text:
Rock on Gold Dust Woman Take your silver spoon And dig your grave Well its a heartless challenge
A person's life is made up of many different slices. The past is littered with remembrances and lost opportunities. We always see things better in the rear view mirror. There are times in our lives when we feel we can do anything and be anyone. We see the picture so clearly. We love without fault and we draw pictures in the sand. The waves wash many of those pictures aside, but we wonder if perhaps we could have drawn them differently.
She was supposed to be blessed. Her brother was a football star. She was the president of her graduating class. They gave her a scholarship for it. The experiment didn't last. Life got in the way. She ran home with her tail between her legs. Once upon a time the man who loved her did the same thing. They were cut from a different breed. They had the gifts but couldn't find the right forum in which to apply them. It all fell apart. Puddles in the rain were washed away and the sea was too wide for either of them to cross. He fought to believe he was worthy of his dreams. She fought to convince him she wasn't fighting for. Swords clashed and the mists swallowed them, emerging only from time to time in order to remember what once was and could now never be.
Well did she make you cry Make you break down Shatter your illusions of love Well is it over now Do you know how to pick up the pieces and go home
Years between and years gone by. He wondered if he could ever heal the wounds that were not their own. He began to realize he had always been worthy. She continued to convince him she was not. Bent on self-destruction and consigning herself to shadows, she pushed him away. She sunk into the depths of doubt and preferred the way of getting by no matter how degrading the way might be. She could never hold herself up to his light without going blind. It reminded her too much of who she used to be.
She had to control everything in her orbit, and although he thought he was weak, she knew he was too strong. She prostituted herself for lesser men when he could have held her hand. The expense was too great. She could not lose control. She had to push ahead, no matter how deep the mud became or how much the air stank of destruction and death. It was easier to close her eyes. He opened them too wide. She hated that about him but it could not keep her from loving him.
Time passes and some quests change, just as some quests must be surrendered in order to survive. Jousting with windmills tends to end violently and not in your favor. You have a belief in love and in what really matters, but as someone sinks deeper into an abyss of their own choosing, you have to realize that no matter how much rope you have, they won't always grab hold of it. Sometimes you must retreat and prepare for the days ahead. Life has to be lived. There is no other option.
You can kill the things you love. Sometimes you can kill them more easily than you can embrace them. Often love is too much to bear and sorrow and pain are preferable substitutes. You watch as she leaves and you vow to her that someday it will be different. Someday you will have what she needs and someday she will understand what it all means. It is easier for her to watch you suffer and struggle and try once more to prove to her that she was your answer and that you were hers. Then the wires are cut and time and space cease to become your allies. They stand with her and your only option is to get back on your horse and ride into the night. There are other sunsets. There are other shores. None may smell so sweet, but they might stay longer and your wounds might heal. Time is your ally again. Nothing else matters.
Ooh pale shadow of a woman, Ooh black widow, ooh yeah Ooh pale shadow, shes a dragon
Lyrics sample from lyrics copyright Stevie NicksOriginally recorded for Fleetwood Mac "Rumours", 1977Lyrics for live version of "Gold Dust Woman"Courtesy of nicksfix.comThe rest courtesy of The Muse.
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A war is being waged on the streets of Russia before the 2014 Winter Olympics - a war against cats and dogs.
The council in Sochi, the city hosting the winter sports extravaganza in February, came under fire today from protesters and local press after they confirmed their plan to do away with more than 2,000 stray cats and dogs ahead of the Games next year.
The confirmation of the war against strays came after the authority last month asked companies to bid for a contract to "dispose" of 2,028 cats and dogs by the end of this year. Today they also told news agency AFP that "We have packs of animals in the city, sometimes they attack children. Often these animals are sick, they carry disease."
The authorities have offered to pay 1.7 million rubles (£35,259) to potential pet hunters, with the proviso that they organise squads that would conduct raids of the city between 5am and 8am.
Animal lovers have been given a grim image of chemical warfare, with protesters describing scenes of animals dying in the street due to ingesting poison.
The tender has gone without any bids and now a spokesperson has confirmed that Sochi is planning to build an animal shelter, with any future plans focussed on sterilisation and sheltering rather than exterminating strays. But the spokesperson added that any shelter may not be ready in time for next year's games.
A director of animal protection group Humane Society International/UK, Mark Jones, also told AFP: "Regions with no meaningful street dog or cat population control strategy often resort to large-scale inhumane extermination programmes prior to high-profile events, such as the Olympic Games.
"We urge the authorities not to make these animals into innocent victims."
It is expected that the resort town will host more than 300,000 spectators and athletes.
Russian authorities had previously come under fire for the forced eviction and displacement of 1,500 families in Sochi, with reconstruction forcing the demolition of some homes as the Olympic village and route to the site were being built. Six stadiums within Sochi's Olympic park near completion.
The construction of new houses and tourism sites means that the town has seen renewed logistical investment in the road network and waste disposal. The hope is that Russia can showcase the event.
For pooches and pussycats on the run, that spells bad news.
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03-25-2012, 10:13 PM | #1 (permalink) |
Join Date: Dec 2010
Posts: 1,982
How does this team look?
What do you guys think of my team? Its a 10 team H2H league, any suggestions on pickups/drops or trades I should think about?
I had the 4th overall pick in the draft C-Matt Wieters 1B-Albert Pujols 2B-Chase Utley 3B-Ryan Zimmerman SS-Elvis Andrus 2B/SS-Ryan Roberts 1B/3B-Mark Trumbo OF-Giancarlo Stanton OF-Alex Gordon OF-Adam Jones OF-Chris Young UTIL-Jason Kipnis UTIL-Jeff Francoeur BENCH C-Wilson Ramos 1B/OF-Mike Carp SS/2B/3B-Sean Rodriguez SP-Clayton Kershaw SP-Jared Weaver SP-Matt Moore RP-Rafael Betancourt RP-Brandon League SP-Gio Gonzalez SP-Ubaldo Jimenez BENCH RP-Andrew Bailey RP/SP-Chris Sale RP-Sergio Santos SP-Jhoulys Chacin(Should I drop for Carl Pavono,Fransico Lariano,John Danks,Mike Minor?) RP/SP-Daniel Bard |
03-30-2012, 11:16 AM | #2 (permalink) |
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Orange County, CA
Posts: 4,441
wow how you ended up with pujols with 4th pick!
Your batting is soild all around, Util needs and up grade as for chacin hes young but pitches at coors fields, wait and see how liriano does in his first start. he's been pretty good in spring traning
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The headphones were in excellent condition, the packaging was sufficient.
Chris was a pleasure to deal with.
Item: Ultrasone Edition 8
Quick with payment and communication. Would happily deal with again.
Really great buyer! Had it worked out to send headphones to a U.S. address while he was visiting, and everything worked out great! Thanks again!
Eucariote was fantastic with the transaction. Always quick to respond, very helpful. He shipped fast as well. Item came as described with all of the original packaging, which was a nice touch.
Would definitely buy from this seller again.
Item: Wanted: Denon AH-D5000's
eucariote was very patient, transaction went very smoothly, fast payment, recommended!


text:
Are women better mindreaders? Sex differences in neural correlates of mentalizing detected with functional MRI
© Krach et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. 2009
Received: 29 July 2008
Accepted: 04 February 2009
Published: 04 February 2009
The ability to mentalize, i.e. develop a Theory of Mind (ToM), enables us to anticipate and build a model of the thoughts, emotions and intentions of others. It has long been hypothesised that women differ from men in their mentalizing abilities. In the present fMRI study we examined the impact of (1) gender (women vs. men) and (2) game partner (human vs. computer) on ToM associated neural activity in the medial prefrontal cortex. Groups of men (n = 12) and women (n = 12) interacted in an iterated classical prisoner's dilemma forced choice situation with alleged human and computer partners who were outside the scanner.
Both the conditions of playing against putative human as well as computer partners led to activity increases in mPFC, ACC and rTPJ, constituting the classic ToM network. However, mPFC/ACC activity was more pronounced when participants believed they were playing against the alleged human partner. Differences in the medial frontal lobe activation related to the sex of the participants could be demonstrated for the human partner > computer partner contrast.
Our data demonstrate differences in medial prefrontal brain activation during a ToM task depending on both the gender of participants and the game partner.
Folk psychological opinion views women as being more sensitive, emotional and even better mind readers as compared to men. In a scientific context these abilities refer to empathy and the adoption of a Theory-of-Mind (ToM). Empathy describes the sensitive perception of feelings and emotions of others [1], while Theory-of-Mind refers to the more cognitive aspect of inferring intentions, goals or desires of others [2]. From an evolutionary perspective, having a ToM provides a powerful selective advantage, since it means the intentions of a counterpart can be evaluated in advance and responded to adequately. In highly developed societies appropriate social interactive behaviour in everyday situations (i.e. working environment, private and family life etc.) is regarded as a key cognitive ability and women are often regarded as superior in this respect.
In recent years, functional neuroimaging studies have increasingly addressed Theory-of-Mind related questions, including irony [3], jokes [4, 5], envy [6], false beliefs [7] and embarrassment [8]. Other approaches utilize games and simulations that enable implicit and online ToM mechanisms to be investigated [9–16]. Here, the experimenter takes advantage of the distraction of the proper game, which puts the participants into a "flow-like" state and implicitly prevents the participant to direct their attention to the actual question of the taking of the perspective of a respective game partner on the basis of "I think that you think that I think... etc." Task designs applied to study implicit mentalizing comprise the Prisoner's Dilemma Game (PDG) [9, 11, 16, 17], the Ultimatum Game [11], economic decision games (Iowa Gambling Task) [15, 18] or a version of the stone-paper-scissor game [14].
The neural substrates associated with mentalizing comprise circumscribed regions of the right temporo-parietal junction (TPJ) and the medial prefrontal gyrus extending into the anterior (para)-cingulate cortex (ACC) [19–24]. The TPJ has been shown to be activated in relation to biological motion and to stimuli which signal intentions and intentional activity [22–25]. On the other hand, medial prefrontal and anterior cingulate regions are associated with planning and anticipation [26]. Frith and Frith assume that in the context of mentalizing these regions play a major role in the anticipation of what and of how a partner is feeling, thinking or doing on the basis of what oneself would feel, think or do in the same situation [19, 27]. In turn, this shift permits the assessing and evaluating of ones own feelings and thoughts on a highly self-reflective level [28, 29].
Recent studies have shown that we also implicitly attribute intentions of various degrees to animals [30, 31] and to a somewhat lesser extent even to robots [9, 32] and computers [11]. Neuroimaging findings indicate that humans do attribute self-generated actions, intentions and desires more greatly to human than to computer partners, though activity in the mentalizing network was detected in human-computer interactions as well. This was most evident in scenarios when the computer/machine was perceived as being directly responsive to the subjects' behavioural decisions [9, 11, 14, 17, 32].
The influence of gender on ToM along with its neural correlates has hardly been investigated. Accordingly, debates on this issue have been dominated by folk psychological positions and merely favour the point of view that women are superior in mentalizing and associated abilities.
In the present study we focused on the questions of whether humans attribute intentions and goals to human vs. computer partners and whether the participants' gender modifies neural correlates of implicit mentalizing. We applied a version of the PDG with subjects instructed to play either a putative human or a computer partner (while actually both were programmed to "play" a random sequence). By means of a cover story we were able to infer pure "intentional stance" [14, 33] associated neural activity as possible strategies of both partners were held constant between conditions. We hypothesized that subjects would attribute more real intentions and thoughts to the human partner, while the assumed random answer of the computer would elicit less brain activity in the medial prefrontal cortex. Regarding sex differences, we expected, in line with folk psychological assumptions that women would be better perspective takers and therefore display stronger signal changes in the medial prefrontal cortex.
Behavioral results
Behavioural Data
♂ = 12 | ♀ = 12 | |||
Age | 28.0 | 5.5 | 26.1 | 6.0 |
RT (playing against computer partner) (ms) | 388.2 | 101.7 | 417.7 | 107.7 |
RT (playing against human partner) (ms) | 405.2 | 101.7 | 425.3 | 91.6 |
Pay-off computer (playing against computer partner) [points] | 360.0 | 172.4 | 298.2 | 107.3 |
Pay-off subject (playing against computer partner) [points] | 803.3 | 72.4 | 769.1 | 104.6 |
Pay-off computer (playing against human partner) [points] | 476.7 | 133.5 | 328.2 | 127.6 |
Pay-off subject (playing against human partner) [points] | 775.0 | 111.3 | 808.2 | 83.4 |
Questionnaire: Did you have the impression to play against another person? (no, not at all = 1; yes, very much = 7) | 5.0 | 1.7 | 5.2 | 1.2 |
Accumulated pay-off's during the participant-computer as well as participants-human partner interactions were then entered into a repeated measures ANOVA with sex as between-subject factor and game partner as within-subject factor. Results revealed no effect of sex (F (1, 21) = 0.00, p = .97) and partner (F (1, 21) = 0.43, p = .83) and no interaction between sex and game partner (F (1, 21) = 1.69, p = .21).
When the points given to the respective partner (either putative human partner or computer partner) by players were investigated, a significant sex difference emerged in the respect that females played more competitively, indicated by increased pressing of the right response button [repeated measures ANOVA: effect of sex (F (1, 21) = 6.60, p = .02) and partner (F (1, 21) = 3.26, p = .09) and no interaction between sex and game partner (F (1, 21) = 1.14, p = .30)].
Overall, both male and female subjects gained significantly more points than the alleged game partner, using a very competitive strategy on average [repeated measures ANOVA human condition: effect of sex (F (1, 21) = 3.30, p = .08) and partner (F (1, 21) = 113.31, p = .00) and no interaction between sex and game partner (F (1, 21) = 6.17, p = .02); repeated measures ANOVA computer condition: effect of sex (F (1, 21) = 3.14, p = .09) and partner (F (1, 21) = 116.57, p = .00) and no interaction between sex and game partner (F (1, 21) = 0.10, p = .75)].
The questionnaire handed out after scanning revealed that all subjects regardless of sex had been completely convinced that they were playing a real human contender in the "human condition" and therefore validated the successful "deception" (see Table 1). Only two subjects admitted seeing through the cover story and were therefore discarded from later fMRI data analyses.
Neuroimaging results
Effects of game partner
Significance level and the size of the respective activation cluster (number of voxels) for male and female (human partner > baseline; computer partner > baseline).
Coordinates | ||||||
BA | x | Y | z | t-value | No. voxels | |
Male (human partner > baseline) | ||||||
L Inferior Frontal Gyrus (orbital part) L Insula | 8/10 | 32 | 19 | -8 | 10.94 | 47 |
L Middle Frontal Gyrus | 8 | 51 | 17 | 29 | 10.48 | 63 |
L Middle Frontal Gyrus | 8 | 36 | 47 | 9 | 9.42 | 46 |
L Superior Frontal Gyrus (medial part) | 9 | 8 | 29 | 35 | 9.20 | 28 |
L Inferior Parietal Lobule | 7/40 | 55 | -44 | 46 | 8.68 | 93 |
R Angular Gyrus Gyrus R Superior Parietal Lobule | 39/40 | -28 | -56 | 47 | 7.80 | 10 |
R Inferior Parietal Lobule | 39/40 | -40 | -41 | 35 | 7.75 | 19 |
L Middle Frontal Gyrus L Precentral | 8 | 40 | 18 | 54 | 7.44 | 27 |
Male (computer partner > baseline) | ||||||
L Middle Frontal Gyrus | 8 | 36 | 55 | 5 | 10.72 | 110 |
L Superior Frontal Gyrus (medial part) L Superior Frontal Gyrus | 9 | 8 | 29 | 35 | 10.50 | 24 |
R Angular Gyrus R Inferior Parietal Lobule | 39/40 | -44 | -41 | 39 | 9.71 | 45 |
L Inferior Frontal Gyrus (orbital part) L Insula L Superior Temporal Pole | 11/44/45 | 40 | 23 | -15 | 9.67 | 26 |
L Inferior Parietal Lobule | 39/40 | 40 | -56 | 47 | 8.25 | 122 |
R Middle Frontal Gyrus (orbital part) | 8/10 | -40 | 50 | -13 | 7.96 | 78 |
R Middle Frontal Gyrus | 8 | -40 | 54 | -3 | 7.89 | 10 |
L Superior Parietal Lobule | 7 | 28 | -71 | 55 | 7.53 | 30 |
Female (human partner > baseline) | ||||||
L Inferior Parietal Lobule | 39/40 | 48 | -45 | 28 | 8.87 | 83 |
L Supplementary Motor Area L Superior Frontal Gyrus (medial part) | 6/10 | 0 | 25 | 39 | 8.17 | 14 |
Female (computer partner > baseline) | ||||||
L Middle Frontal Gyrus | 8 | 48 | 37 | 31 | 10.22 | 23 |
L Inferior Parietal Gyrus | 39/40 | 51 | -44 | 43 | 8.94 | 97 |
Effects of gender
Significance level and the size of the respective ToM relevant activation cluster (number of voxels) for male and female (person > computer) and male > female (person > computer).
Coordinates | ||||||
BA | x | Y | z | t-value | No. voxels | |
Male (person > computer) | ||||||
R Superior Frontal Gyrus (medial part) R Anterior Cingulate Cortex | 9/32 | 4 | 52 | 38 | 9.13 | 113 |
4 | 35 | 2 | 7.39 | |||
4 | 55 | 12 | 6.97 | |||
L/R Thalamus | 12 | -27 | 1 | 7.95 | 96 | |
4 | -23 | 1 | 6.15 | |||
-8 | -20 | -6 | 5.94 | |||
R Olfactory Cortex | 25 | 4 | 3 | -14 | 7.41 | 18 |
L Cerebellar Cortex | -28 | -75 | -20 | 6.34 | 42 | |
-24 | -87 | -23 | 6.03 | |||
-36 | -79 | -23 | 5.59 | |||
L Cerebellar Cortex | -8 | -52 | -31 | 5.96 | 9 | |
R Middle Temporal Gyrus R Inferior Temporal Gyrus | 21 | 59 | -16 | -16 | 5.92 | 8 |
R Cerebellar Cortex | 44 | -71 | -17 | 5.21 | 6 | |
R Superior Frontal Gyrus R Supplementary Motor Area | 8 | 4 | 30 | 50 | 5.17 | 6 |
R Anterior Cingulate Cortex | 32 | 0 | 32 | 21 | 5.13 | 7 |
Female (person > computer) | ||||||
L/R Superior Frontal Gyrus (medial part) | 10/9 | 12 | 59 | 23 | 10.58 | 40 |
16 | 56 | 34 | 5.77 | |||
-4 | 51 | 20 | 5.57 | |||
R Middle Temporal Gyrus R Angular Gyrus | 40/39 | 59 | -53 | 21 | 8.43 | 21 |
51 | -61 | 25 | 4.85 | |||
L Cerebellar Cortex | -32 | -79 | -30 | 6.86 | 10 | |
R Posterior Cingulate Cortex | 31 | -8 | -45 | 35 | 5.91 | 15 |
0 | -49 | 36 | 5.61 | |||
-8 | -44 | 43 | 4.53 | |||
Male > female (person > computer) | ||||||
R Anterior Cingulate Cortex L Superior Frontal Gyrus (medial part) | 32 | 8 | 39 | 5 | 5.30 | 11 |
L Cerebellar Cortex | -28 | -71 | -20 | 4.40 | 7 |
Interaction of gender and game partner
In addition, by reversely contrasting female with male subjects (under the same presumption) no region was activated significantly.
With the present fMRI study we aimed at elucidating the impact of (1) gender (women vs. men) and (2) interaction partner (human vs. computer) on brain activation in the medial frontal lobe as a correlate of Theory-of-Mind processes. Groups of male and female subjects played an iterated version of the classical Prisoner's Dilemma Game (PDG) against either a putative human or computer partner. A cover story helped to mislead subjects to assume that they were playing a real human partner, though both games were "played" by a pre-programmed randomized decision sequence. The success of the deceit could be verified by a post-hoc questionnaire. As possible confounds by differing strategic behaviour of a real partner were thus held constant, neural activity provided a direct measure of pure intentional stance [14, 33]. In summary, we could demonstrate differences in medial prefrontal brain activation during a ToM task, depending on the gender of participants and the alleged game partner.
Regarding the results with respect to the partner being played, our data indicate that regions previously associated with ToM tasks (i.e. mPFC extending into the ACC) have been evoked more strongly by human contenders as opposed to computer partners [9, 20, 21]. This finding is independent of the decision process as the reaction times were equal across conditions. Thus, our results confirm findings of Rilling and colleagues who likewise reported differential brain activations with respect to the interaction partner (human or computer) being played [11]. Our main finding of ACC/superior medial frontal gyrus activation in both cohorts (for the complex contrast human partner > computer partner) is also in fitting with the findings of Gallagher and colleagues (2002). In their study – subjects played a computerized version of the children's "stone-paper-scissor" game against either human or computer partners – they detected highly overlapping activation centres (coordinates of anterior paracingulate cortex in Gallagher et al. (2002): x = 8/-10; y = 54/50; z = 12/30; coordinates of superior medial frontal activation in our study (male/female): x = 4/12; y = 52/59; z = 38/23) when computing comparable contrasts. Overall, the anterior cingulate/paracingulate cortex (ACC), a region rather difficult to dissociate from the medial prefrontal cortex, has been consistently associated with tasks necessitating mentalizing performance [9, 11, 12, 15, 16, 18–21, 34]. Other neuroimaging studies link ACC/medial prefrontal cortex functioning to uncertainty arousal [35, 36], cognitive conflict [37], future planning and anticipation [38], self-monitoring [39] or self-recognition [40]. Common to all of the applied paradigms is that they require the reflection of mental states of oneself and others, as mentioned above, an ability preferably ascribed to women as opposed to men. We demonstrated differential activation in the medial prefrontal cortex for the human > computer partner condition between groups. If we assume that this region is correlated with ToM processes, we may conclude gender specific activation. The following reasons may contribute to this difference: (1) women were not as engaged playing an alleged soulless computer, however the behavioural data imply against this assumption; (2) men were compensating for weaker ToM abilities by increased effort, resulting in the stronger activation. Again, this can not be confirmed by the behavioural results; and (3) male and female subjects always played a male contender in the "human partner" condition. As documented previously, in the presence of a male partner men and women play games differently [41–43], suspecting considerably varying activity patterns depending on the gender of confederates as well as subjects. In order to rule out such effects we correlated cortical activity measures (parameter estimates derived at the local maxima activation of the contrast male > female [human partner > computer partner]) with behavioural measures (pay-off outcomes) and could not find any significant effect. Thus, neural correlates of mental state attribution may not be explained by an interaction with behavioural measures, but rather display fundamental differences in utilizing ToM relevant structures in a direct interaction with same-sex/different-sex game partners. Admittedly, to directly address this question one may have needed to engage both gender groups with a female as well as a male confederate.
Finally, additional signal changes in the right temporo-parietal junction (TPJ), as various studies on related ToM tasks have documented [22–24], might have been expected. TPJ activity, however, obvious in the baseline contrast, was similar during games with the human and the computer partner (with right hemisphere > left hemisphere). Hence, TPJ related activity was subtracted out in the direct comparison of human > computer partner. We therefore argue that the TPJ activity is only secondary with respect to the game partner being played and rather displays a somewhat general attribution of behaviour to another agent (and the analysis of the goals and outcomes of such behaviours).
In conclusion, we engaged groups of men and women in a real life reciprocal and iterated interaction task with another human and a computer. We detected stronger mPFC activity for human-human as opposed to the human-computer interactions, which was independent of the subjects' gender. More interestingly, we demonstrate differences in medial prefrontal brain activation during the ToM task, depending on the gender of participants and the alleged game partner. The exact reason for this activation difference and its consequence requires further elucidation in further studies.
24 (12 female, 12 male) native German subjects of Western- or Middle European descent participated in the study. The mean age of the participants was 27.4 years, with a range from 19 to 40 years. In order to control for possible cognitive factors that may influence the performance on the task, neuropsychological testing comprising executive functions [44] and IQ [45] was administered (see table 1). Age, executive functions and IQ did not differ significantly between sexes. All participants were students or employees recruited from the University Hospital Aachen. The educational status of men and women was matched in years spent at school and university. All subjects had normal or corrected-to-normal vision and were right-handed according to the Edinburgh Handedness Index [46]. Subjects were excluded if they were diagnosed according to ICD-10 with a past or present psychiatric, neurological, or medical disease as well as with psycho-pharmacological medication intake at time of study or within the previous two months. The study was approved by the local ethics committee according to the declaration of Helsinki. All participants signed written informed consent prior to participation and were paid a fee for participation.
Stimuli and task design
Prior to scanning, all subjects completed a briefing consisting of three tutorial rounds for each condition in order to familiarize subjects with the decision matrix. The decision matrix resembled matrices already applied by other research groups and is considered as a variant of the PDG [11, 12, 16]. In short, subjects were informed that if both contenders (subject vs. human partner or subject vs. computer partner) were pressing the left button, both of them would be gratified with 10 points each (CC). In the case that the subject would press the left button (cooperate) with the partner pressing the right button at the same time (defect), the subject would return empty-handed for this game while the partner would receive 20 points (CD). Conversely, the subject could defect and would reap 20 points, whilst the non-defecting partner would get zero points (DC). In the case that both contenders chose to defect, the dilemma would eventuate with both sides receiving zero points (DD). CC implies mutual cooperation, while DD involves mutual non-cooperation [11].
The setting of the briefing was as follows: each subject was seated face-to-face with a confederate (always the same male person) with both having a commercial notebook laptop located at their side of the table. Both notebooks were linked by a connecting cable. The experimenter introduced subject and confederate and explained the task design. The first condition comprised a series of nine single games (equalling one round) with the subject playing against the confederate (human partner). For each single game the subject had to make a decision about cooperating or defecting with the partner. Cooperation was signalled by pressing the left button (←) on the computer keyboard, defection by pressing the right button (→), respectively. For the second condition subjects were instructed to play against the computer, again consisting of nine single games (computer partner). The possible response selection equalled the human partner condition. During the tutorial both conditions were presented twice in random order, interspersed by a low level "baseline condition" that enforced subjects to alternately press the right and left button when a central cross appeared on the computer screen. Furthermore, subjects were confronted with two converse goals: on the one hand subjects where enforced to win the series, while on the other hand subjects had to reach a virtual highscore. In a pre-testing scenario involving four different winning matrices the selected scenario proved to be the best to enforce subjects to vary their responses with respect to their accumulated pay-off.
Unknowingly, the subjects always played against a random sequence "partner", never giving the subjects an opportunity to really cooperate or find "a best way". This misleading enabled the hemodynamic changes related to differences in the instruction (human or computer partner) only to be calculated, ruling out possible interaction effects of scattered strategic alliances during single subject vs. human partner interactions relative to others.
During the entire briefing the experimenter was standing aside the subject, "helpfully" indicating aloud at the beginning of each series which partner/condition will be encountered. By using this scenario the confederate was unofficially informed when to press the buttons (human condition) and when to relax (computer condition and baseline).
fMRI setting
After the briefing the experimenter, the confederate and the subject moved to the MR-environment after giving last instructions to the subject and clarifying that the subject understood the winning matrix. In the MR-scanner the same gametask setting as used during the briefing was projected into the MR-compatible video goggles (Resonance Technology). Subjects indicated their decision (cooperate or defect) by pressing one of two buttons with their right hand on a fiberoptic custom-made response box. Prior to each series subjects were informed about the partner/condition they were to play (human, computer or baseline; see Fig. 4). At this point of time the help of the confederate was not needed anymore. With the beginning of the functional imaging recording a randomized script file (the experiment was performed using Presentation® software; Version 0.70, http://www.neuro-bs.com) was started. The outcomes of each single game were recorded and saved to a computer file. A series of nine games per condition completed one block. Overall, subjects played ten blocks per condition (human partner, computer partner and low level baseline). After scanning subjects were asked to fill out a questionnaire about their impressions of the task and their partners (see Table 1).
Image Acquisition and Analysis
All scans were performed on a 1.5 T whole body scanner (Phillips Medical Systems, Achieva, Best, Netherlands) using standard gradients and a standard quadrature head coil. Subjects lay in a supine position, while head movement was limited by foam padding within the head coil. In order to ensure optimal visual acuity participants were offered fMRI-compatible glasses that could be fixed to the video glasses. For each subject, we acquired one series of 304 EPI-scans, lasting in total approximately 15 minutes. Stimuli were presented in a blocked design fashion, with ten blocks per condition and a block length of nine single games.
Scans covered the whole brain, including five initial dummy scans parallel to the AC/PC line with the following parameters: number of slices (NS): 31; slice thickness (ST): 4 mm; interslice gap (IG): 4.4 mm; matrix size (MS): 64 × 64; field of view (FOV): 192 mm × 192 mm; repetition time (TR): 2.9 seconds; echo time (TE): 50 ms; flip angle (FA): 90°. For anatomical localization, we acquired high resolution images with a T1-weighted 3D FFE sequence (TR = 25 ms; TE = 4.59 ms; NS = 170 (sagital); ST = 2 mm; IG = 1 mm; FOV = 256 × 256 mm; voxel size = 1 × 1 × 2 mm).
MR images were analyzed using Statistical Parametric Mapping (SPM2, ww.fil.ion.ucl.ac.uk) implemented in MATLAB 6.5 (Mathworks Inc., Sherborn, MA, USA). After discarding the first five volumes, all images were realigned to the first image to correct for head movement. Unwarping was used to correct for the interaction of susceptibility artefacts and head movement. Volumes were then normalized into standard stereotaxic anatomical MNI-space by using the transformation matrix calculated from the first EPI-scan of each subject and the EPI-template. Afterwards, the normalized data with a resliced voxel size of 4 × 4 × 4 mm were smoothed with an 8-mm FWHM isotropic Gaussian kernel to accommodate inter-subject variation in brain anatomy. The time series data were band-pass filtered to remove artefacts due to cardio-respiratory and other cyclical influences.
A general linear model (GLM) comprising three conditions (human partner, computer partner and baseline) was specified for each subject. On the first level, contrasts of main interest were human partner vs. computer partner and vice versa. An SPM2 group analysis was performed by entering these contrast images into random effects analyses using two-sample t-tests to determine between-group analyses. The resulting group contrasts comprised male vs. female (or vice versa) for computer partner > human partner, human partner > computer partner and both conditions vs. baseline. For all group analyses, we applied a voxel-wise threshold of p < 0.001. A Monte Carlo simulation of the brain volume for the current study was conducted to establish an appropriate voxel contiguity threshold [47]. Assuming an individual voxel type I error of p < 0.001, a cluster extent of 6 contiguous resampled voxels was indicated as necessary to correct for multiple voxel comparisons at p < 0.05. The reported voxel coordinates of activation peaks were transformed from MNI space to Talairach & Tournoux atlas space [48] by non-linear transformations http://imaging.mrc-cbu.cam.ac.uk/imaging/MniTalairach.
The study was supported by grants from the BMBF project 01GW0751 "Mirror Neurons" and by a grant from the Interdisciplinary Centre for Clinical Research "BIOMAT." within the Faculty of Medicine at the RWTH Aachen University (IZKF N-68).
Authors' Affiliations
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This article is published under license to BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.


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Below you will find a list of the home stores in Chino Hills, CA. These 181 home stores are organized by their distance from Chino Hills. The closest businesses to Chino Hills are AAA Scale Co on Grand Ave (Chino Hills) in the category Scales Retail, Bed Bath & Beyond on Peyton Dr (Chino Hills) in the category Linens Retail, California Mini Blinds on (Chino Hills) in the category Blinds Venetian Vertical Mini Etc Dealers, West Coast Door and Frame on Schaefer Ave (Chino) in the category Home Stores and Aaron Brothers Art & Framing on Grand Ave (Chino) in the category Picture Frame Dealers.
1. chico's women's fashion stores in california list of chicos shopsAnaheim's Garden Walk store, Chino Hills Chico, Glendale's The Americana at Brand Chico store and Roseville Chico's (near Sacramento), have all opened ...
2. california shops, shopping malls and districtsConcord Park & Shop Center, Willow Pass Rd. & Market St., Concord CA Corona Hills Marketplace, McKinley & Promenade, Corona CA Corona Hills Plaza, 91 ...
3. bjs pizza and brewhouse huntington beach, caHuntington beach or surf city usa is the home base for beach vacations close to Disneyland, Catalina Island and San Diego. ... 4585 Chino Hills Parkway ...
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Book Hotels in Chino Hills CA
Los Serranos
Diamond Bar
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Arts & Crafts
Battery Stores
Beer, Wine, & Liquor
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Car Dealers
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Computer Stores
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Earlier, I sat in my office, a half-block or so away from the site of the Triangle Shirtwaist fire, and read about the modern-day equivalent. Too horrible to contemplate. I'm not sure what can be done, and can only make naive, obvious points about the need for Western companies to check up on the factories they use abroad.
Maybe - and PG, this one's for you - this is a case where raising consumer awareness could be helpful. But not so much in the sense of shopping with one's dollars at off-the-beaten-path, high-end all-ethical clothing stores as, if it's clear that consumers object to this sort of thing, companies that make a point of checking up on their factories will do better than those that do not. Realistically, this is about reforming how clothing gets produced in the countries currently producing it, not switching to all-Made-in-the-West. There's only so much (US-made) Hanky Panky underwear to go around, and I believe that sample sale has ended.
What this doesn't need to be about is a) the specific greed of the American consumer, or b) the unwillingness of said consumer to pay a fair price. Re: the first, it appears that this factory was partially (primarily?) producing clothes for the European market. Yes, that special, artisanal, can't-get-it-at-home sweater you bought on vacation or study-abroad (and boy do I include myself in this) probably just comes from a chain we don't have in the States, but with the same labor conditions, the same quality construction/material, etc. This isn't about where suburban American Walmart shoppers get their clothes. It's where everyone gets their clothes. It's like I said re: food, but more so: it's not as if there's some significant caste of American or Europeans whose clothes - as in, all of 'em - come from ethically-sound sources. Me personally, I have this one super-artisanal (and not even that expensive!) made-in-France handbag, and a few this-and-that made in the States, and some thrift (a ton if you count hand-me-down) but otherwise? Like the bulk of what I own? Who knows.
Re: the second, I know I repeat myself for a change, but we need to be clear how consumer demand works. In the aggregate, we demand $5 tank tops. But as individual consumers, we have, in our minds, from previous shopping experience, a sense of what's normal for which items to cost. As in, that a cheap tank top is $5, an average one $10-20, and anything above $30, say, had better be special for some reason. We don't know what the true cost of a tank top would be, and more to the point, we have no reason to think that if we opt for the $40 one, the difference goes to labor conditions, as opposed to better-quality materials, better designs, snootier store ambiance. We can't just reveal our willingness to generously pay a bit more, and expect conditions in factories to magically improve.
Oh, and we need to get past the idea that all consumers are hyper-fashion-conscious and getting to Zara ASAP so as not to seem so-five-minutes-ago. What happens is, clothing costs less so we don't care for it as well, plus it may be not-as-well-made, so it falls apart more easily... so we buy more of it. I really doubt if trendiness accounts for all that much waste. More likely - and I back this up with no concrete evidence whatsoever - trendy young girls/women make for an obvious scapegoat.
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
On those who died for your $4.95 tank tops
Posted by Phoebe Maltz Bovy at Tuesday, November 27, 2012
1 comment:
- PG said...
We don't know what the true cost of a tank top would be, and more to the point, we have no reason to think that if we opt for the $40 one, the difference goes to labor conditions, as opposed to better-quality materials, better designs, snootier store ambiance. We can't just reveal our willingness to generously pay a bit more, and expect conditions in factories to magically improve.
Agreed on the second point, but I think we actually can estimate what the cost of a tank top made under conditions acceptable to us as Americans (or Europeans) would be: with perhaps a slight discount for labor cost due to the lower cost of living in a developing country, it is the cost of a tank top made under the regulatory regime of the U.S. or EU.
I still think it's politically unfeasible to, say, ban the import of goods that do not meet our local standards of health and safety in the production of said goods. Such a restriction is something that the unions pushed for in NAFTA and other trade agreements in the Americas, and it just doesn't seem to be happening. So you have to have change occur through consumer action. Since we've seen this work to some extent for particular brands (NIKE, Gap), I think it's reasonable to believe it can work for others, with one caveat:
some significant portion of the target audience of that brand has to actually care about the conditions in which its products are made. And I think this is more likely with goods that obviously have a large markup (like NIKE sneakers), so that (a) the target consumer has plenty of disposable income; and (b) the company can't plausibly claim that it is operating on super-thin margins such that the slightest improvement in work conditions would entail a big (relative to the overall cost of the good) price increase.
Basically, I don't believe that most people buying $5 tank tops would be happy to pay more if brands were differentiating themselves on the basis of decent treatment of workers. In particular, if you're not buying those tank tops because of fast-fashion, but because those are the only ones you can afford, I'm not even sure I can be morally condemnatory of your indifference to the welfare of Bangladeshi workers; your status in your own society may be equivalent to theirs in theirs, so why should your heart particularly bleed for them? - Monday, December 03, 2012 4:10:00 PM


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Battlefield 2142 Box Cover Comments
Comment on evklinken's Battlefield 2142 Box Art / Cover.
evklinken 3
[ 8 years ago ]
#2, thanks! I've been working on this box for a while, so it's always nice to get a fav. and by the way: I can't really reduce it, because it was just a small junk of background, so there's not like a spot where it's less chaotic. But well, it can't be perfect eh? Anyways, thanks for the criticism.
[ Reply ]


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Rob Ninkovich 'still trying to fill the shoes' of Mike Vrabel |
01.17.13 at 10:03 pm ET |
FOXBORO — From the moment he took the number 50 with the Patriots, the comparisons began for Rob Ninkovich.
How does Ninkovich stack up to Mike Vrabel?
Ninkovich began his career in New England in 2009, the year Vrabel was traded to Kansas City.
Ninkovich was asked Thursday if he's ever met Vrabel, who is now an assistant coach at his alma mater, Ohio State.
"No, never have, never met him, never talked to him, maybe one day," Ninkovich said Thursday. "I'm sure he'll probably give me some crap for taking his number."
"I mean his whole career, the performance that he's had his whole career, kind of speaks for itself. So just to even have the comparison, it's an honor. But you know, different football players. You know obviously there's … I think he was like four inches taller than me, his arms were way longer, so he has the advantage there."
Actually two inches, as Vrabel stands 6-foot-4 and Ninkovich 6-2. But Ninkovich has more than stood tall this season with five forced fumbles and four recoveries.
Has Bill Belichick ever shown Ninkovich any tape of Mike Vrabel?
"Well, growing up, I'm a little bit younger than him so I always watched the Patriots and watched their successful seasons in the past when I wasn't a part of the team," Ninkovich said. "So, definitely, still trying to fill the shoes."
After all the comparisons were only natural. He is a versatile outside linebacker who was converted to an edge pass rusher, who can not only get to the quarterback but also force fumbles and always find a way to jump on a loose ball on the field.
He did it again last Sunday in the final five minutes when the Texans appeared to be on the verge of converting an on-side kick, trailing 38-28. Ninkovich recovers the bouncing ball, crisis averted and Patriots seal the deal, 41-28.
"As a defensive player you're always thinking that the ball is a key," Ninkovich said. "You're looking at the ball on the snap, you're trying to find the ball in pursuit. When people are around the ball making plays you're always aware where it's at. You know if it's fumbled or if it's on the ground you have to get on it. Let everyone else decide what's going on as long as you get the ball, it will all work itself out. As a defensive player, that's in your mind all the time is being prepared to get on top of it."
For more Patriots news, visit the team page at weei.com/patriots. WEEI-FM 93.7 will broadcast the AFC championship game between the Patriots and Ravens on Sunday at 6:30 p.m.
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Message board »Message Board home »Sign-in or register to get started
Online now: 2 members: Chery, Kokopelli eye institute; 61 anonymousDiscussion: new ASA rules
Posted | Discussion |
Oct. 29, 2011 Faulkner45 21 posts | new ASA rules I have heard that asa is going to start useing senior bats next year does anybody have any info on that? |
Oct. 29, 2011 titanhd Men's 55 433 posts | I thought it was only for the Senior National Tournament.They would still use the ASA current ball.The thought is that it would draw more teams. |
Oct. 30, 2011 Gary19 Men's 50 2609 posts | "draw more teams"? Sad, if true. So much for so many who claim guys will play no matter the bats. According to this, I guess not. |
Oct. 30, 2011 ballman555 2 posts | Not to Hijack your discussion but have heard that NSA will be using senior bats but a 52-275 ball and saw it being used in Boaz at a national tournament and they were hitting it well. |
Oct. 31, 2011 neck10 642 posts | what about u-trip they have always had better bats than asa cant believe they will let asa move ahead of them???????? neither one of them get the numbers at their tourneys I bet this will help. |
Oct. 31, 2011 curveball Men's 65 548 posts | neck, it's also about play dates and location, not just bats. There are a lot of cities that are harder to get to by air, and, more expensive. If you look at air costs to Vegas for example, they are more attractive than to lots of other venues. Where would a team and wives rather travel to, Burlington or Vegas? It's more than just bats. Have to look at the entire picture. |
Oct. 31, 2011 titanhd Men's 55 433 posts | It's not play dates. ASA Tourney is always Labor day. Burlington is not that bad if you're just going to play softball.AND ASA has only ONE National.Not 4 or 5 like some of the other associations. WIVES???? When I look at my tourney schedule and where we're playing I don't see WIVES any where in the picture. Until wives start playing second base,hitting .700 or runnng down a fly ball they can stay at home. Yep. And I'll tell the next one I get the same thing!lol! |
Nov. 1, 2011 salio2k Men's 60 547 posts | They would have had TWO if they had not cancelled all the WEST Nationals in Colorado. Perhaps the proposed rules will allow them to have TWO. |
Nov. 1, 2011 bernie Men's 55 67 posts | Senior bats for the Senior(50+)divisions have not yet been approved for ASA. There is a code change that has to be voted on and approved at the ASA National Convention next week and needs to be approved by a majority of voting members before that happens. One of the biggest supporters now of the proposal is RB Thomas from the ISF/ISSA, an allied partner with ASA. In the ASA family, many opinions surrounding senior bats have changed significantly over the past three years, including his, when players stopped supporting the tournaments with ASA bats. It will be a battle between those who think ASA sets the standard for the game as a whole and those who want to promote the senior game...The outcome of the vote is up in the air for sure since the senior program is but a tiny part of ASA as a whole. Hope this clears it up. |
Nov. 1, 2011 Fred Scerra Men's 80 542 posts | They are also voting on two proposals on moving the bases to 70'. 1 is to move the bases to 70' and the other is to move the bases to 70' except for the Senior div. Also voting on widening the batters box to 4'. Reason with the Astro Turf fields the batters box doesn't get wiped out and more and more batters are being called out for being out of the batters box. |
Nov. 2, 2011 neck10 642 posts | cureball getting into detroit for the usssa tourney is not a problem all kind of flights.I just like to go play softball have all winter & three other weekends of the month in the summer to go to vegas & places like that.the bats are the biggest issue for us we swing seior bats all year then have to leave them at home for asa & usssa nationals.we use asa bats in our senior leauge but would change if asa changes. |
Dec. 2, 2011 surf88 Men's 65 977 posts | Faulkner: Our ASA Vector-0 is a great bat. After many hits, it is almost as hot as our Melee Sr bat. It also comes with a 1 yr warranty, can hit in cold weather and is approved by ASA, USSSA, ISA, and NSA. Give me a call. Ed 970.729-3145 |
Dec. 3, 2011 Faulkner45 21 posts | thanks surf the misses got me one for Christmas |
Dec. 4, 2011 hombre Men's 60 237 posts | surf88, I know that you are a Reebok rep. but... An ASA bat being almost as hot as the senior melee? Really? LOL |
Dec. 4, 2011 titanhd Men's 55 433 posts | Hombre I agree. Also, why would you buy the Vector for ASA when with the new rule change you can use the Melee Senior ? |
Dec. 20, 2011 surf88 Men's 65 977 posts | hombre; We had a batting tent at Papago Park in Phoenix in October. We got our Vector's in on Tuesday and let everyone hit with them. 40's, 50's, 55's and 60's hit with them and I was blown away at the outcome. I brought my 28 to the location and it got well over 1,000 hits from a lot of big and small players. Lots of players told me the Vectors had nearly as much pop as our senior bats. My Vector had more performance at the end of the 12 days than when I arrived. If anyone out there happened to visit our hitting tent and hit with the Reebok Vector, chime in here. I'm ok with your feedback. Ed |
Dec. 20, 2011 neck10 642 posts | curveball you can get to detroit pretty easy from anywhere in the country for the USSSA.there was one 55+ major plus team there last year & it was a michigan team the two major teams in 55+ were from michigan also.You should pull teams from ohio,pa.west virginia ky.,illinois,wisconson & michigan |
Dec. 20, 2011 hombre Men's 60 237 posts | surf88; I have not hit with this bat so I'm not disputing your comments, but I respectfully question that any bat approved by ASA could perform like the senior melee. I consider the senior melee one of the, if not the, hottest senior bats. Was the batting tent open so that you could actually see how far the ball traveled? Or were you hitting into a screen. If it's as good as advertised, you won't be able to keep them in supply. Will anyone have them at classic spring training in Jacksonville? Good luck |
Dec. 20, 2011 surf88 Men's 65 977 posts | We didn't have room in the tent to determine distance but we did hit one day on an open field. My Vector was a bit dull in the beginning but with more and more hits, it became really lively. We'll try to get one/some there. |
Dec. 20, 2011 mad dog Men's 65 4108 posts | with curt hollis running the CST and being a reebok rep himself,there should be all of the reebok bats there.if i remember right they had their bats there last year to demo. |
Dec. 21, 2011 curveball Men's 65 548 posts | Neck10-LATE RESPONCE(didn't see your reply) been to Detroit many times, relatives in Dearborn Heights. I don't see that many teams that would have to take a softball trip would prefer Detroit to Vegas............. |
Dec. 22, 2011 neck10 642 posts | I guess not but a lot more pleasant than vegas in july.(have a few casino's ) |


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Java Draw Created Dec 08, 2010 640 x 460px Unless noted Copyright 2010 SPIDER 08.
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Ok, these look too real and fresh. Between Mingu saying tomato and mayo sandwich and seeing this, I want one too. Great draw.
Cow can this be so bright? :) Red collection! ::::::::::::::::♥♥♥♥♥:::::::::::::::
Mmmm ... tomato and mayo sandwiches on toasted bread. Skip the lettuce and bacon. I love 'em! :) 5 ♥s
lovely martoes spidey..did you pick them yerself,nice bit of cheddar and crusty cob would go down a treat..5/5:O)


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First off, we have health insurance... and pay a freaking arm and a leg for it. Oh yes, $800 FRIGGEN BUCKS A MONTH kinda HEALTH INSURANCE! O.M.G that is JUST SHY OF 10K A YEAR!
Anyhooooo I think I have, well pretty sure I have MY FIRST CAVITY!
Well, I have a dentist, I don't like her... I want to switch. SIMPLE RIGHT?!?
Soooooo a friend says, ohhh I have this great dentist you will love her... here is her contact info.
They answer, first ring- love it already! WELL... guess what they DO NOT ACCEPT HMO'S! SERIOUSLY... so the 10k we pay as a family each year isn't enough?!?
WOW... but guess what yall???? We have the option to PAY MORE and upgrade to a PP0! Gosh, how nice right???
I JUST DO NOT GET IT! How is it possible that I can't simply go to any dentist I want to have a possible cavity taken care of, when as a family we pay just under 10 THOUSAND DOLLARS A YEAR?
A SIMPLE CAVITY... something so simple cant be resolved, why would we expect something major, something life changing to be covered?
Which brings me to this fundraising event... PLEASE GO ENTER and help out this sweet little girl! PBD is sponsoring a super awesome give away to help raise funds for this sweetie! Plus some majorly awesome other vendors are also doing their part.
Friday, October 29, 2010
Heath Insurance... total BULL SH** Fundraising Event
4 comments:
- AnonymousOctober 29, 2010 at 8:40 PM
we are self employed and pay $1100 a month for ins. By the time you meet your deductiables, ins company has soaked you
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Hopes for a possible diplomatic resolution to the stand-off suddenly flickered into life early yesterday. It happened as Baghdad responded to a letter drafted by Mr Annan over Friday night, following a five-hour marathon meeting of the UN Security Council.
Mr Annan's message, according to UN sources, was short and direct. He had once more urged Saddam Hussein to back down from the brink. He also reminded him of an offer made by the Council just before the crisis erupted for a so-called "Comprehensive Review" of the UN sanctions regime imposed on Iraq after the end of the Gulf War in 1991.
Until yesterday, it seemed that Mr Annan had been almost entirely sidelined from the process. The hardliners in the Security Council - the United States and Britain - had made it clear they did not want a repeat of last February, when Mr Annan defused the last all-out crisis over UN weapons inspections. The deal he struck, however, turned out to be hollow.
Among the legacies of that process, however, was the appointment by Mr Annan of a special representative to Baghdad. That person is Prakash Shah, who yesterday appeared to be orchestrating the new dialogue. "This is UN diplomacy at work again," said Scott Ritter, the former UN weapons inspector. In September, Mr Ritter resigned from Unscom, the UN body charged with hunting down weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, claiming that the US had been undermining its work.
It remains unclear whether the statements from Baghdad yesterday will be enough to end this stand-off. Even as word emerged that Saddam had agreed to allow Unscom to return to Iraq, some diplomats in New York continued to warn that it might not be enough to satisfy Washington. The US and Britain insisted once more in Friday's Council meeting that Saddam must do nothing less than comply with all UN resolutions.
If bombing is held off and a momentum towards a peaceful solution is allowed to gather, then the exact nature of the comprehensive review will be the pivotal issue. In a statement on Friday night after his long meeting with Security Council ambassadors, Mr Annan reiterated that if Unscom was put back on track, discussions on implementing a review would begin, adding: "I trust the Council will be in a position to lift the sanctions."
Critical to the debate is the exact status of Article 22 of UN resolution 687, the original resolution passed after Iraq's 1991 surrender. It states that it will be allowed to resume oil sales once Unscom has certified that Iraq is rid of all weapons of mass destruction.
Saddam decided to break relations with Unscom last month, precisely because the Council's offer of a review did not make explicit reference to Article 22. It did not because the Americans are uncomfortable with evoking it. Officially, Washington believes that the article cannot be implemented until Iraq complies with all the conditions applied after the Gulf War. Unofficially, however, the US may not want to lift the oil ban until one other thing happens - Saddam is no longer in power.
- More about:
- Diplomacy
- Iraq
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If you want the techiest looking set up in the known universe youll some of these new Odyssey Aerospace rims. This design is made from 6061-T6 aluminium, has a fully welded seam and is made with an aero extrusion shape which allows the rim to be strong, light and reasonably priced. The Aerospace works as a front or rear rim, and brake use is OK, as always. Available in Black, Anodised Silver, Metallic Silver and Deep Purple.
Check stock and price


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Interested in a popular vape? Short on time? Be sure to check out the Best Of threads for Plug-Ins and Portables.Dismiss Notice
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Does one miss the clouds?
Discussion in 'Vaporization Discussion' started by DanAndroid, Dec 20, 2013.
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Sweet Seduction
Fiction, Blowjob, First Time, Mature, Spanking, Teen Male/Teen Female, Virginity
Author's infos
Gender: female Age: N/A Location: N/A
Posted Sat 2nd of July 2011
I know the last one sucked but this one's better I hope;).
Hi guys:) I know the last story sucked but this one should be better. I'm not the best writer yet but with your tips and suggestions, I may become a great writer. Oh, and tell me about the Themes, and if there wrong I'll repost it and make a few changes.
Clouds covered the skies as I walked slowly around the neighborhood, listening to my Ipod. The breeze felt good on my tan skin. "Tommy give that back!" A little girls voice sounded. "Aw come on sis, i just wanted to play with it!" He muttered. "Momma, tommy took my dolly!" the children were answered by a quick scolding and brought the children back into their house. I laughed quietly to myself.
I had lived in Tacoma, Washington nearly all my life. When my mother and father divorced, I went to live with my dad in Auburn for about five years, and when I was at the age of 14 I got to choose. I decided I had wanted to live with my mother for high school before I moved off to college.
"You walk the dog yet Jasmine?" my older brother Matthew called. "Not yet." I rolled my eyes as he showed off his new 350 Z to his friends. It was silver, with black leather seats and a nice stereo. I don't know much about cars, but...I am a girl, so I have an excuse.
I entered the house and smiled when I saw my Collie Halle sniffing her food. She looked expectantly at me, her brown eyes pleading. "Oh all right," I walked to the fridge and cracked an egg. Soon, Halle was gleaming with excitement and ate the food in a few mouthfulls.
I leashed her and walked Halle around the neighborhood. I decided to take her to the new doggie park, named
Willa's Park For Dogs.
I let the leash off of Halle and she chased several dogs. "Cute huh?" a boys voice echoed in my ears. "Yeah." When I turned around, I held my breath at the sight. He was so handsome...
He had silky dark brown hair and smoking dark brown eyes. His skin was a beautiful light tan. "My names Jason," He held out a hand. "Jasmine Jearu. Most people call me J.J." I smiled. "Well, J.J...would you like to go on a date with me?" He smiled. "Sure, what the hell." I muttered.
Soon, we had engaged in conversation and he talked about how his sister Rachel died of lung cancer. "She was the best." He murmured. Dusk fell and the park was now closed. "Shall I walk you home?" He asked.
"Sure,"Jason held my hand and we talked some more. My house was now in full view, and he was surprised. "This is a wonderful house! I wish I had a house this nice. My mother's job isn't paying much. I'm trying to get her to quit."
I looked at him. "What's her job?" I asked him. "You don't want to know." His eyes looked down. "Jasmine, your late!" My father looked at the boy next to me. "Get away!" She held her broom stick. "Sorry!"Jason quickly left with his black doberman. "Dad," I tried to explain. "No dating!" spanked me. "But Dad!" He sent me to my room, crying and beat red.
My father was strict when it came to dating, I mean really strict. He'd beat me every night....I wanted to tell the police, but I couldn't. My father fed me, gave me shelter and an Idea popped into my head. I flipped through my address book. "Jason, p-please pick m-me up tomorrow at 10. My father works." I looked at the door.
"Why are you crying, did something happen?" He asked. "No, nothing." I calmed down. "Good..." He hung up. I slid the robe down my body and slipped into the hot bathtub. The water stinged when it touched the bruises. Soon, I got out and got dressed. Then, I flopped on my bed and fell asleep.
The next day, I snuck out of the house, dressed in a blue dress and brown curled hair. My blue eyes swerved to a recognizable man. "Hey Jason," I murmured. He hugged me tightly. I flinched, but the pain was good. We walked to a small diner and ate. "So, how's it going?" he asked me. "Really good." I lied. After lunch, he took me to his house.
His mother was at work and I was almost surprised by what i saw. It was a small brick house, with square glass windows. The roof was somewhat shattered. One of the windows were broken, and the lawn was a mess. "Oh Jason," I murmured silently. He walked me in.
The interior was better than the outside. His room was the best room in the house, with a bed and a small old fashioned T.V. He had a mediumsized closet, with 20 pairs of clothes. We sat on his bed and talked. I felt my heart beating faster. I was babbling away, and soon felt his warm lips on mine. My eyes were wide open, but gently closed as I let the sensations overwhelm me. His tongue explored my mouth, and hand was on my now wet pussy. I wasn't aloud to think words like that, but I didn't care anymore.
He stroked it, making it even wetter. Jason's hands unzipped my dress and slipped it down, they ventured and soon laid me on the bed, with him on top of me. I had D-cup breasts, and he obviously liked them. Jason licked and twirled my nipples, making them hard. He kissed down my tummy, making me moan with pleasure and soon reached my now soaking wet pussy.
His tongue lashed inside. "Oh Fucking Yes! Lick me lover, Oh my god!" I gasped. Jason smiled and continued licking my pussy. "Turn Over," I obliged and his tongue shot in my ass. I nearly screamed with joy. "Now, it's your turn." Jason kneeled and I knew what to do. I unzipped his pants and his cock stuck out. It was about 9 inches, and I was startled at its glory.
As soon as I touched it, it got harder by the minute. I kissed up and down, and even sucked on his balls. "Yeah, suck it bitch!" At first, I was shocked by the harsh words but surprisingly found it was turning me on. I continued sucking the large cock and he moaned with joy.
I found me sliding the cock all the way down my throat. When he made me stop, I knew what was going to happen next. He laid me on the bed.
Shall I fuck you?"he asked smoothly. "Yes, take my fucking pussy! Oh I've been wanting this for so damn long!" He slid it in and I I leaned my head back. His cock felt so warm inside my pussy.
"Oh fucking god! Yes baby, fuck me harder!" At first, Jason was slow...but soon he was fucking at the speed of lighting. Soon, I felt my self getting an orgasm. "Oh I'm going to cum!" I shouted and Jason smirked, moaning at the same time. "Me too baby!" He shot his load of cum inside my pussy and I gasped with pleasure.
"I'm home!"
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anonymous reader
2011-07-03 11:22:06
You need more lead into the sex, build the story. Try outlining the story first.
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For Jonathan Leshnoff, the unique essence of music resides in its ability to transcend our physical limitations, and transport us to places that would otherwise be impossible to go. Leshnoff asks: What happens during a concert? People purchase a ticket for their place in the concert hall. They sit in the hall, the lights are turned down, and they listen to the musicians. The concert ticket does not entitle the bearer to some tangible physical entity he can carry with him from the hall. Instead, we attend musical concerts to open ourselves to a language that transcends space and time. That takes us inside ourselves, that encourages and challenges us. It is for this reason that Jonathan Leshnoff contends that his goal is to take the listener "on a journey. And if I haven't done that, I haven't done my job." Given that Jonathan Leshnoff's religious faith, and belief about the unique importance and function of music, it's little surprise that Jewish mysticism has played such a profound influence upon his recent compositions. The authentic Jewish mystical schools outline in great length the spiritual architecture of the universe and its interaction with G-d and mankind. It is within those systems that Leshnoff is in the midst of engaging on a ten-piece multi-year meta-project that parallels the fundamental building blocks of Jewish spiritual thought. The two works on this recording are part of that meta-project. » Buy on Amazon » Buy on iTunes
World War I had not only a profound and deep impact on the world, but on Ralph Vaughan Williams as well. Robert Spano and the Grammy Award-winning Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Chorus, and production team delve into three pieces that reflect the composer's view on the war and the time itself. This recording brings an often poignant, sometimes eerie, quality to three of his most notable works. ASO Media recordings are distributed by Naxos.
This recording presented by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra is the result of a long-standing friendship between acclaimed pianist Garrick Ohlsson and the Symphony. Mr. Ohlsson was the first soloist Spano ever worked with when he made his professional debut with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and the two have shared many happy collaborations since.
Music Director Robert Spano leads the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra in Atlanta School of Composers member Christopher Theofanidis's Symphony No. 1 and Peter Lieberson's Neruda Songs with mezzo-soprano Kelley O'Connor. This recording is the second release on the Orchestra's record label, ASO Media.
Music Director Robert Spano leads the Orchestra in Atlanta School of Composers member, and Pulitzer Prize-winning composer, Jennifer Higdon's new concerto, On A Wire, featuring the chamber ensemble eighth blackbird. Also features Atlanta School of Composers member Michael Gandolfi's new choral work, QED: Engaging Richard Feynman, with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Chorus.
Distributed by Naxos of America, the all-Sibelius release features Music Director Robert Spano leading the Orchestra in Symphonies Nos. 6 and 7, and Tapiola. The production team includes long-time Atlanta Symphony Orchestra collaborators Elaine Martone and Michael Bishop.
Christopher Theofanidis's original composition for soloists, chorus, and orchestra – Creation/Creator – is an ambitious undertaking. Interweaving texts and ideas from philosophy, science, religion, poetry, and literature, his Creation/Creator gives, as Theofanidis describes, a "profoundly deeper understanding of the relationship between these two subjects and to remove a limiting sense of a passive relationship between 'God' and humanity." ASO Media recordings are distributed by Naxos.
As part of the celebration of Robert Shaw's centenary the Atlanta Symphony is issuing for public sale a live recording of the Beethoven Symphony No. 9, recorded in a single concert with Mr. Shaw and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus just prior to their triumphant 1988 tour to Europe. This particular concert also marked Mr. Shaw's final appearance in Atlanta as Music Director of the orchestra.


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Atlanta Metro / Ellenwood
Panola Mountain Golf Course
Set in the foothills of Panola Mountain, Panola Mountain Golf Course offers scenic views in a serene setting. With two seperate courses, spend a few hours playing our nine-hole course or an entire day brushing up on your game on our 18-hole course. Whether you are an expert golfer or just beginning, Panola Mountain Golf Course offers something for everyone. Located a short commute outside the city, this 27-hole course provides a casual and laid-back experience you are sure to enjoy.
Meeting Rooms
Name Dimensions Ceiling Ht Sq. Feet Banquet Cap. Theater Cap. Classroom Cap. U-Shaped Cap. Exhibit Cap. Conference Cap. Reception Cap. Banquet Room - - - 150 - - - - - -


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The great run started with Derek Jeter's rookie season, some 17 summers ago: A string of Yankee teams that challenged for every pennant, chased every post-season, aimed for every ring. With one rancid exception - the injury riddled 2008 - the Yankees played in every October. Through terror attacks, superstorms and the general roil and rot of civilization, the Yankees ruled the back pages and defined New York City by their pride and domination. They spent to win. They played to win.
Oh well. Fun while it lasted. Not anymore.
This winter, influenced by a salary cap installed by socialistic owners, the Yankees have changed quietly ceded their mantle. Despite a lineup with gaping holes, they let major free agents walk and didn't even make offers to the biggest stars on the market. And during the winter meetings, when Brian Cashman was asked the Yankees would chase important players, the GM answered clearly.
"Beggars can't be choosers," he said.
Let that sink in, folks. Because it's the new reality.
Some NYC Gammonites have recently written booster stories about the 2013 Yankees, saying Toronto and Tampa don't look that good. (This was before Boston landed Drew and the closer from Pittsburgh, continuing to load up.) But study the rosters that have won in October lately, and you see young teams entering their primes - not near-40somethings, which is what we will field this year.
It's hard to imagine the wheels staying on the bus through August, much less September. And our top prospects still haven't surpassed Double AA - the level that notoriously culls the herd. Even if they get past Trenton with their Sickels "B-plus" ratings intact, don't expect help in September.
Next year, we hit the Steinbrothers' self-imposed $189 million salary cap. If the brothers truly intend to stick to it - and why wouldn't they, after collapsing the team for two years in advance - it's hard to imagine how they will keep Robbie Cano. Do the math, folks. There's a limit to how much money a team can tie up into a few star players.
Thus, I submit that the team should hang a banner over Yankee Stadium with the motto for 2013 and beyond clear for all to read:
"Beggars can't be choosers."
Happy New York, everybody.
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
2 comments:
Shouldn't you be using the pic of Homeless Jeter from that crappy movie ?
- December 27, 2012 at 12:40 AM
Look at the 5 o'clock shadow and the gimpy arm. That guy MUST be Carl Pavano, in front of Yankee Stadium.
- December 27, 2012 at 9:30 PM
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Downtown Brooklyn serves as the borough's civic and commercial centre. Important looking people enter and exit this neighbourhood's marble office buildings during business hours. Plenty of adorable shops and knick-knack stalls line Downtown Brooklyn's main avenues, but the neighbourhood noticeably settles down after the clock strikes five. Public transit options abound in Downtown Brooklyn, so getting anywhere else from here is a breeze.
See places to stay Save this neighbourhoodOn the Map
Downtown Brooklyn is within Brooklyn and bordered by DUMBO, Brooklyn Navy Yard, Vinegar Hill, Cobble Hill, Brooklyn Heights, Boerum Hill, Park Slope, and Fort Greene
Brooklyn's All-Business Hub
Downtown Brooklyn has great restaurants and parks within walking distance. One stop on the subway from Soho and Manhattan. Nearby all public transportation and many subway lines."
The Softer Side of Downtown Brooklyn
Near everything worth being near -- the cafes and bars in Cobble Hill, the great shopping in Fulton Mall and Atlantic Terminal, cinemas, nightspots, best restaurants in Brooklyn."
Mixing Business With Pleasure
Airbnb works with local photographers to capture the spirit of neighbourhoods all around the world. The photography on this page includes work by:
Cameron Blaylock
Cameron Blaylock is a photographer and artist living in Brooklyn, NY. In 2010 Cameron received a European Diploma in Fine Arts from Bauhaus-University in Weimar, Germany. Having been a full-time Brooklyn resident for just over one year, the Airbnb Neighbourhoods Project helped Cameron further understand and appreciate the massive, multi-layered, singular organism that is New York City.


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2006 USC Trojans Baseball #19 Pepperdine at USC Trojans Mar 29, 2006 at Los Angeles, Calif. (Dedeaux Field)
Score by Innings R H E ------------------------------------------- Pepperdine.......... 001 100 000 - 2 9 2 USC Trojans......... 100 000 000 - 1 12 2 -------------------------------------------
Umpires - HP: Ryan Bleiberg 1B: Chuck Lyon 3B: Ron Ridd Start: 4:04 Time: 3:10 Attendance: 329 Game notes: Dunn faced 1 batter in the 8th.
Pepperdine starters: 4/2b D. Uribes; 3/cf A. Ortiz; 28/dh C. Tracy; 2/1b N. Kliebert; 1/ss D. Worth; 6/rf D. Brown; 36/c J. Tellam; 29/lf L. Salas; 8/3b C. d'Arnaud; 20/p B. Enright; USC Trojans starters: 2/3b Cusick; 20/2b Sharpe; 15/lf Hankerd; 24/cf Perales; 3/dh Frost; 4/rf Vieira; 9/1b Duda; 14/ss Estrella; 8/c Bowden; 33/p Milone; Pepperdine 1st - D. Uribes flied out to lf. A. Ortiz grounded out to 1b unassisted. C. Tracy struck out swinging. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. USC Trojans 1st - Cusick flied out to rf. Sharpe flied out to lf. Hankerd singled to right field. Perales singled to left field; Hankerd advanced to second. Frost singled to second base, RBI; Perales advanced to second; Hankerd scored. Frost advanced to second; Perales advanced to third on an error by p, failed pickoff attempt. Vieira out at first 1b to p. 1 run, 3 hits, 1 error, 2 LOB. Pepperdine 2nd - N. Kliebert grounded out to ss. D. Worth singled to right field. D. Brown fouled out to 1b. D. Worth out at second c to 2b, caught stealing. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB. USC Trojans 2nd - Duda struck out looking. Estrella flied out to rf. Bowden singled to center field. Cusick grounded out to ss. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Pepperdine 3rd - J. Tellam doubled to left field. L. Salas popped up to ss. Cook to p for Milone. C. d'Arnaud struck out swinging. D. Uribes singled to right field, advanced to second on the throw, RBI; J. Tellam scored. A. Ortiz grounded out to 2b. 1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB. USC Trojans 3rd - Sharpe struck out swinging. Hankerd singled to shortstop. Perales flied out to rf. Frost flied out to rf. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Pepperdine 4th - C. Tracy walked. N. Kliebert singled to first base; C. Tracy advanced to second. D. Worth out at first 3b to 2b, SAC, bunt; N. Kliebert advanced to second; C. Tracy advanced to third. D. Brown flied out to cf, SF, RBI; N. Kliebert advanced to third; C. Tracy scored. J. Tellam struck out looking. 1 run, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB. USC Trojans 4th - B. Ozols to p for B. Enright. Vieira flied out to lf. Duda singled to center field. Estrella grounded into double play ss to 2b to 1b; Duda out on the play. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Pepperdine 5th - L. Salas flied out to lf. C. d'Arnaud flied out to rf. D. Uribes struck out looking. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. USC Trojans 5th - Bowden singled to second base. Cusick singled to left field; Bowden advanced to second. Sharpe out at first c to 2b, SAC, bunt; Cusick advanced to second; Bowden advanced to third. Hankerd grounded out to 3b. Perales grounded out to 1b unassisted. 0 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB. Pepperdine 6th - Olsen to p for Cook. A. Ortiz reached on a fielding error by ss. C. Tracy popped up to ss. A. Ortiz out at second c to ss, caught stealing. N. Kliebert singled to center field. D. Worth singled to center field; N. Kliebert advanced to second. D. Brown walked; D. Worth advanced to second; N. Kliebert advanced to third. J. Tellam flied out to rf. 0 runs, 2 hits, 1 error, 3 LOB. USC Trojans 6th - Frost struck out swinging. Vieira lined out to p, bunt. Duda grounded out to 1b unassisted. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Pepperdine 7th - Dunn to p for Olsen. L. Salas walked. C. d'Arnaud out at first 1b to 2b, SAC, bunt; L. Salas advanced to second. D. Uribes singled to pitcher; L. Salas advanced to third. A. Ortiz grounded out to 3b; D. Uribes advanced to second. C. Tracy intentionally walked. N. Kliebert flied out to rf. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 3 LOB. USC Trojans 7th - Estrella singled to right field. Bowden grounded out to 1b unassisted, SAC, bunt; Estrella advanced to second. Cusick reached on a fielding error by cf; Estrella advanced to third. Sharpe grounded into double play 2b to ss to 1b; Cusick out on the play. 0 runs, 1 hit, 1 error, 1 LOB. Pepperdine 8th - D. Worth singled to third base. Parrow to p for Dunn. D. Brown out at first p to 2b, SAC, bunt; D. Worth advanced to second. Martlaro to p for Parrow. J. Tellam struck out looking. Zelenay to p for Martlaro. L. Salas grounded out to p. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB. USC Trojans 8th - Hankerd singled to first base. Pabst pinch ran for Hankerd. Perales grounded out to 1b unassisted; Pabst advanced to second. Frost flied out to rf. M. Craig to p for B. Ozols. Vieira singled to pitcher; Pabst advanced to third. Duda reached on a fielder's choice; Vieira out at second 2b to ss. 0 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB. Pepperdine 9th - Pabst to cf. Perales to rf. Vieira to lf. Koss to p for Zelenay. C. d'Arnaud flied out to rf. D. Uribes fouled out to 3b. A. Ortiz singled to second base. C. Tracy reached on catcher's interference; A. Ortiz advanced to second. N. Kliebert fouled out to 1b. 0 runs, 1 hit, 1 error, 2 LOB. USC Trojans 9th - J. Dominguez to p for M. Craig. Estrella struck out swinging. Fogel pinch hit for Bowden. Fogel singled to center field. Cusick hit by pitch; Fogel advanced to second. Sharpe struck out swinging. Degener pinch hit for Pabst. Degener reached on a fielder's choice; Cusick out at second ss to 2b. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 2 LOB.


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About This Gigapan
Toggle- Taken by
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- Aug 10, 2012
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- Royal Victoria Docklands, Excel Centre, 2012 London Olympic Games, events
- Description
A view of the Royal Victoria Dock lands from the Excel Centre near the London City Airport. The centre houses Olympic events like fencing, boxing, wrestling, weightlifting, table tennis, judo and Taekwondo during the 2012 London Olympic Games, August 10, 2012. This panorama was created by stitching four pictures together.
Panorama by Ed Kaiser, Postmedia Olympic Team


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My cousin just recently got married. She had planned a beautiful outdoor fall wedding, but her plans were interrupted a little on the account of some frigid fall temps. Instead, she had to settle for a beautiful "indoor" fall wedding. Being that the plans had changed due to the weather, things were a little cramped. As everyone huddled into the fancy barn, I began to pray that my kids behaved. I know that they are just that, kids, but you really don't want to have a battle in the middle of someone's most perfect day. When Daniel began to fidget, I quickly scrambled my mind for something to occupy him. In perfect mommy mode, I decided to show him pictures on the digital camera. As I whispered "Look, Daniel," I began to show him the images; this was a great plan. As I clicked through a few images from the beginning of the wedding and an outing from the night before, I soon entered into some photos that I did not expect to see. Suddenly, I found myself becoming the one to keep quiet. My eyes were watering and my sides were hurting as I held back chuckles. What was so funny? Daniel's photography. He had obviously acquired my camera and taken TONS of pictures of the most random items. As I scrolled through, he whispered about each picture, in such a matter of fact manner, that I was laughing even more. I stayed quiet though, and so did my son= success. His quality and composition are quite impressive, not to mention his choice of subjects. He takes after his Daddy, and I must have a professional in the making!
10 thoughts on "A Professional in the Making"
Awesome! Kyleigh takes really great pics, and some of her feet, too! Don't you just love seeing the world through a child's eyes? Seeing what's important or beautiful or intriguing to them? Great pics, Daniel! I don't know if Daniel has a camera of his own, but the one we're giving Kyleigh for her bday is the Kidizoom by Vtech. There are similar models by Fisher-Price and other brands, but this is the one I've found best written reviews and it comes highly recommended by a fellow mommy who recently celebrated her eldest child's 3rd bday. These pics are digital and can be uploaded to the computer (maybe tv too), even edited, and there are also games (such as Tic-Tac-Toe and the like). Just thought I'd throw that out there since you face the holiday/bday year-end mix, too. They can cost $80-ish, but there are great sales and great deals out there! By the way, bride and groom appeared joyous on their special day!
Oh Summer… this is priceless!! He is actually good!! I am impressed! :) If you scrapbook… you need to make a page about this!! Too cute!!
He really did take some good, artistic ones! :o)
Hey… just wanted to pop over and say "Thank you" for your sweet comment! :) Love you!
That is HILARIOUS! I love it.
Oh and it was good to see you on Sunday. Also, I know we talked about this awhile back, but you are welcome to come to our every other Thursday community group. We'd love to have you two.
I love the pictures! They made me laugh a lot. I have so much to look forward to. I don't think I'll ever have a boring day again. Not that I have in the past year, anyway!


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