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You may have wondered where we've been for a week.
Well, this weekend which has just passed was my 30th Birthday weekend, so the past week has been spent in preparation for a celebration that is in keeping with turning "the big three - O".
As is usual around Valentines Day, the Post Office contacted me in advance to make sure I could pick up my post from their South London Depot some time over the weekend. Apparently it is a Health & Safety nightmare, letting a postal worker carry so many letters and cards to one address over such a short period of time. And in the current climate, hiring in part-time help can't be done...
Batting off invitations to various soirees with models and racing drivers (or should that be model car racing drivers...) I decided that the evening before my big day was the best time to celebrate- and celebrate in style! It was about 18 months, maybe even two whole years ago when the idea struck me:
"Wouldn't it be brilliant to have an evening drinking whisky from 1979!"
And thus, the planning began. Every time I got a chance to explore a shop or a website that may have a bottle from God's Own Year of Blessing, I did: eBay, Distillery Shops, Vintage House, The Whisky Exchange... even Waitrose!
The first find was discovered deep in Sukhinder Singh's collection at The Whisky Exchange HQ in London and it really set the tone for the collection: Port Ellen 1979 - Signatory - 23 Years Old - 423 bottles - Butt No. 6775 - 43% But the most appealing thing about this bottle was the distillation date: 16th November. Just 12 days before the day I was born! Bottle one on my tasting list had been bought and, over the next 18 - 24 months it was to be joined by a few other famous faces, whisky superstars and down right obscure bottles...
Port Ellen 1979 - Signatory - 23 Years Old - 423 bottles - Butt No. 6775 - 43% Vol (Distilled 16th Nov 1979 - Bottles 3rd October 2003) - 75cl
Nose: There is a warmth of sea air and smoke about this one. It doesn't hit you over the head in a massive way, but it brings in the smoke and sea salt with notes of green tea and fresh mint. Slight creaminess to the nose also. Lovely and delicate.
Palate: This is one to let sit and wash about on the tongue for a while. Again, the green tea comes though but the peat smoke really burns now and there is a sweetness of brown sugar and hints of red apple.
Finish: The most delicate of embers from open fires simmer away on the back palate. Then you're hit with hazelnuts and a hint of lime juice. It's just yummy.
Overall: A corker. I mean, where can you go from here...?!?!
As the month flew past, I occasionally found myself with a few spare pennies in the pocket. These were quickly deposited into an old, empty bottle (of Serendipity, I think!) and as it filled up, I was able to splash out here and there on more interesting bottles for the evening ahead. One afternoon as I was wondering down Marylebone High Street, I happened to find myself drawn towards Waitrose. As I stood gawping at their whisky selection, a bottle caught my eye... was it? Yes, it was! Another Port Ellen from 1979. This time it was the third release. And the price... well, I won't publish the price. But needless to say you'd be hard pressed to buy a full bottle of Serendipity for this money. It was indeed a sign. Especially as a few months later we were to be standing in the Port Ellen Distillery drinking the First and Fourth Releases. This was turning into quite a journey already:
Port Ellen 3rd Release - 1979 / 2003 - 24 Years - 9000 bottles - 57.3% Vol - 70cl
Nose: The smoke isn't the first thing you notice with this; it's lemon and passion fruit, then smoke- bash! They've really managed to get some amazing fruits in the nose- like eating a starburst then smoking a cigar!
Palate: Clean and crisp, this has all the elements of Islay in it, in a glass! Alongside the heat and the smoke, buttered popcorn rises up and a touch of lemon curd on white toast. Most unusual but delicious.
Finish: Hot with a good dry white wine element that leaves your mouth coated but your palate wanting more. Like Lemon Sherbet sweets.
Overall: There was a general discussion about the best of the official bottlings of Port Ellen on the evening. It appears that the first and the third are peoples general favourites, and I find it hard to disagree with them after this stunner.
So, that's two bottles in the bank for my birthday celebrations. But this was starting to cost (even before 2009 rolled in, and 1979 whisky prices went up again due to their demand for "gifting" 30th birthdays). This meant a change in tack. How was I going to bulk out this collection with out compromising the quality bar which has been set, lets be honest, pretty darn high! One answer: miniatures! A few clicks on eBay later and I was bidding on my first: Imperial 1979...
Imperial - 1979 - G&M - 40% - 5cl
Nose: Waah! Now we're going somewhere different. This bad boy is throwing some crazy florals up the nose: grapefruit, kiwi, peaches. Lovely stuff.
Palate: Not a huge amount going on at first but give it some time, roll it around and you get some lovely hits of those peaches from the nose, but tinned. Also some mango and some limes.
Finish: A hint of smoke from this one, lingers just long enough. Slips down very easily.
Overall: My first ever Imperial and it was a lovely surprise. Very delicate but with a hint of smoke in the back palate, some lovely fruit and real delicate nature to it. Another cracker.
Three drams in, where is this journey going to take us next? Tune in later this week "Read All About It!" (a little peek at the picture at the top might give away what's to come)...


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Summertime. Long, lazy summer days filled with fun, sun and memories. The inspiration behind this styled shoot was iconic summertime fun with an elegant fusion of vintage Americana. The rich blues and reds juxtaposed against the golden landscape and natural elements of jute rope, muslin and galvanized metal create a wonderful contrast. I thought this was perfect to get everyone in the mood for the upcoming holiday weekend – lots of ideas here you could incorporate for a 4th of July party also!
The Tent.
Whether it be in the wild or in the backyard, nothing says summertime like camping! The great thing about the structure is it is easy to put up, take down and transport. This can also be shortened up and used at the head of the alter and draped with different fabrics as well as fresh flowers. The Manilla rope and burlap were used as a focal point and carried through the whole look. The lanterns added to the rustic feel while carrying through the galvanized metal into the tent structure. You can use any type of pop up tent structure to recreate the look.
You can find the materials here: tent – custom design; manilla rope – local hardware store; muslin – local fabric store; lanterns – Ikea.
Ribbon Chandelier.
The ribbon chandelier is a fun and easy to recreate element that can be used for showers, birthday parties and more. It is essentially 4 – 5 different ribbons in the same color family, hot glued to a quilters ring and finished with some small Manilla rope. They added the vintage paper from the flag design to help bring some of the color into the tent element.
You can find the materials here: ribbon – local fabric store; quilters ring – Michael's; paper – Michael's; rope – local hardware store.
Mason Jars are perfect for lovely individual hot chocolate mixes for curling up next to the camp fire. Tie them up with a twine bow and a vintage thank you label – the perfect takeaway.
You can find the materials here: mason jars- Smart & Final; labels and twine – Staples
Thanks so much to the following vendors for the fun summer and 4th of July ideas!
photography: Amy Stone Photography // concept + design + styling: Jessica Burns // floral design: Jessica Burns // hair styling: Martina at T-Birds // makeup: Elaine // cake: Whisk Bakery // dress: JCrew // invitation design: Kiira Turnbow // prints: Melina Moss

subset: commoncrawl


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Marcon International has just announced the sale of two US tugs to Nigeria. Both tugs are based in Tampa, FL and are operated by OSG. OSG took over the fleet of Maritrans Operating Partners in 2006, which in turn took over SONAT which took over Interstate in 1987, but which has roots that go way back. See this excellent summary: http://www.tugboatinformation.com/company.cfm?id=57.
Both tugs date from 1971 and were built by Maine Iron Works of Houma, LA, and fitted with EMD engines. These are probably outdated now, but they sound great!
OSG Seafarer ex Seafarer is a 5750 bhp tug with an elevated wheelhouse. This device has been modified and raised at least twice. According to Marcon it now has a height of eye of 55 feet.
OSG Liberty ex Liberty ex Satoco is a 7200 bhp tug. Its elevated wheeelhouse has been raised again since my 1992 photo and now gives a height of eye of 57 feet. It was built for Sabine Towing and Transportation and bought by Interstate in 1985.Seafarer was the unfortunate tug in charge of the barge Ocean 255, loaded with avgas, when it was in collision with Balsa 37 resulting in a huge fire in Tampa Bay August 10, 1993.
The Maritrans tugs were always maintained in tip top condition, and had shipyard refits regularly, where they were sandblasted primed and repainted. It is no wonder then that they are still operating 40 years on.
See: www.marcon.com for more.


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There's no doubt that cameras have gotten dramatically better in recent years; thanks to on-board computers, the average modern point and shoot takes significantly better photos than pricier models from two decades ago. But despite all those advances, cameras remain surprisingly easy to fool. Unusual lighting conditions can trick your camera into under- or over-exposing photos. There are easy remedies for that, though. One method: Simply take several photos with varying exposures to ensure that one of the shots comes out right. That's called exposure bracketing.
Photographers have been bracketing exposures for almost as long as there have been cameras. When faced with a tricky lighting situation—such as taking an outdoor portrait in bright sunlight and deep shadows—you can increase the odds of getting one great shot by taking several shots both over and under what the camera perceives is the ideal exposure. Sure, most of them will be throwaways, but digital film is free, right? Consider bracketing as an insurance policy, especially if the photo op is one of those once-in-a-lifetime events.
Bracket automatically
Bracketing is such a handy photo technique that many cameras (both point and shoots and DSLRs) include a feature so you can do it automatically. For most cameras, bracketing is a simple on or off affair. Turn it on–many cameras have a dedicated Bracketing button like the one shown here, but other cameras hide this feature in the menu. You might have to dive into your camera's user manual to find the control.
When you take your photo, hold down the shutter release to take three sequential shots. Generally, the first shot captures the programmed exposure. The next shot will be underexposed by one stop, and finally, the last shot will be overexposed by one stop. You don't have to hold the button down, either—just remember that as long as bracketing is engaged, each shot you fire will cycle among properly exposed, under- and over-exposed. Here is what the effect of just two stops of exposure can make (one is under-exposed by one stop, the other is over-exposed by the same amount):
Some cameras amp things up a bit by letting you get fancy with the bracketing settings. Suppose you want to take not 3 bracketed photos, but 5, under- and over-exposing by 2 stops. Or maybe you would rather take 3 shots, separated by 1.5 stops. Some cameras allow you to do this sort of thing by making changes in the LCD's on-screen menu. You certainly never need to get that fancy, but really wide brackets can come in handy on occasion. If you like to take High Dynamic Range photos, for example, having 5 or more bracketed shots can help you get photos with a rich range of colors and exposures.
Beware of unintentional bracketing
A word of caution: If you forget that your camera is in bracketing mode, and briefly press the shutter release to capture a single shot, your camera is still primed to finish the bracketed series. The next time you press the shutter release, you'll get an underexposed photo. And the time after that? Overexposed. The bracketing mode will stay on until you turn it off, which can lead to a bizarre and confusing series of badly exposed shots. It's always a good idea, when you start seeing unexpected results from your camera, to double check all the settings to make sure it's not in a weird mode that's doing bad things to your photos.
Bracket manually
If your camera doesn't have an automatic bracketing setting, don't worry—you can still bracket your photos. It's not even hard to do; it'll just take a little extra effort.
Just take the first photo at the programmed or recommended exposure the way you normally would. Then set your camera's exposure compensation control (usually marked with an Ev or a +/- symbol) to -1. This forces the next shot to underexpose from the recommended setting by one stop. Next, spin the Ev dial to +1 and take a photo that's overexposed by a stop. When you're done, return the Ev control to its default setting of 0.
Using the Ev dial, you can quickly and easily bracket your shots by any range you desire, from as little as a third of a stop (though that's not likely to have much of a noticeable effect on your photos) to a stop or more. Either way, bracketing will help ensure you get at least one great shot in every shooting situation.


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This proves nothing except that seeming synchronicities sometimes occur in a pseudo-miraculous fashion.
This afternoon I was thinking about what to write about on this here Church of the Churchless blog, and came up with the idea of talking about how I happily allow about 90% of the blog comments to be from religious believers, almost all of whom are still adherents of the Radha Soami Satsang Beas (RSSB) faith that I deconverted from about fourteen years ago -- after being a strong RSSB devotee for some thirty-five years.
I was going to point out that this shows how much more open-minded us atheists are than religiously-minded people. What do you think the chances are that, for example, a Radha Soami Satsang Beas or Catholic Church web site would welcome a majority of comments that denigrate the teachings being promoted on the site?
Slim to none. (Much closer to none, than slim, I'm pretty sure.)
That's because most religions are dogmatic, while most atheists and agnostics are open-minded. Regular readers of my posts will note that almost always I say things like "Almost certainly there is no God." I talk about my atheist beliefs in this fashion because I can't be sure God doesn't exist; I just see no demonstrable evidence for the existence of God.
If that evidence came to light, either out there in the world or in here within my consciousness, I'd be pleased to change my mind. Yet how many religious believers are willing to say that? "Almost certainly there is a God, but I can't be sure about this."
Anyway, I was all ready to write a post along these lines when I saw that a new comment had been made by Jen. It was so close to what I'd been thinking about, I'd call it "miraculous" if I believed in miracles. Which, I don't.
Spencer, I should point out, is another frequent Church of the Churchless visitor who loves to use this blog to leave comments extolling the Radha Soami Satsang Beas teachings that I no longer believe in. Here's what Jen said:
Spencer you say: "What Brian writes is simply out of ignorance, and prejudice of others he does not know, understand or choose to believe. He simply invents an explanation that works for him. But it denegrates the legitimacy of true spiritual experience. He himself is victim to his own mind's refusal to acknowledge the evidence before him."
Spencer you also say: "This is why I strongly encourage people not to judge other people's personal experiences whom we have never met and do not know. It can't be done objectively and is generally just the bad habit of personal prejudice."
Why should we believe someone else's inner experiences? We aren't supposed to speak about them because its very egotistical and we are not really interested anyway and it just sounds like boasting. Spencer what makes you think you have the right to criticise another, especially when this is Brian's blog.
I think Brian has the patience of a saint, either that or he does not read through all of the comments, or if he does read them he allows others to have their own point of view, which is something you do not allow.
We are all entitled to choose to believe what we want. He is entitled to be an atheist, he does not preach about it and wtf has it got to do with you and vinny? Quote vinny: "Problem with atheists is that their half-baked mind is unable to comprehend Atomic energy/Shabd vibrating since ages, so the solutions they offer are half-baked. These Atheists are not worthy of sitting at the feet of any Physicist, forget about Saints. Always misguiding innocent people, more dangerous than Snakes, these Atheists are a threat to any civilized society."
Spencer, I don't understand you and vinny, you preach about love and yet you show no respect for others and their opinions.
Excellent points, Jen.
Spencer and other religious believers are very much welcome to comment on this blog, because I'm committed to open discussion and dialogue.
Regarding Jen's noting that either I have the patience of a saint, or don't read through all of the comments, the truth is about halfway between these extremes. I have considerable patience with people who disagree with me, and I also make a habit of scanning every comment to make sure it isn't "spam" but is at least somewhat on topic.
I read some comments in their entirety, but lengthy comments often get just a quick glance. Even though I'm retired, I still feel pressured for time, in part because my wife and I live on ten non-easy-care acres in rural south Salem (Oregon) that require a lot of work to maintain.
And I've got two other blogs that I write for, along with three Facebook pages related to my local citizen activism. So this Church of the Churchless blog is just one of many activities that compete for my attention.


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In episode 93 of the Functional Nerds podcast, Patrick Hester and John Anealio welcome Lou Anders back to the show to chat with E.C. Meyers about Young Adult Fiction.
About Lou Anders:
Lou Anders is the 2011 Hugo Award winning editorial director of Prometheus Books' science fiction and fantasy imprint Pyr, and editor of the anthologies Masked (Gallery Books, July 2010), Swords & Dark Magic (Eos, June 2010, coedited with Jonathan Strahan), Fast Forward 2 (Pyr, October 2008), Sideways in Crime (Solaris, June 2008), Fast Forward 1(Pyr, February 2007), FutureShocks (Roc, January 2006), Projections: Science Fiction in Literature & Film (MonkeyBrain, December 2004), Live Without a Net (Roc, 2003), and Outside the Box (Wildside Press, 2001).
About E.C. Meyers
E(ugene).C. Myers is the author of Fair Coin, a young adult novel forthcoming from Pyr Books (March 2012). His science fiction and fantasy short stories have been published in a number of magazines and anthologies such as Sybil's Garage, Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine, Sporty Spec: Games of the Fantastic, and Touched by Wonder: A Symphony of Fantastic Tales.
- Lou on Twitter
- Lou Anders (website)
- E.C. on Twitter
- E.C. Meyer (website)
© 2012 Patrick Hester and John Anealio
This podcast featured original music by John Anealio
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | RSS
3 Responses to Episode 093 – Lou Anders and E.C. Meyers
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Bone Scan
Your doctor has recommended that you receive a bone scan. The role of this procedure is to evaluate your bones to detect arthritis, osteoporosis, fractures, sports injuries, or other bone abnormalities. Bone scans may also be used to evaluate unexplained bone pain. Our team of specialized doctors, nurses and technologists is led by Louise Thomson, MD and Alessandro D'Agnolo, MD, co-chiefs of Nuclear Medicine.
Before Arriving for Your Exam
- You can print and fill out the Bone Scan Questionnaire on our Pre-Registration Questionnaire page before arriving to speed the registration process.
- If your doctor gave you an order, please bring it with you.
- We want to make your waiting time as pleasant as possible. Consider bringing your favorite magazine, book or music player to help you pass the time.
- Please leave your jewelry and valuables at home.
After Arriving
- Upon arrival, the technologist will explain your procedure and answer any questions you may have.
During Your Exam
- You will receive an intravenous injection (in your vein) of a tracer dose of radioactive material. The level of radioactivity is extremely low and has no side effects.
- You will be instructed to drink plenty of fluids (24 to 32 oz.) during the three-hour delay between your injection and your scan.
- If you are an outpatient, you may leave the medical center during the three-hour delay.
- Once you are ready, the scan will take approximately one hour.
- During that time you will be required to lie flat on your back, without moving.
- Using a special nuclear medicine camera, pictures of your bones will be obtained. The camera does not produce any radiation; it simply detects and records the distribution of the radioactive material in your body.
After Your Exam
- There are no post-exam instructions.
- Your study will be reviewed by an imaging physician specialist and the results sent to your physician. Your physician will discuss these results with you and explain what they mean in relation to your health.
For more information or to schedule an appointment, please call 310-423-8000.
The S. Mark Taper Foundation Imaging Center provides a full range of advanced imaging, both radiology and cardiology, as well as interventional radiology and interventional tumor (oncology) treatments to the greater Los Angeles area, including Beverly Hills, Encino, Mid-Cities, Sherman Oaks, Silver Lake, Studio City, Toluca Lake and West Hollywood.


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Rep. Levin: Right-to-work 'frightful'
Michigan Rep. Sander Levin charged on Tuesday that Gov. Rick Snyder will divide his state if he signs a right-to-work measure into law.
"The governor will divide Michigan; that will be his legacy," Levin (D-Mich.) said on CNN's "Starting Point." "That is a frightful legacy, not only for him but for the people of the state of Michigan and for the middle class."
( PHOTOS: Right-to-work protests in Michigan)
His comments come as Snyder looks prepared to sign legislation that would prohibit mandatory union dues for workers in many sectors. Massive protests of the initiative are expected in Lansing on Tuesday.
"The governor, I met with him yesterday, he doesn't understand what made Michigan the ideal place, what made the middle class — that is, workers having a voice in the workplace," Levin said, adding that the right-to-work measure would diminish that kind of representation.


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Programm for today:
- drive to Panmunjom at the DMZ (Demilitarized Zone)
- lunch at Kaesong
- Koryo-museum at Keasong
- drive back to Pyongyang
- metro museum
- Kim Il Sung's birthplace at Mangyongdae (near Pyongyang)
- dinner at a restaurant in Pyongyang
View from our hotel room in the 21st floor:
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
The Demilitarized Zone
On the island you can see the cinema, where the 11th Pyongyang International Film Festival was taking place during our stay in Pyongyang. Yes, there is indeed an international film festival in Pyongyang:
Due to that our hotel was quite busy at that time; at least I cannot say – unlike I read in other NK-travelogues – , that I had the impression, that the hotel was totally empty and only maybe 3 of 40 floors were open…
Especially in the morning there were lot's of people in the hotel lobby and also relatively long waiting times at the elevantors were not rare. And I had the impression, that also many North Koreans (high officials, of course) stayed at the hotel (alltough on other floors)… or were all of them guides for the foreigners? (our guides stayed at the hotel too during our trip).
Once while waiting for the guides in the lobby I also small-talked with two Germans, who were presenting a film at the festival.
We left for Panmunjom 30 minutes later than planned. The reason was, that our German speaking guide for the 1st two days got ill, and the "new" one who replaced him for the remaining two days had to accompany some tourists to the airport in the morning before meeting us.
During the waiting time Oliver and I did an "on-the-spot-guidance" at the car park in fron the hotel. Several KITC tour-busses were waiting for the tourist groups.
Also one "Kässbohrer Setra" bus was amongst the buses…
The drive to the DMZ took about 2 hours. The highway was similar to that to Myohangsan but with more tunnels, as the area was quite hilly.
It was noticeable that we got closer to the border, there were four checkpoints on the way there. But we only had to stop for a few seconds if at all.
Also concrete columns next to the road were signs of the near border. In an emergency case they would fall down on the road to block the way for tanks from the South...
I have no photos of them, but I found some here:
After the highway passes Kaesong it continues for a few more kilometers before it ends abruptly at the beginning of the DMZ. There is a even signpost saying "Seoul, 70 km"...
The DMZ divides North and South Korea. It is 248 km long and about 4 km wide. It is usually impossible to cross the DMZ, but in the previous years tourists coming from South Korea could visit some areas in the North and then crossed the DMZ by bus over newly built roads. Tours were possible to the Kumgang mountain and to Kaesong. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kumgang_mountain.
Currently these tours are suspended due to the worsened relationshuip between the North and the South.
Panmunjom was a village in the middle of the DMZ, where the ceasefire-agreement was signed in 1953. This place today is on the Norther side of the DMZ.
At the demarcation line there is the "Joint Security Area", where today negotiations between the North and the South are held. Tourists can visit the JSA from the North and from the South, but of course it is not possible to cross the border here.
More information:
We had a short break at a car park at the entry to the DMZ. In one of the buildings we got a brief introduction into the place.
An overview map:
The place where we were is on the bottom, in the middle you see the Joint Security Area (JSA) and between the house, where the cease-fire agreement was signed.
The JSA:
The two Kim's are overlooking everything...
The entry to the DMZ:
Of course it is not possible to drive into the DMZ without being accompanied by a soldier:
Also these concrete cubes are meant to fall down on the road in an emergency case...
Google Earth screenshot of the DMZ:
The white lines mark the center line of the DMZ (the actual border) and the northern boundary. The southern boundary is not marked.
To view this placemarks with Google Earth, download the kmz-file at http://www.nkeconwatch.com/north-korea-uncovered-google-earth/.
The entry to the DMZ:
After about 1,5 km we arrive at the house, where the cease-fire agreement was signed.


text: Most youth clubs offer soccer to players age 4-19. Once players reach the soccer age of U9, different levels of play are often offered. Players move throughout each level throughout their soccer career as well as experience different coaches. Playing for a different coach benefits the players as they are forced to adapt to differing personalities, coaching methods, as well as communication methods.


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The three-key mini-keyboard with OLED screen on each key
February 5, 2006 Last July we wrote about the Optimus keyboard from Russian design studio Art.Lebedev – the keyboard uses OLED technology so that every key is a stand-alone display showing exactly what it is controlling at that moment. Accordingly, you can switch from language to language, or program to program and the functionality of the key will be reflected in the image it shows. The Optimus won't be available until December 2006, but the company will have a three key Optimus mini auxiliary keyboard available by May, 2006, with each of the keys having an OLED screen displaying the current function.
If you don't quite understand what this makes possible, check out this page which explains the concept visually (click around all the text links).
The retail price of the Optimus mini three is US$100 if you pre-order, prior to April 2.


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MANA, socialists and the International New Left.
Across the world, Labour parties have embraced the logic of capitalism, war and the market. Alternatively, the movement against the effects of the neoliberal crisis has seen the formation of several New Left parties in many countries- such as Die Linke in Germany, People before Profit in Ireland and the Left Bloc in Portugal.
Nicola Owen, Joe Carolan and Paul Brown look at some of these examples of how the fighting left have arrived in the national stage, and the lessons for socialists who have participated and built these new parties, as we join to build the MANA Movement here in Aotearoa.
More info- txt Joe at 029 44 55 702.


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Pistis Sophia, by G.R.S. Mead, [1921], at sacred-texts.com
Philip questioneth Jesus.It came to pass then, when Jesus had finished saying these words, while Philip sat and wrote all the words that Jesus spake,--thereafter then it came to pass that Philip came forward, fell down and adored the feet of Jesus, saying: "My Lord and Saviour, grant me authority to discourse before thee and to question thee on this word, before thou discoursest with us concerning the regions whither thou didst go because of thy ministry."
And the compassionate Saviour answered and said unto Philip: "Authority is given thee to bring forward the word which thou willest."
And Philip answered and said unto Jesus: "My Lord, on account of what mystery hast thou changed the binding of the rulers and their æons and their Fate and their sphere and all their regions, and made them confounded in confusion on their path and deluded in their course? Hast thou then done this unto them for the salvation of the world or hast thou not?"


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5 Schools That Couldn't Avoid the Dreaded 'Death Penalty'
Penn State got hit with severe sanctions by the NCAA on Monday morning, including a $60 million fine, a four-year football postseason ban and a vacation of all wins dating back to 1998.
Penn State must also reduce its total scholarships each year for that four-year period. But the school has survived the biggest punishment that the NCAA could have handed it: the death penalty.
In accordance with the NCAA's ruling, Penn State won't be suspended from competition. Still, the school faces an uphill battle to earn its reputation back after revelations that beloved coach Joe Paterno helped cover up decades of child abuse — on Sunday, the school removed Paterno's statue outside Beaver Stadium. Here's a look back at the five colleges who did suffer from the death penalty, and what they did to earn their exclusions:
The Wildcats were a force to be reckoned with even back then, but that success came to a halt in 1951 when the NCAA got wind of a point shaving scandal. Several players were arrested for taking bribes from gamblers for an NIT games during the 1948-49 season. That year, the team won its second straight NCAA title. An investigation revealed that the school had committed several rule violations, including giving illegal spending money. They were suspended for a year, though unofficially, since the NCAA hadn't established its power to assign the death penalty at that point. The year it returned to play, the team put up a 25–0 record.
Southwestern Louisiana's basketball program got hit hard after it recruited players improperly, among other infractions. The head coach gave players money and other gifts — like lending his car — and gave money to prospective players as well. The school also allowed ineligible players to compete. Most egregious and troubling was a report that an assistant coach forged the signature of a high school principal on a player's transcript. They got banned from the 1973-74 and 1974-75 seasons as a result.
It's probably the most notorious cheating scandal that the NCAA ever had to tackle. Boosters paid SMU football players for years without anyone knowing. The school had been sanctioned multiples times before receiving the death penalty, and it didn't pose a deterrent because the scandal ran so deep that there was a large fear that everything would unravel. The only thing that the NCAA could do was shut down the program entirely. SMU returned in 1987, but it chose to take the following year off to rebuild, recover, and recruit. Their next bowl game wasn't until 2009.
Small schools are under the same scrutiny as Morehouse College found out when the Atlanta school met the wrath of the NCAA due to violations by its men's soccer program. They had signed professionals, resulting in a multiple-season ban on competition and a record-tying five years' probation. The school actually agreed with the committee's assessment and took the penalty in stride. "We all have discussed it and feel like it's a just decision," athletics director Andre Pattillo said. "It gives us a chance to do some things to make sure that, when we bring the program back, everything is going to be in order."


text: FIT2WIN sent us a glimpse of the new sublimated reversibles they made for Army. FIT2WIN's collegiate licensing allows them to fool around with your favorite teams' colors and the like, Army included. The Army reversibles feature a familiar Camouflage foreground which is flanked by a Black background with Army's logo centered front and back.


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Single-Engine Controls
Mercury Marine changes the boating industry.
Marine engine technology has evolved. Mercury Marine continues to expand its outboard and marine engine technology. Mercury is leading the industry with boating innovations from Zeus joystick technology to VesselView displays, Joystick Piloting for Outboards, Active Trim, and Skyhook GPS digital anchoring. In 2016, Mercury introduced the VesselView Mobile app for iOS and Android, and an updated joystick and skyhook feature to its portfolio of technologies.
Mercury single-engine controls are engineered, built and tested for the long run.
Whatever your boat, you're covered.
Aluminium fishing, center-console, pontoon - whatever your boat, Mercury® is your single source for single-engine controls. An entire range of controls that fit perfectly the boat, the application, the helmsman. Choose from side mounts, flush/panel mounts, console mounts - with combined speed and trim functions and engine warmup. All pure Mercury. Inside and out.
Ergonomics. We've made it a science.
Spend a whole day on the water, and you'll know how important it is. The feel, the control, the leverage of a well-designed throttle. And at Mercury, we overlook nothing. Things like soft-grip handles. Smooth internal mechanisms. Slim profiles. They work better. They feel better. They are better.
The digital difference.
Many of the larger Mercury outboards are digitally compatible. So you've got SmartCraft® Digital Throttle & Shift (DTS), right at your fingertips. Smoother shifting. Quicker response. A whole new level of control for single-engine boats.
Controls and gauges that have to face the ultimate test - Mercury engineers.
Getting past a Mercury engineer is no easy task. There's lab testing. On-water testing. Race testing. Often up to 1000 total hours before the control or gauge is fully certified by Mercury Engineering. And worthy of your boat.
Effortless Control.
Mercury's patented Joystick Piloting System delivers 360 degree directional control. The Skyhook Digital Anchoring System holds your boat in a fixed position regardless of wind or current. Active Trim is the only auto-trimming program that uses GPS and speed. SmartCraft DTS (Digital Throttle & Shift) delivers precise and smooth handling with instant response and total control.
The power of SmartCraft®.
At your fingertips, and your command.
Matched to your boat. Your helm. Your life on the water.
You want the right engines on your boat – and the right controls as well. Choose from a full range of multi-engine control packages. With panel, flush-mount, console, binnacle, or top-mount installations.
SmartCraft® gives you total vessel integration. A complete suite of digital technologies united in one powerful, integrated, on-board vessel management system – from controls and Digital Throttle & Shift (DTS) to digital gauges, sensors, alarms and other on-board electronics. You're in control of the boat. And everything else.
Takes the guesswork out of pulling skiers, tubers, and wake boarders. Create a custom launch profile for each rider. Plug it into the system once, enjoy a perfect launch speed every time. Just hit the throttle and go.
Docking is no longer nerve-racking. Axius® Joystick Piloting for Sterndrives gives you absolute, pinpoint accuracy, stem to stern, regardless of wind, waves, and current. Allowing even relative beginners to approach the dock confidently and effortlessly, from any angle.
Mercury Marine is the only marine engine manufacturer to offer joystick piloting for outboards, petrol and diesel sterndrives, and pod drives.
Instant response, total control. No hesitation, no comparison. No cables either.


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Traditional host-based antimalware packages just aren't that useful anymore, according to some companies that find it either doesn't protect against the main dangers they face from the Web or it simply doesn't run well in virtualized computer environments.
"We're hovering at 95 percent virtualized," and the move has necessitated a new approach to security, such as deploying virtual-machine-based intrusion detection and protection. But PrimeLending has also found some things that worked fine in the previrtualized era, such as traditional host-based antivirus software, just don't seem to run well in a virtualized environment, says Johnny Hernandez, vice president of information security at Dallas financial services firm PrimeLending.
[ Find out how to block the viruses, worms, and other malware that threaten your business, with hands-on advice from InfoWorld's expert contributors in InfoWorld's "Malware Deep Dive" PDF guide. ]
[ More on cybercrime: Apathy, law enforcement complications keep cybercrime hopping ]
The company has undergone a gradual transformation from traditional physical servers and desktops to virtualized ones based on VMware vSphere. "Today, we don't run A/V in the current virtualization environment because it does have an impact on the back-end and system utilization," Hernandez says. PrimeLending has virtualized its internal financial databases, Exchange and SQL servers and SharePoint. Traditional anti-malware programs running in multiple virtual instances can disrupt application performance.
Perimeter-based malware filtering, in this case using a Cisco-based antimalware filter, is one line of defense for the company. Physical appliances used for security, however, generally face "blind spots" in terms of VMs. But PrimeLending is now monitoring and inspecting VMs for signs of malware or attack traffic in a way it couldn't before by using the HP TippingPoint Virtual Controller (vController), the version of TippingPoint's IPS (intrusion-prevention system) for VMware-based environments. It works like a software-based extension of the physical HP TippingPoint IPS.
That has worked well at overcoming the VM blind spot that was there, Hernandez says, though the unexpectedly high traffic speeds that were an unanticipated impact of virtualization itself meant switching to a higher-speed TippingPoint appliance.
The vController IPS has been able to identify potential problems, such as the document that had gotten infected, apparently because it was edited on an infected home PC by an employee and then uploaded to SharePoint. "The document stored internally was trying to gather information from another," Hernandez says. The vController IPS detected and blocked that.
PrimeLending is also using the TippingPoint vController capability to share security event data with the RSA data-loss prevention product it uses and the RSA security and event management product, EnVision.
But in the quest to find the suitable antimalware defense that could be used for VMs, PrimeLending plans to try Trend Micro's Deep Security, which uses VMware-based vShield APIs to do malware scans. But it doesn't yet have a way to automate removal of malware if it somehow sneaks in. "There will be limitations in the beginning," Hernandez says. "It's new ground, a new effort."
Others also say traditional host-based antimalware is not as valuable to them that it once was because the main problems they face are coming from Web-based malware.
"We were having a lot of infections in our environment, one to two, sometimes three infections per week," says Albert Gore, director of information technology operations at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. He doubts most desktop antivirus software, including the McAfee software used at the Kennedy Center, can do much against the malicious code that can be inadvertently spread via employee, contractor, and the performing artists using the Web.
Facebook and YouTube are the two biggest sources of infections in the experience of the Kennedy Center, Gore says. Infections mean "you have to go find out what happened, quarantine them, find out if data has been stolen, if any," he says. Malware attack episodes have shown people do lose files or find them deleted. However, the performing arts center needs to use social networking in its business.
The Kennedy Center found its virus-infection flare-ups were largely stamped out by using a Web filtering gateway. The one in use today, the Websense Web Security Gateway, lets the IT department provide broad access to social networking sites and the Web in general but blocks specific links that are dangerous sources of malware.
The Kennedy Center is hardly alone in coping with Web-based malware incidents.
According to a survey of 382 IT professionals published this week, 78 percent said their organizations had experienced at least one malware attack during the last 12 months, with a common experience being a malware attack every 73 days.
The survey, done by Osterman Research and sponsored by M86 Security, said 97 percent of the respondents indicated their organizations used a desktop antivirus product of some sort, but just 60 percent used a secure Web gateway. The most reported type of malware attack was traced to an infection from the Web, according to 70 percent. Fake software, such as fake antivirus, ranked high. Twenty-seven percent said their malware problems had increased over the past 12 months, and only 9 percent said it had decreased.
The survey found that 76 percent reported the need to re-image computers after malware attacks, and the typical malware attack requires a mean of 27.5 IT person-hours to remediate. It was also noted that 12 percent of employees in the average victimized organization had their work disrupted while a malware-related problem was being remediated.
Read more about wide area network in Network World's Wide Area Network section.
This story, "Is host-based antivirus software losing luster?" was originally published by Network World.


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Meet Tom Lambertson — Avid Kayaker
October 20, 2008
Tom Lambertson
Tom Lambertson recently became manager of the Lab's Site Services Division after serving as the manager of the Lab's Central Fabrication Services Division for 5 years. If you ask him what he loves to do most, he would say his job. But then he would smile and quickly add that he also loves the outdoors, especially kayaking.
An avid kayaker, Lambertson is certified as an instructor by the American Red Cross and the American Canoe Association and spends time training individuals under the "water safety" program sponsored by the Red Cross. His favorite paddling spot is the Peconic River. "I literally can pick up a kayak, walk across the street from my house, and put it in the Peconic River," said Lambertson. "Kayaking is the greatest way to relax and appreciate the beauty of our natural world."
For Lambertson, safety is first in order of importance. "About 20 years ago, fellow BNLer Ernie Jochen told me I should stop windsurfing and start kayaking," he said. "Seeing Ernie's enthusiasm for the sport, I decided to act on his suggestion. But, one day I took a spill in my kayak on Lake Ronkonkoma. That's when I decided I needed lessons from Ernie. The two of us became friends and spent time kayaking in various places around Long Island. But that spill on the lake also inspired me to become an instructor because I realized that safety is key. My motto is PFDs [personal flotation devices] are mandatory no matter what water sport you are doing."
During the 12-week instruction period, Lambertson teaches novices how to balance themselves and get in and out of the boat safely, tie nautical knots, and learn the difference between forward, backward, sweep, and draw paddle strokes. Students learn how to react if their boat flips and how to help fellow kayakers if they encounter trouble. When they have completed the course, Lambertson said he feels like he has enhanced their skills as well as their knowledge of safety on the water.
Lambertson owns several riverboats and kayaks that range from 10 feet to almost 19 feet in length. He explained that riverboats are shorter and better for training purposes. "They have less maneuverability, so every stroke makes a difference," he said. "If you can handle the riverboat easily you can take a step up to a longer kayak." His personal favorite is a 17.5-foot kayak that showcases a wooden maple deck with an Indian motif. "There is nothing I don't like about this boat. It sits low in the water and is easy to maneuver," Lambertson said.
"I spend time outdoors as often as possible," he said. "After all, a day shared with nature is always a good day."
Think you or one of your colleagues has a good story to tell? Email us! Although we can't write about everyone, we would love to hear your ideas and suggestions.
2008-713 | INT/EXT | Newsroom


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21 results, sorted by
Taxation Global minimum tax: frequently asked questions
In these FAQs, we answer the top questions on a major reform to international corporate tax rules.
Climate action First impact report for Green German Federal securities published
On 20 April 2021, the German government published the first allocation report for its Green Federal securities issued in 2020. The "Green Bond Allocation Report 2020" provides investors with transparent and binding information on expenditures from the federal government's environmental and climate protection programmes. It lists expenditures recognised as "green" in the 2019 federal budget and …
Financial markets FATF Ministers commit to take decisive action against money laundering
Under German chairmanship the Ministers of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) members committed to take swift and decisive action to improve the effectiveness of measures to fight money laundering, terrorist and proliferation financing at their meeting in Washington D.C. today. This includes promptly implementing the FATF's global beneficial ownership rules, which were strengthened earlier …
Financial markets Scholz welcomes IMF's historic decision
German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz commented: "Yesterday evening we decided at the International Monetary Fund, the IMF, to increase what are known as special drawing rights by US$650bn. This is historically unprecedented. It is the right, appropriate response to the Covid-19 pandemic. The new SDRs allow the international community to create additional liquidity and thereby foster the stability …
taxation Tax data from Dubai now going to the Länder
At the Federal Ministry of Finance's behest, the Federal Central Tax Office (Bundeszentralamt für Steuern) has purchased data for the purpose of detecting international tax crimes. This is the first time that the Federal Central Tax Office has independently purchased data that will have a material impact on the taxation process.
Climate action German Sustainable Finance Strategy
Today the federal cabinet adopted the first German Sustainable Finance Strategy. The goal of the strategy is to mobilise investments that are urgently needed for climate action and sustainability while also addressing the climate risks that are increasingly relevant to the financial system. Germany's Sustainable Finance Strategy is setting a new course in the financial system based on the core …
Climate action Federal government publishes first allocation report for Green Federal securities
On 20 April 2021, the German government published the first allocation report for its Green Federal securities issued in 2020. The "Green Bond Allocation Report 2020" provides investors with transparent and binding information on expenditures from the federal government's environmental and climate protection programmes. It lists expenditures recognised as "green" in the 2019 federal budget and …
taxation Scholz: "We're taking action to eliminate tax havens"
The German cabinet adopted the draft Defence against Tax Havens Act on 31 March 2021. With the new law, the German government is taking action against tax evasion, tax avoidance and unfair tax competition from tax havens.
taxation Tobacco Duty Modernisation Act adopted
The German cabinet adopted the draft Tobacco Duty Modernisation Act on 24 March 2021. With this legislation, the German government is adjusting tobacco duty rates and responding to changes in the tobacco market and in consumer behaviour. The new law also serves to improve public health and protect minors.
taxation Scholz to boost the competitiveness of family businesses
The federal cabinet adopted the draft Act Updating Corporate Tax Law (Gesetz zur Modernisierung des Körperschaftsteuerrechts) on 24 March 2021. With this bill, the German federal government is improving the tax framework especially for small and medium-sized partnerships and family businesses. In addition, it makes German corporate tax law better suited for international business in a globalised …


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http://www.mycharlottencrealestate.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/2-Color-Logo.png 0 0 Josh Fretz | Realtor NC-SC http://www.mycharlottencrealestate.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/2-Color-Logo.png Josh Fretz | Realtor NC-SC2012-08-14 13:45:252012-08-14 13:45:25South Charlotte NC Luxury Estate Foreclosure in Gated Community of Greenwood
South Charlotte NC Luxury Estate Foreclosure in Gated Community of Greenwood
8371 Providence RD Charlotte NC 28226 – Greenwood
This South Charlotte NC Luxury Estate Foreclosure is located in the gated community of Greenwood. This 5 bed 8.5 bath luxury home sits on a large 5.41 acre lot with nearly 10,900 sq ft of heated living space and an additional 2800 sq ft of unheated living space, in-ground pool, gourmet kitchen, and so much more! For more information on this home contact Josh Fretz (704)351-6334 or firstname.lastname@example.com
Sold in 2004 for $2,850,000


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Content Map Terms
British Columbia Specific Information
A stroke is a brain injury caused by blood flow to the brain being blocked, or bleeding in the brain. After having a stroke you may experience physical, mental and emotional complications. These could include: weakness on one side of the body, joint pain, trouble walking, speech and language difficulties, trouble with memory or focusing, etc. Stroke rehabilitation programs can help you continue to live as independently as possible after a stroke, and to learn to adjust to the physical and mental changes caused by your stroke.
To find stroke recovery and rehabilitation programs in your area, search HealthLinkBC's FIND Services and Resources Directory. For more information on stroke recovery, visit Heart and Stroke Foundation or Stroke Recovery Association of British Columbia.
For more information on exercising to prevent a stroke or rehabilitation exercises after a stroke, call 8-1-1 to speak with a qualified exercise professional Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm PST. You may also call 8-1-1 to speak with a registered nurse 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Is this topic for you?
This topic covers rehabilitation after a stroke. For information on stroke itself, see the topic Stroke.
What is stroke rehabilitation?
The best way to get better after a stroke is to start stroke rehabilitation ("rehab"). In stroke rehab, a team of health professionals works with you to regain skills you lost as the result of a stroke. Rehab can help you to:
- Do as well as you can and be as independent as possible.
- Learn to live with the changes to your brain and body caused by the stroke.
- Adjust to living within your home, family, and community.
Rehab starts while you are still in the hospital. After you leave the hospital, you can continue treatment at a rehab centre or at home. Some rehab programs offer at least 3 hours of therapy a day, 5 or 6 days a week.
A key part of rehab is taking steps to prevent a future stroke. To stay in good health, you may need to take medicines and make some lifestyle changes. Work with your rehab team to decide what type of exercise, diet, or other lifestyle choices are best for you.
You have the greatest chance of regaining your abilities during the first few months after a stroke. So it is important to start rehab soon after a stroke and do a little every day.
Who is on a stroke rehab team?
You and your family, loved ones, and caregivers are the most important part of the rehab team. A team of health professionals will work with each other, you, and your caregivers to help you recover from a stroke. A rehab team may include doctors and nurses who specialize in stroke rehab, as well as rehabilitation therapists such as:
- A physiotherapist to work on problems with movement, balance, and coordination.
- An occupational therapist to help you practice eating, bathing, dressing, writing, and other daily tasks.
- A speech-language pathologist to help you relearn speech and language skills and also help if you have problems with swallowing.
- A recreational therapist to help you return to activities that you enjoyed before the stroke.
- A psychologist or counsellor to help you deal with your emotions.
- Other health professionals, such as a dietitian to help you plan a healthy diet and a vocational counsellor to help you find a job or get back to work.
A social worker or case manager will help you and your caregivers arrange for the help and equipment you may need at home after you leave the rehab centre.
What kinds of problems can people have after a stroke?
The problems you have after a stroke depend on what part of your brain was affected and how much damage the stroke caused. People who have had a stroke often have:
- Problems with movement and sensation. You may have pain, numbness, or tingling in your arms and legs; muscle stiffness or spasms; weakness; and trouble with walking and moving. You may have problems with your sense of touch or how well you feel hot and cold, trouble swallowing and eating, and urinary or bowel problems.
- Problems with vision. You may have problems seeing in some or all of the normal areas of vision.
- Problems with not being aware of one side of your body.
- Problems with language and thinking. You may not be able to understand written or spoken language, read or write, or express your thoughts. You may also have problems with memory and learning.
- Emotional problems. A stroke can cause feelings of fear, anxiety, anger, sadness, and grief, both for survivors of a stroke and their loved ones.
Does a stroke cause permanent problems?
A stroke damages parts of the brain that control different things in the body, such as speech and movement. But other parts of the brain can take over for the damaged areas. Many people are able to get back most of the skills and abilities they lost.
Some people do have permanent problems after a stroke. But rehab can help you learn new skills that will help you take care of yourself as much as possible.
How long does rehab take?
How long you will be in a rehab program depends on what kind of help you need. The road to recovery can be long and frustrating, so keeping a positive outlook is key. Try everything you can to get better, and get relief from pain if you need to. Your stroke rehab team is there to help in as many ways as it can. A strong support network of family and friends is also very important.
You may recover the most in the first few weeks or months after your stroke. But you can keep getting better for years. It just may happen more slowly. And it may take a long time and a lot of hard work. Don't give up hope.
What else should you think about?
- It is common to feel sad and hopeless after a stroke. It may be hard to deal with your emotions. Tell your rehab team how you feel. Get treatment for depression if you need it.
- It is important to get the support you need. Let your loved ones help you. They are part of your rehab team. Get them involved in your treatment. Talk to others who have had a stroke, and find out how they handled problems.
- A stroke affects your loved ones too. They may be as scared and worried as you are. Urge them to find a caregiver support group and learn ways to relieve their stress.
- You may have questions or concerns about having sex again. Rehab may include help and support.
Health Tools
Health Tools help you make wise health decisions or take action to improve your health.
What to Expect After a Stroke
Initial disabilities
Your disabilities and your ability to get better after a stroke depend on:
- Which side of the brain was affected (whether it is your dominant side).
- Which part of the brain was damaged by the stroke.
- How much of the brain was damaged.
- Your general health before the stroke.
Impairments after a stroke may include problems with muscles and movement. These include:
- Weakness on one side of the body. This may cause you to have trouble walking, grasping objects, or doing other tasks. The side of the body that is affected is opposite from the side of the brain that was damaged by the stroke.
- Joint pain and rigidity. A person with a very weak arm may have shoulder pain caused by a tight or locked-up joint. Movement of the joint is essential to keep it from "freezing" and to make sure that you can move it easily when your strength returns.
- Muscle stiffness or spasms (spasticity). If you have spasticity, you may need certain medicines or injections of substances that block nerve reactions.
- Problems with your sense of touch or your ability to feel hot and cold. You may also have problems judging the position of parts of your body.
- Pain, numbness, or tingling in your limbs.
- Trouble with starting and coordinating body movements (apraxia).
- Problems swallowing and eating (dysphagia). For more information, see dysphagia. See also:
- Urinary or bowel problems. You may have trouble holding your urine (urinary incontinence) or trouble emptying your bladder (urinary retention). Or you may have constipation or problems controlling bowel movements. Although this can make you feel embarrassed or discouraged, these issues are usually not permanent. For more information, see how to manage bladder and bowel problems after a stroke.
Other problems involve how you process information and your emotions. These include:
- Speech and language problems. These may involve speaking, reading, writing, or understanding the spoken word. Aphasia is a problem that usually results from damage to the left side of the brain, which is the area responsible for language. Some people who have aphasia may not be able to understand written or spoken language, read or write, or express their own thoughts. For information on coping with communication problems, see how to manage speech and language problems after a stroke.
- Memory and cognitive problems. You may have damage to parts of your brain that control awareness, learning, and memory. You may have trouble focusing or remembering. It may be difficult to make plans, learn new activities, or do other complex tasks. You may not be able to acknowledge the physical impairments caused by your stroke. For more information, see memory problems, changes in speed of action, and changes in judgment after a stroke.
- Problems with perception. You may have trouble judging distance, size, position, rate of movement, form, and how parts relate to the whole. Some people have trouble recognizing body parts on the affected side. This is especially true for people who do not have feeling in the affected arm or leg. For more information, see changes in perception after a stroke.
- Problems with vision. You may have problems seeing in some or all of the normal areas of vision. For more information, see vision problems after a stroke.
- Emotional problems. Fear, anxiety, anger, sadness, frustration, and grief are common after a stroke. Depression is a serious condition that requires treatment. For more information, see changes in emotions and recognizing and dealing with depression after a stroke.
Recovering what was lost—the first steps
The brain is a remarkable organ that has the ability to rewire itself to some degree. Areas damaged by a stroke may be able to work again. And parts of the brain that have not been affected by the stroke may be able to take over for the damaged areas, doing some of the tasks formerly controlled by the affected areas.
Much of your improvement in motor functioning—walking, using your arms and legs—comes in the early phase of stroke recovery. This is one of the reasons that it is so important to start rehabilitation as soon as possible.
Your first stage of rehab usually begins 24 to 48 hours after your stroke, as soon as your health is stable and while you are in the hospital. For most people, rehab begins with the goal of getting out of bed and into a chair. As you gradually regain strength and function, nurses or therapists will help you regain skills and relearn tasks that were lost because of the stroke. The intensity and focus of initial rehab will vary with each person. It is a process based on your own needs. If you have other health problems (such as a heart condition, for example), you may need to go a bit slower than someone who was healthy before his or her stroke.
When you are ready to leave the hospital, your treatment may continue at a rehab facility. This may be in another part of the hospital where you were first treated, at a separate facility, or at home if it is safe for you and you have the right support. You may go to a skilled nursing facility if you are not ready or able to go to a rehab facility. People who have the greatest desire to improve and who have a good support network of friends and family will be the most likely to improve with rehab, regardless of where the rehab takes place.
Recovering from a stroke can be very frustrating. It is common to face depression and have some setbacks. You may make strong improvement at first and then feel like you have lost some of what you gained. Overcoming problems with speech and language may seem very slow, because it may be hard for you to measure your progress. You may feel a deep sense of grief for the loss of an active lifestyle prior to your stroke. But your stroke rehab team is there to help in as many ways as possible. Discussing your frustrations with the team and your family will be an important part of your recovery.
Building a network of support outside your family may be helpful. Stroke support groups may be offered through your local hospital or chapter of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada. These will include people who are learning to cope with many of the same things that you and your family are facing. Loved ones who help take care of you will also benefit from support networks. Ask your doctor or rehab team about local support groups.
Preventing another stroke
There are many things you can do to prevent another stroke. They include taking medicines and making lifestyle changes to improve your overall health. Controlling other risk factors for stroke, such as high blood pressure, is also important.
Concerns of the Caregiver
Taking care of a loved one who has had a stroke can be difficult for many reasons. You may be afraid that your loved one will have another stroke or will not be able to accept or overcome disabilities. You may worry that you are not prepared to care for someone who has just had a stroke. Or you may have your own health concerns that make it hard for you to care for another person. You may also worry about a loss of income, or become depressed over losing the lifestyle that you previously enjoyed with your loved one.
Before your loved one returns home, the rehab team will train you or other family members to help with therapy. You may learn to help your loved one get up from a fall, get dressed, get to the washroom, eat, and do other activities. If you have your own health concerns that prevent you from being able to help, you may need in-home help, or your loved one may need to go to a nursing home or assisted-living facility. But even if you can't provide physical help, your love and support are still key to your loved one's recovery.
Your rehab team can provide more information about local community resources, such as in-home help.
Here are ways that you can help with your loved one's recovery:
- Give support and encouragement for taking part in the rehab program.
- Visit and talk with your loved one often. Encourage your loved one to do activities, such as playing a game with you. Keep in touch with your loved one's friends as much as you can, and encourage them to visit.
- Participate in educational programs and attend rehab sessions as much as possible.
- Help your loved one learn and practice new skills.
- Find out what your loved one can do independently or needs help with. Avoid doing things for your loved one that he or she is able to do without help.
You will also need to take care of your own well-being.
- Eat well, get enough rest, and take time to do things that you enjoy. Get out of the house as much as possible.
- Make sure that you do not ignore your own health while you are caring for your loved one. Do not try to do everything yourself. Keep up with your own doctor visits and make sure to take your own medicines regularly. Ask other family members to help. Find out if you qualify for adult daycare or for home health care visits to help with rehab.
- Locate a support group to attend. You can find them through your local hospital or chapter of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada. Also, check with the rehab team for ideas and help.
- Schedule time for yourself. Get out of the house and do things that you enjoy, run errands, or go shopping.
For more information on caregiving, see the topic Caregiver Tips.
Preventing Another Stroke
You can help prevent a stroke if you control risk factors and treat other medical conditions that can lead to a stroke.
Know your stroke risk
These are some of the common risk factors for stroke:
- You have atrial fibrillation.
- You smoke.
- You have high blood pressure.
- Your cholesterol is higher than average.
- You have diabetes.
- You are overweight.
- You do not exercise on a regular basis.
- You drink large amounts of alcohol.
Treat any health problems you have
- Manage high blood pressure or high cholesterol by working with your doctor.
- Manage diabetes. Keep your blood sugar levels within a target range.
- If your doctor recommends that you take aspirin or a blood thinner, take it. This can help prevent a stroke.
- Take your medicine exactly as prescribed. Call your doctor if you think you are having a problem with your medicine.
Adopt a healthy lifestyle
- Don't smoke or allow others to smoke around you. For more information, see the topic Quitting Smoking.
- Stay at a healthy weight. Being overweight makes it more likely you will develop high blood pressure, heart problems, and diabetes. These conditions make a stroke more likely.
- Be active. Ask your doctor and your rehab team what type and level of activity is safe for you. They can help make an exercise program that is right for you. A program might include 2½ hours a week of moderate exercise. It's fine to be active in blocks of 10 minutes or more throughout your day and week.
- Eat heart-healthy foods. These include fruits, vegetables, high-fibre foods, and foods that are low in sodium, saturated fat, and trans fat. Eat fish at least 2 times each week. Oily fish, which contain omega-3 fatty acids, are best. These fish include salmon, mackerel, lake trout, herring, and sardines.
- Limit alcohol. If you're a man, have no more than 3 standard drinks a day on most days and no more than 15 drinks a week. If you're a woman, have no more than 2 standard drinks a day on most days and no more than 10 drinks a week.
If you or your loved one has already had a stroke, you need to watch carefully for symptoms of another stroke. Immediate medical attention and treatment may help prevent or reduce permanent brain damage. If signs of a stroke develop suddenly, call 9-1-1 or other emergency services immediately. For more information on stroke symptoms and when to seek medical attention, see the topic Stroke.
Medicines for Stroke Prevention
Your doctor will probably prescribe several medicines after you have had a stroke. Medicines to prevent blood clots are typically used, because blood clots can cause TIAs and strokes.
The types of medicines that prevent clotting are:
- Anticoagulant medicines.
- Antiplatelet medicines.
Cholesterol-lowering and blood-pressure–lowering medicines are also used to prevent TIAs and strokes.
For more information on medicines prescribed after a stroke, see Stroke.
Medicines for Stroke Rehabilitation
After a stroke, you may need medicines to decrease pain, treat depression, or help speed your recovery.
You may take medicines for other problems, such as sleeping or anxiety. These medicines may include:
- Medicines for sleeping. After a stroke, you may have trouble sleeping (insomnia). Your doctor may prescribe different types of medicines to help you sleep, including the antidepressants trazodone and mirtazapine (Remeron), which have sedation as a side effect. Other sleep medicines, such as chloral hydrate, may be effective but have the potential to be misused which can lead to substance use disorder.
- Medicines for anxiety. Various medicines may be used to treat anxiety after a stroke. Benzodiazepines, such as lorazepam (Ativan, for example), are minor tranquilizers or sedatives that slow down the central nervous system. Alprazolam (Xanax, for example) and buspirone (Bustab, for example) are antianxiety medicines that relieve anxiety and nervousness.
- Medicines for agitation. Doctors use various types of medicines to treat agitation. Neuroleptics, such as haloperidol, risperidone (Risperdal, for example), and olanzapine (Zyprexa, for example), are antipsychotic medicines that work by changing the effects of brain chemicals. The anticonvulsant valproic acid (Epival, for example) is sometimes used to treat agitation.
Also see the topic Spasticity.
Adapting After a Stroke
After a stroke, rehabilitation will not only focus on helping you recover from disabilities but also on making changes in your lifestyle, at home, at work, and in relationships. Changes you make will depend on how the stroke affected your ability to function.
Your rehab team can help you learn how to adapt, be safe, and return to daily activities.
In rehab, you may learn how to use assistive devices or orthotics. These are tools that help you hold objects, open and close things, transfer weight while shifting positions, or walk. These tools may be hard to get used to, but they help you return to your daily life and everyday tasks.
Your rehab team can give you tips on how to safely return to your daily activities. For more information, see:
- Managing Bladder and Bowel Problems After a Stroke.
- Stroke: Tips to Help With Memory Problems.
- Managing Getting Dressed After a Stroke.
- Preventing Falls.
- Preventing Injury and Swelling in Affected Limbs After a Stroke.
- Pressure Injuries.
- Spasticity.
- Driving a Car After a Stroke.
- Stroke Recovery: Coping With Eating Problems.
Related Information
Current as of: July 6, 2021
Author: Healthwise Staff
Medical Review:
E. Gregory Thompson MD - Internal Medicine
Brian D. O'Brien MD - Internal Medicine
Adam Husney MD - Family Medicine
Martin J. Gabica MD - Family Medicine
Kathleen Romito MD - Family Medicine
Richard D. Zorowitz MD - Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Current as of: July 6, 2021
Author: Healthwise Staff
Medical Review:E. Gregory Thompson MD - Internal Medicine & Brian D. O'Brien MD - Internal Medicine & Adam Husney MD - Family Medicine & Martin J. Gabica MD - Family Medicine & Kathleen Romito MD - Family Medicine & Richard D. Zorowitz MD - Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
This information does not replace the advice of a doctor. Healthwise, Incorporated disclaims any warranty or liability for your use of this information. Your use of this information means that you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Learn how we develop our content.
Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated.


text:
met Susanna Gualco while she was still alive and working. I made a note to someday visit Romano Levi as well. It never happened.
I don't take easily to any grappa. Most are too harsh, no soul, just jet fuel piled into a full stomach. Lethal for all but the most iron-clad of stomachs. Gualco exposed me to the finesse of grappa.
One could tell he was suffering. His eyes showed the early pain of loss. I told him to countdown two years; pretend it was a long flight to the moon and back. In April of 2015 he would finally be clear of the suffering. He would laugh about it, looking back. His sad eyes wanted to believe me, but he was in the thick of it. He was burning up. But he diverted for a few moments to show us the shrine.
Did Romano Levi summon us to cheer up his young acolyte?
Several hours later as we were driving through Barbaresco, Fabrizio was sitting as a table with five friends. He was laughing, had a nice bottle of wine to share. We called out to him as we drove by; stopped to see him. His eyes weren't as sad. The Nebbiolo helped. Not being alone did even more. Fabrizio was counting down the days. 709 days to go.
written and photographed by Alfonso Cevola limited rights reserved On the Wine Trail in Italy
wine blog + Italian wine blog + Italy W


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Add to the pot, the potatoes, salt and water and boil for about 20 minutes or until the potatoes are cooked.
While the potatoes are boiling, fry the bacon until crisp and drain. Cut the bacon into bite sized pieces.
Use a potato masher or an emersion blender to partially mash about 1/4 of the potatoes and vegetables.
Add the bacon, milk, evaporated milk, cheese, parsley and pepper to the soup pot. Allow the cheese to melt, stirring occasionally.
Serve warm and enjoy.


text:
Class and Event Calendar
For Class Enrollment Information and Registration Form with Class Fee Listing, Visit Outreach Education
- This event has passed.
ACLS Renewal/Provider (CLOSED)
December 3, 2019 - December 4, 2019
Class Dates & Time:
December 3 & 4, 2019
- Location: MedCare Ambulance
- All students must complete course prerequisites before class including proficiency in current BLS Healthcare CPR/AED, ECG interpretation, pharmacology, ACLS algorithms and core cases, pre-course exam and learning contract.
- Renewal students attend Day 1 only
- Renewal students must provide a copy of the front/back of their current AHA provider card with course registration


text:
Few Privacy Regulations Inhibit Facebook
Now that it's a public company, Facebook needs to significantly boost its revenues to bring them in line with shareholders' expectations. That means finding new uses for the endless amounts of personal data the company collects from its users—but this prospect concerns privacy advocates, who say Facebook has outgrown existing privacy laws. Although regulators around the globe are increasing their scrutiny of Facebook, it might be years before they catch up.
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission, for example, will subject Facebook to 20 years of regular privacy audits after settling charges last year that the company engaged in "unfair and deceptive practices" such as misleading people about whether information they disclosed on the site would stay private. The FTC has a mandate to protect consumers from false advertising, but its ability to restrain Facebook is limited because current U.S. privacy laws are decades old. They're written to shield medical and financial information, even motor vehicle and movie rental records, but they don't address many practices common online today, such as compiling profiles of online behavior to target ads.
That might change under a "Privacy Bill of Rights" that the Obama administration unveiled this year; it calls for giving people more control over what companies do with personal information. But the process of developing laws based on it has just begun. Legislation proposed in January by the European Union, where privacy laws are traditionally stricter, could go much further. It includes a "right to be forgotten" that lets consumers require a company to delete their personal data and even remove traces of it from other websites. However, it will be years before any part of the proposal becomes law.
Some legal scholars believe that Facebook should be subject to specific consumer protection regulations. As the largest social network, it faces little competitive pressure, and people have few options if they don't like how the company handles their information. Chris Hoofnagle, a scholar at the University of California, Berkeley, who studies the economics of privacy, says situations similarly stacked against the public have caused lawmakers to intervene in the past. Credit card providers, for example, must now make sure that all product literature spells out exactly which fees and debts a person will become liable for. Hoofnagle says Facebook could eventually be subject to similar rules, requiring it to notify users about the income it derives from their data and whether any of that data has been transferred to other companies.
What Facebook Knows
The company's social scientists are hunting for insights about human behavior. What they find could give Facebook new ways to cash in on our data—and remake our view of society.
Given how rapidly Facebook has reeled in new users, it seems people are not very concerned about protecting their privacy on the site. But they should be, says Alessandro Acquisti, a researcher at Carnegie Mellon University. He worries about not only what Facebook can do with personal information now, but what could be inferred from such data a few years down the road. For instance, in 2009 he showed that Social Security numbers can be guessed using public data, some of it from social networks.
Acquisti is particularly concerned that Facebook could combine external data with what it already knows about its users—a step that would be invisible to users. One potential solution, he says, would be to encrypt personal data in a way that prevents a social or ad network from identifying a person but still allows targeting of advertisements. However, such technology is still not fully developed and would also limit what can be done with a data storehouse, so legislation to require its use is unlikely anytime soon.
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The Oil ConunDRUM
I synthesized the last several years of blog content and placed it into a book tentatively called The Oil ConunDRUM (ultimately titled Mathematical Geoenergy published by Wiley/AGU in 2019). This document turned into a treatise of topics relating to the role of disorder and entropy in the applied sciences. Volume 1 is mainly on the analysis of the decline in global oil production, while Volume 2 uses often related analysis in studying renewable sources of energy and how entropy plays a role in our environment and everyday life.
This is a list of the novel areas of research, listed in what I consider a ranked order of originality:
- The Oil Shock Model.
A data flow model of oil extraction and production which allows for perturbations.
- The Dispersive Discovery Model.
A probabilistic model of resource discovery which accounts for technological advancement and a finite search volume.
- The Reservoir Size Dispersive Aggregation Model.
A first-principles model that explains and describes the size distribution of oil reservoirs and fields around the world.
- Solving the Reserve Growth "enigma".
An application of dispersive discovery on a localized level which models the hyperbolic reserve growth characteristics observed.
- Shocklets.
A kernel approach to characterizing production from individual fields.
- Reserve Growth, Creaming Curve, and Size Distribution Linearization.
An obvious linearization of this family of curves, related to HL but more useful since it stems from first principles.
- The Hubbert Peak Logistic Curve explained.
The Logistic curve is trivially explained by dispersive discovery with exponential technology advancement.
- Laplace Transform Analysis of Dispersive Discovery.
Dispersion curves are solved by looking up the Laplace transform of the spatial uncertainty profile.
- The Maximum Entropy Principle and the Entropic Dispersion Framework.
The generalized math framework applied to many models of disorder, natural or man-made. Explains the origin of the entroplet.
- Gompertz Decline Model.
Exponentially increasing extraction rates lead to steep production decline.
- Anomalous Behavior in Dispersive Transport explained.
Photovoltaic (PV) material made from disordered and amorphous semiconductor material shows poor photoresponse characteristics. Solution to simple entropic dispersion relations or the more general Fokker-Planck leads to good agreement with the data over orders of magnitude in current and response times.
- Framework for understanding Breakthrough Curves and Solute Transport in Porous Materials.
The same disordered Fokker-Planck construction explains the dispersive transport of solute in groundwater or liquids flowing in porous materials.
- The Dynamics of Atmospheric CO2 buildup and extrapolation.
Used the oil shock model to convolve a fat-tailed CO2 residence time impulse response function with a fossil-fuel stimulus. This shows the long latency of CO2 buildup very straightforwardly.
- Terrain Slope Distribution Analysis.
Explanation and derivation of the topographic slope distribution across the USA. This uses mean energy and maximum entropy principle.
- Reliability Analysis and understanding the "bathtub curve".
Using a dispersion in failure rates to generate the characteristic bathtub curves of failure occurrences in parts and components.
- Wind Energy Analysis.
Universality of wind energy probability distribution by applying maximum entropy to the mean energy observed. Data from Canada and Germany.
- Dispersion Analysis of Human Transportation Statistics.
Alternate take on the empirical distribution of travel times between geographical points. This uses a maximum entropy approximation to the mean speed and mean distance across all the data points.
- The Overshoot Point (TOP) and the Oil Production Plateau.
How increases in extraction rate can maintain production levels.
- Analysis of Relative Species Abundance.
Dispersive evolution of species according to Maximum Entropy Principle leads to characteristic distribution of species abundance.
- Lake Size Distribution.
Analogous to explaining reservoir size distribution, uses similar arguments to derive the distribution of freshwater lake sizes. This provides a good feel for how often super-giant reservoirs and Great Lakes occur (by comparison)
- Labor Productivity Learning Curve Model.
A simple relative productivity model based on uncertainty of a diminishing return learning curve gradient over a large labor pool (in this case Japan).
- Project Scheduling and Bottlenecking.
Explanation of how uncertainty in meeting project deadlines or task durations caused by a spread of productivity rates leads to probabilistic schedule slips with fat-tails. Answers why projects don't complete on time.
- The Stochastic Model of Popcorn Popping.
The novel explanation of why popcorn popping follows the same bell-shaped curve of the Hubbert Peak in oil production.
- The Quandary of Infinite Reserves due to Fat-Tail Statistics.
Demonstrated that even infinite reserves can lead to limited resource production in the face of maximum extraction constraints.
- Oil Recovery Factor Model.
A model of oil recovery which takes into account reservoir size.
- Network Transit Time Statistics.
Dispersion in TCP/IP transport rates leads to the measured fat-tails in round-trip time statistics on loaded networks.
- Language Evolution Model.
Model for relative language adoption which depends on critical mass of acceptance.
- Web Link Growth Model.
Model for relative popularity of web sites which follows a diminishing return learning curve model.
- Scientific Citation Growth Model.
Same model used for explaining scientific citation indexing growth.
- Particle and Crystal Growth Statistics.
Detailed model of ice crystal size distribution in high-altitude cirrus clouds.
- Rainfall Amount Dispersion.
Explanation of rainfall variation based on dispersion in rate of cloud build-up along with dispersion in critical size.
- Earthquake Magnitude Distribution.
Distribution of earthquake magnitudes based on dispersion of energy buildup and critical threshold.
- Income Disparity Distribution.
Relative income distribution which includes inflection point to to compounding interest growth on investments.
- Insurance Payout Analysis, and Hyperbolic Discounting.
Fat-tail analysis of risk and estimation.
- Thermal Entropic Dispersion Analysis.
Solving the Fokker-Planck equation or Fourier's Law for thermal diffusion in a disordered environment. A subtle effect.
- GPS Acquisition Time Analysis.
Engineering analysis of GPS cold-start acquisition times.
EDIT (1/21/11): Here is a critique from TOD. I can only assume the commenter doesn't understand the concept of convolution or doesn't realize that such a useful technique exists:
Your methods are fundamentally flawed you cannot aggregate across producing basins like you do. Its simply wrong.
To add multiple producing basins together you must adjust the time variable such that all of them start production at the same time or if they have peaked all the peaks are aligned.
The time that a basin was discovered and put into production is an irrelevant random variable and has no influence on the ultimate URR.
If you don't correctly normalize the time variable across basins your work is simply garbage. There is no coupling between basins and no reason to average them based on real time. Its junk math. No simple function exists in real time to describe the aggregate production profile.
The US simply happened to have its larger basins developed about the same time in real time. Hubbert's original analysis worked simply because the error in the normalized time and real time was small.
One of the mysteries of science and mathematics is the role of entropy. The mathematician Gian-Carlo Rota from MIT had this to say just a few years ago:
The take on this is that as Rota says about the Maximum Entropy Principle "Among all mathematical recipes, this is to the best of my knowledge the one that has found the most striking applications in engineering practice", yet it retains this sense of mystery in that no one can really prove it -- entropy just IS and by its existence, you have to deal with it the best you can.
EDIT (1/31/11): In the book, the last prediction of global crude production I made was a while ago. Here is an update:
The chart above is the best guess model from 2007 using the combined Dispersive Discovery+Oil Shock Model for crude. Apart from a conversion from barrels/year to barrels/day, this is the same model as I used in a 2007 TOD post and documented in The Oil ConunDRUM. The recent data from EIA is shown as the green dots back to 1980. I always find it interesting to take the 10,000 foot view. What may look like a plateau up close, may actually be part of the curve at a distance.
EDIT (2/22/2011): An additional USA Shock Model not included in the book. I included Alaska in this model.
Discovery data transcribed from this figure; the discoveries seem to end in 1985, so I extended the data with a dispersive discovery model. I added in Alaska North Slope at 22 billion barrels in 1968 and a small 300 million barrel starter discovery in 1858.
The blue line in the Dispersive Discovery Model is this equation, which is essentially a scaled version of the world model:
DD(t)=(1-exp(-URR/(B*((t-t')^6))))*B*((t-t')^6), URR=240,000 million barrels, B=2E-7, t'=1835.
I did not include any perturbation shocks to keep it simple. Apart from the data, the following is the entirety of the Ruby code; the discovery.txt file is yearly discovery data, which is from the first graph. The second graph shows reserve.out and production.out.
cat discovery.txt | ruby exp.rb 0.07 | ruby exp.rb 0.07 | ruby exp.rb 0.07 > reserve.out
cat reserve.out | ruby exp.rb 0.08 >production.out
$ cat exp.rb
def exp(a, b) rate = b length = a.length temp = 0.0 for i in 0..length do output = (a[i].to_f + temp) * rate temp = (a[i].to_f + temp) * (1.0 - rate) puts output end end exp(STDIN.readlines, ARGV[0].to_f)


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LAS VEGAS -- The grandson of Babe Ruth is auctioning off the watch given to the baseball legend in his last appearance at Yankee Stadium in 1948, a few months before he died of cancer.
Tom Stevens was given the watch by his grandmother -- Ruth's wife, Claire -- when he graduated from college in 1974, and has kept it in a safe deposit box ever since.
"It's difficult to part with because I feel like I'm liquidating a legacy in a way," Stevens said. "I almost feel like it belongs in the family. But I think now would be a good time to put it to use."
The watch was presented to Ruth on June 13, 1948, when he appeared in pinstripes for the last time as his No. 3 was formally retired on the 25th anniversary of Yankee Stadium. A clearly ailing Ruth leaned on a bat loaned to him by Cleveland pitcher Bob Feller, a scene immortalized in a famous photo showing Ruth from behind.
The watch given to Ruth by the Yankees is a 14-karat Longines pocket model with an engraving on the back that reads: "Babe Ruth -- Silver Anniversary -- Yankee Stadium 1923-1948 `The House That Ruth Built."
Stevens, a civil engineer who is the son of Ruth's only surviving daughter, Julia, said he has always been proud to be Ruth's grandson.
"As a ballplayer, it was a little tough to play under the expectations but it has greatly enriched my life," the 61-year-old Stevens said. "My expression is that it's kind of like being born into baseball royalty."
Ruth memorabilia normally draws big prices, including a 1920 jersey that sold for more than $4.4 million in 2012. A watch that was part of a set given Ruth and his teammates for winning the 1923 World Series went for $717,000 this year.
The watch will be auctioned online by SCP Auctions, with final bids on May 17. SCP estimated it would go for at least $750,000.
Stevens said he will use the proceeds for family care, including helping his own grandchildren go to college.