text:
Top Items:
Robert T. Garrett / Trail Blazers Blog:
Federal judge voids Texas' gay marriage ban, though he delays order from taking effect immediately — Mark Phariss of Plano, left, held the hand of partner Victor Holmes, center, as they left the U.S. Federal Courthouse in San Antonio after a hearing earlier this month.
Discussion: The Heritage Foundation, Joe. My. God., Daily Kos, Advocate, No More Mister Nice Blog, Off the Kuff and Liberal Values
Ryan T. Anderson / The Heritage Foundation: Why That Texas Judge Was Wrong to Strike Down Texas' Marriage Law
Joe Jervis / Joe. My. God.: BREAKING: Federal Court Rules TEXAS Ban On Gay Marriage To Be Unconstitutional, Ruling Is STAYED For Now
Laura Clawson / Daily Kos: Federal judge strikes down Texas gay marriage ban
Michelle Garcia / Advocate: Texas Judge Strikes Down Marriage Ban
Steve M. / No More Mister Nice Blog: SO I GUESS THE TEXAS GOVERNOR'S RACE WILL NOW BE ENTIRELY ABOUT GAY MARRIAGE
Charles Kuffner / Off the Kuff: Federal judge strikes down Texas' anti-same sex marriage law
Guillermo Contreras / MySanAntonio.com:
Texas' ban on gay marriage ruled unconstitutional — SAN ANTONIO — A federal judge in San Antonio on Wednesday declared Texas' ban on gay marriage unconstitutional. The Lone Star state's refusal to recognize out-of-state same-sex marriages is also unconstitutional, he ruled.
Discussion: Texas Attorney General, Americans Against the …, Mediaite, Liberaland and The PJ Tatler
Texas Attorney General: Statement by Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott on ruling in Texas same-sex marriage case
Bob Cull / Americans Against the Tea Party: Victory! Texas Judge Rules Against Bigotry — Upholds Gay Marriage Rights
Dave-Dr-Gonzo / Liberaland: Federal Judge Strikes Down Texas Gay Marriage Ban
Texas ban on same-sex marriage struck down — (CNN) — A federal judge has struck down Texas' ban on same-sex marriage, ruling Wednesday it has no "rational relation to a legitimate government purpose." — The decision is the latest in a series of federal and state court moves …
Discussion: Taylor Marsh
Caitlin MacNeal / Talking Points Memo:
Fail: Texas GOP Candidate Accidentally Endorses Gay Marriage On Twitter
Fail: Texas GOP Candidate Accidentally Endorses Gay Marriage On Twitter
Discussion: The Daily Banter and Gawker
Bob Cesca / The Daily Banter: Whoops! Anti-Gay Candidate for Texas Governor Accidentally Tweets Pro-Gay Message
Taylor Berman / Gawker: Republican Texas State Senator Thinks Marriage = One Man & One Man
John Wright / Lone Star Q:
BREAKING: Federal judge strikes down Texas' bans on same-sex marriage
BREAKING: Federal judge strikes down Texas' bans on same-sex marriage
Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Freedom to Marry Blog and Towleroad News #gay
Daniel Strauss / Talking Points Memo: Houston's Openly Lesbian Mayor Not Surprised By TX Gay Marriage Ruling
Adam Polaski / Freedom to Marry Blog: Federal judge strikes down Texas marriage ban, stays ruling pending appeal
Catherine Thompson / Talking Points Memo:
Federal Judge Rules Texas Gay Marriage Ban Unconstitutional
Federal Judge Rules Texas Gay Marriage Ban Unconstitutional
Discussion: The Raw Story
Associated Press:
Federal judge strikes down Texas gay marriage ban
Federal judge strikes down Texas gay marriage ban
Discussion: Liberaland, Politico and PoliticusUSA
Katie Glueck / Politico: Greg Abbott to appeal gay marriage ruling
Greg Sargent / The Plum Line:
Americans know there's no GOP 'alternative' to Obamacare — Obamacare is a disaster for Democrats, and a certain winner for Republicans. That's what we keep hearing, anyway. — So why does it look as if the percentage of Americans who favor repeal may have actually shrunk since its rollout problems began?
Discussion: The New Republic, Daily Kos and Taegan Goddard's …
Jonathan Cohn / The New Republic: CBO Teaches Republicans a Lesson: Governing Is Hard
Joan McCarter / Daily Kos: Harry Reid slams Koch brothers
Kaiser Health Tracking Poll: February 2014 — Liz Hamel, Jamie Firth and Mollyann Brodie … Overall, more prefer expensive broad-network plans over cheaper narrow-network plans, but potential ACA exchange customers lean in the opposite direction — There has been a lot of discussion …
Discussion: American Power, The Hill, Washington Monthly, The Fix, The Daily Caller, PoliticusUSA and Jammie Wearing Fools
Donald Douglas / American Power: 'The vast majority of uninsured Americans do not know they must sign up for health insurance …
Elise Viebeck / The Hill: Poll: Most uninsured not aware of O-Care deadline
Ed Kilgore / Washington Monthly: The Hospital Charges Are Too Damn High!
Sean Sullivan / The Fix: Why Democrats can win on Obamacare and still lose in the midterms
Sarah Hurtubise / The Daily Caller: Poll: Uninsured opposition to Obamacare reaches all-time high
Jason Easley / PoliticusUSA: Republicans' Worst Nightmare Comes True: Support For Repealing Obamacare Hits All Time Low
Jim Geraghty / National Review:
Another Round of Obamacare Train Wrecks
Another Round of Obamacare Train Wrecks
Discussion: Hot Air and Los Angeles Times
Ed Morrissey / Hot Air: Hawaii spends $120 million on ObamaCare, enrolls ... 4300
Denver Post:
U.S. REP. CORY GARDNER TO ENTER U.S. SENATE RACE AGAINST MARK UDALL — Republican Congressman Cory Gardner is planning to drop his re-election bid and run for the U.S. Senate seat held by Democrat Mark Udall, The Denver Post has learned. — Gardner is expected to make an announcement in a few days …
Discussion: Talking Points Memo, ThinkProgress, RedState, Daily Kos, The Fix, Roll Call, KDVR.com and The Daily Caller
Daniel Strauss / Talking Points Memo: Dem Sen. Mark Udall Now Has A Serious GOP Challenger
The Directors / RedState: Cory Gardner In For Senate, Ken Buck Switches To House Run
Chris Cillizza / The Fix: How Cory Gardner changes the Senate landscape
Abby Livingston / Roll Call: Ken Buck Drops Senate Bid to Run for Cory Gardner's Seat
Alexis Levinson / The Daily Caller: Cory Gardner will run for Senate, putting another Dem's seat in play for GOP
BREAKING NEWS: Weld DA Ken Buck, Rep. Cory Gardner to swap political races this year
BREAKING NEWS: Weld DA Ken Buck, Rep. Cory Gardner to swap political races this year
Discussion: Politico, Weekly Standard, Denver Post, OnPolitics and Taegan Goddard's …
Michael Warren / Weekly Standard: Colorado Shake-Up: Gardner for Senate, Buck for Congress
Catalina Camia / OnPolitics: GOP Rep. Gardner to run for U.S. Senate to take on Mark Udall
Dylan Scott / Talking Points Memo:
IT'S DEAD: Brewer Vetoes Anti-Gay Bill — Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer (R) announced Wednesday night that she has vetoed the anti-gay bill that has been sitting on her desk since last week. — The bill "does not address a specific or present concern related to religious liberty in Arizona," she said in explaining her decision.
Dorian De Wind / The Moderate Voice: Breaking: Arizona's Jan Brewer Vetoes Bill Denying Service to Gays
Ryan T. Anderson / The Heritage Foundation: On Religious Liberty, Arizona Gets it Right and NY Times Gets it Wrong Again
Bob Christie / Associated Press: Arizona Governor Returns Home Amid Furor Over Bill
Hon. Janice K. Brewer / bizjournals: Arizona business leaders plead for veto of SB 1062
Daniel Strauss / Talking Points Memo:
Rick Scott Now Says He Would Veto Arizona Anti-Gay Bill
Rick Scott Now Says He Would Veto Arizona Anti-Gay Bill
Discussion: The Reaction, The Dish, Naked Politics and The Huffington Post
Michael J.W. Stickings / The Reaction: Even Florida Gov. Rick Scott would veto Arizona's hate bill
Andrew Sullivan / The Dish: The Best Of The Dish Today
Steve Bousquet / Naked Politics: Scott dodges Arizona anti-gay law; Crist blasts him
Bob Christie / Associated Press:
AZ Gov Brewer In Emergency Meetings Over Anti-Gay Bill
AZ Gov Brewer In Emergency Meetings Over Anti-Gay Bill
Discussion: Business Insider, Liberaland, Arizona Republic and Daily Kos
Hunter Walker / Business Insider: JPMorgan Chase — One Of Arizona's Largest Employers — Wants Anti-Gay Bill Vetoed
New York Times:
Despite Rifts, G.O.P. Has Election Edge, Poll Finds — Republicans are in a stronger position than Democrats for this year's midterm elections, benefiting from the support of self-described independents, even though the party itself is deeply divided and most Americans agree …
Discussion: Taegan Goddard's …
CBS News:
Jeb Bush, Rand Paul top GOP's 2016 presidential wish list: Poll
Jeb Bush, Rand Paul top GOP's 2016 presidential wish list: Poll
Discussion: New York Times, Hot Air, Business Insider, Post Politics, Hit & Run, CNN, The Moderate Voice, Taylor Marsh and Politico
Dalia Sussman / New York Times: Most Democrats Want Clinton to Run in 2016
Brett LoGiurato / Business Insider: This May Be The Most Brutal Poll Number Yet For Chris Christie
Matthew Feeney / Hit & Run: Rand Paul: Some in GOP 'Stuck in the Cold War Era'
Chris Christie / CNN: Who do you want to run in 2016 — (CNN) - More Republicans …
Joe Gandelman / The Moderate Voice: CBS/NYTimes Poll: Jeb Bush, Rand Paul top GOP 2016 Presidential Candidates
Natalie Villacorta / Politico: 2016 elections poll: Democrats all in for Hillary Clinton
Matthew O'Brien / The Atlantic Online:
How the Fed Let the World Blow Up in 2008 — High oil prices blinded the Fed to the growing danger before the crash — It was the day after Lehman failed, and the Federal Reserve was trying to decide what to do. — It had been fighting a credit crunch for over a year, and now the worst-case scenario was playing out.
Dave Camp / Wall Street Journal:
Dave Camp: How to Fix Our Appalling Tax Code — Every year Americans spend more than six billion hours and $168 billion to file their returns. — There have been so many changes to the tax code over the past decade that it is now 10 times the size of the Bible, but with none of the Good News.
Discussion: Post Politics, New York Times, his vorpal sword, The Daily Caller, The Hugh Hewitt Show, Business Insider, Mediaite, TIME and Washington Post
Ed O'Keefe / Post Politics: Boehner on tax reform: 'Blah, blah, blah blah'
Jared Bernstein / New York Times: The Promise and Pitfalls in a Tax Reform Plan
Hart Williams / his vorpal sword: Deep In the Heart of Taxes
Hugh Hewitt / The Hugh Hewitt Show: The Tone-Deaf, Insulated, Suicidal D.C. GOP
Linette Lopez / Business Insider: Wall Street Donors Ditched The Republican Behind The New Tax Reform Bill
Alex Rogers / TIME: House GOP to Unveil Tax Reform Proposal
Lori Montgomery / Washington Post: House GOP tax plan would cut top rates but also hit high earners with a surtax
Republicans take on Wall Street
Republicans take on Wall Street
Discussion: Business Insider, Washington Monthly and No More Mister Nice Blog
Brett LoGiurato / Business Insider: Why The Sweeping Tax Reform Proposal Is Already Doomed
Joanne Kenen / Politico:
Stretch run for Obamacare — Four million down. Two million to go. Five weeks to get it done. — Obamacare enrollment in a nutshell. — The White House announced late Tuesday that sign-ups in the federal- and state-run Obamacare insurance exchanges had surpassed the psychologically significant 4 million mark.
Discussion: CNN
Karen Tumulty / Washington Post:
Republicans too focused on health-care law, some in GOP warn
Republicans too focused on health-care law, some in GOP warn
Discussion: Talking Points Memo and addictinginfo.org
Caitlin MacNeal / Talking Points Memo: Jindal: GOP Candidates Too Focused On Obamacare
Va. GOP official apologizes for genital slang "error" — UPDATE: In an email, FitzSimmonds said he thought the word he used had the same meaning as "twaddle," which is defined as foolish speech. — "The minute I found out my error, I deleted the post and apologized," he told Pilot on Politics.
Discussion: Talking Points Memo, The Dish, Mediaite and The Raw Story
Catherine Thompson / Talking Points Memo: Virginia GOPer Twaddles His Way Into Sexist Term On Facebook
Andrew Sullivan / The Dish: Correction Of The Day — D'oh: … Update from a reader:
Evan McMurry / Mediaite: Why Did This GOP Official Post 'I Hate That Sexist Tw*t' About a Fellow Republican?
Supreme Court spectator interrupts justices — (CNN) — The Supreme Court was the scene of an unusual disturbance during its public session on Wednesday, when a man interrupted an oral argument. — The incident occurred near the end of debate between the nine justices on the bench and counsel …
Discussion: Mediaite
Josh Feldman / Mediaite: Heckler Interrupts Supreme Court to Protest Citizens United
Ilya Shapiro / Cato Institute:
For Marriage Equality, Religious Liberty, and the Freedom of Association — Even though I'm for marriage equality - next week I'll be filing a brief supporting the challenge to the marriage laws of Oklahoma and Utah in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit - I have no problem with Arizona's SB 1062.
Discussion: National Review and Lawyers, Guns & Money
Ed Whelan / National Review: Religious-Liberty Scholars Counter "Egregious" Distortions of Arizona Bill
Erik Loomis / Lawyers, Guns & Money: CATO's Principled Libertarianism
Paul Mirengoff / Power Line:
No, this is not Jim Crow for gays, Part Two
No, this is not Jim Crow for gays, Part Two
Discussion: The Daily Caller, Hot Air and Christian News …
Ed Morrissey / Hot Air: Bipartisan group of attorneys ask Brewer to sign SB 1062
Adidas to stop selling Brazil World Cup T-shirts that 'encourage sexual tourism' — Sportswear maker to stop selling T-shirts before World Cup after Brazil's ministry of women's affairs said shirts were offensive — Adidas agreed on Tuesday to stop selling two raunchy T-shirts months ahead …
Discussion: The Raw Story, The Daily Caller and Mediaite
John Byrne / The Raw Story: Adidas yanks 'raunchy' t-shirts in Brazil after accusations of encouraging sexual tourism
Sarah Hofmann / The Daily Caller: These World Cup T-shirts are too sexy for Adidas
Rand Paul Blocks Surgeon General Nominee For Saying Gun Violence Is A Public Health Threat — On Wednesday — two years to the day after George Zimmerman shot and killed Trayvon Martin — Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) placed a hold on President Barack Obama's nominee for Surgeon General, Dr. Vivek Murthy …
Discussion: Liberal Values, Rand Paul, BobCesca.com, Daily Kos and Booman Tribune
Ron Chusid / Liberal Values: Rand Paul Blocks Surgeon General Nomination For Calling Guns A Health Threat
Hunter / Daily Kos: Rand Paul places hold on Surgeon General nominee for making statements against gun violence
BooMan / Booman Tribune: Idiot of the Day: Rand Paul
Don Banks / Sports Illustrated:
Source: NFL begins exploring Super Bowl XLIX relocation options — The NFL previously stripped Arizona of a Super Bowl in 1993, relocating the game to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. — Even as momentum continues to build against Arizona's controversial bill that would allow businesses …
Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Business Insider, The Raw Story and Daily Kos
Brett LoGiurato / Business Insider: ARIZONA GOVERNOR VETOES CONTROVERSIAL ANTI-GAY BILL
Arturo Garcia / The Raw Story: BREAKING: Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer vetoes anti-LGBT law
Laura Clawson / Daily Kos: Arizona faces economic pressure over anti-gay bill
Austin Wright / Politico:
Chuck Hagel turns up heat about U.S. POW — Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has put one of his top deputies in charge of the Pentagon's efforts to secure the release of a U.S. soldier captured in 2009 by insurgents in Afghanistan, according to a congressional aide.
Discussion: Most Recent
Michael W. Chapman / CNSNews:
In Mississippi, 72% of the Babies Aborted Are Black — (CNSNews.com) - Although whites outnumber blacks in Mississippi by nearly 2-to-1, 71.67% of the babies aborted in Mississippi are black, while 26.6% are white. — Based on data published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention …
Discussion: Rush Limbaugh, NewsBusters and protein wisdom
Alexander Burns / Politico:
Planned Parenthood reveals big 2014 game plan — The political arm of Planned Parenthood is preparing to launch its largest campaign offensive ever, targeting more than a dozen states and some of the cycle's top Senate and gubernatorial races to raise the alarm about the stakes …
Discussion: Talking Points Memo
Daniel Strauss / Talking Points Memo: Planned Parenthood Launches Biggest Campaign Push Ever


text:
Step No. 1
Doc started it and ended it.
The ace right-hander won his first game with the Phillies in the first game of the season, April 5, in Nationals Park.
175 days later in the same park, he won his 21st game as the Phillies clinched their 10th NL East title and their fourth in a row. After being 7 games out in late July, Holladay and the Phillies battled back and ended it last night.
He was masterful in pitching a 2-hitter last night, throwing only 97 pitches. He gave up a run in the very first inning of the season opener and then didn't allow the Nationals another run in three more starts. 14 of his wins have been against the NL East, which is a big reason why the Phillies are the beasts of the east.
After 12 years, Doc finally tasted the champagne in the Phillies clubhouse. Two other veterans, catcher Brian Schneider and first baseman Mike Sweeney, were doing the same thing also for the first time. Combined, the trio has 40 big league seasons, 2,767 games.. They were soaking it up…literally.
Winning the division is just step 1. Three more steps to go.
Visiting Military Patients
A bunch of Phillies will be visiting military patients today proving once again the quality of individuals who wear the uniform.
This Date
In 1919, the Giants beat the Phillies in New York, 6-1, in a game that lasted 51 minutes, still a major league record.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
2012 Jaguar XJ Reviews and Ratings
Sedan 4D L Supercharged
Expert Reviews
The Jaguar XJ enhances Jaguar's legacy of sporting, stylish cars. The Jaguar XJ uses a smooth and satisfying 32-valve 5.0-liter V8 making 385 horsepower (470 hp in the Supercharged model), and a silky 6-speed automatic transmission. The XJ is designed to be a performance luxury sedan that succeeds in European markets. It aims to coddle and appease the luxury buyer and provide thrilling performance for the enthusiast driver.
Completely redesigned for 2011, the Jaguar XJ carries into 2012 unchanged save for some option packaging and some new interior color combinations.
Over decades, Jaguar has developed a reputation for building low-slung sedans with an impeccable blend of handling and comfort. This latest XJ suggests they are back on track after years of XJs that were not so exciting. The XJ was awarded "Best Luxury Sedan" by Winding Road online magazine, in both 2011 and 2012.
The sleek XJ abandons the delicate roof pillars of the past, with a single flowing line from windshield to tail lamps. Longer than a BMW 7 Series or Mercedes S-Class, the Jaguar XJ won't be mistaken for anything else.
In the enveloping cabin, leather and wood are mixed in Italian shapes and English materials. Seat contour and bolstering seems appropriate to the car's mission; it's not too tight or sporty, and the driver's adjustable bolstering comes in handy on curvy roads. The standard full-length panoramic glass roof floods the cabin with natural light and offers a sense of spaciousness, as well as allowing a sleek coupe-like profile and lithe stance for which Jaguar cars are known.
The Jaguar XJL is a long-wheelbase model that adds nearly 5 inches to the overall length, with longer rear doors and glass. This increases rear legroom by 5 inches, making an expansive 44.1 inches of rear legroom total. The best ride quality comes with the Jaguar XJL with 19-inch wheels. Cars this long aren't meant to be canyon carvers or autocross warriors, but the Jaguar XJL also handles extremely well when driven hard in the corners.
Under the XJ body is a rigid and lightweight aluminum structure that contributes to this handling precision, and also to economy, acceleration, and ride comfort. Jaguar is the leader in sophisticated all-aluminum construction.
The 5.0-liter V8 engine, designed and produced at Jaguar facilities in Coventry, England, is all aluminum. It features 32 valves, direct injection, independent variable cam timing, cam profile switching, and a variable geometry inlet manifold. The 385-horsepower engine has more than enough power for any luxury sedan occasion, although you can go faster.
The Jaguar XJ Supercharged model adds 85 horsepower and 40 foot-pounds of torque, cutting one second off the 0-60 mph time, to less than 5 seconds. You have to boot the gas pedal to feel the difference, but when you do, it blows your shoes off.
The special-order Jaguar XJ Supersport adds another 40 horsepower and 40 more foot-pounds of torque. That one will blow your shoes and your socks off. The sixth-generation twin vortex Roots-type supercharger lacks the whine of old; it can't be heard because of the air intake that was designed to isolate and lose the supercharger whine.
The XJ is long-legged, meant to get up there at high speeds and stretch. It's so smooth and commanding that 90 mph feels like 70. In fact, it wants to run 90, not poke along at 70, so be careful.
The sweet 6-speed manual-automatic transmission uses adaptive gear-change strategies based on the type of road and the driver's application of the gas pedal. In manual mode, the transmission stays in the driver's chosen gear to redline, and the paddle shifts are sharp.
The XJ uses fully independent suspension, with steel springs in front for precision and air springs in back for the best level ride among varying loads. Ride quality and bump absorption is very good, even on 20-inch wheels over pock-marked roads and expansion joints. But with those 20-inch wheels and wide tires, at 70 mph the XJL tends to follow freeway grooves; at faster speeds, wide-tired Jag goes straight as an arrow.
The XJ uses big brake rotors and calipers, and giant ones on the supercharged models, with their top speed of 155 mph (electronically limited). The brakes are supported by the full suite of electronic controls. The stability control can be turned off, but we never found the need while testing the limits because the system is not intrusive at all.
The Jaguar XJ competes with the Audi A8, BMW 7 Series, Mercedes-Benz S-Class, Lexus LS, Maserati Quattroporte, Aston Martin Rapide, and Porsche Panamera.
The 2012 Jaguar XJ is offered in six models: XJ, XJ Supercharged, XJ Supersport, XJL, XJL Supercharged, XJL Supersport. A 385-hp 5.0-liter V8 powers the XJ; the Supercharged version gets a 470-hp version of the same engine, and the Supersport a 510-hp version. All use a 6-speed automatic transmission and rear-wheel drive.
Standard features include leather upholstery and wood trim in at least four choices of each (or carbon fiber trim), canvas headliner, dual-zone climate control, power heated and ventilated front seats with memory, heated rear seats, electric tilt/telescopic and heated steering wheel with fingertip controls and shift paddles, panorama moonroof, touch-screen voice-recognition navigation, adaptive suspension dampers, blind-spot monitoring, bi-xenon headlamps, keyless entry/start, DVD/Sirius/HD radio, rear side window shades, power trunk lid, LED lighting inside and out, security system, and a no-touch, heat-sensitive glovebox release.
The Jaguar XJ ($73,700) may be equipped with the Luxury Package ($x4000), consisting of 20-way power front seats with massage, ventilated rear seats, four-zone climate control, electric rear window shade, suede cloth headliner and piped floor mats and leather upholstery. The long-wheelbase XJL ($80,700) includes the Luxury Package and offers rear seat business trays on the front seatbacks, six leather shades with up to three contrast-stitch and piping colors.
Jaguar XJ Supercharged ($88,600) and XJL Supercharged ($91,600) get larger brakes and an active rear differential in addition to the more power powerful engine, more upholstery color combinations, driver assist package with adaptive front lighting, cornering lamps, headlamp washers, intelligent high beam, active front seatbelts, and a Bowers & Wilkins audio system.
Jaguar XJ Supersport ($111,200) and XJL Supersport ($117,500), available by special order only, receive a 510-hp engine and the mechanical updates of the Supercharged model. They also include some unique cabin colors for the semi aniline leather upholstery and leather headliner, five unique wood trims including two with inlays and a piano black choice, and illuminated stainless steel door sills.
Options vary by model but all the features available on XJL Supersport may be added to the base XJ. Most models offer a trunk badge delete, ashtray/cigar lighter, and wood-and-leather steering wheel at no cost.
Safety features on all models include six airbags, electronic stability control, traction control, bind-spot monitors, tire-pressure monitors, and perimeter alarm. Active front seatbelts and active cruise control are optional.
The Jaguar XJ expands the work done with the mid-sized XF by bringing a more sporting, sleeker look to Jaguar's flagship that just oozes style. Central to this are lots of glass and no building-size pillars for a roofline that seamlessly blends into the trunk.
At more than 200 inches long the XJ is not a small car but it disguises its size well, much like the smallest Learjet more than three times the length of an XJL, and the XJ doesn't look nearly as imposing as a BMW 7 Series or Audi A8. The Lexus LS looks rather plain next to the Jaguar.
Surprisingly, the XJ design works as well on the standard wheelbase as it does on the long-wheelbase XJL. A larger rear door and side glass are the only way to differentiate them.
Pulling the lower door sheetmetal inward toward the rear wheel enhances the hips covering the rear tires. The only design element that incites any controversy is the black polycarbonate panel between the rear doors and rear window, a pillar normally body-colored on other cars. From dead astern it looks merely a wider rear window, but from any other angle it tends to look better on cars with dark paint or deeply tinted rear windows.
Exterior ornamentation is kept to a minimum with the requisite mesh chrome grilles and chrome spats in the outer lower nostrils, a badge behind the front wheel which includes supercharged if it applies, bright window trim, the trunk badge, Jag's leaper in the middle, chrome strip across the rear bumper and dual quadrangle tailpipes. Apart from larger standard wheels and the front fender badge there is no trim distinction between XJ and XJL or standard or supercharged cars.
With 152 light emitting diodes outside, the lighting elements take up where chrome leaves off. Front light housings carry two large and two small circular lights, with a strip of LED running lights below. The tail lamps are arranged as three vertical columns to mimic a cat's claws, and cleverly concealed in plain sight at the top of the rear light housing is a clear bump, like an animal's eye, that hides five red LEDs for side marker light duty to meet regulations without spoiling the flowing body lines.
The Jaguar XJ is a true flagship, filled with fine leather and wood, as much Scandinavian as English it seems. It's stylish, luxurious and sporty, although there are places in the design and materials that make us ask if this is the best Jaguar can do.
The XJ comes standard with leather of course, front seats both heated and cooled, with dual-zone climate control. XJL and supercharged models add piped leather upholstery and massage front seats with 20-way adjustment and four-zone climate control. The five upholstery choices include contrasting cabin trim, stitching and piping; Ivory can be paired with four colors. Some XJs have suede headliners. Supersport models get a unique leather color, four unique woods or piano black trim and a leather headliner.
A 1.5-inch band of wood (we like the walnut) or carbon fiber moves in a sweeping curve from the doors under the windshield like a gunwale on a small cabin cruiser, the outward bend providing an air of spaciousness. It's like a step, separating levels of horizontal leather on the dashboard. There's a hump and visor like a ballcap over the instruments, which are clear enough, but they aren't real, they're a rendition that look not unlike animation. The optional steering wheel is stylish and original, mostly leather with a thin wood band.
There are two fat climate control vents in the center of the dash, and two smaller ones at the edges. They look like the nose of a torpedo sticking out of its tubes, or a WW2 bomber engine without the propeller, and they have plastic chrome rings like a model of Saturn. They'd be perfect in a '58 Buick. There's an analog clock on the dash, with no numbers, just hard-to-read hashmarks, and more cheap chrome plastic. It's neither pretty nor functional. We can only guess that Jaguar thinks it's classy.
With all the seat adjustments, any size driver can get comfortable. Seat contour and bolstering seems appropriate to the car's mission, which is to say it's not too tight or sporty, and the driver's seat adjustable bolstering comes in handy on curvy roads. Rear seats are also comfortable and heated. XJL models add more than five inches to rear accommodation, making an expansive 44.1 inches of rear legroom total. The XJL costs $3000 more, so if you carry passengers or have a family it could be worth it, especially since the XJL weighs less than 100 pounds more. Reading lights, glass overhead, and venting add comfort to the rear.
The instrument panel is a 12.3-inch screen with renditions of analog gauges on it; it looks like animation, or like a decal of a gauge that you might find on a kids' pedal car. The tachometer needle doesn't seem to move as quickly as the engine revs. On the steering wheel, in addition to the cruise and audio control, there's a scroll surrounded by arrows that yields driver information; it's a piece leftover from when Jaguar was owned by Ford, as Fords have the exact same little dial. We found most of what we wanted to know, although we never figured out how to get the tachometer, odometer, and DTE (distance to empty) on the screen at the same time. Let alone the tachometer, which also kept disappearing if we pressed the wrong arrow at the wrong time. And besides DTE could only be accessed by a button on the turn-signal stalk. Jaguar makes it complicated.
The transmission gears are selected with a rotary dial that pops up on the console, except when you manually shift using paddles at the steering wheel. Above the shift dial are the audio and climate controls, and above them is the 8-inch touch-screen that we found to be a bit of a non-intuitive mess. We kept having to refer to the thick manual, and even then it felt like a mess. Naturally iPod other inputs are included, and the hard drive has enough space to rip 10 CDs uncompressed, a good thing as the available Bowers & Wilkins 20-speaker, 1.2-kilowatt sound system will clearly reproduce any fault in your source material.
Outward visibility is fairly good given the expanse of glass, and the bright bi-Xenon headlamps, although the passenger C pillar creates an over-the-shoulder blind spot. On the freeway, the standard blind-spot warning will alert you, although we're not major fans because of all the false alarms. We found the parking sensors so loud as to be distracting; perhaps this can be adjusted.
Trunk space is average for the class and impeccably finished down to the aluminum runners in the floor. Unlike some competitors with run-flat tires the Jaguar carries a spare under the floor (deleting the spare adds 3 cubic feet). The power trunk lid can be programmed for opening height lest you or your garage overhead is petite.
The Jaguar XJ's 385-hp V8 is no more powerful than the engines found in other cars in this class but the XJ is lighter by 300 to 400 pounds, thanks to its aluminum chassis and body, and that helps its acceleration and fuel mileage. The engine has more than enough power for any luxury sedan occasion.
But you can go faster. The Supercharged model adds 85 horsepower and 40 foot-pounds of torque, cutting one second off the 0-60 mph time, to less than 5 seconds. You have to boot the gas pedal to feel the difference, but when you do, it blows your shoes off. The special-order Supersport adds another 40 horsepower and 40 foot-pounds of torque. That one will blow your socks off.
We found all three V8s smooth as a bottler's private label, quiet at cruise or loping around town, while bringing a welcome throaty purr under heavier throttle. The sixth generation twin vortex Roots-type supercharger lacks the whine of old, and can't be heard even with the stereo off and windows windows down. That's because of the air intake that was designed to isolate and lose the supercharger whine.
The 5.0-liter engine is designed and produced at Jaguar facilities in Coventry, England. It's an all-aluminum 32-valve V8 featuring direct injection, independent variable cam timing, cam profile switching, and a variable geometry inlet manifold. The multi-hole direct injection system sprays pressurized fuel (up to 150 bar) into the center of the combustion chambers. The variable camshaft timing system has its own Jaguar spin, as well. The inlet camshaft profile switching changes the characteristics of the engine for the torque, power or economy that may be needed at any moment.
The XJ is long-legged, meant to get up there at high speeds and stretch. It's so smooth and commanding that 90 mph feels like 70. In fact, it wants to run 90, not poke along at 70, so be careful.
The XJ's sweet 6-speed manual-automatic transmission uses adaptive gear-change strategies based on the type of road and the driver's application of the gas pedal. This transmission anticipates well and shifts smoothly. In manual mode, the transmission stays in the driver's chosen gear to redline, and the paddle shifts are sharp.
The XJ uses fully independent suspension, with steel springs in front for precision and air springs in back for the best level ride among varying loads. Ride quality and bump absorption is very good, even on 20-inch wheels over pock-marked roads and expansion joints. Full air-suspended cars like the Mercedes S-Class have a slight edge in ultimate ride cushiness, but they haven't the steering precision of the Jag, while others have multiple electronic chassis controls to help deal with the weight but impart a sense of artificiality.
The XJ doesn't have such artificiality. Steering is light but firms up, as does the suspension damping, with the touch of a button. It may not post the ultimate handling numbers of an Aston Rapide or Maserati Quattroporte or Porsche Panamera, but the handling is balanced, the ride quality competitive, the look clearly better in one case, and the cost at least $20,000 less.
We did have one issue, however, which we believe to be caused by the wide 245/40YR20 front and 275/35YR20 rear tires. At 70 mph, over an unsmooth freeway, the car tends to wander with the grooves on the highway. We haven't felt this on XJ models with the standard 19-inch wheels; in fact, we've never felt it on any of the many XJs we've driven in previous years.
Big rotors and calipers, even bigger on supercharged cars, are backed up by the full suite of electronic controls. Although you can switch off the stability control, we never found the need while testing the limits because the system is not intrusive at all.
A standard-wheelbase XJ Supersport will be the quickest model and, depending on tires fitted, should be the best-handling as well. But the plain XJ managed just fine thank you, so think of the Supersport as the XJ to have if you think you want to drive a racetrack. If you think you want to get to a racetrack comfortably in minimum time, any XJ will do the job.
The Jaguar XJ does everything you expect in a luxury sedan, with room, amenities, quiet and thrust, with a sporty side always in the background that offers more driver interaction but one that never changes the car's personality. Eye-catching lines and serene cabins that marry contemporary design with both traditional and modern materials convey a sense of style that more antiseptic modern conveyances can only wish for, and that the XJ has the performance to back up.
Sam Moses filed this NewCarTestDrive.com report after his test drives of the XJ models near Portland, Oregon.


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Update: If you're here in search of sample code for a Twitter repost bot, I would strongly recommend going to the Anatomy of a Better Twitter Bot post, which has a much-improved iteration of the LOTD bot code.
Update: Since Fred Twittered this post, it has reached a somewhat larger audience than expected and I'll add an addtional note: there will be some interesting new stuff happening with @lotd. I've been chatting back and forth with Daryn Nakhuda, a gentleman and a real programmer, about possibilities, and when you put together his ideas, my ideas, and his ability to write sane, reliable code, cool things should result. Stay tuned.
While the logic of "hide your shame" should dictate that I never, ever reveal the code that runs the Twitter Lyric of the Day Club, there's been enough interest that I'm just going to suck it up and publish it. For any programmers who end up at this post: yes, the code is a little eccentric, and yes, there are a number of ways that it could fall down and hurt itself. Believe me, I know. That said, here's the rundown:
To run a variation of this @lotd script, you must be able to understand Perl well enough to make some basic modifications to the script, and must be able to set up a simple database table (phpMyAdmin is your friend). In addition, you need a server or account at a Web hosting service that:
- Allows you to set up a (small) database.
- Allows you to run perl.
- Has the XML::Simple perl module installed, or will allow you to install it.
- Allows you to run scheduled jobs (i.e. cronjobs)
It's a very simple setup: there's a single perl script running on my server that gets the replies posted to @lotd via the Twitter API, loads them into a database table, and then republishes the posts in the lotd account (again via the API). It's scheduled to run once every 15 minutes, around the clock. The script uses the XML::Simple and DBI modules, but doesn't have any other dependencies.
To run your own bot using this script, you'll need to:
- Create the Twitter account that will be the repost bot.
- Create a database table as described in the next section.
- Update the script below:
- The DB connect information for your database. (Lines 21, 43, 75)
- The Twitter username/password information for your Twitterbot account. (Lines 6, 84)
- The regex to remove @YourTwitterBot from replies before it reposts them. (Line 18)
- Upload the finished script to your server.
- Set up a cron job to periodically run your script (@lotd runs every 15 minutes).
…and that's pretty much it. As I said in my first email to Fred about this, "the hardest part of making something like the @lotd bot is just having the idea — once you've got the idea, Twitter makes it easy to build what you've got in your head."
Good luck, have fun, and let me know about anything interesting that you make!
Update: In response to a couple of questions, I guess I didn't make it explicit—this stuff is released under the Woodie Guthrie license: "This song is Copyrighted in U.S., under Seal of Copyright # 154085, for a period of 28 years, and anybody caught singin it without our permission, will be mighty good friends of ourn, cause we don't give a dern. Publish it. Write it. Sing it. Swing to it. Yodel it. We wrote it, that's all we wanted to do."
Get the Database Table Structure (MySQL CREATE)
Click the link above, copy and paste, and change the table or field names as seems appropriate.
Get the Example Script
Click the link above, copy and paste, and make the updates noted in the post above. If you change the database table or field names, make sure that you also update the script appropriately.


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A New Map of How We Think: Top Brain/Bottom Brain
Forget dated ideas about the left and right hemispheres. New research provides a more nuanced view of the brain
Who hasn't heard that people are either left-brained or right-brained—either analytical and logical or artistic and intuitive, based on the relative "strengths" of the brain's two hemispheres? How often do we hear someone remark about thinking with one side or the other?
A flourishing industry of books, videos and self-help programs has been built on this dichotomy. You can purportedly "diagnose" your brain, "motivate" one or both sides, indulge in "essence therapy" to "restore...


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Today's launch of the Sandy Bridge CPU family and P6 series of motherboard chipsets is a major change in the marketplace with virtually every performance and mainstream user will be purchasing this combination if they are going for a new system on the Intel platform this year. The enthusiast platform will still be based upon the X58 and LGA-1366 CPUs until Intel releases their next enthusiast platform later this year if everything goes according to plan. The P67 platform replaces the P55 platform, while the H67 platform replaces the H55 platform.
GIGABYTE is a Tier-1 Taiwanese motherboard manufacturer that releases a slew of new boards whenever a new chipset is announced from either Intel or AMD. They generally distinguish their boards by the number at the end of the UD with the higher number boards having more features and overclocking abilities. Today, I'm reviewing the latest in their lineup based upon the P67 chipset, the P67A-UD7 motherboard. This is their flagship board of the lineup with many new features and overclocking abilities when paired with a Sandy Bridge CPU.


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Join us for our NEW drop in art class for children ages 18 months - 5 years old and their parent or caregiver. During Tinker Time: Art & Play! both open-ended art exploration and sensory tables are ready for your youngest Tinkerer to explore. Children will enjoy painting with non-toxic washable temperas, playing in our sand trays, squishing and moving water beads, making a collage with lots of materials to choose from at our Paper Arts table, or building towers with our sculpture toys. Get a little messy with age-appropriate art materials, enjoy sensory and play-based explorations, and have fun with friends at Tinker!
Back to All Events
Earlier Event: April 19Masterpiece Makers (Ages 3-5)
Later Event: April 19Friday Art Night: Paint Night: Mondrian's Modern Art


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Little River/ North Myrtle Beach (SC) Fishing Report – Updated May 24
"Insider" Content is for customers of the Anglers Headquarters online fishing tackle store. Read about our policy here. Once you make any purchase with the store, you will be sent a log-in granting you full access to this site for 60 days. Each subsequent purchase will also give you 60 days' access from the date of purchase.
If you already have a user name and password, log in to the right side of this page.
Questions? Email email@example.com


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Death on the Installment Plan
Now we know: Rejecting the Medicaid expansion could kill nearly 6,000 people each year.
Like many other liberal health-policy wonks, I've written a lot about the value of health reform in improving access to preventive care, protecting people against crippling medical debt and improving people's physical and mental health.
I haven't written much about how better access to health care can actually save lives. The argument for the Affordable Care Act, President Obama's signature health-care-law, doesn't ride on this. Moreover, the connection between health insurance and mortality is really hard to pin down, even if insurance truly has strong protective effects. The uninsured in America are mainly non-elderly adults. Deaths are really rare in this population, on the order of 0.4 percent per year. according to an Urban Institute study. Real-world randomized clinical trials—even those with thousands of patients—are just too small and too brief to reliably determine how much we might reduce mortality by extending coverage to the uninsured.
Story Continued Below
On Monday, though, a beautiful study was published in Annals of Internal Medicine that provides some of the best data we have connecting health coverage to saved lives. It's changed my thinking, too. I'm more confident than I was last week that the ACA will save many thousands of lives every year.
Ironically, the study examined the impact of the bipartisan insurance expansion enacted in Massachusetts in 2006—a.k.a. "RomneyCare," which provided the basic model for the ACA. Three of the best researchers in the business—Benjamin Sommers, Sharon Long and Katherine Baicker examined a decade's worth of mortality data in Massachusetts counties, comparing trends to those found in carefully chosen comparison counties in other states. This wasn't a randomized trial, but it was the next best thing, tracking the experiences of hundreds of thousands of people for years before and after the enactment of Massachusetts' reforms.
Here's their bottom-line result: Insurance coverage reduced mortality rates by about 30 percent. For every 830 people newly insured, Massachusetts prevented one death per year.
The sheer craftsmanship of this study makes it a pleasure to read (at least, if you're a health wonk like me). It includes several smart checks to rule out potential biases. For example, Sommers, Long and Baicker show that mortality rates among elderly Massachusetts residents were basically unaffected by the 2006 reforms—which makes sense because almost everyone in this group was already insured through Medicare. The authors also demonstrate especially strong mortality reductions for conditions that are actually amenable to medical intervention, such as strokes.
Do these results generalize to the national expansion of coverage under the Affordable Care Act? Nobody really knows. Massachusetts has done a better and more enthusiastic job implementing RomneyCare than many states (and the federal government) have done thus far with ACA.
On the other hand, Massachusetts experienced the strongest survival benefits in low-income areas that contain many uninsured people. These counties look more like those in less-prosperous states most affected by health reform. Massachusetts began its reform as a prosperous liberal state with effective public health polices and a strong infrastructure of safety-net care. Other states are starting with a much less favorable baseline, and thus hold more dramatic possibilities for improvement. A state like Kentucky, which just provided coverage for the first time to hundreds of thousands of very poor people, might well see larger effects.
One thing is for sure. If anything close to these results apply, the ACA is saving many lives every year. The new law is projected to cover more than 20 million adults who would otherwise go uninsured. The Massachusetts estimates imply that the ACA will prevent something in the neighborhood of 24,096 deaths every year (simply: 20 million divided by 830). That's more than twice the number of Americans killed in gun homicides. It's considerably more than the number of Americans who die from HIV/AIDS.


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We've already had ranking Republicans, such as New Hampshire Senator Judd Gregg (now retired), talk about "restructuring" instead of repeal. The GOP "Pledge to America" starts beautifully with a promise to "honor the Constitution as constructed by its framers" and "particularly the Tenth Amendment," but sings a different tune when it comes to ObamaCare. It promises not just to repeal the beast but to "replace the government takeover of health care" with such "common sense solutions" as dramatic federal intervention into the insurance market. Let's also not forget that some of these same self-proclaimed champions of conservatism were just a few years ago voting to support unconstitutional schemes like Bush's Medicare Prescription Drug Modernization Act and the State Children's Health Insurance Program.
Remedying this threat requires an understanding of the constitutional limitations upon our government, the philosophy of freedom that forged those limitations, and both the moral and economic consequences of donning the shackles of socialism. That's exactly what Dr. Lee Kurisko seeks to provide in his recent book, Health Reform: End of the American Revolution?
As a Canadian medical doctor, Dr. Kurisko became extremely frustrated with the regular restrictions and constant failings of the Ministry of Health. In his book, he describes the needless pain and suffering caused by Canada's socialist system, which he witnessed firsthand. He recounts his difficulties as medical director of Ontario's Thunder Bay Hospital in trying to procure necessary equipment. He recalls having to triage the sick for no other reason than the government's rationing of resources. He exposes the long waits that caused unnecessary complications or death.
He also describes his examination of the practical, economic, and moral dimensions of healthcare that led him to the conclusion that only a free market could meet the needs of the public. Enamored of our unique history as the only nation founded upon what he calls "liberty rights," he eventually relocated to the United States, where he observed the stark and positive contrast between his experiences practicing medicine here and his experiences in Canada. Here, less restrictions and more freedom meant that he could actually treat patients by seeing them in a timely fashion, have the right medical imaging equipment on hand, and hire the appropriate support staff. However, he was also dismayed by the lack of understanding many Americans have regarding our special circumstances and the tightening grasp of government control over our medical system even before ObamaCare. It drove him to write this book.
Kurisko does not limit his analysis just to the United States and Canada. He also draws the reader's attention to the utter failures of command economies, such as what the world witnessed under the Soviet Union. If full-blown socialism is so bad, he asks, then why would we think that partial socialism is so good?
In contrast, Kurisko illustrates the tremendous prosperity created by freer markets. He explains how economic freedom made America the most prosperous nation in history and how devices such as MRI and CT scanners have only been made available to the rest of the world as a result of that prosperity. He takes the discussion beyond the realm of healthcare and borrows examples from other industries. For instance, computers were once remarkably expensive tools that filled an entire room. Today, compact and advanced models are owned by almost every household. This isn't because of any Ministry of Computers but the result of market forces. If free-market enterprise is so good for manufacturing or consumer electronics, he asks, then why would we think it is so bad for healthcare?
The good doctor rightly refutes popular claims that free markets have failed in providing healthcare. He explains the slippery cycle of government intervention that has been drawing us deeper and deeper into the clutches of centralized control. Not unlike the classic example of the mafia breaking a window and then offering protection for a fee, government intrusions into the market have continually caused problems to which they've offered more intrusion as the answer. He tracks the history of this back through COBRA, HMOs, Medicare, and the employer system that rose in response to wage and price controls, demonstrating the resulting price inflations and access limitations that, with propaganda, kept "government assistance" in demand.
Going beyond just the symptoms of the systems, Kurisko wades into the underlying economic theory and explains it clearly. He talks about the chaos of diverse individual wants and needs and the difficulty in meeting that demand. He explains that central planning along fixed budgetary periods could only be effective with perfect information. Not only is it extremely difficult to even approach such a level of information, any prediction is necessarily inflexible in the face of rapid and unforeseen change. He offers a number of examples, including the effect of his own resignation! The closest match between supply and demand will occur under conditions of freedom through a cascade of rational action by individuals and their enterprises. He offers successful examples of this as well, including the high availability of such diverse comestibles as Peking duck and Diet Coke in Manhattan.
Central to the economics is the morality. Rational actors cannot exist without personal responsibility and the mixture of consequences and incentives to act. Dr. Kurisko puts this in terms of rights. He explains the difference between the "liberty rights" that this nation was built upon and the socialist "welfare rights" that have been on the rise. Liberty rights involve protections from arbitrary interference by outside forces in your actions. Welfare rights involve claims upon the time and resources of others, claims that necessarily interfere with those others' choices. This matter of rights is crucial to the ability of patients to function in an economy, by electing to spend their money and choosing the right provider of service. It is also crucial to the doctors and other professionals seeking to provide those services. As Kurisko explains, providers under a socialist system are in the position of slaves who own neither their time nor skill. They are not slaves to the patients but to the abstracted power of government to which all citizens share the condition of bondage. By contrast, a free society is one that not only protects individual rights but clears the way for the widest distribution of the best possible care. What could be immoral about that?
Overall, Dr. Kurisko's book offers solid coverage of the economic, moral, and practical aspects of healthcare. Without delving specifically into ObamaCare or getting lost in the minutiae of particular policy, it provides the necessary backbone for why we need to shed the yoke of not only ObamaCare but socialism and central planning in general. Most readers will find a sufficient level of depth and the right amount of relatable humanity in Kurisko's timely warnings and timeless philosophy.
So, is ObamaCare really the end of the American Revolution? It is certainly a powerful blow to the principles over which it was fought. It is also part of a continuing flurry of combination punches that have been coming at us for decades. Ultimately, the question comes down to our vigilance, which Lee Kurisko hopes to temper with this book.


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Thank You!


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All weekend it seemed we were living in some fantasy land, where the strange laws of our state weren't working against us anymore, and we were husband and wife. We stayed in a beautiful bed & breakfast in Oconomowoc, Wi, near my parents' house.
So maybe we didn't take that picture. But that is where we stayed.
And The Bois was baptized.
How could I not be the happiest I've been?
This really is what life is about. I just never used to believe it.
I didn't know I'd have more fun baby joggering than jogging alone. I didn't know that I'd look at my wedding ring and smile and want everyone to see it.
SR was at work two days ago and was apparently swapping divorce stories with two co-workers. One asked, "What made you decide to take the plunge again." And here's what he told me he said, "This one's a lifer. She's perfect."
I keep repeating those words in my head, over and over. What is the chance we would both feel the same way?
The first week of marriage has been full of too much work for SR, but we did manage to go to an Afghani cooking class last night. We met a few of the town's elite; the old rich ladies loved to hold The Bois. So we cooked and had some wine and I ate enough Basmati rice for half of the people in the class.
Anyway, I've been out enjoying the nice weather with The Bois in the baby jogger. We've had two 11 mile sessions now. And that is an awesome workout, I must say! After one night of the Bois looking like a lobster, I've decided to put sunblock on him from now on. :)
And I've been listening to nothing but Danish songs as I run. Yeah, it's Denmark we're moving to. I suppose that won't give our identity away. Music has proven to be a great way to help me learn Danish. And we're getting our applications in for work there and my green card equivalent application, now that we're married. We speak Danish about 50% of the time now. SR is such a good teacher.
Two days after the wedding we had a long talk about what it means to his daughter and son for us to move there. We decided we just have to let them know they are always welcome to live with us. We are not moving away from them, we are simply living our lives and wish they could be there with us. If they know we love them and they always have a second home there, I'm not sure what more we can do.
Although I'm okay with telling you where we're moving, I do think it would give our identity away if I said which 50k we're running in April. I'm sure it will be easy to look up the guy and the girl with the same last name at a race that size.
Anyway, I'll leave you with The Bois in his dress and a recommendation for my recent favorite Danish running song:
Hjem til Aarhus by Dodo and the Dodos


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SOUTH BELOIT – A roadside safety check detail in operation from Friday night to Saturday morning resulted in 27 arrests and citations.
The Illinois State Police District 16 troopers and Winnebago County Sheriff's deputies conducted the detail at Illinois 2 and Illinois 75.
Roadside safety checks are designed to remove alcohol-impaired drivers from the road. Alcohol is involved in nearly 40 percent of fatal crashes in Illinois.
Citations, arrests and warnings also are issued when other violations are discovered such as driving with a suspended or revoked license, operating a vehicle without a valid registration or insurance, or safety-belt violations.
Of the 27 arrests and citations, seven arrests were made for alcohol and drug offenses and eight were for driver's license offenses.
The traffic detail was funded through the Illinois Department of Transportation, Division of Transportation Safety.
— Chris Green