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The team at our manufacturing plant in Yorkshire have been busy making blinds for the most famous store in London.
The store, which the Daily Express recently described as the world's best–loved corner shop, will be installing blackout blinds in some of its shop windows.
Apparently, staff at the store will draw the blinds while they change over the window displays.
The blackout blinds, which are most commonly used in bedrooms as they don't let in any light, were carefully selected by the store to prevent passersby getting a sneaky peak of the top secret new window displays before they are officially revealed.
As requested, the store had its emblem and a short message printed on the blinds.
Take a look at the video of the blinds being tested ahead of them being sent to Clive from Apollo Blinds Loughton who will then organise their installation.
[We did have some funky music on the video but YouTube didn't like it, so we had to take it off]


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I am putting together a likert scale using the mouse/touch screen input option. Does anybody have an opinion about the most efficient method?
Using the "Text" event type, I can specify regions of the screen as correct responses. But I do not know if I can code the response regions or not?
Alternatively, I can use the "Picture File" event type and use images as the likert scale selections then code each image (though that is a bit cumbersome).
Another problem I have faced is the issue of counterbalancing the likert presentations. Can a item list be used in this case to generate touch screen (or mouse clicked) regions that can also be variably coded depending on the counterbalance?
Thank you all for your help.

subset: commoncrawl


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Choose the New Mountain Dew: Demographics and Soda Preferences
In case you haven't been following how the crucial Dewmocracy race is shaping up across the nation—the race in which we all come together to decide among Mountain Dew Voltage, Supernova, and Revolution—well, So Good blog has been handicapping the proceedings. So Good proprietor John Eick revealed yesterday that Voltage (blue raspberry) was winning in every single state and had even analyzed results in several states:
So why all the hate for the strawberry melon Revolution? Well, don't be fooled. There appear to be some interesting regional taste preferences. I can't discern the national trend, but the strawberry seems to be running ahead of the wild berry in large parts of the Southwest, Midwest and Southeast. For example, in California, it's running a tight second place, with 39% to blue raspberry's 44%.
As of publication of this post, however, it looks like Revolution (wild berry fruit) is carrying West Virginia while Supernova (Strawberry Melon) has pulled ahead in California and Arizona. Nevada is in a three-way tie. Looks like this race could use some John King touchscreen groping.
All products linked here have been independently selected by our editors. We may earn a commission on purchases, as described in our affiliate policy.


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Blogged By: La Tray
Source & Story Credit: Japan Today
Photo Credit: Google Images
Posted: Thurday April 19, 2012 @12:42 p.m. PST
Actress Meisa Kuroki, 23, has officially announced that she is pregnant. The announcement was made on her blog on Sunday, several weeks after it was widely reported by media.
Kuroki, who was rumored to be pregnant when she married singer Akanishi Jin, 27, back in February, told fans, "I'm finally able to officially announce that I am four months pregnant." She went on to apologize for the delay in the announcement.
Both Kuroki and Akanishi publicly denied their relationship and failed to confirm widespread reports that Kuroki was pregnant at the time of their marriage.
"Right now, I feel mentally and physically well. I'm happy and grateful to have been blessed with a child," she wrote.
Kuroki's agency has announced that she is to appear in the play, "Miyazawa Kenji ga Tsutaeru Koto," on May 12-13 at Setagaya Public Theater, before going on maternity leave. She reportedly plans to return to work sometime after giving birth.


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Moderator: Snag
Lriot wrote:
The text says that normal human dies after getting a lvl 5 wound (Aegis soldier/pilot with lvl 6) but it never says what happens before that.
What mechanical effects wounds have on characters? Can a character have let's say seven lvl 4 wounds and still be perfectly fine?
And a similar question regarding Aegis armor. When does it get destroyed?
There are rules for damaging it (page 70) but how much damage is too much? There is only one text about Aegis exploding due to the battery damage but that's it. Or is damaging a battery an only way to destroy the Armor?
Also Apollo and Hades operative armor (page 41).
Text says "To score an Injury after a hit against an Apollo Soldier, the shooter must roll an 8,
9 or 10."
"Hades Ops are given a sleek prototype body armor meant for speed rather than
protection. Any successful hit requires the shooter roll a 6-10 to cause Injury."
What exactly does it mean?
A shooter must roll X means that after a hit one must roll another dice or the bang used must be with that score?
I'd say the first option is correct cause there are no bangs with a value 7 and 9.
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Sunday School – 10:00 am
Worship Service – 11:00 am
Bible Study – 12:15 pm
Wednesday Bible Study - 6:30 pm
12859 Martin Road Spur
Northport, AL 35473
Watering the Tulips
January 16, 2013
"By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another" – John 13:35
Certainly, every child of God should be fueled with a desire to properly represent God. We should do this in both word and deed. The verse before us today concerns our actions towards other children of God. This must not be interpreted as only referring to the members of your particular assembly. Though, a church body should have love for one another. Yet, there must ever be love for all of God's children.
It is so easy to allow disagreements and divisions to fuel anger and hatred. However, these are not fruits of the Spirit, but fruits of the flesh. Paul was inspired to tell us that "the fruit of the Spirit is love…"(Galatians 5:22). And again, we are told, "But concerning brotherly love you have no need that I should write to you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another" (1 Thessalonians 4:9). So, the natural man is easily angered and often bitter. The natural man is selfish and prideful. But, the spiritual man is taught by the Holy Spirit to love his fellow brothers and sisters in Christ! That is certainly powerful.
But, what are we to do about doctrinal differences? What are we to do about personality clashes? What are we to do when we are offended? Obviously, fellowship with some children of God is more limited than with others. We may not always be able to invite certain preachers to speak due to doctrinal variances. However, we must always take the advice of Jesus in Matthew 7:12 which says, "Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets."
We must never allow our differences to fuel anger and malice towards one of God's children. We must keep the Golden Rule in mind. We must also remember that they are bought with the same blood that we are bought with. God effectively drew them the Christ in the same manner He worked in us. The Holy Spirit leads them just as He leads us. And, as unlikely as it seems in our mind, perhaps we are the one who is wrong!
It certainly never hurts to be reminded that you are the biggest sinner you know. You know things about yourself that others do not know. You know of the spiritual battles you have lost. You know of the times you have sinned. Perhaps your brother in Christ has done you wrong. But, he has certainly done you no more wrong than you know you have done to God. A continual reminder that "I am the biggest sinner I know" will go far in your ability to love your brother or sister in Christ.
Our duty as children of God is to be a light to the world (Matthew 5:16). We are to share the love of God which has been freely given to us. Though we deserved wrath, God loved us and sent His Son to pay the debt that we had so selfishly mounted against Him. This love is seen by the world and shared with them when they see the love we have for one another. Lord, help us to have love for one another!
Watering the Tulips is brought to you by Sovereign Grace Baptist Church in Northport, AL. For more information, please visit www.sovereigngrace.net. "Your App to the Gospel" is available the iTunes app store as well as Google Play. Please download it today!


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B No 1 Wen Zhou Road, Sifang District, 000000 Qingdao, China Show on the map
Choose your room
It is located in Wenzhou Road in Qingdao, in right near to Qingdao Long Distance Bus Station, in left close to Haipohe Culture Park, It is only 7 KM to Qingdao Bus Station. It is just 23 KM to Qingdao International Airport. It is just 10 minutes to Commercial District on foot. Our hotel have 56 rooms and multi-media meeting room and provide meetings, foods, free parking and free ADSL Internet for the guest.
Check-in and check-out
Check-in starts at: 12:00
Check-out ends at: 12:00


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Crane Inspections and Preventive Maintenance
Konecranes certified inspectors and trained technicians provide an accurate assessment of the condition of your equipment. They evaluate risks, identify improvement opportunities and provide recommendations.
An active preventive maintenance and service program is crucial to improving safety and productivity. Preventive maintenance can reduce downtime and increase reliability. We create a proactive customized maintenance plan based on your equipment, application and duty cycle.
A global approach to maintenance management
Preventive Maintenance Inspections identify risks and improvement opportunities. Our vast experience and expertise allow us to tailor preventive maintenance to each manufacturer's recommendations.
Routine Maintenance, such as adjusting and lubricating, is performed to keep your equipment running while satisfying manufacturer's maintenance instructions.
Compliance Inspections are designed to satisfy regulatory requirements. Our trained inspectors and technicians are your go-to experts on local regulations. In some countries, regulations require the use of a third party.
These essential Inspection and preventive maintenance tasks are bundled into service products. Our products are combined to form our Service Programs.
Service products tailored to your requirements
In most countries, our MAINMAN™ Planned Maintenance combines preventive maintenance inspections with routine maintenance and forms the foundation for our CARE Preventive Maintenance Program. Where permitted, we can also perform compliance inspections to satisfy local regulatory requirements.
In the United States and Canada, our MAINMAN™ Assessment product is a preventive maintenance inspection that is designed to give you an in-depth view of the condition of your equipment. MAINMAN Assessment forms the foundation of our CARE Preventive Maintenance Program and satisfies the requirements of the periodic compliance inspection. Routine maintenance is always recommended alongside a MAINMAN Assessment.
Risk & Recommendation Method
No matter which service product is being applied, our Risk and Recommendation Method drives our evaluation and consultative processes.
A component is inspected in order to ascertain its condition. Failures, deficiencies and violations are documented and assigned one of three risk types: safety, production, or undetermined. In addition, a variety of improvement opportunities can be identified. Recommended actions are determined and discussed with you.
Our consultative approach
Only Konecranes provides expert advice every step of the way. As part of our consultative approach, we perform the following reviews.
Safety Review
This equipment-level review is to inform you of detected safety-related faults or issues before the technician leaves your site or before the equipment is returned to operation.
Visit Review
These job- or site-level reviews provide you with insight into inspection and maintenance findings, identified risks and recommended actions.
Service Review
A service professional from your local branch will follow up with you to go through open recommendations and quotes, answer your questions and plan next steps.
Business Review
This business-level review of your current maintenance program is aimed at demonstrating a return on investment and driving continuous improvement.
Consultation Services supplement your inspections and PM program
Some components that are not readily accessible for inspection without disassembly may pose an undetermined risk. Konecranes uses advanced technology and non-destructive testing (NDT) to uncover latent or hidden defects.
Gear Case Inspection: Internal components are assessed using an endoscope and oil analysis. In some cases the gear case is disassembled to perform non-destructive testing on the internal components.
Coupling Inspection: Couplings are critical components for safe crane operation and in some cases need to be disassembled for inspection.
Hook Analysis: Non-destructive testing is available to uncover latent defects in the hook and shank.
RopeQ Magnetic Rope Inspection: The internal wires, strands and core that are not readily visible are inspected with an electromagnetic device.
Full access to information about your equipment
Our customer portal is an easy way to access relevant and up-to-date service information. It allows you to view your inspection and service reports as well as service requests and history.
Depending on your service program, you will have online access to:
• Personalized login and ability to create service requests
• Service requests showing open, in progress and completed work
• Service plans with visit schedules by equipment
• List of active and past agreements
• List of registered equipment, categorized by location
• Selected inspection and other service reports issued by Konecranes
• TRUCONNECT® Remote Service data


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Jolt wrote:capnnerefir wrote:I've often seen the one in Lujiang called Huan instead of Wan; it seems to be about an even split. Does anyone know the reason for this pronunciation?
I just grabbed the character in question (皖), and it appears to be an alternate spelling of the character.
Is either of them more correct? Or is it like the Zong/Cong thing, where your guess is as good as mine?


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FIVE POINTS, Fla. – With a quick shave and a hope for a cure, supporters are making a difference in the lives of children fighting cancer.
It's all through the St. Baldrick's Foundation. Every dollar earned goes toward cancer research.
"Any kinds of hair on the table can be donated. We can donate that for wigs," said Sam Gilbert of the St. Baldrick's Foundation. "Essentially, it's just shaving your head, as just a way of being in solidarity with children who lose their hair from cancer treatment."
This is an issue very near and dear to Scott Johnson's heart, whose 8-year-old daughter is battling leukemia.
"She is the toughest little girl you'll ever meet," said Johnson. "We joke all the time and her catchphrase is, 'I'm going to kick cancer's butt!' And she does it every day."
For others, it's about having a great time, doing a good thing and to make a difference, and it really means a lot to some.
"St. Baldrick's is amazing. They've raised $120 million in eight years for children's cancer research," said Johnson. "It's a wonderful cause and a wonderful foundation."
Officials with the organization say their goal Sunday was to raise $20,000. They told Channel 4's Ashley Harding there is a very good chance they could surpass that goal.


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Schleswig-Holstein is defined by the North Sea and the Baltic, with the rhythm of life determined by wind and waves and the ebb and flow of the tides. An ideal holiday destination for families, water sports enthusiasts and nature lovers.
The federal state of Schleswig-Holstein is in the far north of Germany. Its capital is Kiel As a holiday region, Schleswig-Holstein offers beaches, sand dunes, fresh sea breezes and dykes stretching far into the distance. Discover nature at its best, with a bike tour along one of the attractive cycle routes or exploring the coastal islands on land or by sail boat. Or how about an excursion on one of the many rivers by canoe or kayak? There's something for everyone in Schleswig-Holstein, from families and couples to single travellers. Let your children discover the diversity of nature and the excitement of museums and parks – at the beach, by the sea or inland. Holidays in Schleswig-Holstein can easily be combined with a range of active pursuits. The bracing sea air, sun, sand and salt water lift the spirits as well as boosting the immune system. Coastlines, waterscapes, nature reserves and national parks shape Schleswig-Holstein's scenery.
Towns, cities and regions
Discover the land between the North Sea and the Baltic in all its many facets. Each region offers something different: the Wadden Sea World Natural Heritage and dykes define the North Sea coast, while the Baltic Coast has magnificent cliffs and white sandy beaches, with enchanting lakes set amid gently rolling hills characteristic of the inland region. The Duchy of Lauenburg, the most southerly area of Schleswig-Holstein, boasts extensive woodland and numerous lakes that offer a wide choice for nature lovers. Schleswig-Holstein's towns and cities have a distinctly maritime character, a wealth of historical buildings, great shopping and impressive cultural highlights.
Wadden Sea World Natural Heritage
Covering an area of 4,430 square kilometres from the Elbe estuary to the Danish border, the Schleswig-Holstein Wadden Sea UNESCO World Natural Heritage and biosphere reserve is a truly remarkable landscape, large areas of which have been designated a national park, and remain in an unspoilt, natural state to this day.
© Tourismus-Agentur Schleswig-Holstein GmbH
Tourismus-Agentur Schleswig-Holstein GmbH
Wall 55
24103 Kiel
E-Mail: email@example.com


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Business owner's retirement signals the end of an era in Oxford
By ACL
Ediene's Jewelry has been a mainstay in Oxford for 25 years. Owner Ediene Ringler is retiring at the end of October.
By Steven Hoffman
Staff Writer
Twenty-five years to the day after she opened her shop, Ediene Ringler is officially retiring.
She is in the process of transferring Ediene's Jewelry to Alesia Mills, who has worked as the goldsmith in the stop for the last 23 years. It will be called Millstone Jewelers as of Nov. 1. Until then, a retirement sale is underway with 50 percent discounts on watches, 40 percent discounts on all decorative accessories, including clocks, and 25 percent off all jewelry.
Ringler said that she started selling jewelry at the Oxford News Shop, which she owned with her husband, Vernon, about five years before she opened Ediene's. It served as kind of a trial run for the jewelry store.
"I had about two counters for jewelry at the news shop," she explained. "I was taking silversmithing courses at the time. Vernon said, 'Why don't you open a jewelry store.'"
She did just that on Nov. 1 1988 when she opened up Ediene's Jewelry. Ever since then her business would occupy one of the most highly visible locations in downtown Oxford. There have been countless changes in the town's business district since then, but Ediene's has been a constant.
Does it feel like 25 years have passed since she opened the store?
"Sometimes," Ediene said with a laugh.
Ediene's retirement is the end of an era for the Ringler family and the Oxford business community—for the first time in a very long time, no business in town is owned by a member of the Ringler family.
Vernon Ringler explained that with their daughter, Nadiene, working at Ediene's, five generations of the family have made their living while working in the borough. It started with Vernon's great grandfather, Thomas, who came to Oxford after the Civil War. He drove a stagecoach from Oxford to Parkesburg. When the trains came to town, Thomas Ringler went into the freight business and took mail to the train station.
Thomas' son, S. Vernon Ringler was a constable in Oxford for 30 years and also ran a freight business. He died at the age of 47 and his wife took over the freight business.
Vernon Ringler pointed out that there is a long history of the women of the family being very entrepreneurial.
"The women in the family have been very involved in the businesses," he said.
Eventually, Horace Ringler joined his mother in the business and, in 1948 he opened up Ringler's Appliance. Horace also died at the age of 47 and his wife—the mother of Vernon and Bill Ringler—stepped in to run the business. Bill was in the Navy at the time but in 1953 he started helping his mother run the business. Vernon joined the business in 1962, following his service in the Marine Corps. In 1967, the Ringlers bought the Oxford News Shop. At one time, Vernon recalled, they were selling 1,000 newspapers on Sunday and all the brothers' children—the fifth-generation to work in Oxford—were all involved.
Ediene's Jewelry opened in 1988 in a building that has a notable history dating back to 1864. At one time, it served as the Oxford Hall Association that the Dickeys—Oxford's preeminent family—were very involved with. At one time, the first floor housed a general store, the second floor was an entertainment hall that featured live entertainment, and the third floor was the home of the Masonic Lodge. A photographer also had his business located here. The building, including the top floors, is still in good shape, especially considering its age.
With so much family history intertwined with the businesses, it's not surprising that the Ringlers would have mixed emotions about retiring, but Vernon said that now is the time.
"We've been involved in Oxford since 1962," Vernon Ringler said. "We're ready."


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I realize most of you think blogging about Christmas is SO last season, but it's not all about you, you know. Let's just pretend we all still care how my Christmas vacation went.
Christmas was so much fun, right?! One of the perks of Kyle's job is that it's portable because it only requires his lap top and a phone line. So, we got to head off to my parents' in Sacramento a whole week early so the kids and I could soak up the festivities while Kyle camped in a cold, [not so] quiet corner of the house working and trying not to get distracted by all the Christmas fun he was missing.
He wasn't excluded from all the fun, though, you see. He and the boys had a superbowl man's night. Notice how, completely unprovoked, Erik must be poking (or otherwise injuring) his brother at all times.
We hadn't seen Dad, Joestie, or Bryce in a whole year, and this was our first acquaintance with Joestie's little Alex. It was love at first sight.
And when Charlie wasn't trying to eat him, they got along swimmingly.
Do adults really buy those tiny varieties for their own consumption?
The way I see it, having half the fat means I can eat twice as much.
I'd tried all month to make gingerbread men with the kids and never got around to it until Santa cookies on Christmas eve. This recipe uses a package of butterscotch pudding so it's more like a ginger-cinnamony sugar cookie. Yum. I'm so glad I'm Santa.
Handwritten letter to Snato, I mean Santa. She gets to the point: "Snato, computer pretend. Ellie"
Erik asked for a Super Why (PBS reading superhero) doll.
I make sure to use this plate (petite as it is) and glass every year because I bought this on clearance somewhere just a couple weeks after we were married. Kyle, like most rational people, thought it a pretty useless purchase given our then family size. So my job is to make it look like it was worth storing for those years plus 364 days of the year from now on.
I also whipped out several loaves of this tasty tradition (glazed bread stuffed with sweet, lemony cream cheese and cherry pie filling). Usually it is Ma, but she was out of commission after starting chemotherapy a few days previous. Usually we gift these candy cane breads as we Christmas carol friends, but this year we just ate them.
Without Scott and Kristin and their kids (missed you guys!), our nativity production was somewhat less impressive this year, but Ellie still got to stuff a doll up her shirt.
We sang some songs and Dad read a story that I remember being a tear jerker, but appears to have also been a knee slapper.
And then it was Christmas morn. Santa had Charlie's mom in mind when he brought this ornamented cage.
Wow, not a flattering shot of any of us, but magic was in our hearts.
Christmas breakfast was better than ever. I made creme brulee french toast (and maybe our family's tastes are not refined enough for that because I don't think the second pan ever got finished off, but in their defense, it was perhaps not quite tasty enough for the caloric content), and we also ate fruit, artichoke sausage and spinach cheese puffs that I didn't make.
That is Mish's stack of loot beside Ellie.
Mish and I did the homemade gift deal this year, with Mish's embroidered neck pillow for Fa (other side decorated with his qualities, as to support the neck and ego simultaneously) and Mom-ism dish towels among my faves. (Why the underline!? No really, why does automatic underline always happen to good people!?)
No wonder I needed a diet after Christmas break. The only vegetable for Christmas dinner was canned and smothered in cream. Vitamix would be ashamed of me.
We entertained ourselves by watching family videos, playing Bang!, initiating a round of Iron Chef (only got video footage of that), complete with secret ingredients and hungry judges, and perusing the town for oddities on our scavenger hunt check list, such as Bryce hanging from a tree ...
and a 50+% off sale...
and some good old fashioned p.d.a. (had to be within six feet of it, which was trickier than anticipated). The only item neither team captured was a photo with a smiling child (other than our own). I was creeping myself out stalking isolated children through Walmart.
Christie's hair is already straight, but Mish's exuberance for her new chi flat iron knew no bounds.
Pretty sweet lake view for the dead of winter. The weather was fabulous. So that's why people live in California.
Christmas was so many kinds of wonderful. Don't forget we detoured to Disneyland, too. That recap is up next.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Happy Holidays
I realize most of you think blogging about Christmas is SO last season, but it's not all about you, you know. Let's just pretend we all still care how my Christmas vacation went.
Posted by Kyle at 7:20 PM 6 comments
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Well, whaddya know?
So, we had a great weekend with my parents, but I haven't uploaded pix yet, so that will come.
As we were impulsively deciding to make the overnight trek to Sacramento on Thursday afternoon, Kyle pointed out that gas would cost us half of a Vitamix. Was I sure I wouldn't rather put the money there?
I was sure. Vitamix would always hold a place in my heart, but it was really more of a far away fantasy to actually own one. Kind of like owning a home. Fun to dream about and all too easy to covet, but just not gonna happen.
Also kind of like owning a Cricut. Just not gonna happe-- wait. I own one of those! And wait, I own one of THESE!!!
Yes, me and Vitamix are in the honeymoon stage. We cannot be separated. The Larsens are eating liquefied breakfast, lunch, and dinner around here. It is bliss. Sheer low-fat, tasty, five-fruits-and-vegetables-a-day bliss.
Truly, the kids have consumed more vegetables in the past two days than the past month, probably. (For instance, last night I cleaned out my crisper and all of us gobbled up the cream of asparagus-spinach-carrot-avocado-salsa soup.)
Are you wondering how in this life I broke Kyle down to buy one?
Yeah, I didn't. Ma is much easier to break. And the thing about Ma's generosity is that Mish and I didn't even ask for one-- I never ever would have. We just stood there drinking all the samples at Costco and absorbing all the saleslady's propaganda and there was some excitement in the air for all of us, and before we knew it Judy was asking us, "Alright, just go ahead and choose. Do you want black or white?" We chose the black one.
Judy was actually the same saleslady who introduced me to the Vitamix in Murray (destiny, no?), and she remembered us well! "You and your husband and all your kids were just standing there trying everything and asking lots of questions and I was so sure you were going to get one, and then you just walked away!" Yep, that's about right.
Mish and I have grand plans for preparing all our meals for the week on Saturdays and I'll send her back to Provo full of tupperwares to freeze. We also decided we're taking veganism to a new level-- we'll be eating ONLY fresh fruit and vegetables from now on. Actually, I'll still be eating buttered wheat toast. And we figured, with childbearing and all, we should put some calcium in our bones, so we'll use milk cubes in some smoothies.
So, I am overcome with love and gratitude for my generous parents and love and gratitude for my new Vitamix. Love, sweet [artificial sweetener-free] love.
Posted by Kyle at 8:15 PM 9 comments
Friday, February 12, 2010
Big Boy Interrupted
Day two of potty training. Two accidents, nine successes. That was only until 2 pm, though, afterwhich the diapers were snatched, packaging in tact, out of the garbage pile outside and reinstated for the weekend. No, we are not quitters. We are spontaneous! (We are quitters with night training, though. Trying to wake Erik up to go potty in the middle of the night unleashed a nightmarish scene with tears of desperation rollings down more than a few faces. Sobering details later.)
We decided at 1 pm to take a road trip to CA, I left at 2 pm to pick up Mish, and we were on the road by 5 pm. So, here we are, enjoying the Olympic opening ceremonies in the warmth and comfort of my parents' home, Ma clad in fuzzy Vikings cap (pics to come). It is good times and too much food all around.
The only drawback (aside from Mish having to cancel a few social engagements) was interrupting Erik's potty training regiment. Still, when I put a diaper back on him yesterday afternoon, I exhaled with great relief. I hadn't realized truly how tense and anxious I'd been following him around always expecting the wet and hoping for the dry. He's back to pooping his pants for now, but I am hoping to seamlessly resume our potty plans upon our return to UT on Tuesday.
In the meantime, life is beautiful, I am ever sleepless, happy, and well-fed. No pics of Erik's nakey buns today, but here are some family pics from December. Considering Ellie's black eye and the fact that these photos were taken after the kids' bedtime, we were oh so pleasantly surprised with how many genuine smiles surfaced for the camera. I bought the copyright, so feel free to copy and print as you please, Mom. =)
Posted by Kyle at 8:57 PM 13 comments
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
A New Erik: Day 1
Okay, perhaps I've sounded a bit dramatic in the past about the task of potty training Erik. For those who don't know Erik well, perhaps the most encompassing word to describe him, after cute, is hypersensitive. Yes, that came out strongly this morning. At 10am I felt I'd underestimated the treacherous impossibility of attempting this task alone and was ready to quit. However, we'd already thrown his diapers in the trash first thing in the morning. He could still squeeze into Charlie's diapers, Erik reminded me several times. But no. I was more committed than that.
Eventually, a few "accidents" later, I persuaded Erik to at least try sitting on the potty chair, and even later, finally bribed him with sugary snacks into wearing undies. (Yes, he remained nude for a little while there, eg below wearing "skates.")
Having the potty party atmosphere helped, I think. (Streamers, balloons, all the toys that have been packed in storage for a few weeks, special cookies and crackers, unlimited chocolate milk and grape juice.)
Having the Pauls over for a couple hours was a worthy distraction, as well. Six kids constrained to one room made for some serious craziness (and sounded much like a demolition team to Bob downstairs), but passed the time well.
Once he was willing to sit on the potty and wear undies, things went pretty smoothly. Only once did he get to the potty to go #1 of his own initiative (he did forget to pull his undies down before squatting, but I was still ecstatic), but he still earned a total of TEN potty stickers! I am eternally grateful that he did both #2s on the potty! He also had nine accidents, and then another in his bed just now.
Hmmm, that makes 17 peepees today. That was a little shocking to me. Granted, I was forcing chocolate milk on the kid all day, but I was still caught unaware. I guess when you've never had to use any bladder restraint whatsoever, it's just one small stream after another trickling out all day.
I won't pretend that this was less than the most exhausting and stressful day I've had in a long while, but on the up side, I am incredibly proud of the progress Erik made in twelve [extremely long] hours. From the first puddle, I was so pleased that he even recognized what had happened. I was afraid he'd just play on! Not only did he notice he'd peed, but it also bothered him. Good, good. And he got to the potty all on his own once. Better, better. And a couple other times he dripped a little and then held it until I could transport him to the can. Excellent. Couldn't hope for more, really. Wouldn't dare to. But I do expect tomorrow to be an improvement.
P.S. Charlie decided today would be a fine day to start crawling. He also found it a fine day to take three naps, but I'm using the term nap very loosely. He slept a total of 40 minutes over twelve hours. So, it's been an enriching day. =)
Posted by Kyle at 7:19 PM 6 comments
Tuesday, February 09, 2010
Ready or not...
Chicken starts potty training tonight.
Tomorrow it is Erik. If I am still alive tomorrow night, I will post details. (No harm in being a little dramatic, right?)
Posted by Kyle at 5:32 PM 1 comments
Sunday, February 07, 2010
If I had time to myself...
If Charlie went away for a day, I would sleep through the entire night! I would read to and make crafts with the big kids all day. We would play with Polly Pockets and I would give Erik all the attention he craves. I would have full use of both of my arms.
But then I would get to missing him. I would miss his chubby thighs and toothless smile. I would miss the way his eyes light up when he sees me and the way he nuzzles into my shoulder. I would miss how he enters a jumping frenzy out of nowhere and is constantly grappling for something, anything to put in his mouth, especially if it's dirty or unsafe. I would miss peek-a-boo, I would miss his siblings doting over him, and I would miss kissing his bald head. I would miss him dearly.
Now if Erik went away for a day, we would go to Costco and Ellie could sit next to Charlie in the cart without argument. We would sample all the exotic foods. We would probably stay out all day and no one would be tantruming over it. Ellie and Charlie probably wouldn't be hit, pushed, or poked once the whole day.
But then we would get to missing that laugh. Oh, that superbly infectious laugh. There is little that I love more than his complete surrender to bliss that emanates from that laugh. And I would miss all the quirky comments and slowly constructed sentences. I would miss those long, dark eyelashes and that charming smile. I would miss that waddle, that imaginative mind, those endearing mispronunciations. I would miss that densely-packed piece of wonderful so very, very much.
If Ellie was the one to leave, Erik would finally get to be the star. He would get to choose what to play and what color plate to eat off of. He would get to answer all of my questions without being interrupted and corrected by a quicker, more articulate respondent. We could play with trains and dinosaurs and superheroes all day, with a tea party probably thrown in. I would hold him whenever Charlie slept. We would scribble and sing the alphabet song. We would be quiet sometimes.
But then it would be too quiet. Maybe even a little dull. Erik would tire of me as his sole playtime companion. Charlie would not find us quite as amusing. I would miss her good manners, her love for everyone, her desire to be good. I would miss her relentless curiosity, even the word "why?" ringing in my ears. I would miss the way she bounces with excitement over many simple things. I would miss the way she stuffs an animal under her shirt and announces her upcoming delivery every hour or so. I would miss her eager hugs and compliments on my parenting. No, I couldn't make it without her at all.
And if Kyle ever dared to stay away for a day, I would go shopping for kids' clothes, crafts, trendy accessories, home decorations, anything would do. I would read Twilight. I would watch HGTV and make pumpkin soup for dinner. This is all assuming he took the kids with him, I guess.
But before the day would be done, I would long for him, of course. I would need someone to whom I could rattle off the details of my day, who would listen and take sincere interest. I would miss his willingness to help, his amazing example of self-discipline (one I desperately need!), and his admiration of my good (imagined or real) qualities. I would miss his belly laugh, and the way the sides of his eyes get all wrinkly when he smiles. I would miss the way he dances like a crazy person and the kids are almost as entertained as me. I would miss his handiness in opening a jar, killing a spider, cleaning a toilet, and fixing the thermostat. I would miss the way he slumbers sweetly early in the evening while I whittle the hours away blogging and such, and then how he pacifies Charlie throughout the night and tends to the kids in the morning, expecting no more than a grunt of acknowledgment from me as he kisses me goodbye on his way off to work. I love how ecstatic he is to see us when he comes home. I love how much I love to see him, too. We are irritable and distracted and sometimes even exasperated with each other, and all the while so far in love we'll never look back.
Posted by Kyle at 10:28 PM 8 comments


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How to convert Inset graphics to absolute coords?
- To: mathgroup at smc.vnet.net
- Subject: [mg113476] How to convert Inset graphics to absolute coords?
- From: kj <no.email at please.post>
- Date: Sat, 30 Oct 2010 04:37:59 -0400 (EDT)
I have a complicated Graphic object x, generated through nested calls to GraphicsGrid. Hence x contains Inset graphics within Inset graphics. Now I need to automatically edit this Graphics object to add various labels to it. (If I add the labels before the calls to GraphicsGrid the relative sizes of the objects in the grid gets screwed up.) But in order to correctly position these labels I need to be able to extract absolute coordinates from the Graphics object x. The obstacle, of course, is that almost everything inside x is expressed as coordinates relative to Inset objects. Is there a simple way to convert this representation to an "absolute" representation? (By this I mean the representation one would need to use to describe x if Inset were not available.) I'm hoping to find the "moral equivalent" of a hypothetical AbsoluteForm function. BTW, I know that I could attempt to write my own conversion function, but I'm trying to avoid this if at all possible; GridGraphics and Inset are each too much of a black box (in fact, all of Mathematica is) to attempt this operation conversion function lightly. TIA! ~kj


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In a decision that could have implications for how show and sports tickets are sold in Baltimore, the state's highest court ruled Friday that service fees charged by Ticketmaster amount to scalping — setting up the possibility that people who attended some events might ultimately be eligible for refunds.
The ruling, which stems from a class action lawsuit brought in federal court in 2011, relies on an obscure 1948 Baltimore ordinance rushed through the City Council to curb scalping of Navy football tickets. But it underscores a modern frustration many concertgoers and sports fans have had with service charges that are frequently tacked on by ticket vendors.
Whether the ruling will result in refunds for people who attended games at Camden Yards, performances at the Patricia & Arthur Modell Performing Arts Center at the Lyric or shows at other major venues in the city will depend on how the U.S. District Court for Maryland decides on several unresolved questions.
Service charges are "a way of masking the real price for consumers and driving up the cost," said Marty Wolf of Towson-based Gordon & Wolf, which brought the lawsuit. The decision, he said, could affect "almost every venue in the city."
A Baltimore man, Andre Bourgeois, filed the suit in 2011 after paying $12 in Ticketmaster service charges on a $52 ticket to see Jackson Browne perform at the Lyric in 2009. It is one of several lawsuits that have been filed over the fees against Ticketmaster, which merged with events company Live Nation in 2010.
A spokeswoman for Live Nation declined to comment, citing the pending federal lawsuit. Sandy Richmond, president and executive director of the Lyric, also declined to comment.
The federal court requested the Maryland Court of Appeals to decide whether a Baltimore City ordinance banning the sale of tickets above face value applied in the case. That ordinance was rushed through the City Council in one day in 1948 after reports that city residents were being charged exorbitant prices by ticket agencies to attend a Navy-Notre Dame football game.
The Maryland court ruled that the ordinance does apply.
It's not clear how many tickets could be affected by the decision.
Even if refunds never come, the ruling may force Ticketmaster to use what's known as all-in pricing on tickets sold in Baltimore, meaning additional charges would have to be included in the face value price, which the company sometimes already does.
In a brief filed in state court, Ravens and Orioles officials said they support the current ticket sales structure in Baltimore.


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On the flip side we did meet some very interesting people. One person in particular was an older gentleman who served in the Army Air Force during WWII. During his tour of duty he flew the hump, that is, he flew over the Himalayan Mountains between India and China to resupply the Chinese war effort against the Japanese. After the war he became a NASA engineer and helped build the Apollo program, and was very involved in helping to bring back Apollo 13. I asked him about the Tom Hanks movie. He told us they got the story just about right.
During our visit we did several short hikes, including Bright Angel Point, which is a quarter-mile walk along the peninsula that juts out from the historic Grand Canyon Lodge. From this vantage point you can "see" Grand Canyon Village on the edge of the South Rim - roughly 11 miles away in the hazy distance. You can also see 12,633-foot Humphreys Peak, the highest point in Arizona roughly 64 miles away! You may be able to see the peak in the first photo below - rising above the "horizon line" through the haze:
While soaking in the views we noticed a helicopter fly into the canyon. We assumed it was a tour ride, however, after a few minutes it flew back in our direction with a rescue basket hanging from it. It then made another run, this time coming back with two large cargo loads tethered to the bird. We never found out if this was a rescue or not. Coincidentally, there actually was a search and rescue operation carried out that same day, but it was in another part of the park.
Although we didn't get an opportunity to see one, you should definitely keep an eye out for California Condors riding the thermals over the canyons along the North Rim. Extremely close to extinction in the late 1980s, condors were reintroduced into the wild in 1991, and have been making a steady comeback ever since. As of May 2012 the population count of known condors was 405, including 226 living in the wild, mostly in northern Arizona and southern Utah. These rare birds have wingspans that exceed 9 feet, and can live up to 60 years! Although we weren't lucky enough to see one, we did see a golden eagle floating on the breeze.
Our next stop took us out to Cape Royal, a place with a reputation for great sunsets. This easy 0.6-mile roundtrip hike offers a few peeks at the Colorado River flowing through the bottom of the canyon. The view while standing atop Angels Window was quite stunning.
You might consider this to be a bit of national park heresy, but I thought Zion National Park was far more impressive than the Grand Canyon. However, I should say, we never ventured into the canyon itself, so that opinion could possibly be changed.
Hiking Grand Canyon National Park provides firsthand descriptions and detailed maps for all of the developed trails in the park—from easy day hikes suitable for novices and children to extended backpack trips geared for intrepid wilderness travelers. The guide covers 15 hikes on the South Rim and 13 hikes on the North Rim. Also included are tips on safety, hiking with children, access, and services, as well as indispensable information about backcountry regulations, permits, and water sources.
Hiking in Great Smoky Mountains National Park


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The people at FamilySearch.org published their latest press release yesterday, and they have three Canadian projects that are being indexed.
In British Columbia, they have completed 43%% of the Death Vital Registers, and 71% of the Marriage Registers.
A new one — Registres Paroissiaux (the Parish Registers) (1800-1900) — is just underway, only having completed 2% so far, and it will be in French.
By coincidence, I have an article coming out in the November/December issue of Discovering Family History Magazine entitled, "Discovering Your Family History Center"!
It talks about Family History Centers around the world (did you know that there are 4,500 centers in 88 countries?), and their impact on the local genealogical community.


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isn't it curious that despite the fact that virtually every sentient being on the planet these days is now carrying around a hand-held device that can instantly record at least a few minutes of video, we haven't seen a single second of persuasive evidence that alien beings are zipping around the atmosphere in their jazzy, souped-up, silent-as-midnight "flying saucers"?
— "john"
Friday, December 27, 2013
quote of the day
Sunday, November 10, 2013
GOP gotta lotta splainin' to do
remember november 2012? (and who doesn't!) back when the new buzzword in republican punditry was "outreach"? if the last two presidential elections taught them nothing else, conservatives learned that they need to channel the coming demographic tide in their direction or be swept by a horde of icky brown people into irrelevance. to that end, frustrated red-staters, sick of slogans and spin, think they can woo hard-to-get traditionally democratic voters with blunt and honest "straight talk" — that is, by "splainin'" to people (whom they'd prefer to keep ignoring) just how dense and gullible they are for not believing the grand old party has their better interests at heart. all it takes is the right message to penetrate the fog. i mean, what else could account for the inexplicable blindness of women and minorities to the grade-A 100% all-american awesomeness of the "right" wing?
1) manSplainin':
i'm no dummy. i see what i see EVERY election cycle, and what i see is the same OL' SH!T. the democrats HYPNOTIZE the females against the 'traditional old white guy' party republican candidate and IT WORKS.
i feel like this is the TOP ISSUE which republican candidates must confront, and that will require OPENLY DISCUSSING THE MANIPULATION OF FEMALES BY DEMOCRATS. [VA governor candidate ken] cuccinelli needs to proclaim "you females are smarter than subjecting yourself to being USED by the PROVEN LIAR democrats!.. DON'T FALL FOR IT. YOU FELL FOR OBAMACARE, HOOK LINE AND SINKER. YOU WERE LIED TO, LADIES, AND THEY'RE LYING TO YOU AGAIN!! THEY AREN'T WHO OR WHAT THEY SAY THEY ARE."
i'm F'ing SICK AND TIRED of watching females huddle together with marxists, totally clueless that they've put their children's futures in jeopardy in exchange for a totally bogus emotional catharsis of the moment. i cannot stand this anymore. i'm SICK of it.
2) whiteSplainin':
3) gringoSplainin':
latinos need to be taught that the democrats have been lying to them, and bankrupting the country, since before most of them were born. somebody has to pay for those free school breakfasts, and even the white billionaires don't have that much money; the money is either borrowed (and your children and grandchildren will pay it back), or it's taxed out of the pockets of working men and women. they need to be taught that the GOP way gives the workers more money because they keeps more of their wages, rather than paying more in taxes; and that the GOP way creates more jobs, and better jobs for everyone.
most of all, they need to be taught that as reagan said, the best welfare program anyone ever invented is a job. get a good job and you can buy all the education, health care, and housing you and your family will ever need. and the way to get good jobs is to get the democratic party's enormous government out of the way, and let entrepreneurs create the jobs.[democrats] pander to them with the same lame promises they dupe the african americans with.... hope that we can get enough votes to redistribute all the advantages your way.
the flood gates were left open and now we must deal. i agree the black vote will not leave obama so the latin vote looms a bigger prize. as conservatives we MUST start to court the ideas of family and religion to this voting block. when the latinos wake up to the fact that the liberal mind wants to crush their spirituality they will revolt. i say just run some bill maher episodes on secularism as your ad campaign....republicans need to quit playing defense. they need to find a couple of good telegenic spanish speakers who will go on telemundo and univision look straight into the camera and ask — "we're just wondering ... are latins the new blacks?"
4) gentileSplainin':
when asked how the [messianic jewish bible institute] managed to secure [former president george w.] bush to keynote its fundraiser, [alisa] stephenson [MJBI director of events and partner relations] cited its track record of drawing influential speakers, pointing to the appearance by [right wing ideologue glenn] beck.
at last year's event, members of the MJBI's board of directors explained the organization's mission of converting jews to an audience of hundreds who were seated on a professional football field, wearing formal clothes, and eating pork barbecue. rabbi jonathan bernis, a leading messianic jew and televangelist who chairs MJBI's board of directors, maintained that "our numbers are growing and growing," because "the bible predicted that the day would come when the blindness would come off the eyes of the people it all began with." he was referring to jews.
the first step towards solving any problem is, of course, admitting that the problem exists. as far as the GOP's concerned, the problem isn't that the party's constructed a series of strawmen, scapegoats and bogeymen to serve as red meat and chew toys for its shrinking reactionary base. no, the real problem is getting all those icky strawmen, scapegoats and bogeymen to agree that they're idiots for not voting republican. but something tells me, however, that their hearts just aren't into it — or you.
Wednesday, November 06, 2013
the birther era
Saturday, October 12, 2013
not the civil war they dreamt of
hostage-taking 101: time is not on your side! — especially when your confederates chase different goals, expect different ransoms, serve different masters and respond differently to stress. should the theatrics play out too long, hands at each others' throats may be your only reward ...
salon: appearing on MSNBC on friday, congressman peter king continued his epic verbal assault on ted cruz — and, to a lesser extent, rand paul — by describing the texas senator as a "RINO" (republican in name only) and a "fraud."
speaking with MSNBC's andrea mitchell, king called the ongoing government shutdown "the strategy of ted cruz" and wondered aloud "why more republicans around the country didn't join me in denouncing ted cruz" before the shutdown began. "we cannot allow our party to be taken over by the likes of ted cruz and rand paul," king continued, describing cruz and paul as "isolationists" and "RINOs" who "don't represent traditional republican principles."
"ted cruz, what he did here, was lead the party into a dead end with no strategy, somehow convincing a number of house republicans that we just sent this to through senate as far as defunding and closing down the government, he would manage to get harry reid and president obama to back down," said king. "he never had a plan. it was fraudulent from the start. and we have to cut this guy off now."TPM: mccain's appearance on fox came shortly after sen. ted cruz (R-TX), the leader of the movement to defund the health care law, spoke at the values voter summit. maccallum asked mccain how he felt about cruz "representing" republicans at a meeting scheduled for friday at the white house.
"first of all, martha, please, he's not representing us there" ...daily kos: [tex rep louis gohmert:] "when it comes to the shutdown that's going on, i heard just before i came some senator from arizona, uh, a guy that liked qaddafi before he wanted to bomb him, a guy that liked mubarak before he wanted him out, a guy that's been to syria and supported al qaeda and rebels, but he was saying today the shutdown has been a fool's errand. and i agree with him. the president and harry reid should not have shut this government down!"TPM: tensions are flaring between house and senate republicans over how to defuse the crisis ahead of an oct. 17 debt ceiling deadline. house GOP members expressed concerns during a private saturday meeting that the senate GOP would undercut and jam them by striking a deal with president barack obama that conservatives dislike.
... "they're trying to cut the house out, and trying to jam us with the senate," a fired-up [WI rep. paul] ryan told reporters after the GOP meeting. "we're not going to roll over and take that."breitbart: on his radio show on friday, fox news host sean hannity said house speaker john boehner (R-OH), along with the rest of the republican leadership in the house, had to be replaced.
"i do think leadership in the house needs to change," hannity said. "i don't think john boehner is equipped for the job. i don't think he has the stomach to negotiate. i don't think he has the ability to communicate the positive, solution-oriented vision for the country."
... he said the GOP has a "communications problem" that has been reflected in the party's bad poll numbers.
hannity also ripped republican leaders in washington for "alienating" the tea party. hannity named senators like john mccain (R-AZ) and bob corker (R-TN) for being the top offenders and said their "unwillingness to stand strong" and constant bashing of the tea party is "irritating every conservative i know."AP: "we're not saying obama is right. we're saying what republicans are doing is wrong," said matt cox, a former executive director of ohio's cuyahoga county GOP.TPM: erick erickson, prominent conservative blogger, said on his blog friday that he will be donating to the primary opponents of house speaker john boehner (R-OH) and senate minority leader mitch mcconnell (R-KY) because of the way both leaders are approaching negotiations on the continuing resolution and debt ceiling.
"republican leaders in washington, DC are signaling they will cave on the fight against obamacare," erickson wrote. "GOP leaders, by caving, are signaling they want us to primary them."
erickson blamed the GOP's sinking approval ratings on boehner and other republican leaders.
"[n]ow that john boehner and the orange man group of capitol hill are the faces of the GOP, obamacare's popularity is going back up and the GOP's popularity is going back down," erickson wrote.redState: but john boehner, eric cantor, mitch mcconnell, and john cornyn will ensure that obamacare is fully funded and give the american public no delay like businesses have.
in doing so, they will sow the seeds of a real third party movement that will fully divide the republican party.washington post: conservative groups that advocated for a standoff spoke openly about their motives. at a breakfast with reporters wednesday, michael needham, chief executive of the conservative group heritage action, freely admitted that he was "pretty optimistic" that we will soon see a crackup of the old republican order.thinkProgress: as the government shutdown enters its eleventh day and the nation races towards a possible default, a growing number of republican lawmakers, leaders, and voters are publicly blaming congressional republicans for the budget impasse. ...
"it's time for someone to act like a grown-up in this process," former new hampshire gov. john sununu (R) told the associated press. michigan gov. rick snyder (R) agreed, remarking on monday that "this is not how we should operate. it shouldn't be about people fighting and yelling.' "the bottom line is we need that money in our economy to save rural hospitals and jobs in the rural areas," arizona gov. jan brewer (R) told the arizona daily star on thursday, criticizing the GOP'e effort to defund the affordable care act.
the criticism comes as an associated press-GfK poll released wednesday showed that "three-quarters of republicans nationally said their party in congress deserves a moderate degree or most of the blame for the shutdown" ...
in yet another sign of trouble for the GOP, business interests are also showing signs of discontent, signaling a possible rift with republicans ahead of the 2014 mid-term elections.
iowa republicans "are recruiting a pro-business republican to challenge six-term conservative rep. steve king (R), a leader in the push to defund the health care law," the associated press reports and party establishment leaders in michigan are threatening to recruit and fund challengers to rep. justin amash (R) and other tea party aligned candidates.TNR: "the business community has got to stand up and say we are not going to back the most self-described conservative candidate. we are going to back the candidates that are the most rational," says john feehery, a former aide to delay and hastert who is now president of quinn gillespie & associates, a washington lobbying firm.
what washington business lobbyists say on-the-record about the house republicans and about tea party activists pales before what they are willing to say if their names aren't used. one former republican staffer says of the anti-establishment groups, "they want to go in and fuck shit up. these non-corporate non-establishmentarian guys — that is exactly what they are doing. and the problem with that is obvious. what next? what happens after you fuck shit up?"
conservatives went looking for fresh plunder from the administration in a raid that was supposed to pit republican vs. democrat — not GOP vs. GOP and certainly not along every conceivable fissure:
house vs. senate.
extreme vs. moderate.
upstart vs. established.
ideology vs. money.
anarchy vs. order.
none of them came prepared for a suddenly resolute president or a unified party behind him. no one expected to run into a veritable stone wall — against which the GOP, to its own horror, seem incapable of thwarting the urge to batter itself delirious, in what historians might one day call the "republican war into irrelevance".
what a difference a week makes
freeperville, oct 4:lol. the plan is obama caves.
what don't you understand?
we are on the verge of an historic CONSERVATIVE victory.
what's not to like?
(by st_thomas_aquinas)
oct 11:[texas congressman louis] gomert [sic] on beck's show today, just before noon EST, saying that boehner is now in a meeting with obama, and is "giving up on 98-99% of obamacare, so they [RINOs] can say that they got something from obama."
so yeah, the cave is in progress.
i guess the NBC/WSJ rush is talking about spooked them.
as beck says, it's time to defund the GOP. tea party candidates only. no collaborators need apply.
(by st_thomas_aquinas)
RINOs = "republicans in name only"
Friday, October 11, 2013
acme wingnuts
Monday, September 30, 2013
u.s. v. g.o.p.
atul gawande @ the new yorker:
this kind of obstructionism has been seen before. after the supreme court's ruling in brown v. board of education, in 1954, virginia shut down schools in charlottesville, norfolk, and warren county rather than accept black children in white schools. when the courts forced the schools to open, the governor followed a number of other southern states in instituting hurdles such as "pupil placement" reviews, "freedom of choice" plans that provided nothing of the sort, and incessant legal delays. while in some states meaningful progress occurred rapidly, in others it took many years. we face a similar situation with health-care reform.
Friday, June 21, 2013
a short quiz on big brother
if there were a clickbox labled "allow gov't surveillance", would you click "yes"?
do you believe anyone else would click "yes"?
if not, then why is there unlimited gov't surveillance?
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
"better guilty than impotent"
sometimes there is no third option to use, you can't get out of a situation without making yourself look bad. so your best option is basically to take the lesser of two evils.
the catch is that the options that gives you the least problems is also the ones that makes you look like you had no idea what you are doing. so instead you make yourself look guilty in an effort to keep up your reputation.
named from the film version of the sum of all fears, where the russian president takes responsibility for a military strike done by a general acting without orders so it doesn't seem like he was incompetent.
"better guilty than impotent", tvtropes.org
this trope's been rattling around in my head since obama's chosen to vigorously defend the wholesale rifling of all domestic messages by the nsa. in "the sum of all fears" (2002), newly minted and wholly innocent russian president nemerov, after ordering the rogue generals responsible "disappeared", defiantly defends the atrocity as a legitimate response to "a nation of criminals" attacking innocent russians, in order to not appear not in control of his own military. the hero, cia analyst jack ryan, to the derision of washington's defense and intelligence chairs, correctly surmises that nemerov isn't the hardliner he pretends to be and didn't order the attack — ultimately helping both countries avoid being manipulated into global thermonuclear war.
it's difficult to reconcile a constitutional scholar and government transparency proponent defending, much less overseeing, a massive ongoing violation of the fourth amendment. but it's not hard to imagine the nsa (with profiteer booz allen) doing what they're paid to do, in secret, and in the name of the war on terror, simply deciding they could and would eavesdrop on everyone. these are not revelations of new ambitions. so we're left to scratch our heads and wonder if obama chose the lesser of two evils rather than plead ignorance and admit that our intelligence agencies are out of control. or maybe a movie is just a movie. perhaps we'll find out in fifty years or so after the papers are finally declassified (or even sooner if wikileaks or anonymous ever gets hold of them).
Monday, May 27, 2013
no thanks, wolf
Saturday, May 25, 2013
as is man, so is god
(story and art by reuben bolling)
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
"better than science"
after forty long hours in the desert and forty long hours on the mountaintop, indefatigable texas birther rudy davis descends unto youTube to deliver the gospel:
... i probably spent about eighty hours, maybe more, so far researching this, reading books, going to various websites, using the knowledge that i've gained in my physics class — lemmee share a little bit about my background and this isn't me like braggin' on my background, there's nothin' to brag about. y'know, when you ask me about my credentials are, i know how to use a shovel and, uh, i can clean a pretty good litter box, but i did go through four years of college and obtained a electrical engineering degree, with a minor in mechanical engineering, and, um, i passed my calculus classes. i loved calculus, i love math. i, uh, passed my trigonometry, geometry, analytical geometry, um, y'know, physics, uh, thermodynamics — i loved all that stuff. i love, y'know, mathematics and science since it was one of my favorite topics.
i'm not, um, completely ... uneducated. but i'm not the smartest guy in the world either. i'm not here saying i'm smarter than anybody — i think, for these things, the lord has to lead you into this, sort of, belief, uh, and you have to have a biblical perspective in order to understand what i'm about to say ...
and after a short digression into 9-11 trutherism:
... so i want you to think back, y'know, when somebody first told you that, t—, your reaction. 'cause what i'm about to say, i'm not sayin' for shock value. i couldn't care less if you like me or you din't like me, i could care less about, uh, how many subscribers i have. what i'm about to say i'm telling you because i believe it's the truth and i know 99.99 percent of you are going to reject it. i rejected it when i first heard it, until i started lookin' into it more, 'til i started reading my bible, 'til i started, uh, understanding, uh, a little bit more about the things that we've been told, and, uh, i would just ask you to look into it before you jump to the conclusion that i'm an absolute nut. and, again i'm just telling you this because there are — there's gonna be point-zero-zero-zero-one percent of you that, uh, is gonna receive it, just like, just like i received it and just like, y'know, there, there's a few, there's a few that can weed through all the BS that we've been told in this world and see what's goin' on.
but i wanna declare, uh, that i am a geocentrist. and uh, what a geocentrist is, is someone who believes that the earth is the center of the universe and does not move. lemmee say that again. the earth does not move, it does not rotate, it does not revolve, it does not, uh, go around the sun and it does not wobble. the bible says the earth cannot be moved. and, uh, that's what i'm goin' with.
and, y'know, when it comes to copernicus, galileo, uh, kepler, uh, carl sagan and einstein, all of 'em are flim-fam— flam artists. i believe they're all con artists and they're basically in a satanic deception that put forth satan's very, very first blue-ribbon lie. y'know — well, uh, you could go all the way back to the garden of eden, so i wouldn't say it's his first, but, uh, satan's blue-ribbon lie, at least one of them, is that the, uh, earth moves around the sun. okay? that absolutely is not true and i believe it with all my heart.... now do i believe that carl sagan, einstein, kepler, uh ... uh ... copernicus and galileo were in some, y'know, plot where they communicated with each other? no, i don't believe they were communicatin' with each other through the centuries but what i do believe is, uh, that satan allows certain people to be puffed up with pride an' this world promotes, uh people and they get too smart for their, for their own good an' they just put out absolute BS. i mean we've just been lied to upon lied to.... some people say that y'know, uh "the bible does, does not say how the heavens go, but the bible tells us how to go to heaven." in other words, they're tryin' to say that the bible is not a sci— is not a science book. but i would say that the bible is better than a science book. the bible is better [chuckling] than any science book ever written. and if it says the earth doesn't move, then it doesn't freakin' move. and uh, that's one thing you need to know about me. and, and you may be a christian watching this thinkin' i'm an absolute kook, but know this: when i read that bible, the difference between me and other christians is when i read that bible i believe what it says. i don't try to fit into my little, uh, box of how i think god should be or how the universe should be. if the bible says it, that's the way that it is. and i don't believe the king james bible has any errors.
that's right, folks, a hardcore wingnut conspiracy theorist who never doubted a rumor found in his yahoo inbox is calling a satanic hoax on the last 500 years of scientific discovery. eighty hours of what passes as deep thought in rudy's mind and the bible (king james version only, accept no imitations!) is all any right-thinking patriot needs.
to supply the perfect counterpoint to rudy's admitted defiant anti-intellectualism, enter working physicist sean carroll, someone who's certainly spent more than eighty hours on the subject. sean casually explains what real scientists and real mathematicians already know — the "known knowns", so to speak, wherein neither god nor satan nor any other strange supernatural, metaphysical or paranormal beings, forces or powers are anywhere to be found:
so, the laws of physics underlying everyday life are completely understood. the reason why i emphasize this is because scientists, and skeptics for that matter, love to go right to the unknown things. there are many, many things that are unknown, from dark matter to quantum gravity to finance, okay? but there are also things that are known. and among the things that are known are how the matter around us in our everyday life actually works. and it's not just "we have a theory that works." it's better than that. we know that there are no new parts of nature that we haven't found yet that could exert a substantial influence over our everyday lives. there are no new particles or forces that could be relevant to your everyday life that science hasn't found yet.... so we've looked. there could be plenty of new particles of nature, but they must be either weakly interacting, too heavy to create or too short-lived to detect. what that means is that they can't possibly be very relevant to your everyday life. they cannot affect your consciousness, you cannot blame them for being in a bad mood. you and everyone you know is made up of the standard model of particle physics and nothing else.... we've ruled out every possible force that is both long range and strong enough to notice.... the conclusion is that as far as the immediate world of experience is concerned, as far as what you see and touch and taste and feel as you go through your everyday life, we have the theory. we're done. that does not mean that we understand everything, but the underlying laws that describe what baseballs are made out of, or tables or living beings, we understand that. it's electrons and quarks with masses from the higgs field interacting via those forces. that's the everyday world.... when it comes to the everyday world, we have figured out what the pieces are and what direction they can move in. that does not make us good world players or chess players. it does constrain the kind of games you can play. if someone has come up with a new chess strategy that involves the rook moving diagonally, you know that you can rule that out without listening to their elaborate presentation on it. likewise, if someone has a great new theory of living their lives that involves homeopathy or astrology, you can tune them out without listening to the details. because just knowing the fact that the standard model of particle physics is the right theory of the matter that makes up the everyday world is immediately enough to rule out a whole host of possible phenomena. anything you can't do with electrons, protons, neutrons, gravity and electromagnetism, you can't do in your basement.... you cannot bend spoons with your mind — unless your mind tells your other arm to go out and bend the spoon. but you can't just do it with a new force emanating from your cortex because there are no such forces. you cannot predict the future, see around corners, the position of saturn when you were born sadly irrelevant to the rest of your life, blah-blah-blah ...
and in fact we known there is no life after death. sometimes even atheists and skeptics like to be open-minded about this because we haven't done all the right double-blind experiments, blah-blah-blah ... forget it! if you believe in life after death, tell me what particles contain the information that moves your soul from place to place. is it electrons? 'cause those would be easy to notice cause electrons are electrically charged and it's actually quite a lot of charge. is it atoms? but the atoms don't move very much when you die. if you believe that there's some way that you have an immortal soul that travels from place to place, then you're not just saying we don't know how it works, you are saying that our current knowledge of the laws of physics is wrong. which means you better give me a good reason to believe that our current knowledge of the laws of physics is wrong, because it's not, and i'm going to move on to more interesting things.
most of science's work, certainly that part which concerns everday human experience, has been done. science can explain through natural causes everything we do and everything that effects us between waking and sleeping, including waking and sleeping. whatever important unknowns remain lie beyond john q. public's quotidian concerns.
sean argues that even gravity, one of the universe's most ubiquitous, constant and far-reaching forces, can be ignored as "utterly, utterly irrelevant" to our lives since it is also one of the weakest. air travelers might quibble, but his point is that the activity of any purported forces or beings that supposedly affect or manipulate human lives on any regular and significant level would have to be stronger than gravity — and therefore, like gravity, noticable and provable. so we would have already noticed by now if any undiscovered entities were regularly intervening in the world by stopping bullets from hitting people or picking sides at sporting events. and we certainly know enough to ignore out-of-hand rudy's entreaties for us to "educate ourselves" by following up on his so-called research since it defies everything real scientists have discovered.
to justify itself, every religion claims to be not just relevant but inseparable and indispensible to the human experience — all while hiding just beyond reach in the supernatural. but science has yet to find any human activity that can't be explained by some combination of the natural forces we've thus far discovered. despite or because of the worst abuses of religion, the history of science has been the inexorable balkanization of gods and ghosts onto smaller and smaller islands of possibility. sorry rudy, but as of today, atlantis is sunk — even the king james version.
there is a cult of ignorance in the united states, and there has always been. the strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that "my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge".
— issac asimov
Wednesday, April 03, 2013
you'd be surprised
turning to world domination, 9% think fluoride is added to drinking water for sinister reasons, and 28% believe a shadowy elite are conspiring to form world government.("sleeper" #4, story by ed brubaker, art by sean phillips, 2002)
Thursday, March 21, 2013
stuff i don't believe in
- religion and the supernatural
- gods and deities
- angels, demons and the semi-devine
- heaven, hell and the afterlife
- ghosts and poltergeists
- souls, reincarnation and past lives
- etc
- prophecy and fortune-telling
- witchcraft, magic and talismans
- monsters and weird creatures
- vampires
- zombies
- werewolves
- fairies and elves
- big foot, yetis and sasquatch
- etc
- pseudoscience and superstition
- astrology
- numerology
- palmistry
- dowsing
- deepak chopra
- etc
- the paranormal
- psychic powers
- clairvoyance
- telepathy
- telekenisis
- astral projection
- etc
- science fantasy
- ufos and alien visitations
- time travel
- faster-than-light travel
- etc
- conspiracy theory
- too numerous to list
- etc
or in other words, just about anything left on the history channel.
while i enjoy speculation as well as anyone, ultimately i believe only in reason, the power of logic and the empirical method of acquiring facts and knowledge through the gathering and testing of evidence. if you come to me professing a belief in ghosts or ufos, don't expect me to take you seriously and do expect me to be skeptical of everything else you say.
Sunday, March 17, 2013
carnival cruz
ain't i just the devilish thang?CRUZ: Would [Senator Feinstein] deem it consistent with the Bill of Rights for Congress to engage in the same endeavor that we are contemplating doing to the Second Amendment, in the context of the First or Fourth Amendment? Namely, would she consider it constitutional for Congress to specify that the First Amendment shall apply only to the following books and shall not apply to the books that Congress has deemed outside the protection of the Bill of Rights? Likewise, would she think that the Fourth Amendment's protection against searches and seizures, could properly apply only to the following specified individuals, and not to the individuals that Congress has deemed outside the protection of the law?
FEINSTEIN: Let me just make a couple of points in response. One, I'm not a sixth grader. Senator, I've been on this committee for twenty years. I was a mayor for nine years, I walked in, I saw people shot. I've looked at bodies that have been shot by these weapons. I've seen the bullets that implode. In Sandy Hook, youngsters were dismembered.
Look, there are other weapons. I've been up close — I'm not a lawyer, but after twenty years, I've been up close and personal to the Constitution. I have great respect for it. This doesn't mean that weapons of war, and the Heller decision clearly points out three exceptions, two of which are pertinent here. And so I, you know, it's fine you want to lecture me on the Constitution. I appreciate it. Just know I've been here a long time, I've passed on a number of bills. I've studied the Constitution myself, I'm reasonably well educated and I thank you for the lecture.
Incidentally, this does not prohibit. You used the word prohibit. It exempts 2271 weapons. Isn't that enough for the people of the United States? Do they need a bazooka? Do they need other high powered weapons military people use to kill in close combat? I don't think so — so I come from a different place than you do. I respect your views. I ask you to respect my views.
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
never let 'em hear you gulp
talk of 2016 so soon after november is really just election porn addiction but since the opposition's response to state of the union address is seen as a proving ground for presidential hopefuls (with two on deck this time as continued evidence of GOP disarray), i'm going to have to indulge in a little dirty talk ...
now granted, rubio was under enormous pressure between a party desperate to fill the vacuum ripped opened by internecine squabbling around him ...
... and an acknowledged parade of failure behind him:
at wingnut watering hole free republic rubio could count on at least a few sympathetic ears ... before less appreciative (and more access-privileged) ones pulled the plug:
made him look like a human being. i think he hit a home run. (DManA)
also too, bawling like a child can make one appear human. apparently, merely maintaining the facade of membership in our species is quite a hurdle for many in the GOP — just ask unskewed president mitt romney.
however, we ask a little more of our leaders and nervousness under pressure at once visible, loud and vicariously painful is not a quality that inspires followers and movements, especially when the enemy is known and even mocked for his vulcan cool even while in the lion's den.
still, as i said, 2016 is two entire election cycles away, so rubio at the very least could use this opportunity to take a refresher course in public water management policy. couldn't hurt, if it's not already too late for him.
Sunday, February 10, 2013
the venn of birthers
rotting away in jail for fraud? well, this could be your lucky day! birthers are once again fishing for clients and anyone convicted under any laws enacted under an illegal president can apply for a get-out-of-jail-free card — at least according to their latest sure-fire usurper-slaying scheme, passed along by birther debunker blog obama conspiracy theories:
dcist.com reports the story that sibley has created a motion template for people convicted under the 2009 fraud enforcement and recovery act (the act makes it easier to prosecute cases of mortgage fraud and predatory lending). they can petition the court to have their convictions overturned because obama isn't really president, forcing, sibley believes, the courts to adjudicate the president's eligibility.
wherein i made the following offhand remark:
finding plaintiffs should be rather straightforward since, as with tax protestors and sovereign citizens, one cannot toss a birfer across a citizen grand jury without hitting a convicted fraudster.
which prompted the reply:
someone should make a birther/lowlife venn diagram.
which got me thinking ...
this first one requires a bit of nuance since one can argue that many if not most birthers fall into all three categories.
in the wingnuttosphere, even those that reject birthers (breitbart, beck) still feed into their mania.
odd duck birther martyr and former army surgeon terry lakin doesn't fit into my standard model but i came up with this just for him and his fellow high stakes losers.
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
accidental art
over the weekend my sister stopped over for a visit and my niece, as is her wont, asked to watch some cartoons on my laptop. data corruption in the video stream and/or disruption of the player app resulted in some not too unsightly imagery, which i captured from the screen:
whatever the cause, i have been unable to replicate the anomaly, so these mini-murals are definitely three-of-a-kind.
Monday, January 14, 2013
how nra messaging works
overhead today at our favorite wingnut watering hole free republic:i live in what is considered a safe neighborhood and stay in "safe" areas, never had a problem YET.
not familiar with guns although my husband used to have quite a collection and i had a baretta shotgun. i'm not so much afraid of home invasions or robberies at this point — but times are changing. what i'm more afraid of is our government setting off a stampede of marauding hoards[sic].
i have NO clue what might be useful for me — need advice.
— "aria"
when crime rates are falling and even hardcore wingnuts admit to feeling safe in their homes, how does one get already convinced gun owners to buy still even more guns?
easy — sell them an apocalyptic delusion.
'cause you can never have too many guns when that happens.


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Has anyone seen the Fires of Faith series that BYUtv has been showing about the coming forth of the bible? I haven't seen it yet, but the trailer looks good. I hope to have some time soon where I can see this.
The description from the web site is as follows:
If the martyrs who brought the King James Bible into existence could still talk to us today, they would most certainly tell the tales of international politics, intrigue, subversion, bloodshed, fire, and the runaway libido of King Henry VIII that were the backdrop of its creation. These stories, along with a modern, scholarly perspective of the 16th century book, are presented in BYUtv's Fires of Faith: The Coming Forth of The King James Bible – a series of films which celebrate the 400th anniversary of one of the most enduring pieces of writing in the history of humanity.


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|Brand Name:
|JE display
|Model Number:
|Minimum Order Quantity:
|Delivery Time:
|15-25 days after order confirmation
|Payment Terms:
|Western Union, T/T, L/C
|Shenzhen JE Display Furniture Co.,Ltd
Site Member
Shenzhen Guangdong China
|Business type: Manufacturer Exporter Trading Company Seller
Road of Shenshan,Tongle village,Longgang district,Shenzhen,China
Supplier`s last login times: within 34 hours
Size Optional:
can customized size and extension
Material Optional:
a) 304# stainless steel tube legs in glossy
b) high density sponge for cushion coverd by fiber fabric or Linen,split leather or PU leather
c) all environmental protection
a) good quality in assemble
b) assemble structure
a) as our model
b) optional
Package :
a) bubble bag [transparent EPE bag]
b) MDF package
c) hard carton
additional: corner protection& kraft
Payment Terms:
a) T/T, L/C
c) Western Union
a) one year against manufacturing defect
b) offer lifetime consultation on problems occurred
Supplementary Explanation
Color: optional collocation
Material: MDF, wood board, core board, plywood, particleboard, melamine board etc.
Lighting choice: LED lamp, NVC lights, ordinary bracket lamp, halogen lamp, cold light lamp, warm light.
Design Description: this showcase from sampling to cut expected vehicle material to paints, packaging process are ordered to complete. Grasp the characteristics of beautiful and elegant, simple and elegant design, product design, fashion, noble and elegant.
Product description:
Cover: Showcase premium high green paint, smooth, uniform color, good gloss, matte light optional.
Internal structure: a combination of hardware accessories showcase month perfect clogs,
Skirting: Showcase including stainless steel, protect the showcase, prolong the service life, improve the appearance of the.
Warranty maintenance:
1, avoid long time exposure in the sun, in order to avoid Showcase surface and glue at hurt. Avoid using solvents and strong cleaning agent, polishing agent and other surface treatment.
2, don't showcase placed in the water close to the place, to prevent moisture absorption caused by the deformation of jewelry, moldy.
3, clean and convenient, with a soft towel can be used to remove the surface of the dust, the product environment adaptability is strong, generally do not need to deliberately maintain
4, display cabinets with stains on the surface, can be used to clean the cloth after the dry water gently wipe, or use a special paint surface cleaning agent in accordance with the instructions to use.
Upholstery Production Process:
How to finish a project for custom retail displays furniture and store fixtures
Presentation/Materials/Quality control/Shipping logistics
Retractable modern Casual chair made by Stainless steel frame and Weave fabric Images


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Lagerfeld, Karl
Lagerfeld, Karl (Karl Otto Lagerfeld), 1938–, German fashion designer, b. Hamburg, immigrated with his family to Paris in 1952. He won a fashion award at 16, designed for couturiers Pierre Balmain (1954–58) and Jean Patou (1958–63), then freelanced for Fendi, Krizia, and Valentino and designed for Chloé (1959–78; 1992–97). In 1982 he was appointed head designer at Chanel, where he revamped the classic Chanel suit into chic updated versions, using offbeat colors and such materials as denim and leather; reinvented the double C logo; accessorized with heaps of gold chain and pearls; and added such items as mini- and maxiskirts, hot pants, and lace-up biker boots to the house repertoire. The pony-tailed, sunglassed, fan-carrying Lagerfeld also has his own KL label (launched in 1984). His lines include neckties, shoes, perfumes, sunglasses, jewelry, and housewares. He is a skilled photographer as well, with several published volumes.
See his Karl Lagerfeld's Sketchbook (1986); A. Piaggi, Karl Lagerfeld: A Fashion Journal (1986); A. Drake, The Beautiful Fall: Lagerfeld, Saint Laurent, and Glorious Excess in 1970s Paris (2006).
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2012, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
See more Encyclopedia articles on: Fashion: Biographies


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Stormwater begins as rain or snowmelt that falls on or washes over both pervious (grass, woodlands, gardens and other undeveloped lands) and impervious surfaces (roofs, driveways, parking lots, streets, and other hard surfaces). It flows from rooftops, through lawns, over paved streets, sidewalks and parking lots, across bare soil, and eventually flows untreated into storm drains to our streams, creeks and rivers.
Stormwater runoff is created from excess water that cannot be absorbed by pervious surfaces or from water flowing off impervious areas. Rather than being absorbed into the ground, rainwater enters the city's stormwater drainage system, a network of catch basins, yard inlets and pipes that keep water from flooding roads and property. Water is diverted through the network and eventually to the city's streams, rivers, and lakes. As it flows, runoff collects and transports pet waste, soil, pesticides, fertilizers, oil and grease, litter, and other pollutants. These materials carried with the stormwater are called non-point source pollution, and are some of the largest sources of pollution to our water. Because stormwater has the potential to pick up pollutants as it crosses over the land, its protection is vital to the health of our environment and our drinking water.
Please visit the Engineering Drainage and Stormwater Management page for information related to submitting a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWP3), grading and erosion control plan, or Clearing, Grubbing, and Earthwork Permit.
You Can Protect Our Waterways
Report Illegal Dumping. If you have witnessed illegal dumping in the City of Grand Prairie or know of a location where illegal dumping has occurred, please call the Illegal Dumping Hotline at 972-237-8064.
Remember to turn off your sprinklers when it rains to avoid water runoff; during winter, runoff can freeze causing slippery conditions. No matter how much you water it, concrete will not bloom! Prevent runoff and save the water for your plants!
Bag your pet's waste – don't just leave it there. Leaving pet waste on the ground increases public health risks by allowing harmful bacteria and nutrients to wash into the storm drain and eventually into local waterways.
Don't apply pesticides, fertilizers and herbicides before it rains. Contrary to popular belief, the rain won't help to soak these chemicals into the ground; it will only help create polluted runoff into our local creeks.
Select native and adapted plants and grasses that are drought and pest resistant. Native plants require less water, fertilizer, and pesticides. Learn more about native and adaptive plants at www.txsmartscape.com.
Reduce the amount of paved area and increase the amount of vegetated area in your yard. Vegetation can help act as a natural filter for polluted stormwater runoff.
When washing your car at home, wash with only water or use biodegradable soap and wash it on a lawn or other unpaved surface; better yet, take your car to a professional car wash.
If you change your car's oil, don't dump it on the ground or in the storm drain; dispose of it properly at an oil-recycling center.
Check your car, boat, or motorcycle for leaks. Clean up spilled fluids with an absorbent material; don't rinse spills into the storm drain.
Don't get rid of grass clippings and other yard waste by dumping or sweeping it into the street. Yard waste that is left in the street eventually goes into the storm drain; this will cause depleted oxygen for aquatic life and may cause flooding. Instead, compost your yard waste or sweep it onto your lawn for added nutrients.
Don't get rid of old or unused paint by throwing it down the storm drain; dispose of paint and other household hazardous waste at recycling facilities. The City of Grand Prairie hosts a Household Hazardous Waste drop-off event several times a year where Grand Prairie residents may drop off household hazardous waste such as paint, motor oil, and pesticides. Check out www.timetorecycle.com for more information on recycling opportunities.
Don't pump your pool water into the storm drain – pool chemicals can be hazardous to our creek habitats. Whenever possible, drain your pool into the sanitary sewer
Don't mess with Texas! Throw litter away in a garbage can, not out your window. Recycle what you can! Litter carried away by wind or rain goes directly into our creeks and rivers via storm drains! Once in our waterways, these "floatables" can cause flooding, trap and choke wildlife, impede recreational opportunities such as swimming, fishing, and boating, cause adverse economic impacts on businesses, and reduce the aesthetic value of our neighborhoods and waterways.
Developers, builders, and construction site operators, Learn How to Prevent Stormwater pollution at construction sites. (For the Spanish version click here).


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Foggy weather rewind, but sunshine returns
Foggy weather rewind today as a dense fog advisory was in place for the second day in a row. The fog is quite patchy with some areas reporting visibility near zero and others with a 5-mile visibility. Early commuters should prepare for varying visibility and use low beams and slower speeds.
Big-time sunshine today and tomorrow with low 70s today and mid 70s Friday. We'll stay dry through Saturday afternoon. A cool front sails through Saturday night and we'll see highs close to 80 before the cool front Saturday. Showers and isolated thundershowers will accompany the front. Looks like best chances for rain happen after 6pm Saturday night.
Clouds and a shower or two linger Sunday morning before we clear out. Comfortable temperatures settle in with upper 60s to low 70s into early next week.
Send us your fall color photos! Ulocal on wisn.com, my Twitter @seversonsally or our Wisconsin Weather Updates page.


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Gripple, Sheffield's well known employer-owned manufacturer, has rewarded more than 100 of its almost 130 staff in the city for their 100% attendance during 2015 – several others for the last five years!
For reaching this impressive milestone Gripple presented each of the successful staff with vouchers worth £100 and the five year achievers received vouchers totalling £250.
Multi awarding-winning Gripple, producer of the unique wire fastener, has staff across three sites in the city in addition to 100 in Strasbourg, 100 in Chicago and 20 in New Delhi.
Chairman Hugh Facey said: "This is not unusual. It demonstrates our staff's commitment to their work as shareholders. The harder they work, the more they will benefit."
For further press information please contact Margaret Laver at Proactive PR on 07723 010 752 or firstname.lastname@example.com
Posted 28/01/2016.