text:
About Wendy
Wendy Stewart is a leading Scottish harper, a critically acclaimed, world class performer who connects with the listener at a deep musical level and a renowned teacher who coaxes the budding musician out of the hesitant beginner.
Her musical commitment is both to make traditional harp accessible to all and to explore her own musical ideas through arrangement and composition.
As a player and singer, she re-interprets traditional material in a historically informed yet refreshing way. Her compositions are melodically sinuous, rooted in the tradition but seeking out the creative.
Wendy's relaxed but incisive style of teaching brings praise and results in equal measure. Through her layered arrangements and measured pace, she can bring a group of mixed ability learners together in confident, relaxed harmony.
Wendy lives in, and draws inspiration from, her rural lifestyle in Dumfries and Galloway in South West Scotland.
She is very involved with the rich artistic network here from composing commissions reflecting environmental artworks to singing with her community choir Cairn Chorus.
Wendy has created various teaching books with accompanying music for all ages and experience levels as well as supplementary books for her solo albums.
Wendy's decade spanning music career has produced four solo albums, five albums with the folk rock band Ceolbeg as well as various independent projects.


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Police will target illicit weapons traffickers after discovering Victoria's underworld has been flooded with firearms, with even low-level offenders now choosing to carry guns.
Street police say dangerously erratic criminals under the influence of the drug crystal methamphetamine hydrochloride – or ice – are convinced they are being followed and are carrying handguns for "protection".
The armed crime taskforce has been assigned to uncover the sources of a booming business in illegal firearms, with reports of farmers and registered gun collectors robbed by specialist burglary teams.
"This is a key priority for us," Assistant Commissioner (Crime) Steve Fontana said.
Specialist police squads say they regularly find heavy-calibre weapons during raids on suspects.
Senior police say even when the guns are seized criminal groups seem to have little trouble re-arming within days.
Mr Fontana told Fairfax Media crime groups were breaking into regional properties looking for guns. "We believe these are targeted crimes where the offenders know there are firearms in the houses," he said.
Registered firearm collectors had been robbed, with burglars grabbing up to 12 guns in one raid, Mr Fontana said.
"This is a real concern for us. Nearly every day our members are pulling up cars and finding loaded firearms in the vehicles.
"Once guns seemed to be in the hands of organised crime groups but there has been a trickle-down effect. Many lower-level crooks now want to be armed."
The Assistant Commissioner said firearms had become an illegal currency in drug deals. "We do know of cases where guns have been used as payment for ice."
In 2012, the Australian Crime Commission estimated there were 250,00 long-arm firearms and 10,000 hand guns in the illicit market.
Police also believe criminals are using friends and relatives with clean records to apply for firearm licences to stockpile weapons.
Mr Fontana said police were also worried about the growing trend of criminals shooting at properties to intimidate the occupants – regardless of who is present at the time. In one case, more than 70 shots were fired from military-grade guns. "These bullets can travel hundreds of metres and cut through metal."
Earlier this month, a father of three was shot dead outside an Epping home when at least one man opened fire on the house and a car.
Police say Ben Monteath, 39, of Doreen was visiting the house after a children's party and was shot when he went to investigate the source of several gunshots.
Police believe he may not have been the target of the attack. He was shot in the chest and died at the scene in Plowman Road.
Jermersel Selimovski, 48, also of Doreen, has been charged with murder but police are still hunting two men suspected of being in the shooting party.
"We are seeking associates of the accused who may be involved," the head of the homicide squad, Detective Inspector John Potter, said. In another case, a Thomastown family has been the victim of five shooting attacks in the past seven months. One house in Chateau Court has been blasted three times, a Mill Park property once and the family business has also been attacked.
Anyone with information should contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
John Silvester is a Walkley-award winning crime writer and columnist. A co-author of the best-selling books that formed the basis of the hit Australian TV series Underbelly, Silvester is also a regular guest on 3AW with his "Sly of the Underworld" segment.

subset: commoncrawl


text: Ruhollah Moussavi Baygi wrote: > Hi everybody, > > > > Please let me know your idea about SW level1 (Giga). Is it a proper choice > for a small Beowulf cluster? > Any suggestion would be highly appreciated. > Yes, a small Beowulf cluster will work very well with Gigabit Ethernet. My advice would be to not use desktop type systems, but to specify 1U chassis based server systems. Server motherboards generally have two on-board gigabit ethernet ports. You can use one port for the general cluster traffic and NFS mounts, and the other one is dedicated to MPI traffic. For future expansion, you have the capability to fit Infiniband or Myrinet cards for lower latency if your applications need this. But start with gigabit. -- John Hearns Senior HPC Engineer Streamline Computing, The Innovation Centre, Warwick Technology Park, Gallows Hill, Warwick CV34 6UW Office: 01926 623130 Mobile: 07841 231235


text:
GenCon has some programing for non-gamers who might be attending the con with their spouse. Sounds like a good idea, for those who want to travel together but don't all want to attend the con. The problem is that they're represented by this icon:
Valleyviolet has an excellent critique of the problematic responses GenCon has made in response to complaints.
I noticed the category of events at GenCon for the "Better Half" shortly after they began running several years ago. As Vanir points out, their icon is woefully not ok. When I first saw it I went to the Con Staff and said so. They looked at me like I was some kind of giant purple ostrich with two head and they had no idea what words were coming out of my mouth(s).
But Vanir's open letter got more response. The official response from GenCon can be summed up something like this: "I'm a woman and I thought it was funny" as well as "but the events are fun!" (which never seemed to be in dispute). Valleyviolet points out that this really isn't a very good response:
Women can be sexist. Saying "my company has women in it" is like saying "I have a black friend". It's tangential and unrealistic to expect that every woman (or person who works with a woman) has a full understanding of the gender related issues that upset other people.
I don't know if you are a gamer. I don't care other than to ask if you fully understand how sexism still affects the women at your con. Have you enjoyed the stereotype of the non-gamer wife every time you walk into the exhibit hall and have exhibitors address your husband and ignore you? Have you sat down to games and enjoyed being asked if you date the GM (who you've never met) because you got a ruling or a character that someone else at the table thinks you didn't deserve?
Being a gamer is part of my identity and that icon says that you do not understand or respect how others have hurt me and continue to hurt me by disregarding my identity and feelings. "Oh haha it was a joke" is no more an appropriate excuse here than when it's used to excuse any other disregard for the feelings of others.


text:
+92 (346) 4387683
Your shopping cart is empty!
Beautiful AquamarineOrigin = Pakistan..
Bismillah Gems is oldest and most trusted name in Pakistan. In 1982 its founder Khalid Ishaq Rathore entered in the gemstone business to provide real and good quality of gems. Due to our work ethics, we have grown to a reliable Gems Company.


text:
Library >> Browse Articles >> Cardiovascular Diseases and Disorders
Library >> Browse Articles >> Child & Adolescent Health
Library >> Browse Articles >> Heart Disease
Adult Diseases in Teens
This topic is an actual presentation from a national conference conducted by Contemporary Forums and includes the streaming, synchronized audio with visual materials. CE Credit is optional.
Contemporary Forums: Providing Quality, Accredited Continuing Education to Thousands of Healthcare Professionals For More Than 25 Years and Now Offering both Live Conferences and Online Conference Content Via the Online CE Library.


text:
Free agency doesn't begin until next month, but Anaheim Ducks general manager Bob Murray put a swift end to ongoing speculation about three of his players by announcing Thursday he would not offer new contracts to goaltender Jonas Hiller and forwards Saku Koivu and Daniel Winnik.
Hiller's fate was sealed by the emergence of two rookies last season, 24-year-old Frederik Andersen and 20-year-old John Gibson. Hiller dropped to third on the team's depth chart by the final week of the regular season and was used primarily as a backup.
"Jonas was the No. 1 goalie around here for five years," Murray said in a conference call with reporters. "It's funny how it comes full circle. Years ago, it was him taking over for 'Jiggy' (Jean-Sebastien Giguere). Now we've got two young guys. He understands."
Murray said he didn't know what Koivu might do after a Hall of Fame-caliber career that included a longtime captaincy of the Montreal Canadiens before signing with the Ducks as a free agent in 2009 and playing with Finnish countryman Teemu Selanne.
Murray said the decision to not re-sign Koivu was "the hardest of the three."
Winnik played a depth role for the Ducks, but was not a big offensive producer. He recorded 30 points this past season, including 24 assists. Murray said he could fill Winnik's spot on the roster with younger players, which could include any number of players.
However, Murray would not comment directly on reports from Ottawa that the Ducks are among the most serious suitors for center Jason Spezza. The Ducks are looking for depth at center and also to bolster their defense corps, deals that could be made in conjunction with next week's draft.
The Ducks have two first-round picks, 10th and 24th overall.
"I'm very aware of the rumors out there," Murray said. "Let's just say I've talked to a lot of people."


text:
Weber wants to be more aggressive as she works to return to state
Staff writer
Hillsboro girls' tennis coach Bob Woelk hopes to send more players to state this season.
Last season junior Allison Weber attended state and placed fifth in single play.
"She's a very good player, this is the second year she has qualified for state," Woelk said.
Weber placed sixth in doubles her freshman year.
"Allison has the skills to qualify again and we fully expect to return to the team this year," Woelk said. "She's a great player and has a good record.
"She needs to work on finishing points early and make the kill shots."
Weber worked some over the summer on hitting more winners. She doesn't want to just play defense, waiting for her opponents to make a mistake.
"I want to force them to mess up," Weber said.
She played a bit over the summer against her mother and her sister, but not as much as she might have liked because of conflicts with summer softball.
Woelk also expects three other players to return — junior Claire Heyen and sophomores Allison Gray and Hannah Funk. All three have varsity experience. Woelk hopes they get more experience.
"The big issue we have for this season is the lack of experience," he said. "I hope that throughout the season they can build confidence and be real contenders for state."
The team will have no seniors this season.
"We have a young team," Woelk said. "We need to build confidence and need to develop a winning attitude."
He said he is looking forward to the return of Gray.
"She improved quite a bit last season," he said. "I'm excited to see how much she improves this year."
The tennis team has a short season. By state mandate, teams can only play in seven tournaments plus regionals.
They open their season at home Sept. 3.
"We'll have six teams coming to compete," Woelk said.
Woelk hopes to build experience before the meet.
"We often compete against schools that are bigger than us," he said. "We have to work hard to cover that gap."
- Sept. 3: Hillsboro Invitational against five teams, 3:30 p.m.
- Sept. 5: At Sterling, 3 p.m.
- Sept. 12: At Smoky Valley, 10 a.m. in Lindsborg.
- Sept. 14: Hesston Invitational against seven teams, 9 a.m.
- Sept. 26: At home against seven teams, 3:30 p.m.
- Oct. 1: At Ellsworth, 3 p.m.
- Oct. 5: Central Kansas League tournament, 9 a.m. at Pratt.
- Oct. 8: At Abilene, 1 p.m.
- Oct. 11: Regionals at site to be determined.
- Oct 12: Regionals at site to be determined.
- Oct. 18: State at Pratt.
- Oct. 19: State at Pratt.


text: Dominic Wu wrote: >Is HT anything more than a thinly-veiled attempt at luring more software >developers to develop multi-threaded applications so as to help Intel sell >more CPU in the future? (I.E. the new fangled software that is optimized >for HT can really benefit from additional REAL processors instead of using >just HT?) > Its all marketing.... However HT **should** improve performance of some apps. especially if the scheduler is fixed. My testing on 2.4.17 SCYLD has shown that 2 jobs on a computer with 2 CPUS with HT enabled sometimes takes much longer than on the same box w/o HT (I have one test node with HT enabled). However this same box sometimes performs better.... This appears to be scheduler related (I am controlling the jobs I send to the nodes). BTW, anyone using the 2.4.19/20 HT patches and where can I get them? I saw a link some time back.... Cheers, -- Wade Hampton


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European Commission
Press release
Brussels, 28 February 2013
EU trade agreement with Peru goes live – Colombia's next in line
Trade barriers between the EU and Peru will be lifted as of 1 March 2013, when the EU's ambitious and comprehensive trade agreement concluded with Peru and Colombia in 2012 will be provisionally applied with Peru. The Agreement will open up markets for both EU and Peruvian exporters eventually bringing annual savings of more than €500m. But it is the improved, more stable conditions for trade and investment that are expected to bring the biggest gains.
'This agreement is an important step towards strengthening our trade and investment relations with the two countries. I welcome the provisional application of the agreement with Peru, and hope we will be able to announce the same with Colombia as soon as possible,' stated EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht. 'In times of economic crisis, with limited internal demand and tight budgets, trade can help boost growth and jobs without causing further strain on the public purse. This agreement does just that and will really foster sustainable, high-quality business and investment on both sides,' said the Commissioner.
Colombia, which also signed the Trade Agreement with the EU in June 2012, is expected to join the implementation phase later this year, once its internal ratification procedures will be completed.
The agreement will substantially improve market access for EU and Peruvian exporters. In the long run, exporters of industrial and fisheries products will no longer have to pay customs duties and markets for agricultural products will be opened up considerably. At the end of the transition period, exporters will be saving more than €500 million annually in tariffs alone.
The main benefit of the new regime, however, will be the improved trading and investment conditions established by the agreement, providing for a stable, transparent, predictable and enforceable business environment. This is expected to create significant new opportunities for businesses and consumers on both sides.
The deal includes far-reaching provisions on the protection of human rights and the rule of law, as well as commitments to effectively implement international conventions on labour rights and environmental protection. Civil society organisations will be systematically involved in the work to monitor the implementation of these commitments.
The agreement also aims at fostering regional integration among the Andean countries. It keeps alive the hope on all sides for an association between the two regions by leaving the door open for the other Andean countries – Ecuador and Bolivia – to enter into the partnership.
Peru concluded its ratification procedures on 8 February, whereas the EU's internal procedures required for this provisional application had been completed on 25 February. The European Parliament had given its consent in December 2012 (IP/12/1353). When all 27 EU Member States will have ratified the agreement, it can fully enter into force. However, provisional application means that businesses will be able to benefit from all of the agreed trade preferences set out in the agreement as of 1 March 2013.
EU-Peru trade relations
The EU is Peru's third largest source of imports (mainly machinery and transport equipment) and the main destination for its exports (mainly fuels and mining products). The trade agreement represents an important opportunity for Peruvian agricultural and fisheries exports, which already represent almost a third of all the country's exports to the EU. EU-Peru trade has grown significantly in recent years and its volume reached €9.2 billion in 2011, corresponding to 16% of Peru's trade volume. The EU remains the largest investor in Peru (more than 50% of total FDI), concentrating mainly in communications, extractive industries and banking and finance.
For more information
Full text of the Trade Agreement
EU signs comprehensive trade agreement with Colombia and Peru
MEMO: Summary of the benefits of the Agreement
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text:
The motivation behind this is to find the points of intersection between a ray and a level set of a potential function $g$, built in terms of a basic potential function $f$ (the building is explained later). This is a problem in ray tracing where the level set is known as a meta-ball. Normally, the basic potential function $f$ is of the form $\exp(-x)$ or $1/x^n$ where $n \geq 1$ and the the problem is solved by finding the roots of a (generally high order) polynomial by a numerical method. However my question is:
Is there an alternative basic potential function $f$ such that the points of intersection between a ray and a level set of $g$ can always be found explicitly and without requiring numerical methods?
More formally:
Let $f \colon \mathbb{R}_{\geq 0} \to \mathbb{R}_{\geq 0} $ be continuous, we say that $f$ is a basic potential function iff:
1) $f$ is non-zero
2) $f$ is strictly decreasing
3) $\lim_{x \to \infty} f(x) = 0$
Let $f$ be a basic potential function, $c_1, \ldots, c_n \in \mathbb{R}^3$ and $a_1, \ldots a_n \in \mathbb{R}$, then we build the potential function $g \colon \mathbb{R}^3 \to \mathbb{R}$ in the following way:
$$g(x) = \sum_{i=1}^n a_i f(\left| x - c_i \right|)$$
Let $k \in \mathbb{R}$ then $S = g^{-1}(k)$ is our level set (meta-ball).
We describe a ray $R$ as a pair $(o, d) \in \mathbb{R}^3 \times S^3$, where $o$ is the origin of the ray and $d$ is the direction in which it is 'pointing'. Using this we may see that finding the points in $R \cap S$ is equivalent to solving $$h(t) = g(o + td) = k$$ (with $t \geq 0$)
Traditionally in ray tracing, the choice of basic potential function $f$ would mean that this could be solved by numerical methods, but is there a basic potential function $f$ such that the solutions of $h(t) = k$ can always be found explicitly (or an alternative way of finding the points in $R \cap S$ without requiring numerical methods)?


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Noise Induced Hearing Loss
Brian J. Fligor, Sc.D., Children's Hospital Boston, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA
Click here to download "Your Guide to Prevention of Hearing Loss From Noise"
Noise is one of the most common causes of hearing loss, and one of the most common occupational illnesses in the United States. A single shot from a large caliber firearm, experienced at close range, may permanently damage your hearing in an instant. Repeated exposures to loud machinery may, over an extended period of time, present serious risks to human hearing. According to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD):
- 10 million Americans have already suffered irreversible hearing damage from noise
- 30 to 50 million more are exposed to dangerous noise levels each day.
Why has this problem become so widespread? Unfortunately, the effects of noise are often underestimated because the damage takes place so gradually, loud noises have become so common in our culture, and (although traumatizing to the parts of the body responsible for hearing) there are no externally-visible physical changes (like bleeding). As a result, people have traditionally not appreciated the serious impact of noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) on their daily living until they're frustrated by a permanent communication problem or ongoing ringing in their ears. Perhaps a bit too late, they then become passionate about "hearing conservation" in order to save the hearing they still possess. Doesn't it make more sense, though, to emphasize "HEARING LOSS PREVENTION", while you still have good hearing sensitivity? This document will summarize how excessive noise can damage the hearing system, factors that influence this damage, and actions that you can take to prevent hearing loss.
Noise-induced hearing loss
Every day, we enjoy sounds: from nature sounds, to music, to a good conversation with a friend or loved one. Stop for a moment and think of your favorite sound. Is it the rain, or ocean waves, or a child's laughter? Now, imagine permanently losing the ability to hear your favorite sound… slowly. That would be tragic. When an individual is exposed at work or at home to harmful sounds – sounds that are too loud for too long a time - sensitive structures of the inner ear can be damaged, causing noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL). NIHL is a hearing disorder characterized by a gradual, progressive loss of high frequency hearing sensitivity over time, as a result of exposure to excessive noise levels. The Figure below illustrates this typical progression, in which the pattern of NIHL usually shows a "notch" that is most often seen at or near 4000 Hz. In later stages, the hearing loss may spread to frequencies that are more critical to understanding human speech (in the range of 500-3000 Hz). NIHL usually occurs in both ears. However, the hearing loss may not necessarily occur equally between the left and right ears when the exposure conditions favor one side of the head. A common example of "asymmetric" NIHL is from shooting a rifle or shotgun (a right-handed shooter often has poorer hearing in the left ear, which is closer to the muzzle than the right ear). It is even possible to see a hearing loss in only one ear, as can happen in acoustic trauma, when a loud blast affects the ear nearest the explosion.
Progression of hearing loss following exposure to loud noise (95 dBA, averaged across
the work day. Data show hearing loss for white males at ages 20, 30, 40, 50 and 60 years
with 0 - 40 years of exposure, respectively). (ANSI 3.44-1996)
Tinnitus and noise exposure
Another condition that is often part of NIHL is tinnitus (pronounced "TIN-i-tus" or "tin-EYE-tus"). This is a condition described as the perception of sound (often buzzing, ringing, or hissing) in the absence of any external stimulus (that is, there is no sound others hear but the tinnitus sufferer does). This essentially takes away the opportunity for the person to experience quiet, and can be very distressing.
Some 30 million adults suffer from persistent tinnitus (it can also affect children). For some people the problem is severe enough that it impacts their everyday life. Tinnitus affects people differently. The most common areas in which tinnitus has a direct influence are:
- Thoughts and emotions. Some are annoyed, bothered, depressed, anxious or angry about their tinnitus. They think and focus on their tinnitus often.
- Hearing. In some, the sound of the tinnitus competes with or masks speech or environmental sound perception.
- Sleep. Many tinnitus sufferers report that their tinnitus interferes with them getting to sleep. It can also make it more difficult to get back to sleep when they wake up in the middle of the night.
- Concentration. Some tinnitus sufferers report that they have difficulty focusing on a task because of their tinnitus. This might include reading a book or the newspaper.
For more information on tinnitus and treatment:
- See the Better Hearing Institute's Your Guide to Tinnitus (Link to BHI's "Your Guide to Tinnitus" page)
- Visit the American Tinnitus Association website at www.ata.org.
How do we hear and the impact of noise?
While earlier we have explained the mechanisms of hearing, it would be useful to review these principles in terms of how noise can lead to permanent hearing damage. Our hearing system is designed to detect and process sounds over a remarkably wide range of levels. One can appreciate that early humans with better hearing could hear a predator or enemy trying to sneak up on them and "get the jump on them" and so have the greatest opportunity to survive and have offspring with good hearing. Modern industrialization, with combustion engines, pneumatic pumps, and repetitive loud machine noise wouldn't have existed early in human development, and so the ear would not have been tuned to develop to be able to tolerate these very recent high sound levels.
Acoustic signals enter the auditory system through the outer ear, funneled by the pinna (the external part of the ear that we can see) and external ear canal. This funneling causes a "resonance" (like that created when you blow across the top of a glass bottle) which boosts energy in high frequencies, about 2000 Hertz (heard as a high pitch). The energy then reaches the eardrum and is transmitted through the middle ear by vibrating three tiny bones, called the ossicles. The eardrum and ossicles amplify the vibrations and carry them to the inner ear (specifically, the "cochlea"), which is a fluid-filled chamber locked inside the skull. These vibrations through the middle ear can be dampened when loud sounds cause a contraction of two tiny muscles attached to the middle ear bones, but this action is not fast enough to offer protection from sudden bangs and cannot be sustained during long exposures.
Inside the cochlea are very specialized sensory cells, called "hair cells" which are responsible for our remarkable ability to detect very soft sound and tolerate reasonably loud sound. We are born with a full complement of cells (about 17,000); if these cells are damaged, they are not replaced with new cells. So, when a hair cell dies, it is gone for good. Vibration from the middle ear to the inner ear causes motion in the inner ear fluid. This motion stimulates the top portion of the hair cells, which results in chemical changes that produce nerve impulses. These nerve impulses are carried along the hearing nerve to the brain, where they are interpreted as sound. The brain uses the incoming nerve impulses in an elegant interpretation of which, when and how many hair cells are stimulated. The hearing sensitivity of young children, with no hearing damage, allows them to detect very soft sounds across a range of approximately 8-9 octaves.
Noise "ages" hearing
Noise damages hearing in a manner not dissimilar to the effects of aging. In some ways, age-related hearing loss (presbycusis) is "lifetime wear and tear" on hearing. Noise serves to speed up the "wear and tear" process. When the hearing system is exposed to excessive noise, mechanical and metabolic changes can occur from this stress. Scientific research, based on studies of industrial workers, as well as lab studies of humans and animals, have investigated the effects of noise on hearing. This work has determined that, after excessive noise has stimulated cells in the inner ear, chemical processes occur that can exceed the cells' tolerance, damaging their structure and function.
When sound is sufficient to cause hearing loss, most often there is a temporary loss of hearing sensitivity, known as temporary threshold shift (TTS). You likely have experienced this after attending a loud concert or working with loud tools or machinery. If the ear is given time to rest (typically 16 to 48 hours of relative quiet) the TTS recovers back to baseline hearing. With repeated occurrence, this TTS does not recover, and instead becomes a permanent threshold shift. How quickly this happens varies from one person to the next, and depends on how high was the offending sound exposure.
While earlier we have explained the mechanisms of hearing, it would be useful to review these principles in terms of how noise can lead to permanent hearing loss damage. Our hearing system is designed to detect and process sounds over a wide range of levels, but probably not for the extremely loud noises that occur in our modern world. Acoustic signals enter through the outer ear, funneled by the pinna (the external part of the ear that we can see) and external ear canal. This funneling causes a "resonance" (like that created when you blow across the top of a glass bottle) which boosts energy in high frequencies, about 2000 Hertz (heard as a high pitch). The energy then reaches the middle ear where it causes the eardrum to vibrate three tiny bones, called the ossicles, in the middle ear. The eardrum and ossicles amplify the vibrations and carry them to the inner ear or cochlea, which is a fluid-filled chamber locked inside the inner ear. These vibrations can be dampened when loud sounds cause a contraction of two tiny muscles attached to the middle ear bones, but this action is not fast enough to offer protection from sudden bangs and cannot be sustained during long exposures. The vibrations move through the fluid in the cochlea, which contains about 20,000 sense cells of hearing, called the hair cells. Movements in the fluid stimulate the top portion of the hair cells, which causes chemical changes that produce nerve impulses. These nerve impulses are carried along the hearing nerve to the brain, where they are interpreted as sound. The brain uses the incoming nerve impulses in an elegant interpretation of which, when and how many hair cells are stimulated. The hearing sensitivity of young children, with no hearing damage, allows them to detect very soft sounds across a range of approximately 8-9 octaves.
Loud explosions (that peak for a few milliseconds at levels greater than 130-140 dB) may cause immediate hearing loss (this is called "acoustic trauma"). More often, however, hearing loss is caused by repeated exposure to noise above 85 dBA over long periods. The risk of noise-induced hearing loss depends on both the intensity and duration of the exposure. As intensity increases, the length of time for which the exposure is "safe" decreases. As a result, someone exposed to 85dBA (often produced by gas-engine lawn mowers) for 8 hours may be equally at risk for noise exposure after using a chain saw (producing 110dBA) for only a few minutes.
For typical long term exposure to high level sound that results in permanent hearing loss, a cascade of chemical events occurs when the cell is metabolically "overloaded" and the cell undergoes a process known as "apoptosis." The cell that is damaged beyond its ability to recover literally fragments and the pieces of the cell are ejected into the fluid of the cochlea. Cells around the now missing hair cell serve as "scar tissue" to maintain the structural integrity of the system, but these supporting cells do not contribute to the active process of hearing. This damage results in sensorineural hearing loss and, often, tinnitus.
What are the symptoms of NIHL?
NIHL develops gradually so that people may lose a significant amount of hearing before becoming aware of its presence. During the early stages, sufferers often report having to turn up the volume on the TV or have difficulty understanding speech in groups or in the presence of background noise. As the hearing loss worsens, it becomes difficult to understand normal conversation even in quiet, one-on-one situations. The individual may not be aware of the high frequency hearing loss, but it can be detected with a hearing test. In fact, early identification is important in order to recognize the presence of NIHL and then take steps to prevent further hearing loss.
Some of the warning signs of the presence of, or exposure to, hazardous levels of noise are as follows:
- You can't hear someone talking three feet away
- You have a feeling of "fullness" in your ears after leaving a noisy area
- You hear ringing or buzzing (tinnitus) in your ears immediately after exposure to noise
- You suddenly have difficulty understanding speech after exposure to noise; you can hear people talking but you have difficulty understanding them.
Preventing noise-induced hearing loss
NIHL is almost entirely preventable. Although hearing normally declines with age, the average, healthy, non-noise-exposed person can have essentially normal hearing at least up to age 60. Individuals vary in their susceptibility to hearing loss. While research has shown some trends, there currently is no reliable way to identify which particular individuals may be most susceptible to NIHL. To protect themselves when exposed to hazardous noise, everyone should take these precautions:
Know which noises can cause damage (those above 85 decibels), including jet engines, lawn mowers, motorcycles, chainsaws, powerboats, and personal listening devices (like MP3 players). If you have to raise your voice to shout over the noise to be heard by someone within an arm's length away, the noise is probably in this range. More formal noise measurements can be made (and are required in most industries), to determine risks from noise exposures. The noise thermometer below shows you the relative risk associated with certain noisy environments.
- If possible, try to reduce noise at the source. Sometimes, replacing mufflers, keeping equipment in good maintenance, or placing the machine inside an enclosure can shield a person from the risks of NIHL. When purchasing new tools and yard equipment, consider their noise outputs before buying units with ineffective mufflers.
- Personal listening devices (like MP3 players with earphones) can also present risks to hearing if used at too high a volume for too long. Consider using earphones that block out background noise to help you moderate your listening level, and give yourself listening breaks if you do choose to listen loud. Some devices exist on the market which limit the volume that can be output by the MP3 player, virtually making them kid-proof.
- Wear hearing protection devices (HPDs) such as earplugs or earmuffs, when involved in loud activities (at work or when involved in noisy recreational activities). When properly selected and used, HPDs can be powerful tools for preventing NIHL. HPDs are required by law to be labeled with a Noise Reduction Rating (NRR) that is based on performance obtained under ideal laboratory conditions. Usually, people obtain far less protection than the labeled rating because they don't wear the devices correctly or neglect to wear them during the entire period of the noise exposure. It must be emphasized that the best hearing protector is not the one with the highest NRR, but the one that people will consistently wear whenever exposed to loud noise. There is no single protector that will fit everyone, be universally comfortable, and be appropriate in every environment. What follows are some typical HPD options, as well as some special-purpose options, that you may consider.
click on noise thermometer to enlarge
Disposable plugs are placed inside the ear canal to block out noise. They are commonly made of expandable foam. One size fits most everyone. They roll up into a thin cylinder for insertion. Once they're inside your ear canal, they expand to form a good seal. Keep the plugs as clean as possible by inserting them with clean hands. Always inspect them before reinsertion. If they are damaged or dirty, throw them away.
Sound isolating earphones with universal-fit ear tips. These earphones provide considerable sound isolation to most people, therefore the volume on MP3 players may be set lower. Noise cancelling headphones are also available which do a great job of cancelling steady state noise such as on an airplane. These devices require little maintenance. The ear tips may be cleaned as needed; if they become brittle simply replace.
Reusable plugs are preformed to fit the ear. They are usually made of a flexible rubber or silicon. They may be flanged or cone-shaped and are often joined by a cord so that they're not easily lost. Reusable plugs can be worn safely for months, depending on the type. They should be replaced as soon as they become hard, torn, or deformed. Inspect and clean them often with warm soapy water. Rinse well. Store them in the case supplied by the manufacturer.
Earmuff stereo headphones. The soft plastic cushions, filled with foam or liquid, should form a good seal against noise. If you wear glasses with wide temples, you may want to choose another type of protector. If you're exposed to very loud noise, you can wear earmuffs and plugs together. Wipe the cushions clean with a damp rag when they become soiled. Check the cushions often, and replace them if they're stiff, worn, cut, or torn. Do not modify your muffs in any way.
Special purpose headsets. When communication is required with hearing protection, special-purpose earmuffs may help you understand speech from co-workers or those transmitting signals to you by radio. Advances in active noise reduction may be effective in reducing low frequency noises that can interfere with speech. Care of special-purpose earmuffs also requires that the internal electronics are maintained.
Musicians Earplugs™ are sleeves that fit in the ear canal and a removable filter to change between different levels of attenuation: 9 dB, 15 dB, or 25 dB. Musicians and music enthusiasts may prefer to use a type of earplug that is designed to match the ear's natural response, making sound quieter but not distorted. Filters in these Musicians EarplugsTM use a diaphragm that reduces noise levels relatively equally across all frequencies. These filters can be placed in pre-formed or custom-made earplugs. While these earplugs may be washed with water and mild soap, the filter should never be exposed to water. Remove the filter before such washing. Molds should be replaced when discolored, cracked, or obviously hardened. Never use alcohol or solvents to clean the sleeves.
Custom in-ear monitor, made of a silicone material. The benefit is a consistently comfortable fit and excellent sound isolation. Musicians can also use custom in-ear monitors to hear themselves rather than through the floor "wedge" loudspeaker monitors. This results in lower levels on stage and if the earpiece is tightly sealed to the ear without venting, it can serve as a hearing protection device. Used inappropriately, however, it can be turned up to dangerous levels. A variation for the normal consumer can be obtained from hearing health professionals for simply listening to MP3 players; the devices can be made of silicone or acrylic (although silicone seals in the ear better and most often provides better sound isolation). Keep the sound ports that fit in the ear canal clear of earwax and use a "wax loop" tool to remove wax. Do not get these wet and do not use alcohol or solvents to clean the earpieces. Wipe them with a tissue and store them in a cool, dry place between use. Consider using a desiccant (moisture absorber) container if you sweat a lot during performance.
Preventing noise-induced hearing loss
- If you're exposed to hazardous noise on the job, your employer may already be providing annual hearing tests to identify any change in hearing that might indicate under-protection from the noise. Occupations particularly at risk for hearing loss due to exposure to noise are as follows:
- Firefighters
- Police officers
- Factory workers
- Miners
- Farmers
- Construction workers
- Military personnel
- Heavy industry workers
- Musicians
- Entertainment industry professionals
- Office staff in crowded buildings
- If you are aware of some of the symptoms of NIHL (like ringing ears or muffled speech), seek a hearing test from a qualified hearing health professional. Although noise exposures are hazardous, other medical causes for hearing loss should be ruled out by a qualified health care provider, using data from your hearing test and your history.
- Be alert to hazardous noise. Since prevention is so critical, make sure that your family (especially children), friends, and colleagues are aware of the hazards of noise. Although animal research with drug therapies and the physiology of the hearing system may eventually lead to the development of treatment strategies to reduce NIHL, the most fundamental recommendation is the best. One-third of permanent hearing loss is preventable with proper hearing loss prevention strategies.
ANSI (1996). American National Standard: Determination of occupational noise exposure and estimation of noise-induced hearing impairment. New York: American National Standards Institute, Inc., ANSI S3.44-1996.
National Institutes of Health (1990). Noise and Hearing Loss. NIH Consensus Development Conference Consensus Statement 1990, Jan 22-24; 8 (1).
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (1998). Revised Criteria for a recommended standard - Occupational noise exposure, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, DHHS (NIOSH) Publication 98-126.
National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (1999). Noise-Induced Hearing Loss. NIH Pub. No. 97-4233.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (1983). Occupational Noise Exposure Standard. 29 CFR Chapter XVII, Part 1910.95.
NIDCD, Statistics and Epidemiology of Hearing Loss. http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/statistics/quick.htm accessed December 1, 2009.
Kopke RD, Jackson RL, Coleman JK, Liu J, Bielefeld EC, and Balough BJ. (2007) NAC for noise: from bench top to the clinic. Hearing Research 226(1-2): 114-25.
Yost W. (1994) Fundamentals of Hearing: An Introduction (3rd ed.). San Diego: Academic Press, Inc.
Photos courtesy of, and used with permission:
Sight and hearing www.soundandhearing.org: Noise Thermometer
Etymotic Research: Musician ear plugs, noise canceling earbuds
Sensaphonics: in-ear monitor
Tinnitus photo: Auricle Ink Publishers, Inc, Sedona, AZ.


text:
KiD CuDi Freestyles With DJ Reflex & The L.A. Leakers
KiD CuDi freestyles on "The Takeover" w/ DJ Reflex and The Los Angeles Leakers.
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text:
Pinterest operations engineer Ryan Park believes the explosive success of the social network would not have been possible without the scalability of the Amazon cloud services.
At the Amazon Web services Summit in New York he said: "The cloud has enabled us to be more efficient, to try out new experiments at a very low cost, and enabled us to grow the site very dramatically while maintaining a very small team."
As of last December, the social networking service employed only 12 people.
With very little in the way of internal IT infrastructure, Pinterest was able to attract almost 18 million visitors by the month of March, a 50% increase from the previous month, according to web ratings firm ComScore. The site has been one of the fastest growing sites in the history of the web.
Pinterest's use of Amazon's S3 (Simple Storage Service) grew by a factor of 10 since last August. Its use of Amazon's EC2 (Elastic Cloud Compute) grew by a factor of 3 in that time frame. The company now has about 80 million objects stored in S3, which holds about 410 terabytes of user data.
"Imagine we were running our data centre, and we had to go through a process of capacity planning and ordering and racking hardware. It wouldn't have been possible to scale fast enough," Park said.
Pinterest is an online pinboard, a service that allows people to collect and organise items of interest, so they can be viewed by others. The company uses a range of AWS services to run the site.
Today, Pinterest runs about 150 EC2 virtual servers, called instances, to run its core web services, which are written in Python and use the Django framework. Traffic is balanced across these instances using the Amazon ELB (Elastic Load Balancer). "The ELB has a great API, so we can programmatically bring in more instances, or take instances out if they are having problems."
Another 90 EC2 instances are dedicated towards caching, through memcache. "This allows us to keep a lot of data in memory that is accessed very often, so we can keep load off of our database system," Park said. Another 35 instances are used for internal purposes.
Behind the application, Pinterest runs about 70 master databases on EC2, as well as another set of backup databases located in different regions around the world for redundancy.
In order to serve its users in a timely fashion, Pinterest sharded its database tables across multiple servers. When a database server gets more than 50% filled, Pinterest engineers move half its contents to another server, a process called sharding. Last November, the company had eight master-slave database pairs. Now it has 64 pairs of databases. "The sharded architecture has let us grow and get the I/O capacity we need," Park said.
In addition to easy scalability, Amazon has also provided Pinterest with the ability to pay only for the resources it needs, which saves the company money. Most of Pinterest's traffic happens during the afternoon and evening hours in the US. It uses AWS' autoscaling feature so that more instances are added during the day when traffic is heavy, and excess instances are removed at night.
With this approach, the company is able to reduce the number of servers it uses at night by around 40%. Because Amazon charges by the hour, this reduction results in cost savings: During times of peak traffic, Pinterest spends about $52 an hour on EC2, though in the wee hours of the night the company can spend as little as $15 an hour.
Amazon's pay-as-you-go billing also lets Pinterest test new services without incurring the costs of buying servers or software. "There is no big sales process or big upfront costs when we try something out, so we can try experiments to see what works and what doesn't." Park said.
One successful experiment has been its use of Amazon's Hadoop-based Elastic Map Reduce for data analysis, a service that costs the company only "a few hundred dollars a month," he said.
During his own keynote talk, CTO Werner Vogels noted that today's web services, like Pinterest, need to have a way to scale very quickly, should they become successful. It would be almost impossible for a web service, should it grow wildly popular, to scale to the required size in a short period of time by buying and deploying systems in house. "We're here to help you with that," he said.
The company has been successful in this task. Overall, AWS now holds about 762 billion customer objects, and gets about 650,000 requests per second. Earlier this week cloud intelligence firm DeepField Networks estimates that about 1% of all internet consumer traffic in North America goes to the Amazon cloud.
Not everyone is enamored by the Amazon service. On the same day as the AWS Summit, environmental group Greenpeace hung a banner from the from the future Amazon headquarters in Seattle, chastising Amazon and Microsoft for not using clean energy to power their data centres.


text:
Welcome to KissMyCart, previously CubeCartSkins. We were the first third party provider of CubeCart Themes, CubeCart Templates, CubeCart Skins and CubeCart Modifications set up in January 2006 with the release of CubeCart Version 3.7PL1.
Since our inception we have grown to be one of the most well known and respected providers on the web, serving thousands of clients with only the best CubeCart Skins & Modifications for CubeCart Versions 3 & 4 and the new CubeCart Version 5!
I am currently in the process of rebuilding the website and apologise for any inconvenience caused.
In the meantime if you would like to make a purchase or contact me please email email@example.com
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text:
No one should have to pay a professional for every bit of maintenance on their car. There are simple and easy things all of us can do to keep our rides running properly, and much of it is preventative.
And while you need the right tools for the job, that doesn't mean you have to go out and buy a super-expensive tool set.
That's our question of the day: What's a simple tool every car owner should have?
My recommendation is a really basic one — a flashlight. If you need to fix something in the dark, or in a garage, or you need to poke around the engine of a used car you might be buying, being able to see what you're dealing with is invaluable. A flashlight should be in everyone's tool set.
Your turn, what should every owner keep on hand for repair jobs?


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Jamie Dimon, the outspoken head of one of America\'s biggest banks, said Thursday that the Occupy Wall Street protesters have some \"legitimate complaints,\" but that investment banking has a bright future and will remain a highly paid industry.
The chairman and CEO of J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. made the comments after receiving the Executive of the Year award presented to him by the University of Rochester\'s Simon Graduate School of Business at a hotel ballroom in midtown Manhattan. Dimon stuck around to answer a few questions.
Asked about the Occupy Wall Street movement against financial greed and economic inequality, Dimon acknowledged that the protesters have some \"legitimate complaints.\" He argued, however, that it\'s unfair to paint all institutions with one brush: \"It was everyone guilty. That\'s another form of discrimination.\"
He expressed optimism about his industry: \"Investment banking is going to have a bright future. […] It will always be a highly paid industry.\"
\"When things go wrong, finance gets blamed,\" just like blaming speculators for high oil prices, Dimon said. The remark was an apparent reference to President Barack Obama\'s recent call for new measures to prevent manipulation of oil markets.
The J.P. Morgan CEO discussed a number of other pressing issues such as the euro-zone debt crisis, the U.S. fiscal situation, the potential for recovery in the U.S. housing market and the prospect for more quantitative easing from the Federal Reserve.
As usual, he was critical of attempts to regulate the financial industry, saying the banks are getting rules from regulators in Washington, Brussels, London, Tokyo and Basel: \"Honestly, no one is in charge,\" he said, arguing that while J.P. Morgan will figure things out given its fleet of lawyers and other resources at its disposal, the regulations are \"going to kill the smaller banks.\"
Dimon\'s sense of humor was on display throughout his appearance, eliciting occasional roars of laughter from the audience.
He took a question from a young man attending Browning, a private prep school for boys in New York City. \"I went to Browning,\" Dimon said, proceeding to tell a story about an award the school had given him some time ago.
\"I was surprised [to get that award],\" he said. \"They didn\'t like me that much when I was there.\"
— Polya Lesova


text: The New England Historic Genealogical Society decided to delve deep into the family trees of the current democratic primary candidates, and boy, did they find out some weird shit. In addition to Dick Cheney, Barack Obama is distantly related to Brad Pitt, George W. Bush, George H.W. Bush, Gerald Ford, Lyndon Johnson, Harry S. Truman, James Madison, Winston Churchill, and General Robert E. Lee. Hillary Clinton is distantly related to Angelina Jolie, Madonna, Celine Dion, Alanis Morissette, Jack Kerouac and Camilla Parker-Bowles. According to the Genealogical Society, "Pitt and Obama are ninth cousins, linked by Edwin Hickman, who died in Virginia in 1769 [and] Clinton and Jolie are ninth cousins, twice removed, both related to Jean Cusson who died in St. Sulpice, Quebec, in 1718." [AP]


text:
Weekly Wire: the Global Forum
These are some of the views and reports relevant to our readers that caught our attention this week.
Mobile for Development Intelligence
Scaling Mobile for Development: A developing world opportunity
"The mobile phone holds the power of ubiquity. Across the developing world, around 40% of people now actively subscribe to mobile services. Including those with access to a mobile despite not owning one would push the connected population to well over 50%. However, while access to core services such as banking, electricity and sanitation is near universal in developed regions such as Europe and the United States, it is enjoyed by below 50% in several developing regions.
This confluence underlines the opportunity held by Mobile for Development, which seeks to draw investment and partnership to scale mobile-enabled services that can help to facilitate service delivery in the absence of traditional modes of infrastructure that would otherwise do this. Indeed, Mobile for Development is a growing sector, with well over 1,000 live services now tracked by the GSMA across the developing world in verticals such as money, health, education and entrepreneurship. The problem is that while the sector has enjoyed continued growth in the number of services over the last 5-7 years, scale and sustainability have generally not been achieved." READ MORE


text:
June 06, 2007 16:11 ET
CALGARY, ALBERTA--(Marketwire - June 6, 2007) -
All values are in Canadian dollars
Provident Energy Trust (Provident) (TSX:PVE.UN) (NYSE:PVX) today announced its June cash distribution will be CDN$0.12 per unit payable on July 13, 2007. June's distribution will be paid to unitholders of record on June 22, 2007. The ex-distribution date will be June 20, 2007. The Trust's current annualized cash distribution rate is CDN$1.44 per trust unit.
For unitholders receiving their distribution in U.S. funds, the June 2007 cash distribution will be approximately US$0.11 per unit based on an exchange rate of 0.9429. The actual U.S. dollar distribution will depend on the Canadian/U.S. dollar exchange rate on the payment date and will be subject to applicable withholding taxes.
Provident Energy Trust is a Calgary-based, open-ended energy income trust that owns and manages an oil and gas production business and a natural gas liquids midstream services and marketing business. Provident's energy portfolio is located in some of the most stable and predictable producing regions in Western Canada and the United States. Provident provides monthly cash distributions to its unitholders and trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange under the symbols PVE.UN and PVX, respectively.
This document contains certain forward-looking statements concerning Provident, as well as other expectations, plans, goals, objectives, information or statements about future events, conditions, results of operations or performance that may constitute "forward-looking statements" or "forward-looking information" under applicable securities legislation. Such statements or information involve substantial known and unknown risks and uncertainties, certain of which are beyond Provident's control, including the impact of general economic conditions in Canada and the United States, industry conditions, changes in laws and regulations including the adoption of new environmental laws and regulations and changes in how they are interpreted and enforced, increased competition, the lack of availability of qualified personnel or management, pipeline design and construction, fluctuations in commodity prices, foreign exchange or interest rates, stock market volatility and obtaining required approvals of regulatory authorities.
Such forward-looking statements or information are based on a number of assumptions which may prove to be incorrect. In addition to other assumptions identified in this news release, assumptions have been made regarding, among other things, commodity prices, operating conditions, capital and other expenditures, and project development activities.
Although Provident believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements or information are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements because Provident can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements or information are based on current expectations, estimates and projections that involve a number of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated by Provident and described in the forward-looking statements or information.
The forward-looking statements or information contained in this news release are made as of the date hereof and Provident undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements or information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise unless so required by applicable securities laws. The forward-looking statements or information contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.
Provident Energy TrustLaurie StretchSenior Manager, Investor Relations and Communications(403) 231-6710orCorporate Head Office:800, 112 - 4th Avenue S.W.Calgary, Alberta T2P 0H3(403) 296-2233 or Toll Free: 1-800-587-6299(403) 294-0111 (FAX)Email: email@example.com: www.providentenergy.com
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5.0 Mustang & Super FordsEvents
SEMA 2013 Top 5.0 Mustangs
Our top Mustangs after two days at the show...
Today Team 5.0&SF is on the case in Vegas, covering the Specialty Equipment Market Association show on the floor of the Las Vegas Convention Center. As we said yesterday, it is the biggest aftermarket event in the land. The entire industry converges on Sin City to show off its latest wares. Companies are displaying a wide variety of products, from performance bolt-ons to appearance mods. In short, any mod you want can be found at the SEMA Show. The show is massive. The event floor space covers the area of multiple football fields and it's full of displays showcasing cars, products, and models. A show this big takes Senior Tech Editor KJ Jones and Editor Steve Turner working to divide and conquer it. Of course, we will offer complete coverage of all that we find on the pages of 5.0 Mustang & Super Fords magazine's April 2014 issue. We also know that the Mustang will play a much more prominent role at next year's show. However, we know you want to know about the hottest 'Stangs right now. So, to whet your appetite, we are selecting the Top 5.0 Mustangs that we found on display at the show. Without further adieu, here are our picks:


text: On Fri, Jan 16, 2009 at 12:52:39PM -0500, Thomas Vixel wrote: > > It's somewhat of a stretch since you say it *suddenly* lost the use of > the bank of memory, but it could be that the processor for that > particular bank of memory isn't properly seated. > > We've had two such systems in the past couple years, with the first > memtest86 kept reporting errors at consecutive addresses after it > crossed the memory boundary to where the affected processor's memory > controller took over. I swapped out memory modules, fiddled with > memory settings, and re-arranged the cards all to no avail. The final > thing I did that ended up fixing the problem was taking the processors > out and seating each in the others' slot. > > At that point I had figured the processor itself was damaged, and that > I'd surely get errors in the other side of the memory region but to my > surprise I did not. > > The second system flat out refused to recognize one whole bank of > memory like yours. After swapping out the memory didn't work, I tried > the processor swapping trick and it worked perfectly afterward. Even > swapping them back so they were in their original arrangement worked > the second time. > > So, if all else fails you may want to try swapping the processors > around or reseating them. It just might save you some headaches > dealing with SuperMicro's RMA & tech support departments. With Supermicro AMD mother boards also reduce the HT link speed between proecessors and I/O. Depending on the model of the motherboard the HT links may or may not be rock solid at the increased clocks of modern CPUs. Reinstalling the processors including the cleaning then a correct reapplication of high quality thermal compound will also 'touch' things like fans, fan connectors, CPU contacts and lots of other subtle physical things on the MB that might make a system unstable. -- Regards, mitch


text:
Swindon Jelly will be held on Thursday March 5th 2015 from 9.30am to 4pm (note updated times)
The Jelly has been a great success with between 3 and 12 attending for some or all of the day (we understand that the flexibility of home working means you may have other commitments!) After a quiet start everyone generally gets used to working in a shared Jelly environment where hints, tips and advice are given out regularly.
Many choose to do things that they wouldn't normally make time to do during their busy day, some write blog posts, some writing, some tidying up, some research whilst others looked for some assistance/input on their day to day activities.
We hope to see all those attendees and more back on March 5th for another Jelly event!
For this month we'll be meeting at Gemini House, Hargreaves Road, Swindon, SN25 5AZ (more details here)
Book your ticket for Swindon Jelly on Eventbrite here (it's still free – but spaces are limited!)


text:
Posted in Other 30+ days ago.
This job brought to you by Professional Diversity Network, Inc
Type: Full Time
Location: Sonora, California
Provides management oversight for Environmental Services exempt and non-exempt level staff (client and/or Sodexo employees) in the delivery of Sodexo Environmental Service Programs. Ensures Environmental Service programs are in place and functioning according to design to consistently meet all company, client, and regulatory requirements.
Key Duties
-Establishes a safe work environment for clients, customers and staff by ensuring equipment safety and compliance with Sodexho safety and loss prevention programs and by providing safety-related training and equipment inventory and maintenance.
-Assumes GM responsibilities and authority in his or her absence
-Supervises day-to-day work activities by delegating authority, assigning and prioritizing activities, and monitoring compliance to operating standards.
-Ensures compliance with application of all Sodexo Quality Assurance and Regulatory standards within the contractually agreed upon scope of services.
-Establish and/or adhere to defined operating standards, develops and implements quality improvements and ensures direct reports and staff adhere to the standards and expectations.
-Assists with Management of Environmental Service budget by ensuring full compliance to established operating standards, monitoring costs (e.g. labor, inventory, equipment, and material), and taking corrective action as needed.
Sodexo is seeking an Operations Manager 1 / Housekeeping Manager, for Adventist Health Sonora, Sonora Ca. This position will manage the Environmental Services Department primarily on the 2nd shift (Evening). This position may require some weekends and holiday. In this role you will be responsible for managing the front-line staff. This position reports directly to the General Manager on - site.
About Adventist Health - Sonora
Award winning Adventist Health Sonora is a mission focused non-profit Adventist health care system that has a heart for providing to the under-served. At AHSR, you'll have the opportunity to provide physical, mental and spiritual healing every day. Our organization prides itself on being the best place to work, and we think our employees have everything to do with that! We are nestled in a gorgeous location near Yosemite and enjoy a local ski resort, ample hiking trails, and everything else that the great outdoors of the Sierra Nevada foothills has to offer!
Is this opportunity right for you?
Sodexo is the North American leader for Quality of Life Services. More than 125,000 Sodexo employees work to improve the quality of daily life for our 9,000 client sites and more than 15 million customers a day in North America.
Our Health Care Environmental Services/Housekeeping teams work to direct housekeeping operations at health care client locations, partnering with them to deliver innovative solutions. These teams also have responsibility for driving client satisfaction by providing stellar customer service via effective communication with all levels of hospital staff, as well as follow-through with action items that impact both client and patient satisfaction.
Are you the experienced Environmental Services/Housekeeping Manager we're seeking?
Please come join this winning team at Sodexo!
We are looking for a candidate who:
is a leader who develops and motivates a team to exceed the expectations of clients and customers in service and the technical execution of a health care housekeeping system;
has in-depth knowledge of Sodexo ES systems and processes including TRAKKAR, UOS, Gold Check, ENGAGE and black light inspections;
possesses strong leadership skills and has the ability to work independently to drive program compliance and reach project target dates of completion;
has 3-5 years previous General Manager/Director level custodial or housekeeping experience in a hospital or healthcare environment;
has the ability to analyze data, present and effectively communicate to all levels within the organization related to training, leading hospital committees and change management;
has experience effectively managing projects within agreed upon timelines;
has experience improving patient satisfaction, and driving full compliance to HCAHPS, local, state and Joint Commission standards;
is proficient with computers and other technology;
has experience with vendor and contract management, as well as union and contract negotiations;
has strong financial acumen and budget management experience; and
is bi-lingual with proficiency to communicate in the predominant native language of his or her team (preferred).
Key Responsibilities:
Responsible for driving client and patient satisfaction scores
Provides a clean and safe environment for patients, visitors and staff
Works with the Environment of Care Committee and Infection Prevention Director
Effectively manages the Unit Operating System
Supports a diverse and inclusive workforce
Working for Sodexo in Healthcare allows you to offer patients, healthcare professionals and caregivers around the world the best healthcare experience possible while influencing patient satisfaction, as well as cost reduction and increased productivity for our clients. Sodexo's unique CARES culture develops a dynamic atmosphere where employees are respected, turnover is low and career growth opportunities are created from within.
Working for Sodexo:
How far will your ambition, talent and dedication take you? Sodexo fosters a culture committed to the growth of individuals through continuous learning, mentoring and other career growth opportunities, along with the performance of organizations. We believe it is important for our work to be meaningful to all who contribute to it, and we remain faithful to our mission, our core values and the ethical principles that have guided us since 1966. We support these values and help them thrive in each employee.
We strive to make working for Sodexo a genuinely great experience with benefits to promote your professional, personal and financial well-being, and to improve your Quality of Life now and into the future. Our experiences with our over 50 million customers each and every day enable us to develop Quality of Life services that reinforce the well-being of individuals, improving their effectiveness and helping companies and organizations to improve performance … every day.
Apply Now!
Are you ready to start your Sodexo career? Apply now!
Not the job for you?
At Sodexo, we offer Environmental Service/Housekeeping positions in Healthcare and Senior Living locations across the United States. Continue your search for ES/Housekeeping jobs.


text:
Author Notes: I discovered vaca frita (literally -- fried cow) in a short-lived and long-mourned after it closed Cuban restaurant in midtown Memphis, a few years ago. I never had a clue how to make it until a couple of years ago, I was in South Beach and watched a street vendor make it and stuff it in a sandwich for a passer-by. Finally did some research, found several recipes, and played around until I got it like I wanted it. It's one of my favorite meals, in part because it can be prepped in advance. I like mine with fried plantains, coconut rice, and black bean and corn salad. - Kayb —Kayb
Food52 Review: We loved this recipe first for its cuts-to-the-chase name (a relative of the equally vivid Cuban favorite ropa vieja, a.k.a. old clothes) and for Kayb's lively narrative, with its cringing and teeth-gritting (see step two) -- but the bright, well-structured flavors kept us coming back. The ingredients are straightforward -- it's in the way they're applied. You build flavor at every turn, first boiling the steak -- yes, really -- with aromatics; then shredding it for a long soak in garlic, lime, cumin and fresh oregano; then sauteing with onions until crispy. And so we say, without the slightest hesitation: More fried cow, please. - A&M —The Editors
Serves: 4
pounds flank steak
teaspoon salt
cloves garlic
bay leaf
teaspoon cumin
tablespoons chopped fresh oregano
juice of three limes
tablespoons neutral flavored oil
- Put about two quarts of water on to boil in a large Dutch oven. Add the bay leaf, one onion, quartered, the salt, and three of the cloves of garlic, smashed flat with the blade of a knife.
- When the water boils, cringe, grit your teeth, and drop the raw flank steak in. It feels wrong. It really isn't. Boil until it's completely done, about 30 minutes.
- Fish the grey chunk of flank steak out onto a cutting board. Strain the veggies out of the stock, and put it aside for future use.
- When the flank steak is cool enough to handle, shred it, discarding the gristly bits and any fat.
- In a bowl large enough to accommodate the shredded beef, mix the lime juice, cumin, and the remaining garlic, finely minced. Add the beef and the fresh oregano, which you have minced. Give it a few good tosses to make sure the lime juice coats the beef shreds well, and go away and leave it to marinate for an hour or so on the counter.
- Peel and halve the other onion, then thinly slice it. Heat a cast iron skillet or grill pan over high heat, add the oil, and the onion slices. Stir and toss until they're starting to get translucent and a little brown in spots.
- Add the beef. Stir and toss until the beef starts to get browned and crispy in spots. How browned and how crispy are up to your personal taste. Depending on how much beef you have and how large your skillet is, you may want to do this in two batches; it browns easier and more quickly if it's not crowded.
- Serve immediately, with extra lime on the side.
- Your Best Flank Steak Contest Finalist!
- This recipe is a Community Pick!
More Great Recipes:
Caribbean|Beef|Clove|Oregano|Cumin|Cast Iron|Entree


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If you tune into a Senior PGA golf tournament, only to find Fuzzy Zoeller lodged headfirst in a sand trap, or Lee Trevino pleading for mercy in a tee box, there's a perfectly logical explanation. "The Living Legend" is on the course.
Larry Zbyszko, star wrestler, announcer, and agent provocateur for some of the most memorable angles in wrestling history, now has his sights set squarely on the Senior PGA tour, renamed the Champions Tour last year.
A scratch golfer, Zbyszko has been playing in professional mini-tours and senior tour qualifying events in the southeastern U.S. as he reaches the eligibility age of 50.
"The golf game is great," he said in a recent interview with SLAM! Wrestling. "Plus, it's nice not getting hit in the head for a living."
A crossover from the squared circle to the links would represent the ultimate transformation for Zbyszko, who held world championships in all the major federations. But, given his 30-year record of successful setups and swerves, fans understand that Zbszyko always has one more surprise up his sleeve.
"You never know," he said. "Next year, I could be walking down with Hale Irwin and Fuzzy and putting them in sleepers."
In private, Zbyszko sounds much as he did as an Atlanta-based announcer for WCW in the 1990s -- measured, articulate, with a wry and often piercing sense of humor punctuating his remarks.
But he's still extremely fit and ready to go to the mat, whether it's for occasional ring work or his lawsuit against the WWE and owner Vince McMahon for control of the "Living Legend" moniker.
Growing up in Pittsburgh, Zbyszko, as Larry Whistler, wanted to be a pro wrestler, even when he was a pint-sized ninth grader. "I was about 130 pounds dripping wet and told my guidance counselor that's what I wanted to do. He was laughing at me, but that's what I really wanted to do."
To pursue his goal, Zbyszko and friends started hanging around the house of WWWF wrestling legend Bruno Sammartino, a longtime Pittsburgh resident and one of the sport's greatest icons.
After years of training with Sammartino, it was natural that Zbyszko was billed as "Bruno's protege" after he turned pro in 1972. His baby-faced good looks and association with Sammartino catapulted him to hero status, and he eventually captured a share of the WWWF tag titles with Tony Garea in 1978.
But Zbyszko knew that that he'd never reach the top of his profession as long as fans regarded him as Sammartino's understudy. In the winter of 1979-80, with his career growing admittedly "stale," Zbyszko became the embodiment of treachery in one of the most unforgettable rivalries of "old school" wrestling.
In a humble television interview, Zbyszko politely asked his mentor to wrestle him, saying it was the only way he could step out of Sammartino's shadow and establish his own identity.
At first, Sammartino demurred, but he recanted when Zbyszko declared that he would quit wrestling if he couldn't square off with the two-time WWWF world champion.
In January 1980, Sammartino wrestled Zbyszko in a match taped for television, with the proviso that it would be a scientific, "exhibition-style" contest.
For several minutes, Zbyszko became increasingly frustrated at his inability to gain the upper hand. He'd try a hold, and Sammartino would counter. He'd try to break a hold, and Sammartino would clinch it in tighter than ever.
Finally, it happened. Sammartino flung Zbyszko through the ropes. Zbyszko grabbed a wooden chair, and with a pair of whacks to the legend's head, froze a moment in wrestling time and changed his life forever.
"During the match I was so programmed to be a professional," Zbyszko said. "Later on that night, after I got home and I'm relaxing and I'm coming down from all the adrenalin, then it dawned on me. I said, 'Holy cow, I hit Bruno over the head with a chair. I'm the most hated bastard in the world.' "
Truer words were never spoken. Chair shots were a relative rarity then. The turncoat went from beloved to despised in a matter of seconds, especially to the heavily ethnic northeastern U.S. audience that idolized Sammartino.
Outside of arenas - even in his hometown of Pittsburgh - Zbyszko's car was pelted with rocks and debris. An incensed crowd overturned his cab one night in April 1980 outside the Boston Garden.
In Albany, N.Y., Zbyszko took a knife to the buttocks in a wild melee after a match with Ivan Putski. An irate fan jumped Zbyszko as he left the ring area, and Zbyszko responded by flooring him. Security officials dragged away the offender, leaving Zbyszko unprotected in the middle of a venom-spewing crowd.
"So I started freaking out, because the more you freak out, the more people back away," he reasoned. "I had just made it to the point where I was away from the crowd, and I felt like someone kicked me in the ass."
He went downstairs to a dressing room in the musty old Washington Avenue Armory, concerned that he had a "charley horse." When he probed the injury, he pulled out a four-inch blade that had broken off in his buttocks.
"Remember those wooden knives that would fold, with the handle and skinny blades? Well, he stabbed me with that," Zbyszko remembered with a belly laugh. "Oh, but, it was a fun career."
The payoff match with Sammartino came on August 9, 1980, in a steel cage that drew 40,000-plus fans to Shea Stadium in New York. While he and Sammartino have long since gone their separate ways, there is no question about the student's respect for his teacher.
"He was great to work with because there was so much emotion that you didn't really have to do a lot to blow the ceiling off of the building. Even if Bruno gave you a couple of arm drags, the people would go nuts."
Indeed, part of Zbyszko's appeal was the psychology he learned from Sammartino. While he had a solid wrestling background as an amateur, he believed practiced arrogance could incense fans quicker than a hammerlock.
For years, he regularly drew choruses of boos by intentionally stalling in matches, and demanded that referees ask his opponents for a submission even when he put them in the most inconsequential of holds.
But most of all, Zbyszko never missed a chance to remind the wrestling world that he had become the "New Living Legend" by his challenge to Sammartino, who often was referred to as a "Living Legend."
Zbyszko let the words roll slowly off his tongue, his voice dripping with sarcasm -- and it became the calling card for the rest of his career.
"It was a natural thing that I did, and I didn't realize it at the time until it developed into a trademark. All I had to do was go on TV and say, 'There you have it -- you're looking at the 'New Living Legend,'" he said. "I rode the 'New Living Legend' and 'The Living Legend' for 20 years."
Zbyszko is still riding it -- right into federal court in Atlanta. After Chris Jericho won the WWE world title in 2001, he started referring to himself as "The Living Legend."
A furious Zbyszko contacted acquaintances in the WWE and reminded them that the phrase had been his standing identity since 1980. In response, WWE lawyers demanded that Zbyszko stop using the "Living Legend" mark.
When Zbyszko filed a lawsuit against the WWE, McMahon appeared on television and personally presented Jericho, in a booming bass voice, as the "New Living Legend."
The tit-for-tat left Zbyszko enraged because he was certain McMahon "was really saying to me, 'Up yours!'" He calmed down considerably when he found his lawyer "dancing circles around his office" because McMahon allegedly had used the phrase at a time when he knew its ownership was in dispute.
Discovery in the case -- including the introduction of 1980s-era Larry Zbyszko action figures with "The Living Legend" emblazoned on the package -- is nearly complete, Zbyszko said. McMahon was deposed earlier this year.
Zbyszko said he would love to have McMahon in a final one-on-one in court, although there's a possibility the issue could be settled before it gets that far.
"Vince has a monopoly now, so he does whatever he feels like doing, even if that means taking something I've been using for more than 20 years. You don't see him being called 'Macho Man' Chris Jericho. It's just the arrogance."
Despite his box office appeal, Zbyszko never got an extended shot at Bob Backlund, the earnest, but uncharismatic, WWWF champion in 1980.
Coupled with differences with the McMahon family and the rise of densely muscled super wrestlers, Zbyszko moved on from the WWWF.
"I just never would build my body up with steroids," he said. "To me, Shea Stadium, that match, that last angle, was the last of the big, real heat, real emotional, real 'old school' angles that was ever done. After that it became the era of Hulk Hogan and the 'roid babies."
Zbyszko didn't take long to leave his mark in other territories. He headed to Georgia as the man who had "retired" Bruno, infuriating the territory in early 1983 when he "bought" Killer Brooks' National Wrestling Alliance National title for $25,000 -- a gimmick the WWE replicated in 1988 with Ted DiBiase.
NWA President Bob Geigel stripped Zbyszko of the title, but he won it back in a tournament in Atlanta a few weeks later.
Zbyszko had two strong runs as a cocksure heel in the Minneapolis-based American Wrestling Association (AWA) -- it's also where he met his wife -- in the 1980s.
As the endgame in a long, carefully executed program, Zbyszko slipped a roll of dimes to the late Curt Hennig during a May 1987 match so he could knock out Nick Bockwinkel and win the AWA world title.
Ray Stevens, a Bockwinkel ally, rushed out to confront Zbyszko about his apparent interference, grabbed his coat, and shook loose some coins. Replied a smug legend: "Hey, everyone has change in their pockets."
"It was just another example of how a classic angle is built up," Zbyszko said. "We did it over months, we did it to the point where people were convinced I was going to beat Nick Bockwinkel for the title, I was going to win the belt somehow. And we turned it."
Zbyszko was "suspended" for life in 1987 by the AWA after his sneak attack on Bockwinkel, who was winding down his career. He returned in 1989, billing himself as the man who had "retired" both Sammartino and Bockwinkel, two first-ballot Hall of Famers.
"The Bruno angle was such a thing that even when I left the New York area and went to the AWA, as soon as I got there people would be chanting 'Bruno!'" he said.
"And even though I wouldn't bring up his name, all I had to do was open my mouth, 'Yes, that's right, people. You're looking at wrestling's Living Legend,' and it would just be instant heat, which translated into people being at the arenas."
When he won a battle royal for the AWA world title in 1989 -- in typical fashion, he stalled and stayed out of harm's way for most of the match -- he gloriously announced: "This is better than retiring Bruno Sammartino! It's more satisfying than crippling Nick Bockwinkel! I'm finally the world heavyweight champion."
Zbyszko held the AWA's top prize twice, then hooked up with WCW when the AWA folded in December 1990. In WCW, he teamed with Arn Anderson as "The Enforcers," winning the WCW world tag championship in 1991.
They were named Pro Wrestling Illustrated's Tag Team of the year, nearly 20 years after Zbyszko was tapped as wrestling's Rookie of the Year.
In 1991, manager Paul E. Dangerously broke up the team when it lost the belts to Ricky Steamboat and Dustin "Goldust" Rhodes. A brawl between Zbyszko and other members of the "Dangerous Alliance" stable turned Zbyszko back into a fan favourite for the first time since 1980.
As Zbyszko made the transition from wrestler to broadcaster, he drew wild cheers every week by performing an elegant, exaggerated bow as he took his place on the WCW Monday Nitro set.
"As I got older and Bruno was retired longer and our audience became a little younger, with all the broadcasting on TBS and TNT and Nitro, then I kind of became 'the Living Legend, the loved guy,'" he said.
"The new generation didn't know Bruno. But they know me as the 'Living Legend' from a famous story that they really don't remember, but they still talk about."
Zbyszko, a licensed pilot, has been playing golf most of his life, and has the management of the now-defunct WCW to thank for honing his game in recent years.
"When Nitro came, I'd fly out one day, golf, do the Nitro show, then Wednesday go back for a couple more hours. I couldn't ask for anything more," he said. "So I lived on the golf course for 12 years and prepared to be 50 so I could give the senior tour a shot."
Zbyszko is contemplating a move to Ponte Vedra, Fla., the home of the Champions Tour and a locale that's a mecca for elite golfers. A move to Florida will put him within easy range of more mini-tours and events, more family and friends, and, of course, more trips to Disneyland for his children.
Zbyszko still wrestles from time to time -- he made a well-received appearance in NWA-TNA earlier this year, and gets out to personal appearances on weekends when hackers clog the fairways.
"So I might as well fly out and make a few bucks, keep the wife happy ... the kids keep eating, damn it!" he said facetiously.
Steven Johnson is a writer from Virginia who grew up watching the stars of the Buffalo promotion.He can be reached at email@example.com.


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the mission is now closed...
Sometimes you need to say, "Enough is enough!" Sometimes it is time to say cue the finale and ed the show.
Today is that day and I wanted to let all 12 of my dedicated readers know that. Okay, that's a slight exaggeration, but you get the point.
I started blogging in May of 2005 as a creative release and to have a place to share my sometimes outside of the box thoughts on life, God, politics and sports. Now my life is going in another direction and I need to free up the time to make things fit.
I'm still passionate about politics. As recently as this weekend, I thought we should offer Rep. Marlin Stutzman (R-Ind.) who said on Saturday that Obamacare should be repealed because it "...shows a disregard for the will of the people" a deal. Here's the deal I'd offer since he seems to believe it is the job of our political leaders to follow the will of the people.
Finally Mr. Stutzman, if you feel strongly that we should follow the will of the people regarding Obamacare, fine, repeal it, but then replace it with a single payer government backed system for all Americans since that would truly reflect the will of the people.
Of course I am still passionate about God and in fact, my time serving in Mexico as a host receiver for short-term teams increases every year. I will continue to write about that over at Notes from Dave, where my latest post is about American Exceptionalism and Mission. I also send out a weekly Monday Mission Moment that you can subscribe to through my ministry, Adventures in Life.
I still love sports and will continue to follow my teams, albeit not as fanatically and I will still be thinking and writing about life, just in another context. After over 20 years of living, working and traveling in Mexico, I've decided to dedicate the majority of my writing time to that great country. I'll be writing about the people, the culture, the art, the food and the beauty that can be found not just in the normal tourist areas, but off the trail as well.
To that end, along with my good friend Joe Ramirez, who will providing most of our top level photography, I have started a new WordPress blog dedicated totally to my experiences in and around Mexico and her culture.
It's up now, has a few posts and I'd love you to visit, give us a look. If you like it, please take the next step to subscribe and recommend it to your family and friends, asking them to also subscribe. We want to win a few awards next year for our work and no matter how good your blog is, you need readers, so please, come on over to Dave Miller's Mexico and follow me on the journey to My Mexico!
Blessing to all of you. I'll still be commenting here and there when something catches my fancy or gets my goat, but this will be my last post here at the mission.
(All material posted on this blog is the sole property of Dave Miller (c) and represents his personal views. This blog is in no way, nor has it ever been officially associated with Adventures in Life Ministry, for whom Dave has worked for over 20 years.)
Labels: Art, Culture, Dave Miller, Dave Miller's Mexico, food, Joe Ramirez Photography, mexico, WordPress


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Cycling enthusiast Javeed Anwar is Head of Marketing & Sales at Sleeperz Hotel, Cardiff
I first started cycling when I moved from London to the Chilterns – mainly mountain biking initially and it proved a great way to get fit and get to know the area a bit better – I soon became hooked.
This was in the late 1990s and I quickly progressed from local routes to the longer rides that were being organised by my local bike shop.
When Sleeperz opened three years ago and I started spending half of each week in Cardiff, it was another great chance for me to explore new routes and the beautiful Welsh countryside – there are some fantastic cycling trails to be discovered.
In the last three years, it's become a serious hobby and a couple of years ago I progressed to road riding, which has taken my commitment to the sport to another level.
I get so much from this hobby and every ride is a whole new challenge – the aim of which is to push myself as hard as I can.
I've now completed several hugely demanding (some would say punishing!) Tour de France climbs, including Alpe d'huez, Col de l'iseran and Cormet de Roseland, as well as Giro d'Italia routes which include the Stelvio Pass, Gavia Pass and Mortirolo.
I cycle with a great bunch of guys and of course we're competitive – there's a great deal of banter that helps get us up these mountains!
I find each ride completely exhilarating and can actually get quite emotional when I realise what we've achieved by completing each one.
I definitely believe there's an overlap with work in that I return feeling completely refreshed and ready to tackle just about any challenge.
A hobby such as this helps to keep both mind and body active and I'm looking forward to tackling more new routes – both the French Pyrenees and Spanish Sierra Nevada mountains are on the list – in the near future.


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April is National Volunteer Month, and I want to thank all the volunteers who have donated their time and talents to our agency.
We have had more than 90 volun-teers in the past year at our Trimble County Center who have given so much to assist those in need.
The agency has been fortunate to have assisted so many elderly and low-income people in our community. Our wonderful and committed volunteers make this possible. Thank you for contributing to our mission.
Pamela Craig,
county coordinator
I am writing on behalf of the Carroll County Tobacco Festival Committee. We have had Turkey Shoots for over six years. Some have been successful and some we went in the hole. But, we enjoy doing it and meeting new people.
Everyone really has a good time and it's a lot of fun. We would like to take the time to thank everyone that has attended our turkey shoots and supported the Carroll County Tobacco Festival.
The Carroll County Health and Safety Fair on Saturday, March 28 at the Armory was deemed a success! We estimate up to 400 people took advantage of this opportunity to showcase their products and services; to network as a community; to get information to keep families healthy and safe; and to volunteer.
I commend Mr. Zook in trying to do his job of cleaning up the unsightly junky places in our city. Thank you and keep up the good work for a neat, clean community.
Pat Montgomery
More than 30 students within our school system currently are on the tennis team, but these students do not have a court to practice on.
They must travel by bus to Carroll County to actually practice on a tennis court. Thank goodness for the kind generosity of Carroll County.
While I understand the old court was removed in order to provide better parking for the senior citizens, why wasn't a new court constructed prior to this?
Due to the ongoing personnel changes, the annual Worthville Fire Deparment April Turkey Supper will be moved to May 16, 2009.
We hope all will come and continue to support the Worthville Fire Department, as we depend on your support in order to better serve the community.
Without your support we could no longer function as a viable asset to our and the surrounding communities. We greatly appreciate your support as we go through the "Changing of the Guard" and of gaining new memberships.
The dates for the fair this year are June 22-27. The new carnival, Kissel, will start the rides at 5 p.m.
Family night is Monday, June 22, at $6 for all events and rides. Monday also features the Baby and Cutie Pie contests. Babies from birth to 24 months wear swimsuits and Cutie Pies, children 2-4 years old wear sundresses or shorts outfits.
Tuesday is the Miss Trimble County pageant; Wednesday is Miss Teen Trimble County pageant; Thursday pageants are Princess and Pre-Teen, and Friday is the Little Miss and Mister contest.
Because so many people in Carroll County have been concerned with the lack of positive role models for youth, as the Industry Training and Development Specialist of the Carroll County Area Technology Center I would like to share with you a unique event that fosters relationships between young people and caring adults.
Upon reading his own obituary in a newspaper, American author and humorist Samuel Clemens, better known as Mark Twain, wrote a letter to the editor stating simply: "The rumors of my demise are greatly exaggerated."
As the pastor of St. Peter Lutheran Church, located on State Hwy. 36 between Milton and Carrollton, I was rather surprised to hear that, unbeknownst to me or my parishioners, St. Peter Lutheran Church is going to close.
Two issues were recently raised in the Carrollton City Council, and both are disturbing.
First a councilman and councilwoman both argued for weakening enforcement of laws which mandate that citizens clean up their yards, and don't park unlicensed junk cars on their property. While both council members are fine people, they are just wrong on this issue.
After having read several recent letters to the editor concerning cleaning up the City of Carrollton, I am prompted to express my feelings as a council member.
On Feb. 19, I had the privilege of attending a meeting presided by Ruth Baxter. The meeting was about stimulating the economy.
The discussion centered around creating jobs for local residents and the emphasis was put on the urgency of buying locally. Everyone in the community needs to stop and think about what might happen to Carrollton if the local businesses were not here anymore. Most everything you buy from a business outside of Carrollton can be purchased here locally for about the same price.
Many people are asking, what does "The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009" mean to me, as it pertains to the "First-time Home Buyer Credit"?
Well, that is the $8,000 question. Here it is, in a nutshell. Last year, Congress provided taxpayers with a refundable tax credit equal to $7,500 or 10 percent of the purchase price, (whichever is the lesser of the two), on a home purchased by a first-time homebuyer on or after April 9, 2008, and before July 1, 2009.
I am writing in regard to Coach Corbin and the fourth-grade boys basketball team.
On Feb. 21-22, they played in a tournament in Madison Ind., games at 9 a.m. and approximately 3 p.m., and the fourth-grade tournament in New Castle, Ky., at 11 a.m. and approximately 1 p.m. They played again at 2 on Sunday in Madison.
Congratulations to the community for helping the group Carroll County Animal Support. I attended the chili supper fund-raiser Saturday night to participate by donating some bake goods and volunteering to help.
What a wonderful surprise to see so many bake-sale items and workers, plus the large and beautiful display of silent auction baskets and raffle items.
I'd like to take this opportunity to express my thoughts on the plans to clean up the city and enforce city ordinances.
First, the code inspector is going over board, he is now writing people citations for toys in the yard. Come on that just shows that the city wasn't that bad to begin with. He's obviously ran out of real violations to write people up for.
Second, I think we should all thank the mayor. I have talked to many town officials and everyone points the finger at the mayor.
There are people out in the community who are angry at this newspaper, and I think it's time to clear the air.
Over the past few months, we have reported on the deaths of three young men, whose autopsies connected their tragic, untimely and unexpected deaths directly to the abuse of prescription drugs apparently obtained illegally.
As editor, I take full responsibility for making sure these stories were covered and published. And I will make sure that we will continue to do so if, God forbid, this happens again.
The Carroll County High School Panther basketball team hosted its second annual chili supper and silent auction Feb. 14, prior to the homecoming games against Williamstown and Oldham County. The participation by the community and parents of both the girls and boys basketball teams was terrific; both events were a huge success.
(Editor's note: The following letter was sent to The News-Democrat by Amy Owen of Carrollton. The letter was written by Dawn Austin, before she died of cancer earlier this month. We are printing it at Ms. Owen's request.)
This is a letter that I have written before, but lost when we lost our electric. It is long overdue.
I was not a person who went to doctors. I did see Dr. Hussein two years ago. He fixed what was wrong and I didn't go back. I see him on a regular schedule now.
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