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Doug is watching a show on tv about the Sidewalk Surfer. It's a show about a guy on a skateboard being chased by a guy in a van. I suppose the van is having transmission problems, because he can't seem to catch the Sidewalk Surfer. Lucky for him, the Sidewalk Surfer sidewalk surfs off a cliff because the bridge is out.
The show freezes here and a voiceover does that "will the Sidewalk Surfer survive? Find out after these commercial messages" thing that should be brought back into certain tv shows. Maybe the Sidewalk Surfer won't survive. I don't know. This show might not even be about him. It could be about the guy in the van trying to kill him. We'll never know.
Anyway, the first commercial is for that skateboard the Sidewalk Surfer is riding and Doug wants it more than anything in the whole world. Even Porkchop wants it, and as the commercial helpfully points out...
So it's done then. Doug and Porkchop will get Smash O skateboards, say things like "gnarly" and be sidewalk surfers. The commercial ends by telling you the phone number you need to call to order one. Porkchop grabs the phone and dials the number for Doug. After hearing the price, Doug informs the nice person on the other end of the line that he only wants one skateboard. Unfortunately, the price quoted was for one skateboard. Doug's out of luck here. First he tries begging.
Phil says they can't just give him that much money and Theda tells him to just keep saving his money.
Porkchop, acting as Doug's accountant, crunches the numbers, and at Doug's current rate of allowance, he'll have saved up enough money after 20 years. I don't know if this really is the most unreasonably expensive skateboard ever, or Doug's allowance really is that low, or if the dog's accounting is that shitty. I'm inclined to believe that Porkchop is perhaps not the best accountant.
Next door, Mr. Dink is mowing his lawn with his new, coffee-powered mower. He mocks Doug for doing it the old fashioned way, and then his mower falls apart because it's a mower that runs on coffee. He asks Doug to finish mowing his lawn and pays him for it.
Probably just knocked a year off Porkchop's numbers.
Obviously, Doug realizes he can make more money by mowing more lawns. He mows some woman's lawn and has a fantasy about having the skateboard. He's skating and flying around the mall on his new skateboard.
He zipped past the flower shop, stealing some flowers for the girls. He flies around the mall a little more, attracting a crowd and wooing Patti, before flying out the door. It seems like the end of the fantasy, but then it just keeps going. He speeds past a couple of bikers before speeding past these guys...
He rolls across the finish line way before the people driving racecars. Then an airplane is taking off. Doug catches up and hits a ramp.
Take that, Wright Brothers!
After the fantasy, Doug goes to the bank thinking he could put the money he has in the bank where it could earn a lot of interest. While he's realizing that idea would take way too long, Beebe's dad comes out of the bank.
Realizing that Mr. Bluff is a successful businessman, Doug asks him for some free advice. Mr. Bluff tells him about his first business making bumper stickers by himself. He quickly realized that he was rich and then just hired some suckers to make the stickers for him. Doug gets the point and hires Skeeter.
Of course. Together they find and hire Al and Moo, who are running a failing roadside lemonade stand.
They all get to work and Doug starts collecting the money. He's getting so close he can see it...
That cloud pops pretty quickly though...
How did he forget this part? Porkchop demands to be payed too. He's left with very little money after paying his employees and decides he needs to find a way to make money faster.
It's good that he has that book. The book tells him to expand his market. Simple enough. Doug explains to the guys that they need to get more customers. They go to the mall to hand out business cards.
Now how much did those cards cost Doug? I understand that sometimes you have to spend money to make money, but how can you expect to make any money when your business cards don't have contact information on them? Oh, Doug...
It does work though, of course. They get more customers and the money just piles up. Doug keeps it in a small chest, and that quickly overflows and he has trouble shutting it. He tells the guys they're doing good, and then has a fantasy about the business continuing to expand at the current rate.
I like that Doug plans to change the name so it keeps track of how many guys work for the company. This company and its 2500 employees now have clients all around the world. Skeeter has to take the jet to take care of the raja and the emperor. They are the best landscapers in the world. Beebe is Doug's secretary. The fantasy ends with him trying to figure out what he should ride to lunch.
When did Doug become so obsessed with skateboards?
After the fantasy, Phil asks them if they want to go to the park to play a little baseball, but Doug says they have to work. The guys are very disappointed. They get the work finished, but the guys are clearly less enthusiastic about the whole thing. Doug becomes more single-minded, thinking only about work.
The next day, Doug has a new plan.
The plan can best be described as gibberish. The guys are completely confused by Doug's scribbles and nonsense direction. They get started and it's a terrible disaster. Skeeter starts off mowing the lawn Moo is supposed to be mowing, as if it matters, and Doug tells him to mow this other lawn. He tells Moo to go left. He tells Porkchop to bag some grass. He does all this while standing in the middle of the road with a megaphone.
Doug is a shitty boss and a road hazard. The whole situation gets worse until they all run straight at Doug.
How did this happen?
At the end of the day, he pays them and they pass out on the lawn while Doug tells them he's going to draw work maps for them for tomorrow. Al or Moo says that he thinks Doug has been replaced by an evil alien clone and Skeeter wishes they could just have the old Doug back. That gives Porkchop an idea.
Apparently at Porkchop's suggestion, they have unionized and this is how they plan to get the old Doug back. I like Porkchop's sign the most. No bones? Yeah, that'll show Doug.
Before Doug saw the protest, he figured out they just need to mow 7 more lawns for him to get the skateboard. He was coming out of the garage to tell them when he discovered that his friends think he's a slave-driver. Doug decides to do the work himself. And he does get the work done. Finally, he has all the money he needs and he goes to the mall to get the skateboard. But looking through the window at the skateboard, it doesn't feel right. He's not happy.
I wouldn't be happy if I was being chased by clouds reminding me that I'd been a dick to my friends either. Mr. Bluff walks by calling him Dirk and asking about the business. Doug asks what he would do if his friends worked for him and went on strike because they were mad at him. Mr. Bluff tells him to dump them. "You can always get new friends but a good business is hard to come by." Instead of asking, "yeah, but what should I, a human being, do?" Doug says that he likes the friends he's got. Mr. Bluff expands his point a little, saying that people are either your friends or your employees. That makes more sense to Doug and he shoves his money back into his pocket.
Back at home, Doug has called a company meeting. Skeeter tries to explain about the strike but Doug says he doesn't want an explanation. He finally reached his goal yesterday, and he wants to show them what he bought. Al or Moo says he doesn't want to see the stupid skateboard. Shut your face, Al or Moo!
Those are tickets to Funky Town. And hats. Yes, Funky Town!
This is what Doug spent his money on. So it was either a skateboard or 4 tickets to Funky Town, a theme park 13 years past its expiration date when this episode aired.
I can only assume Funky Town tickets are so expensive because of all the blow the owner and employees must still be doing. I never considered Lipps Inc.'s request to be taken to Funky Town as being terribly unreasonable. I was wrong.
And so that is how Doug didn't get the skateboard he wanted more than anything in the whole world. It's nice that he learned a lesson about treating his friends right, but maybe if he'd learned a lesson about patience, he could have had fun with his friends and bought the skateboard. It was because he became so impatient and obsessed that he became such a dick in the first place. If he had just taken his time and had fun with his friends, he would not have felt so guilty when he finally made enough money.
I was really hoping this whole situation would end with the IRS auditing Doug. In the end, he just didn't have to pay taxes, and we never found out what happened to the Sidewalk Surfer. I like to think that he plummeted to his death.
Monday, September 26, 2011
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Episode 35, Part 2: Doug and the Little Liar
It's a new day in Bluffington, and there's a new student at school. A girl. Skeeter tells Doug he should go introduce himself and when Doug is hesitant, he calls him a chicken and starts clucking. Not to be outdone, Doug asks him why he doesn't introduce himself first, then calls him chicken and starts clucking. So like many 11 year old kids, Doug and Skeeter are clucking like chickens at each other. Finally, Skeeter says he'll go talk to her if Doug does.
They walk over and Doug does all the smooth talking. First, he introduces himself as Fun Dougie. He corrects himself and the girl introduces herself as...Loretta LaQuiggly? I guess it's LaQuiggly. She asks Doug about his last name. She wants to know what country his family is from. After he says "here, I guess" he asks where her family is from and she says they are originally from Yakostonia. She goes on to say that her family goes to her famous aunt's estate to go skiing every year. Her aunt is Marlene LaFlamme, famous actor.
She keeps talking about skiing and private jets until she finally asks about Skeeter. Doug introduces him and she spits some gibberish at him. She clarifies that the gibberish was actually Yakostonesian for "pleased to meet you." She talks about Yakostonesian a bit, how much she speaks the language, how wonderful it is, and then leaves. Skeeter didn't say a word. His response...
So Skeeter finally has his own Patti Mayonnaise. Good? While Doug is trying to wake Skeeter from his stupor, Fentruck walks up.
Fentruck inquires about Skeeter's condition and says he knows an old Yakostonesian folk remedy for this. He directs Doug to hold his nose.
Terrifying. Skeeter's head deflates almost immediately, with hearts and smoke flying out of his ears, but it's hard to say he's better off.
Skeeter comes to his senses, speaking Yakostonesian and unaware that Loretta has been gone for a few minutes. He doesn't thank Fentruck for the quick fix (I wouldn't). He just says, "Hey, Doug! Isn't Loretta the greatest? Well, see ya in class! *honk honk*"
Naturally curious about such a strange occurrence, Fentruck asks Doug what happened. Doug says, "Loretta LaQuiggly happened to him." Fentruck says that he has also met her, and then calls her "the girl that pretends to speak Yakostonesian." Apparently she only knows a few basic phrases of the language. Fentruck would know, being Yakostonesian.
This makes Doug ask himself if Loretta had been lying, and we get our first fantasy. Doug is a private investigator.
In his office, he's casually interrogating her. He asks about the time she's spent in Yakostonia, and her grasp of the language. After she says she knows the language, he speaks a sentence in Yakostonesian. She says, "yes, I'd love to."
"Oh, now that's funny. You just agreed that you drink transmission fluid."
Her response to that is that she didn't understand his accent and thought he was asking her to dinner. He gets to the accusation, saying, "Fentruck says you don't speak Yakostonesian for beans!" Then he reveals the strangest, most awesome thing ever. Fentruck's job/hiding place within the fantasy.
Apparently he's some sort of bartender in Doug's office, and the bar is a tiny, crotch-level cabinet behind his desk. If I ever get the chance to make a detective movie, I'm stealing this idea.
Anyway, she calls Fentruck a jealous liar and Doug asks why he should believe anything she says. "Because I'd never even think of lying to someone as strong and handsome as you. And besides, your best friend's nuts about me."
After the fantasy, Doug says, "the more Loretta talkes, the more I suspected it was all lies." While they're walking, she's telling them about how her father is a horse farmer, a novelist, and a professional surfer. Doug is skeptical, of course, because how could anyone possibly do three things?
They walk to the movie theater and she asks them if they want to see her aunt's latest movie.
She gets to the box office where she realizes she forgot her purse. Skeeter quickly offers to buy her ticket and Doug sees exactly where this is going. He has a fantasy, laying it all out.
Loretta decides she likes what that woman is selling. She calls Skeeter over, saying, "I really love these."
"What? The skis?"
"No, silly. THESE MOUNTAINS!"
And so she convinces Skeeter to buy some mountains for her. Grade A fantasy.
At home, Doug is pacing, thinking about a way to stop Loretta from taking advantage of Skeeter. Mr. Dink calls out to him, because it's time for nothing useful from the creepy, weird neighbor. He just wants to show off his latest purchase.
When you lie, two horns pop out and a robotic voice repeats, "LYING!" Very expensive.
Mr. Dink notices Doug is looking a little down and asks if he wants to talk about it. Pointlessly, Doug does that vague "lets say you have a friend" thing that only happens in tv and movies, and Mr. Dink thinks Doug has found out about his great lie.
"Oh Douglas! I'm sorry! I lied about being captain of my high school football team! I was just the equipment manager!"
Doug quickly forgives him, but gets an idea. We go back to the detective fantasy. Doug and Skeeter have walked Loretta home, to her mansion.
Doug insists on opening the door for her, but when he pulls on the knob, it appears to be rubber. He keeps pulling until the handle breaks free and the inflatable castle takes off.
The inflatable mansion flies away, deflating, revealing Loretta's stash of electronics, jewelry, fur coats, and other things that could be sold to purchase a real house.
She breaks down and admits that she's a con artist. She says, "I make boys fall in love with me then take them for all they've got!" Well done, Doug Funnie, P.I., but who hired you? Seriously.
After the fantasy, Doug decides to put this plan into action on Monday. I guess he has better things to do this weekend, and Skeeter's wallet can handle a few days of gold-digging.
Except Skeeter calls right after he makes up his mind to say he's going on a ski trip with Loretta. He's calling from the store where he's about to spend all his money of clothes for her, based on the promise that her aunt will pay him back.
Doug jumps into action. He rides his bike to the mall as fast as he can and stops Skeeter as he's walking up to the cash register.
They're both surprised to see Doug. He says he knows she's been lying. He says Fentruck told him that she doesn't really speak Yakostonesian. A little embarrassed, she admits that she only knows a few common phrases. Skeeter asks why she would lie about something dumb like that and she says she wanted him to think she was cool. He says he thinks she's cool anyway, so it's no problem. Then Skeeter says he better pay for those clothes before Aunt Marlene gets there, and while Doug is trying to explain that there is no Aunt Marlene, guess who shows up.
Aunt Marlene. Skeeter pays for the clothes (for some reason, Marlene doesn't just pay for them herself. She's apparently going to pay him back anyway, right?) and they get in the private jet and go have fun skiing.
At home, Doug writes in his journal about how he learned you shouldn't judge someone too quickly. "Even if they don't speak Yakostonesian, they still might be speaking the truth about everything else."
Then he promises to Porkchop...
...that he'll never judge anybody again.
The fantasies are great in this episode. In the first one, Loretta is sort of hitting on Doug, implying he wishes she was attracted to him. He also wants her to drink transmission fluid. The second one is all about what a gold-digger bitch she is, based on the simple fact that Skeeter had to buy her a movie ticket. And the third one is all about winning his friend back. This episode is Doug putting "misery loves company" into practice. He's clearly jealous. Skeeter found his Patti Mayonnaise crush, and instead of sitting on it and developing an anxiety disorder, he's going on a ski trip to another country with his crush within a week. What has Doug done with Patti? He made her a failed towel rack and destroyed her old house. Doug apparently learned a lesson about judging people, but completely missed the lesson Skeeter gave him about taking action. Skeeter don't fuck around.
Posted by Porkchop at 9:34 PM 1 comment: Links to this post
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Episode 35, Part 1: Doug's Hot Property
This is Sully's Comic & Book Nook. Right now, Doug is inside negotiating a trade. He's trying to give Sully 3 Brainwave Womans, 4 Human Cyclones, and 1 Yo-yo Girl for a copy of The Amazing Man O Steel Man #45. Sully is not convinced. This comic is the last issue drawn by the original creator, Darby Blue. Doug throws in the first 5 issues of The Lumpy Squad. Deal.
While celebrating this amazing deal, Skeeter tells Sully that Doug has the entire Man O Steel Man series. Doug points out that he doesn't have #1 and Sully figures this is the best moment to show his dick to these children.
This cover is not as cool as Action Comics #1.
Sully was storing this comic in a drawer under the desk saying it just came in. Doug asks how much it costs and Sully says it's not for sale. It took him 10 years to find that copy. It's his! He does let Doug hold it for a bit before he puts it on a special shelf behind the counter to prove that he has the biggest nerd dick of all the comic shop owners in Bluffington. All the children will be in to see Sully's priceless nerd dick.
Later, Doug is distracting Skeeter from his badass arcade game by lamenting the idea of collecting comics. What's the point of collecting them if you can't get the first one? Doug points out that there are only 75 copies in the whole world.
Some guy in the arcade overhears him talking about comics and offers to sell him some. Doug and Skeeter follow him outside to his car, because they have shitty parents that never told them they shouldn't do that.
At first Doug is unimpressed with the comics he sees, even though you can see that some of them are the same ones he just traded to Sully. You can see The Lumpy Squad right there on top. But digging around, he finds a copy of The Amazing Man O Steel Man #1 and almost loses his shit.
Doug thinks they might not realize what they have and decides to see if he can lowball them. He has to keep elbowing Skeeter because he keeps trying to point out how expensive and rare that comic is. The guys think the comic might be worth something since it's wrapped in plastic but Doug says it's not even in mint condition. He says there are "thumb marks on the edges of the pages, and a rolled spine, and look at that tear right there." Being the savvy businessmen they are, the guys ask Doug how much he'll pay for it. Doug grabs all the money in his pocket, which looks like a ten, a couple of ones, and some change, and they take the deal.
At home, Doug puts the comic with his collection and has a fantasy.
Looks very inappropriate, but he's just holding Doug up while he's flying.
Man O Steel Man takes him to meet the other superheroes.
That's Yo-yo Girl, the Human Cyclone, and Brainwave Woman. They are all very impressed with Doug's ability to collect comics. Brainwave Woman interrupts the celebration to say that she has detected a massive disturbance. She uses her powers to show them shots of people on the street as their clothes disappear. Man O Steel Man says it could only be the work of one man and Doug says it must be Dr. Master Snatcher, first introduced in issue #45. Now they are all really impressed with Doug's knowledge. Finally they have a friend that can answer those really tough questions on trivia night! In fact, Man O Steel Man uses one of his powers to turn Doug into a superhero.
He is now Comic Collector Boy.
After the fantasy, Doug is walking with Skeeter to Sully's, talking about how he can't wait to tell him how he got the comic. Unfortunately, Sully's is closed. Looking through the door window, Doug notices that Sully's copy of #1 is gone. He says, "no way it could be the same one, Skeeter." They reason that stuff like this happens all the time. While Doug is saying they still don't know anything out of the ordinary happened, Porkchop interrupts with the newspaper.
Who didn't see that coming? Doug immediately goes back to his fantasy where he's Comic Collector Boy, flying with his new team to stop the evil Dr. Master Snatcher.
Poor Human Cyclone has to fly by windmilling his arms constantly.
They fly down to Sully's comic shop and notice all their comics have been stolen. This makes all the superheroes, except for Comic Collector Boy, very weak.
They point out that if Dr. Master Snatcher has every comic book in the galaxy, he'll have control of their super powers. It doesn't make a lot of sense...
After the fantasy, Doug and Skeeter go back to the mall to try to find the guys that sold them the comic. Skeeter can't remember what they looked like, and Doug gives him a vague description that could be applied to literally everyone around them.
"The store stayed closed for over a week. I knew that if I could only talk to Mr. Sully, he'd tell me my issue #1 wasn't a stolen one. That it was just some...crazy coincidence."
Doug sees Sully walking towards the store and runs off, because he apparently doesn't actually want to talk to him about it. He reasons that, even if it was the stolen one, he bought it fair and square. It was pretty fair and square if you overlook the fact that he lowballed the shit out of those idiots to buy stolen property. He finally decides to ask his dad what to do.
"Um, there's this kid, right? And he's got a hold of this...this thing, right? And later this kid finds out that this thing that he's wanted for so long, may be a bad thing. Well, it's a good thing. It's really great. But it may be bad..."
"Uhhh huh..."
"And whatever that thing is, he didn't do the bad thing. Somebody else did."
"Which thing are we talking about?"
"Well, the most important thing in the whole world! And he bought it fair and square."
"Well, if it's fair and square..."
"You mean he should keep it?"
"Well, if it's fair and square..."
It's honestly hard to tell if Phil is actually agreeing with Doug here or if he intended to have some dumbass rhyming lesson about how Doug wouldn't be worried about it if it really was fair and square. It does seem like Doug cuts him off at the end. Maybe if Phil actually got the whole story and not the vague, barely applicable version Doug fed him, it would be clearer what he thought on the subject. It's hard to believe he'd actually be helpful though.
Excited, Doug runs off with Skeeter, who is also impressed that Phil gave him permission to keep it. They notice that Sully's store is open again and there's a line to get in. New signs on the door indicate that they are now only allowing one kid under the age of 18 in at a time. They get in line.
Doug finally gets his chance and to add to the absurdity of his one kid policy, he's added two security guards at the door and watches Doug from a monitor.You can see it in this picture...
Doug apologizes about the robbery and Sully grunts. Doug asks him if Man O Steel Man #1 got stolen too. Sully turns to him and says, "they all got lifted. Now either buy something or leave, so the next greedy kid can come in a snoop around!" Doug is shocked and returns to the fantasy.
The superheroes are fading. Without the comics, they have no history. Without a history, they don't exist. Yo-yo Girl points out that Comic Collector Boy isn't fading like them. Man O Steel Man says that it's because he has issue #1. Comic Collector Boy protests that he bought it fair and square, and Man O Steel Man says, "we know! Goodbye, Comic Collector Boy." Then they all fade out of existence, as you can see Brainwave Woman above.
After the fantasy, Doug gives Sully the comic and says he's not the one that stole it. Sully tells his security guards, Eric and Norman, to get rid of the signs. Because he's so happy to have #1 back, Sully lets all the kids into the store and gives them complimentary copies of the latest issue of The Lumpy Squad. I wish I had been there that day.
That's the end. There's a fantasy where Comic Collector Boy is just Doug and he's sharing his comics with the superheroes. He doesn't go to the police with information about the guys that sold him the comic. He never bothers to find out if his dad meant to give him good advice. At this point, you have to believe that Doug thinks his father is shitty. Whether Phil meant to give him good advice before Doug interrupted him and took off is irrelevant. Doug took what he thought his father was saying and saw that it was wrong. To him, his dad was wrong and it was making a nice old man into a miserable cunt.
What's wrong with the police in Bluffington? They can't catch those two idiot thieves? They were selling the comics out of the trunk of their car at the mall in broad daylight right after the robbery happened. And they were approaching young boys in the mall to lure them outside to sell the comics. Pathetic.
Posted by Porkchop at 10:01 PM 7 comments: Links to this post
Labels: doug funnie, dougs father is shitty, man o steel man
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The Weekly Reset Newsletter No. 5
December 31, 2017 @ 12:00 pm - 5:00 pm
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subset: commoncrawl


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NEW YORK --An assistant coach for the New York Jets is being investigated after tripping an opposing player during a game.Jets strength and conditioning coach Sal Alosi tripped Miami Dolphins cornerback Nolan Carroll as he ran down the sidelines in the Dolphins-Jets game on Sunday.
Carroll was down on the ground for several minutes before returning to the game.
Alosi could face discipline from the NFL and his own team.
Alosi issued a statement after the game saying he made a mistake that "showed a total lapse in judgment. My conduct was inexcusable and unsportsmanlike and does not reflect what this organization stands for."
The NFL said Monday that it is reviewing the incident.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.


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Publications du COGIT
Routes visualization: Automated placement of multiple route symbols along a physical network infrastructure
Journal of Spatial Information Science (JoSIS), Volume 11, page 53--79 - 2015
This paper tackles the representation of routes carried by a physical network infrastructure on a map. In particular, the paper examines the case where each route is represented by a separate colored linear symbol offset from the physical network segments and from other routes—as on public transit maps with bus routes offset from roads. In this study, the objective is to automate the placement of such route symbols while maximizing their legibility, especially at junctions. The problem is modeled as a constraint optimization problem. Legibility criteria are identified and formalized as constraints to optimize, while focusing on the case of hiking routes in a physical network composed of roads and pedestrian paths. Two solving methods are tested, based on backtracking and simulated annealing meta-heuristics respectively. Encouraging results obtained on real data are presented and discussed.
Images et films
Références BibTex
@Article\{Teulade15, author = "Teulade-Denantes, Jules and Maudet, Adrien and Duch\^ene, C\'ecile", title = "Routes visualization: Automated placement of multiple route symbols along a physical network infrastructure", journal = "Journal of Spatial Information Science (JoSIS)", volume = "11", pages = "53--79", year = "2015", keywords = "automated cartography, route maps, symbol placement, constraint formulation, constraint optimization problem, simulated annealing", }


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At the CommunicAsia 2011 conference in Singapore, Sony Ericsson has just announced the addition of two new phones to its Xperia line of Android devices. They're the Xperia ray and the Xperia active. And they couldn't be more different from each other.
Let's start with the Xperia active. Like its name implies, this phone is aimed at people who lead a very active life. The device is quite bulky and tough-looking. It's also dust proof and water resistant for those whose phones lead a rough life. The screen's also able to track wet fingers, so there's no need to dry your hands while using your Xperia active in the shower.
The Xperia active comes pre-loaded with a bunch of fitness apps that let users track their fitness performance. As well track your heart rate and pulse in realtime using ANT+ wireless networking technology.
Aside from being the Jillian Michaels of the smartphone world, the Xperia active has the following somewhat decent specs:
- Android 2.3 Gingerbread
- 1 GHz processor
- 3-inch TFT screen with a 320 x 480 pixel resolution and Reality Display with Mobile BRAVIA® Engine
- 5 MP rear-facing camera with LED flash and 720p video recording
- 512 MB of RAM and 320 MB of free internal storage
- 2 GB SD card included
- 1200 mAh battery
Sony Ericsson also throws in an extra exchangeable soft touch back cover, detachable ear hooks for the portable handsfree active headset, a wrist wrap and an arm case for workouts. Not too shabby.
On the other end of the spectrum, the Xperia ray is aimed at those who think their phones are a fashion accessory. The phone comes in gold, pink and black, and its metal accents scream "fabulous." The Xperia ray has the following specs:
- Android 2.3 Gingerbread
- 1 GHz processor
- 3.3-inch TFT screen with a 854 x 480 pixel resolution and Reality Display with Mobile BRAVIA® Engine.
- 8.1 MP rear-facing camera with LED flash, Sony's Exmor technology and 720p video recording
- Front-facing VGA camera
- 512 MB of RAM and 300 MB of free internal storage
- 4 GB SD card included
- 1500 mAh battery
The Xperia ray is one of the thinnest phones around, coming in at just 9.4 millimeters. At this point, we have no idea when these two phones will arrive here in the U.S. (if ever), but we can expect to find out more as we get closer to the Fall. Meanwhile, you can quench your thirst for fashionable and athletic phones by watching the videos below.


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You have until Feb 01, 2019 to return or exchange items bought after Nov 01, 2018. All other standard return policy conditions apply.
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This item is noncancelable and nonreturnable.
With the microRemote Handheld Bundle you can control focus on your lens without taking your hand off your rig. This kit consists of the Basestation, a Digital Torque Motor, and a Fingerwheel controller. All required connection and power cables are included, so you're ready to go right out of the box. When fully assembled, this kit provides immediate focus control without weighing down your handheld rig. The system can also be used in situations where direct contact with the lens is not possible, like when the camera is mounted on a motorized gimbal stabilizer.
The Basestation is the center of the microRemote system. It coordinates the Fingerwheel and calibrates the motors to the lenses. Power is also distributed through the Basestation. The Digital Torque Motor can drive photo or cinema lenses, while its small size keep it unobtrusive, and its light weight won't unbalance your rig. The motor will attach to 15mm rods and can be adjusted to fit the diameter of your lens. The included fingerwheel is designed to be mounted on a separately available microHandGrip and will be ideally positioned for index finger operation.
|Power Requirement
|12 to 18 VDC: D-Tap Battery, Auxiliary Camera Power, or 110/220 VAC Adapter
|Fingerwheel Controller: 3 oz / 85 g
|Packaging Infottfrzvsasvxafzzdxfsteysyx
|Package Weight
|1.6 lb
|Box Dimensions (LxWxH)
|9.3 x 5.9 x 5.0"


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The seven scenarios that are portrayed by each of the seven authors in chapter three of Winzenried's (2010) book presented varying observations and predictions of all aspects of library work. The detailed depiction of Miles, a senior student in the graduating class of 2025 caused the reader to imagine how the inevitable changes to technology will affect the provision of information resources.
I found Johnson's scenario to be the most thought-provoking and controversial. His credible descriptions of the way Miles went about his daily academic pursuits caused me to imagine the likelihood that the learning tools used by Miles will be invented.


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Best Digital Company based in Essex.
Demand for mobile apps is constantly growing, Appsolon has created a variety of flexible and affordable iPhone & Android app packages for clients large and small. We can upload your app direct to the app store.
We can offer bespoke software development & debugging services along with software optimisation for many applications. Business processes that are costly/repetitive are perfect candidates for bespoke software development solutions.
Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is fine tuning your website to get the best possible results in the major search engines such as Google, Yahoo! And Bing. Having a well-designed website is all well and good, but not much use if nobody can find it.
Social media marketing is crucial to the online presence of any startup or established business. We cover all the major social media giants including facebook, twitter, Pinterest & Google plus. We take care of your digital marketing strategy.
At Appsolon, we're experienced in building bespoke, easy–to-use mobile websites. Whether you have an existing desktop website site or not, we can develop a mobile-friendly site that works on all devices.
WordPress is extremely versatile, user friendly and cost effective web software. You can create a straightforward blog that is easy to update or a beautifully functional business website. While WordPress is a free opensource platform, it is priceless for small businesses.
Videos and animations are great marketing forms. Businesses want to have a great video to promote their products and brands on YouTube & Facebook. Videos also have a high potential to become viral. Trust us with your video production software.
Business owners want to focus on the tasks that could make their company more productive and profitable. Virtual assistance may come in many forms, including marketing, encoding, design, accounting and customer service.
Our app development solutions are bespoke to you the client so we take your projects seriously. From only £250 for a fully functional business app, we are worth considering.
We take a mobile first approach to everything we do. Mobile websites are a must these days and we build this into everything we do digitally.
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We have a talented team of programmers, web designers, SEO & social media marketing experts based locally in Essex.
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We are experts in helping startups and existing companies get their message out there and get you noticed on the web.
WordPress is one of the most popular cms systems out there and we can get you up and running in no time.


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Simple Solutions
How to Clean Spray Tips on Spray Paint Cans
By: Joe Truini
To prevent the spray tips on cans of spray paint from clogging after use, turn the can upside down after using and spray until no more paint comes out.
To clean spray tips that have become clogged:
- Remove the spray tip from the can by pulling it off.
- Soak the spray tip in mineral spirits to soften any paint residue.
- Use the thin wire from a twist tie to clean any remaining paint out the holes in both ends of the spray tip.
- Put the tip back on the spray can.
Watch this video to find out more.
Further Information
- How to Make a Homemade Spray Paint Shield (video)
- Spray Painting Round or Turned Objects (video)
- How to Spray Paint Metal Wrought Iron Railings (video)
- Spray Guns for Painting Your Home (video)
Video Transcript
Joe Truini: There've been some great advancements in spray paint recently, but the one problem they've not solved is, how to keep the tip from clogging with paint after you've used it.
Now, the first rule is whenever you spray paint, at the end of the project, turn it upside down and spray it until it comes out clear. Just like that. That's all it takes, just a couple of seconds. And that one tip alone will keep paint from clogging up the tip of the spray can.
Then the other thing is take it off, and soak it in mineral spirits. That will soften any remaining paint that's stuck in there. Now, sometimes that's not enough, and you need to clean the tip.
Now, there's a hole at the bottom and at the top where the paint comes out. And the only wire I've found that can fit in that hole is from a twist-tie. This is from a loaf of bread. Just pull off the paper or the plastic to expose the wire. And that will fit right in that little hole. Small as that hole is, this is the only wire I've found. Let me see, right there, it fits right in there.
You can use that to clear out what's left of the paint. And that paint's usually soft, so it comes out pretty easily. And then you can just put it back on the spray can, and finish spraying the paint.
Now, when you're done and you've emptied the can, before tossing out the can, take the tip off, save it and soak it, and you can use it on another can.
Videos You May Like
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YOMYOMF.com Privacy Statement
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ANCHORAGE, Alaska – A swarm of small earthquakes began Monday at a volcano near Anchorage in what scientists said was a warning that Mount Redoubt could be waking from its slumber.
"It is reminding us that it is an active volcano," said Rick Wessels, a geophysicist with the U.S. Geological Survey in Anchorage.
The quakes started early in the day near the summit of Mount Redoubt, about 100 miles southwest of Anchorage, with a regular pattern often seen when magma is moving inside a volcano, Wessels said.
Researchers plan to fly through the steam plume of the volcano this week and take measurements of three chemical compounds linked to volcanic activity — sulfur dioxide, carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide.
Scientists do not know if the earthquakes will lead to the volcano again becoming explosive, but they said that was a heightened possibility.
Last year, the volcano rumbled for months before exploding on Jan. 26, at times producing huge ash plumes and sending mud flows down its flanks.
It finally quieted in late September, but there was a similar episode of increased seismic activity in December.
Then came Monday.
"We were going along quietly and all of a sudden, boom, we started getting these small earthquakes," said Steve McNutt, a University of Alaska Fairbanks research professor.
Mount Redoubt is monitored by seven seismometers.
Last year, Mount Redoubt awoke after a magnitude-5.7 earthquake at the mouth of Cook Inlet.
The volcano followed that with 19 significant eruptions over several weeks in March and April in which it sent ash plumes as high as 65,000 feet and cloaked parts of south-central Alaska in up to a half-inch of ash.
Residents donned face masks and covered their cars and trucks to keep the ash off the finish and out of the engines.
Mount Redoubt also erupted in 1989 and 1990.
Wessels said the current earthquakes were not connected to Sunday's magnitude-7.2 quake in Mexico just south of the U.S. border.
"We wouldn't expect there to be any connection given the distances," he said.
Alaska is the most seismically active state in the country.
In 1964, it experienced a magnitude-9.2 earthquake near Anchorage, the strongest earthquake ever recorded in North America.
New England
Vermont police say student stopped school shooting plot
One-finger driving leaves you vulnerable to the unexpected
Schools and Education
University system Chancellor James Page to retire at end of school year
Local & State
USM's Muskie School joins others in effort to bring medication-assisted opioid treatment to jails
Local & State
Toy Fund: Mother donates plasma to pay for room in hotel


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Now, it's been out for 4 days and I desperately want to hear some videos I downloaded. My speakers are working, I can hear the quiet humm when I turn them on.
I went to the XP Audio TroubleShooting. There I found out I was set up for CD Disk speakers with headphones output! My CD does not work! I quickly changed that to PC Desktop speakers. But if I was supposed to confirm that in the Device Manager, I wasn't able to.
I tried to reset everythiing to the "Intel" option, I did all it said, then when I got to the devide manager, the links that I was supposed to click on were'nt there. I have no clue where to go to from there.
I took a look at my speakers and they are named "QC Passed YZQ6". That's all it says on the back of them.
I'd love any help you guys can give me!
Thanks for your time! Alias775
Edited by Alias775, 13 May 2010 - 06:32 PM.


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California Super Bike @ Las Vegas Motor Speedway
California Super Bike
Saturday, Nov 11 — Sunday, Nov 12, 2017
Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Las Vegas, NV
ATTENTION! Your web browser is either very old or portions of MotorsportReg.com are being blocked. As a result, some things on this and other sites may be out of place or look broken. Before you try and register for events, learn how to correct it.


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Your Belleville Home is Your Castle,
Think of Us As Your Moat.
Request A Free Quote
It's simple and won't take long
Belleville Home Insurance
When you own a home you want to protect it, and McDougall Insurance in Belleville understands this. Belleville is longstanding Ontario town, nestled along the 401 corridor beside the Bay of Quinte with a strong mix of old fashioned and modern homes. Belleville has a fairly modest population, holding the ranking of Canada's 50th largest city, however the city is growing in size thanks to a strong reputation of the local community as well as close proximity to the famous Trenton 8 wing air base. Belleville Home Insurance rates can fluctuate largely based on where you live and who you are. McDougall Insurance is dedicated to understand your situation so we can provide you with the best home coverage for the best possible price.
How to Get a Homeowner's Insurance Quote
At McDougall Insurance we realize your time is valuable. That is why we work hard to make your quoting experience as quick and simple as possible to save your precious seconds. By simply filling out the form above with the necessary information you will be contacted by one of our professional brokers who will work closely with you to design a personalized home insurance package tailored to your situation and demands. We are well known for our prompt responses to clients and pride ourselves on delivering the best possible customer experience when searching for a Belleville Home insurance solution.
Recommended Insurance Coverage
One of the advantages of using a professional brokerage like McDougall Insurance is through our extensive knowledge of the industry. We know what coverages have helped thousands of people and what ones haven't. Talking to the professionals at McDougall Insurance can result in coverage recommendations that can help increase the value you receive from your Belleville Home insurance.
Sewer Backup
Normal home policies do not protect your home from water damages. Placing Sewer Backup onto your policy will grant you protection against any damage resulting from burst pipes or an overflowing sewage system. Water can cause thousands of dollars worth of damage in seconds and thus we always recommend this additional coverage to our clients.
By-law protection
Belleville is a very old community with a rich history resulting in many traditional old style homes being built. The materials used to build those homes may no longer be allowed according to municipal by-laws as they could pose a threat to the structural integrity of the home. If your home needs to be rebuilt but with different materials and you do not have this coverage the difference in cost will come out of your pocket! Since there are still many older homes standing we will always recommend this coverage to our clients with older style homes.
Recommending the above coverage is just one of the ways that McDougall Insurance can unlock value for our clients.
How To Improve Your Belleville Home Insurance Rate
There are several options available to you to try and reduce the premiums you pay through discounts.
- Updating your home with more modern features. Replacing old electrical wiring or oil tanks can drastically reduce the chance of fire and so save you money on your premium.
- Adding your automobile to your insurance account is favorable for insurance companies. Doing this can usually result in savings of up to 15% off your home policy.
- Adding an alarm system to your house is another easy and simple way of saving money. The system prevents theft and therefore reduces your chances of loss, saving you money in premium.
What Our Customers Are Saying
Auto Insurance
Have a vehicle you need insurance for? If you need more then one kind of insurance, we can help. Bundle your insurance and save, let us see what we can do.


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- A visionary board and officers making things happen
How to Join
Join online or print and mail this form along with your payment.


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Fair News Archive \ Fair News - Fall 2015
Message from the Fair Director
Witness the Big Bake at Common Ground
Check Out the EMS Crew at the Common Ground Fair
Welcome Fair Volunteers!
MOFGA Public Policy Teach-In
Keynote and Featured Speakers
Thanks to Fair Donors
Thank You to the Volunteers Who Coordinated the 2015 Fair
Special Thanks to the Fair Steering Committee
April Boucher, Director of the Common Ground Country Fair
Message from the Fair Director
"Why?" That's a great question – a question asked by children countless times a day, and one that often gets expressed in the planning of the Fair. I work with adults who have not lost that curiosity, that desire to understand, think and act consciously. At every step of the way, we are thoughtful, weighing our processes and actions – in particular, how they align with our values, the values of the Fair and ultimately of MOFGA.
Working and living mindfully can take a lot of energy, but at the end of the day you feel good because it's a process and you're not giving up. This really manifests itself at the Fair, where we are surrounded by people who are also trying and living purposely; who have often answered the question "why" not only to others but to themselves. When you see folks working hard, you can't help but want to work hard too, to give, and to give generously. I believe this is how we attract over 2,000 dedicated volunteers. As Pete Seeger said, "Being generous of spirit is a wonderful way to live."
In light of all the underlying complexities, it's important to take in and appreciate the simple pleasures: great friends, delicious food, beautiful weather and perhaps even sliding down the hill on a piece of recycled cardboard. Realizing that it is all worth it, you are living mindfully. Thank you. You are the future of the Common Ground Country Fair.
Looking forward to seeing you at the Fair!
– April Boucher, Director of the Common Ground Country Fair
Dusty Dowse explains kneading to a fairgoer. Patti Dowse photo
Come Witness the Big Bake at Common Ground!
By Patti Dowse
The Common Kitchen does its best to provide volunteers at the Common Ground Country Fair with the same local, organic food as the fairgoers. To this end, a dedicated group of volunteer bakers, using Maine-built wood-fired ovens, works around the clock to stock the kitchen with 1,000 pounds of bread, made with a large proportion of whole grains. Dusty Dowse of the Maine Grain Alliance, the bread coordinator, arrives to start firing ovens two days before the Fair. The ovens are located next to the kitchen at first, but once the Fair starts, they move to their separate locations: one with Maine Wood Heat (the creator of the ovens) in Energy and Shelter, and one to the Maine Grain Alliance booth in Farm and Homestead. You can see them there, baking away, until mid-day on Saturday. After that the Maine Grain Alliance oven keeps on baking pita bread with locally raised and milled flour, so you can get a free sample if you've missed seeing the Big Bake! The mixing, rising and forming of the loaves occurs next to the Common Kitchen, so you may see unbaked loaves commuting between there and the ovens, and baked ones returning to the kitchen, but the pita is done start-to-finish in the Maine Grain Alliance booth.
You Don't Have to be Sick to Check Out the EMS Crew at the Common Ground Fair!
See Plans for the New EMS/Multipurpose Building. Donations and Pledges Welcome!
Heart attack? Stroke? Sometimes; not usually.
Every year, some 300 to 500 Fairgoers visit the emergency medical services (EMS) tent at the Fair. Usually they seek aids to keep them comfortable at the Fair – aspirin, ibuprofen, Band-Aids or a dollop of sunscreen – rather than life-saving services. The EMS crew does handle very real medical emergencies each year as well.
Meet the EMS crew and its home:
• The EMS tent (check the Fair map) has a general reception and minor treatment area where you may select over-the-counter freebie remedies, seek advice or just rest. It has two private treatment areas for more serious assessment and care.
• An emergency physician (thanks to Eastern Maine Healthcare Systems) is on duty during Fair hours. The doctor is available for all urgent concerns that might otherwise take Fairgoers away to a treatment facility for care. From a youngster's earache or fever to suturing a wound … the doctor is in!
• Paramedic and EMT personnel staff the EMS tent, and a paramedic ambulance (thanks to Capitol Ambulance) stands by.
• Radio-equipped teams of EMS volunteers roam the Fair for quick response. A mini-ambulance (provided by Sugarloaf Rescue Vehicles) can bring patients to the EMS tent.
We NEED a REAL EMS building! Please donate or pledge for an EMS/Multipurpose Building. With volunteer doctors and advanced care available, we need a more sterile, controlled and private setting to provide that care. The tent has worked for more basic care, but blowing tent flaps don't work when a doctor is stitching!
We have raised almost half of over $175,000 needed to construct a modern, green EMS building that will serve as an education facility at other times of the year. Please visit the EMS tent to see what we have planned and how you might help.
Welcome Fair Volunteers!
Thank you to our almost 2,000 volunteers who make this Fair possible. We rely on volunteers to take tickets, sell T-shirts, cook supper and perform countless other tasks to make the Fair a success each year. The Fair couldn't happen without you.
If you're visiting the Fair, take a moment to say thank you to the volunteers giving their time and energy to make this event possible each year. You'll recognize them because they will be sporting their VOLUNTEER T-shirts.
Maybe all their work is inspiring you, and you would like to help this year. It's not too late to sign up!
We need help from early September, throughout the Fair weekend, and continuing after the Fair until cleanup is complete. If you volunteer for a 4-hour shift, you'll receive admission to the Fair, camping privileges, an organic cotton Fair T-shirt and a meal from the Common Kitchen – not to mention our thanks and appreciation!
Sign up for a shift online via our volunteer registration site at http://mofga.me/volunteeratcommonground. If you'd prefer to register by mail, contact Anna Libby, MOFGA's volunteer coordinator, at firstname.lastname@example.com or 207-568-4142.
If you're already here at the Fair, it's not too late to help! Just visit the Volunteer Check-In Tents, located at the north and south gates, and sign up. Our check-in volunteers will be so glad to help you find a great volunteer shift!
A solar array at Sol Farm, Monroe. English photo
MOFGA Public Policy Teach-In
Saturday, 2-3:30 p.m., Spotlight Stage Tent
"Solar for Maine Farms and Homes"
The time is right for a MOFGA teach-in on solar power. MOFGA has long recognized the need to act on climate change and get off the fossil fuel fix. With solar technology prices way down, a number of our farmers and members are discovering the advantages of clean power from the sun. Maine's solar resource is comparable to cities such as Houston and Miami, and far better than international leaders in solar such as Germany. Yet Maine is falling far behind other U.S. regions in solar installations and job creation due to a lack of state policies friendly to solar. Maine's successful solar rebate program expired in 2013. The federal tax credit for solar is set to expire in about a year and a half. States will likely have to develop a sustainable model for the solar industry to grow as the federal credit expires.
Two bills proposed in the Legislature this year – L.D. 1073, sponsored by Senator Tom Saviello and designed to support solar on farms, and a broader L.D. 1263, sponsored by Representative Sara Gideon – were estimated to, in combination, cut the payback period for an agricultural solar project by nearly 60 percent. L.D. 1073 was carried over to next year and faces uncertain prospects as written; L.D. 1263 was rewritten as a resolve to study alternatives to the practice of "net-metering," which allows customers to get a credit on their bill for power they put back into the grid. That bill was among the many vetoed by Governor Paul LePage, for reasons unrelated to its merits. The Legislature overrode the veto, restoring the study as a way to move forward with progressive solar policy.
This year we gather a MOFGA farmer and a homesteader who enjoy the benefits of solar; a clean energy advocate and a legislative leader working for stronger solar policies in Maine; and a major developer of solar power installations in Maine and New England to discuss the practicalities and policies necessary to harness the power of the sun.
About the Speakers
Joshua Oxley and Rachele Leonard began building a new farm in Monroe nine years ago. They grow certified organic mixed vegetables, which they sell at the Belfast, Northport Bayside and Searsport farmers' markets. Because they were at the end of a long road and the cost of bringing in electric lines would have been high, and because Oxley had previous experience in engineering solar power, they knew they wanted to be off the grid. Their solar panels provide all their electricity for their home, apprentice residence and barn, greenhouse and outside irrigation, and commercial kitchen for processing vegetables. Because of their success, Oxley has started a contracting business, Solar Logix Maine, to help other homeowners and farmers with solar installations. With lower prices for solar technology, it's a "whole different ball game," says Oxley, from when he did his own installation nine years ago.
Perhaps best known as an advocate for sustainable forestry and as the author of the acclaimed critique of industrial forestry, "Beyond the Beauty Strip: Saving What's Left of Our Forests," Mitch Lansky has been off the grid for more than four decades on his homestead in Wytopitlock and has been using photovoltaics since 1982. Solar electricity runs his computer, lights, water pump, washing machine and more. HisOur house is heated by wood and sun. From May to October, he has solar-heated water in his pressurized water system. In the colder months, he heats water with a coil in his wood stove. Lansky is particularly concerned that people focus on using less energy, with more efficient equipment, and better insulation and weatherizing, as well as getting off fossil fuels. He will share his do-it-yourself, lower-cost energy saving discoveries.
Dylan Voorhees, the clean energy director of the Natural Resources Council of Maine, lives within walking distance of his work with his wife and three daughters. He has been in the thick of many a legislative battle in Augusta, fighting for clean energy, energy conservation and efficiency policies, including negotiations over solar bills this session. Quoted recently in The Portland Phoenix: "It's going to take tough work politically to … have people continue to have affordable access to solar as [the federal tax credit] drops away, but if we don't, what little momentum we've started to gather with solar jobs will drop off the cliff."
Assistant Majority Leader Sara Gideon of Freeport is serving her second term in the Maine House of Representatives. She is a past member of the Legislature's Joint Standing Committee on Energy, Utilities and Technology, where she worked to lower energy costs, encourage increased energy efficiency and promote clean and renewable energy to capitalize on Maine's natural resources and build a clean-energy economy. She serves on the Legislative Council and was the principal sponsor of L.D. 1263 this session (see above).
Also known to MOFGA members as the original co-founder of The Green Store in Belfast, Bill Behrens co-founded ReVision Energy and has more than 20 years' experience in renewable energy systems design, installation and service. ReVision Energy has installed more than 3,000 solar systems since opening in 2003. Behren's current focus at ReVision is in bringing solar power to New England municipalities and nonprofits.
Moderator Sharon Tisher is a past president of MOFGA and a member of the MOFGA Public Policy Committee. She teaches environmental law and policy at the University of Maine and is a member of the Climate Reality Leadership Corps.
Keynote and Featured Speakers
Friday, September 25
Keynote: William Cullina, Executive Director, Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens
Going Organic at Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens
11 a.m., The Common
Two years ago, Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens decided to convert to organic practices. Many of the staff were skeptical that they could maintain a high standard of care with a limited budget and staff if they went this route, but they thought it was vital to try. Luckily the experiment has been an overwhelming success: The plants are far healthier, pollinators more diverse, visitors happier and costs have remained the same or even decreased. The switch has not been without challenges, however; William Cullina will discuss candidly what has and has not worked since Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens went organic.
Cullina was educated at the University of Connecticut and Hobart and William Smith College in New York. After working as a retail greenhouse manager and then a research aide studying sylvicultural practices and forest ecology, he become the greenhouse manager for the department of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Connecticut and then nursery manager of Niche Gardens in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. He is noted for his 13 years as nursery director and head propagator at the New England Wildflower Society, where he developed the largest native plant nursery in New England.
Now executive director for one of North America's newest and most exciting public gardens, Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens in Boothbay, Maine, Cullina is also a well-known author, lecturer and recognized authority on North American native plants. His books include "Wildflowers, Native Trees, Shrubs, and Vines," "Understanding Orchids, Native Ferns, Mosses, and Grasses" and "Understanding Perennials: A New Look at an Old Favorite." He recently co-authored "Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens: A People's Garden."
Cullina's awards include the Scott Medal for lifetime achievement in horticulture; the 2012 Perennial Plant Association's Award of Merit; the 2013 George Robert White Medal for "advancing horticulture in the broadest sense" and the Award of Excellence for advancing the goals of the National Garden Clubs of America.
Featured Speakers
Marada Cook
Marada Cook grew up on Skylandia Farm in Aroostook County, where she worked along with her family growing vegetables, and learned as her parents, Jim and Kate Cook, started and grew Crown O' Maine Organic Cooperative (COMOC). When Jim died, Marada and her sister, Leah, took over the worker-owned and -operated COMOC, continuing to deliver quality, locally produced goods to local food coops, natural foods stores, farm stores, restaurants and other retail outlets and to buying clubs in Maine.
More recently Leah and Marada, along with their business partner and general manager Chris Hallweaver, have brought Northern Girl, LLC, to the marketplace. "The premise is simple," they say. "Sell the top notch percentage of each of our farmer's crops on the fresh market and process the culls and surplus to feed locavores the rest of the year."
"We hope to keep Maine at the forefront of the local foods movement by rebuilding Maine's lost food processing infrastructure," they say.
Marada will talk about "Creating a Local Food Movement" on Friday from 3 to 4 p.m. in the Hayloft Speakers Tent. Her Saturday talk, "Local Food Has Moved – What Is the New Address?" will occur in the Railcar Speakers Tent from 1 to 2 p.m.
Caitlin Sargent
The Farm School, located in Athol, Massachusetts, rarely sends speakers to conferences, yet it has been a quiet leader in the farm-based education community since its founding 26 years ago. Its ground-breaking programming consists of three intertwined strands: the Program for Visiting Schools, which provides immersive, multi-day farming experiences for over 2,000 school children each year; the Chicken Coop School, a one-room middle school for local children; and the Learn to Farm Program, a year-long, tuition-based training program for adults. As the assistant farmer at the Learn to Farm Program, from which she graduated two years ago, Caitlin Sargent will offer her personal observations on both the underlying pedagogy and the nuts and bolts reality of the school.
Sargent will speak on "The Role of Meaningful Work and Careful Mentoring in Connecting People to the Land: Reflections from the Farm School" on Friday at noon in the Litchfield Tent.
Saturday, September 26
Common Ground 2015 Poster Signing by the artist, Arika von Edler, at the Country Store at 2 p.m
Keynote: Steven M. Druker, Executive Director, Alliance for Bio-Integrity, and author of "Altered Genes, Twisted Truth"
Why Genetically Engineered Foods Are Unacceptably Risky – and How Their Survival Has Been Chronically and Crucially Dependent on Fraud
11 a.m., The Common
Public interest attorney Steven Druker sued the FDA to force it to divulge its files on genetically engineered (GE) foods. He learned that politics influenced administrators to cover up their own scientists' extensive warnings about the unusual risks of these foods and to lie about facts. They then ushered these products onto the market, violating federal food safety laws.
Druker's book, "Altered Genes, Twisted Truth: How the Venture to Genetically Engineer our Food Has Subverted Science, Corrupted Government, and Systematically Deceived the Public," was released in March. Jane Goodall calls it "without doubt, one of the most important books of the last 50 years." David Schubert of the Salk Institute for Biological Studies says it is "incisive, insightful, and truly outstanding." Genetics professor Joseph Cummins calls it "a landmark" that should be "required reading" for biology students, and John Ikerd, professor of agricultural economics, says, "No one has documented other cases of irresponsible behavior by government regulators and the scientific establishment nearly as well as Druker documents this one."
Druker will explain why all GE foods entail unavoidable and unacceptable risks, how these risks have been systematically and deceptively downplayed and how those deceptions helped put – and keep – GE foods on the market.
Featured Speakers
Lee Reich
Lee Reich, Ph.D., dove into gardening over 40 years ago, initially with one foot in academia, as an agricultural scientist with the USDA and Cornell University, and one foot in the field – the organic field. He eventually expanded his field to a farmden (more than a garden, less than a farm) and left academia to lecture, consult and write a number of books. Besides providing a year 'round supply of fruits and vegetables, his farmden has an educational mission and is a test site for innovative techniques in soil care, pruning and food production. Science and an appreciation of natural systems underpin his work. His goal is to get more people, whether in backyards or small farms, to grow more food sustainably and organically.
His talks are:
Friday 1-2 p.m. – Luscious Landscaping/Litchfield
Friday 3-4 p.m. – Fruits for Small Gardens/Litchfield
Saturday 10-11 a.m. – My Weedless Garden/Litchfield
Jeff and Melanie Carpenter
Join small-scale herb farmers Jeff and Melanie Carpenter of Zack Woods Herb Farm as they discuss how to successfully grow and market organic medicinal herbs in their talk, "Introduction to Organic Medicinal Herb Farming."
The Carpenters own and operate Zack Woods Herb Farm in Hyde Park, Vermont, and co-authored "The Organic Medicinal Herb Farmer" (Chelsea Green, 2015).
Jeff comes from generations of Vermont farmers. He deepened his love and understanding of plants by apprenticing with renowned herbalist Rosemary Gladstar and co-owning Sage Mountain Herb Products. Since then his work as a farmer, agricultural consultant, educator and researcher has focused on cultivating and marketing medicinal herbs. Jeff also partners with Rosemary Gladstar in hosting the International Herb Symposium.
Melanie grew up at Sage Mountain under the loving tutelage of Gladstar. She started her first business, Sage Mountain Herb Products, there. Over the last 20 years, she has worked as a farmer, mother, community herbalist and educator. She serves on the board of directors of United Plant Savers and helps her family direct the International Herb Symposium and New England Women's Herbal Conference. She believes that some of the most profound teachings and healings come from working on the land with the plants. To that end, Melanie offers classes on the farm to help people explore and deepen their connection to the green nations.
The Carpenters' talk, "Introduction to Organic Medicinal Herb farming," will take place from 1 to 2 p.m. on Saturday in the Litchfield Tent.
Sunday, September 27
Keynote: Will Bonsall, farmer, author, founder and director of the Scatterseed Project, co-founder of the Grassroots Seed Network
Organic and Sustainable? A Deeper Look
11 a.m., The Common
After working as a prospector, draftsman, gravedigger, hobo, musician, logger, artist and copy machine repairman, Will Bonsall became a homesteading farmer. He and his wife, Molly Thorkildsen, and their two sons tend Khadighar in Industry, Maine – a unique example of veganic gardening, i.e., maintaining soil fertility sustainably without animal manures. They focus on self-sufficiency, growing a wide range of vegetables, fruits, grains and legumes using extensive terraces, solar-powered irrigation, intensive (not raised) beds and ramial chips (chipped branches of deciduous trees). Bonsall has gone far beyond homesteading, however, by founding and directing the Scatterseed Project to help preserve crop plant diversity and more recently by co-founding the Grassroots Seed Network. His first book, "Through the Eyes of a Stranger" (Xlibris 2010), is a futuristic eco-novel. His second, "Will Bonsall's Essential Guide to Radical, Self-Reliant Gardening" (Chelsea Green, 2015), covers his in-depth knowledge of growing food in novel ways – expressed with his irrepressible humor and thoughtful philosophy about ways to help ourselves economically and nutritionally while also helping the environment – our "garden without borders."
Featured Speakers
Frank Giglio
Frank Giglio and his his wife, Camille, own Three Lily Farm in Thorndike, an off-grid homestead where they teach cooking classes at the farm and virtually. Frank also caters throughout Maine and can be seen at the Belfast Farmers' Market, where he provides monthly cooking demos featuring ingredients sold at the market. Frank uses his property to grow and forage for ingredients to help fuel his passions for food preservation and fermentation.
A classically trained chef, Frank left the restaurant industry in 2003 as a way to help regain his health and to create a deeper connection to nature and food. He was the featured chef of Dr. Alejandro Junger's "Clean Eats" cookbook, which made The New York Times Best Seller list in the spring of 2014.
On travels abroad, Frank met Ireland's leading authority in seaweed, and there he was inspired to make sea vegetables a valuable part of his diet. From everyday seasoning salts to adding various seaweeds to stocks and broths, Frank sees great value in adding both cultivated and wild-foraged sea vegetables to one's diet. He will demonstrate cooking with Maine sea vegetables in the Country Kitchen Demonstration Area from 1 to 2 p.m. on Sunday.
Nancy Perry
Nancy Perry began as the food resource coordinator with the Good Shepherd Food Bank more than six years ago, soliciting food donations from local grocery manufacturers. In 2010 she began developing reliable channels with local farmers, fisheries and dairy producers to help feed Maine's hungry. In 2011 she became project director for Mainers Feeding Mainers – a partnership between Good Shepherd and Maine farms, dairies, fisheries and other local food producers to eliminate hunger in Maine. The partnership opens local food channels and develops strategies to safely and efficiently distribute nutritious food to hundreds of hunger relief programs serving all Maine counties. In the program's first full year (2010), it acquired and distributed over 175 tons of nutritious, locally produced food, and in 2014, more than 1,000 tons. In her talk, "Hunger in Maine and Growing for Food Banks" (2-3 p.m. in the Litchfield Tent), Perry will tell how Mainers Feeding Mainers works and its value for farm partners and for those who receive fresh produce from local pantries.
Thanks to Fair Donors
The Fair would not be possible without the tremendous work of more than 2,000 volunteers, and feeding all those volunteers would not be possible without the generous contributions to the Common Kitchen from Maine farmers, food vendors and food businesses. We list the Common Kitchen donors in the winter issue of The MOF&G, and during the Fair we recognize these donors on the Common Kitchen donor wall adjacent to the solar array. Many Fair vendors also donate products to our volunteer raffle. To all the businesses that support our volunteers, we thank you!
We also benefit from the generosity of many businesses and organizations that contribute their services to help produce the Fair. We are particularly grateful for the support of the following members of the medical community for our emergency medical services (EMS) at the Fair. Capital Ambulance provides paramedic-level ambulance service all three days of the Fair. Eastern Maine Medical Center provides board certified emergency medicine physicians and their equipment and supplies at the EMS station. Sugarloaf Ambulance/Rescue Vehicles provides cots and a mini-ambulance, which enables us to provide EMS care and transport on the busy fairgrounds. And Waldo County Communications Center provides dispatching services for the Fair EMS. Along with the EMS volunteers, their support enables us to offer a high level of EMS service at the Fair.
Thank You to the Volunteers Who Coordinated the 2015 Fair
Nearly every facet of the Fair is envisioned, designed, implemented and managed by volunteers. Working in small teams or as individuals, the Fair's area coordinators comprise the Planning Team – the individuals who bring Common Ground to life. With gratitude we thank these industrious and generous leaders.
5K Foot Race – Michael Bunker, Lindsay Spigel
Agricultural Demonstrations – Michial Russell
Agricultural Products – Ernie Glabau, Betsey Ann Golon
Agricultural Products Speakers – John Bunker Jr.
Antique Tractors – Glenn DeWitt
Auto Gate – Bethany Oprie, Robin Peskoe
Bean Hole Beans – Elliot Scott
Bee Dance – Beedy Parker
Bicycle Parking – Jim Bowers, Fred Robie
Blacksmith – John Phelan
Bread Baking – Dusty Dowse
Camping – Michelle DeLucia, Wesley Daniel, Chris Fabian, David Murray, Steve Plumb, Pat Saunders, Alex Strugatskiy
Children's Area – Larry Averill, Laurie Christensen, Dawn Nguyen, Cara Oleksyk, Janelle Portmann, Mary Ann Portmann, Penny Tozier, Mary Vermette-Grahar
Children's Garden Parade – Lelania Avila, Daaby Tingle, Celeste Mittelhauser
Common Kitchen – Donna Derenthal, Joel Glatz, Patti Hamilton, Tim Johnson, Rob Jones, Tom Kemp, Laurie Lundgren, Ali Palm, Jeremy Peskoe, Devon Salisbury
Common Thrones – Nancy Rosalie
Communications, Traffic and Parking Control – Bryan McLellan, Tristan Plumb, Matthew Strong
Composting and Recycling – Lisa Bjerke, Chris Childs, Karen Childs, Lisa Willey Critchfield, Ansel Critchfield, Maya Critchfield, Mark Dittrick
Contradances – John McIntire, Doug Protsik
Country Kitchen – Shannon Rioux, Meghan Flint, Rhonda Welcome, Terran Welcome
Country Store – Lisa LeBel
Crafts Area – Sue Collins, Marie Reimensnyder, Tim Reimensnyder, Lynn Plumb
Donkeys and Mules – Claire Wallace
Draft Horse Demonstrations – Donald Nickerson, Pheonix Obrien, Don Webb
Draft Horse Show – Bill Winslow, Darcy Winslow
Electricity – Tom Devries, Paul Murray, Jim Peary
EMS – Marilyn Luce, Kalem Malcolm, Kevin McGinnis, Cheri Volta
Energy and Shelter – John Belding Jr., Ashley Richards
Entertainment – Mark Horn, Chris Lannon, Alfred Lund, Eliza Quill, Pam Weeks, Fred White
Environmental Concerns – Darren Dillion
Exhibition Hall – Matthew Dubois, Martha Gottlieb, Valerie Jackson, Amy LeBlanc, Claudette Nadeau, Janet Winslow
Fair Office – Meredith Batley
Farm and Homestead – Becka Gagne, Emily Lowell, Elizabeth Siegel
Farmers' Markets – John Belding, Mary Belding, Adrienne Lee
Fiber Marketplace – Michele Bye
Fiddlers' Showcase – John McIntire
Fleece Tent – Penelope Olson
Folk Arts – Anu Dudley
Food Judging – Patti Hamilton
Hand Wash Stations – Svea Tullberg
Harry S. Truman Manure Pitch – Soren Donisvitch, Timothy Pollin, Colin Richardson
Health and Healing – Mary Chamberlin, Cathy Chamberlin
Hearing Impaired Interpreters – Stacey Bsullak
Herb Tent – Carol Gardener
Information Booth – Rebecca Brockway, Sue Buck, David Hilton, Molly Lebel, Emily Murray, Philip Norris
Livestock – Cathy Reynolds
Livestock Gate – Barbara Luce
Low-Impact Forestry – Eli Berry, Sam Brown, Peter Hagerty, Brad Johnson, Tim Libby, John Plowden
Maine Fiber Farms – Michelle DeLucia
Maine Indian Basketmakers – Shawna Degan, Amy Grant, Jennifer Neptune, Gretchen Faulkner
Maine Marketplace – Jeff Cotton, Patti Dowse, Cynthia Ryalls-Clephane
MOFGA Membership Booth – Bri Beecher, Joan Federman
MOFGA Gardens – Jack Kertesz, Nancy Rosalie
Oxen – Wesley Daniel, Joanna Kenefick, Steve Norton
Parking – Jeremy Colson, Bob Critchfield, Steven Hall, Gregory Hodge, John Krueger, Karina Shorten, Doug Van Horn, Paul Volckhausen
Plumbing – Bob Weyer
Poster Street Team – Jenny Nelson
Poultry – Gayle McKiege
Public Policy Teach-In – Sharon Tisher
Rabbit Exhibit – Perley Emery, Mary Merriam
Round Pen – Peter Hagerty
Safety – Margie Black, John Greimel, Jeff Jarrett, Barry Magda, Steve Montague, David Murray, Karina Shorten, Jonboy St. Peter, Julie Trudel, Leo Trudel
School Bus Parking – Spencer Aitel
School Gate – Lucas Rumler
Show Ring – Tracey Wilkerson
Sign Distribution – Kreg McCune, Sarah Tewhey
Signs – Kim Benham, Thia Embers
Site – Rob Curry, Eva Murray
Site Lighting – Tristan Plumb
Small Sound Systems – Stuart Reynolds
Social and Political Action – Gary Lawless, Beth Leonard, Joe Auciello
South Parking Signs – Bartlett Stoodley, Judith Stoodley
Stoneworkers – Dick Alden, Douglas Coffin, Jamie Metcalf
Tent Lighting – Parker Weyer
Ticket Gates – Chris Gardei, Skipp Green, Ted Hale, Gregory Moore, Eric Rector, Jean Scott, Margie Shannon
Traffic – William Nichols
Utilities – Scott Giroux
Volunteer Check-In Tent – David Bradford, Jeffry Chase, Eileen Fair, David Ker, Mary Larlee, Nate Larlee, Maria Phipps, Rich Raymond, Kim Sellers, Christie Sweeney
Volunteer Raffle – Madeline Weyer, Mary Weyer
Waste Water Systems – David Studer
Wednesday Spinners – Jani Estell, Penelope Olson, Cynthia Thayer
Whole Life Tent – Tim Dougherty, Tricia Dougherty, Ed Wilkins
Young Maine – Lee Cataldo
Youth Enterprise Zone – Jeff Cotton, Sari Lindauer, Rose Whitehead
Special Thanks to the Fair Steering Committee
The Common Ground Country Fair is an extraordinary production of volunteer initiative and leadership. Guiding this endeavor is the Fair Steering Committee, an inspiring group of dedicated people who meet monthly – in winter when it snows, in spring when gardens demand attention, in summer when lazy days whisper distraction – and look at the big picture for the Fair and MOFGA, balancing many influences to keep the Fair true to its mission. This dedicated group deserves special acknowledgment. A humble thank-you from the Fair director and MOFGA staff for your thoughtful and tireless contributions:
John Belding, Mary Belding, Eli Berry, Sam Brown, Jeff Cotton, Dusty Dowse, Patti Dowse, Anu Dudley, Rob Jones, Bryan McLellan, Richard Morgan, Penelope Olson, Nancy Rosalie, Michial Russell, Lindsay Spigel, Rose Whitehead and Bill Whitman.


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Vital Stats
Full Name: The Subway Diet
Origin: Jared Fogle; an everyday, 28-year-old University student
Description: Eat nothing but Subway sandwiches for a year
Likes: Low-fat Subway sandwiches
Dislikes: Mayonnaise, cheese and oils (and any other non-Subway foods)
Looking for: Fans of Jared Fogle who are attracted to fad diets
Works Well With: Subway's "6 grams of fat or less" sandwich menu
Full Review of the Subway Diet
You all remember Jared Fogle, also known as "the Subway Guy", from his dozens of television commercials. He's that somewhat dorky-looking guy who claims to have lost nearly 245 pounds on his Subway diet. For an entire year, he tried eating nothing but Subway sandwiches and went from an enormous 425 pounds to a steady 190 pounds - and has kept the weight off for the last seven years.
Jared's weight loss diet is very simple. He combined a diet of two Subway sandwiches a day with a lot of walking for exercise. His meal plan looked like this:
·Lunch: A six-inch turkey sub and a small bag of potato chips
·Dinner: A foot long veggie sub
·Drinks: Unlimited amounts of diet soda and coffee
Jared chose the healthier subs and avoided adding cheese, mayonnaise and oils. Once he lost a significant amount of weight, he started to add 1.5 miles of walking to his daily routine.
If there's a diet easier to follow than this one, good luck finding it. Just think about it… no dishes, no grocery shopping, and no cooking whatsoever! However, purchasing Subway meals all week long may get a bit expensive. Also, restricting the body to only one food item can have negative side-effects including malnutrition and low energy. Although Jared has shown us (over and over again) that his weight loss diet does indeed work, there are certainly much healthier ways to lose weight.
Jared's weight loss success is also a bit misleading, when you consider the entire situation. He was once eating up to 10,000 calories per day (yes, that's correct), so it was to be expected that he would lose weight by cutting major calories, no matter what foods he ate! (Sorry Subway, so much for your clever marketing campaign.)
Average weight loss: 5 lbs. per week (according to Jared's results).
Helpful Tips: Try finding a weight loss plan that actually teaches you how to maintain a healthy diet and lead an active lifestyle!
Won't leave you hungry
Boring - no variety
Very easy to follow
Does not include breakfast, and lacks vitamins and nutrients
Fits into our fast food-friendly culture
Always need a Subway restaurant nearby


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ThinkPad Design: Classic or Classless?
Hey Lenovo, the 80's called and they want their laptop back! Colour, shape, form, semantics and aesthetics. It seems Lenovo hasn't thought about any of those aspects and made what in my opinion is possibly the ugliest laptop EVER!User Glenn says:
You have got to be kidding me. That thing looks so cheap looking!Meanwhile, a user who viewed our video on YouTube commented:
That thing is ugly. It looks like a thinkpad or whatever 1990's laptop where calledSo who's right? Is ThinkPad the Rolls Royce or the Chevy Nova of notebooks? Tell it to me straight in the poll and comments sections below. I can take it. I'm the same person who listens to Kenny G., wears Velcro sneakers, and waits impatiently for thin ties to make a comeback. So I know I don't always have the best taste, but I'm pretty sure I'm on solid ground in saying the ThinkPad design is a timeless classic.


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Positively Green | Sympathy
"Life starts with love and ends with love." - Santosh Kalwar
Inside: Deepest sympathies.
Item #5905
Celebrate the most important people in your life with the best-selling Positively Green line of cards, which feature beautiful illustrations, thoughtful quotations, and a helpful green tip—plus a portion of your purchase goes directly to organizations that protect the environment.
4.25"W x 5.38"H
Plain white envelope
Printed with soy ink on FSC®-certified 100% recycled stock