left Universal Music Canada ten days after his promising email to me. That would account for why I've heard nothing from him for over three weeks.
I'd like to see Trooper tracks available for legal download. Who do I talk to about this?
The President wrote right back saying that Brad had promised he'd do this. His email then asked another person in the company (who was cc'd) to contact Brad at his new job and find out "where this is at". The email ends with the assertion that they'll get this done for me.


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Continuation of the "Injustice in Maternity Care" Series
Throughout my time as a labor and delivery nurse at a large urban hospital in the Northeast, I have mentally tallied up a list of patients and circumstances that make me go "WHAT!?! Are you SERIOUS!? Oh come ON!" Because of this I was inspired to start the "Injustice in Maternity Care" blog series, or more appropriately the "Don't Let This Happen to You" series. If you are pregnant or planning on becoming pregnant, this series is dedicated to you! If haven't already read it, I invite you to check out part 1 of this post: DLTHTY #22: Gina & Tony's "Elective" Primary C/S PART 1.
And now the story begins…
Not too long ago I was part of an absolutely outrageous and unnecessary cesarean section. I arrived at work at 11:00am as usual and noticed that I had been assigned to the OR team. My hospital averages about 10-15 births per day, and depending on the day, 4-6 of those births are by cesarean section…sometimes more. Monday through Friday from 7am-3pm we have an OR team comprised of about 5 nurses or so, that handle all of the scheduled cases and even any emergency cases that happen during the day shift. However, if there is a call in for the OR team or they have a particularly large case load (for example, a full schedule of scheduled cesareans plus some unexpected add-ons) I often get pulled off the floor to join the surgical team.
So after reading the assignment I moseyed on down to the surgical wing to get the scoop from the OR charge nurse, Linda. Linda informed me that I would be scrubbing the 11:30 case (that is, assisting the surgeon by passing him/her instruments and keeping an accurate count of all instruments, sharps, and sponges). Next I looked over the patient's chart so I would better understand what to expect during the case.
The patient was Gina, a 24 year old G1P0 at 39.2 weeks with an unremarkable past medical history (tonsillectomy at age 6, mild exercise induced asthma) and a normal healthy pregnancy. She and her husband Tony were expecting their first baby, a boy that they planned on naming Giovanni after her late grandfather. Gina was about 5'6" and approximately 155lbs while her husband was about 5'10" and slender. I scoured her admission assessment for a medical indication for her cesarean section. Did she have active genital herpes? Nope. How about placenta previa? Nope. Was she breech, brow, or transverse lie? Nope. Problems with her first delivery? Well no because this was her first baby. Did she undergo previous extensive abdominal or uterine surgery? Nope. Was she abducted by aliens who sewed her vagina shut?! NO! NO! NO!
And as I shut her chart to go and find her nurse and get some answers, my eyes fell upon her name plate and everything started to make sense….she was Dr. M's patient!!!! She was an elective primary cesarean section! Let me digress for a moment to explain a little bit about Dr. M so that you get a better idea of the situation and why I just knew that Gina was scheduled for an elective cesarean.
During my first week off of orientation as an L&D nurse, I admitted a patient of Dr. M's for a repeat cesarean section. I asked a fellow nurse, Sarah, if she could tell me a little bit about Dr. M since not only had I never worked with her during a birth before, but I had never even seen her in the labor wing during my entire 12 weeks of orientation. Sarah looked right at me and said, "Let me put it this way. Dr. M performs so many c-sections that it is almost as if she finds it personally offensive for a woman to deliver vaginally." I almost spit out my juice when I heard that! Turns out, however, that she wasn't exaggerating.
Dr. M has the highest cesarean section rate out of any of the obstetricians that have privileges on our unit clocking in at a whopping 74% in 2007! She has almost a 90% rate of vacuum assisted deliveries since she uses a vacuum on every cesarean and almost every vaginal delivery. (And to be very honest, the only time she doesn't put a vacuum on the baby's head during a vaginal delivery is if the mother has a precipitous delivery and the nurse "accidentally" (*wink, wink*) forgot to bring a vacuum into the room! Also whenever she uses a vacuum she cuts a giant episiotomy as well so you can do the math on her episiotomy rate!) It is actually a joke among the residents and nurses on the floor (a really sad, sick joke, but a joke nonetheless) that Dr. M's patients don't ever have vaginal deliveries; they just have "failed cesareans."
Dr. M is one of only two doctors on the floor that will do primary elective cesarean sections and even so, the other doctor that will attend them will agree to it only in very rare circumstances. But what exactly is an "elective primary cesarean section?" Is it the same thing as a "maternal request cesarean section?" That is, if a patient is scheduled for an elective primary cesarean section, does it automatically mean it was because it was by the patient's request? Are they the same thing? Interchangeable terms? And what does elective really mean? Before I discuss the answers to those questions let me finish Gina & Tony's story.
At this point I'm pretty frustrated. It has been my experience with Dr. M that if her patient does not have a true medical indication for a cesarean section that she will literally make one up in order to convince the patient that a cesarean is the best way to go. Think I'm exaggerating? Well when I finally entered Gina & Tony's room to introduce myself I found out the real scoop straight from the patient's mouth. After introducing myself to Gina & Tony and explaining my role as the scrub nurse, we got to chatting about her family, her job, and her pregnancy.
Me: "So how has this pregnancy been for you so far?"
Gina: "Great! I mean I had a little bit of morning sickness in the beginning but other than that everything has been great!
Me: "Is little Giovanni going to be the first grandchild for either of your parents?"
Gina: "Oh well not for my side, I'm from a big family. But he'll be the first grandchild for Tony's parents."
Me: "Oooh! How exciting!! It is so nice to hear that everything has been going well for you this pregnancy! So what is the reason that you are having surgery today?"
Gina: "Well last week I had a sonogram to measure the baby's weight and it showed that he was really big, like over 8 lbs!!! Dr. M also did an internal exam and said that I didn't have enough room in my pelvis to give birth to a baby that big. And she was my sister's doctor too. My sister had to have a cesarean after like two days of labor. Dr. M tried to induce her but her cervix just wouldn't dilate past 1 centimeter so she had to have a cesarean for her first baby. And for her second baby Dr. M just recommended a cesarean because she just can't dilate. So we were figuring I'm probably the same way too. And I mean, I can't give birth to no 8 lb baby! Oh lord no!
Me: [dumfounded & speechless]
At that moment the anesthesiologist entered the room to go over what to expect during the spinal and I just said "Well I'll see you both back there!" and left the room.
I ran to the chart to find the sonogram report. The estimated fetal weight per the report was 4025 grams (which is approximately 8lbs 14oz). And sure enough in Dr. M's admission note under "preoperative diagnosis" the following was written in black and white: elective primary cesarean section for suspected fetal macrosomia.
Okay, okay, okay, there are SO MANY things WRONG with what Gina was describing to me that I felt like I had been hit by a Mack truck. Let's take them one by one shall we!
FACT #1: Third trimester sonogram reports are imprecise and inaccurate since they can be off as much as 2 POUNDS and they notoriously overestimate the fetal weight.
"Weighing the newborn after delivery is the only way to accurately diagnose macrosomia, because the prenatal diagnostic methods (assessment of maternal risk factors, clinical examination and ultrasonographic measurement of the fetus) remain imprecise. Leopold's maneuvers and measurement of the height of the uterine fundus above the maternal symphysis pubis are the two primary methods for the clinical estimation of fetal weight. Use of either of these methods alone is considered to be a poor predictor of fetal macrosomia; therefore, they must be combined to produce a more accurate measurement. Ultrasonographic measurement of the fetus serves as a means to rule out the diagnosis of fetal macrosomia, which may aid in avoiding maternal morbidity, but is considered to be no more accurate than Leopold's maneuver."
~American Academy of Family Physician's (AAFP) publication of ACOG Practice Bulletin No. 22, November 2000, Obstetrics and Gynecology
FACT #2: You cannot accurately determine the size of a woman's pelvis during labor by doing a vaginal exam before labor begins. The human body naturally releases hormones as it prepares for and begins labor which act to relax the joints and ligaments of the pelvis, increasing the diameter and flexibility of the pelvic outlet. This type of misdiagnosis of cephalopelvic disproportion (CPD) accounts for many unnecessary cesareans performed in North America and around the world annually. Also the sutures of a baby's skull are not fused at birth for the very important reason of allowing molding of the baby's head through the birth canal.
FACT #3: Labor induction increases a woman's risk of cesarean section, especially if the woman's cervix is not yet ripened and ready for labor (a.k.a. a Bishop's score of less than 6 for a first time mom and less than 8 for a multiparous mom). Therefore if a woman undergoes a cesarean section after a labor induction at 1 centimeter of dilation because she "can't dilate anymore" it was the induction that failed NOT her body. See:
1) Bishop score and risk of cesarean delivery after induction of labor in nulliparous women.
2) Risk of cesarean delivery with elective induction of labor at term in nulliparous women.
3) Elective Induction of Labor by Henci Goer
FACT #4: According to the ACOG published practice guidelines, "suspected fetal macrosomia" should not be considered as an indication for cesarean section unless the estimated fetal weight is greater than 4500 grams (9lb 15oz) for a diabetic mother and 5000g (11lb 0oz) for a non-diabetic mother, and even so maternal risk factors and birth history must also be taken into account. The ACOG committee (Practice Bulletin No. 22, November 2000, Obstetrics and Gynecology) provides the following recommendations for the management of fetal macrosomia:
Recommendations based on good and consistent scientific evidence (Level A):
* The diagnosis of fetal macrosomia is imprecise. For suspected fetal macrosomia, the accuracy of estimated fetal weight using ultrasound biometry is no better than that obtained with clinical palpation (Leopold's maneuvers).
Recommendations based on limited or inconsistent scientific evidence (Level B):
* Suspected fetal macrosomia is not an indication for induction of labor, because induction does not improve maternal or fetal outcomes.
* Labor and vaginal delivery are not contraindicated for women with estimated fetal weights up to 5,000 g in the absence of maternal diabetes.
* With an estimated fetal weight more than 4,500 g, a prolonged second stage of labor or arrest of descent in the second stage is an indication for cesarean delivery.
Recommendations based primarily on consensus and expert opinion (Level C):
* Although the diagnosis of fetal macrosomia is imprecise, prophylactic cesarean delivery may be considered for suspected fetal macrosomia with estimated fetal weights of more than 5,000 g in pregnant women without diabetes and more than 4,500 g in pregnant women with diabetes.
* Suspected fetal macrosomia is not a contraindication to attempted vaginal birth after a previous cesarean delivery.
So long story short, Gina had her cesarean section and I felt like I was going to cry the entire time. (Sometimes I get myself really worked up about these types of injustices! I know, I know, many of my colleagues tell me I need to learn to relax but turning the other way when this type of selfish and reckless obstetrical practice is going on in my community is just not something I can bring myself to do!) Since I was the scrub nurse I was already scrubbed and in the OR before Dr. M even showed up to the case and since she blew out of that OR before we could even transfer the patient off the table to the stretcher, I unfortunately didn't even get a chance to confront her about it. And to be honest, I have seen her chew out so many nurses that I don't know if I could have even stood talking to someone so irrational.
Oh! I can't forget to tell you the best part of the story! Dr. M is notorious for cutting the smallest possible incision, which one would think is a good thing, however, she cuts them so small that she always "has" to use a vacuum to pull the baby out of the uterus (and there is often a lot of straining and pulling and tugging involved on that little baby's head! It makes my stomach turn.) She then, of course, brags to the patient about how "cute" her small little "smile" is (referring to the bikini cut skin incision the patient is left with.) It really makes me sick when I hear her say that.
So after the baby was delivered and Dr. M was suctioning her out with the bulb suction, I stared at the baby and thought to myself, "This baby is no where NEAR 9 pounds!" And sure enough when the baby was weighed moments later, the red digital numbers burned into my brain as I saw them flash up onto the screen…
And to top it off, as Dr. M saw the weight for herself as that little baby wiggled around on the scale, she poked her head over the drape towards Gina and said, and I quote, "Well she's just a bit smaller than we first thought, but Gina, I think you really made the right decision. You don't have a lot of room in here. You wouldn't have wanted an emergency cesarean now would you?"
As if she could tell how much "room" she had in her pelvic outlet from staring at her uterus propped up onto her abdomen as she sewed it shut. Wait? What's that smell? Oh yeah it's BULL CRAP!
In conclusion let us review the definitions of some of the terms I have been referring to throughout this post. Although one of the problems in obtaining accurate research on the phenomenon of "elective primary cesarean section" is that there is no standard universal definition, I have decided to use the following definitions after extensive research on the subject which will be presented in Part 3 of this post. So for the sake of discussion on THIS blog, I ask that the following definitions be considered:
* Elective Primary Cesarean Section: A planned first or "primary" cesarean section in a healthy woman for the birth of a baby when there is no medical, fetal, or obstetric reason for the surgery. May be influenced by non-medical issues, such as physicians' personal beliefs (not facts) about safety, liability, insurance coverage, liability fears, hospital economics, efficiency, convenience, and reimbursement rates, as well as other factors not listed. (American College of Nurse-Midwives, Position Statement: Elective Primary Cesarean Section & Citizens for Midwifery, News Release: "Patient Choice" Cesareans Almost Non-Existent)
* Maternal Request Cesarean Section or Cesarean Delivery on Maternal Request (CDMR): A subcategory of elective primary cesarean sections. A planned (before labor begins) first or "primary" cesarean initiated by the mother with the understanding that there is no medical, obstetrical, or fetal indication requiring cesarean delivery, and after a through review of the risks and benefits of cesarean delivery vs. vaginal birth by the obstetrician, the woman's decision is to have a planned cesarean section. The primary decision maker for a CDMR is the woman. (National Institute of Health (NIH) Cesarean Conference definition, March 2006 & Childbirth Connection, Listening to Mothers II Survey)
To reiterate, according to these definitions, it is misleading and inaccurate to assume that every woman who has an "elective primary cesarean section" actually had a "maternal request cesarean section." In order for a c-section to be truly considered a "maternal request" cesarean, the following FIVE criteria must be met:
Necessary Criteria for Maternal Request Cesarean Section:
#1 The request for the cesarean and the scheduling of the cesarean must have been made prior to the onset of labor.
#2 The request for the cesarean must have been initiated by the mother.
#3 The mother must have the understanding that there is NO medical, obstetrical, or fetal indication requiring a cesarean delivery.
#4 The obstetrician must personally review and assure the mother's understanding of the risks and benefits of elective cesarean surgery vs. planned vaginal birth.
#5 The woman is the primary decision maker.
So what do you think? Does Gina's cesarean section fit the definition for a "maternal request cesarean section?"
* Types of cesarean sections and more differences between "primary elective" cesarean section and "maternal request" cesarean section.
* How 13 major health care organizations and nonprofit childbirth/maternity advocacy groups weigh in on "elective" cesarean section.
* An actual hospital consent form for "Elective Primary Cesarean Section."


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Worst 7 Games of 2012 (so far) - ArticleCraig Snow , posted on 05 July 2012 / 119,704 Views
A week or so ago we presented our picks for the best games of the year so far (click here if you missed it). Now it's time to name and shame the worst games of the year so far. In what is very much a case of the triumph of hope over experience, we have our fingers crossed that the list remains relatively unchanged come the end of the year.
Score: 2.5
Amy has the ingredients for a very unique and entertaining horror game. It centres on protecting someone other than yourself, it has great atmosphere, and trying to face most enemies head-on will quickly lead to disaster. With Resident Evil turning into more of an action-horror game, and with little classic survival-horror in today's gaming landscape, Amy could have been a welcome breath of fresh air. As it is, with all of the bugs and repugnant game design, I can't recommend it to even the most die-hard fan of the genre, and the game is destined for nothing greater than to rot in the digital void from whence it came.
Read the review.
Men in Black: Alien Crisis
Score: 2.9
I hated almost everything about Men in Black: Alien Crisis. I hated that I had to play it. I hated that I had to write a review about it. I even hated that I had to delete a game I somewhat enjoy from my PS3 hard drive in order to make room for its install data. At certain points I wanted to die while playing. Not in the game mind you, but in real life.
Read the review.
Score: 3.5
Do not buy this game. Do not rent this game. Do not look at this game. Do not associate with people who own this game. It is everything wrong with the action genre of games with a chocolate coating of pretty visuals. Let it fall into the bargain bin and fester there until end times.
Read the review.
Wheels of Destruction
Score: 3.8
Gelid Games made the bold move of comparing it to the genre's top dog, Twisted Metal, and hyped up its class system in a way that made me excited to play. Sadly, the game itself didn't even come close to reaching the bar that was set so high for it, both by its developer and by Sony, who made it a key game in their Spring Fever promotion. Wheels of Destruction proves that you get what you pay for. Those looking for car combat fun should stick with Twisted Metal.
Read the review.
Score: 3.9
Bloodforge is built on a solid foundation but still manages to fumble. If it weren't for the atrociously schizophrenic camera and the depressingly muddled darkness that plagues the game's entirety - making it borderline painful to play - Bloodforge could have been a reasonably fun game that was worth the 1200 MS Point asking price. As it is, it's just a mess.
Read the review.
Ninja Gaiden 3
Score: 4.0
Ninja Gaiden 3 would have been a bad game by 2004 standards. By today's standards, it's downright embarrassing. It's almost baffling how many steps back this game has taken from the Itagaki-directed prequels, and just goes to show how important a strong, guiding vision is for game development. Ninja Gaiden 3 holds a few interesting ideas hidden within, but the sacrifice of a coherent storyline and well-designed gameplay is far from a worthy trade-off.
Read the review.
Ridge Racer
Score: 4.0
As a fan of Ridge Racer, I'm appalled by what Bandai Namco have done to one of my favorite racing series. The game is an affront to every gamer's good sense as a consumer. Not only does it fail to put the Vita's many unique features to good use, but it also costs $30 at retail ($25 from the PlayStation Store) while offering little more content than a demo. Maybe I'm wrong and Ridge Racer for the PlayStation Vita is just a game that is ahead of its time. Perhaps in the future games will purely revolve around online communities and content that is assembled in pieces while fully-fledged singleplayer content becomes a relic of a forgotten past. If that's the case, then I want no part of that future.
Read the review.
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On The Angry Chicken this week, the Hearthstone World Championship is only getting better as the Americas qualifiers in New York have just wrapped up and sent four more players on to compete in California. StrifeCro versus Stunner was a Priest on Priest mirror match-up that will not soon be forgotten.
Blizzard also revealed October's spooktacular card back, the Naxx game board is now in the Ranked Play rotation, Garrett talked about what competitive card game lessons he learned at his first Magic Grand Prix, and there were some stellar emails this week!
You can support The Angry Chicken by going to http://ww.patreon.com/tac.
Follow us on Twitch.tv/amovetv and subscribe to the Amove Youtube at Youtube.com/starcastshow. You can email the show at email@example.com.
The Angry Chicken #48 - Show Notes:


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To coin a phrase of my personal favorite politician. OK, I modified it a tad, but the spirit remains. In this New Year I have decided to move in a different direction. Having been published twice in the traditional format…
Buy Now
The AWARD WINNING Aviator Series (MWSA 2012) catapults the reader into WWII. Action explodes from the pages of novelist LC Shanle's series set in World War II. Experience the battles from the cockpits of fighter aircraft, dangling from parachutes with the Army's Airborne over France and through the eyes of men trapped in island tropical hells. Written by a retired Naval Aviator and former Paratrooper; the author puts the reader there, as warriors engage in a titanic struggle around the globe.
This series offers a rare perspective written by an author that flew modern fighters over the historic battlefields, even from the decks of aircraft carriers that fought in the Pacific.


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Easy Door Maintenance
Door maintenance is one of the simplest and most beneficial steps you can take to prolonging the life span of your interior and exterior doors. With just a little bit of effort, you can add years to an otherwise short-lived door. Routine DIY door repair and maintenance will also throw in some variety, the spice of life.
Exterior Doors
Being exposed to all the elements, exterior doors certainly take a beating. That's why it's important to purchase a good quality exterior door and to use proper door maintenance techniques. First there is the initial care that should be given to a door upon purchasing. This is to ensure that it will last you as long as it can. Make sure you are using the appropriate coating for exterior doors. Exterior wood doors often require more than the typical polyurethane finish due to all the factors that will be thrust upon it. Look for products with UV-protection as well as waterproof designs. Apply several coats of whichever wood care product you've chosen, and a finishing coat such as glaze.
If not already in place, weather bars and stripping should be installed on all exterior doors. Not only does this improve the quality of your door, but it also makes your door more energy efficient.
Once you've taken the preliminary steps to preserving your door, we can talk about maintaining your door. Though it may seem obvious, a fresh coat of paint or varnish can do wonders to restore an old door, and should certainly be attempted before door replacing. Replacing a door is more expensive and complicated than a coat of paint. When painting, you should remove the door furniture to reach behind and underneath. Hinges should be removed separately (i.e. remove one, paint, wait for it to dry, replace and then remove the other to paint).
Also, adding a new frame or hardware item can totally change the face of your current door and even the look of your home.
Try adding a classy or unique letterbox to your exterior door. This can set a style and detract from other character flaws in the front door.
Interior Doors
Paint/varnish is also an easy improver for interior doors.
Architrave- An architrave is a decorative molding that frames a doorway. This is an easy DIY door repair job that will help you avoid the more cumbersome door replacing and add significantly to any room or area that it is introduced to.
Door Painting Tips
Don't skimp on the details- Grooves, recesses, hinges etc. require a little extra attention, and, when given this additional care, are the details that make the finished product look great.
Apply your finishing coat after the door has been affixed in place and hinged, whenever possible.
When painting, varnishing or glazing, remember to get the top, inside and bottom edges.
Paint or varnish should be touched up every few years (three is a good average), unless you live in particularly moist areas or coastal regions. In this situation, touch ups will be required more frequently.
From initial preventative measures to touch ups and simple door repair techniques, there are plenty of quick and easy projects that you can do for your doors. Help your home accessories last longer by up keeping these all-important household furnishings.
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Katherine - posted on 02/02/2011 ( 79 moms have responded )
We just got back from the kiddo haircut spot, and my daughter is stoked. Not about her hairstyle, but about the free toys they give "good" kids, and the glitter they sprinkle into her hair after the styling is complete. Her haircut -- she could care less about. In fact, if we never took her to get her haircut, she'd be totally fine with that as well.
I, however, have some very specific ideas about my kids and their hair. Which might, in some circles, qualify me as a helicopter parent. Or, if you saw my son's current 'do as he rocks a mullet, a hipster parent. Probably a little bit of each of those stereotypes is true, and it shows up in my kid's hair.
Want to know what your kid's hair says about you?
Buzz Cut
In boys (hopefully not girls, until she's old enough to make this punk rock choice herself), this usually means mom is a) too tired to mess with it, b) preparing her kids for military service, or c) lives in the South, and it's summer.
Styled Mullet, Mohawk, Dreadlocks, Bowl Cut, Prince Valiant
Long & Flowing
In girls, mom or dad values feminine traits. The little girl with Rapunzel hair probably wears her fair share of pink and thinks outside play is icky. The opposite is true for boys with the flowing locks. Your parent is a free-thinking, non-conformist. For the boy or girl who lives in the Pacific Northwest, San Francisco, or Woodstock -- your mom is a hippie.
Bieber Hair on Boys/Girls With Bangs
Whether you're type A in everything may be debatable, but making sure your kids have the latest hairstyle before they're able to clamor for it themselves means you feel your kids are directly representing you. And you want to look like you're on top of your stuff. Also, your kids might be J.Crew models.
Big Chunk Missing
You foster independence in your kids, and you will pay for it.
What kind of haircut does your kid have?
Long and flowing whew!
- Helpful
- Nice
- Funny (1)
- Encouraging
- Hugs


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- Curriculum
- The 2014 Curriculum
- Curriculum Overview
- Mathematics
- English
- Phonics
- Recommended Reading Lists
- Special Educational Needs
- Relationship and Sex Education
- Parent Workshops
- The Wider Curriculum
- Overview
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- Pupil Premium
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- Pupil Zone
- Off By Heart Poetry Competition
- 500 Words Competition
Off By Heart Poetry Competition 2018
We are proud to announce the launch of our 5th annual Leigh Primary School Off By Heart Poetry Competition!
For this competition we are asking all the children to learn one poem from the list below 'Off By Heart'. The children will be reciting their poems in class and the two winning entries from each class will go through to the Grand Final in Jessica's Hall on Friday 30th November 2018. These are always terrific events and all the children always perform absolutely brilliantly and we are extremely grateful to our three independent judges for making the tough decisions for us! There are lots of photographs of last year's event in the Galleries section of this website which can be found by clicking here.
All the poems for this year can be accessed on this page of the website. The best way of learning a poem is not to try and do it all at once. Little and often, line by line, is often the best approach. You can still have a go at learning one of these. Staff and parents are also encouraged to have a go as this will also give the children encouragement!
Our 2017 Off By Heart Grand Finalists
There are poems for Key Stage 1. There are 14 poems to choose from.
Aliens From The Planet Trouble
The Key Stage 2 poems can be found by clicking on the links below. There are 12 poems to choose from. Some are funny. Some are sad. Some are nonsense. Some might make you think. They are all fantastic poems however and we hope you find one that you would like to learn.
Get learning and good luck.....!
Poetry is a story
that is so good
it doesn't need
complete sentences
To access a recording of last year's Grand Final please click here