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- Description
Product HighlightsBar type wall supplies have a durable white powder coat finish with single deflection adjustable bars that are ideal for use in side walls and ceilings.
California residents: see Proposition 65 Warning
- Specifications
Weight 1.30 Pounds Length 2.25 Inches Width 11.75 Inches Height 5.75 Inches Country of Origin VNM Brand TRUaire Curved Blade No Deflection 1-Way Fin Degree Adjustable Fin Spacing 3/4" Adjustable Yes Damper Type Multi Shutter Application Air Ventilation Color White Composition Steel Finish Powder Coated Shape Rectangle Size 10" x 4" Type Sidewall and Ceiling Product Family 210
- Documentation
To see the pricing of the equipment you need to be a licensed provider. Click here to become a licensed provider.


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This Mini Horn Necklace is the ultimate layering necklace a perfect yet simple necklace that could be paired with any outfit.
The chain measures 41.5-47cm; the pendant measures 1x1cm.
UK Standard - $2.50 / Next Day - $7.50
Europe - $10
Rest of World - $14
Please see our full delivery and returns policy here
We're not satisfied unless you're 100% happy with your Estella Bartlett purchase. Please see our full delivery and returns policy here
Most of our pieces require very little care. However, we do recommend avoiding contact with bath and beauty products such as fragrance and taking off your jewellery when swimming or showering. Read more
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subset: commoncrawl


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Trump administration seizes on Aetna pullout from ACA to push Republicans' health plan
Shelley Connor
16 May 2017
Insurance company Aetna announced May 10 that it will no longer offer insurance plans on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) exchanges in Nebraska or Delaware in 2018. Its withdrawal from these states will complete its exit from the Obamacare exchanges by the beginning of next year.
Aetna's exit will leave Delaware with Highmark Blue Cross/Blue Shield as the sole ACA-participating insurer. In Nebraska, Medica will remain as the sole exchange-participating insurer, but Medica's continued participation is not guaranteed; the company has previously hinted that may exit the exchange in Iowa, where it is the only insurer participating in the exchange.
The Trump administration has seized on Aetna's pullout from the ACA exchanges as proof that Obamacare is in a "death spiral" and that Congress must move to pass the House Republicans' American Health Care Act (AHCA) as soon as possible. It is convenient timing that Aetna's exit comes as Trump and the Republicans are pushing the US Senate to advance legislation to "repeal and replace" Obamacare.
Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Tom Price said of the Aetna exit: "Aetna's decision to completely withdraw from the Obamcare exchanges adds to the mountain of evidence that Obamacare has failed the American people. Repealing and replacing it with patient-centered solutions that stabilize the marketplace to bring down costs and increase choices is the only solution."
The reality it that the AHCA's "patient-centered solutions" will do nothing to expand coverage or lower costs in the insurance market. The bill's centerpiece is the gutting of Medicaid, the government health insurance program for the poor, and its effective termination as an entitlement program.
No longer would states be given Medicaid funding in accordance with Medicaid expenditures; instead, states would be given block grants based upon population, with yearly increases based upon medical inflation. It would allow states to force "able-bodied" Medicaid recipients into work programs.
The ACA's expansion of Medicaid availability to those with incomes 133 percent above the poverty level would be halted. This expansion currently allows about 10 million Americans to be insured. By January 1, 2020, all states that have chosen not to expand Medicaid under the ACA will lose the ability to do so.
In addition, the AHCA strips away the few protections of the ACA for those with preexisting conditions, and would allow insurers to offer barebones plans that do not cover essential services such as maternity care, emergency room services, and prescription drugs.
The AHCA, far from being "patient-centered," would do more openly what Obamacare aimed to do all along, cut the cost of health care for the government and corporations while shifting the burden of health even more heavily on the working class.
It slashes taxes for the wealthiest Americans, while penalizing the poor and destabilizing the finances of workers who are struggling to subsist. As with Obamacare, the provision of health care is subordinated to the profits of the health care industry as a whole, and the private insurance companies in particular.
Under the Obamacare "individual mandate," consumers have been forced to either purchase insurance or face tax penalties. While the AHCA removes the tax penalty for the uninsured, it allows insurers to charge those whose coverage has lapsed for 63 days or more, as commonly occurs when people change jobs or become unemployed, to impose a 30 percent hike in premiums when they purchase health insurance again.
In the meantime, insurers and pharmaceutical companies have shamelessly engaged in price gouging. If insurers are unable to make an adequate profit, they either hike their prices or pull out of the insurance market.
This is precisely what is taking place at Aetna. At the end of 2016, the company insured 964,000 individual commercial plan members. By the end of March 2017, that number had fallen to 255,000. The company projects losses of about $255 million in its exchange plan business profits this year; this follows losses of $700 million from 2014 to 2016.
The company cited "marketplace structural issues, that have led to co-op failures and carrier exits, and subsequent risk pool deterioration" as its rationale for the exit. Throughout the country, participation in the exchanges has consistently fallen since the ACA went into effect, at a rate of about 3.7 percent. In Delaware, exchange sign-ups fell 2.4 percent year-over-year in 2017. In Nebraska, sign-ups fell 3.9 percent, just slightly higher than the national decline.
After Humana pulled out of Tennessee in February, leaving 40,000 people with no insurance option, Blue Cross/Blue Shield said last week that it would step in, but only if certain conditions are met. Medica, the last insurer remaining in most of Iowa, has threatened to stop selling individual plans.
In an editorial penned earlier this month for CNBC, HHS Secretary Price claimed that the AHCA "will take the power out of Washington and give it back to patients and doctors, while providing tens of billions of dollars for patients with preexisting conditions," and would "provide a portable credit for Americans who don't get insurance through their job to buy their own plan, and empower states to run Medicaid in a way that ensures their most vulnerable citizens can access high-quality health care."
All of these claims are false. The "tens of billions of dollars" for preexisting conditions refer to the "high-risk pools" states could set up under the AHCA to offset insurance costs for people with preexisting conditions. The original House bill set aside $130 billion over 10 years for these pools, and an amendment added another $8 billion over five years.
Estimates from conservative analysts James C. Capretta and Tom Miller said the federal government would have to provide $15 billion to $20 billion annually to operate functional "high-risk pools" in all 50 states, leaving them woefully underfunded.
The "portable credits" referred to by Price would be much lower than the government subsidies under the ACA, and would be based on age, not income, with credits phasing out for those at higher incomes.
Finally, contrary to Price's claim that states would be empowered "to run Medicaid in a way that ensures their most vulnerable citizens can access high-quality health care," the ACA would result in millions of Medicaid recipients having their benefits slashed or being denied access to the program altogether.


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There is a consensus within NBA circles that New Orleans Hornets general manager Dell Demps performed valiantly in appeasing David Stern's request for young talent, draft picks and cap relief in exchange for their franchise player, Chris Paul. Demps fulfilled Stern's wishes acquiring Eric Gordon, Chris Kaman, Al Farouq Aminu, and Minnesota's unprotected first round draft pick.
No one questions the talent the Hornets received and Chris Kaman's $12.2 million comes off the books after this season, but the unprotected draft pick is interesting to me. Some talking heads are convinced the Hornets actually won this deal because of the unprotected pick. Analysts assume the Timberwolves will not only be lottery bound, but the pick will garner enough lottery balls to warrant perhaps as high as a top-3 pick in next year's loaded NBA draft. That's value. If this happens, count me among those who give the Hornets the win.
But I don't think it will happen. Minnesota general manager David Kahn is a joke. We know this. But let's move past it for a second. Here is the Timberwolves projected starting five along with their bench:
PG: Ricky Rubio
SG: Wesley Johnson
SF: Michael Beasley
PF: Kevin Love
C: Darko Milicic
Bench: Derrick Williams, J.J. Barea, Wayne Ellington, Anthony Randolph, Anthony Tolliver, Luke Ridnour
There is redundancy, but you can also get pretty creative with these lineups. Imagine subbing out Darko for rookie, Derrick Williams and moving Kevin Love to center for a few minutes. Adelman is known to play two point guards at the same time. This makes the Barea signing even more valuable. Barea will not be just a backup for the Wolves, he'll be the veteran with championship experience that the Wolves were missing last season. Sure, Kahn already had Luke Ridnour on the roster, but the steady-handed Barea will likely limit the number of turnovers from the backcourt.
Rick Adelman has stated that he plans on using Kevin Love as a facilitator this season, similar to that of his former fun loving Sacramento Kings center Vlade Divac. Pencil in Love for 20 and 10 every night. Love has the basketball I.Q. and ball-handling ability to average five or six assists a night. Don't laugh but the combination of Kevin Love and Darko Milicic helped Minnesota rank first in rebounding last season.
Most assume the downfall of the team will be its guard play. Kahn wants the team to play exciting, up and down basketball. The Wolves ranked 10th in offense last year, scoring 101.1 points a game. The problem is they ranked 24th in offensive efficiency due to their league high turnover rate of 15.06 a game. If the Wolves continue to play careless basketball, the Hornets will be grabbing a high lottery pick.
We still have yet to even mention second year SG/SF Wesley Johnson, who came on strong at the end of last season. We haven't talked about Michael Beasley, who had a breakout year and I have yet to mention Derrick Williams.
Williams is someone to keep an eye on. He carried a heavy load at Arizona, averaging 16.4 possessions a game. Williams was crazy-efficient in college averaging 1.16 points per possession (PPP). He can create his own shot, averaging 1.3 PPP in isolation and got to the line a quarter of the time, making 75% of his free throws.
Chris Paul had his first press conference as a member of the Los Angeles Clippers last night. Every lob-dunk to Blake Griffin will be a reaffirmation that the front office made the right move. For the Hornets, it's time to move on. They have some pieces, recently resigning power forward Carl Landry to a one-year deal. But the Hornets know they can't hide from the CP3 to Posterchild highlights. But there is a silver lining. They could be playing Minnesota.


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Steve's practice areas include the legal impacts of using technology. This includes concepts like data storage and transmission, cybersecurity compliance, cell phone use, social media, and insider threat mitigation. He helps clients develop their internal policy and defends them in litigation. He is also experienced in working with the defense contracting community. He interfaces with defense contracting clients on the wide variety of legal issues within the firm's practice areas because he understands the client and their customer.
After a tour as a field artillery officer, Steve attended law school and qualified and certified under Article 27(b) and sworn under Article42(a), Uniform Code of Military Justice as an Army JAG officer. He focused his career as a criminal litigator and as in-house counsel. The Army JAG Corps designated him as an Expert Military Justice Practitioner.
Steve has prosecuted over sixty courts-martial with a heavy emphasis on crimes involving sexual and family violence. He began his career prosecuting military cases at Fort Knox, Kentucky where he became the senior prosecutor and also served as a Special Assistant United States Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky. He later was a member of the Army's first cohort of Special Victim Prosecutors. This program returned experienced prosecutors to the courtroom to stem the concerns surrounding sexual and family violence. In this position, he received advanced training in forensics, medical evidence, and advocacy.
As in-house counsel, he helped military commanders solve sensitive, complex problems. He was responsible a variety of legal disciplines including operational law, military justice, administrative law, investigation, claims, legal assistance, and fiscal law. He has extensively served as an ethics counselor. He was the senior legal advisor to an Airborne Brigade Combat Team that deployed to Anbar Province, Iraq. There he was also the senior military rule of law advisor. He was also the Staff Judge Advocate for the Combined Joint Interagency Task Force – Syria and was an in-house legal advisor at U.S. Special Operations and Central Commands.
Outside of litigation, he is the legal advisor to the West Point Society – Florida West Coast chapter.


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In just under 100 days hubby Billy and I along with Toppie Smellie ("The Smellcast") will be making our annual Trek to the North Baltimore area for a sci-fi weekend extravaganza!
If you'll be in the Northeast during early February consider joining us for a meal out. If you're already attending the convention be on the lookout for our panel discussion on podcasting
Learn more about the events of that weekend on Farpoint's official site (2/8/19 – 2/11/19)


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A Voice for the Working Families of Arizona
UFCW Local 99 provides a strong voice for families in Arizona. We work relentlessly to improve the living standards of our members and every person who earns a paycheck in our state.
UFCW Local 99 provides a strong voice for families in Arizona. We work relentlessly to improve the living standards of our members and every person who earns a paycheck in our state.
Local 99 of the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) is the largest union in Arizona. Our more than 23,000 members include grocery workers, legal aid workers, custodial workers, parking lot attendants, food processors, farm growers and medical office workers, among others.
We work hard for our members because we belong to a family based on the principles of worker solidarity. We believe a strong middle class is the key to a prosperous economy that benefits everyone.
Your Union Leaders are here to represent your best interests. Get to know your Union Leaders by clicking on their image below.
Thanks in large part to his leadership, Local 99 and its allies have won important victories in a state where powerful interests have tried to suppress the aspirations of working people.
In 2010, Local 99 went to the edge of a strike against the major supermarket chains, forcing them to back down on their contract demands.
Jim McLaughlin is the son of James McLaughlin, a retired international vice president of the International Union of Operating Engineers and business manager for IUOE Local 501 in Los Angeles, Calif.
The younger McLaughlin joined the UFCW in 1985, working as a 17-year-old courtesy clerk at a Ralphs supermarket in Orange, Calif. Seven years of union activism while working from a Courtesy Clerk to GM Clerk to Food Clerk led to a new career in Arizona as a union representative and organizer with Local 99.
In 1992 he moved to Arizona, where he was hired as a field representative for Local 99. In 1996, McLaughlin was assigned to lead the local's aggressive campaign against Walmart and other non-union retailers. UFCW Local 99 stopped, slowed or moved nearly 45 Walmart stores during McLaughlin's four years in that role.
He was promoted to organizer in 1997, then market share coordinator in 1998, and in 2000 he served for a year as UFCW Local 99's organizing director. During that time, the union organized more than 1,200 new members at Smith's Food Stores in outlying areas of Arizona.
In 2001, UFCW Local 99's Executive Board elected McLaughlin as president.
In 2008, McLaughlin was elected international vice president of the UFCW International Union and served on the union's Committee for the Future.
He chairs the Desert States UFCW Pension Fund and the UFCW Local 99 and Employers Health and Welfare Fund. He is also on the Executive Board of the Food & Drug Council, a national coalition of unions in the retail food and drug industries.
McLaughlin was appointed by Gov. Napolitano to the Arizona State Retirement System in 2007 and served as a trustee until 2010. In addition, he has served on the boards of the United Way, the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and Labor's Community Service Agency, among other organizations. He has served on Arizona's AFL-CIO Executive Council since 2010.
He became an active member in the union in 1983, when he worked in the meat department at Fry's. He would frequently recruit his co-workers to join the union and he attended many meetings.
In 1993, when Local 99 launched its steward program, Chavira stepped forward to lead his co-workers. A year later, he became a Special Project Union Representative at Sunland Beef.
"It was an exciting time," Chavira said. "We were empowering Sunland Beef workers and showing them the importance of the union. We built real leadership among the rank-and-file workers."
Chavira's subsequent work as Local 99 Union Representative drew the attention of leaders in the UFCW International Union, and in 2004 he was offered the position of assistant to the Director of Organizing. In that capacity, he worked closely with the International Union on national organizing campaigns like the one at Smithfield Foods in North Carolina.
"Smithfield was a tough campaign," he recalled. "It took us 14 years to organize those workers. Some of them were assaulted and arrested just for trying to belong to a union and have a contract."
The workers at Smithfield Foods won their first union contract in 2007. "I look back on that contract fondly because it was a hard-fought battle, and the benefits those workers gained made the fighting worth it," he said.
In 2009, Chavira had an opportunity to return to Local 99 and took it.
"I just couldn't pass up returning to, what is in my opinion, the best local in the country," he said.
Chavira returned as Community Affairs Director and served in that capacity until 2015, when he succeeded Paul Rubin as Secretary-Treasurer.
"I work with so many talented people who genuinely love the members of this local and try to make a difference in their lives," he said. "It's an honor to continue the tradition of enriching people's lives."
A union contract specifies a member's wages, health care, pension, vacations, overtime pay, holiday pay, job duties, work protections, sick leave and other aspects of his or her employment. It outlines an employee's seniority rights . It also lays out the grievance procedure for members who feel they have been treated unfairly. Contract provisions are enforced by union members working with their stewards, union representatives and other union professionals.
Unions built the middle class. Together, we will keep the American Dream alive.Name
As individuals we are weak, but as a union we are strong.
When you hear union members talk about their "brothers and sisters" it's not just a slogan. We mean it.
Union members are 40% more likely to have quality medical plans. UFCW Local 99's benefit plans pay more than $200 million for health benefits annually, and thousands of prescriptions are filled each month at little or no charge.
*All official Local Union Business is conducted at the Phoenix meetings


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FLINT, MI -- Two peregrine falcons have been spotted nesting at University of Michigan's Northbank Center building, the same location of a nest last year where three falcon chicks hatched.
It's likely the falcons are Majesty and Barry, two peregrines who have made Flint their home since 2003, said Christine Becher, Southeast Michigan peregrine falcon nesting coordinator for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Division.
Becher said she saw the falcons on Tuesday, April 23, but hasn't completely verified their identity yet.
There are four eggs that were laid probably around a week and a half ago, Becher said. There were four eggs laid there last year as well, but they didn't all hatch.
"We can hope for four (to hatch). Last year, we had three hatch," Becher said.
Linda Moxam has been told not to be surprised if she finds bird heads on her windowsill. They're just leftovers from the falcons' feeding.
Moxam has worked on the building's 10th floor since February as executive director of development and alumni relations.
She sees the falcons flying around now and then.
"They're just incredible," she said.
"They really get me excited. I think they're awesome," Moxam said.
Peregrine falcons are known as the fastest animal on earth. They have an average cruising speed of 40 miles per hour but can reach more than 200 miles per hour during their high-speed dive for prey.
Mary Joan Dunlap, building manager at Northbank, has seen the birds in action.
"When they're diving, they're fast," Dunlap said. "You see them diving, flying through the air at the fast speed."
It takes roughly 33 days for an egg to hatch after being laid, Becher said. That means they would be expected to hatch this year around mid-May.
The birds originally made a nest near the roof of the Mott Foundation building where one egg was laid, but abandoned that nest, Becher said, perhaps because of the heavy rains.
Billy Powell, building operations supervisor at the Mott Foundation building, said he's seen the falcons near the building and first saw their egg about three weeks ago.
"They've laid eggs here before and they've never hatched," Powell said.
It's similar to the birds' activity last year, when they abandoned a Mott Foundation nest for the Northbank Center after a serious downpour in early May.
Majesty was one of five chicks hatched in 2002 in Toronto, the city's first recorded nesting peregrines in 100 years, according to records.
The father was found dead and the mother disappeared a few weeks after the hatch. The five orphan chicks – Majesty, Viking, Spirit, Hope and Valor -- were rescued by Canadian Peregrine Foundation volunteers and raised in Richmond Hill, Ont. Majesty the last known survivor of the five chicks.
She was first seen in Flint in 2003. In 2009, she was reported nesting on the Durant Hotel.
Barry hatched in 2001 from the I-90 overpass on the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland.
In 2010, Majesty and Barry's nest was lost in a rainstorm and their only chick drowned.
In 2011, the pair hatched two chicks, Mr. Mott and Elle.
The peregrine as once found all across North America, but completely eliminated in Michigan by the mid-1960s. The last nesting pair was recorded in 1957 near Fayette on the northern Lake Michigan shoreline.
Their disappearance is attributed to DDT, a pesticide that led to eggs with shells so thin they were crushed under the weight of the mother.
The birds have been making a slow comeback since the 1972 DDT ban.
As of 1999, the bird was no longer a federal endangered species but remains protected under Michigan's Endangered Species Act as well as the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act.
There are roughly a dozen known nesting sites in Southeast Michigan, Becher said.
Blake Thorne is a reporter for MLive-The Flint Journal. Contact him at email@example.com or 810-347-8194. Follow him on Twitter or Facebook.


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Cognitive Dysfunction & Cancer Treatment: Old News
To all the compassionate, skilled physicians and oncology clinicians I have come to know online and in real life since becoming a member of the cancer club, let me just say thank you. You know who you are. You are not the 'my-way-or-the-highway' practitioners. You are the ones who actually listen to your patients; ask open-ended questions; factor quality of life issues and patient concerns into treatment recommendations; believe in informed consent and do your best to fulfill it; and give advice that allows your patients to make their own decisions.
But every clinician in the oncology world does not behave in such an exemplary fashion. I know, because I was treated by a few of them. Perhaps I owe them a certain debt of gratitude nonetheless, because the fact that they ticked me off so much is one of the things that turned me into a blogger and an even more staunch patient advocate than I already was.
So, what's my point? Well, one of the hot topics at this past week's San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium was the cognitive impairment that many of us experience after treatment. There appeared to be two main items in this discussion. The first was the news from the previous week of a study showing that chemo brain can be seen on PET scans. This study made a big splash, including one report that featured an interview with my friend and tireless cancer advocate Jody Schoger. There's a great write-up about this by another sistah, journalist Xeni Jardin, including links to Jody's interview, here on BoingBoing.
But the second issue that emerged from the SABCS discussion was the potential implications of broadening the discussion of post-cancer-treatment cognitive dysfunction — and perhaps calling it something besides 'chemo-brain' — because it affects many of us who did not have intravenous chemotherapy. A report on this latter discussion was published in Oncology Times. I feel a little torn about this. On the one hand, whenever I see cancer related cognitive dysfunction discussed, I often seem to be the person who tediously points out that I have it myself, even though I did not have IV chemo. So the phrase 'chemo brain' doesn't technically apply to me, which leaves me in even more limbo than the one in which my slushy brain has left me. On the other hand, there's so much we don't know. For purposes of research and treatment, perhaps we do need a name for the general category of cancer-treatment-related cognitive dysfunction. But we also need a better understanding of — and perhaps more specific names for — the mechanisms which give rise to it, and the differences in how the various forms of cognitive dysfunction manifest themselves. There may be damage arising from chemotherapy that is different from that arising from radiation or surgery, for example, that needs a different name and a different solution.
And then, I thought what I always think after reading about another study that identifies another form of collateral damage: 'Okay, great. What the heck are we supposed to do about it?' So I was even more interested in a study published at the end of October in the JNCI called, Treating Chemobrain: Rehabilitation Therapies Emerge. But the thing that most struck me, when I started to read the article, was this paragraph, especially the last six words:
Patricia Ganz, M.D., at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, traces several stages in the evolution of thinking about cancer and cognition. At first, everyone believed that the blood–brain barrier protected patients from chemotherapy, so patient reports were not taken seriously.
Dr. Patricia Ganz is one of my sanity-saviors. It was reading a study conducted by Dr. Ganz and her colleagues, about the immune system biomarkers associated with cancer-related fatigue, that helped me endure and find help with my own fatigue. Dr. Ganz, if I ever meet you in person, please forgive me if I am moved to break into tears and give you a heartfelt hug. You are one of my research goddesses. And I'll probably have to give you another hug for reinforcing the eminently crucial notion that patient reports need to be taken seriously. "We are chipping away at getting a scientific database to persuade people," Ganz said. Yes, you are, Dr. Ganz. And bless you for that. To the doctors who did not do their jobs by informing me before treatment of its possible long-term effects, or listen to me afterward when I was suffering from them, here's a virtual bitchslap and a link to an old post that summarizes the needless misery you helped put me through: Losing It And Trying To Get It Back.
Which brings me to the next thing that bothers me about all this: it's old news, people. I realize that a certain amount of replication and informed skepticism is crucial in the oncology research world before any of us should permit ourselves to get really excited about any new findings. This week's other SABCS kerfuffle — about the ATLAS/tamoxifen study — is a case in point. A great blog post by Beth Thompson sums it up here: ATLAS, Shrug. But it annoys me hugely when study results about a given topic are touted by hype-headlines as though the researchers have discovered a new planet. And cognitive dysfunction is just such a topic.
Way back in 2008, which I realize is practically the Pleistocene Era, a study about chemo-brain was published which included the use of radiologic imaging to verify the existence of chemo brain. The study, Clinical Patterns and Biological Correlates of Cognitive Dysfunction Associated with Cancer Therapy, not only imaged these changes in patients who'd had chemotherapy or brain radiation. The study authors also sought to explain the mechanisms of neurotoxicity associated with cancer treatment, and to identify the patterns of cognitive dysfunction they found in cancer patients. 2008, people. Am I the only person who read this?
Another study, published in 2009, sought to examine the impact of chemo brain and cognitive dysfunction on the lives, work and future health of cancer patients. Its purpose was to help encourage better identification of the problem and better solutions for helping us all cope with it. Maybe 2009 is late Pleistocene/early Holocene. Maybe we've all got short memories. Maybe I'm the only demonic nerd that trolls Google for pertinent scientific journal articles when I'm writing certain blog posts. Maybe I should rent my search-maven skills to other clinicians.
Whatever. Bottom line? The fact that cancer treatment scrambles our brains isn't news. Despite our admitted deficits of concentration, word-finding, and short-term memory, we cancer patients have been saying this for years. Listen up, already. You might learn something. You might even come up with a way to help us.
23 Responses to "Cognitive Dysfunction & Cancer Treatment: Old News"
I read a suggestion that chemo brain is changed to 'cancer brain', but I do hope that doesn't catch on – I have the same distaste for cancer brain as I do for headlines reading, "cancer boy". Slush brain sounds much better.
I'm rather partial to Slush Brain myself. The name, of course, not the condition. 😉
Thank you, Kathi, for discussing and reviewing the topic of cancer-treatment-related cognitive dysfunction~ chemo-brain. Doctors have known about it since the 1970's… so, why are they pretending this problem is something new?
Years ago, a friend, who had been through many rounds of cancer treatment, sent me a long list of side-effects caused by radiation treatment; bones, teeth, hair, skin, fatigue, chemo-brain, neuropathy, etc. Doctors, in general, do not like to discuss or admit the long-term side effects; and when we confront them, the attitude is "we should feel lucky to be alive". There are no cancer treatments without side-effects. I'm not sure f I would have had chemotherapy and radiation, if I knew how it would destroy my quality of life.
Kathi, you have summed it up beautifully here – and don't stop "trolling" for appropriate research – we need informed and eloquent voices speaking the truth. Thanks for a great post. Beth
Thanks, Beth. Thank you for ATLAS, Shrug. PERFECT title. 😉
I am home and now I can tell you EXACTLY what happened in San Antonio. First of all, because of my (ahem) chemobrain, I had the good sense to record the session on my trusty iPhone. More details to come…..In my case, I KNOW the chemo caused a good portion of the slush brain…. But, there are a whole mess of other things that added to the problem…
I got the links…. I'm a research whore….. Gotta figure out how to get that into my "persona" … And, I'm Dick Tracy. I've got plenty of good questions…..
We should all plan to flashmob "Patti Ganz" (as she introduced herself at the microphone to question the validity of the research!!!)
I adore her, AM. She's has the sense to pay attention to us. And try to validate our experiences.
Please not "slush brain", it seems to trivialize and make cute a condition that is neither. I don't have a replacement name but please let's think of something substantial. I am tired of being marginalized and ignored unless I am actively in treatment.
And here, I think, is part of the problem, this overweening thought that we should be grateful to be alive at any price because we had cancer… Cognitive difficulties, stop complaining, neuropathies, stop complaining, joint pains and vaginal dryness, stop complaining, you are alive, for God's sake, we fixed you.
Medics find us embarrassing because somehow if the word gets out we make them look bad (in their minds) remember the old joke "the operation was a complete success, but the patient died". And the rest of the healthy world doesn't even want to admit that we really did, and still do have cancer "but it's gone now, right? They got it all, right? So why don't you want to go out and party tonight after a 10 hour day? And why do you always complain of being tired, it's ridiculous you have to only work four days a week, I'd like Wedsnesdays off too." and they forget you tell them you slept most of Wednesday, and slept all Thanksgiving because you worked the Wednesday and three days is just too much.
And what are they going to do with us, employers would go crazy if we all had partial short term disability forever, and I stopped all my adjuvant therapy after it ruined my vision, I can't use an ophthalmoscope any more, which is a challenge in Neurology, and I couldn't walk or pick anything up because of the joint pain and my hair fell out in handfuls and the vaginal atrophy made it painful to pee. I stopped the Femara and then stopped the Toremefine/Fareston, sister to Tamoxifen, which is about to be relaunched as a wonder drug, went back to Femara and finally quit because I didn't recognise my patients half the time, and didn't remember much about half of the ones I did recognise without the charts. I hada prodigious memory, but I can't trust it any more.
So slush brain is too cute for the cognitive changes ruining my life courteous of radiation and less than six months of adjuvant oral hormonal chemotherapy without IV chemotherapy. I can't think of another name, you'll have to excuse me, I have cancer and too much radiation, and no estrogen any more.
Anne, believe me, I'm being facetious about using the phrase 'slush brain,' out of a sense of frustration. And your comments are unfortunately very apt. I've had friends tell me that their oncs have literally said, 'What do you want? We did save your life,' when they've reported side effects after acute treatment is over. Your experience of radiation and anti-hormone is very similar to mine. And yes, my own status is partial disability for the forseeable future, because I'm not up to full-time anymore. How long ago was your treatment? I'm four years out & still struggling; my brain is working somewhat better, but certainly not like it used to be. I've had to live on neurostimulants for the fatigue and brain fog and poor concentration for a very long time, however. I don't know what we should call these problems, but more importantly, we need to be warned about them before treatment, and they need to be acknowledged, prevented if at all possible, and certainly we need better options to relieve them.
Thank you! I saw my oncologist Friday and, once again, he dismissed my questions about neuropathy, fatigue, and memory loss as "collateral damage" for which there is nothing he could do. But then the clincher–"maybe it's something to do with your age." I usually leave with a feeling that 'hypochondria" is really what he's thinking. It's validating to read your blog and feel that I am not alone in my concerns.
Helen, there's a lot more to write. Check my blog categories on the sidebar & click on one for former posts.
Some of my patients have had really good luck with L-glutamine supplements for neuropathy. It's an amino acid. You can get it OTC or online in capsule form. In research trials, people took 10 grams 3x/day during chemo. But it can be hard to take that much daily and folks seem to notice relief on less than that. This is a good summary: http://www.livestrong.com/article/542318-l-glutamine-peripheral-neuropathy/. This is a more complete write-up with side effects info: http://www.webmd.com/vitamins-supplements/ingredientmono-878-GLUTAMINE.aspx?activeIngredientId=878&activeIngredientName=GLUTAMINE
You can easily get 1000 milligram capsules. 1000 mg = 1 gram. Let your doctor (whichever one you choose) know you are taking it to monitor for side effects or interactions.
It took several years but those close to me now acknowledge, and work around, my damaged brain. At first, they just all thought I was 'using' chemobrain. After seeing me shed tears because I couldn't remember something, or having my forgetfulness affect them in some way over the years, they started to get it. And most have seen me shed tears….even at work. Just last week my Boss said: "Don't you remember…..?" Then he hesitated. He was asking about an email from seven months prior. Are you kidding me? Here, let me just look that up.
My cognitive memory is severely diminished. I am so glad that this is finally being seriously talked about and researched. It's very real and for me it's debilitating. I hope they can find a way to avoid it for others.
I forgot to thank you for the post, Kathi. :-/ Thank you!
Thanks for this post and the links with it, you research maven. Your words touched some of the functioning nerves I have left.
I felt terribly abandoned by my oncologist after I finished chemo. Mine wasn't interested in hearing about any arising and ongoing side effects from chemo/radiation/arimidex/tamoxifen. It was as though he felt he had done his job by following the treatment protocol with me and now I was on my own.
I'm almost at 3 years since completing radiation and while I don't feel 30 years older than I am as I did for a couple of those years, I do feel about 15-20 years older than I really am and that's an insult to those 65-70 year olds who seem younger than me.
I don't talk much about the fatigue and brain-slush I still feel because too often colleagues, family, and friends will say something about it being "a part of getting older just like everyone else" including them, which really hurts. They just don't get it … that I need more sleep than they do. And sometimes it's not just sleep … I just need stillness and quiet. I have felt quite abandoned by the medical community since I finished radiation. They don't want to hear about side effects and difficulties. They don't want questions and If they record my symptoms, so what? What does it matter if they're not interested in addressing them? And I, too, am especially resentful about not being told about the possible side effects. Well, I was told that I would lose my hair and that I would get hot flashes but what about all those other things. When I started having severe joint problems after starting Arimidex, I thought it was from the edema that came with my last chemo treatment and about the same time I started Arimidex. There was no documentation about terrible joint pain on the Arimidex box nor on the sheet of information about the drug that was given to me. "Possible joint pain" was listed as a minor and uncommon side effect. Mine was severe. I could hardly walk or dress myself. When I told the doctor about it, he just shrugged. After my edema subsided and I could still hardly move, I knew something else was wrong and it was only through my own research that I found information (mostly in breast cancer forums) about the horrible joint/muscle/tendon/ligament pain and stiffness women were experiencing while on Arimidex. I then went to my oncologist with this information and it was obvious that he had heard this before but why did I have to find the information myself? Why wouldn't he have told me when I first told him about the severity of my joint problems? My reaction was bad enough that I had to quit Arimidex and go on Tamoxifen, which I delayed hoping to get rid of the joint problems before starting another drug. I was told I should feel better in a couple of weeks. I didn't feel any improvement until almost 10 months later and I my joints have never improved fully. I started Tamoxifen regardless and I don't know now if it's part of my joint problem or if the effects from the Arimidex have become permanent. My oncologist and doctors have no thoughts on this. My sense, as you've mentioned, is that they think I should just be glad to be alive. I am … but … well, you know.
Your post and your comments ring true for me and, just like the time I first found a research article declaring "chemo-brain" a reality, it helps me feel validated and less alone, which is so important.
One thing worth trying if people haven't already and something that has made considerable difference for me, is powdered greens. I tried a sample pack on a whim about 8 months ago and the effect was astounding … both immediate and huge! I suddenly had an energy I hadn't experienced since before cancer. My brain felt less foggy. I could multi-task a bit, which I couldn't really do since cancer and that's something that was a big part of my work-life pre-cancer. I felt like doing things … shopping, socializing, housecleaning … I didn't have to force myself. My joints, which were in bad shape after a particularly bad reaction to Arimidex, improved remarkably. And amazingly, I even got feeling back in my feet. Not all of it but a lot of it. Since I lost the feeling in my toes and the fronts of my feet after chemo, I fall down on an average of 6-8 times per year. I would fall on a flat, dry surface while wearing very sensible footwear if I wasn't paying very careful attention to each step I took. Since including powdered greens in my day, I haven't fallen once in the whole 8 months. The feeling in my feet came back within 3 weeks. About 5 days after starting the greens, I had a night where my feet were so relentlessly hot, I hardly slept all night. I was awful. I had 3 nights like this over the course of 2 weeks. After the 2nd incident, I noticed the next morning that I could actually feel my feet while I was walking from the parking lot to my office. It felt amazing. And it improved again after the 3rd night of hot feet. Why? I don't know. I can only guess that whatever the greens provided increased my circulation and maybe the oxygen to my extremities … my brain and feet? I don't know. I'm not a scientist. But I wish a scientist/researcher would listen to my experience and wonder about it.
I still have my brain-slush, fatigue, joint stiffness, and a bit of numbness in my toes and feet but the improvements after taking the greens have been dramatic nonetheless. Only since the greens have I ever had days when I haven't even thought about cancer. And that has been a blessing.
Wonderfully written. Thanks so much for this. I think doctors and oncologists so often overlook the side effects of cancer and its treatments. But, the side effects are obviously so real for all of us who are experiencing them.
Thank you so much for speaking the truth — and for doing it so eloquently!
Thank you, everyone.
Traci, my friend, big hugs to you. It's so frustrating, I get tired of having to remind people that I have to pace myself very carefully now. *sigh*
Heather, yes, yes, yes!!! I can so relate to everything you said. I definitely feel better now than I did last year and 2 years ago and 4 years ago, but my concentration is finite. When I have to stop, I have to stop, and that's that. And yes, quiet, stillness and sleep are what I need. No getting around it. Officially, I work 4 days a week now, not 5 anymore, but I end up having to spend the equivalent of 5 days getting 4 days worth of work done. And yes, I get sick of people trying to write it off by saying it's because 'we're all getting older.' Four years ago, before I was diagnosed, I was a ball of fire. People don't 'age' 20 years in just four years simply because of the passage of time. Bollocks to that, I say.
AIs were not even recommended for me because of family osteoporosis history, but I couldn't stay on tamoxifen either. I lasted a year, and took a 'vacation' from it because of a med interaction I was trying to work out, and discovered that it had been adding a whole nuther layer of brain fog, pain, and fatigue to what I already had. My med onc thank goodness agreed that it wasn't worth staying on for a single digit decrease in my recurrence risk, when my quality of life and my ability to earn a living were being so adversely affected.
LD, thank you. We need smarter treatment options with less collateral damage. And, yes, we need to be told the truth beforehand.
I wish I knew if Tamoxifen could be the culprit in some of what I feel (or don't feel). It's been so long and I've been through so much, I hardly remember what "normal" feels like and whether the side effects I have are lingering effects of chemo and radiation or Arimidex or now Tamoxifen … or a combination of all of the above.
I've been excited about having a little less than 2 years left on Tamoxifen so that I can see if some of my "issues" disappear or improve. And then came the news that 10 years really is better than 5 on Tamoxifen. I have mixed feelings about that and didn't greet the news with the elation that people expect me to feel.
Breast cancer is a TOTAL drag. I'm happy to still be here but that doesn't mean I haven't lost a lot during the battle.
Heather, it really isn't clear that extending tamoxifen for 10 years is right for everyone. It's not a given, not for a 2.8% increase over taking it for 5 years. It's something to consider very carefully and talk about rationally with your doc.
Dr. Ganz sounds wonderful, and I'm sure there's a place in heaven for her.
You are right: cancer-treatment brain (sounds kind of stodgy, but I like this name because it covers the whole gamut of cancer treatment) is old news. We patients have said it for years. There are many doctors who deserve that "virtual bitchslap" for being so dismissive.
I struggle with cancer-treatment brain every damn day. And to add insult to literal injury is when people say, "oh, don't forget that you ARE getting older, and memory fades with age," or "you are menopausal."
No, No, and emphatic NO.
All I know is that I was sharp as a tack the minute before that toxic shit dripped into my veins, and cognitive dysfunction happened post-treatment until now….and beyond I'm sure.
Thank you for validating what we patients already know.
Beth, as I said on my blog FB page yesterday, it's like having a recurring concussion, NOT like 'normal' aging. People who don't have it don't get it. Sigh.
I forgot to check back until now, and forgot to check the reply box. I did know you were being facetious about the name but these things have a way of sticking. Yesterday it was two years since my diagnosis, and I've been treatment free for about 14 months. I still need prodigious amounts of rest and my joints seem better and then so much worse. I'm wearing a wrist brace at the moment as my left wrist suddenly feels like a horse stepped on it. No known insult, just woke up that way a few days ago.
As for the cognitive changes, the latest research alleges that chemo patients show the cognitive changes before starting chemo, thereby proving it isn't the drugs just anxiety and fear. Someday I will meet some of these researchers and all I can say is it will not be pleasant for them. Why would you want to look at that? And how do you control for that, and what are your confounders. I can do and read research too. It's unbelievable the trouble to which well doctors will go to somehow make it the cancer patients' fault if we complain or fail to be completely cured.
I'm in the NAD holding pattern, feeling very somaticized with my aches and pains this week, my affected breast has complained for two weeks, edema and post radiation spikes, but I am glad to be alive, and my grown children, in their 20s and one who is 30 still seem to need me if only to have someone to worry!
Best wishes for an ever better new year, better research, better studies, better meds, better cures and happier lives.
You are right on, Anne Lynn, about some of the root causes of cognitive changes. When I began trying to find research about this and about cancer related fatigue, I found some interesting studies, some headed up by Patty Ganz, about biomarkers found in our immune system and our endocrine system associated with long-term physical changes following a cancer diagnosis. The latter endocrine studies pointed to stress responses that mimic those found in people diagnosed with PTSD. My initial response was vindication, quickly followed by anger that my docs misled me from the get-go and brushed me off when I asked for help.
We need much more research into this, and much better treatment options that minimize the collateral damage. Hope we all have a better year. xoxo
Thank you for this resource. We are doing more and more work supporting those experiencing cancer, its treatments and side effects. Some of our clients have been very enthusiastic about the information contained in these pages. Thanks again. Linda


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I read a lot of Sci-Fi, alternate universe, end of world Apocalypse type of books. Many of these found in the young adult or juvenile section of the library. I tell myself it is important to read what my kids are reading, to have subjects of overlap, but I actually enjoy most of what I read.
Living in Earthquake country, we are regularly reminded to "Get Ready Marin" and to be prepared for "The Big One." This warning, along with my discussions with my sons about the end of the world, has prompted me to keep an Emergency Backpack in the car. The idea is that should a disaster happen and I am not at home, I need supplies to get home. I'm assuming the worst, roads are closed, chaos abounds, I have my little one with me and I need two days of supplies.
My friend Sharon and I, discussing the End of the World while making snacks for the kids, were planning on selling these custom Emergency Bags. We compiled a list of items that it should contain. There are the basics: food, water, shelter. I always have snacks (fruit and granola bars) in the car (many of these items are transferable from the diaper bag). With the plethora of drink holders in the car, I usually also have several water bottles in the car, but to beef up the backpack, I bought an aqua straw Emergency Water Filter that purifies any water I find, should the situation turn dire. For shelter, I threw in a couple of Emergency blankets.
Broken glass seems to be another possible concern, therefore I have a pair of gloves and closed toe shoes for each of us. I don't want to be caught on a day where I'm only wearing flip flops or heels. Luckily, or not, my sons usually leave a pair of shoes in the car, so having that extra pair is already there.
To guard against the elements, I have a sunhat, knit hat, buff, and a rain poncho. Again, these items are good to have at the ready anyway. Living where I do, temperatures can be 50 degrees different within a ten mile radius.
Then I looked at the kits: First Aid, Toiletry, Sewing. There is some overlap here, but I liked to keep them all separated for easy access. The First Aid kit, has the basics; bandages, ointment, Advil, necessary medicines, alcohol swabs. I added a McNett Tactical Gruntline Elastic Cord and Clothesline, a multi-functional rubber cord. This doubles as a sling, tourniquet and laundry line. The Toiletry kit has soap, toothpaste, toothbrush, tweezers, sunscreen, lotion, nail clippers, etc. And I threw in a Sewing kit with extra safety pins, a straight edge razor, thick needles and thread and patches. I don't want a torn strap to keep me from transporting my gear.
Additional emergency gear: flashlights, batteries, radio, lighter, sunglasses, sharpie, plastic ziplock bags and duct tape. I also added a fun fishing Survival Grenade that included cord, carabiner, fishing lines and hooks. We live near the water, who knows how long I could be on the road, living off the land.
Now my sci-fi knowledge comes in. I have this backpack, full of great supplies. How can I make sure no one takes it from me? I talked to Max, my fellow reader. "Max, should the apocalypse hit, what do I need?" "A weapon." He answered. "But what weapon can I use? What will give me a head start, because a knife will do no good if the person is bigger and stronger, and I am not keeping a gun in the car?"
I came up with two options, a taser Mini Stun Gun and bear spray Pepper Spray. Both items went into the pack. Now I felt ready. If the big one hits, I can make it home, or at least I've done what I can to get there.


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Our partnerships with Central Alberta's farming community are celebrated all summer long by hosting long table pop-up dinners.
Lucky ticket holders are hosted to a farm to table experience showcasing wood-fire cookery, stories from the fields and of course, a glorious prairie sunset.
Each course features ingredients found just steps away from the dinner table!


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New features and polished game mechanics in FM20 reward planning and progression like never before, empowering managers to develop and refine both the club's and your own unique identity. For full feature details visit footballmanager.com/features
Users will require a Steam account to play Football Manager 2020 and Steam is available to install for FREE at store.steampowered.com
Any order may be refunded within 14 days provided the install key sent by email is not unlocked and activated.
To gift FootballManager 2020 simply buy the game as normal and the gifting / personalisation instructions will be explained in the confirmation email you receive after purchase.
All you'll need is the name and email address of the person you are gifting to, as well as your personalised message.
The individual will then receive an email from Football Manager with your message and simple instructions on installing the game.
Cette page est opérée par Scalefast, en partenariat avec SEGA. Tous les paiements effectués ici sont pris en charge par Scalefast.


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So this is what I made up with it:
I belong to the FQ Birthday Club run by Cheryll, and I have received the final parcel in the post. The fabric is bright and gorgeous.
Thank you to all the people who have sent me birthday wishes and fabrics for the birthday club. When I use these fabrics in a project, I will always remember the person who sent it and the birthday club. Thank you Cheryll for hosting it.


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Next Thursday during library classes, 2nd grade student will receive their own King County Library System card! This will allow them to borrow some of the millions of books, magazines, DVDs and other resources available through our impressive local library system. They will also be able to access an incredible array of online databases which are full of useful information for homework as well as just for fun (language learning, history, world cultures, science, etc.).
Before students can use their cards they must be activated in person at one of the many KCLS locations. Children must be accompanied by a parent who has a photo ID and proof of residence in King County (e.g. a utility bill). An information sheet with details will accompany each card and stretchy wrist band.
Students who already have a public library card need not take another one, but may do so if they wish. The cards are not activated so bringing one home will not affect an existing account.
Please feel free to contact the school library (library at ows dot org) if you have any questions!
Friday, February 5, 2010
KCLS cards for all second graders!
Posted by Laura Simeon at 12:45 PM
Labels: class updates, public library
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1. Sleeeeeep: Our night wean, as I think I've mentioned, has been a success. Olive now PREFERS David to put her down at night, and if she wakes, she easily goes back down for him. Nursing overnight is no longer an option for her, so she is sleeping much better and has TWICE slept through the night without any sleep training whatsoever thank you very much all to all those "experts" out there that say that you MUST do it or you ruin them for LIFE. Ahem. But anyway, sometimes David settles her back down in her bed, sometimes he climbs to the attic to sleep with her there; the point is, we are all SLEEPING at night.
I… you guys? HOW did I DO that? Well, I mean, I just survived it, right? Just got by, one day at a time? Because NOW, now that I'm all filled up to capacity with sleep, I feel all I AM GETTING SO MUCH DONE DURING THE DAY WHY HAVE I BEEN SO LAAAAAAZY THIS PAST YEAR THIS IS NOT HARD TO JUST DO THINGS AND GET THEM DONE DONE DONE. It's like I forget that the reason I wasn't very productive was because… I was getting sleep in 45 minutes- 2 hour increments, all night, every night. This– this right here– is PROOF that we cannot be trusted to remember our children's infancy. Only a month ago I was that sleep deprived version of me– ONE MONTH– and daily I have to take a second to remind myself why I am more productive now than I was then.
In any case, sleep is glorious. Sleep is delicious. SLEEP IS MY BITCH… I love it so.
2. We… oh, man. Listen, ok, we have never ever bought a tv in our almost 14 years together–NOT ONE, you understand? We were using an old 26″ heavy (not flat screen) one my parents gave us in our family room. The tv in our bedroom is a tiny flat screen that David MADE out of a computer monitor that literally goes months without being plugged in, and we had my dorm room tv (nearly 100% unused) in our attic. So… ok. OK. WE BOUGHT A BIG GROSS TV THAT TAKES UP THE ENTIRE FAMILY ROOM. WE DID. I LOVE YOU BLACK FRIDAY SALES!!
And you know what? ….It's pretty awesome. There. I said it. I have a huge tv in my house that's literally 20 inches bigger than it strictly "needs" to be, and I love the living shit out of it.
Also, it has 3D, which will make for some fun family movie nights.
3. We also own an all-white (fake) Christmas tree as well as a real, traditional Christmas tree and suddenly we are that family with two trees and I'm not really sure how we got here or how I feel about it. But! The kids really wanted a tree in our family room (where the toys and the tv are), and I was not willing to give up the tree in the living room (where the fireplace and front window is), so one of our Advent activities was to pick out a small tree for the family room. The girls totally picked the tree and ornaments and decorated it on their own, and I must say that it turned out pretty cute. They went with a hot pink and turquoise theme, which is great against the white, and they put a glittery pink butterfly as the topper, and the whole thing turned out, well, ADORABLE if I do say so, even though glittery butterflies are pretty much the VERY LAST THING I'd choose to top the tree, me. And it's true that the family room is much cozier this December.
(Two trees! Elf of the shelf! Huge tv! WHO ARE WE??)
4. Tomorrow David and I are heading out to hopefully finish ALL of our shopping. I'm willing to make a few Amazon orders afterwards, if necessary, but other than that I want to be D-O-N-E. I'm also hoping to swindle David into taking me to Olive Garden for lunch, and LISTEN, if you're the type that rolls your eyes at chain restaurants, know this: I roll my eyes at chain restaurants TOOOOO. However, sometimes a girl has specific salad and bread stick NEEDS, needs that ONLY OLIVE GARDEN CAN FILL, so THERE. (I think having a child named Olive makes me crave a) olives and b) Olive Garden like NEVER BEFORE.) (Would naming her Hazel– a top contender for her– have made me crave… hazelnuts?)
5. If you've clicked through recently you might be wondering, politely, why in world I seem to be rocking a… FISHING theme over here at Chez TinyTown. And… well, I don't really have an explanation that makes ANY sense (not even close), but here goes: I was sick of the old layout, so a few months ago I changed it to a prettier template… that only had one column. I decided no matter how pretty, I NEEDED more than one column and went searching… and alas THIS is what I landed on. *Shrug shoulders* I fucking HATE fishing (the smell of fish and worms are two of my WORST SMELLS, for one thing), but if you can ignore the… well, the FISH, I guess it's not so bad? (Why yes, quality control IS at an all-time low over here, WHO'S ASKING?)
ANYHOWS, this post needs to end as I have a big tv that's not going to watch itself, you know. TALLY HO!
[Alternate Ending: insert proper fishing quip here, since we're obviously not fox hunting.]
[FOX! Now there's a theme I could get behind.]
P.S. I ALSO updated the about me page with newer photos of the kids. There might be a damn WORM ON A HOOK bobbing around, but those photos are RECENT.


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Yesterday, I was talking to my friend about how we want immediate action and immediate results. We're not good at that whole waiting patiently thing. Then as if on queue, the First 5 devotion was: Weakened faith makes us easy prey. I read this on the First 5 app: "There have been seasons of life where I have become disillusioned with God. When He wasn't answering my prayers or 'fixing' my problems fast enough, I was seduced by the god of gotta-have-it-now." Lord, I am weak. I am easy prey for fixing my problems the simple way, the instant fix, the temporary band aid. I am a big fan of pitty parties when things are not going my way or things aren't fair or when I've been done wrong. I have a tendency to play the victim. It's easy, especially with everything going on in the world, to give up because life isn't fair. Because we got the short end of the stick. Because we were hurt. Giving up is easy. Getting back up is hard. Love is hard.
The second session of Stuck Study is titled: Mad. The session talks about how life isn't fair and how frustrating that is. Then it tells a story of one woman's reply: "You're right. You don't deserve this life. You deserve hell and death, and so do I. But God's gracious love for us provided a Savior who took our sins and died for them. He didn't deserve death, and we don't deserve life. It is God's grace that we have life at all." Sometimes I need that reminder. I admit, too often I need that reminder.
In this session, we are called to surrender. To lay everything down so that we can be filled by You. I had a similar devotion in Mobile. We wrote down on pieces of paper what was holding us back from our relationship with You. Then we picked up these little wood crosses. We were told to paint them or whatever we wanted, but to use them as a reminder. Not of what we laid down, but of what we picked up instead. The part of message that I got differently today was trust. By laying everything down, I wasn't just giving You control, I was trusting You to take care of what I laid down. I wasn't just letting it go, I was giving it to You. Lord, sometimes You give us a piece of the puzzle at a time, to put together in Your timing.
The study said: "This love costs us something. It is not easy, but it is simple." Then it states Luke 6:28-30 which says: Bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. To the one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either. Give to everyone who begs from you, and from one who takes away your goods do not demand them back. Ok, first off, this love and trust thing is hard for me. It's a simple concept, but it's hard to put into action. The whole bless and pray thing, I can do. I can totes pray for my enemies. I've been taught that my whole life. And my daddy always said if you let someone borrow something then just plan to give it to them. And my mama told me 1343 times that if someone takes something from you then they must have needed it more. So, that stuff I was prepared for. But not offering my other cheek after I've been hit. That one gets me. That one takes personal root and grabs on. That one is a tough pill to swallow. That one is gonna take some extra praying and teaching. Lord, that one I'm gonna need help with. That's when trust comes into play.
The study teaches that if we put our trust in You, then that's where freedom is found. That's when we truly let go and surrender. That's where peace comes. I've always heard Ephesians 4:26 which says: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry. The part I haven't heard, but read today is verse 27: and do not give the devil a foothold. Lord, I needed that reminder today.
So, here is my prayer today. I pray that I am humbled at your feet. I pray that I let go of my timing. I pray that I stop being so impatient. I pray that I put my trust in you. I pray that I put my faith in you. I pray that I remember you are God and I am not. I pray that I want more of you and less of me. I pray that I put action into your love. I pray that I give more, love more, pray more, bless more, surrender more, forgive more. Lord, help me to offer my other cheek. I pray that I show strength. I pray that I show intention. I pray that I let go of my need for things to be fair. I pray that I let go of what I think my rights are. I pray that I stop trying to defend myself and let you defend me. I pray that I am not so easily offended. I pray that I made stronger in you and in your love. I pray that I am slow to anger and slow to speak. I pray that I listen intently with love. I pray that I let me fade away. I pray that I hold on a little tighter to your love. I pray that I don't let the devil have a foothold. I pray I keep finding you more and more. I pray for courage. I pray that I remember you are victorious no matter how weak I feel. And as always I pray for my family and sorority sisters. I pray for my university. I pray for guidance for our government, church, and school leaders. I pray for protection for our troops. I pray for all of those that need you now and for those that haven't met you yet. In Jesus' name, Amen.


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CISM students take MAP tests
Our Deputy Headmaster will be sending home to parents a letter today about this series of tests that measure a child's academic progress. Testing dates for us will be October 2-9; 12 and 16th!
Testing/Submission Days for Summative Assessments
- Mondays – Maths/ English
- Tuesdays – Sciences/ Social Studies
- Wednesdays – English/ Maths
- Thursdays – Chinese Mandarin/ Sciences/ Social Studies
- Fridays –Chinese Mandarin
Note: Subject in bold face chooses that day of the week as its first choice of a day for conducting assessments.
Formative Assessments may be given on any day that the class meets.
Key Dates for SY 2012-13
Middle Schoolers Participate in International School Book Month this October!
Grades 6 and 7 students are busily preparing to show their best for the Book Trailer Competition! We hope the 8th graders follow suit! No one should be left behind!Book-Trailer-Competition-Guidelines.docx
What's Up at Middle School?
This week and next, our students are doing summative assessments needed to show their mastery of the unit(s) they studied for the first quarter, which ends on October 5th, Friday. With this in mind, we teachers hope that parents will try to help their children be focused on studying and meeting all their subject requirements.
Grades on Powerschool will be available for student and parent viewing on October 12th, Friday. This way, when parent-teacher conferences happen on Monday, October 15th, parents know what to ask their children's teachers: tips for helping their children improve their grades in the 2nd quarter.
October 10th and 11th are no-class days for students since faculty will be undergoing a two-day intensive workshop on Service Learning with one of the internationally accalimed gurus in this field.


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This wax is created exclusively for Miss Mustard Seed by Claphams Beeswax Products LTD. This fine museum quality wax is based on an old family recipe. It is made from beeswax with a little carnauba wax. It is ideal for use on wood, marble or as a finish over Milk Paint. It is easy to apply, provides a durable finish with a beautiful luster and has almost no odor.
How to use this product: Use a clean cotton cloth or brush to apply wax in a thin layer. Allow it to dry for 3-5 minutes. Buff to a shine with a clean lint-free cotton cloth. For additional shine and durability, apply a second coat. Clean brush with soap and warm water.
Find a retailer near you HERE or purchase online HERE.
Check out our other wax products…
White Wax | Beeswax Finish | Antiquing Wax


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01452 489042 or 07973 906395
W.Mulhern Roofing & Building is owned and managed by Wayne Mulhern. A professional roofer with 25 years in the industry.
Wayne and his team have completed work for everyone from private home owners to businesses and local authorities covering Gloucester, Cheltenham, Stroud, The Forest Of Dean, Tewkesbury, Dursley, Bristol & Swindon
W.Mulhern Roofing & Builders have an excellent reputation within the County as a reliable, trustworthy and honest professional who strives to comple all his work to the highest standards.
Much of the companies work comes by recommendation and word-of-mouth, and we find that we gain repeat business from our loyal customers demonstrating their satisfaction with the manner in which we completed their work.
"I would like to assure potential clients that any work we deliver will be completed to the highest standards and with minimal disruption. We work hard to keep our pricing extremely competetive and guarantee quality materials. We will always offer the best advise for the customer benefits ensuring the service they receive from us is second to none .... on and we are friendly too"
- Wayne Mulhern, Proprietor
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Colorado: Devil's Head, near Deckers
Colorado: Devil's Head, near Deckers. On 27 September 1949 James L. Naudack (18) was climbing over the rocky surface of this small mountain and attempted to jump a crevice. Failing to make it, he slid 15 feet down the face of the boulder formation until his left foot jammed securely between two rocks and held him. He could not free himself and could not be reached. He was finally rescued 12 hours later by members of the Denver Red Cross Disaster Squad and of the Lowry Field air search rescue team. They lowered a rope which Naudack attached to himself. Thus secured, he pulled his foot free from the shoe, which remained fast. After this he was lowered to the ground.
Source of information: newspaper reports.
Analysis. Another accident to an inexperienced youngster scrambling about over rugged mountain country. This accident could have happened to anyone, but it does show that, before attempting to jump across an abyss, one should give a good look.


text: CULTURE Car Documentary 'The Mirage' to Debut at Philadelphia Film Festival 6:13 PM PDT 10/21/2014 by McKenna Aiello FACEBOOK TWITTER EMAIL ME AP Images Peter Kalikow A new documentary tracks Peter Kalikow's fascination with his one-of-a-kind Momo Mirage Entrepreneur Peter Kalikow has put his vision of building the world's best car back in the driver's seat, and his journey is making its way to the big screen. Kalikow — whose career includes stints as a real estate mogul, former owner-publisher of the New York Post, chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and commissioner of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey — and his automobile fascination are chronicled in the documentary The Mirage, which will have its premiere on Oct. 24 at the Philadelphia Film Festival. Kalikow's mission to reboot production of his dream car, dubbed the Momo Mirage, is explored in the Kyle Roper-directed film, which also delves into "the world of car design, construction, and the politics behind it," according to the synopsis of the film. Roper also produced the Sacred Bull Media film alongside Diane Richey and Kalikow's son, Nicholas Kalikow. In 1968, a 26-year-old Kalikow used money earned working construction to design a coupe he hoped would have the speed of a Ferrari Gran Turismo and the comfort of a Rolls-Royce. Debuted at the 1972 New York International Auto Show and featured on the cover of Road & Track Magazine, the Momo Mirage's success only lasted three years before production halted. Reportedly only two of the allotted 150 cars were ever completed. Kalikow, 71, now serves as president of the established H.J. Kalikow & Company. FACEBOOK TWITTER EMAIL ME McKenna Aiello firstname.lastname@example.com @thr


text: As I am writing this article I already know that you won't be able to read it... Why is that? Well at the time of writing, No-IP.com's services have been severely compromised meaning that DNS lookups for www.polaris64.net will always fail. So why don't No-IP fix this problem? Well, it's… click to read more


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The anonymous author gives no information about his life whatsoever. From two passages of the work it seems that he was a devşirme-recruit and that he was raised and educated in the palace; he exhibits a detailed knowledge of the kul career system. He also seems to be acquainted with Anadolu (Sivas e.g.) more than with Rumili.
Kitâb-i müstetâb ("Approved [or, agreeable] Book").
Copyright 2015 © IMS Forth. All rights reserved.


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Home | Free addresses a diasporic longing for a physical and psychic home in a time of increased voluntary and involuntary mass migration of black bodies. Through an interdisciplinary practice of performance, video, installation, photography, objects, and mark-making, artist Helina Metaferia presents the complexity, transformation, and rebellion that come with migration, immigration, and gentrification. Home | Free explores the use of home-building materials as art objects and the visual language of maps, lines, text, and movement — all tools to help the body navigate the world.
Helina Metaferia Biography
Helina Metaferia is an interdisciplinary artist, working in the areas of performance, video, installation, photography, sculpture, and mark-making. Her work investigates the role of the body as both subject and object in art, and transnational identity, diaspora, and gender in the context of her Ethiopian-American heritage. Metaferia completed her Masters of Fine Arts at Tufts University's School of the Museum of Fine Arts. She has exhibited solo and group shows at venues such as the Museum of Fine Arts (Boston, MA), Museum of Modern Art (Addis Ababa, Ethiopia), Galeria Labirynt (Lublin, Poland), Grace Exhibition Space (Brooklyn, NY), International Visions Gallery (Washington, DC), and Defibrillator Gallery (Chicago, IL). Metaferia is also the recipient of the Boit Award, Montague Travel Grant, and Boston Arts Commission Public Art Grant. Her artist residencies include Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, Yaddo, and a full fellowship to the Vermont Studio Center. She is currently a 2015-2017 AICAD Post-Graduate Teaching Fellow at San Francisco Art Institute, where she teaches performance and new genres in the graduate and undergraduate departments.
This exhibition was made possible in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the Foundation for Contemporary Art Emergency Grant.


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View from the Canopy Walk Tower in Sepilok, Borneo
Holidays to Sepilok, Borneo
Sepilok, in the Sabah region of Borneo, is home to the world-famous orangutan sanctuary. The Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre is unquestionably one of the main draws of Borneo, and rightly so: witnessing these intelligent and eminent creatures is exhilarating. Once you've visited, you'll understand just what all the fuss is about.
Fourteen miles from the town of Sandakan, the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre an area of protected land at the edge of Kabili Sepilok Forest Reserve. The Centre is home to around 80 orangutans who live freely on the reserve. Injured apes are provided with medical care and those that have been rescued from captivity are rehabilitated. The orangutans are taught important life-skills such as climbing and nest-building. Their diet is kept purposefully simple to encourage them to learn to forage for more interesting food and prepare for life outside of the sanctuary. The Outdoor Nursery platform is a highlight of the Centre with its jungle-gym on the edge of the forest. It serves as a training ground and play area to help build the confidence of the animals that have been affected by cruelty. Expect to fill your camera's memory with snaps of these intelligent creatures engaging in cheeky antics, that are sometimes downright hilarious. As one of the closest relatives to humans, orangutans are wonderfully expressive and mothers and their young form close bonds which can be heart-meltingly tender to see.
As well as seeing the orangutans, there are nature trails around Sepilok to explore the tropical highland rainforest and lowland mangrove swamps and witness other wildlife indigenous to the area like monkeys, lizards and Bornean Pygmy elephants.
Borneo's majestic orangutans living freely
Explore tropical rainforest
Sepilok trip ideas
Here are some trip ideas to Sepilok. All of our trip ideas shown below are examples, and we'll amend, adapt or start from scratch, until we've created the perfect trip for you. See one you like, or have a trip in mind? Call us now to book: 020 3510 5777
10 days from €2,295pp
Family Adventure Borneo
Combine wildlife spotting and jungle adventure with chilled out beachside fun in Borneo
11 days from €5,595pp
Sublime Borneo
Combine luxury travel with wildlife experiences on this once-in-a-lifetime trip to Borneo
Things to do in Sepilok
Here are some of the things you can do in Sepilok. When you've chosen your favourite experiences, just give our Travel Designers a call and they'll put a trip together for you. If you need help choosing an experience, or if you want to learn more about it, our Travel Designers will be more than happy to talk to you. Just call them on: 020 3510 5777
Half day experience
On the edge of the Kabili Sepilok Forest is the Sepilok Rehabilitation Centre home to around 80 orangutans
Map of Sepilok
When to go to Sepilok
Sepilok's climate is split between the drier season from February to August, and the rainy season from September to January. Rainfall can be unpredictable throughout the year so it's best to be prepared and pack your raincoat.
In January, the winds can bring occasional stormy weather across Sabah, with high rainfall expected. If you fancy climbing Mount Kinabalu you should wait until later in the year when the paths will be drier.
February sees less rainfall, with the beaches enjoying the best weather.
The rain eases off throughout March with sunnier, drier days. It's a great time to visit forests and jungles without the crowds.
April is a great time of year to visit with warm, dry days and minimal rainfall.
May is another great month to visit, with ideal weather conditions for relaxing on the beaches or trekking in the jungle.
The great weather continues with hot and dry conditions.
July is typically one of the driest months with blue skies and sunshine, meaning hotels get booked up quickly so it's best to plan your trip well in advance.
Early booking is highly recommended in August as the favourable weather continues.
The dry season continues into September, although increased rainfall is expected towards the end of the month.
Rainfall increases but there are still plenty of dry days to enjoy.
Rainy season hits in November with a strong chance of thunderstorms and grey days. It's a great time to visit the lush jungles when the wildlife is thriving.
December is one of the wettest months with regular rainfall and thunderstorms, making trekking and wildlife spotting difficult.


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Sharizat says ready to face NFC allegations
February 04, 2012
BERUAS, Feb 4 – Embattled minister Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil said today she is ready and not afraid to face corruption allegations over the National Feedlot Centre (NFC) scandal, after months of denying her involvement in the cattle farming project.
According to Bernama Online, Shahrizat (picture)said the scandal, which saw months of accusations hurled against her and her family, had made her more "spirited".
"It's okay. We are politicians. We become more spirited when we are subjected to tests," the national news agency quoted her as saying during a Barisan Nasional (BN) function here today.
Shahrizat was commenting on a statement by PKR strategy director Rafizi Ramli that more exposes would greet her when she returns from her three-week leave.
The senior Cabinet minister is scheduled to resume duties next Wednesday.
Shahrizat has been repeatedly linked to the project because of her husband's role as the National Feedlot Corporation (NFCorp) chairman, and children's directorships in the same company.
The RM250 million federally-funded cattle-farming project was first coined a "mess" in an article in English daily The Star after it made it into the pages of the Attorney-General's 2010 Report.
The term was later repeatedly reused by various media organisations to describe the NFC after PKR launched a series of exposés to show the project's funds were being abused.
PKR had claimed that at least RM27 million was used for land and property purchases as well as expenses unrelated to cattle farming by Wanita Umno chief Shahrizat and her family.
The opposition party also alleged that Shahrizat's family used nearly RM600,000 from NFCorp's funds to settle their credit card bills in 2009.
But the management of NFCorp has maintained that the credit card expenses were solely for business purposes.
The women, family and community development minister has since sued Rafizi and PKR Wanita chief Zuraida Kamaruddin over the claims.
It is becoming a habit and famous joke around town that when a politicians or Melayu commit sin or have their dirty knickers exposed in the open, these rascals will just take a flight to Mecca. By the blessing of Allah every sin is forgiven and forgotten. Then these rascals come back to Malaysia and continue to be bigger criminals. Look at Shahrizat, Mahathir, Najib, FLOM, Zahid, Muhyiddin, Pak Lah, Daim, Nor Yaakob, Yeti and many other shameful politicians. They have become world famous criminals and MACC, PDRM and of course the everyday crook AG with the tail behind his name are protecting these so called Muslim.
I would like everyone to remember Zamlah a typical Melayu who not only cheated my husband but also caused the latter to have a heart attack. In my blog, Zamlah is a scumbag who can stand along side all the bastards I have mentioned in all my postings. I do not forget neither do I forgive. For the day will come where I will see him suffer hundred times more.
Now it has become a trend by UMNOputras to find solution not solemn in Mecca. Apparently I was told that Shahrizat and Salleh had big pow wow with certain businessmen (two Malaysians and one Pakistani), two officers from the Prime Minister Department, two lawyers one from Malaysia and London and listen carefully carpet man was also there with the money. So what was concluded there is your guess. Now to spice things up a little, the IGP was not in London for official duty alone but had time to spare to pow wow too.
It is sad and meaningless for the IGP not to make an effort to fight against human trafficking, money laundering, prevent drugs from coming into Malaysia, illegal gambling, bribe taking/asking, Bank Negara Scam, white collar crimes and others that affect our lives and saving. Instead PDRM uses its men, time and money to find the culprit who sent the SMs about his death. The SMS is a personal issue not a public crime.
It seems that all our politicians, public servants and goodienuts are interested in petty issue instead of what is affecting the daily lives of the people. I hope that the Royalty will continue to SHUT UP for the sake of peace with the people.
So let the saga of the cows continue to brighten our daily lives. Meanwhile judge for yourself whether we need ASSET or LIABILITY to face a new tomorrow.


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Reviewers assumptions
"Hello Franz, this is a skillful flute performance, though the solo presentation wouldn't be appropriate for this listing. The listing specifies 'no solo piano or guitar' so I would conclude that solo flute wouldn't be in line with their request, either. You might consider crafting a version with acoustic piano or maybe a nylon string guitar for accompaniment. That would result in a more marketable product."I think this is self explanatory. I am not sure how "no solo piano or guitar" means no solo flute??? ?? Unfortunately the flute I am playing is not in a scale used in western music and can therefore not used in context with western instruments. The reviewer couldn't hear that fact either. How do these people get picked. Maybe "reading" should be a pre requisit to be a reviewer at Taxi.
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Actress Nicole Kidman turns 52 as second season of 'Big Little Lies' continues to soar
Australian (and American) actress Nicole Kidman turns 52 this week, just ahead of Sunday's third episode of "Big Little Lies."
Kidman was born on June 20, 1967 in Honolulu, Hawaii. Today, she's a critically-acclaimed actress with Academy, Golden Globe and Emmy awards under her belt.
Click through the gallery above to see stunning photos of Nicole Kidman through the years.
She currently stars as Celeste Wright in the novel-turned-television series "Big Little Lies." It's second season is already garnering impressive reviews.
HBO has already released teasers for another novel-inspired miniseries she's in "The Undoing." She is also set to portray former Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson in the upcoming Lionsgate film "Fair and Balanced.
PREVIEW: Get our experts' picks for concerts, kids' stuff, fine arts, movies and more each week in our entertainment newsletter.
TRY THE APP: Get alerts, breaking news and in-depth coverage on what's happening in Houston for your mobile phone and tablet devices through our mobile apps on Google Play and the App Store.


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Fresh Water Fishing - January 2017
Indian River fishing report 01/27/2017 .
It's cooler this morning and temperatures are expected to drop through the afternoon as a cold front slowly moves through.
Black drum and trout biting. Lower temps finding game fish in deeper water . Some reports of Trout, Snappers, small Reds Snook, and Black Drum in the backwaters.
Some report seeing Cobia , however they usually show up in early March.
The Mosquito lagoon and New Smyrna beach fishing is the place to fish .
New Smyrna Beach Area catching black drum, trout, and red fish.
Indian River has been good for trout, sheepshead, drum and lots of other fish right now.
Fishing is relatively good with a mix of Black Drum, Blues, Redfish, and occasional Snook and Flounder. Shrimp,
clams, and spoons are the best bet right now. When a minor front appears this weekend, expect to see a few more Flounder.


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Agility signed a strategic partnership with freight forwarder, Quicka Nigeria. Quicka are one of the leading logistics providers in the country and offer a comprehensive service portfolio.
Through this strategic partnership, Agility has gained a strong presence in Nigeria, extending our global reach and enabling us to better support our customer's needs within the region.


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- The perfect challenge for a solo adventurer or a great family outing as you navigate your way through a timber maze, a labyrinth and 3D pathways.
- Built in 1982 you'll find yourself located in a picturesque fantasy forest setting.
- There's loads to do including a petting zoo, farm babies, lawn games, and loads of refreshments.
- Try your best to conquer this great challenge but don't be afraid to get lost - there's surely a search party to rescue you!
Grab an entry pass to Diversion Maze Park.
Choose from four options:
- $32 for a family pass (two adults and three children)
- $21 for a two-person entry pass (two adults or one adult and 1 child)
- $42 for a four-person entry pass
- $12.50 for a one-person entry pass


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Days float by like a butterfly
on the breeze of a warm
summers day.
Each one flowing into the next,
leaving me to wonder how time
has so quickly slipped by
without my notice.
I reflect often on the people
I have known and loved,
and at how many have come into,
and quietly slipped out of my life.
Only in memories do some of
them live for me now,
and with others, that special
bond we once had is no more.
Only love remains unchanged,
for whenever it comes,
it feels as fresh and good,
and ageless, as the first time.


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Divorce Care 4 Kids
Helping Children Heal from the Hurt of Divorce. DivorceCare for Kids (DC4K) is a special group to help children heal from the hurt caused by the separation or divorce of their parents. DC4K is designed for kids ages 5-12.
Kids are able to make friends with other kids who understand how they feel and the things they are going through because of the divorce of their parents. Best of all, children will learn how God's love can strengthen them and help turn tears to hope and joy! Children are welcome to begin attending DC4K at any time. Each session is "self-contained", so it is not necessary to attend in sequence.
Visit the national DC4K website and watch a promotional video or obtain helpful resources. For a list of weekly topics, click here.
DC4K meets weekly at Fair Haven Church on Mondays from 6:30-8:30pm in 500 south (enter using door O).
Our Fall 2020 Session runs from September 14 – December 14. Our Winter 2021 Session runs from January 4 – March 29. There will be an orientation for parents prior to class from 6:10-6:30pm on the first night. There is no cost for this class. Register here.
Contact the church office at 616.662.2100 with additional questions. Fair Haven Church is located at 2900 Baldwin (on the corner of 28th Avenue and Baldwin) in Hudsonville. Directions.


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This week's featured recipe is from Mrs. Haskel Troutman. I found it in the recipe book called "Cooking in Circles" by the Susanna Wesley Circle of Mt Mitchell United Methodist Church, Kannapolis, NC. [© 1974]
Barbecued Chicken
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 cup ketchup
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1 cup water
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp vinegar
Roll chicken in flour and brown. Place in baking dish or pan to put in oven. Heat sauce ingredients to boiling point. Pour over chicken. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake in 300 degree oven until tender.


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What causes financial crises?
According to writers Allen, Babus, and Carletti in their 2009 study, financial crises occur following either bank runs or a sudden severe drop of asset prices in capital markets, both of which will consequently cause the collapse of big financial and non-financial firms.
We first observe these problems in the banking sector or in capital markets. This leads to a contraction in credit supply, which has an impact in other sectors, causing the recession in the real economy.
The authors outline two theories to explain this. The first is the sunspot theory, in which bank runs are caused by random deposit withdrawals that are unrelated to changes in the real economy. The second is the business cycle theory: bank crises are not random events, but a response by depositors to the arrival of sufficiently negative information on the unfolding economic circumstances.
Kaminsky and Reinhart (1999) also studied a wide range of crises affecting 20 countries, including 5 industrial and 15 emerging economies. They found that financial liberalization and significant credit expansion occurred before many of the financial crises. According to the authors, there was too much liquidity in the system. Liquidity refers to the ability to convert assets into cash at a price and time of your choosing. Too much liquidity in the financial system provides incentives for investors to take unnecessary risk, and the excess liquidity caused asset price bubbles to build up. An asset price bubble occurs when people invest in a market (possibly shares, or property, or commodities) because they think the rising price will continue to increase. The demand from investors then causes the asset price to rise in a self-fulfilling cycle. The increase in price is due to speculation, and is not supported by any fundamental changes in demand and supply in the economy.
Without continuing rising demand from investors, at some point the asset price bubble bursts. The financial sector is very vulnerable to shocks, and a shock that initially affects only a particular sector or a few firms and institutions, or a specific region, can easily become systemic and then infect the larger economy – referred to as contagion. The contagion effect exists because of direct linkage between banks (or financial networks) and indirect balance sheet linkages among firms.
We can apply this analysis to the most recent global financial crisis in 2007-2008. The root reason it occurred was low interest rates and too much liquidity in the American financial system. This encouraged the growth of subprime mortgage lending to borrowers who, in other circumstances, would not have not been granted mortgages because they were more likely to default. In order to spread the risk involved in subprime mortgages, American banks repackaged these subprime mortgages as mortgage-backed securities (which appeared to be more secure than they were) and sold them in the Asset-Backed Securities (ABS) market. These mortgage-backed securities were purchased by many international financial firms, increasing the potential for contagion. The default of subprime mortgage borrowers triggered the collapse of the subprime mortgage market, which in turn caused the credit crunch in the banking sector. The problems in the credit market were later transmitted to other assets through capital markets, as banks tried to sell shares to support their liquidity. This finally led to the bankruptcy of some large firms, such as Lehman Brothers.
Even where risk management is a widespread corporate practice, there may be other instances where financial crises will still occur. Why might this be the case? Share your thoughts in the comments section.
Allen F, A Babus, and E Carletti (2009), 'Financial Crises: Theory and Evidence', Annual Review of Financial Economics, December, 97-116.
Kaminsky G and C Reinhart (1999), 'The Twin Crises: The Causes of Banking and Balance of Payments Problems', American Economic Review, 89, 473-500.


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4 Tips For Stopping Stress-Eating
Many people know the pattern all too well. You go through something stressful like forgetting to make a payment on your mortgage, finding out you're getting laid off, or going to the dentist and learning you need a root canal. What do you do? Head to the nearest donut shop and get a dozen. Then perhaps on your way home, you swing by a taco joint because tacos are delicious so it makes sense right?
If you feel hungry immediately following a stressful situation, you may be guilty of stress eating. The reason this is destructive behavior is that you won't only see weight gain and higher risk for obesity-related diseases, but you'll also find that you aren't really dealing with your emotions. Rather than dealing with your feelings and processing them, you are substituting the solution with a delicious bite of food. Want to quit stress eating but aren't sure how to get started? Look no further than the following ways to get you going.
Know Your Triggers
Knowing what kind of situations drive you to start shoving whatever fried objects you can find down your throat is the best way to start avoiding starting down that path. Try to start taking note of which moments start to make you feel the most stressed out.
When you start to identify these triggers you will know to avoid them. If they aren't avoidable then you should try to eliminate any access to food during these moments. Make sure you're not near vending machines, your favorite fast food restaurants, or any other of your favorite spots to indulge.
Remove Unhealthy Food From The House
Giving your cupboards at home a makeover is a good way to get started. Try to clear out all high-calorie perpetrators that are your favorite guilty pleasures. Try to keep the bare minimum in the cupboards until you have been able to tackle your stress eating addiction.
Once you have a better handle on knowing your limits and making changes where necessary, then you can start to reintroduce treats to your kitchen,
Distract Yourself
As with any addiction sometimes the best way to get started on quitting is to distract yourself from your craving. When you start to feel a wave of desire to start to eat but you aren't hungry, try to immediately distract your mind onto something else.
Take a walk around the block, watch a funny video, or call a friend.
Join a Support Group Or Forum
If you can't seem to find the strength alone then you may want to consider that you need a little more support.
This can come in the form of a group which you physically meet up with, or perhaps you would prefer to opt for an online group on a forum.
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