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Posted On Wednesday, May 04, 2016 By Susan
At 28 weeks I had an episode during my first pregnancy. I felt like I was completely out of it and not all together there. I remember going to my dad's house since my husband was still at work. We ended up calling 911. They suggested that I call my doctor's office first to see what they recommend and call back if needed. By the time the doctor on call had called me back I was feeling back to normal. It was such an odd feeling like I couldn't say the words I wanted to say fast enough. I was almost in slow motion struggling to talk. Then a week later I was getting up for work like normal. Thinking about things I needed to do that day. Next thing I know I am being slapped in the face by a... Read More
Posted On Wednesday, May 04, 2016 By KateLyn Smith
I had previously had two extremely healthy babies. Two healthy pregnancies with the exception of a bit of preterm labor during my first that had been stopped with medication. I was a little older during my third pregnancy, 31, and because we were using preventative measures to conceive, we found out far along about our little bundle on the way. I also wasn't the pillar of a healthy mommy-to-be because of this. About six months in, I had a very high BP reading at a check-up. I convinced my doctor that it was because I was streseed, anxious, suffering from panic disorder. I wasn't suffering from headaches or any of the other symptoms associated with PE, so I went on my... Read More
Posted On Tuesday, May 03, 2016 By Kim Senatore
At the age of 34 I found out I was pregnant. From the minute I saw the positive test I know it was not a normal pregnancy. I found put I was pregnant 6 days before I mossed my period and I was extremely sick and exhausted. In the back of my head I kept thinking there was more than 1 baby. That was confirmed when I had my 1st ultrasound on friday the 13th at 5 weeks 6 days. I remember the ultrasound told me I was wasting her tims because I was so early but she ate her words as soon as she placed the probe on my abdomen. I was carrying identical twins. My pregnancy was brutal. I had morning sickness the entire time and at 33 weeks I was admitted to the hospital for PIH. I spent the week... Read More
Posted On Monday, May 02, 2016 By Stacy Smith
My first pregnancy I had gestational diabetes. My second pregnancy I had pre-eclampsia and HELLP syndrome. It was the scariest time of my life. I didn't know I had it until I was admitted to hospital and transferred to a hospital with a level III NICU. My baby was born six weeks early and we had to leave her in the NICU when I was discharged. My pressure didn't go down after delivery and I was in and out of the hospital for several weeks. Finally I was put on some blood pressure meds that worked. I've been on medication for eight years and probably will be for the rest of my life. I still have strong emotions when I see pre-eclampsia on tv shows or when I see... Read More
Posted On Sunday, May 01, 2016 By Amy
As we get close to Mother's Day, it's sad to say that as I should be celebrating that I am still a mother to an Angel in Heaven. I can't say I can celebrate that day without having my daughter with me. On Feb 16, 2016, I had my doctors appointment. My blood pressure was high at 164/96, after checking it three times the doctor stated I had to be admitted for 24 hours for a protein urine test. I had no idea of what preeclampsia could be or lead to. As the 24 hours passed by, they had given me the steroid injections for my baby's lungs. On February 18, 2016, the doctor stated I had to have an emergency c-section as my protein in my urine was at 11,000 and the only way to get rid of my... Read More
Posted On Sunday, May 01, 2016 By Kristin
Neither of my pregnancies have been easy. I wasn't one of those woman that enjoyed being pregnant. I actually never could understand how anyone could possibly say they liked it. Both times I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes. Both times I was constantly achy and tired. I was nauseated all throughout my second pregnancy and with Ethan I had a lot of swelling. We had a huge scare when we went in for our 20 week ultrasound with Audrey. After hearing the wonderful news that I was carrying a baby girl, we were told that there were signs of Down syndrome on my ultrasound. We spent the next month having more ultrasounds and more blood work done, to finally be told that our... Read More
Posted On Friday, April 29, 2016 By Sarah
Sunday, August 9th, my husband Kirk and I went for a walk on the bike path. It was a warm summer day, but as the sun was setting the cooler air felt like a relief. I was 36 weeks pregnant. As soon as we hit the meadow I started seeing gold stars. Little fireflies dancing in the sky, except I knew I wasn't seeing fireflies. This was a dreaded symptom of preeclampsia my doctor warned me about. On Saturday the 8th I had a scheduled stress test because my blood pressure was creeping up. I starting doing these tests twice a week when I was 35 weeks pregnant. Two straps hugged my 9-month pregnant belly and the sound of a speeding heartbeat eased my mine. Josephine was doing... Read More
Posted On Friday, April 29, 2016 By Whitney
I was 28 weeks pregnanat and started feeling very yucky. I had a good bit of swelling my whole second trimester but my hands and face began to swell drastically. I started taking my blood pressure at home. It was getting higher and higher. Finally one day after work I checked it and it was 150/98. I called my doctor and they wanted me to come in. They kept me over night for observations and I did the 24 hour urine test. When it came back my proteins were very high. They were able to control my blood pressure with me laying on my left side and they diagnosed me with Pre-Eclampsia and sent me home on strict bed rest. Two days... Read More
Posted On Wednesday, April 27, 2016 By Haylee
When I found out I was pregnant, it was the happiest moment in my life. It's crazy how you can never think about starting a family and then that pregnancy test pops up positive and then thats the only thing you can imagine for your future. I was due on August 1, 2016. We found out I was having a baby girl. I feel like that's every mother's dream come true, a little princess to call my own. I started going to my OB at 8 weeks. Every appointment was wonderful, my sweet Olivia was growing big and strong and I was healthy. I hit 23 weeks and I started to experience "heartburn" or so I thought. In fact the second day I had it, it got so severe I was rushed to the ER. That night is still such... Read More
Posted On Thursday, April 21, 2016 By Kaely
In October of 2015, I became a wife. Something I had wanted for so long. Our wedding day was perfect, despite the coldest day of the season thus far falling on that day. It was the perfect day. The best day of my life. That was until the next month, the day before Thanksgiving when I learned that I would be extending my portfolio to mother. I was so shocked because I didn't think it would happen so soon for us. But it was the best thing ever. I just remember crying after finding out, because I was so excited. For so many years, the one thing that I was so excited for was becoming a mother. It's the one thing that I always felt would complete my life. That... Read More
Posted On Wednesday, April 20, 2016 By Stephanie
January of 2014, we found out that we were expecting a baby and that was going to be due on September 6, 2014. In April we found out it was a girl! We were so excited and ready for the challenge of bringing a baby into this world. Everything was going great until the afternoon of May 29th, when I went to the doctor for a regular checkup and glucose test. After the nurse took my blood pressure and the doctor came in, I was told that I would need to go to the hospital to be monitored for a few hours because my... Read More
Posted On Wednesday, April 20, 2016 By Peggy
I was expecting my first baby, a girl. I was very excited, I went to my doctors apt. and they said your blood pressure is a little high. It normally was good I was kinda concerned. Well they put me on a 24 hour urine test and after that I thought nothing of it. My numbers came back just a little elevated so I was ok with that. I went home and 2 weeks later my mom came over to my house and she seen how puffy I was and told me I need to call my doctor. So the next day I did and they wanted me to come in. So I arrived on time and the nurse called my name and said Hunny you need to get into the office at once. Took my blood pressure it was... Read More
Posted On Monday, April 18, 2016 By Sara
Me quedé embarazada con 30 años, siempre he tenido una salud muy buena y me cuidé mucho antes y durante mi embarazo. Cuando me quedé embarazada pesaba 49 kilos. No tuve ninguna molestia en todo el embarazo, durante los cuatro primeros meses tan solo engordé un par de kilos. Del cuarto al quinto mes aumenté 4 kilos y mi dieta continuaba siendo la misma. Comenté con la matrona y los ginecólogos mi repentina subida de peso pero no le dieron importancia. Les dije que estaba comiendo muy poco, que bebía mucha agua, caminaba y hacia natación. ... Read More
Posted On Thursday, April 14, 2016 By Marie
I was nesting. I was cleaning every square inch of where we were going to live. I was 30 weeks along. I thought to myself I'd pack a bag for the hospital. Then "No, that is crazy. I still have so much time." Little did I know that I did not….A few days after as I walked to the bathroom I felt something and then there was blood. I screamed for my mom, although, it felt like I didn't scream at all—it felt like my voice didn't sound like anything. We called the hospital. I walked straight out the door and into the car I did not want to wait for a call back from the doctor. We arrived in the emergency room - they immediately... Read More
Posted On Wednesday, April 13, 2016 By Kristin
My second son was born a few days before Christmas. The delivery itself went smoothly and our son was healthy. We were home in time for Christmas Eve. That night I tried to go to sleep, but every time I would lie down I had a pounding headache. When I stood up again, it would subside. I figured it was just from the stress of being in a hospital and because our newborn was waking up every few hours. ... Read More
Posted On Thursday, April 07, 2016 By Amy
It has taken a lot for me to get to the point where I can share my story. I have wanted to share the story for a long time but reliving every detail was just more than I could handle. I am now ready. If I can help just one person by sharing and spreading awareness of pregnancy / labor complications, then this journey was more than worth it. Please read our story below.. Our Story: Up until 28 weeks I had a normal pregnancy with no issues. On March 12th my right leg swelled up to about 3 times its normal size. I looked as though I had one elephant leg and one giraffe leg. I called my doctor thinking it was just normal "pregnancy swelling", and to my surprise I was told to go straight... Read More
Posted On Wednesday, March 30, 2016 By Wendy
Sutton resident Wendy Kendrick has been running for 25 years, and she had no plans of stopping after narrowly missing the explosion at the 2013 Boston Marathon. Wendy, a Project Manager at Framingham-based LFB USA, a sister company of rEVO Biologics, ran her best time that year (3 hours, 28 minutes), crossing the finish line shortly before the bombings occurred and close enough to hear the explosion. With her family on the sidelines, the danger hit very close to home. But she ran again in 2014 and 2015, with her 2015 performance earning her a qualification in this year's marathon. ... Read More
Posted On Friday, February 26, 2016 By Amy Jo
Scott and I were in our first prenatal class and they gave us the tour of the Labor & Delivery Ward half way through class. As we walked pass the NICU, Scott leaned over and asked me what that was, as he didn't hear the instructor. I replied "Oh that's the NICU for premature babies…you don't need to worry about that." And it was like a jolt that rocked my world after that, apparently we were going to know what the NICU was, and know it very well. I was 32 weeks and started to not feel well. I even began throwing up. Thinking it was from something I ate, maybe food poisoning, I called my doctor to check in. The nurse said that as long as I stay hydrated and... Read More
Posted On Thursday, February 25, 2016 By Kathryn
My first pregnancy was going so smoothly for the first and second trimester. I rarely felt any nausea, had incredible energy and felt as if everything was going along as it should. Right around 26 weeks, I started to notice my feet swelling and didn't think anything of it, or I guess I thought it was normal. At 27 weeks I started to feel a pain in my upper abdomen. I struggled with it for 2 days before I told my husband something was wrong. When I got to the doctor, they told me about my high blood pressure and large amount of protein in my urine so I was admitted right away to the hospital where I was told that the baby would need... Read More
Posted On Wednesday, February 10, 2016 By Morgan
My HELLP Syndrome went undiagnosed for 2 weeks along with 2 misdiagnoses. When I hit 31 weeks I couldn't take the excruciating stomach (URQ) and back pain. It was like my whole body was on fire. I was first misdiagnosed with bronchitis and sent home with a demorral shot with no blood work. A week later I went in and they tried to tell me I had gallbladder disease and tried to give me a shot for it and I refused. They finally did blood work after an hour of no one coming in, a nurse from OB (no I was never sent to maternity either visits) ran in and said I needed... Read More
Faces of Preeclampsia
Our 28 year old daughter Sara was 7.5 months along with her 2nd child. Sara had one older daughter... Read More


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Men wouldn't need much convincing to the fact that- the more sex you have, the healthier you'll be. It's a win-win for them.
Experts believe that sexually active people take fewer sick leaves. Researchers at Wilkes University in Pennsylvania found that college students who had sex once or twice a week had higher levels of the a certain antibody that defends our body against viruses, compared to students who had sex less often. Men wouldn't need much convincing to the fact that- the more sex you have, the healthier you'll be. It's a win-win for them. Image Courtesy: Getty Images
Literally! A study in the American Journal of Cardiology suggests that men who had sexual activity once a month or less were at 50 percent greater risk of cardiovascular disease than the men who had sex more than once a week. See? We told you! Image Courtesy: Getty Images
The prelude of sex can burn quite lot of calories, depending on your weight and the length and vigor of the lovemaking session. The orgasm however fries only two to three calories due to its brevity. Image Courtesy: Getty Images
The women will frown but will agree to this. Orgasm is a rather effective sleep aid for most men. When you have such a pleasurable alternative, why would someone mess with their mind and body by taking sedatives then? Image Courtesy: Getty Images
Research at the University of the West of Scotland shows that sex, like exercise, releases anxiety, lowers stress hormones, and can help people cope with mental pressure for at least a week. With that logic, if you will have sex daily, you will always be stress-free. Image Courtesy: Getty Images
People who have sex once or twice weekly have stronger immune systems than people who have sex less than once a week, according to a study at Wilkes University in Pennsylvania by psychologists Carl J. Charnetski, PhD, and Francis X. So keep yourself going all night long! Image Courtesy: Getty Images
Research suggests a link between sex and lower blood pressure; one landmark study found that sexual intercourse specifically (not masturbation) lowered systolic blood pressure. That's the first number on your blood pressure test. Image Courtesy: Getty Images
British neuropsychologist David Weeks, MD, of Royal Edinburgh Hospital found that people who reported having sex four times a week looked about 10 years younger than they actually were. Pleasure derived from having loving sex releases hormones, including human growth hormone, that are crucial in preserving youth. Image Courtesy: Getty Images
Men who ejaculated frequently (at least 21 times a month) were less likely to get prostate cancer during one study, which was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Though, it's not clear that sex was the only reason that mattered in that study. Lots of factors affect cancer risk. But more sex won't hurt. Wink! Image Courtesy: Getty Images
An Irish study published in the British Medical Journal in 1997 tracked the mortality of 1,000 middle-aged men over the course of a decade and concluded that sexual activity may have a protective effect on health. Image Courtesy: Getty Images
An Australian survey of 5,000 people showed that married men are 135 percent more likely to report happiness than single men, while only 52 percent of married women are happier than unmarried women. Image Courtesy: Getty Images
All possible measures have been taken to ensure accuracy, reliability, timeliness and authenticity of the information; however Onlymyhealth.com does not take any liability for the same. Using any information provided by the website is solely at the viewers' discretion. In case of any medical exigencies/ persistent health issues, we advise you to seek a qualified medical practitioner before putting to use any advice/tips given by our team or any third party in form of answers/comments on the above mentioned website.


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Now that we're three years down the road, many of these initial adopters of ESX 3.0 are starting to replace their hosts with new ones and preparing to upgrade to vSphere 4.0. That seems to be leaving a lot of server admins staring at a stack of three-year-old virtualisation hosts that aren't yet finished doing their jobs. Sure, they might not be quite fast enough to go the distance with increased production loads, and you might like to have some more performance headroom, but it's always a painful decision to turn off a bunch of expensive servers and not do anything with them.
Instead of tossing their old hosts in the bin, many enterprises are opting to reuse them. Some turn them into development clusters to separate dev loads from production loads. Some make them available for testing and training. My favorite use is as the seed hardware for a warm site. Even if the old hardware can't run all your production resources at 100 percent resource availability, having some immediately available production capability in a production site failure scenario is better than none - and it bridges the gap between the time of the disaster and the time that you can get replacement hardware on site.
Assuming that business continuity is important to your organisation and you have multiple offices or a sufficiently large campus, building a warm site is a great use of your hardware. It certainly isn't free and there are a number of common pitfalls that you'll want to steer clear from, but it's definitely a worthy endeavor if downtime costs you money.
Step 1: Define the service level
First, you need to define the level of service you want to grant with your warm site. Do you want to protect all of your machines or just a subset? How quickly do you want to be able to recover (RTO)? How old can your data be when you do recover (RPO)? Your answers to these questions may change as you work through the design process and start attaching price tags to varying levels of service, but you should never let what you can afford directly drive what you provide.
It may be that, to be useful, a warm site would cost more than you can currently afford to spend on it. In that case it's better to save your pennies and do it correctly than to implement something that won't accomplish your organisation's goals.
Step 2: Assess your SAN situation for replication options
The SAN is the first piece of hardware that needs to be looked at, as it tends to be the most expensive. If possible, using asynchronous SAN-to-SAN replication is the best way to implement a warm site. Depending on the SAN platform in use, such replication might simply be impossible or uneconomical.
For example, if you run a FibreChannel SAN with no iSCSI connectivity and don't have the tremendous luck to have dark fiber running to your warm site, implementing SAN replication might be out of the question without hardware such as an FCIP gateway or software such as EMC's RepliStor. If you're in this boat, be sure to consider these factors the next time you are weighing an upgrade to or replacement of your current SAN.
On the other hand, users of devices such as NetApp filers should add more SnapMirror licensing, and users of Dell EqualLogic PeerStorage arrays (also sold under the Dell brand) have everything they need already. No matter what your SAN, to perform SAN-to-SAN replication, you're going to need a second one.
If performing SAN-to-SAN replication is out of the question, you still have options. There are several good host-based replication software packages available that will run on the ESX hosts and do direct host-to-host replication. These include Vizioncore vReplicator and NSI DoubleTake for VI. They are usually licensed per VM rather than per host, which can make them unattractive depending upon the number of guests you want to replicate. The big caveat here is that you will need a large amount of directly attached storage on the old hosts that are being moved across to the warm site. (If they had been attached to your production SAN, they may no longer have any disks in them.)
No matter how you decide to do it, your storage configuration, whether it involves SAN or host-based replication, is the most important part of the warm site design and should not be treated lightly.
Step 3. Figure out your bandwidth needs
Once you've determined what the storage is going to be at your warm site, you need to consider how you're going to get your data there. If your warm site is on your campus or otherwise fiber-attached, there's not much to worry about unless your data sets are truly massive.
Although the network connectivity to your warm site is probably the most straightforward of all of the decisions that you need to make, it can easily blow your budget, since WAN bandwidth generally has a recurring monthly cost. Failing to properly estimate the required WAN bandwidth can have disastrous long-term budgetary consequences.
For example, let's say your initial calculations show that you're going to need two T1s' worth of bandwidth (3.0Mbps) to replicate an estimated 25GB of storage deltas per 24-hour period to maintain whatever RPO you've set. But it turns out you actually need to move 35GB per day to meet that RPO, a difference of roughly one more T1 circuit. Depending on your bandwidth costs, that small difference could cost as much as an entirely new SAN or a few new virtualization hosts over three years' time.
So if estimating your replication bandwidth needs is so important, there must be a tried-and-true way of doing it, right? Not really. There are some tricks to determine how much data is turning over on your VMs, but you can't always trust what they tell you.
The first and easiest method is to use VMware's built-in snapshot functionality. Take a snapshot of every VM you want to replicate, wait a period of time equal to what you'd like your replication period to be based on your RPO, then examine the snapshot files on your VMFS volumes to see how big they are. (Note: Be sure you have enough free space on your VMFS volumes before you do this.) That figure is roughly how much data has changed on those VMs in that period. If you do this at several times during different parts of your production day and month, you should get a reasonably good idea of how quickly your data is changing.
However, that's not all there's to it. Depending on your SAN platform, your SAN may replicate data in larger blocks than VMware's snapshot files allocate. Thus, a single change of a 1KB file within a VM may be seen as a change to a 16MB block on your SAN - essentially magnifying the amount of data that needs to move by 16,000 times. This magnitude difference would be a fairly rare occurrence, but it shows that you can't easily predict actual data volumes based on snapshots.
To combat this problem and generally increase the amount of data your WAN can carry, using some form of WAN accelerator that includes deduplication technology is a wise move. Examples of such products include Cisco's WAAS and Riverbed's Steelhead. Both platforms have their own strengths and weaknesses, but they operate in much the same way. They optimize the WAN data flow through intelligent re-windowing and other TCP enhancements, but they also retain a remote cache of what has previously been sent over the WAN link.
In the event that they get a cache hit (a packet that has the same data payload as one seen previously), that packet is not re-sent. Instead, just a pointer to that packets payload is sent to the device on the other end of the circuit. In the example of a 1KB change requiring 16MB of data transmission, a WAN accelerator could essentially nullify the problem.
Step 4: Consider your hypervisor licensing needs
The last thing to think about is what additional hypervisor licensing you may need to acquire for your warm site. You could configure new ESX hosts and run them unlicensed, only moving the production licenses to them in the event of a production site failure, but this will make it impossible to test anything while the production site is active without breaking your license agreement.
Another option is to purchase licensing for VMware vSphere Essentials, which will operate with a much more limited feature set than on your production site, but still be able to start and run your VMs.
Another issue to consider is whether you want to implement VMware's Site Recovery Manager (SRM). SRM requires that you do SAN-to-SAN replication with SANs support it (most do), and it is somewhat expensive. However, if being able to test your recovery plan frequently and having a completely automated failover process is important to you, implementing SRM is certainly worth a close look. It's also worth noting that vSphere 4.0 support for SRM likely won't be available until later this year.
If you do it right, reusing retired hardware is a great idea
Taking advantage of retired hardware to build a warm-standby datacenter is a fantastic use of resources and builds in backup computational capacity you'll be happy to have if you ever need it. However, blindly building a warm site without a plan - regardless of how much extra hardware you have kicking around - isn't likely to work out well in the long run.
Failing to do any of several things - set goals properly, consider storage resources, keep WAN bandwidth in mind, or take into account software licensing limitations - will almost certainly make the exercise more expensive and less effective than it could be.
Notwithstanding all of these challenges, today's virtualisation technology, coupled with modern storage and networking technology, makes it far easier to build always-on standby failover capacity than it ever has been in the past. If your organization places a high value on uptime, now is the time to put your toe in the water and give it a try.


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Request a brochure for more information on our wide range of adventure holidays.
Exodus is the global trekking expert. Our knowledge is unparalleled, from our experienced leaders to our globetrotting office staff. So we have been able to put together the following trekking guides for some of our most popular regions, so you can find all the information you need about your trek. And once you've made your decision, our trekking fitness guide help you best prepare for your upcoming adventure.
Ever dreamed of trekking in the grandest, highest and longest mountain range in the world? Then the mighty Himalaya is for you. In our comprehensive Nepal Guide we have collated all the information you need most: which route has your name on it, where you'll stay, how long you'll be walking for each day, what the food is like... everything you need for your next adventure.
All you need to know is contained within this guide, from the history of the Inca empire to daily routine on trek. This is the classic Inca Trail and beyond, together with our exciting range of other treks in the region including Exodus' pioneering Moonstone Trek. Find out all the details of permit restrictions, the reality of trekking at altitude and detailed route comparisons of all your hiking options, meaning you can pick the perfect trek for you.
Exodus Mont Blanc Trekking GuideClaiming the title as the highest Mountain in Western Europe, Mont Blanc is a sight to behold. Exodus offer a variety of trips which allow superb views of this mountain, from the iconic circuit to spectacular daywalks from the Chamonix Valley. So if you are undecided which trip to do, want advice on what to pack or want find out more about the accommodation used, then this comprehensive guide is for you.
In the London office alone, Exodus staff have summited Kilimanjaro over 120 times – and that's not even counting our guides. This trekking guide has been written to help you make the most out of your trek. Put together by our experts who have climbed this legendary peak, it tells you all you need to know about tackling this giant.
With this handy Exodus Kilimanjaro Trekking Guide (Edition 2017), put together by our knowledgeable experts who have climbed this legendary peak numerous times, you'll be able to find out everything you need to know about this Tanzanian legend.
Exodus Ladakh GuideThe unsung Indian Himalaya is one of the trekking world's best kept secrets. If this underrated gem is new to you, our guide is the perfect introduction to all things Ladakh, written by our own experts who have trekked the region. Find out about the history, the geology, and everything you need to know about our different treks in this superb part of the world.
The much-anticipated Fitness Guide is here! Packed full of useful suggestions, handy hints and three full fitness programmes tailored to your grade of trek, this guide will make sure you are fully prepared and fit enough to get the most out of your walk or trek.
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The Rubbermaid brand is one of our most valued assets. The following standards are designed to guide the consistent application of our corporate identity and visual system across the entire organization. The strength and integrity of the Rubbermaid brand depends on how effectively the following guidelines are applied and implemented; therefore adherence to the standards outlined is vital.
To download the logo usage guide and logos please click below:
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Opus Solid Oak Furniture Large Computer Desk
- Brand: Homestyle
Opus Solid Oak Furniture Large Computer Desk
Dovetailed Drawers & Soft Close Hinges
Choice of Metal or Wooden Handles
Built in Filing Cabinet (A4 Hanging Files) & Keyboard Drawer
Other Matching Items in This Range
We have a huge variety of different Computer Desks for you to choose from
Height (mm)
Width (mm)
Depth (mm)
Opus Oak Range Furniture includes quality furniture for your bedroom, dining room, home office and living room including: beds, bedside tables, bookcases, coffee tables, display cabinets, computer desks, chests of drawers, dressing tables, filing cabinets, sideboards, TV units, wardrobes and more in this range. All items are fully built up apart from beds and wardrobes.
If you would to view example of Opus Oak Range Furniture then please call us on 01235 834831 and we can arrange this at our Didcot Warehouse.
Oak Furniture Care Tips
To ensure your Oak Furniture is looking it's best at all times a quick fresh coating of wax, ideally every 12 to 16 weeks, is all that is required.
On a clean dust free surface and using a lint free cloth apply the wax generously, firstly in a circular motion then finish off following the grain, removing any excess.
Avoid placing your reclaimed wood furniture too close to a heat source or in constant direct sunlight.
To avoid marking the surface, do not place hot objects such as pans and cups directly on the surface.
Avoid ring marks by using coasters and mats where needed. Should you spill any liquids onto the surface please remove immediately.
Where the Oak furniture is oiled finished, then a fresh court of Danish oil every 6 months will make sure your furniture looks great.
Garden Furniture Care Tips
To clean your Rattan garden furniture , a pressure washer or jet wash on a wide spray can be used at a distance of approx 1m from the product. Do not aim this directly at the joints of the furniture. Alternatively it can simply be wiped down by hand.Cushions should be stored away when not in use to prolong the life of the product. If dirtied these can be hand washed with soapy water.
Cleaning our outdoor fabric range is a breeze thanks to the special fabrics and maintenance free aluminium frames. For minor spills simply use warm water and a sponge to clean the surface of the furniture. For more stubborn stains, or stains that have been left to dry, consider using a mild soap or fabric cleaner in a bucket of warm water. We recommend using a soft bristle brush to work the dirt loose.
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Standard Delivery is 10 to 20 working days with exception to the following
We offer 3 levels of delivery service to our customers.
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Rockbox mail archiveSubject: Re: I river h10 20 gb and new blind user
Re: I river h10 20 gb and new blind user
From: Rainer Jost <rainer-jost_at_t-online.de>
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 2006 17:35:09 +0200
Hi Pat,
a.. Download http://download.rockbox.org/bootloader/iriver/H10_20GC.mi4
b.. Connect your H10 to the computer using UMS mode
f.. Unzip the zip file to the root (topmost) directory on your H10 (while in UMS mode).
I don't know anything about getting voice support working as I have never used it. Maybe someone else on the list can help you with that.
On 9/27/06, Pat Fletcher <patfletcher_at_cayjazz.net> wrote:
Page was last modified "Jan 10 2012" The Rockbox Crew


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I have a folder on my desktop named "blog ideas" where I throw every random thing I see that I think might someday make an interesting blog post. Some of these I blog about right away while others languish in that folder for weeks or months because I can't quite figure out how to flesh them out into an entire blog post. These days the folder seems to be bulging at the seams (metaphorically speaking) so I think it's time to do some purging. Here are a few things that have been lingering for much too long...
I discovered the Lonely Hearts line through Sacaton June's blog. While I'm not crazy about the styling in the lookbook (too tough and grungy for me) I do love the pieces as they were used in the Russh Aug/Sept '09 editorial. The details on that long dress remind me of the sort of art deco detailing you would find on a Lyell piece which is probably why I like it so much.
I think another reason I had a hard time putting together a post about this line is because while I found their site clever, it was a bit hard to navigate. I wanted to see some close up photos of their fall/winter '10 line but all I could come up with is this video. The video is beautiful and done quite well but I would love to see some still shots.
Lonely Hearts: What is Your Damage from Nik Riviera on Vimeo.
This lovely lady from Copenhagen Street Style may very well deserve a post of her own. She's definitely been added to my "wear this!" folder. Love the bike, the cardigan, the collar on the blouse, the patent leather shoes!
Wouldn't you love to run across a stash of these little dancing outfits in someone's estate sale? I can just hear them tap, tap, tapping away getting ready for the big show! Photo from Shorpy.
This article found via the Life Archives has been sitting in my folder for way too long! I searched high and low for the second page to the story to no avail. It sort of drives me crazy to cut it off at the end of the page without knowing what comes next but at the same time, the first page was just too good not to share. It's proof that the DIY movement is not a recent invention! These gals were figuring out ways to make their short 20s flapper dresses into more fashionable below-the-knee lengths.


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Tretower Court and Castle
The village of Tretower boasts a fine 13th century circular keep and one of the finest late medieval houses in Wales. Together they make up a property which for over 900 years has been altered and adapted to keep up with style and the tastes of the time.
Tretower Castle
The castle sits in a strategic position on the north bank of the River Usk, where the road through the Usk Valley branches towards Talgarth and the Wye Valley. From here, any medieval lord could exercise control over his land.
The remains that are visible today date from the 13th century, but the original castle on the site was a Norman motte and bailey castle, a large earthen mound topped with wooden defences. It was built during the Norman conquest of the ancient kingdom of Brycheiniog, when powerful Norman nobles settled in Brecon and the surrounding area to establish their control.
This wooden castle was rebuilt in stone in the mid 12th century. A shell keep was built, a hall and solar were erected to the south-west side of the motte and a kitchen was built at a slightly lower level.
The structure was extensively remodelled in the 13th century, when the great tower, which dominates the site today and can be seen from the A40, was built. The tower has three storeys, each with a single room with a fireplace and a window. The foundations of the tower contain a basement.
Tretower Castle was not only for defence. The quality of the ornamental stonework exceeds what is required for defensive purposes alone, ranking it amongst the best castles in Wales. For some of its history at least, this castle was a prized domestic residence and a status symbol. Although in ruins today the castle remains are a powerful reminder of the wealth, status and influence of the lords of Tretower during the medieval period.
By 1400 the domestic residence had moved to Tretower Court, but the castle survived and continued to be used as a military fortress in times of war, such as during Owain Glyn Dwr's uprising.
Tretower Court
Tretower Court was built during the 14th century with alterations made in the 15th century.
The buildings are arranged around a courtyard with the oldest along the north wing. This 14th century wing consists of a rectangular building of two storeys. The main rooms are on the upper floor.
In the 15th century west wing there is a hall, solar and service rooms. The building was altered in the 17th century. A 15th century gatehouse stands on the east side with a postern gate to the north. The house and its curtain wall have been much restored in modern times.
Visiting Tretower Court and Castle
Tretower Court and Castle are in the care of Cadw. An entrance fee, which includes use of an audio guide, is payable.
How to get there
The site is in the village of Tretower in the Usk Valley between Abergavenny and Brecon, off the A479, three miles northwest of Crickhowell. Bus route X43, Brecon–Abergavenny, stops 400m away on the A40.
Nearest town or village
Tretower, Crickhowell
OS grid reference
Explorer Map OL13 or Landranger Map 161 - SO185213
Opening times
1 November 2016 - 31 March 2017
Tuesday to Thursday - 10.00am – 4.00pm
Closed Friday to Monday
Tretower Court and Castle, near Crickhowell NP8 1RD, tel 01874 730279, www.cadw.wales.gov.uk
On the roadside close to the entrance.
The toilets in the grounds include a disabled access toilet (RADAR National Key Scheme).
The ground floor of Tretower Court is level. The grounds have cobbles in the courtyard and firm grass in the garden.


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Wisconsin Governor delivers State of the State speech
Gov. Scott Walker promised during his State of the State speech Tuesday night to deliver a significant income tax cut to the middle class and a renewed focus on putting people back to work.
Speaking to a joint session of the Republican-controlled Legislature, Walker said creating jobs was his top priority. He also said he was "doubling down" on efforts to meet his 2010 campaign promise to create 250,000 private-sector jobs over four years.
The Republican, just seven months past his recall victory, remains far from fulfilling that signature campaign promise. But he said there are signs that the state's economy is improving, including a drop in the unemployment rate and lower property taxes.
"We are moving Wisconsin forward with bold vision and bright hope for the future," he said.
Two years removed from the bitter partisan fight over his first budget that led to his recall election, Walker has been striving to cast himself in a more moderate light midway through his first term as governor.
His first budget imposed deep cuts to education funding and infuriated public employee unions by going after their collective bargaining rights. His new budget plan, expected to be released next month, figures to be less divisive - but he revealed few details Tuesday.
Democrats were not impressed, saying Walker has shown no willingness to focus on job creation or urgency to act.
"It's far past time to stop spending large amounts of time on polarizing, less pressing partisan issues," said Assembly Democratic Minority Leader Peter Barca.
Whether to pass an income tax cut or backfill some of the cuts in Walker's last budget is likely to be the heart of the budget debate this year. The state is expected to have about a $342 million budget surplus.
When discussing the income tax cut, which Walker has said would be phased in over a few years, the governor said: "We want to continue to put more money in the hands of the hard-working taxpayers and small business owners in our state."
As evidence of an improving economy, he said property taxes dropped in each of the past two years on median-valued homes. He also noted that the statewide unemployment rate decreased to 6.7 percent in December compared to 7.8 percent when he took office in January 2011.
Still, Walker is far from meeting his 2010 job creation pledge, which he reiterated during the recall election and in the months since then.
Depending on the measurement used, the number of private-sector jobs has increased by either 37,000 or 86,500 since Walker took office. Additionally, the new public-private agency he created to head economic development and job creation efforts has been plagued by management problems.
Wisconsin ranked 42nd in private-sector job creation from June 2011 to June 2012, based on the most recent report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
On Tuesday, he referred to his pledge to create 250,000 by 2015 as an "ambitious goal."
"After all that we've gone through in Wisconsin over the past few years, some have suggested that this goal is too difficult to reach," the governor said.
"With the protests and recalls combined with the slow recovery at the national level, the fiscal cliff, and ongoing worries about health care mandates coming out of Washington, they say there are plenty of reasons why it has been hard to create jobs."
But he said he was focused on results, not excuses.
"We are going to double down and be even more aggressive with our efforts to improve the jobs climate in this state," he said. "People want us focused on things that will improve the economy and our way of life."
Walker called on the Legislature to quickly pass legislation that would ease regulations so a new iron ore mine could be opened in northern Wisconsin near Lake Superior. Walker said such a mine would be a "lifeline" to people in Iron County, where the unemployment rate is nearly 12 percent.
A new mine could result in a $1.5 billion investment and creation of up to 700 jobs, "but the benefits will be felt all across Wisconsin," Walker said.
Lawmakers couldn't agree on a mining proposal last year, but Republican legislative leaders say they hope to have a bill passed by early March. The latest proposal, which calls for changing rules and requirements for opening new mines in the state, was expected to be introduced as soon as this week and hearings could be held this month.
On education, Walker voiced support for expanding choices available to parents, including charter and voucher schools.
"Moving forward, we want to continue to dramatically improve existing schools and give parents the opportunity to choose legitimate alternatives to failing schools," Walker said.
The voucher program subsidizes private education for students in struggling school districts. The program had been limited to Milwaukee, but last year Republicans expanded it to all of Milwaukee County and the city of Racine.
Walker also touted a report released just before his speech that identifies 300 rule modifications in 218 state administrative code chapters he said need to be changed to make it easier for businesses to operate in the state.
Sen. Chris Larson delivers minority response


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Why is it that baked beans are so popular around the Fourth of July, but making them usually requires several hours of baking in a hot oven? Where we live it gets pretty darn sizzling in the summer and the last thing we want to do is keep the oven going for hours; the AC is working hard enough as it is.
Here's a recipe I pulled from the New York Times back in February that calls for cooking the beans on the stove top, a much preferred summer cooking method. Richly flavored with bacon, molasses, ketchup and vinegar, these not-really-baked beans have plenty of the baked bean goodness you expect, and are great with hot dogs.
- 1 lb dry small white beans, such as cannellini or navy beans (or 3 15-ounce cans of white beans)
- 2 whole cloves
- 1 onion, peeled and halved lengthwise
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 1/4 cup molasses
- 3 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1½ teaspoons dry mustard powder
- ¼ teaspoon Tabasco sauce (or cayenne pepper if you don't have Tabasco)
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 slice raw thick-cut bacon
- 5 slices cooked thick-cut bacon, chopped
- ¼ red onion, finely chopped
1 If you are using canned beans, drain the beans, put them in a large pot and skip to step 4. Put dry beans in a large pot. Cover with water by 2 inches and refrigerate overnight. Alternatively, bring beans to a boil, remove from heat and let cool for an hour.
2 Drain the beans and rinse them. Add them to a large pot. Cover with 1 inch of water. Insert cloves into onion halves (so they can be easily found and discarded later), add to pot. Add garlic and bay leaf. Heat to a simmer and let cook for 1 to 2 hours, until beans are just tender. (Older beans will take longer to cook). Add boiling water to beans if they begin to look dry while cooking.
3 Remove onion, cloves, and bay leaf. Add 1 teaspoon of salt.
4 In a separate bowl, mix together the ketchup, molasses, vinegar, mustard powder, Tabasco sauce, and pepper. Add mixture to beans and stir to combine. Add one slice of raw bacon to the mix. Bring the beans to a simmer. Simmer over low heat for 30-40 minutes until thick. Remove bacon slice (if desired). Add more salt to taste.
Serve hot, topped with chopped red onions and cooked bacon.


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Garage Doors One: The Company
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Garage Doors One's Products has played a leading role in creating and updating industry technical standards and national building codes. Everyday people at Garage Doors One commit not only to meeting the diverse needs of homeowners, architects, builders and businesses, but to exceeding their expectations as well.


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May 2, 2013
Planting success in Reynoldsburg!
At the Reynoldsburg Learning Center Open House April 30, Columbus State joined with Reynoldsburg schools, Eastland Fairfield Career & Technical School, and Mount Carmel Hospital to officially open their joint services to the community. Planting a tree together outside the building to commemorate the occasion are the Reynoldsburg Raider mascot; Andy Swope, President, Reynoldsburg Board of Education; Steve Dackin, Superintendent of Reynoldsburg City Schools; Clawdette Cougar; and President David Harrison.
Multimedia expert puts clients at ease
Tom Crist spends a lot of time making people feel comfortable in front of a camera, according to Jason LaMar, his supervisor in Instructional Technology. "He has great video production skills and his personality helps people relax so that their video recordings are a success," says LaMar.
Crist was given the Part-time Staff Employee of the Month award by President Harrison on April 29, nominated by LaMar.
"Tom videotapes students' mock counseling sessions and skits for Mental Health, speeches in the classroom for ESL students, graduation ceremonies for the college, and major campus events like MLK Day," LaMar says. "He even videotaped a whole quarter of classes by an instructor who was leaving the college, to ensure that the course material was not lost."
Some faculty comments about Crist include: "Thank you for videotaping my students last week and posting their videos to Blackboard so quickly!"
"Thank you Tom for your time and expertise in videotaping the HIMT professional practice experiences at Grant Medical Center. It was a fun learning experience for all involved!"
"You are most helpful and put the students at ease in an anxiety-filled assignment."
"All my demonstration videos have been completed. Tom's assistance has been immensely appreciated."
LaMar says "Tom gets along with everyone, is dependable, holds up his end of a team effort, never complains and is always a pleasure to work with. He is one of our true 'workhorse' employees!"
Reminder: First Wednesday to be held May 8
The "First Wednesday" gathering for the month of May has been rescheduled to the second Wednesday, May 8, from 8:15-9:00 in the Conference Center Ballroom (WD). In addition to the important recognition of Staff Employee of the Month, Dr. Harrison will use this time to provide an overview of the college budget for 2013-14. Dr. Harrison will provide some context, talk about where we're headed, and give you a chance to ask questions.
Freeman earns Award of Distinction from OSU
Mabel Freeman, special assistant to President David Harrison, received the Award of Distinction April 19, from the College of Education and Human Ecology at The Ohio State University.
According to officials at the university, Freeman helped drive Ohio State's transformation from "an average state school into one of the nation's most respected public universities. Because of her efforts in Admissions and the First Year Experience, each incoming class is ever more prepared and assured of success. Nationally, she made a profound impact on higher education administration by roles with the College Board, American College Testing Service and others."
The awards were made at the annual College of Education and Human Ecology Hall of Fame induction ceremony at The Ohio State University.
Call for presentations for Faculty Idea Exchange - Summer Conference 2013
Attention full-time and adjunct faculty! Please join us for the Faculty Idea Exchange - Summer Conference 2013 on June 28 from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on the Columbus State campus. The goal of the conference is to learn about ways to teach and reach our students by improving instructional strategies. The keynote speaker is Dr. Karen Muir, associate vice president for Academic Affairs. Breakfast and lunch will be provided.
The conference is also an opportunity to serve as a presenter on any of the Idea Exchange topics such as learning communities, technology in the classroom, adjunct connectivity, student diversity awareness and more. As a reminder, to provide feedback, or to express interest in presenting, please complete a brief survey located here by Friday, May 3: https://app.e2ma.net/app2/survey/1403611/213019038/f48f34e789/?v=a
Cougar Challenge 2013 raises $6K for book scholarships
Staff Advisory Council's second annual Cougar 5K Challenge was a big success as more than 100 staff, faculty, students and area residents turned out for last Saturday's event. Finishing with a time of 19:05, the overall winner was 15-year-old Steve Popovich, son of Assistant Professor Jack Popovich. Jack finished in a respectable 33:40.
Dylan Canter (5th place, 20:48) and Evan Jablonka (8th place, 21:15) were respectively the top finishers for faculty and staff while the fastest student was 22-year-old Michael Zerrien (3rd place, 20:25).Michael Walsdorf's son, Jaden, 9, won the Little Cougar Fun Run before the start of the 5K.
Proceeds from the day go to the Mike Stancil Employee Book Scholarship and the Staff Advisory Council Student Book Scholarship. While the race raised about $3,500 last year, this year the total nearly doubled. When everything is tallied up, SAC estimates it will total nearly $6,000."
All race results can be viewed at http://www.secondsoleracing.com/. Plans are already underway for next year's race! With the golf course closing, Staff Advisory Council members are looking at other locations in Columbus to hold the event.
Teleperformance of Columbus was the principal sponsor this year. Additional sponsors included Franklin University, White Castle, WMNI AM 920 Radio and Snowville Creamery.
Admissions Systems "cross training" offered
Processing applications in Colleague, posting events in Hobson's, working with the VIP system, moving students through admissions—the processes and programs used by our Admissions staff are countless, and can be confusing!
Now, you can clear up any confusion and get your questions answered on the first Thursday of each month, at an Admissions Systems Cross-Training Session.
Admissions Systems Program Coordinators Liz Wyles-Smith and Tisha McGlaughlin will hold sessions each month. (Please note that July's session will be on Wednesday due to the holiday)
There is no need to register for the sessions as they are open forums and all are welcome.
Admissions Cross-Training Sessions are held in Madison Hall 103 at 10:00 a.m. on the following dates:
June 6, July 3 (Wednesday), August 1, September 5, October 3, November 7, and December 5.
Hogan and Math Bridge program featured in Community College Times
Kelly Hogan, professor in Developmental Education, and the Bridge to College Math program at Columbus State, were featured in the latest issue of Community College Times. The goal of the program is to help students through development education classes quickly so that they don't waste time or money on credits that won't apply toward graduation requirements. Read the whole article here!
Honoring TRiO students
Trio Student Support Services staff members Stacey Rogers, Kia Woodward, Julie Sullivan and Director Stephanie Albrecht recently attended the Scholarship Opportunities for Success (SOS) banquet where eight current members of Trio/SSS and two recent graduates were honored. The students were awarded items including computers and computer accessories, gas cards, gift cards to the Bookstore and money for tuition. At the banquet are, front from left: Amy Cunningham, Karen Davis, Della Reese, Yvonne Williamson and Julie Sullivan.
Back row: Kia Woodward, Melissa Leach, Cynthia Hudson, Elizabeth DeLano, Christa Phillips, Bonita Harding, and Stacey Rogers.
SBDC at Columbus State helps keep business talent at home
The Small Business Development Center at Columbus State was recently mentioned in an article titled "Brain Gain: Keeping Fresh Talent on Home Turf" by Hi Velocity Media. A company called Libre Clothing was assisted by business advisor David Rivers from the SBDC, who helped company founders with initial financing and developing their business plan. The client said that having SBDC services available was a deciding factor in them staying in the Ohio area. You can read about Libre Clothing's unique, award-winning product online here.
Employee training sessions offered through end of May
Employee professional development opportunities for May are available at the training registration site, http://web.cscc.edu/is/employeetraining/courses.asp. Seating is limited so register today!
Hostmanship: Customer Service and Leadership Reframed: The Art of Serving Others: May 10 and May 29, 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. "Hostmanship in the art of making people feel welcome. In this introduction to Hostmanship, we will discuss its foundation and principles as well as its application for personal and professional growth.
Career Decision-Making Using the MBTI: May 23, 9 a.m. - noon. When selecting, transitioning, or growing your career, understanding personality type can help explain why some careers feel like a good fit and others are a challenge. Your MBTI results can help you understand past careers and select a future career that best suits your personality.
CPR Recertification for Healthcare Providers: May 14, 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. This course covers Adult and Pediatric Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR), Automated External Defibrillation (AED), use of a Bag Valve Mask (BVM), and care to relieve a foreign body airway obstruction (FBAO) for the professional audience. This course fulfills the required CPR certification for healthcare providers and is only available to healthcare providers needing recertification.


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Featured in:
After 20 years casting models for Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, and fashion shows, I wanted to spend more time with my daughters. KiC is my way to share my thoughts on fashion and style. I believe style should permeate every aspect of our lives — from home, to family, to where we go, and naturally, what we wear — especially when we're just running around. — Preston Davis
By visiting keepitchic.com, you are consenting to our Privacy Policy & Terms of Use. © Preston Davis Inc 2018. All Rights Reserved.


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To start with, you are Rubi Malone. She is the single most unpleasant protagonist I have played as in years. She's obnoxious, she curses like a fucking biker for no reason, and she's just absolutely generally unpleasant. And you know what? It's awesome.
The entire game is an homage to the old school "grindhouse" movies, as well as Tarentino-esque action flicks (which are, all in all, an homage to the old school "grindhouse" movies), as well as the Max Payne style of games. In both gameplay and cinematics, there are retro-feeling scratch marks coming and going all over the screen. The cut scenes, as well as in game dialoge, are loaded down with testosterone-infused dialogue from all characters present. Schwarzenegger doesn't do macho this well. Combat is done with a combination of swordwork and balls-out gun-fighting. To rack up combo points, you've got to leap, wall run, and slide through the maps in slow-motion, making it possible to target multiple enemies at once. Blood and over the top violence are, of course, present in spades, giving the impression that the game would come across as cheesy, were it not for the fact that the ridiculous factor is so obviously intentional.
The gameplay itself is, for the most part, divided into four distinct styles. The most common involves Rubi navigating through buildings in a rather straightforward manner, leaping and sliding about to shoot everybody standing in her way. Of all the combat sections, this is probably the simplest, due to never having to face more than 5 or so enemies at once. Complicating this, however, are the arena sections. In these, Rubi must close all the doors to the area to stop enemies from piling in in high numbers. Combo multipliers litter the area, making it quite easy to max out your multiplier at the 5X score cap.
Arena battles are significantly more difficult than the standard fighting, because there is no limit to the amount of enemies you will fight, as well as the leader class, who is vastly superior to the standard opponents, and whose presence causes everyone else in the arena to attack Rubi more aggressively.
The third variant occurring a few times in the game kicks off with a cut scene of a plain opponent rushing towards Rubi, getting shot in the face, and his blood splashing into Rubi's eyes. These segments are, graphically, a notable difference from the rest of the game.
As far as gameplay goes, these areas are different in that rather than keeping score, it simply tallies up a chain of how many enemies you can kill consecutively. Personally I found these to be rather hit-and-miss. Some of them were among the most exciting parts of the game, and some felt wholly unnecessary.
Also interspersed through the game are car chases, in which Rubi jumps from car to car shooting at the antagonist's henchmen. These areas are extremely quicktime-event heavy, and are the one bit of gameplay that actually requires some accuracy. For the most part, when I died it was during these, but since they're required to progress the window to actually PRESS the button is quite sizable, so long as you don't press the wrong one. And, true to the game's roots, these car chases are explosion-heavy and dialed all the way up to 11.
The upgrade system works pretty well for the game, using the points you rack up during combos to unlock new ablities for Rubi to do (such as a wall run off an opponent), as well as the ability to upgrade the guns in a few different areas. Chaining 20 kills together whilst running along the wall, back-flipping over your enemies, and stabbing them in the gut while sliding on the ground are not required, however. While it'll be impossible to unlock every upgrade without getting proper command of the combat system, it is somewhat intuitive and will still rack up a small amount of points even if you just stand in one place and shoot everything.
Complimenting the 5 basic difficulty levels, however, is "Golden Bullets Mode", in which Rubi's bullets instantly kill enemies. On the flip side of this, however, Rubi also takes MUCH more damage than normal, usually dying after 4 or 5 hits. An interesting addition to the easy-medium-hard scale, it forces you to play the game in a much different way, focusing more on not being hit than just peppering everyone else full of bullet holes.
However, what I found to be some of the best aspects of the game were not gameplay-related. The game has a rather extensive soundtrack, consisting of close to 25 songs of fast-paced rock music with a southern feel. The music makes the whole grindhouse-homage come to life. Also, WET features some quite talented voice acting. Cursing and yelling through this game's amusing story are Eliza Dushku (as Rubi Malone), Alan Cumming, and Malcolm McDowell as the lead villain. That's right, Malcolm McDowell.
All in all, the game's biggest fault is a lack of originality in gameplay. It's fun, but if you've played a Max Payne game or any of the Matrix videogame adaptations, then you've pretty much done it all before. WET's main strength, however, is the feel it evokes in the player. The original score, over the top scripting and very talented voice acting really come together to compliment the decent gameplay, making this a game worth trying out. So if you find yourself with nothing to do, head down to your local video game store and pick up a copy secondhand. That's what I did, and I don't regret it one bit.


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What is a general contractor?
When starting a home remodel or new construction project, you will probably hire a general contractor. A general contractor is a professional who is qualified to take a set of building plans and construct them as outlined. The general contractor may help perform the day-to-day building, or they may just hire workers and oversee all the work activities. In either case, the job of the general contractor is to see that your project gets built.
When you have a building project, ask for bids from various contractors. The bids tell you how much each will charge and what their scope of work will be. Once you have selected a bid, you sign a contract with that general contractor outlining the specifics of the project and the milestones during the project when they will receive payment installments. Once the contract is official, the general contractor will bring in their crew to begin construction. The contractor will manage the workers and subcontractors (anyone who doesn't work directly for their company but that they need to outsource, like a marble installation pro), order all the materials, obtain work permits, and confirm that all the workers and subcontractors are completing their projects as planned. They typically handle all the payments to the workers and subcontractors, and send you invoice. For all these reasons, it's also especially important to follow a few smart hiring practices when it comes to finding a general contractor. If you are organized and competent to oversee construction projects, and are able to make sure everything is being built properly and meeting code, it's possible you can be your own general contractor.
Why should you hire a contractor?
Hiring a general contractor is a good idea for many remodeling projects. Home renovation contractors have a broad range of skills to manage, coordinate and complete a project. They should help make sure your project comes in on time and within your budget as they hire and supervise all the necessary subcontractors, including electricians and plumbers. They also handle procuring all the materials required for your job. Some homeowners look to save money by acting as their own contractor, but an experienced home renovation contractor is worth the cost. They should know local building codes, be able to pull all necessary permits, and work with inspectors to make sure the construction meets local codes. Also, because they get professional discounts, they can typically buy materials at a better price than you can; better prices on materials and labor save you money, and make up for at least a percentage of the cost of the contractor.
How do you choose a commercial general contractor?
A commercial contractor provides similar services as a residential general contractor but specializes in working with large-scale projects for businesses, schools, nonprofits, governments and development firms. When researching commercial general contractors, review their portfolio of work and confirm they have ample experience working in the area you need. For example, if you are building a small strip mall, ask if the contractors have experience successfully incorporating all the needed elements such as a parking lot, meeting ADA requirements, accessing the proper permits, and completing work on time.
Once you've identified several qualified candidates, request bids for your project and then compare the scope of work with your needs and budget. Your commercial general contractor should oversee design, permitting, construction, materials purchase, and adherence to building code and zoning regulations, as well as sticking to an agreed-upon budget and schedule. It's important to establish clear communication with your future commercial general contractor, as this will mean a smoother process for everyone. For all these reasons, it's also especially important to follow a few smart hiring practices when it comes to finding a general contractor.
When should you hire a contractor?
A few home remodeling projects can be done by an ambitious DIY-minded homeowner or local handyman, but many are best completed by a professional home renovation contractor. You should hire a contractor when you're planning a large project that takes time, machinery or large tools, and several workers; a kitchen remodel, new bathroom or home addition will be most successful with a licensed, expert contractor at the helm. It's particularly important to have a professional contractor on board for construction, electrical, plumbing and HVAC projects that require inspections to meet local building codes. Of course, you can hire a contractor for smaller projects, too, if you prefer to let an expert handle things like addition or removal of a wall, small framing projects, or anything that requires a permit.
You should hire a contractor when you're ready to start a remodeling project and you have plans, a budget and a timeline for the work in hand, but before any remodeling work begins.
How much will it cost to remodel my house?
The cost to remodel a home is highly variable — size and scope of the project, quality of materials, and the number of subcontractors required to complete the job all affect the total cost. The average national cost of a home renovation project is $13,500. The national average per-square-foot cost of a remodel ranges from $25 to $100. Nationally, kitchen and bathroom remodels are the most popular types of projects, in part because they typically have the highest return on investment when the home is sold. The national average cost of a major kitchen remodel ranges from $25,000 to $62,000, while the average bathroom remodel tends to cost $6,000 to $18,000. In addition to materials and labor costs, many remodeling project costs include permit fees, which, average $900 or more, depending on your location.


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"Prisoners," a dark thriller starring Hugh Jackman as a father on a desperate search for his missing daughter, locked up the weekend box office title in the United States and Canada, grabbing $21.4 million in ticket sales during its first three days in theaters.
Last weekend's leader, the low-budget horror flick "Insidious: Chapter 2," dropped to second place with $14.5 million, according to studio estimates on Sunday.
The dance movie "Battle of the Year" made its debut in the No. 5 slot with $5 million, topped by both mob comedy "The Family" with $7 million and Spanish language hit "Instructions Not Included" with $5.7 million.
Box office watchers projected "Prisoners" would start with a $20 million weekend. The movie earned strong reviews from critics and early Oscar buzz after a screening at the Toronto International Film Festival this month. As of Saturday, 79 percent of critics recommended "Prisoners," according to reviews collected on the Rotten Tomatoes website.
"It's a very gratifying result," said Broderick Johnson, co-founder and co-CEO of Alcon Entertainment and a producer of the film, noting that the thriller was "not an easy, straight-forward film" and was more akin to "a non-conventional indie (independent film)."
Johnson said "Prisoners" was "a bit of a water cooler film, with people discussing its twists and turns. It generates conversations, which should generate even more interest in it."
The movie is the story of the search for two girls who are kidnapped on Thanksgiving Day. One of their fathers, a Pennsylvania survivalist played by Jackman, grows frustrated with the police investigation and employs his own methods to find out what happened.
The movie was produced for $46 million by Alcon Entertainment and distributed by Warner Bros., a unit of Time Warner Inc.
Ticket sales for "Insidious: Chapter 2," about a family haunted by spirits, dropped 64 percent from its debut a week earlier. The $5 million production has grossed a cumulative $60.9 million through Sunday.
The 3D "Battle of the Year" cost $20 million to make. The film stars "Lost" TV show actor Josh Holloway as the coach of a team competing in an international breakdancing competition. R&B singer Chris Brown plays one of the dancers.
Rory Bruer, Sony Pictures' worldwide president of distribution, said that while the picture performed "toward the lower end of our expectations, it was always laid out as a film that would resonate around the world." It is scheduled for an international roll out starting in late September and going into November.
The Robert De Niro comedy "The Family," about a mobster who relocates his family to France, finished in the No. 3 spot on the weekend charts, while the hit Mexican family film "Instructions Not Included" was fourth, with ticket sales up 17 percent in its fourth weekend in release for a cumulative box office total of $34.3 million.
"Prisoners" was distributed by Warner Bros., a unit of Time Warner Inc. FilmDistrict released "Insidious: Chapter 2." Sony Corp's movie studio released "Battle of the Year." "The Family" was distributed by Relativity Media, and "Instructions Not Included" was distributed by Pantelion, a joint venture of Hollywood studio Lions Gate Entertainment and Mexican media giant Televisa.
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Out of Office Replies
Out-of-Office/Vacation messages can now be setup from your desktop Outlook OR from OSU webmail. Out-Of-Office/Vacation messages setup on your office computer do not require that your Drinko Hall desktop be left ON or that your Drinko Hall desktop be running Outlook. The configuration is completely managed by the Exchange Server.
Setup from your desktop computer:
- Click on File tab – Automatic Replies (Out-of-Office)
- Click on above indicated areas to activate and fill out information for your message.
- "Outside My Organization" tab you can turn this notification On/Off by:
- Click on Outside My Organization tab
- Check box marked "Auto-Reply to people outside my organization" to activate
- When finished, click OK and rule will activate on the Start Date/Time and stop on End Date/Time.
Setup from Webmail: (Not necessary if you have already setup on office computer)
- Log into your E-mail account at email.osu.edu
- Click on Options (upper right corner of screen) – Set Automatic Replies….
- If you wish to setup a different message for non-OSU.EDU receivers, scroll down further to this:
- Click on first box and setup message for non-OSU.EDU receivers. When finished click on the Save button to activate.
Auto-Reply message received by potential OSU.EDU senders:
NOTE: Once you address an E-mail to an OSU Exchange person who has activated an automatic reply, the auto-reply message will appear above the message address area as shown below:


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Wedding Trends for 2013 – Etsy Wedding Finds
Last week I decided to kick off the year with the first half of the 10 Hot Wedding Trends for 2013 that were featured on 3D-Memoirs last summer. This week we are continuing with the remaining 5 hot trends and I've rounded-up some awesome eye-candy from Etsy to provide more inspiration for these wedding trends that we should see this year!
#6: Chicken Wire Wedding Trend
#7: 1920's Wedding Trend
#8: Backdrops Wedding Trend
#9: Garlands Wedding Trend
#10: Birch Bark Wedding Trend
SHARE WITH ME: Did you enjoy part 2 of the Wedding Trends Etsy Thursday post? After seeing all this lovely Etsy wedding inspiration for the 10 hot wedding trends for 2013, which one is your favorite? What trend do you think we will see the most of? Find more inspiration for these hot trends on our Pinterest boards – stop by and pin with us!
SHARE WITH OTHERS: We LOVE our readers and enjoy making new friends! If you like this post, then I'm sure your friends will too! Simply use the SHARE button below and share on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Google +, Pinterest, Stumble, and via email!
Just so you don't miss any future Etsy posts, please subscribe to our RSS feed and emails! See you next week and please INVITE A FRIEND!
Also, if you haven't already connected with 3D-Memoirs on Facebook, Twitter, & Pinterest–just click on my social icons in the upper right-hand side of the blog–it's that simple!
3D-MEMOIRS IS LOOKING FOR IDEAS: Do you have an idea for an Etsy Thursday post? I'm always looking for new ideas, so please email me at email@example.com! I look forward to hearing from you!


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Jolie drawn to 'elegant' Maleficent
Angelina Jolie has said she has always been drawn towards villains rather than princesses, ahead of her latest role as Sleeping Beauty sorceress Maleficent.
The 38-year-old makes her big-screen comeback in the title role in the Disney film of the same name, four years since action thrillers Salt and The Tourist, as she has been focused on directing.
The two-time Oscar-winning actress, wearing a black beaded billowy dress by Versace, was joined on the rain-sodden blue carpet by fiance Brad Pitt and their eldest son Maddox at the preview of a special costume exhibition at London's Kensington Palace.
"What isn't there to like about Maleficent? She was my favourite when I was little. I wasn't into princesses and I thought she was so elegant and so powerful," she said.
"She scared me a little bit, but I think it's a natural thing for children, and everybody to want to understand their fears and to get closer to those things - the shadows, the dark and what frightens us - so I was always curious."
Angelina continued: "And then I read the script. It's such a beautiful script. It was very moving and it helps you understand that things are not black and white.
"There isn't just good and evil in the world, and she's an advocate of that. She wasn't always the way that she is now."
The mother of six, whose five-year-old daughter Vivienne makes her acting debut in the film, said she understands why fairy tales have such universal appeal.
"I suppose we all want to believe in happy endings," she continued. "But fairytales take aspects of the human condition and magnify them, the characters and feelings. They help us relate to the questions and stories but they do it in a much more colourful way."
Angelina revealed there was a possibility she could be teaming up again with partner Brad on the big screen, telling reporters "we are thinking about it".
Also on the blue carpet was Elle Fanning who portrays Princess Aurora in Maleficent, and British actor Sam Riley, who is Maleficent's henchman Diaval.
"Whenever anyone asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I would say a Disney princess. I was like five (years old). That was the ultimate dream," Elle said.
The 16-year-old, who epitomised the princess look with a cream embroidered gown by Georges Hobeika, added: "It was a huge spectacle - and when you add Angelina to the mix - so I was in awe the whole time."
Sam, 34, added: "I said yes because I had never done anything like this before and to work with Angelina on a big movie like this, I thought I'd be an idiot to say no. I really loved it because it's different from what I've done previously - incredible sets and movie stars. It's fun."
The Maleficent Costume Display features costumes and props from the film, including the Maleficent wings.
Maleficent, which also stars Lesley Manville, Juno Temple, Imelda Staunton and Sharlto Copley, opens in cinemas on May 28.
PA Media


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Founded in 1982, Conway Construction is a small, rapidly growing company specializing in a wide range of Heavy Construction projects in exciting locations throughout Oregon and Washington.
The variety of work Conway Construction takes on includes road and highway construction, parks, communications facilities, communications towers, tunnel restoration, site development, waste water treatment plants and bridges. Conway Construction's mission is to provide safe, well-managed,high quality and timely Civil and Heavy Construction services to its owners and clients. Conway Construction strives to do this by focusing on and developing concietious, motivated and team oriented employees.
Conway Construction has a large selection of quality equipment for rent and sale
Conway Construction's portfolio includes a variety of challenging projects


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Most sold-out shows at First Avenue have fans bouncing along happily to the songs or singing out the choruses to the hits, which is always a treat. But few concerts there display the kind of personal, emotional connection on display during Alabama songwriter Jason Isbell's gig Saturday night.
Instead of just the hits — which in Isbell's case are songs he wrote a decade ago with the Drive-by Truckers — Saturday's sold-out crowd sang along animatedly and uninhibitedly to all 10 of the songs from last year's redemptive album "Southeastern."
And these weren't easily excitable young fans, but dudes in beards and flannel who shook their heads in awe to the best lyrics and middle-aged women who sighed like teenage girls at the most romantic lines. And the songs were not light, catchy tunes, but ones about a friend dying of cancer, sexual abuse and a battle with addictions that nearly ends at — of all of God's forsaken places — a Super 8 motel.
Having already bared the pain and struggle of achieving sobriety while writing "Southeastern," Isbell lightheartedly shrugged off the power he wielded Saturday. Before delivering the acoustic epic "Elephant," he made a halfhearted apology about singing so many sad songs.
"I guarantee you the people writing the happy songs are some of the saddest [sacks] you'll ever meet," he said.
It takes a lot of mojo to get a standing-room rock club like First Avenue to quiet down and listen intently — especially given the level of beer sales Saturday night — but "Elephant" did that in spades with lines like this: "When she was drunk she made cancer jokes / She made up her own doctor's notes / Surrounded by her family, I saw that she was dying alone."
He also mesmerized the crowd with "Cover Me Up," one of several instances where his deep, soulful tenor voice sounded as dramatic as his writing. The song at once addresses his cold-turkey struggles and the warm happy ending he stumbled into with his new wife.
Isbell's spouse, Texan singer/violinist Amanda Shires, was by his side all night. She seemed as much of a sentimental beacon as a musical lightning rod for the show, her violin fills adding spark to "Southeastern's" hopeful closer "Relatively Easy" and the older tune "Codeine." To kick off the encore, the couple pulled out a duet of Warren Zevon's "Mutineer," a near-perfect match to the night's rocky-boat set list.
Isbell's refined roadhouse band, the 400 Unit, remains vital to his concerts even as his songs have turned more intimate. As was the case at their Varsity Theater show in October, they waded through older songs to start the nearly two-hour show. After the tentative opener "Streetlights" and a stormy "Go It Alone," they got things rolling full-steam with the Drive-by Truckers favorite "Decoration Day." They wheeled out one other DBT tune, "Outfit," for the encore before a wild and blistering "Super 8."
Reflecting back on his many times playing First Ave with the Truckers, Isbell said before the finale, "I've played here 10 times over the years, and tonight's show is my favorite." Flashing the "vandal smile" he referenced earlier in "Relatively Easy," he added, "And best of all, I can't remember my least-favorite."
Just another reason Saturday's was an unforgettable one.
Houston countryman Robert Ellis was similarly impressive as both a songwriter and bandleader in his opening set. Sounding like a more honky-tonky Calexico, he and his five-piece band wrapped dusty, land-swept arrangements around crestfallen originals such as "Only Lies." Their most straight-ahead twang track was ironically a crazy-good cover of Paul Simon's "Still Crazy After All These Years."


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Over 40 new buses are to be rolled out across Yorkshire after local bus operator First confirmed it is investing over £8.5m in its fleet this year.
The 41 new vehicles, which feature a mixture of double deckers and single deckers, will all come fitted with leather seats, CCTV and Wi-Fi providing customers with free internet access during their journey.
In addition to the dedicated space for wheelchair users, First will also provide extra space for pushchairs.
The new buses are all Department for Transport "low carbon certified", making them some of the most fuel efficient buses on the market.
All the new vehicles will be fitted with Euro 6 engines, which it described as a strong commitment to improving air quality across the region.
Test results show that running eight Euro 6 buses produces the same amount of certain exhaust emissions as running one bus with a Euro 5 engine.
First said the new vehicles will have a positive impact on air quality in town and city centres.
The new vehicles will enter service from July with 12 new StreetLite (single-deck) buses for Bradford, seven new StreetLite buses for Halifax and 22 new Streetdeck (double deck) buses for South Yorkshire in December.
Dave Alexander, regional managing director of First in North England and Scotland, said: "Our investment of over £8.5m in over 40 new vehicles is great news for our customers and underlines our continuing determination to provide ever better bus services in our area and encourage more people to travel by bus.
"These new vehicles will be among the best and most eco-friendly in the region. Passengers can enjoy pleasant, more comfortable journeys and keep connected on the move with our free Wi-Fi, while we support the efforts of our local authority partners to improve air quality for all."


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I am pursuing a PhD in Computer Science at the Univeristy of California, Berkeley. I am a sixth year student in the ASPIRE project and am being co-advised by Dave Patterson and Krste Asanovic. My research interests include manycore chip multiprocessor architectures, reconfigurable and software-managed memory hierarchies, and methodologies for auto-tuning, design space search and HW/SW optimization. I have used RAMP Gold and Chisel for this research. I am the winner of a 2010 NVIDIA Graduate Research Fellowship. I am also one of the founders of QICSE.
Education >>
University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley CA
Pursuing a PhD in Computer Science
MS in Computer Science, December 2009
Advisors: David Patterson and Krste Asanovic
University of Virginia, Charlottesville VA
BS in Computer Science, May 2007
Advisor: Kevin Skadron
Software >>
- CudaDMA: A library of functions for efficiently copying data between global and shared memory within CUDA kernels. ( Google Code)
- GPRSkit: Genetically Programmed Response Surfaces Tookit ( version 0.2 )
Publications >>
A Hardware Evaluation of Cache Partitioning to Improve Utilization and Energy-Efficiency while Preserving Responsiveness
Henry Cook, Miquel Moreto, Sarah Bird, Khanh Dao, David Patterson, Krste Asanovic
In Proceedings of the 40th International Symposium on Computer Architecture (ISCA), June 2013.
Portable Parallel Performance from Sequential, Productive, Embedded Domain-Specificc Languages
Shoaib Kamil, Derrick Coetzee, Scott Beamer, Henry Cook, Ekaterina Gonina, Jonathan Harper, Jeffrey Morlan, and Armando Fox
Symposium on Principles and Practice of Parallel Programming (PPoPP), New Orleans, Louisiana, February 2012.
Fast Speaker Diarization Using a High-Level Scripting Language
Ekaterina Gonina, Gerald Friedland, Henry Cook, Kurt Keutzer
In Proceedings of the Automatic Speech Recognition and Understanding Workshop, December 2011.
CudaDMA: Optimizing GPU Memory Bandwidth via Warp Specialization
Michael Bauer, Henry Cook, Brucek Khailany
In International Conference on Super Computing (SC), November 2011.
CUDA-level Performance with Python-level Productivity for Gaussian Mixture Model Applications
Henry Cook, Ekaterina Gonina, Shoaib Kamil, Gerald Friedland, David Patterson, Armando Fox
In Proceedings of the 3rd USENIX Conference on Hot Topics in Parallelism (HotPar'11), June 2011.
A Case for FAME: FPGA Architecture Model Execution
Zhangzi Tan, Andrew Waterman, Henry Cook, Sarah Bird, Krste Asanovic, David Patterson
In Proceedings of the 37th International Symposium on Computer Architecture (ISCA), June 2010.
RAMP Gold: an FPGA-based Architecture Simulator for Multiprocessors
Zhangzi Tan, Andrew Waterman, Rimas Avizienis, Yunsup Lee, Henry Cook, Krste Asanovic, David Patterson
In Proceedings of the 47th ACM/IEEE Conference on Design Automation, June 2010.
Resource Management in the Tessellation Manycore OS
Juan A. Colmenares, Sarah Bird, Henry Cook, P. Pearce, D. Zhu, J. Shalf, et al.
In Proceedings of the 2nd USENIX Workshop on Hot Topics in Parallelism (HotPar), June 2010.
Virtualizing Local Stores
Henry Cook
Masters Thesis, University of California, Berkeley, December 2009
Virtual Local Stores: Enabling Software-Managed Memory Hierarchies in Mainstream Computing Environments
Henry Cook, Krste Asanovic, David Patterson
University of California, Berkeley, Technical Report UCB/EECS-2009-131, September 2009.
Predictive Design Space Exploration Using
Genetically Programmed Response Surfaces
Henry Cook and Kevin Skadron
In Proceedings of the 45th ACM/IEEE Conference on Design Automation (DAC), June 2008.
Optimizing Chip Multiprocessor Designs
Using Genetically Programmed Response Surfaces
Henry Cook
Undergraduate Thesis, University of Virginia, May 2007
First Place in the 2007 SEAS Undergraduate Research and Design Symposium
Teaching >>
Graduate Student Instructor for
CS152: Computer Architecture and Engineering
University of California, Berkeley (Spring 2008)
Outstanding GSI Campus Award
Documents and Links >>
Curriculum Vitae, 2009, (pdf)


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The Aldrich Alert
A Publication of the Patrick Henry Center for Individual Liberty
by Gary Aldrich - Volume 1 Issue 22 August 11, 2000
The Executive Branch spends billions every year to maintain a perception of national security. But before Bill Clinton and Al Gore came to the White House, policies and procedures, along with lots of highly trained security personnel were used to do more than just maintain an expensive façade.
The well kept dirty secret revealed here today is that Al Gore and his Vice Presidential staff were no better than Clinton, at looking out for America's interests, if quality of staff is any measure. Gore's staff - at least the ones I saw through my investigative lenses - were no better than Clinton's, and in some cases, they were much worse.
I resigned my post in the White House because I refused to continue to be part of a massive and dangerous fraud on citizens and the Congress. Those of us in the FBI and Secret Service who were charged with protecting White House secrets flowing through every day, were being prevented from doing our jobs by an administration more interested in a party's agenda, than in our nation's best interests.
Perhaps therein lies the difference between a future Al Gore Administration or a future George W. Bush administration - it is the way the two competing political groups view the question of exactly what is in the best interest of our nation.
Many of those above the rank and file of our national security agencies were helpless to prevent the security collapse, maybe too afraid or unable to believe the reality of a purposeful monkey wrenching of the system. So, unopposed, the Clinton-Gore Administration did exactly what it wanted to do, and as a predictable by-product the outrageous and debilitating scandals took place - and the laptops and nuclear secrets "walked off" to who knows where.
Those in the system - the security professionals who claim today that they have "no idea" about how these security breaches took place - are simply lying. As an effective lightening rod, Bill Clinton and his staff took much of the heat, but Al Gore and his senior staff had major security problems of their own, which were mostly ignored.
Worse, Gore and Co. were fully aware of the White House wide security collapse, and did nothing to prevent it, even when they were warned that it was happening. A former Senator Gore should have been more concerned about it, but there is no evidence of concern, if he had any. Gore has done nothing but defend Bill Clinton, regardless of the impact on the nation.
Further, it was Al Gore's Reinvention of Government initiative that first publicly complained about the previous security system, which had been an effective screening tool in place for more than 30 years. Gore and his people deemed it too complicated, too expensive, and too intrusive to the applicants wanting to work for the federal government. So, they ordered agencies to privatize much of this important work, turning to outside contractors in many cases.
As a result, career national security professionals - like me - left in droves, having had our responsibilities taken away, our jobs downgraded, or our positions eliminated altogether.
Today, we see the "benefits" of Gore's "improvements." For example, almost one million background investigations backed up at the Department of Defense, as a direct result of Gore's "Reinvention" schemes. Gore constantly uses the term "risky" to define the plans of others, but my former associates tell me that identical problems exist in every important national security agency, or system. In other words, Gore and Co. took an effective security protection system and helped break it, but if "Reinvention" came with serious risk, it appears that Gore will be the last to admit it.
Instead, mainstream media focuses on administration-generated sound bites about personnel reductions and budget cuts. The truth is, if Bill Clinton robbed the national security bank, Al Gore drove the getaway car.
The security personnel they've cut and the money they've saved to make themselves look better will form the basis of a gigantic "bill" that will be presented to the next president - unless, of course that president is named Al Gore.
In the event Gore takes over where Bill Clinton has left off, you can be sure that he will do nothing to reveal his role in the greatest national security calamity since the bombing of Pearl Harbor. With an Al Gore Administration, expect the worst - unless of course you share Al Gore's one-world view.
On the other hand, it's quite appropriate to acknowledge the obvious: There is no Republican administration in modern times - if ever - that failed to make national security a centerpiece of their time in office. Does this mean that a Bush Administration would do a better job of protecting our nation's security? Will you need to use one of your "life-lines" to answer this simple question?
For me - a security professional who worked in both a Republican and Democratic White House - there can be no hesitation. When it comes to national security, the Democrats that I've worked with just don't seem to "get it." Why?
In my opinion it doesn't matter much why they tossed out national security. If you can't prove they crashed the system for treasonous reasons, then what matters now is what we can do to protect what we have left.
And, along with real protection of national security at the White House, the obvious by-product will be a relatively scandal-free White House. I think we're all ready for that.