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Tooken isn't a word. This is what you hear from the prescriptive grammarians and their acolytes. If they have children, sooner or later they end up correcting them. Children use tooken naturally as they attempt to understand and internalize the "rules" of our language. But rules are made to be breaken. :)
It starts with take. This goes back to Old English tacan, adopted from Old Norse taka "to take" sometime between the end of the eleventh century and the first half of the twelfth, which is pretty late — almost too late to be called Old English at all. Before this very late borrowing, the usual Old English verb was niman "to take, receive, get", a common word with a wide range of cognates among the other Germanic languages (cp. Old Norse nema; Old Frisian nima, nema; Old High German neman; Old Saxon niman; Gothic niman). It survived into Middle English as nimen, but it was more and more displaced by Middle English taken, táken (not to be confused with tácnen "to signify, betoken", to which we'll come back a little later).
The verb take has its own history. The verb originally carried the meaning "to touch", where the Old Norse (and later Old English) sense of "take" came from the association of touching with the hands, i.e., getting a hold of, grasping, seizing. In the original sense, we find such cognates as Gothic tékan, Old Saxon *takan, West Tocharian täk, Latin tangere, etc. Modern English tackle and attack are clearly related. But take in its modern sense is specifically Northern Germanic.
The Old English verb, like its Old Norse source, is what we call a strong verb, meaning that it forms the preterite (i.e., past tense) with a change in the stem vowel, rather than by the addition of a suffix (in Modern English, –ed). For example, a strong verb speak, has a preterite like spoke, while a weak verb like talk, has a preterite like talked (instead of, say, *telk). In the case of take, the stem vowel, a, changes to a long-o in the preterite. In Modern English terms, we call this kind of verb irregular. Its past tense is not *taked, but took (OE tóc, ON tók). The participles, however, retain the root stem vowel unchanged. Thus, the past participle is taken < OE tacen. It's worth noting that in Old Norse, the normal past participle (tekinn) does exhibit a vowel change; however, this is umlaut, not ablaut. In fact, the form takinn also occurs, though much less often. (If you don't understand what I mean by umlaut and ablaut but would like to, start here.)
The point is that, in normal English (that is to say, prescriptive English), we should expect taken, not tooken. But tooken is a legitimate enough word, particularly in historical or dialectal use, in both the U.K. and the U.S. To begin with, the Oxford English Dictionary itself gives tooken as an obsolete past participle of take. Obsolete essentially means here that we ought not to use it, unless we don't mind appearing old fashioned, but it is attested in the history of the language. That is, it wasn't "wrong", at least once upon a time. That's very different from an accidental form that has never been in use. If a form was once in use, and we decide we no longer like it, well, that's prescribing use, rather than describing it.
The form tooken also appears in Joseph Wright's English Dialect Dictionary, both as the preterite and the past participle. For the former, Wright gives a quotation from the Devon dialect: "he tooken off his coat". For the latter, he gives several examples, from Lanark, Yorkshire, Lincoln, Cheshire, Shropshire, Devon, Cornwall, etc. Except for the last two, these are all in northern England or southern Scotland. A couple of examples will suffice: "I've tooken a deal o' pains", "for fear I should be tooken faint like", and how about this wonderfully rich one: "Hoo was tooken wi' one on her feenty aitches an' hoo tiped o'er". But that's barely English, you might object!
A short sidebar, while you collect your righteous grammatical indignation. Before I give a few more details and examples of the history and validity of tooken as a preterite and past participle of take, I should disambiguate it from a nonce word of the same spelling. It turns out that you can find tooken in Early Modern English as an antecedent form of the Modern English word token (remember, I mentioned Middle English tácnen above). Sir John Cheke, the first Regius Professor of Greek at Cambridge, translated parts of the Gospels from the original Greek into Tudor English. In his translation of The Gospel of Matthew (c. 1550), Cheke spells the English token with two o's, as in: "And ye Pharisais and Sadducees cam and tried him, and required him to shew yem a tooken from heaven."
In an 1843 edition of this translation, James Godwin (also of Cambridge, three centuries later) writes that Cheke "was desirous of […] correcting the orthography and pronunciation of English" and, moreover, of conscientiously avoiding words of foreign origin. "The introduction of these words was begun in the days of Cheke", he continues. "But Cheke considered the English language to be sufficiently copious without them. In fact, he thought them intruders, and that the English language was degraded by being mixed up with other words and phrases, for which we were indebted to other countries". Consequently, Cheke didn't care too much for existing English translations and endeavored to produce some of his own, in which the native wordstock of English was properly showcased. To do so, he invented some words out of native English roots to take the place of recent acquisitions of Latin and Green origin; so, for example, where Wiclif (1380) has centurien, and Tyndale (1534) has centurion, Cheke substitutes hunderder; where Wiclif has apostlis, and Tyndale apostles, Cheke coins frosent (meaning "those sent forth); and where Wiclif and Tyndale have crucified, Cheke has crossed. Tolkien would have been sympathetic to the effort.
Even more unsettling, Cheke adopted some new rules for spelling English, designed (so he thought) to facilitate better pronunciation. One of his rules was to double a vowel pronounced long (dropping the final e, if there was one). For example, taak, Ameen, stoon, and so on. And this was just the tip of the iceberg. To give you a taste, here's a lengthier passage:
On ye sabbot daí, at night, when ye first daieslight of ye week began to daun, marí magdaleen and an oyer marí cãm to look on ye graue, and loo yeer was a great earthquaak. For y'angel of ye L. cam doun from heaven, and cam yiyer, and rolled awai ye stoon from ye brinke and sat doun apon it, and his face was lijk lightening, and his cloying whijt lijk snow, and ye kepers did schaak for fear, and weer lijk dead men. (Mt. 28:1–4)
But back to the other tooken. Wiclif used this form in his own translation of the Gospel of Matthew. "But the five foolis tooken her lampis, and tooken not oile with hem: but the prudent tooken oile in her vessels with the lampis" (Mt. 25:3–4). This comes toward the end of the fourteenth century, as you saw above. To give another example, Saint Catherine of Siena used the same form in her Dialogues (1370): "And not oonly þat þei plauntid not ony good plaunt in her vyneᵹeerd, but raþir þei tooken up þerefro þe seed of grace."
In his Middle English Vocabulary, Tolkien cites this form of the preterite (spelled with one o). Under tok(e), token, Tolkien directs readers back to take(n). The source to which Tolkien points readers is from The Gest Hystoriale of the Destruction of Troy, an alliterative romance by an unknown "journeyman poet", based on the Latin Historia Troiana of Guido de Columna (1287). The word occurs in a passage in Book XXXI of the poem:
Thus tho lordes in hor longyng laghton þe watur,
Shotton into ship mong shene knightes,
With the tresowre of þe toune þai token before,
Relikes full rife, and miche ranke godes. (emphasis added)
[Thus those lords in their longing put out to sea,
Sprang aboard ship among their fair knights,
With the treasure of the town they had tooken before,
Rife with relics, and many fine goods. (translation mine)]
For those who fancy another fancifully Tookish Tolkien connection to the word, I've tooken up the subject before.
Probably the best known author to use tooken is Geoffrey Chaucer. A few examples: "And tooken awey this martir from his beere" (The Prioress's Tale), "yet tooken they noon heede of the peril" and "And right anon they tooken hire wey to the court of Melibee, / and tooken with hem somme of hire trewe freendes" (both from The Tale of Melibee). Chaucer's contemporary, John Gower, also used this form of the word.
So, you may say, it's all very well and good to show that tooken was once a valid form, hundreds of years ago, but what has the word done for us lately? Well, as it happens, it's still being used in dialectal forms. It's true these are usually looked down on by prescriptive grammarians and those of us who have taken their suggestions as holy writ, but there is absolutely no reason to take a condescending attitude toward dialect. If you're inclined to, I daresay you're not a big fan of Mark Twain!
Speaking of Twain, he and his contemporaries were tooken with tooken too. Toward the end of the nineteenth century, tooken is conspicuous in Joel Chandler Harris's Uncle Remus stories, a collection that sought to reproduce post-Reconstruction African-American dialect. Setting aside the controversy about their content, the dialect in these stories comes quickly to the fore. "Brer Rabbit," says Brer Tarrypin at one point, "I'm dat tickle' twel I can't shuffle 'long, skacely, en I'm feared ef I up'n tell you de 'casion un it, I'll be tooken wid one er my spells whar folks hatter set up wid me kaze I laff so loud en laff so long." And another point: "Brer Fox talk so close ter de fatal trufe, dat Brer Wolf got tooken wit de dry grins" (emphasis added in both quotations).
In addition to the American South, tooken persisted in the Scottish North. To give one example, there is John Joy Bell's Wee Macgreegor (1902), an early story of a familiar challenge: getting a small child to pose for a photograph. "What for dae folk get likenesses tooken?", Wee Macgregor asks his father. In this case, it's because his mother wants one to give to his grandfather. But "I'm no' wantin' to be tooken, Paw," he complains. Typical. When he's finally convinced, he asks, "Maw, wull I get ma likeness tooken wi' ma greengarry bunnet on?" He wants to keep in on. Okay, so then, "Can I get makin' a face when I'm getting' ma likeness tooken?" No. In front of the camera at last, the photographer begins to count to three. Wee Macgregor can hardly sit still, then blurts out, "Am I tooken, Paw?", to which his father replies, "No' yet, Macgreegor, no' yet. Ye near spoilt anither photygraph. Keep quate, noo." The photos are finally taken, but when they arrive, Wee Macgregor is disappointed that the tassle on his cap, which is black, didn't turn out red in the picture. He had specifically requested his father to tell the photographer to make it red! It's a cute story about being flummoxed by new technology, a bit like Tolkien's Mr. Bliss.
Six hundred years after Wiclef the Bible translator, there's another man of a similar name, still using the word today: Wyclef Jean, the Haitian rapper and former member of The Fugees. In "Year of the Dragon" from his debut solo album, The Carnival (1997), Jean recalls "comin' from Haiti, growin' up in Brooklyn / On Flatbush got my first sneakers tooken". And in the African-American dialect of today, we keep seeing tooken — Jay-Z, Lil' Kim, Eminem, Black Eyed Peas, Lil' Wayne. Some will complain that the use of tooken by rappers is of the "tooken isn't a word!" variety — that is to say, it's wrong. Some say that you can't take advice about usage from rappers, because they're on the fringe of language; they don't get it; they never learned how to speak properly; etc. Actually, a great rapper is a genius with language, stretching it to the most imaginative limits. Complaining that rappers are wrong is just prescriptive grammar again.
Descriptive grammarians, on the other hand, would argue that since tooken is being actively used, then of course, it clearly is a word. We should merely document when, how, and by whom it's being used. And if you're still with me at this point, you've realized that it's not new either; tooken has been a word for centuries. It may not be taught in school, but perhaps that's just a kind of prejudice. The gatekeepers of language always have their reasons for keeping certain words — or certain people — out. Me? I say the more words, the better. Our children are right to try and force tooken back on us. Will it ever make it into the grammar books? Maybe one day — if enough of us are tooken with it.
Friday, September 28, 2012
WOTD: Tooken
Posted by Jason Fisher @ 7:16 PM 6 further thought(s)
Topics: Chaucer, J.R.R. Tolkien, Middle English, Old English, Old Norse, Orthography, Rap, WOTD
Sunday, September 23, 2012
A (late) spring harvest
Who was Geoffrey Bache Smith? Many of my regular readers will already know, but for those who don't, some background is probably in order. I will try to keep it brief, since others have already written much more extensively about Smith and there is little point in copying their work here. Instead, see the end of this post for suggestions on where to learn more. But to try to put it succinctly —
G.B. Smith was a talented poet and one of Tolkien's closest friends at King Edward's School and later at Oxford. With Tolkien, he was a member of that inseparable foursome at the heart of the T.C.B.S. (Tea Club and Barrovian Society), the other two being Rob Gilson and Christopher Wiseman. Smith and Gilson were killed during World War I, after which Tolkien and Wiseman — just Tolkien, really, but he wanted Wiseman credited as well — published a posthumous collection of Smith's poems, A Spring Harvest (Erskine Macdonald, 1918). Tolkien wrote a short prefatory note — see the scan above, signed by Tolkien (sorry about the tilt; I tried to rotate it, but the quality suffered). The collection runs to some 80 pages, and it has regrettably been out of print for close to a century. We don't know how many copies were printed, but it can't be very many. Most of the surviving copies are probably in private collections, but I know of a handful in university libraries.
Over the past few years, I've tried to track down a copy to read, but it's proven impossible so far. It hasn't been practical to travel to one of the universities with a copy yet. This is not a book that would be lent out through interlibrary loan (the note above did come from an ILL request, but I can't get the entire book reproduced this way).
A few of Smith's poems, or parts of them, have been appeared in print here and there (particularly in Garth and Scull/Hammond; see the end of this post). Smith's two short "Songs on the Downs", appeared in Oxford Poetry 1915, just a few pages before Tolkien's own "Goblin Feet", about which I have written more than once (for example, this post). Elsewhere, "The Burial of Sophocles", a poem Tolkien singled out in his note, was reprinted in The Valiant Muse: An Anthology of Poems by Poets Killed in the World War (ed. Frederic W. Ziv; Putnam's Sons, 1936). Excerpts from "A Preface for a Tale I never Told" (sic), "We who have Bowed Ourselves to Time", and "Anglia Valida in Senectute", appear in For Remembrance: Soldier Poets Who Have Fallen in the War (Arthur St. John Adcock; Hodder and Stoughton, 1918).
From the excerpts I've seen, "Anglia Valida in Senectute" is a particularly poignant work.
We are old, we are old, and worn and school'd with ills,
.....Maybe our road is almost done,
Maybe we are drawn near unto the hills
.....Where rest is and the setting sun.
Whatever comes, I will strike once surely,
.....Once because of an ancient tryst,
Once for love of your dear dead faces
.....Ere I come unto you, Shapes in the mist.
And [God] grant us at that ending
.....Of the unkindly quest
To come unto the quiet isles
.....Beyond Death's Starry West
Powerful and somber lines, revealing the wisdom of an old soul. Particularly harrowing when you consider the man who wrote them was only twenty-two years old when he perished. The third stanza I've quoted almost sounds like it could be bound up in Tolkien's mythology, doesn't it? It almost sounds like a prayer Frodo might send out into the void to Elbereth.
So what is this exciting new development? Surely you've guessed.
As it happens, Mark Atherton has just published a new study of The Hobbit and its origins — à propos of its seventy-fifth anniversary — and he includes as an appendix a selection of poems from A Spring Harvest. Eight poems I hadn't read before (at least not whole): "Rime", "A Preface for a Tale I Have Never Told", "A Sonnet", "It Was All in the Black Countree", "O There Be Kings Whose Treasuries", "O, One Came Down from Seven Hills", "Over the Hills and Hollows Green", "So We Lay Down the Pen".
This appendix is a nice treat, but it isn't the exciting development. Think of this as just a hors d'oeuvre to whet your appetites, because Atherton prefaces his appendix with this surprising announcement: "A new edition of A Spring Harvest is forthcoming, edited by Douglas A. Anderson." Well, how about that! I wrote to Doug, and he confirmed this is true. So we should shortly be able to read the complete collection, along with, I am sure, some very useful and interesting background material. Keep your eyes on Doug's blog for a formal announcement to come.
If you want to know more about G.B. Smith, consult the following works (for a start).
Anderson, Douglas A. "Smith, Geoffrey Bache (1894–1916)." Michael D.C. Drout, ed. J.R.R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment. New York: Routledge, [2006]. 617–8.
Garth, John. "Robert Quilter Gilson, T.C.B.S.: A Brief Life in Letters." Tolkien Studies 8 (2011): 67-96
Garth, John. "T.C.B.S. (Tea Club and Barrovian Society)." Michael D.C. Drout, ed. J.R.R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment. New York: Routledge, [2006]. 635–6.
Garth, John. Tolkien and the Great War: The Threshold of Middle-earth. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2003.
Hammond, Wayne G., with the assistance of Douglas A. Anderson. J.R.R. Tolkien: A Descriptive Bibliography. New Castle, Deleware: Oak Knoll, 1993. 280–1.
Scull, Christina and Wayne G. Hammond. "Smith, Geoffrey Bache." The J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide, Volume 2: Reader's Guide. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2006. 938–42.
Scull, Christina and Wayne G. Hammond. "G.B. Smith: An Inventory." January 15, 2012.
Posted by Jason Fisher @ 11:01 PM 13 further thought(s)
Topics: Douglas Anderson, G.B. Smith, J.R.R. Tolkien
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Teaching Tolkien, revisited
I've written about Tolkien in the classroom before (most notably, here), and since then, I've heard about more and more professors teaching Tolkien at the university level. There is even a new online school where you can work toward a Masters Degree in Tolkien Studies (The Mythgard Institute, established and run by Corey Olsen; I'll have more to say about this endeavor another day). My friend Leslie Donovan is also in the final stages of publishing a multi-contributor collection on pedagogical approaches to Tolkien. These are bright days for teaching Tolkien. The purpose of today's post is to share some exciting news: my own book has been assigned in an undergraduate Tolkien seminar at Texas A&M University – Commerce. This is the first time — but I hope not the last — that my book will be used in the classroom, and so I'm naturally very interested to see how it goes.
The class in question is ENGL 497.01W: The Hobbit, and it's being taught during the Fall semester of this year by Professor Robin Anne Reid. This is the first time an undergraduate course on The Hobbit has been offered at TAMU-C, and its focus is especially appropriate since the novel celebrates the seventy-fifth anniversary of its publication this year, and in fact, this month. Professor Reid's class will use three assigned texts: (1) Jonathan Culler, Literary Theory: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press), (2) Jason Fisher (ed.), Tolkien and the Study of His Sources (McFarland), and (3) Douglas Anderson, The Annotated Hobbit (Houghton Mifflin). In case some of you are wondering about the absence of John Rateliff's History of The Hobbit, I think it's safe to say that book would be more appropriate for a graduate-level course.
They've just gotten underway this week, and I'm hopeful that a few of Professor Reid's students will drop by Lingwë to say hello. I also hope Lingwë regulars will help make them feel welcome. Over the course of the next few months, they'll be reading most of the essays in my book, with a choice of essays in some cases (e.g., Birns or Larsen on sources from antiquity, Ratefliff or Hooker on Victorian and Edwardian writers). At the same time, they'll be working their way through Doug Anderson's indispensible Annotated Hobbit. This will be a great test to see how well the two books — Doug's and mine — work together.
Dr. Reid also expects her students to begin learning more about literary theory, rhetorical techniques, and critical thinking and writing. To that end, it looks like she'll have her students read Culler's book both at the beginning of the class and again at the end of it. I think that's a great strategy. By beginning with this background, then seeing many of the techniques it describes demonstrated in my and Doug's books, and then reading Culler again to reinforce the material, students have the best chance of really absorbing it.
I'm also following along with Dr. Reid's lecture notes, which is really illuminating for me. It's like reading my own book again with a whole new set of eyes!
The class in question is ENGL 497.01W: The Hobbit, and it's being taught during the Fall semester of this year by Professor Robin Anne Reid. This is the first time an undergraduate course on The Hobbit has been offered at TAMU-C, and its focus is especially appropriate since the novel celebrates the seventy-fifth anniversary of its publication this year, and in fact, this month. Professor Reid's class will use three assigned texts: (1) Jonathan Culler, Literary Theory: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press), (2) Jason Fisher (ed.), Tolkien and the Study of His Sources (McFarland), and (3) Douglas Anderson, The Annotated Hobbit (Houghton Mifflin). In case some of you are wondering about the absence of John Rateliff's History of The Hobbit, I think it's safe to say that book would be more appropriate for a graduate-level course.
They've just gotten underway this week, and I'm hopeful that a few of Professor Reid's students will drop by Lingwë to say hello. I also hope Lingwë regulars will help make them feel welcome. Over the course of the next few months, they'll be reading most of the essays in my book, with a choice of essays in some cases (e.g., Birns or Larsen on sources from antiquity, Ratefliff or Hooker on Victorian and Edwardian writers). At the same time, they'll be working their way through Doug Anderson's indispensible Annotated Hobbit. This will be a great test to see how well the two books — Doug's and mine — work together.
Dr. Reid also expects her students to begin learning more about literary theory, rhetorical techniques, and critical thinking and writing. To that end, it looks like she'll have her students read Culler's book both at the beginning of the class and again at the end of it. I think that's a great strategy. By beginning with this background, then seeing many of the techniques it describes demonstrated in my and Doug's books, and then reading Culler again to reinforce the material, students have the best chance of really absorbing it.
I'm also following along with Dr. Reid's lecture notes, which is really illuminating for me. It's like reading my own book again with a whole new set of eyes!
Posted by Jason Fisher @ 7:19 PM 5 further thought(s)
Topics: J.R.R. Tolkien, TSHS
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Too Much Ultra?
Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members! Download the app.
Highlights from the August 2013 Trail Runner Blog Symposium
The August 2013 Trail Runner Blog Symposium topic of discussion was: Is there too much emphasis in the (trail-running) media on ultra distances?
Here, you'll find a smattering of opinions from those who contributed to the Symposium, in which runners express a broad spectrum of feelings about media coverage of ultras—ranging from inspired to inadequate.
In our Editor's Choice this month, Jenni Hulburt, reflects on what exactly it is about ultramarathons that's so compelling.
Next month's topic is: To be announced in mid-August. See here for directions on how to participate.
***Editor's Choice
… Marcus Aurelius said it well: 'The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane.' Ultrarunning isn't typical. In fact, in a sedentary and overweight society, running itself isn't really typical. The way I see it, we all need more insane, escape and adventure in our lives.
—Jenni Hulburt
Shorter distances attract faster runners by and large. There is an entire racing world dedicated to speed, but when I think of trail running, the essence of the sport is distance to me. Not everyone can run fast, but I think that almost anyone can run an ultramarathon with the right training, both mental and physical, and that is something that needs to be celebrated.
—Jessica Kuepfer, Laces and Lattes
Crossing that same finish line will be trail runners completing their first ever 5k with their legs aching and a wide proud grin lighting their fatigued faces. They know that they too have just fought through the elements. They too have pushed their physical and mental limits beyond their normal capabilities. They too have earned their bragging rights with the same energy, sweat and burning quads as the ultrarunners.
—Chantal Chala, Fitness United
We no longer satisfy ourselves with mediocre. We live for extreme. Extreme Home Makeover, Biggest Loser, the new reality survival show currently on network TV. Vegan diets, Paleo diets, no-carb diets … We want faster results, faster phones, faster cars, faster finish times. Winning an Ultra is EPIC. Breaking a record at an Ultra—you are an Immortal. Where does that leave us mere mortals?
—Christy Bohon, Tractors and Hippies
Speed is important, but never as important as the story. Distance can happen anywhere, but its not that impressive if its nothing much more than an odometer ticking away miles … Adding the word "ultra" to a piece of writing and expecting it to shine only works for cleaning detergents.
—Matt Thyer, Feet for Brains
I think the media likes to put emphasis on the ultra-distances because they have the elements of what a good news story should have; an interesting narrative, in overcoming personal or technical obstacles, unforeseen circumstances (blisters, a fall, weather), maybe a personal revelation and a mighty victory over all hardships at the end. Who doesn't want to read about that?
—Sarah Young-McDonald, Running the Passage
I don't know when my life evolved into this fantasy where every hobby I had needed to be some extreme endurance event, or some fringe society's idea of ridiculous fun, some extreme challenge that "normies" don't do. I can't even remember what I used to do for fun before I was into running ultras.
—Lindsay Lauck, Bot Friendly
Our next event will be fun – Ready, Set, Glow! A night time trail run with the trail lit with glow sticks and a black light party at the end. It's "only" five miles. But it's five miles of fun—five miles of single track—five miles of laughing and jumping rocks and logs with your friends while wearing a headlamp. Those five miles deserve as much attention as the winner of Leadville. Why? Because those five miles might be someone's Leadville.
—Eric Eagan, TrailsRoc
Through this increase in media awareness, I have been able to connect into the ultra distance world of trail running. I found that there were races just above me that have been going on for years! These weren't figments of imaginations, they were real, and they were being run on the peaks above me.
—Christel Grange-Hicks, It Matters To …

subset: commoncrawl


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News tagged with gambling
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Gambling is the wagering of money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods. Typically, the outcome of the wager is evident within a short period.
The term gaming in this context typically refers to instances in which the activity has been specifically permitted by law. The two words are not mutually exclusive; i.e., a "gaming" company offers (legal) "gambling" activities to the public. This distinction is not universally observed in the English-speaking world, however. For instance, in the UK, the regulator of gambling activities is called the Gambling Commission (not the Gaming Commission).
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MIAMI – When Hurricane Andrew roared across South Florida 20 years ago this August, it flattened homes, uprooted trees and destroyed surburban blocks for miles around. One of just three Category 5 storms to strike the U.S. in the past 160 years, Andrew left at least 15 people dead and more than 150,000 people homeless, its 165 mph winds causing more than $25 billion in damage.
Some of the most poignant images of the aftermath were those of children: Standing in food lines, idling in sweltering heat beside damaged homes, limp in the arms of rescue workers. Once back at school, some kids hid under desks, apprehensive whenever thunderstorms approached. Others spoke of nightmares that another hurricane would strike.
"Disaster really exposes all our childhood beliefs," said Jon Shaw, a psychiatrist at the University of Miami who studied children in the aftermath of the storm. "To discover that people are unable to provide for you, protect you, is an increased understanding of how the world works."
As another hurricane season opens in June, what was one of the worst U.S. natural disasters has increasingly become a fading memory. For the children who lived through Andrew though, each new threat still brings a vivid recollection. For some, the storm even shaped the adults they became.
Laura Tsiltlidze, Dante Diaz and Marcela Rubio will each be thinking of the hurricane this summer. I will remember it, too.
In Laura Tsiltlidze's work at a large insurance company, disasters are measured in numbers: Claims filed, dollars lost, payments made. But it's hard for the 27-year-old to look at the figures coldly. She thinks of the people behind them, and she's reminded of the storm that ripped away rooftops, knocked out power and shook the walls of her family's home.
"I see it with a lot of color," she says.
Tsiltlidze, her parents and three siblings survived Hurricane Andrew crunched together in a bathroom with no windows. She remembers the wind howling as the storm gained in fury before dawn on Aug. 24, 1992. She still recalls the antsy, nervous movements of her 2-year-old brother. She could feel the walls vibrating as she leaned against them.
Then as the storm abated, she and her family walked outside and entered a changed world: Tiles, roofing, tar, leaves and garbage littered the ground. A big tree in the front yard had fallen, luckily, away from their home.
In all, authorities estimated that Andrew destroyed more than 25,000 homes and damaged more than 100,000 others as it tore through entire neighborhoods. While at least 15 deaths were directly attributed to the storm, there were reports of several other deaths indirectly from its passage.
On the ground, she and her siblings found birds injured by the debris. They picked them up from the muck and put them in shoeboxes.
"None of them survived," she says.
Several rooms, including her own, had roof damage, so the Tsiltlidzes spent weeks sleeping on the living room floor. There was no electricity for more than a month and running water was scarce. They'd take sponge baths and bathe every few days in a nearby lake.
For a child, the evening cookouts and nights spent in sleeping bags almost seemed fun. As an adult, she sees it through a different prism. Hurricanes aren't just a burst of orange, green and yellow swirling on a radar screen, or a set of numbers added up, totaling the enormity of destruction.
"These are people who have lost something," she says. "I guess it was me during Andrew."
Dante Diaz had just turned 9. He and his sister, whose birthdays are less than a month apart, were planning a party for the next week. Their mother purchased "FernGully" decorations, from an animated film about a magical rain forest, and had gifts hidden in a closet.
The Diaz family lived in a one-story, beige colored house with a white tile roof in Cutler Ridge, a middle-class neighborhood set along Biscayne Bay, just south of Miami. As the hurricane approached, Cutler Ridge was evacuated. The Diazes left nearly everything behind: their dogs, family photographs, books, clothing, the birthday presents.
As Diaz settled into sleep at his grandmother's house that night, the sound of a window slamming shut awoke him. Small rocks began banging against the house, and a metal shed rattled in the yard as the wind tore it apart. The family gathered in a closet and Diaz fell asleep standing up.
Hours later, his grandmother's white colored house was green from the leaves stuck to the exterior. At his home in Cutler Ridge, the windows were blown out and the ceiling caving in. The dogs had survived but were covered in insulation. It was six months before the family could move back. Diaz recalls trying to salvage books and clothing from his bedroom, and his dad promising to buy him all new stuff. The birthday gifts were still in his mother's closet, but the packaging was so wet he could push his fingers through them.
"I remember thinking how remarkable it was, that wind could do all that," says Diaz, now 28.
As the years passed, Diaz grew more and more curious about what happened. He checked out books on hurricanes from the library. By high school, he was tracking hurricanes at home and had decided to study meteorology. Today, he is a tropical meteorologist, tracking hurricanes and tropical storms for ImpactWeather in Texas. A fellow meteorologist there, Andrew Hagen, also was a child living in Miami during Hurricane Andrew.
At work, Diaz keeps photographs in a notebook of his house after the storm. He looks at them every day.
Marcela Rubio lived in Honduras, but in the summer of 1992, her mother was working as a live-in housekeeper in Miami. Rubio went to visit and in late August they found themselves caught in the fury of Andrew.
Her mother worked for a Lebanese-Israeli family that lived in an apartment near the water. Like others, they decided to pass the storm at a friend's house further inland. Rubio remembers being excited about spending the weekend at a big house with a shaded pool.
The 10 adults and four children at the house crammed into a hallway as the strongest winds approached. They held their knees to their chests and listened to a battery-operated radio. Rubio recalls the nervous worried talk of the adults, uttered in French, Arab and Israeli accents.
"This is worse than the war in Lebanon!" one cried.
The house was barely left standing: The windows and roof were gone by the time the last gusts ceased. Everything, she remembers, was covered in glass, like something she might have seen in Honduras.
"To see that happen in the United States, a wealthy nation, somewhat connected the two places in my mind and made them equal for a brief moment," she said.
She returned to Honduras but moved to the United States a year later, and the storm has remained a vestige connecting her to Miami. Today, Rubio, 27, is a caseworker for the City of Miami Beach. Each hurricane season, she makes presentations to the elderly on storm preparations.
"There is a deep understanding among those who went through (Andrew)," she said. "But I feel that it has almost become folklore, and it could never happen again."
My house was largely spared but our neighborhood was mostly demolished.
A two-story house on our block was reduced to one. The trees that had neatly lined our street were scattered across the lawns in pieces, or missing altogether. A few doors down, my friend's house was left uninhabitable. I remember going inside with her to try and find clothing; most of it was ruined. When we looked up to the ceiling we could see the sky.
It's the sky I remember most vividly. Stars are usually hard to see in Miami. The city is large, dense and filled with lights. But for those few weeks without electricity, nature provided us with an exquisite view.
The recovery felt unbearably long. I remember the empty aisles at the supermarket, and going from one store to another in search of bottled water and a generator to power our refrigerator with my parents. When we finally found a block of dry ice, our joy was uncontainable.
Slowly, the streets were cleared and roofs repaired. My father and our neighbors lined the block with royal palms, chosen because they were the most likely to withstand another storm, though they looked small and unremarkable when they were first put in.
A year later, I was assigned at school to write an essay on a life-changing experience. I wrote about Hurricane Andrew. The essay won a school prize and there began my interest in chronicling stories. Many other events would chart the path toward becoming a journalist, but if it had not been for Hurricane Andrew, I may never have discovered the value of capturing experience in writing.
I am reminded of the sights and sounds of Andrew whenever I report on a storm today.
The house where we lived looks remarkably similar to how it did before the storm. There is a new owner and to a passer-by, it would be hard to tell a hurricane had ever blown through. The only thing that looks different is the trees. They now reach high above the tallest rooftops on the street.


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As the national housing recovery gains steam, CNBC is going local. Use this interactive map to track the latest numbers in some of the largest housing markets across the country.
As a home owner, home buyer or multi-market investor, you are just one click away from the latest moves in sales, prices and inventory.
Recovery Watch Map


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Quick Tip: Fire Extinguishers
Fire extinguishers aren't just for schools and office buildings. Rather, these safety devices are a must-have for all homeowners.
Whether you live in a palace or a studio apartment, you gotta have a fire extinguisher. While they come types A, B, or C (depending on the fire they're meant to fight), your best bet is probably a multi-purpose ABC fire extinguisher. Look for a rechargeable one with a pressure gauge that's easy to read and hang it near a doorway or other escape route. Check the pressure once a month and recharge as soon as needed.
For more on safety, consider:
Bob Vila Radio: Fire Drill
Residential Sprinkler Systems
9 Ways to Boost Your Fire Preparedness


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A big topic in the world of PHP recently has been interoperability between libraries. With the release of PHP 5.3 and the introduction of namespaces some discussion of new standards around the use of namespaces to promote the interoperability of autoloader implementations has started.
The goal of this blog post is to reach out to the all the PHP open source projects and applications in hopes to get them to join our initiative and give a vote for approval. If we can get the entire community behind this initiative it will make it much easier to get acceptance by the PHP core team and get this standard advocated in the manual on php.net.
If your project is interested in joining the initiative please join the google group http://groups.google.com/group/php-standards and help us change PHP for the better!


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Instant Buttons
Instant Buttons
Instant Buttons is an original soundboard, it's a unique collection of sounds. This application will offer to you many funny and quickly sounds that you might use anytime.
More than 260 sounds! From the most famous memes of 4chan/internet (as the ComboBreaker, Falcon Punch, Khaan, Rimshot, This is Sparta, Nyan, Chuck Testa, Mudkip or Harlem Shake) to dialogues of your favorites series (as Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother, Community, Futurama, South Park, Family Guy, Lost, Adventure Time or The Simpsons), going through mitical videogames sounds (as PacMan, Age Of Empires, Metal Gear, Metal Slug, Star Fox, Unreal, Counter Strike, Skyrim, League Of Legends, Street Fighter, Diablo...) and quotes for epic movies (Harry Potter, Terminator, Saw, Hunger Games, Kill Bill, Batman, Rocky...). Instant Buttons includes all the sounds needed for a fun moment. Besides, we are open for suggestions, only send us an e-mail with the sound that you want.
And if that's not enough, Instant Buttons has the possibility to add any sound as a Widget to your desktop, to keep it handy wherever you want. Besides, you can set any sound as ringtone, notification or alarm, save the sounds as favorites, hide buttons, choose to repeat a sound and share them on WhatsApp, gMail, Bluetooth...
Optimized for tablets.


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This is not an offer for credit and should be used for estimation purposes only based on the information you provided. You should not base your decision on this estimate alone. Title, registration, tax and other fees, and personal circumstances such as employment status and personal credit history, were not considered in the calculations.
The All-New Classic 350 continues to embody the traditions and craftsmanship of the past as it is reborn. Inspired by the post war G2 model, first born in 1950's, the all new Classic 350 continues to be a testament to the timeless design which took the motorcycling world with an awe back in the heydays of British motorcycling. The Classic teardrop fuel tank, the distinctive thump and the hallmark casquette headlamp - all harmonise as one, rejoicing in the masterpiece that is the timeless Royal Enfield Classic.
Front - 300 mm disc, Bybre twin piston floating caliper
Rear - 270 mm disc, Bybre single piston floating caliper
ABS - Dual channel
Front - 100 / 90 - 19 in. - 57P
Rear - 120 / 80 - 18 in. - 62P
Head lamp - Halogen H4-60 / 55W w/ LED light guide
Tail lamp - 21W / 5W
Turn signal - 10W x 2 no.
Telescopic, 41 mm forks
Travel - 130 mm
Twin tube emulsion shock absorbers with 6-Step adjustable preload
Dark Gunmetal Grey
Dark Stealth Black
Signals Marsh Grey
Signals Desert Sand
Chrome Red
Chrome Bronze
Halcyon Black
Halcyon Green
Halcyon Grey
Category: Motorcycles
Due to continued challenges across supplier networks as well as increasing logistics costs, product pricing, freight charges, specifications, and features are subject to change at any time without prior notice. Please confirm all information with your local dealership.
Images, where available, are presented as reasonable facsimiles of the offered unit and/or manufacturer stock images. Non-standard options or features may be represented. No guarantee of availability or inclusion of displayed options should be inferred; contact the dealer for more details.
Price, if shown and unless otherwise noted, represents the Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) or dealer unit price and does not include government fees, taxes, dealer vehicle freight/preparation, dealer document preparation charges, labor, installation, or any finance charges (if applicable). MSRP and/or final sales price will vary depending on options or accessories selected; contact dealer for more details.
Images, where available, are presented as reasonable facsimiles of the offered unit and/or manufacturer stock images. Non-standard options or features may be represented. No guarantee of availability or inclusion of displayed options should be inferred; contact dealer for more details.


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Unfortunately, you can be addicted to your device. Here are some signs:
- You feel guilty about how often you use your device.
- You feel withdrawal or discomfort when you are separated from it.
- Your loved ones complain about how much time you spend using it.
Overuse of technology doesn't just zap your time, it also can lead to:
- Auto accidents
- Chronic diseases associated with a sedentary lifestyle
- Psychological problems stemming from a lack of social interactions
- Sleep deprivation
- Vision problems
If you need to distance yourself from technology to focus on more personal human connections, you can:
- Create screen‐free zones: The car, kitchen table and even your bedroom are good choices for this designation.
- Set aside tech‐free time: Go for a walk, play a board game or read a hard copy of a book or magazine. Use your phone's "do not disturb" feature during these times so you're not tempted by interruptions.
- Streamline your apps: Delete apps you don't need. Keep the ones you use the most or get the most enjoyment from.
- Turn off alerts: It's easier to ignore your phone if it doesn't buzz every few seconds with texts, emails and social media updates.


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Report of JENAM 2008
17 November 2008
Report of JENAM 2008; Symposium 2: Education and Communicating Astronomy in Europe - Preparing for the IYA2009
By Ian Robson (email@example.com)
Thursday September 11th
Dr Catherine Cesarsky, the IAU President, gave an invited Plenary Address to the Conference outlining the aims and goals of IYA2009 along with the organisational bodies and major milestones. This was followed by Pedro Russo who described the cornerstone events and showed the IYA trailer. This was followed by Thomas Posch, the Austrian SPoC, who gave an overview of the work in Austria, focusing on the dark sky inspiration theme. Interestingly enough, Austria have managed to get a locomotive with the IYA2009 banner on the side. This session was followed by a Q&A from the audience. The session was well attended with probably over 200 in the audience.
There was a very pleasant working dinner on the Thursday evening attended by most of the SPoCs and swapping ideas and barriers. This was organised by Thomas Posch.
Friday Sept 12th
This was the education session and the first speaker was Rosa Ros who talked about Astronomy in European schools after the impact of IYA2009. She used a survey from across Europe to fashion new ideas about how IYA can contribute to the new curriculum and teaching. This was followed by Magda Stavinschi who discussed how lessons of the investigations of the past can prepare us to look at the future and why this is a good tool to engage students in astronomy and the excitement therein. Charles Barclay then discussed the educational work he undertakes in and around Oxford and pointed out that it is inspiration that is crucial to changing attitudes. He also discussed an 'Extended Project' pilot project that gives astronomy accreditation. Finally, Sotira Trifourki presented a wide-ranging description of a number of educational initiatives around the Manchester area and also feeding into UNAWE.
Friday Sept 12th 10:45-11:15
The outreach session began with a series of ten minute talks from the national SPoCs. Ian Robson got the ball rolling by outlining the activities that were planned for the UK. This was followed by Montse Villar-Martin from Spain, Joao Fernandes from Portugal and Anny-Chantel Levasseur-Regourd from France. There was then an extensive Q&A session where a number of points seemed to strike home: need to remember the poor weather in northern Europe for 100 hours of astronomy and should an autumn slot also be thought of; not to forget the underprivileged in society and to work to be inclusive. Gary Evans then reviewed the FETTU prototype exhibition that was showcased at the ASTRONET Symposium in Liverpool. Terry Mahoney reminded us that we should not forget the great work undertaken by Kepler, especially his work on optics. Finally, David Koch presented the outreach activities associated with the Kepler Mission. These two sessions had audiences of around thirty.
Search IYA2009 Updates
National Nodes: 148
Organisational Nodes: 40
Organisational Associates:33
National Websites: 111
Cornerstone Projects: 12
Special Task Groups: 11
Special Projects:16
Official Products:8
Media Partners:22


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Chapter 32
When Vronsky returned home, Anna was not yet home. Soon after he had left, some lady, so they told him, had come to see her, and she had gone out with her. That she had gone out without leaving word where she was going, that she had not yet come back, and that all the morning she had been going about somewhere without a word to him--all this, together with the strange look of excitement in her face in the morning, and the recollection of the hostile tone with which she had before Yashvin almost snatched her son's photographs out of his hands, made him serious. He decided he absolutely must speak openly with her. And he waited for her in her drawing room. But Anna did not return alone, but brought with her her old unmarried aunt, Princess Oblonskaya. This was the lady who had come in the morning, and with whom Anna had gone out shopping. Anna appeared not to notice Vronsky's worried and inquiring expression, and began a lively account of her morning's shopping. He saw that there was something working within her; in her flashing eyes, when they rested for a moment on him, there was an intense concentration, and in her words and movements there was that nervous rapidity and grace which, during the early period of their intimacy, had so fascinated him, but which now so disturbed and alarmed him.
The dinner was laid for four. All were gathered together and about to go into the little dining room when Tushkevitch made his appearance with a message from Princess Betsy. Princess Betsy begged her to excuse her not having come to say good-bye; she had been indisposed, but begged Anna to come to her between half-past six and nine o'clock. Vronsky glanced at Anna at the precise limit of time, so suggestive of steps having been taken that she should meet no one; but Anna appeared not to notice it.
"Very sorry that I can't come just between half-past six and nine," she said with a faint smile.
"The princess will be very sorry."
"And so am I."
"You're going, no doubt, to hear Patti?" said Tushkevitch.
"Patti? You suggest the idea to me. I would go if it were possible to get a box."
"I can get one," Tushkevitch offered his services.
"I should be very, very grateful to you," said Anna. "But won't you dine with us?"
Vronsky gave a hardly perceptible shrug. He was at a complete loss to understand what Anna was about. What had she brought the old Princess Oblonskaya home for, what had she made Tushkevitch stay to dinner for, and, most amazing of all, why was she sending him for a box? Could she possibly think in her position of going to Patti's benefit, where all the circle of her acquaintances would be? He looked at her with serious eyes, but she responded with that defiant, half-mirthful, half-desperate look, the meaning of which he could not comprehend. At dinner Anna was in aggressively high spirits--she almost flirted both with Tushkevitch and with Yashvin. When they got up from dinner and Tushkevitch had gone to get a box at the opera, Yashvin went to smoke, and Vronsky went down with him to his own rooms. After sitting there for some time he ran upstairs. Anna was already dressed in a low-necked gown of light silk and velvet that she had had made in Paris, and with costly white lace on her head, framing her face, and particularly becoming, showing up her dazzling beauty.
"Are you really going to the theater?" he said, trying not to look at her.
"Why do you ask with such alarm?" she said, wounded again at his not looking at her. "Why shouldn't I go?"
She appeared not to understand the motive of his words.
"Oh, of course, there's no reason whatever," he said, frowning.
"That's just what I say," she said, willfully refusing to see the irony of his tone, and quietly turning back her long, perfumed glove.
"Anna, for God's sake! what is the matter with you?" he said, appealing to her exactly as once her husband had done.
"I don't understand what you are asking."
"You know that it's out of the question to go."
"Why so? I'm not going alone. Princess Varvara has gone to dress, she is going with me."
He shrugged his shoulders with an air of perplexity and despair.
"But do you mean to say you don't know?..." he began.
"But I don't care to know!" she almost shrieked. "I don't care to. Do I regret what I have done? No, no, no! If it were all to do again from the beginning, it would be the same. For us, for you and for me, there is only one thing that matters, whether we love each other. Other people we need not consider. Why are we living here apart and not seeing each other? Why can't I go? I love you, and I don't care for anything," she said in Russian, glancing at him with a peculiar gleam in her eyes that he could not understand. "If you have not changed to me, why don't you look at me?"
He looked at her. He saw all the beauty of her face and full dress, always so becoming to her. But now her beauty and elegance were just what irritated him.
"My feeling cannot change, you know, but I beg you, I entreat you," he said again in French, with a note of tender supplication in his voice, but with coldness in his eyes.
She did not hear his words, but she saw the coldness of his eyes, and answered with irritation:
"And I beg you to explain why I should not go."
"Because it might cause you..." he hesitated.
"I don't understand. Yashvin n'est pas compromettant, and Princess Varvara is no worse than others. Oh, here she is!"
We care about eBooks because we care about the environment.
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RF Technology Pty Ltd, DX Radio Systems Inc. and IPMobileNet LLC, today announced that the companies have signed a definitive agreement under which RF Technology and DX Radio have acquired the business of IPMobileNet; a leading designer, manufacturer and integrator of mobile data solutions for the public safety, utility, and intelligent transportation markets. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
IPMobileNet, based in Irvine, Calif., is a strategic addition to RF Technology's and DX Radio's businesses. The acquisition will extend capabilities and core competencies of both companies and increase the company's available markets and product lines. The group will build upon IPMobileNet's customer relationships by maintaining its unparalleled commitment to customer service, and by extending the reach of IPMobileNet's industry leading system design and integration capabilities into voice, messaging, and data products.
"This is an exciting opportunity for our company and we look forward to seeing new growth opportunities as part of the RF Technology and DX Radio Group," said Brian Purcell, vice president of sales and marketing, IPMobileNet. "This gives us the leverage to compete with greater financial strength, and nicely complements our product offerings to our customers. Our combined teams will create exciting growth opportunities for IPMobileNet, our customers, and our employees."
IPMobileNet is a leading designer, manufacturer and integrator of public safety-grade voice and mobile data solutions. With more than three decades of innovation in wireless data communications, IPMobileNet built its world-class reputation by providing highly reliable mobile data communications networks for the public safety, utility, transportation and government markets. IPMobileNet has developed unique technology that addresses the specific needs of the private mobile wireless market, including the first 100% native IP system for voice and data, the first 700 MHz mobile data system in the country, and a sophisticated diversity receiver technology that significantly improves network throughput and reliability in difficult environments.
"IPMobileNet has always been an innovator in the private mobile data market;" said Eric Tanner, chief operating officer of IPMobileNet. "With this acquisition, IPMobileNet gains the strength needed to compete at a higher level. The combined resources will enable us to offer a broader suite of products, and have a greater reach to achieve critical mass. We look forward to working in the focused Group towards a quick and seamless transition," concluded Tanner.
"The Acquisition of the IPMN business is fundamental to the Group's strategy of providing complete secure voice, data, and messaging products to its customers," said Frank Romanin, CEO of RF Technology. "By creating this team, the group is able to offer our client partners the benefits of the distinct skill sets offered by the three companies, built on over 20 years of manufacturing, systems integration, and design experience."
The recently formed partnership between RF Technology and DX Radio Systems is attributed to synergy and success the companies have had together in the past. "As a long term partner of RF Technology we are excited by the opportunities that this tight knit group will bring about in the market place. There is significant interest in RFT's recently released P25 offering; and the addition of P25 compliant data offered by IPMobileNet fills the market niche as clients look for innovative and robust communication solutions to enhance their field productivity and security," said Don Klabunde of DX Radio Systems Inc.
RF Technology's business was established in 1979 with a charter to design, manufacture and market radio communication equipment worldwide. The two founding directors with 30 years of operational experience in the Two Way Radio industry had a desire to fill a niche market overlooked by the major competitors.
Today, RFT is a supplier to the Australian secure communications market focusing on a complete range of products for secure wireless voice and data communications. This includes secure public safety wireless network solutions in APCO P25, and analogue and high-speed packet data network technology.
RF Technology's product line is marketed worldwide. Direct distribution is established in over 20 countries and indirectly in at least 30.
DX Radio Systems Inc. was formed in 1988 and has been very successful in supplying repeaters and base station systems and products. DX offers the most advanced MPT1327 system available on the market today. It is designed to support 32 channels per site and features software based networking, negating the need for expensive switching. This design offers a more robust system with fewer points of failure.
DX also offers voting products, satellite receivers and comparators, plug in tone remotes, battery back-up systems, and redundant switching.
In 1991, DX introduced its own line of paging transmitters, offering both simulcast and non-simulcast systems. In addition, DX recently introduced the Communicator 6600, which is a complete, technologically advanced paging terminal that will be advanced into a complete messaging system. The DX transmitters and receivers have been developed, manufactured and supplied by RF Technology since 1990.


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Because of current rainfall, county public health officials are cautioning residents who are planning to visit local beaches to be careful of swimming, surfing, and playing in ocean waters around discharging storm drains, creeks, and rivers.
Bacteria, debris, trash, and other public health hazards from city streets and mountain areas are likely to enter ocean waters though these outlets.
"Fortunately, discharging storm drains, creeks, and rivers only comprises a small portion of the beach, and therefore, anybody who wants to go to the beach will be able to enjoy their outing," said Jonathan E. Fielding, the county's health officer. "We do advise swimmers and surfers to stay away from the storm drains, creeks and rivers as there is the possibility that bacteria or chemicals from debris and trash may contaminate the water near and around these areas, and some individuals may become ill."
Areas of the beach apart from discharging storm drains, creeks, and rivers are exempted from this advisory. This advisory will be in effect until at least Friday, Dec.19 at 7 a.m. This advisory may be extended depending on further rainfall.
Recorded information on beach conditions is available 24 hours a day on the county's beach closure hotline: (800) 525-5662. Information is also available online at our Web site: www.publichealth.lacounty.gov/beach/.


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Regular price
A checkerboard of pinstripes and checks in orange, blue and pink conceals yellow tropical palm tree silhouettes. Printed on lustrous pure silk twill with impeccably hand-rolled hems. Wear it to bring joy to classic neutrals.
To ensure your scarves remain in the best condition, we recommend that you store them flat and untied in a dry place.
Product Number: 230104-0245
To find out more and see shipping rates, visit our Shipping and Tax page.
Your order will be prepared with the greatest care, individually wrapped in our signature packaging and knotted with JANE CARR ribbon. Should your purchase be a gift, you can select to add a personal message at checkout.
We are sure you will love your JANE CARR purchase, but if for any reason you are not entirely satisfied and wish to return, in part or in full...
Each collection is consciously created, with commitment to the environment and our social responsibility at every stage of the making process. We support traditional industries and local employment, and all our manufacturing partners are selected with social and ethical responsibility in mind. We insist on the finest quality materials, production and hand-finishing in order to ensure the longevity of every piece.
All our printed items are created in Como Italy, using the most efficient technology. Each printed scarf is an individual art work, which cuts down dramatically on fabric waste. Read more >


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In recent years, the way we work has undergone a significant transformation, with remote work becoming more prevalent and even the preferred mode of operation for many businesses. The rise of cloud-...
ContactTel vs Aircall
Compare ContactTel vs Aircall. Find out whether ContactTel or Aircall is better for your VoIP business or home needs. The experts at VoipReview have analyzed the strengths and weaknesses of ContactTel and Aircall and detailed analysis of the comparison can be found below.
User Ratings & Reviews
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ContactTel is an award-winning VoIP provider that offers your business a variety of plan options to suit your company's needs. ContactTel's plans include a variety of features including voicemail, conference, call forwarding, music on hold and...
Call center software for customer-centric teams. Transform customers experiences with the IT-approved cloud call center solution for sales and support teams.
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- Founder Year: 2005
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We signed up for this service; our router was a Linksys SPA3102 (brand new). They could not get the phone to ring, and we could not receive incoming calls. Despite this, they continued to bill us, and after the first attempt to fix our connection, they stopped responding to email. After 2 weeks, we made the move to Vonage, and after installing our router (which amounted to connecting it), our phone began to ring again and all worked correctly. We had a balance of nearly $40 with ContactTel, and we asked them to close the account and mail the balance to us, or send it by email money order: never happened. That was 8 months ago, and we don't expect to see that money again. This place is a total rip off.


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Put the spoon (or shovel) down and back away from the sugar bowl.
Okay, okay.
We all have our sugar moments (days, weeks, months) and although sugar is not innately evil, chronic over-indulgence can seriously impact health and wellbeing. Obesity, diabetes, mood swings, fatigue, sleeplessness, addictive behavior, anxiety, intestinal distress, depression, and a host of other diseases are all being linked to excessive sugar intake. Yikes, bad news for those of us who adore sweets. And that thing about girls being made of sugar and spice and everything nice has some truth to it. At least the sugar part. I think women get the gene marker for "I love sweets" far more often than men do. Wouldn't you agree?
I like to do a mild cleanse every spring and fall and eliminating sugar is part of that process (over and over again). I spent several weeks this summer backpacking a big chunk of the Colorado Trail and out of necessity my wilderness diet included a lot of fast-acting carbs in the form of gels, bars, and powdered drinks. (For more information about sport-specific nutrition, check out my fuel for performance post.) Because I've spent so much time lately eating sugar directly from the gel packet, I definitely feel the need to get myself back into balance. Nutrition needs change depending on the intensity of the activity and sometimes quick energy in the form of simple sugar is just what your cells are screaming for. But if you're not running a marathon or climbing a 14,000 foot peak, there are better ways to balance your nutrition needs.
Here are the sugar basics. Dietary carbohydrates include simple carbohydrates (sugars) and complex carbohydrates (starches and fibers). Simple carbs are monosaccharides (single sugars) and disaccharides (sugars made up of pairs of monosaccharides). Glucose, fructose, and galactose make up the single sugar units. Complex carbohydrates are composed of chains of monosaccharides called polysaccharides. It's all a matter of linking chemical units, but if you see "ose" on the end of the word, it usually means sugar — at least in chemistry talk.
Glucose is commonly called blood sugar. It's what your body uses for energy.
Fructose is the sweetest of all sugars and occurs naturally in fruit, some root vegetables, and honey.
Lactose is a disaccharide made from the combination of galactose and glucose. It's the sugar in milk.
Sucrose is fructose and glucose linked together, also making it a disaccharide. Commonly known as table sugar, beet sugar, or cane sugar. It occurs in many fruits and some vegetables and grains.
Maltose* is a disaccharide that consists of two glucose units. It is sometimes called malt sugar and is produced when starch breaks down.
White table sugar is the common, highly-refined form of commercial simple sugar and usually comes from sugar cane or sugar beets.
Confectioners sugar (powedered sugar) is common white sugar that has been crushed into a fine powder and is used in frostings and cake decorations.
Unrefined dehydrated cane juice is the result of extracting and then dehydrating sugar cane juice. Because it undergoes far less processing that refined white sugar it retains some of the nutrients from the sugar cane plant. It's a good source of riboflavin.
Brown sugar (unrefined or raw) is a lightly purified and crystallized form of evaporated cane juice. The brown color comes from residual molasses. The "natural" version of brown sugar comes in varieties such as demerara, turbinado, and dark muscovado.
Honey is made up of carbohydrates (simple sugar) and water. Your body uses honey in much the same way it uses table sugar, as a source of energy. The nice thing about honey, unlike refined white sugar, is it also contains some vitamins and minerals such as niacin, riboflavin, pantothenic acid, calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium and zinc. Honey also has some antioxidant properties, the darker the honey, the higher the antioxidant content. Another benefit of using honey as a sweetener is the wonderful variety of flavors, depending on where the bees hang out.
Agave nectar is collected from the agave plant and has different characteristics than honey. It's easier to pour than honey, has a lower glycemic index, and is suitable for any sweetener use. (I have used agave nectar and like the consistency, but am reserving judgement for later. I'd like more information on how the high fructose to glucose ratio impacts health. I'm using honey over agave.)
Stevia is a South American shrub whose leaves are used as a natural sweetener. It is sold as a dietary supplement that provides sweetness without the calories. Some people (like my mom) find the taste bitter.
Molasses is produced during the sugar refining process, which takes several steps. It is the remaining syrup after the sucrose has been crystallized from sugar cane juice. Light molasses is from the first boiling of the cane, dark molasses from the second, and blackstrap molasses from the third. Molasses (especially blackstrap) is rich in iron, calcium, copper, and manganese. Unsulfered molasses is the best choice.
Maple syrup is boiled down tree sap from sugar maple trees. Like honey, it has wonderful variations in flavor and contains some vitamins and minerals. It is rich in manganese and is a good source of zinc. (Hey, guys, are you paying attention? Zinc is good for your boy parts.)
Brown rice syrup is made from an enzymatic process in which the starch in the rice is broken down and the liquid is strained off and cooked to the desired syrupy thickness.
Date sugar is made from dehydrated dates that have been ground into granules. Dates contain iron, potassium, and folic acid.
Fruit juice concentrates are most often derived from white grapes, pears, peaches, or apples. It is usually highly refined and doesn't contain the nutrients from the original fruit.
High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is a very highly refined form of genetically modified (most likely) white cornstarch. As the name implies there is a much higher ratio of fructose to glucose. Not only is the corn genetically modified, research indicates the ratios may be unhealthy, especially in growing children. It is best to avoid products containing HFCS.
Sugar alcohols (aka sugar replacers) are sugarlike compounds that are absorbed more slowly than other sugars and are metabolized differently by the human body. They are incompletely digested and inefficiently absorbed from the small intestine into the blood stream making them an ingredient choice in low-carb and diabetic foods (they have less impact on blood sugar levels). But, because they are not properly broken down, they can cause intestinal distress (gas, bloating, diarrhea). Yuk! Examples of sugar alcohols are maltitol, mannitol, sorbitol, xylitol, isomalt, and lactitiol.
Artificial sweeteners are sugar substitutes of varying chemical structures that provide negligible, if any, energy. Examples are Splenda, NutraSweet, Equal, and Sugaree. They offer sweetness with far fewer calories than regular sugar. Are they safe? Because they are artificial, I believe they should be avoided. Artificial ingredients and chemical additives don't constitute real food and may cause health problems we aren't even aware of. Most products that contain artificial sweeteners also contain other unhealthy ingredients.
* The term malt is a continual subject of debate when it comes to gluten-free food sources. Malt is often derived from barley, which is a gluten-containing grain, so malt flavoring, malted milk, and malt vinegar most likely contain gluten. However, maltodextrin, which is the most common constituent in many "power" gels, is usually made from a gluten-free starch (rice or corn) if processed in the U.S. That may be a different story if your source is from outside the U.S. Many European manufacturers use wheat maltodextrin, so be sure to do your research if you are using imported products. If wheat is used as an ingredient in the U.S. the FDA requires it to be listed on the label. If you'd like a book with practical answers to these types of questions, Suzanne Bowland has a great one called The Living Gluten-Free Answer Book.
Now that you have a glossary of terms to refer to, let's touch on some not-so-sweet facts about the American obsession with sugar. According to USDA data, in 1967 Americans consumed about 114 pounds of sugar per capita. By 2003 we were up to 142 pounds per person per year and I would guess it's even higher today. I tried to get the current data on per capita consumption of all sugar sources, but it was difficult to figure out and I wasn't confident my information was correct. But suffice to say, in the past 40 years or so, our average caloric intake of sweeteners per capita has spiked to what is now about 25 to 30 percent of our total calories per day. Soft drink consumption has increased dramatically as well. If you want to sift through the USDA data, check this link and refer to Tables 49 through 53.
Whatever the final numbers add up to, the bottom line is we eat way too much sugar and drink way too much soda pop. Imagine taking a sugar bowl, sitting down with the newspaper or a magazine, and eating 33 teaspoons of refined white sugar each morning. That's approximately how much we're consuming per person per day. Ugh!
One teaspoon of sugar contains about 16 calories. If 25% of our daily caloric intake is from sugar, that ends up to be about 33 teaspoons per day.
16 (calories per teaspoon of sugar) x 33 (teaspoons of sugar) = 528 calories (that's in a 2112 calorie day)
No wonder our health is declining and our kids are getting fatter. One article I read mentioned the increased consumption of full-sugar soda pop for breakfast. Children are eating sugar-laced cereals and soda pop for breakfast! Then heading off to school. And people wonder why they can't focus on their school work. Not to mention what this does to physiological development (brain and organ function, growing bones, etc.).
Rather than continue a long-running narrative on sweets, I'll simply list some of the reasons chronic over-indulgence of sugar negatively impacts health.
• Carbohydrate malabsorption is common in people with untreated celiac disease and other digestive disorders (Crohn's disease, IBS, etc.). The inability to break down (split in two) disaccharides (lactose, sucrose, maltose) causes them to remain in the digestive tract resulting in fermentation and bacterial imbalance. Symptoms include intestinal discomfort and ongoing inflammation of the small intestine.
• Can interfere with nutrient absorption.
• Suppresses immune function.
• Can increase triglycerides, total cholesterol, and LDL levels and decrease HDL levels.
• Contributes to obesity and diabetes.
• Can cause behavioral changes in children.
• Promotes systemic inflammation (arthritis, asthma, joint pain, ect.).
• Upsets mineral balances in the body.
• Causes mood changes and fluctuations in energy levels.
• Promotes tooth decay and saliva acidity.
• Contributes to candida/yeast overgrowth.
• May contribute to osteoporosis.
• Can compromise organ function (pancreas, gallbladder, liver)
• Can cause hormonal imbalances.
• Can exacerbate PMS and menopause symptoms.
• Can contribute to food sensitivities.
• Studies show a connection between high sugar intake and depression, mood disorders, and sleeplessness.
I could go on regarding all the negative conditions associated with sugar, but you get the picture.
Now, back to my starting point. Sugar isn't inherently evil. In fact, it's a delightful addition to our abundance of resources for cooking, baking, and enjoying food. But a little goes a long way and like most things in life, it's all about finding balance. It's called the fine art of moderation.
Cutting back or eliminating sugar from the diet isn't an easy thing to do and can cause some pretty nasty detox symptoms. All forms of sugar react in the body in similar ways, but some forms are better than others. And some are worse than others (HFCS). I find the easiest way to "look" at this is by first evaluating what you put in your shopping cart.
Here are 5 tips to help you get started.
NUMBER ONE — EAT REAL FOOD. Shop the periphery of the grocery store. Stick with fresh produce, fish, lean meats, eggs, and healthy dairy choices (if you eat dairy). Choose organic if possible. Skip the processed and packaged foods as most contain too much sugar, HFCS, and fat. Instead of drinking the juice, have the real thing (an apple rather than a glass of apple juice).
2. Eliminate all soda pop, both full-sugar and diet versions.
3. Use raw honey, molasses, or pure maple syrup as a sweetener rather than refined white sugar. Those healthier "alternatives" contain vitamins and minerals that are stripped from processed white sugar.
4. If you have a sugar bowl on the table, get rid of it. Don't add sugar to foods — example: don't put sugar on grapefruit or in tea. Eat the grapefruit plain and lightly sweeten the tea with honey.
5. Try using alternative sweeteners in your baking. I use maple syrup when I make granola; applesauce, baby food prunes, and unsweetened jam in baked goods; and pureed dates and crystalized ginger in my "power" bars.
Most of us need to cut back on sugar — and fall is a great time to get started on renewed health and well-being. It's a good time for change. If you have any tips or suggestions on how to live a low-sugar life, please share them. We can all use encouragement to eat healthier!
Oh, and don't forget to brush your teeth.
In good health,


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Rug ANT124249 Farahan
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Font Gods Hoefler & Frere-Jones Split in Nasty Corporate Divorce
Few graphic-design institutions are (or were) as highly regarded as Hoefler & Frere-Jones, a small New York City type foundry whose perfectly crafted typefaces—including Gotham, Whitney, and Champion—saturate media, advertising, entertainment, and politics. Obama tapped the company to create a custom font for his second presidential campaign. Now the two sides of the ampersand are at war over who actually owns the company.
Tobias Frere-Jones quit earlier this month, and yesterday filed a lengthy complaint against his now-former colleague Jonathan Hoefler. The document alleges that when Hoefler recruited Frere-Jones—and his existing "dowry fonts"—to join what was then (and remains, legally) the Hoefler Type Foundry, Hoefler orally promised Frere-Jones a 50 percent stake in the company. After supposedly delaying for several years, by Frere-Jones's account, Hoefler reneged in October 2013 and transferred the stake to his own wife.
The complaint was set in Arial, a universally despised ripoff of Helvetica.
Frere-Jones's filing starts right off by calling Hoefler's conduct "the most profound treachery" and goes on to paint himself as a trusting design genius wronged by his vulgar and untalented associate: "Hoefler's principal role was to run the business side of the company and use his 'client-hustling skills' to sell Frere-Jones's work."
Hoefler responded to the complaint today through a statement from the company's general counsel, which reads, in part:
Following his departure, Tobias filed a claim against company founder Jonathan Hoefler. Its allegations are not the facts, and they profoundly misrepresent Tobias's relationship with both the company and Jonathan. [...] It goes without saying that all of us are disappointed by Tobias's actions. The company will vigorously defend itself against these allegations, which are false and without legal merit.
The statement was set in Mercury, a typeface Hoefler created in 1996 for Esquire.
To contact the author of this post, email firstname.lastname@example.com
[Photo credit: Associated Press]