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Can you hear it? That loud noise is the sound of the Baby Boomers blasting into their sixth decade of life, and oh what a decade it will be. But what effect will this group of aging Baby Boomers have on the fitness industry and on the nation's health and well being?
The International Council on Active Aging (ICAA) has identified trends to watch as society shifts from a medical to a preventive care model:
- The rapid rise in obesity and diabetes rates
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 44 million Americans are obese. And, rates are highest among those aged 40 to 69 years old. This epidemic, combined with the aging of the population, has fueled a dramatic rise in the prevalence of diabetes. In the United States, estimates suggest that 17 million people have diabetes, with almost six million cases still undiagnosed.
- The growth of "anti-aging" products
Consumers are expected to spend more than $56 billion by 2007 on products and services that help slow the aging process, according to a FIND/SVP report. The report states that health clubs and exercise equipment manufacturers project revenue to reach as much as $13 billion by 2007.
- The link between health and wealth
Sedentary adults can save on average $2,200 per year in health care costs by starting to exercise moderately for just 90 minutes per week, according to a recent study by the HealthPartners Research Foundation. According to Health and Human Services (HHS), about 75 percent of health care spending can be attributed to chronic health conditions — much of which can be avoided or delayed through preventive measures such as early screening and healthy lifestyle choices.
- The increasing calls for preventive screening
Just 10 percent of America's current spending on health care goes toward prevention, says Dr. Cristina Beato, assistant secretary of HHS. However, the federal government aims to change that percentage. In 2003, President Bush, HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson and U.S. Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona promoted prevention as the desired model for health care and self responsibility. Also, pre-hypertension and pre-diabetes are new markers of chronic health issues. Individuals who learn of their increased risk for disease can make lifestyle changes to avoid or delay developing these conditions.
- The rise in research showing that exercise is a key ally in the battle against cancer
A 25-year study by scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill suggested that people who keep fit and trim may reduce their likelihood of dying from cancer. And, the American Cancer Society advises cancer survivors about physical activity and nutrition.
- The power of lifestyle choices
Healthy lifestyle habits have proven to be effective in preventing or managing chronic conditions without the sometimes serious side effects of medications. The 2003 PREMIER study shows that individuals can make all the needed lifestyle changes to prevent or control high blood pressure at the same time.
- The increasing calls for physicians to prescribe exercise
Many organizations are calling upon the medical community to get more involved in disease prevention by recommending physical activity and proper nutrition. With nearly one billion doctors' visits every year, the ICAA believes better health must start with physicians.
- The focus on caregivers' health
A 1997 National Alliance for Caregiving/AARP survey revealed that 22.4 million American households were involved in caring for adults ages 50 and above, and that number could rise to 39 million by 2007. More adults in their 50s, 60s or 70s are caring for family members, while studies have shown that caregivers often become ill due to stress and lack of time to care for their own health.
- The volume of initiatives
In the last five years, health initiatives have been launched at all governmental levels to help seniors stay more active.
- The increase in communities designed for activity
Studies show that community planning can either aid or create barriers to active living, particularly among older adults. Numerous organizations and programs encourage or help regions to implement strategies for healthy communities. These initiatives include the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's national program Active Living by Design, which recently awarded grants to 25 community partnerships.
Colin Milner is chief executive officer of the International Council on Active Aging™. An award-winning writer, Milner has authored more than 100 articles on aging-related issues. He can be reached at [email protected].


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Tip Line
If you have witnessed a crime, have any information on a crime, or have information about someone with an outstanding warrant, we would appreciate your help. Please call 701.241.5777 or text 701.730.8888. Please provide as much information as possible to allow us to properly investigate this crime.
While you may remain anonymous when submitting a tip, our ability to contact you and clarify the information you provided often greatly assists us in investigating a crime. The courts have determined that information received from an identified citizen is considered more reliable than that submitted by an anonymous source. Regardless of whether you choose to identify yourself, we thank you for doing your part to help us help the community!
Please note this tip line is not monitored 24 hours a day. If you are in an emergency, please call 9-1-1. If you need immediate police assistance in a non-emergency, contact 701.235.4493.
You may also use the form below to submit your tip. If you would like you may also include your contact information.

subset: commoncrawl


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A few weeks ago I told you I was starting a Nymphalidea shawl. I have been plugging away on it and have made some good progress.
I wanted to share a little tip that I figured out along the way about carrying yarn up the side of your work.
When you are working stripes you don't have to worry about catching the yarn that you are carrying every row. But if you are working more than 2 rows before changing colors, it's a good idea to catch the yarn in the side of your work, so you don't get an ugly pull.
In this pattern you work 2 rows of the contrast color (in my case the multi-color pink Alpaca Sox) and 4 rows of the main color (the kettle dyed purple Alpaca Sox). So I will want to catch the multi-colored yarn on the side between rows 2 and 3 of working with the purple.
It's so simple and only takes a few seconds. I promise. And so worth it!
I work rows 1 and 2 of the purple just like I normally would. When starting row 3 I will insert my needle into the first stitch, just like always
BUT…I will pick up my multi-colored yarn and wrap it (DON"T TAKE IT OFF THE NEEDLE YET!)
Then I pick up the purple yarn and wrap it clockwise (from front to back) while still leaving the stitch on the needle. I now have 2 yarns wrapped around the needle
Now, I don't want my stitch to be knit with both yarns, so I unwrap my multi-colored yarn
And then I finish the stitch like I normally do.
This will case your first stitch of that row to be twisted, but it makes such a nice wrap, that it is worth it.
|Right side
It's a simple trick that only takes a few seconds, but can take your FO from being homemade to HANDMADE.
This is also a great tip when you are working a Fair Isle pattern that have more than 6 or 7 stitches between color changes.
|Backside of Fair Isle with floats "caught"
Now I only need to decide how much bigger to make my shawl…
Knit on!


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In spades
Posted by Smokey Stover on November 16, 2006
In Reply to: In spades posted by Bob on November 16, 2006
: : In spades
: : I know there were already discussions regarding this expression and I refer to one of them seeking a clarification to one of the explanations given:
: : By extension beyond cards, "in spades" expresses a decisive, complete, no-doubt defeat. If I suffer a (real or imagined) injury from you, and I retaliate with disproportionate vigor, I have paid you back "in spades."
: : In this explanation what is "the defeat" is referred to? To that one who suffers or to the opponent?
: : Further, how would you interpret "in spades" in the following context:
: : "There are three essential conditions necessary to produce a pandemic. First, a new virus must arise from an animal reservoir, such that humans have no natural immunity to it. Second, the virus must evolve to be capable of killing human beings efficiently. Third, the virus must succeed in jumping efficiently from one human to the next. For the virus, it,s one small step to man, but one giant leap to mankind. So far, conditions one and two have been met in spades. Three strikes and we,re out."
: : Thank you.
: Just substitute the word "completely" for "in spades" and it will be clear.
DO as Bob says. Related English idioms recited here just to confuse you are, "and then some," and "and how!" Like "in spades," they can be taken to express a sort of informal comparative, a maximizing of the condition cited.


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We Try Pink Floyd Wine (and The Other 'Wines That Rock')
Seeking the best value for the buck.
I received a lot of fantastic durable goods when I got married last month, including a toaster oven, a cookie jar, and a wife. I also scored some great stuff that was gone in a flash but will be remembered forever, highlighted by beer money, a 100-pack of Slim Jims, and a dose of that fancy Spanish ham that's worth more than most of my bicycles and friendships.
I cherish each of those lovely and thoughtful surprises, but my favorite gifts tend to be of the type that fall into the middle of the longevity spectrum, neither as fleeting as a triple-digit stash of mechanically separated meat treats nor as permanent as a ceramic jar that practically demands I develop an ill-advised cookie habit. I need to reiterate that everything I got on my wedding day was perfect, starting with the beautiful wife with an employer-provided health care plan and followed closely by the toaster oven with nine buttons and a slide-out crumb tray. But if we allow that some gifts are more perfect than others, I find that the most perfect are often those that stick around for a couple months and then relinquish their storage space.
There are tons of gift options that fit into this semi-permanent category: magazine subscriptions, jerky-of-the-month club memberships, fancy olive oils, brand-name laundry detergents, etc. These are all great choices, but when I want someone to know that I care about them and also want a couple months' worth of credit for doing so, I usually find myself gravitating toward the liquor store. I'm thankful that most of my friends do, too, which is why our post-wedding liquor cabinet is now happily bipolar, with bottles of high-end rum, tequila, and bourbon temporarily shacking up with the usual bottom shelf booze. As long as you're dealing with a drinker, you really can't go wrong with a liquor present. (And nondrinkers probably have tons of time for laundry and magazines, so in that case see above.)
But while I love giving and getting alcoholic gifts, I am deeply suspicious of any drink that seems to have been conceived of specifically for gifting purposes. In fact, this bias isn't restricted to alcohol: Things that aren't intended to be consumed by their purchaser have a shaky track record. If the person who buys it isn't the person who uses it, there's a disconnect that makes it harder to be an informed consumer. That's why Hickory Farms yuletide meats and cheeses are so disappointing, why flowers ordered online or by phone are so overpriced, and why there are so many stupid golf-and-barbecue memoirs released right before Fathers' Day.
This is why I was skeptical about the big box of Wines That Rock that came in the mail a few weeks ago. WTR partners with Mendocino Wine Company—producers of the credible Parducci and Paul Dolan labels, among others—to market Rolling Stones Forty Licks Merlot, Woodstock Chardonnay, Pink Floyd Dark Side of the Moon Cabernet Sauvignon, and red blends named for The Police's Synchronicity album and the Grateful Dead. Such a straightforward bid to become America's go-to gift for classic-rocking brothers in law certainly doesn't condemn the wine to failure, but it could be a worrisome hint as to the vintner's priorities.
But to be fair, isn't a lot of alcohol sold using subtler versions of the same strategy? How can I or anyone else who's ever bought a bottle of wine because it had a penguin or a pun on the label turn his nose up at a bottle featuring iconic album cover art? Hell, I bought Schlitz for 10 happy years simply because the word was fun to say and the can was fun to look at, and I regret that I ever brought that world crashing down with a blind-tasting that turned me into a reluctant Pabst man. If something makes you happy, how much does it matter why it makes you happy?
I approached my sampling of the 2010 vintage with the mindset that Wines That Rock could make an excellent gift for the right person as long as the wines floating around inside the branding hold up to modest scrutiny, and they do. Sure, you can do better for the $15.99 suggested retail price, but the wine game being what it is, you can also do worse.
I particularly liked the Woodstock Chardonnay, which is very fruit-forward and only lightly oaked. The absence of malolactic fermentation combines with the gentle touch of wood to allow the rich pear and tropical flavors to shine. Among the reds, I preferred the Rolling Stones Forty Licks Merlot. Is this because of the black cherry, apricot, and vanilla flavors, or because the Stones are my favorite of the bands represented? See, that's the point. If you like this concept, you will like these wines, which makes Wines That Rock a winning addition to the gift-alcohol market.


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Dana White: With random testing, 400 of the 475 fighters on the UFC's roster would test positive for marijuana
Dana White is not in favor of random drug testing. (Jake Roth/USA TODAY Sports)
LAS VEGAS — Dana White hates the idea of a fighter stepping into the octagon under the influence of performance enhancing drugs. "You go in and you face another fighter," says the UFC president, "you can hurt him."
So why doesn't the fight promotion hire a private company that could administer more rigorous random testing than what's possible within the budget constraints of state athletic commissions? One reason might be that White has concerns over a correlated effect of expanded testing, especially if done at times other than during fight week.
"Everybody thinks that if you did the random testing you'd catch so many guys on PEDs," White told a group of reporters following Thursday's UFC 155 pre-fight press conference. "You'd catch more guys on marijuana."
Well, OK, so Nick Diaz would perpetually be under suspension, or at least double-secret probation. And any fighter who's ever hung out in Diaz's living room in Stockton, Calif., might have to worry about the lingering effects of a contact high. But that's about it, right?
Not according to White. "So, 475 guys under contract," he said, "and 400 will be out with marijuana."
Four hundred? As in, 84 percent of the UFC's roster?
Now, I realize that some fighters live in Colorado and Washington, states where pot is now legal. I know the light heavyweight champion walked out to a reggae classic prior to his last fight. Nonetheless, White's estimate seems astoundingly high, so to speak, especially considering how vigilant many athletes in this sport are about every last thing they allow into their bodies. There are lots of vegetarians and vegans in the UFC, and many of those who do eat meat will consume only organic. I suppose that doesn't rule out pot, but still … 400 out of 475? That'd be like all of the major leagues except the AL Central being stoners.
Speaking of which, White's claim came while he was being questioned about UFC drug policy as it relates to those in other professional sports. And his comment on that topic was not surprising. Calling the recent years' PED focus on players from the past misplaced, White said, "Go after the guys who are playing now. Those are the ones you want to bust."
And even when the names of Manny Ramirez and Ryan Braun were brought up, as active players who were suspended for positive steroid tests, White would not concede that Major League Baseball or any other mainstream sport is doing a better job than the UFC of keeping things clean. "If you think baseball and football are really knocking it out of the park, pun intended, you're crazy," he said. "If they were really testing all the guys in baseball, do you think there'd be a [expletive] baseball game every day? There wouldn't be, man. They'd be pulling guys up from the minors every day. It'd be crazy."
—Jeff Wagenheim


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New research from Fidelity Charitable shows that more wealthy individuals who use financial advisors are giving to charity than advisors estimate. They are also giving at higher levels.
Advisors to high-net-worth clients figured that 48% of their client base made charitable giving an annual activity or financial goal. In fact, a separate survey showed that 93% of affluent individuals who work with a financial advisor made annual charitable contributions.
The findings are part of Fidelity Charitable's 2012 "Advice & Giving" research released Wednesday. The comparative study comprised two surveys conducted in March: one of 146 financial advisors with clients averaging at least $1 million in investable assets, and another of 183 individuals with at least $1 million in investable assets and $100,000 in household income who use a financial advisor.
Advisors responding to the survey estimated that on average, 54% of clients had given $2,500 or more to charity in the past 12 months. However, 51% of the clients surveyed reported that they donated at least twice that amount—between $5,000 and $100,000 or more—each year.
"Charitable giving is a key, annual activity for the vast majority of wealthy individuals working with advisors," Sarah Libbey, president of Fidelity Charitable, said in a statement.
"Advisors who take time to talk about this important financial subject are tapping an opportunity to better understand their clients and their immediate and long-term goals. It's also an opportunity that can ultimately result in bringing in more assets for the advisors to manage."
The research also showed that both advisors and clients benefit from charitable planning discussions, especially when charitable giving is integrated into a client's overall financial plan. Seventy-six percent of clients said such discussions facilitated tax planning, and 47% said they enabled them to give more money to charity, among other benefits.
For their part, 72% of advisors with clients averaging at least $1 million in investable assets said offering financial strategies for charitable giving was a relationship builder, and 57% said it helped position them as a broad financial expert.
In addition, 37% of advisors reported that charitable planning discussions led to a multigenerational relationship with their clients, and 35% said it also could be a referral source.
Opportunities for Advisors
Ninety-one percent of clients surveyed reported that they most often made cash donations to charity—not the most tax-advantaged way to give. Thus, Fidelity Charitable said, advisors have a key entry point as they approach the charitable planning discussion to offer clients a more strategic approach to giving. A key strategy is donating long-term appreciated publicly traded assets to a public charity. By doing this, donors can potentially eliminate capital gains taxes and take a full, fair market value deduction for the assets at the time of donation. This in turn allows more of their gift to be available for charitable purposes.
Similarly with more complex assets. Thirty-four percent of wealthy clients reported that in addition to publicly traded assets, they owned closely held or private C-Corp and S-Corp stock, restricted stock, limited partnership interests, real estate and other assets as part of their overall wealth portfolio.
These can be another strategic way to maximize giving, allowing for the same type of tax advantages as those available when publicly traded assets are contributed to public charities, Fidelity Charitable said.
Yet, advisors believed that only 24% of their clients owned these types of assets, and 59% reported "never" or "not often" recommending them as a way to help clients achieve their charitable giving goals.
"With such a high percentage of Americans'—and especially baby boomers'—wealth tied up in privately held business interests, the opportunity is huge for both clients and advisors as this group seeks help in monetizing these assets for key life goals," Libbey said. "There's tremendous value in helping people give."


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Ron Galella, America's most famous paparazzi photographer, likes to say he owes his career to the U.S. Air Force. After studying art in high school, Galella was working with ceramics after graduation when the Korean War broke out in June 1950. Rather than being drafted for combat, he decided to enlist for an arts-related position in the Air Force. Though he'd never studied it before, Galella discovered photography to be the closest discipline to fine art. After the war, he pursued the medium academically, studying photojournalism at the Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles, which introduced him to the world of Hollywood.
"That's when I got hooked on celebrities," says Galella, who would reinvent celebrity paparazzi culture over the next few decades through his relentless style and candid portraits. "Being in Hollywood, I figured I'd see what these stars look like." The young lensman crashed premieres, introduced himself to celebrities and even took an acting class to overcome his shyness about rubbing elbows with Hollywood's A-List.
Though he'd photograph countless stars throughout his career, including Madonna, Michael Jackson and Marlon Brando, Galella's favorite subject would become First Lady Jackie Kennedy. "She was my muse, my golden girl," Galella says. "She was my ideal subject for many reasons—she did not pose, she was active, and for the most part, she would ignore my camera." Even later restraining orders issued against Galella would not deter his obsession with the notoriously private Kennedy.
Galella has largely stepped out of the spotlight over the last 20 years, since he and his wife moved to New Jersey in 1992. But he continues to cover prominent culture events from the annual Tony Awards to this year's Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute Gala (for the record, he thought singer Beyoncé was best-dressed). "The paparazzi culture has changed drastically," he says. "When I did it, you had the great freedom to shoot—no fans, no security, no publicists. And I don't miss it too much because I have the gold in my files."
Ron Galella is an American photographer. More of his work can be seen here. A new book of his work, Ron Galella: Paparazzo Extraordinaire!, is available from Hatje Cantz publishers.


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It's been almost two years since The Sing-Off last serenaded viewers, but the a cappella competition is back and hotter than ever!
In this exclusive sneak peek from Season 4 (Dec. 9, 9/8c), one of the groups blows the judges — including new addition Jewel — away with a cover of Johnny Cash's classic "Ring of Fire."
The best Nashville performances
"Y'all blow the roof off of this," judge Shawn Stockman tells one of the groups. To get scoop on the new season and see which holiday favorite will get the a cappella treatment, check out the exclusive sneak peek below:
The Sing-Off premieres on Monday, Dec. 9 at 9/8c on NBC. Are you excited for the show's return?


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Do you know if the vehicle you're buying is safe? Run a VIN check to start your research and make a better decision. We provide convenient links to get a full vehicle history report. Lookup the VIN or vehicle identification number for any year, make, and model. Then run an instant VIN check through HERE: the official access provider for the National Motor Vehicle Title Information System.
Vehicle history report pdf for 2007 - Chongqing Kinlon - Unknown - LLCLSM2A87F018136 is available
|VIN number:
|No data
|Vehicle name:
|2007 Chongqing Kinlon Unknown
|Vehicle Trim:
|Made In:
|No data
Check Your Vin Now


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46°33' / 24°34'
Editor: Pavel Kral
Published in Praha 2003
Published in Praha 2003
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the translation. The reader may wish to refer to the original material
for verification.
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Our mission is to produce a translation of the original work and we cannot verify the accuracy of statements or alter facts cited.
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Updated 15 Sep 2012 by LA


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The Chicago Wolves trailed by two after the first period and fell victim to an Alexandre Giroux hat trick, falling 5-2 against the Oklahoma City Barons at Cox Convention Center Saturday night.
Forwards Jason Krog and Tim Miller potted goals for Chicago (25-22-2-3).
Oklahoma City (26-17-2-5) opened scoring 1:21 into the game when Giroux roofed a shot over Chicago goaltender Peter Mannino.
Giroux scored again nearly four minutes later when he took a feed in the paint and slid it into the net to make the score 2-0.
Barons center Brad Moran one timed the puck into the net from outside the crease to bring Oklahoma City's lead to 3-0.
Mannino (12-12-2) stopped two shots in 8:22 minutes of play before being placed by Edward Pasquale.
The Wolves got on board with a power-play strike 12:08 into the first period when Krog ripped a shot from the slot beating Oklahoma City netminder Jeff Drouin-Deslauriers and making the score 3-1.
Oklahoma City increased their lead to 4-1 on the power-play when right wing Colin McDonald redirected the puck into the net behind Pasquale 17:54 into the second frame.
Miller ripped a shot that went off the boards and off of Drouin-Deslaurier's back and into the net 6:29 into the final frame, to push the score to 4-2.
Drouin-Deslauriers (8-8-2) recorded 31 saves for Oklahoma City.
The Barons responded 16 seconds after Miller's tally when Giroux popped the puck past Pasquale from the doorstep to complete his hat trick and close scoring to 5-2.
Pasquale blocked 25 shots in 51:25 minutes of relief duty.
The Wolves return to the Allstate Arena after the All-Star break to faceoff against the Abbotsford Heat on Fri., Feb. 4 at 7 p.m.
Chicago 1 0 1 — 2
Oklahoma City 3 1 1 — 5
First Period—1, Oklahoma City, Giroux 23 (Moran), 1:21; 2, Oklahoma City, Giroux 24 (Kytnar, McDonald), 5:19; 3, Oklahoma City, Moran 14 (Giroux, McDonald), 8:22; 4, Chicago, Krog 11 (Machacek, Haydar), 12:08 pp. Penalties—Valabik, Chicago (fighting), 10:18; Lord, Oklahoma City (unsportsmanlike conduct, fighting), 10:18; Belle, Oklahoma City (slashing), 11:43; Welch, Chicago (interference), 14:47.
Second Period—5, Oklahoma City, McDonald 24 (Giroux, Aiello), 17:54 pp. Penalties—Zubarev, Chicago (hooking), 7:05; Taylor, Oklahoma City (roughing), 10:22; Ross, Chicago (double minor-high-sticking), 17:10.
Third Period—6, Chicago, Miller 1 (Valabik, Pettersson), 6:29; 7, Oklahoma City, Giroux 25 (Moran), 6:45. Penalties—Zubarev, Chicago (hooking), 2:05; McDonald, Oklahoma City (interference), 2:43; Plante, Oklahoma City (hooking), 3:30.
Shots on goal—Chicago: 14-10-9–33. Oklahoma City: 8-13-11–32. Power plays—Chicago: 1-5. Oklahoma City: 1-5. Goalies–Chicago, Mannino (2-5), Pasquale (25-27). Oklahoma City, Drouin-Deslauriers (31-33). A—6,174. Referee—Ryan Fraser. Linesmen—Randy Sappo and Bill McGoldrick.


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The hit drama series Bones returns to Fox with new episodes, following highly skilled forensic anthropologist Dr. Temperance Brennan (Emily Deschanel) and FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth (David Boreanaz). While the Jeffersonian team investigates the death of a woman whose body was found mutilated and discarded in a city garbage can, Booth invites Sweets (John Francis Daley) to stay with Brennan, so that Sweets can search for a new apartment.
During this recent interview to promote the new season, executive producers Hart Hanson (also the show's creator) and Stephen Nathan talked about how things will continue to develop between Booth and Brennan, what it will be like to have Sweets move in with them, that the Pelant storyline will return in January, how they're hoping to add another intern to the show, what's to come with the baby, how they're already shaping the end of the season, and whether they've tried to get any former Buffy, Angel or Freaks and Geeks co-stars on the show. Check out what they had to say after the jump.
Question: Now that you've got Booth (David Boreanaz) and Brennan (Emily Deschanel) together, and then back together, and they have a baby, what are you planning to do to keep the tension between them going?
HART HANSON: Well, so far, knocking on wood, this has been a very, very rich load for us to mine. With he two of them living together with a baby, and continuing to live lives and solve crimes, so far we don't have to do anything big to throw a wrench into that machine anymore. It's working just fine. There are lots of new stories. I think we have as many stories as we had at the beginning, when there was just actual tension.
STEPHEN NATHAN: I think what we've done this season, hopefully, is give them stories that are overwhelming emotionally, so we see how they react as a couple and we see how their relationship is tested. We're doing that by keeping Pelant alive, by adding somebody to their household, which will happen soon, and also really putting themselves in situations that neither of them ever expected themselves to be in. We have an episode coming up where Brennan has a near death experience, which really causes her to reevaluate her life and see everything a little bit differently. So, we're just trying to move them along and have these characters evolve and not stay in the same place. Hopefully, it will be surprising for everybody.
What can you say about their reaction when Sweets (John Francis Daley) moves in?
HANSON: It was started out as something that we were going to play out through one episode, when Sweets busts up with Daisy and he lets her have the apartment. He's been a bit of a nomad since then and they say, "Come on in and you can stay with us for a few days." We were going to do that for one episode, but it was just too much fun. If Stephen and I have one fault out of many, it is that, if something's fun, we're going to stick there for a little while.
NATHAN: It's so rich because you have Sweets, who's the psychologist, and Brennan, who disdains psychology, now in a house together where Brennan can use psychology against her guest. She keeps reading his books, which he leaves in the bathroom, and then comes out armed with all this new information, which drives him insane.
How was this season approached, from the standpoint of the reunion and then post-reunion? Will Brennan's absence haunt the rest of the season?
HANSON: It keeps coming up. In fact, it's a factor in the episode with Brennan's near death experience. I think it's a lot of fun for us, as storytellers, to keep referring to when someone makes a very rational decision that's a very smart decision and the right thing to do, but it can still carry bad effects with it and resentment. This season is them coming to grips with the fact that Brennan up and left with the baby, but it was the right thing to do. But, there are consequences to everything.
NATHAN: Also, Pelant is not going anywhere. They know he's still there. They know his threat exists. So, that's a cloud that hangs over the entire season. In a way, all of our people have their own version of PTSD. They've all been completely changed by this war with Pelant, and that won't go away easily.
When will you be getting back to the Pelant story?
NATHAN: The Pelant story will reappear in January. Pelant is always going to be hanging over their heads, in all of the episodes, but he comes back, in earnest. We're actually shooting the episode now, and it will air in January.
HANSON: It's being directed by Rob Hardy, and it's one of the biggest episodes we've ever shot. It's very exciting. He will probably make two more. We're starting to talk about what our season ender will look like, and he may or may not be a part of that.
What can you say to tease the future with Angela (Michaela Conlin)?
HANSON: We have no plans to move Michaela off the show. This is Angela's season to start to think that her life was meant to be bigger than just recreating crimes and living in a life of murder. She's feeling antsy. But, I'm very speedy to say that we have no plans to diminish Michaela's involvement in the show.
What can you say to tease the ballroom dancing episode?
NATHAN: It's terrific! We have Mary Murphy and Tyce Diorio in it. It's just a lot of fun. Our undercover episodes are gifts to the hardcore fans, where we all get goofy. It's like doing shots, every time somebody says something. That's what our undercover episodes are. We just have a good time, David and Emily love doing them. and this one's no exception. It's a murder at a ballroom dancing competition, and we find out in this that Booth actually taught ballroom dance when he was in college to make money.
HANSON: Well, that's what he thinks he was doing.
NATHAN: Yes, Sweets points out that he was probably just a gigolo for old women. From Brennan's standpoint, because of her phenomenal knowledge of kinesiology and anatomy, she believes that, as long as she can look at someone dance, she can replicate that exactly. I can just tell you that's not true.
HANSON: I'll tell you something weird about that episode. I watched David Boreanaz learn how to rumba in five minutes. He's gifted. He's a physically gifted guy.
NATHAN: We also have populated the episode with tons of winners and runners up from So You Think You Can Dance, so the dancing is really remarkable.
Do you guys have a favorite intern?
NATHAN: No, we really love them all.
HANSON: I definitely have a favorite intern. I would never say because that's like having a favorite child. I think right now my favorite intern is Vincent Nigel Murray because he's gone and we miss him, but we really do love them all and we're shocked every year that we get to have them again because they always go up for network testing for pilots. They're always just an inch from having their own shows, so we're very lucky to have every single one of them.
Will you be adding another squintern this season, or are you going to push it off another year?
NATHAN: We're developing another intern now and that script is being written, so we have to see how that turns out. But, we definitely do want to add another face on the show. Then, we also have some people who we haven't seen in a while, who we might want to bring back.
HANSON: Pilot season's coming up and our normal squinterns always have scheduling issues around pilot season, so it's behooves us to have one more in our quiver.
How far towards the end of the season are you guys? Are you guys already thinking about how you're going to wrap up the season, or are you not quite there yet?
HANSON: Yes, we're thinking about it. We're starting to shape it. We knew the end of the season as we came in, but everything changes as you work through the season. So, we're shaping the end of the season. We've got some ideas.
NATHAN: Yes, we can tease that it will revolve around the Dharma Initiative, but that's all we can say, at this point.
What upcoming guest stars can viewers expect?
NATHAN: Cyndi Lauper will be coming back. The nature of Bones is that it doesn't really provide a lot of big stunt casting because everybody's dead.
HANSON: Yes, everybody's always dead. We're having some fun talking about who might play Booth's mom and David is very, very interested in that, too. But I don't think we have any big stunt casting coming up.
What can you say about what's to come with the baby?
HANSON: That poor baby is terrible with dialogue. We can't give that baby any dialogue.
NATHAN: We were told the baby was trained in England, and I think the agent was totally lying to us because we give her these huge emotional scenes between her and Brennan and we just have to cut them out. It's like Brennan says something and the baby goes, "Goo, goo, goo," and it's just unusable.
HANSON: We have avoided having the baby be part of a murder investigation. But, the fact that they have a baby means that we always have to turn to each other and say, "Okay, where's the baby? What's happening now?" They can't just stay out all night. They just can't do what they used to do. So, the baby is woven into the fabric of the show. We don't have any plans to give the baby a horrible disease, or any of those things. We're not using the baby as a source of that kind of plot. We're just using the real stuff of raising a child, through our stories.
NATHAN: Christine will be in the episodes. Actually, we're doing one now where Brennan's a little concerned that maybe she isn't developing quickly enough. But, it's not a serious concern. It's more just Brennan being competitive with other parents.
HANSON: Brennan wants her baby to be a genius, genius, genius baby, and she might take after Booth.
NATHAN: It revolves around her ability to enjoy peek-a-boo, so you can tell it's not that intense.
Have you ever tried to get any of David Boreanaz's former Angel or Buffy co-stars?
HANSON: No. Stuck up on our wall are things like, "What if we got back a bunch of the Freaks and Geeks band to come? What if we got a bunch of the Buffy people to come? What if we got a bunch of the Angel people to come?" But, we just haven't done that yet. It's in the bin on the wall, but it just hasn't happened yet.
Bones airs on Monday nights on Fox.


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This past Independence Day wasn't just America's birthday celebration. It was also the fiftieth anniversary of the founding of Cumberland Gap National Historical Park.
When I was a kid my family lived just a few miles from the park. Years later, I lived in an apartment on the park's edge, at the foot of Cumberland Mountain and just below the pathway followed by the Wilderness Road, with a fantastic view of the opening in the mountain wall that made this spot one of the most important in the history of American expansion. At work, my desk sat before a huge window that looked toward the Pinnacle. I still drive past the Gap several times a week, and I can't begin to count how many hours I've spent wandering the trails and enjoying the interpretive exhibits and programs.
So on behalf of everybody else who either lives in the neighborhood or has paid a visit, here's a big thank you to the park's staff, and congratulations on five decades of preservation and education.


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"Face Of Beauty"Original 24" x 24" Acrylic Painting
This is not a print or reproduction, it is an original, hand-painted acrylic painting. This work of art is acrylic paint on archival quality stretched canvas that is 24" in width, 24" in height, with a stretcher depth of 1.5" -- it is fully stretched, with no staples on the side. It is sold unframed and is ready for a suitable framing of your choice. The sides of the painting are painted black for easy and immediate display. The painting is signed on the front by the artist. Please note that colors may vary slightly from the actual painting due to variations in my camera and your monitor. Painting is carefully shipped with insurance and includes a Certificate of Authenticity signed by the artist.
- Original Hand-Painted Artwork by Randal Huiskens
- Hand-Signed on the front by the artist.
- Painting sold Unframed
- Canvas size is 24"w x 24"h x 1.5"d
- Sides are painted black
- Includes Certificate of Authenticity hand-signed by the artist


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Calm Before the Storm
|Calm Before the Storm
Joseph Daniel O'Toole telling Toni Cipriani that Salvatore Leone wants him to follow Massimo Torini of the Sicilian Mafia as Salvatore does not trust his intentions in bringing peace between the Leone, Forelli and Sindacco families.
|GTA Liberty City Stories
|Joseph Daniel O'Toole
|Red Light District, Portland, Liberty City
Triads become violent towards you
|The Made Man
|Unlocked by
|The Guns of Leone
Calm Before the Storm is a mission in Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories given to protagonist Toni Cipriani by Joseph Daniel O'Toole from Paulie's Revue Bar in the Red Light District of Portland, Liberty City.
Toni drops by Paulie's Revue Bar, where O'Toole informs him that the Sicilians are trying to broker a peace between the families. However, Salvatore Leone thinks he smells a rat and wants someone to follow Massimo Torini. Toni is required to head to Sal's home within two in-game hours (two real-life minutes) before Torini flies off in a helicopter, so as to be able to follow him and investigate.
Torini first lands in Hepburn Heights, where he meets the Diablos and promises them Hepburn Heights if they help the Sicilians. Torini then flies to Chinatown and meets the Triads on a rooftop, informing them that if they co-operate with the Sicilians they will be "taken care of". The Triads, however, spot Toni. Torini flies off in the helicopter, whilst Toni kills all hostile Triad members in the vicinity in order to return to Salvatore Leone with the information.
Toni Cipriani: So, Salvatore cleaned house, huh... and now he's fixing up yours!
Joseph Daniel O'Toole: It's all mine now, Toni! Those cock-sucking Sindaccos all been kicked out. Listen, I hear the Sicilians are trying to broker peace between the families. Sal's got some heavy up at his place right now. The thing is; he smells a rat. He wants someone to get up there and follow this guy, see where he goes.
(Toni follows Massimo Torini to a meeting with the Diablos)
Massimo Torini: Come siamo rimasti d'accordo, if you do my associates work for them, you'll be well rewarded. ...Hepburn Heights will belong to the Diablos.
(Massimo then flies to Chinatown to meet the Triads)
Massimo Torini: ...so quei bastardi dei Leone tied down in Portland, and when my associates control this city, you'll be taken care of. Si pensiamo noi.
(Triads spot Toni)
Triad: Over there! It's a Leone!
The reward for completing the mission is $1,000 and the mission The Made Man for Joseph Daniel O'Toole. Triad members will also become hostile to the player thereafter, although the Diablos will not.
Toni Cipriani driving to Salvatore Leone's mansion in order to follow Massimo Torini.
Massimo Torini about to enter his helicopter.
Massimo Torini promising to give Hepburn Heights to the Diablos when the Sicilian Mafia take control of Liberty City.
Massimo Torini promising to look after the Triads when the Sicilian Mafia take control of Liberty City.
Toni Cipriani shooting at two Triads after being spotted watching their meeting with Massimo Torini.
Video walkthrough
|PS2 Version - GTASeriesVideos


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Neighborhood Resources
Our online Neighborhood Resources is a collection of our favorite how-to guides, grant opportunities, workshops, city services and more. New York City is home to a wealth of resources—gather the tools to better your community here!
Know of other resources that are worth sharing?
Di Cui at
or 212-822-9563
Explore the Citizens Committee Resource Library
NYCHA Gardening
The New York City Housing Authority's Garden & Greening Program provides free seeds, bulbs, compost, technical assistance and more to registered NYCHA gardens. Gardens must submit an application to the management office every year to qualify.
Type: City Services


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NY RANGERS vs. OTTAWA SENATORS
Saturday, Oct. 29, 3:00 p.m.
Madison Square Garden – New York, New York
Rangers: 3-3-2 (8 pts)
Senators: 5-5-0 (10 pts)
* All information through NHL games on Oct. 27
The Rangers will face-off against the Ottawa Senators tomorrow at Madison Square Garden (3:00 p.m.), in the second game of their six-game homestand. The Blueshirts currently rank fourth in the Atlantic Division standings, and 11th in the Eastern Conference, with a record of 3-3-2 (8 pts). The Rangers enter tomorrow's contest having been defeated by the Toronto Maple Leafs, 4-2, on Thursday in their 2011-12 home opener at Madison Square Garden, and have now won three of their last five games. The loss ended the Blueshirts' franchise record seven-game point streak in home openers, dating back to the 2003-04 season (4-0-1-2 over the span). Tomorrow's contest marks the Rangers' sixth consecutive game against a Canadian opponent. The Senators enter the contest with a 5-5-0 (10 pts) record to rank eighth in the Eastern Conference, and have won their last four games. Following tomorrow's contest, the Rangers will face-off against the San Jose Sharks on Monday, Oct. 31, at Madison Square Garden (7:00 p.m.), in the third game of their six-game homestand.
Please note there is no morning skate scheduled prior to tomorrow's contest. Head Coach John Tortorella will be available to the media at 12:50 p.m. in the Press Conference Room, located on the fifth floor of Madison Square Garden.
* Schedule and availability subject to change
- TV: MSG Network
2:30 p.m. – Rangers Pre-Game Show with Al Trautwig
3:00 p.m. – Rangers vs. Senators
Broadcasters: Sam Rosen (Play-By-Play), Joe Micheletti (Analyst), John Giannone (In-Game Reporter)
· Radio: 1050 ESPN Radio and newyorkrangers.com
2:30 p.m. – Rangers Pre-Game Show
3:00 p.m. – Rangers vs. Senators
Broadcasters: Don LaGreca (Play-By-Play), Dave Maloney (Analyst)
RANGERS vs. SENATORS:
· All-Time: 32-33-3-2 overall (14-20-0-1 at home; 18-13-3-1 on the road)
· 2011-12: Tonight marks the first of four meetings this season, and the first of two meetings at Madison Square Garden.
· Last Season: New York was 2-1-1 overall, including a 0-1-1 mark at home. Three of the four contests were decided by two goals or less, including one that required the shootout on Mar. 24 at Madison Square Garden (1-2, OT). Brandon Prust and Derek Stepan tied for the team-high with two goals and three points apiece in the season series. Henrik Lundqvist posted a 1.72 goals against average and a .936 save percentage while appearing in all four games.
· The Rangers have registered at least a point in eight of the last 11 contests vs. the Senators, posting a record of 7-3-1 over the span. New York has out-scored Ottawa, 27-18, during the stretch.
· Henrik Lundqvist has appeared in 23 consecutive games vs. Ottawa dating back to Dec. 26, 2005
· New York ranks 29th with a 0-1-0 record at home; Ottawa ranks 27th with a 1-3-0 (2 pts) mark on the road
· The Rangers have posted a 0-1-0 record vs. Northeast Division opponents; the Senators are 0-1-0 vs. the Atlantic Division
· Henrik Lundqvist has posted a 10-11-1 record with a 1.93 goals against average and one shutout in 23 career regular season contests vs. Ottawa; Martin Biron is 14-9-2-2 with a 2.79 goals against average and two shutouts in 30 career regular season games vs. the Senators
· Brad Richards leads the Rangers with 11 goals, 11 assists and 22 points in 31 career regular season contests vs. Ottawa; Marian Gaborik has tallied 13 points (five goals, eight assists) in 12 games vs. the Senators
· New York lists no former Senators on their roster
· Ottawa lists one former Ranger on their roster: Alex Auld (2009-10)
· Power Play: The Rangers did not tally a goal in three power play opportunities (3:24) on Thursday vs. Toronto, and are now 3-15 (20.0%) with the man advantage in the last four games. New York ranks 29th overall (3-31, 9.7%) and 29th at home (0-3). The Rangers are 0-2 (1:05) in five-on-three situations (last – 10/22 at EDM), and 0-3 (2:04) when four-on-three (last – 10/27 vs. TOR). Shorthanded goals allowed (0).
· Penalty Killing: The Blueshirts held the Maple Leafs scoreless in four shorthanded situations (5:24) on Thursday at Madison Square Garden, and are now 20-22 (90.9%) in the last five games. New York ranks eighth overall (36-41, 87.8%) and is tied for first at home (4-4, 100.0%). The Rangers are 2-2 (0:44) in three-on-five situations (last – 10/15 at NYI), and 0-1 (1:17) when three-on-four (last – 10/7 at LAK). Shorthanded goals for (1): 10/20 at CGY (Prust).
· Four-on-Four: New York tallied one goal in three four-on-four situations (3:10), and did not tally/yield a goal in one three-on-three situation (0:01) on Thursday vs. Toronto. The Rangers are now plus-three in 18 four-on-four situations (27:56), and even in one three-on-three situation (0:01). Four-on-four goals for (3): 10/18 at VAN (Gaborik); 10/20 at CGY (McDonagh); 10/27 vs. TOR (Girardi). Four-on-four goals allowed (0).
The Rangers completed their first of 14 back-to-back sets this season with a 2-1 shootout loss against the Anaheim Ducks on Oct. 8 at Ericsson Globe Arena. New York has posted a record of 0-0-1 (0-0-0 at home, 0-0-1 on the road) in the first game of the set, and are 0-0-1 (0-0-0 at home, 0-0-1 on the road) in the second game. Since 2009-10, New York is 21-8-3 in the back-end of back-to-back sets, including a 9-3-1 mark at MSG and 12-5-2 on the road over the span. The Rangers' next back-to-back set is Nov. 5-6 vs. Montreal and Winnipeg, both games to be played at Madison Square Garden.
New York defensemen have accounted for 25.0% of the team's scoring, which is tied for second in the league. Ranger blueliners have tallied four goals combined through eight games to begin the season. Ryan McDonagh leads all Blueshirt defensemen with two goals.
The Rangers finished their season-opening seven-game road trip with a 3-2-2 mark. The trip set a new franchise record for longest stretch away from Madison Square Garden to begin a season, breaking the old record of five games set in 1952-53 and 1953-54. It was only the seventh time in franchise history that the Rangers had a road trip of seven games or longer at any point in the season – 1955-56 (4-4-1-0), 1959-60 (1-5-1-0), 1981-82 (5-1-2-0), 1984-85 (0-6-1-0), 1987-88 (4-2-1-0), and 1997-98 (2-3-2-0) – and the third time they posted a winning record on such a trip (1981-82, 1987-88). The Blueshirts opened their home schedule with a 4-2 loss on Thursday vs. Toronto, their latest home opener since they opened the 1948-49 season on Oct. 27, 1948 (excluding the lockout-shortened 1994-95 season).
New York completed their four-game Western Canada road trip with a 3-1-0 record. The Rangers began the trip by defeating Vancouver (4-0) and Calgary (3-2, OT), marking the first time the team has won in those two cities in the same season since 1986-87. On Monday, the Blueshirts visited Winnipeg for the first time since they faced the former Winnipeg Jets franchise on Nov. 17, 1995 (3-6). New York came away with a 2-1 victory, marking the first time they won in Winnipeg since Nov. 21, 1992 (5-4).
Defenseman Dan Girardi enters the contest ranked second in the NHL in average ice time, logging 27:34 per contest. He has logged 30:00+ of ice time twice this season, including a season-high 31:25 of ice time on Oct. 8 against Anaheim in Stockholm, Sweden.
The Rangers had three players make their Rangers debut in the team's season opener on Oct. 7 against the Kings – Tim Erixon (NHL debut), Brad Richards (one assist) and Mike Rupp. In addition, defenseman Jeff Woywitka made his Rangers debut on Oct. 15 at Long Island, while defenseman Brendan Bell made his Blueshirts debut on Oct. 22 at Edmonton. Tim Erixon and Brad Richards made their Broadway debut in Thursday's home opener vs. Toronto.
· The Rangers have posted a record of 284-273-93 all-time in the month of October, including a 176-118-48 mark at home and a 108-155-45 record on the road. New York (3-3-2) is scheduled to play 10 games during the season's opening month in 2011-12, with three games being contested at MSG and seven scheduled on the road.
· Legendary Rangers' defenseman Brian Leetch holds the franchise record for most points in the month of October, having registered 43 goals and 130 assists for 173 career points in the season's opening month.
· The Blueshirts' all-time leader for most career wins in the month of October is Mike Richter, who registered 40 career wins during the season's opening month. Henrik Lundqvist has recorded 35 career wins during the month of October.
· New York has posted two, seven-game winning streaks in the month of October, winning seven consecutive games during the season's opening month in 2009-10 (Oct. 3 vs. Ottawa to Oct. 17 at Toronto) and 1988-89 (Oct. 16 vs. Vancouver to Oct. 30 vs. Pittsburgh).
The Rangers are currently 13 wins shy of 2,500 wins, having won 2,487 games all-time in franchise history.
· Brian Boyle: 3 games from 200th NHL career
· Ryan Callahan: 8 games from 300th NHL career
· Steve Eminger: 9 points from 100th NHL career
· Wojtek Wolski: 4 games from 400th NHL career; 9 goals from 100th NHL career
· Brad Richards: 500th career NHL assist (10/20 at CGY)
- Marc Staal (concussion, IR on 10/5) – 7
- Mike Rupp (knee, 10/24) – 1
Total Man-Games Lost: 18
- Oct. 25 – Assigned defenseman Brendan Bell to Connecticut (AHL)


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Two stories intertwine in Seattle author Tara Conklin's debut novel, "The House Girl" (Morrow, 368 pp., $25.99), one more compelling than the other. In 1852 Virginia, teenage Josephine is a slave (she's the "house girl" of the title) and aspiring artist on a tobacco farm who's determined, on one warm September day, to escape and gain her freedom. More than a century and a half later, Lina Sparrow is a young lawyer in Manhattan, assigned to a class-action lawsuit to gain reparation for descendants of American slaves. The daughter of a famous artist, Lina quickly finds herself also entwined in an art-world controversy, as a current art exhibition asks the question: Were the much-praised plantation drawings by 19th-century Southern artist Lu Anne Bell actually the work of her slave, Josephine?
Conklin, a former litigator who's previously published several works of short fiction, is a skilled writer (I loved the description of a New York secretary's head as "a display case" for her elaborate hair) who knows how to craft a thoughtful page-turner. Though we know early on that Josephine's flight can't possibly turn out well, we're glued to the pages as she plans her escape. This captive girl, who knows happiness only when she's drawing, is a touching and often riveting character — one who's learned to "fold down rising emotion just as she would fold the clean bed sheets, the sheet growing smaller and tighter with each pass until all that remained of that wide wrinkled expanse of cotton was a hard closed-in square."
We sense, through Josephine, just how very long that September day was; the salty taste of blood from a slap from the master; and her complex feelings — "sour and sweet, hot and cold" — toward her mistress, Lu Anne ("Missus"), a confused middle-aged woman dying from a mysterious ailment. She was "not Josephine's protector, not her confidante, not her friend," but she had taught Josephine to read and given her a dress that was "the prettiest thing she had ever held in her hands." But Josephine knows that if she is ever to know the freedom to "sit for a moment, herself, no one claiming her time or her thoughts or the product of her mind and hands," she must, at great risk, run.
Woven with details of life on a plantation and tidbits of history of the Underground Railroad, Josephine's story resonates with the reader far more so than that of Lina, a less well-drawn character who feels more like a type (she's an ultra-lawyer who notes that a nonbusiness lunch takes "1.6 hours") than a person. Lina's story, filled with cluttery plot (a dead mother, a lot of workplace drama) wraps up rather too easily, with a love interest that we see coming from a mile away. But Conklin wisely gives Josephine the first and last words in "The House Girl"; we leave her, on a dark road, gazing up at a silvery moon and letting herself feel hope — if only for a moment.
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Moira Macdonald is the movie critic for The Seattle Times.


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Dramatic emails written in 2011 and 2012 by Genevieve Sabourin to Alec Baldwin chronicle the accused stalker's demands for attention, affection and wordly goods.
The emails, released to NBC New York by the Manhattan District Attorney's Office Tuesday, also contain threats to the actor that she would go public with her story and frequent requests for Baldwin to come to her emotional and physical aid. Others are more straightforward, such as one from August 2011 simply stating: "I want to be your wife now." Messages from Baldwin to Sabourin, if any, were not released by the DA's office.
"30 Rock" star Baldwin and the DA's office maintain it's a case of an acquaintance with a movie star turning into harassment. Sabourin, a small-time Canadian actress, claims it was a romantic relationship that soured.
U.S. & World
Stories that affect your life across the U.S. and around the world.
During testimony Tuesday Baldwin described the attentions of Sabourin as "nightmarish," and said that her fascination with him grew from a casual lunch meeting in 2000. Over a decade later Baldwin says Sabourin was bombarding his phone with up to 30 voicemail messages in a single evening before turning up unannounced in March 2012 at the Amagansett, N.Y. and Manhattan homes Baldwin shares with his wife Hilaria.
A missive dated Nov. 21, 2011 reads: "Can you see that all I am asking is in fact for you, for your project, for your benefit? You have nothing to loose [sic], accept and start walking into your path NOW!"
The email then goes on to list that "In order to get there" Sabourin would need: "Alliance in all respect; a new house in NY and MTL; a new wardrobe, car and jewels... all of what I need to fonction [sic]; the best ccm and care to up grade and maintain my youth, health and beauty; travels; Financial security and independence; your public, personal and sincere reconnaissance, commitment and respect; your fidelity; options to grow, learn, evolvel and create; care for my mother (so I could have peace of mind)..."
In return for the above Sabourin writes that she will "become the most sexy, beautiful and exciting woman you never had" and will take Baldwin to where he needed to "become the man you dream of being."
Another email from that same date addresses Baldwin's then-girlfriend Hilaria. "You are investing and giving a lot to Hilaria and what are you really getting back from her? Is this romance is leading toward your aspirations? Non [sic], time to be responsable and take controle of your destiny. It's time to decide your future," Sabourin wrote, adding, "You need an experience partner, an ambassador and leverage...not a charming distraction. ... Stop sabotaging your credibility and chances."
What "chances" Sabourin is referring to are not made clear.
In a March 20 message Sabourin threatened what she would eventually do: turn up uninvited at Baldwin's home. It was the same month that Baldwin had announced his engagement.
"I've got your EH [East Hampton] address and road to get there," Sabourin wrote, adding that she had information on how to access his Manhattan apartment building and threatens to change her name, take yoga classes and become Hilaria's "best friend." Hilaria is a yoga instructor. Sabourin ends the email with "... ACT LIKE THE MAN I KNOW YOU ARE AND YOU OPEN UP TO ME RIGHT NOW ... DO WHAT'S WRIGH [sic] BEFORE I CROSS THE BOARDERS."
In April of that year Sabourin emailed the actor saying that "the announcement of your engagment is to painful for me and so destructive, I just died," and "in a soft way to 'kill' myself and this pain, I'll transform my self and my life completely..." She finished by writing, "I'll never be this candid little smiling/giving/nice.. naive and caring blonde girl next door, she died on the stepping stone in front of your house."
Baldwin married Hilaria on June 30, 2012, and the couple has a 3-month-old daughter.
In court Baldwin said he had repeatedly asked Sabourin to stop, though he admitted to sending her more sympathetic messages, such as "I'm sorry you're suffering so," in the hope she would be pacified and eventually leave him and his wife alone.
A police detective testified last week that Baldwin described his interactions with Sabourin as strictly professional, but the "Up Late" host acknowledged Tuesday some communications "were more personal than professional."
Throughout Baldwin's testimony Tuesday Sabourin loudly interrupted the actor with outbursts of "He's lying!" Such outbursts continued during Wednesday's session with the judge ordering Sabourin to be held in contempt of court as she kept interrupting her own lawyer making a motion.
Another of Sabourin's messages dated March 20 arrived with the subject line: "One degree of separation!! ;-)" and contains the following: "it's not my attention to draw medias attention into a public scene and argumentation's [sic] with you..."
Sabourin faces up to 90 days in jail if convicted.


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Welcome to Scale 4x4 R/C! We are the first website and forum dedicated to the scale 4x4 r/c enthusiast. We have an international group of members with amazing talent and skill. Come check out some the fantastic custom trucks built by our members. Be sure to check us out even if you aren't that familiar with the scale scene, we have plenty of information on other aspects of r/c, from crawling to flying, we're into it all!
We are your source for all things Scale 4x4 R/C!
Check back often for updates and the latest news!
So it seems Traxxas is showing off a prototype for a new scale truck, complete with plenty of detailed parts and portal style axles and remote locking diffs too! Head on over to RC Car Action's article for more pictures and info!
There's some discussion on the forums getting started here too:http://www.scale4x4rc.org/forums/showthread.php?p=1053145


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George Fox University
George Fox is Oregon's nationally recognized Christian university, providing students with personal attention, global opportunities to learn and serve, and a supportive community that encourages academic rigor and spiritual growth.
Forbes ranks George Fox among the top Christian colleges in the country. George Fox is also ranked as a top-tier regional university by U.S. News & World Report. We offer bachelor's degrees in more than 40 majors and minors, adult degree programs, six seminary degrees, and 13 master's and doctoral degrees.
In keeping with our mission of Christian higher education, all employees – faculty, administration and staff – are committed Christians. More than 4,000 students attend classes on the university's residential campus in Newberg, at its Portland and Salem locations, and at other teaching sites in Oregon.
School of Education
The School of Education is the largest school at George Fox, with approximately 50 full-time faculty and 800 candidates preparing for the professions of teaching, school counseling, administration and school psychology. Our graduates are making an impact across the Pacific Northwest, providing services to students and other educators as teachers, administrators, counselors, and marriage and family therapists. Educators who have chosen to pursue this journey of professional preparation are co-learners with a faculty who are committed to excellence, integrity, reflection, and influences in today's world. The School of Education incorporates four departments:
Undergraduate Teacher EducationGraduate Teaching and Leading
- Doctor of Education
- Master of Education
- Master of Arts in Education (MAEd)
- Administrative Licensure
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Five Finger Death Punch Eyeing January Start for 'American Capitalist' Follow-Up
Five Finger Death Punch's latest album 'American Capitalist' is still going strong and the band is spending its summer months supporting the disc by heading up the 'Trespass America' tour. But guitarist Jason Hook knows the end of the album cycle will come at some point and he says the group is already making preparations for when that will happen.
Hook tells Billboard that the band has taken their own ProTools rig with them on the road this summer, and they already have "six to eight songs worked up" for their next release. He explains, "The idea behind that is just to keep the creative muscle worked out. It's just like going to the gym; if you stop for a year, you lose all your strength. It's easy to get lazy and get sort of soft. We're in the business of making music; touring is great, but we should always be prepared and always exercising that creative muscle — in my opinion, anyway."
The guitarist says that he envisions a timeline in which the band will be working on new material for the rest of 2012, with the hopes of tracking the disc in January. He adds, "It's just like anything: if you come in unprepared you get what you get, but if you do a decent amount of preparation, then at least you have options. The records are the launch pad for everything else, and I want to make the records great. If we need 10 killer songs, I'd rather have 30 songs to pick from than have eight and need two desperately at the end. I don't want to make records in a panic."
So while the attention behind the scenes turns to preparing for their next album, in the public eye they keep chugging along with 'American Capitalist.' The disc is onto its fourth single, 'Coming Down,' and Hook admits he feared the song wouldn't make the record.
He recalls, "I wasn't sure anyone was going to go for it because it had acoustic guitar. It was kind of a different flavor, you know? I was almost positive that this one was going to go into the 'Save It for Your Soul' file, but everyone said, 'No, that's cool man,' so it shows what I know."
Five Finger Death Punch will continue their current tour through Aug. 28 in Los Angeles.


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Home > Electronics > Musical Instruments > Guitar > 3 Ply Tremolo Cover And Truss Rod Cover Yellow Pearl For Stratocaster
Product Details
- Cool yellow pearl tremolo cover and truss rod cover
- 3 ply white / black / white bevel edge finish
- 3 screw holes in the side of the tremolo cover
- 6 screw holes in the side of the truss rod cover
- Fit for Stratocaster guitar
- Anti-scratch to protect the guitar
- Tremolo Cover Size (Hole Center to Hole Center): Approx. 3.07 inch / 7.8cm; 2.52 inch / 6.4cm
- Truss Rod Cover (Hole Center to Hole Center): Approx. 1.18 inch / 3cm; 0.59 inch / 1.5cm
- Material: Collulose and PVC
- Color: Yellow
Package Includes::
- 1 x Tremolo cover
- 1 x Truss rod cover
Note: Please be reminded that due to lighting effects and monitor's brightness/contrast settings etc, the color tone of the website's photo and the actual item could be slightly different.
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Le Guin's Hainish Cycle has been a source of pleasurable reading for some time now; but alas, I'm quickly running out of new (new to me) Hainish books to read. After finishing The Word for World Is Forest, the only remaining Hainish material I have yet to read (as far as I know) is the story collection Four Ways to Forgiveness. As usual for Le Guin, Word for World (to shorten just a bit), is a thoughtful story about different permutations of human society as it evolves on various worlds, and about the tragedies that can result when different branches of the human family (re-)encounter each other. It also has something to say about war and violence, and says it with a heavy dose of satire, which makes this book a little different from the other Hainish novels. Le Guin originally wrote this as a novella which appeared in Ellison's Again, Dangerous Visions, and then later expanded it into a novel (although still a very short one). As far as I can tell, this is the later version I've read.
The basic theme of the story is that of exploiters and the exploited — the powerful, greedy, violent invaders versus the primitive, innocent, peaceful natives. Terrans have come to the planet Athshe, coveting its natural resources and seeing it as ripe for colonization. A small population of a few thousand, including a heavy military component, have set up a few initial settlements, largely devoted to harvesting Athshe's lush forests for their timber, which is shipped back to Earth as a "necessary luxury." To help in this endeavor, the Terrans have enslaved the native Athsheans as a captive work force — "voluntary labor" in the Terrans' terminology. These Terrans really have a way with words, don't they?
The Athsheans, another branch of humanity descended from Hainish colonizers, are an easy target for such abuse. Small in stature and non-aggressive by nature, they don't resist being put to work and kept in pens…. at least at first. After all, they are human, cousins to their Terran overlords, and so the potential for violence exists somewhere within them. And that is a central point of the book: that violence may be minimized, controlled, overcome, even forgotten…. but it is never forgotten completely, and can be re-learned with astonishing speed. When one individual Athshean is pushed over the edge into violent behavior, the peculiar nature of Atshean psychology causes his people to see him as a kind of prophet or god, and consequently the violence spreads throughout the entire society, unleashing a terrible force of destruction on the Terran outsiders.
As I said, the satire is laid on pretty thick. Some parts of this remind me strongly of the various Robert Sheckley stories that deal with the same theme of a smug, arrogant humanity stepping on alien natives. I also can't help but think of Dr. Strangeglove and its darkly hilarious portrayal of the military mind. Le Guin's Davidson character could have come right out of that movie, with lines like this:
"When I say Earth, Kees, I mean people. Men. You worry about deer and trees and fibreweed, fine, that's your thing. But I like to see things in perspective, from the top down, and the top, so far, is humans. We're here, now; and so this world's going to go our way. Like it or not, it's a fact you have to face; it happens to be the way things are."
And this:
[…] you've got to play on the winning side or else you lose. And it's Man that wins, every time. The old Conquistador.
Also quite noticeable in the novel are references to the Vietnam War, during which the story was written. The jungle imagery, the Terran's use of what is effectively napalm, My Lai-style massacres, an enemy that is physically smaller and uses underground living spaces, all of this brings Vietnam to the reader's mind. At one point Davidson makes a comment about how it doesn't matter if they're vastly outnumbered, all it takes is superior firepower and the will to win. He, like the Americans in southeast Asia, eventually has to face the fact that he's wrong about that.
This book was interesting for a few other reasons. One was that it takes place during the time when the League of All Worlds was first being formed. As the Terrans communicate with Earth via the recently discovered ansible, we can see the maturing effects on Earth as it steps forth to join a larger community. Incidentally, the arrival of the ansible also reveals the paranoia that can result from an over-acute sense of military suspicion; some of the Terrans almost bring themselves to believe the ansible is a Hainish trick, a sophisticated computer generating answers on the spot, rather than being an interstellar communications device. Also interesting was the Athsheans' dreaming ability, and their division of life into "dream-time" and "world-time" (I'm thinking of Australian aborigines for some reason).
This was a good book. But then, I already said it was written by Le Guin, so I suppose I'm being redundant, aren't I?


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My favorite way to eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches is on toasted wheat bread, with crunchy peanut butter and lots of chunky strawberry preserves. The warm toast melts the peanut butter just a little so that it drips out of the sandwich, just begging to be licked before you take a bite. The saltiness and sweetness of the sandwich is what makes it so delicious.
Peanut butter and jelly is one of those all-American combinations that just about everyone loves, and this cookie combines those flavors into a yummy little treat. And doesn't this cookie just look like Christmas? These would be so pretty for a holiday cookie exchange, or a fun treat to make with the kids.
I've been making the same peanut butter cookie since I was 20, and I've never even tried another one because I just love this one so much. When I was teaching overseas, I decided one week to make treats for my students, and it had to be these peanut butter cookies - which I usually top with a Hershey's kiss. Most people call those Peanut Butter Blossoms, but I like to call them Peanut Butter Kiss Cookies.
Having more than 250 students and a very small oven that could only bake 6 cookies at a time, you can imagine the time and ingredients it took to make enough cookies for them to each get 2. Every night that week, I made a huge batch of batter (without an electric mixer) and spent the evening in my little kitchen baking 6 at a time until I had enough freshly baked cookies for the next day's classes. As well as a few extra for some of the other teachers.
This year I'm not making decorated sugar cookies - although I love making them into different shapes and decorating them, I'm just not that big a fan of eating them since they're so overly sweet. Instead, I've been baking some other cookies to satisfy my need to bake for the holidays. And what could be prettier or yummier than a shiny dollop of jam on a soft peanut butter cookie?
These took me a few tries to get just right. First, I pressed an indentation in the cookies and baked them with the jam right from the start - but they spread everywhere and didn't look right at all. I thought it was the pan, so I tried a non-stick pan without parchment or a silpat, and still they spread out very unattractively. I just didn't understand why they were spreading out so much since they never do that when I bake them plain, topping them after the fact with the Hershey's kiss. I baked 3 dozen unsuccessful cookies before I changed course - I've got to learn to start only baking 2 cookies at a time for the trial runs so I don't waste so much batter.
After thinking about it for a while, I thought that much colder dough would help them keep their shape - so I rolled the remainder of the dough into balls and froze those for an hour, before baking them straight from the freezer. And this time, instead of pressing the cookies down and filling with jam right away, I baked them first, then finished that step at the very end so that they had a change to get nice and puffy before adding the jam.
Is it presumptuous to say they were perfect? The cookies were so soft and moist, held their shape beautifully, and the jam set up just right. The rave reviews the cookies received at book club the next day confirmed just how good they were. I've seen so many peanut butter cookie recipes that tell you to bake the cookies for 15-20 minutes - are they crazy? These are baked for no more than 9 minutes, for soft, gooey, cookie goodness.
Is there anyone who doesn't love a peanut butter cookie? If there is, I think they must be from another planet... And even at that, I'd be surprised if aliens don't love peanut butter cookies, too. They would sure love these.
Peanut Butter and Jelly Thumbprint Cookies
printable recipe
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1/2 cup white granulated sugar, plus 1/4 cup for rolling
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter (not the all-natural kind)
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 1/2 cup seedless jam
With your electric mixer beat the butter and both sugars (reserving the 1/4 cup white sugar for later) on medium speed for 5 minutes, scraping the bowl occasionally, until light and fluffy. Add the peanut butter and beat until smooth. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until well combined.
In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda and salt. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the milk. Mix just until combined.
Place the dough in the refrigerator to chill for 1 hour until firm enough to roll into balls. Roll rounded tablespoons of cookie dough into balls, then roll the balls in the remaining 1/4 cup sugar. Place on a cookie sheet (you can put them close together to fit them all on one sheet for this step). Freeze dough balls for 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 375 F. Working in batches, place the frozen cookie balls 2 inches apart on an ungreased baking sheet (don't use parchment or a silpat, or they may spread too much, and you want them to stay small, round and puffed). Keep the remainder of the cookie balls in the freezer until you're ready to bake them.
Bake the cookies for 7 minutes. Remove from the oven and, working quickly, press an indentation in the center of each cookie using the back of a teaspoon measuring spoon. Fill the indentations with the jam (To be able to do this as quickly as possible, I first warmed the jam in the microwave for 30 seconds, stirred until smooth, then spooned the jam into a small squeeze bottle to quickly and easily fill the cookies.) Return the cookies to the oven and bake for an additional 2 minutes.
Cool the cookies on the pan for 1 minute, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. They may appear to be too soft and unbaked, but trust me, they'll set up as they cool, and the following day they'll be so soft and yummy that you may just want to cry out of happiness!
Notes: The dough can also be prepared and refrigerated for several weeks ahead of time. Baking the jam in the last two minutes sets the jam a little so that it won't be too messy later, and you should be able to stack the cookies to store them in an airtight container without messing up the jam. Instead of jam, try a little Nutella. Or, for one of my favorite cookies, press a Hershey's kiss into the center of the cookie after it's baked.
Yields 3 dozen cookies.


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Did anyone else try to go to the Streaming Video, called Live Streaming, from the Southern California Genealogical Society this past weekend?
Well, I was successful in watching five lectures. But I had problems with the others - I just couldn't log on for some reason, and I joined others who had the same problem as I according to the message page.
You had to register for each session separately, and that seemed to be the root of the problem. Having to register for each one. Hopefully, they will get it fixed by next year.
However, the five I did hear were –
Steve Luxenberg – His talk was about a family secret (his mother had a secret that no one knew about – a sister), and the method he used to find out about her. Quite thought provoking!
Kerry Bartels – He is an archivist at the Pacific National Archives on the West Coast, and took us through his own journey of privately archiving his own personal family papers that were found in the family home in the mid-west. The family was originally from Switzerland.
Warren Bittner – This lecture was really interesting on establishing relationships within a family. He took the case of his grand-mother , and tried through census records, city directories, obituaries etc to find her family in New York City. He showed how to work with complex evidence to find the family when they didn't appear on the census at first glance.
D. Joshua Taylor – I try never to miss him – he is that good! He talked about using Compiled Genealogies, and how you can use them to work on your own genealogy.
Examples of Compiled Genealogies are journal articles, local history books, Family Associations.
Kerry Bartels – I heard him again. And this time he talked about military records.
I was bemused by the parallels of the National Archives in Washington and our own LAC – the lack of indexes by name of digitised records. This is exactly what we don't like about the LAC as they put on more, and more of the records without providing a name index. Example, the War of 1812 record!
Unfortunately, the Live Streaming won't be repeated for Free, but will only be available at the site on the member's page. Too bad – because it was good what I saw of it!
But they do put on Webinars on a bi-weekly basis. I have listened to them, and the topics are very good.
And there was a 27 page Syllabus (which was available as PDF), and it is full of information for people who have ancestors in the States. The information on William Bittner's talk was really helpful.
But in spite of everything, I would like to thank Pat Hinkle, the 1st Vice-President of the SCGS, for all the work she does in making the Jamboree a worthwhile event.
The next one is on June 20th, and it will feature Rick Crume, and his topic will be "Genealogy Hacking: Tricks to Crack Genealogy Web Sites".
Go to www.scgsgenealogy.com to register for the Webinar.


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Amazon has brought its Instant Video streaming app to the iPhone and iPod touch, joining the iPad.
The update means owners of the iPhone and iPod touch can now stream and download movies and TV shows to their device.
Videos you've bought through Instant Video using other devices will automatically show up on your iPhone or iPod touch once you log in. And if you're a member of Amazon Prime, you can stream anything from the Prime Instant Video library, which consists of over 30,000 videos, all free.
The app launched for iPad at the end of November.
The Watchlist feature is like a wishlist, keeping track of everything you've tagged to watch later. You can add to it as you go, straight from your Apple device, then open it up whenever you want and dive straight in.
Everything you've bought or rented from Amazon will be stored in a section called Your Video Library, which again, you can open up any time and delve into.
The app is a free download, and will work with the third generation iPod touch and later, iPhone 3GS and later, or any iPad. It's also optimised for the iPhone 5's 4-inch screen.
Via SlashGear


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The Museum Of London has gone NFC, with tags beside the exhibits providing links to more information as Nokia continues trying to convince us that NFC is something we really want.
Nokia paid for the deployment, as it continues trying to remind us that NFC isn't just about mobile payments and can be used for all sorts of other stuff too: such as tapping a sticker beside an exhibit to get information displayed on a tiny smartphone screen, rather than a boring-old printed card that would be accessible to anyone:
To be fair the NFC tag could link to video or audio content which would be hard to display on a card, but the London deployment isn't going as far as a similar project at the Paris Pompidou Centre, which at least linked to Facebook so visitors could "Like" specific exhibits.
That deployment was paid for by the French government, while this one was funded entirely by Nokia – the museum confirmed to us that it hadn't spent a penny on the 90 or so tags that Nokia has deployed around the sites.
Those tags will work with any NFC phone: GSM Arena reckons there are 21 currently available, though it misses the Samsung Tocco Quick Tap, so there are probably others missing too.
Nokia is pulling out all the stops to get us using NFC for things other than mobile payments, not least because it looks increasingly as though the proximity payment business will end up in the hands of the existing players: Visa, Mastercard, et al, leaving little incentive for brands like Nokia to get involved.
There's also the matter that Nokia's C7 can't actually handle payments, as it lacks the secure element (or SWP support) necessary to support them, so the company is keen to promote alternative uses for the technology as actively as it can. ®


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Valley Christian High School
The academic journey continues for high school students as they pursue their educational passions while growing stronger in their Christian faith. With access to a rich combination of core classes and electives in a rigorous, comprehensive college preparatory environment, VCHS students have the opportunity to explore a variety of disciplines that lead them to achieve their God-intended purposes. At Valley Christian High School, we believe in creating unique opportunities to maximize each four-year high school academic experience. Through our 1:1 iPad technology, the Dual Credit program, the Academic and College Counseling staff, and a variety of levels of classes so students can learn at their own pace, we strive to provide each student with a customized high school experience that sets them up for success academically, professionally, and personally.
As principal, I consider it a distinct privilege to continue Valley Christian Schools' rich heritage of Christian ministry of educating students for over fifty years. What a blessing it is to celebrate our past achievements while anticipating the future opportunities that God has prepared for our school!
Throughout this upcoming year, my goal is to keep our focus on the power that comes from being united in Jesus Christ. As Corinthians 7:7 reminds us, "Each has their own gifts from God." These gifts, when parlayed together, bring forth the potential of true spiritual growth in the lives of our young people. As the principal, I promise to support and encourage our outstanding VCHS faculty, who in turn work to support and encourage our parents in their role as primary educators of our students. We can surpass even our most unimaginable goals for the Kingdom of God through this biblical model of spiritual teamwork. If you aren't already part of the VCHS family, I encourage you to stop by for a campus tour or take advantage of the opportunity for visiting students to shadow a VCHS student. I am confident that you will quickly recognize the friendly, vibrant spirit that exists on our campus. If you choose to become part of this incredible community, you will undoubtedly learn what it means to be part of a truly unified Christian school family and will understand the powerful influence that this can have on your life or in the life of your student.
May God bless you richly!
The academic journey continues for high school students as they pursue their educational passions while growing stronger in their Christian faith. With access to a rich combination of core classes and electives in a rigorous, comprehensive college preparatory environment, VCHS students have the opportunity to explore a variety of disciplines that lead them to achieve their God-intended purposes. At Valley Christian High School, we believe in creating unique opportunities to maximize each four-year high school academic experience. Through our 1:1 iPad technology, the Dual Credit program, the Academic and College Counseling staff, and a variety of levels of classes so students can learn at their own pace, we strive to provide each student with a customized high school experience that sets them up for success academically, professionally, and personally.
Valley Christian High School offers students the opportunity to specialize in applied math, science, or engineering through AMSE. This program offers unique training with experienced professionals to aid students in developing a competitive portfolio of work throughout high school. The program extends the various after-school offerings available at the elementary and junior high levels, and VCHS AMSE students also have extraordinary opportunities to participate in the International Space Station (ISS) Program, the Satellite Development Program, the Astronomy Research Program, Mu Aplha Theta Math Honors Society, Robotics, and much more. Our state-of-the-art facilities include the ISS Lab, the NanoTechnology Lab, the Satellite Tracking Station, the VC Observatory, and much more. The curriculum for the AMSE program is designed to advance the unique interests and abilities of the individual; thus VCHS faculty members tailor each AMSE student's schedule based on which courses and activities will best assist the student in meeting his/her personal goals.
The Conservatory of the Arts offers high school students the exciting opportunity to further refine their God-given artistic talents with an Honors Program offered for six disciplines: Music, Visual Arts, Dance Arts, Theatre Arts, Technical Theatre, or Media Arts (film and 3D Animation). The Honors Program creates a pathway for recognizing the top high achieving students while broadening the outreach to the greater VCS community. Involvement in a specialized Honors Program helps students stand out to college and admissions committees and prepares them to pursue their creative endeavors after high school. We have expanded our course offerings by entering into strategic partnerships with internationally-recognized art institutions such as the renowned Berklee College of Music in Boston and the Steinway Corporation. Our commitment to providing students with extraordinary opportunities was recently rewarded when the VCHS Marching Band and Color Guard were selected to march in the 2013 Tournament of Roses Parade; two of our theatre students were selected to perform in a 2014 summer showcase on Broadway; our 2017 and 2018 Performing Indoor Ensemble earning the Gold Medal at the Winter Guard International Championships for two consecutive years; and our Visual Arts students' annual participation in "The Memory Project," creating portraits from photographs and sending them to disadvantaged students in Columbia and Madagascar.
VCHS is a proud member of the CIF program, "Pursuing Victory with Honor." Our student athletes regularly compete with distinction at the local, state, and national level—a rare occurrence at a high school of this size. Our goal is to teach life lessons through disciplined training and true competition: how to handle adversity, how to work as a team, and how to display sportsmanship on and off the field. With 44 competitive teams in 19 different sports, our Sports Outreach Bible course, and the chance to mentor elementary students through Little Warrior Nation, VCHS provides numerous opportunities for our athletes to develop in their sport and grow as young men and women.
With the recent development of The Human Performance Initiative (HPI), our Athletics program continues to grow beyond our extensive offerings of championship-caliber Warrior teams. We offer specialty Physical Education classes based on a single sport as well as Strength & Conditioning classes for boys and girls. The new Human Performance Center (HPC) provides year-round, sports-specific training to maximize strength, power, speed, and athletic performance for all Valley Christian High School athletes. An on-campus specialist is also available to assist with the college recruitment process. Our emphasis on integrity, hard work, and honor over simply winning has proven to be a successful combination, as each year we have multiple student athletes from a variety of sports sign with excellent schools around the country.
It was the heart of VCS founders, David and Edie Wallace, that the school honor God by providing an education grounded in the Judeo-Christian values of the Bible, as reflected in the life and teaching of Jesus Christ. Our school has grown dramatically and even miraculously over the years, but this same purpose remains the cornerstone of VCS. While our school is known for high quality programs and one-of-a-kind opportunities, we also place an extremely high value on introducing and fostering personal relationships with Jesus Christ. We recognize that this relationship is one that not only transforms our world, but also makes a difference for eternity.
"We chose Valley Christian High School for our son, Christopher Jr., and our two daughters, Christina and Annalisa, for the same reasons: the academics are challenging, the faculty is exceptional, and the learning environment is excellent."
"The academics have been outstanding. Probably half of the classes my daughter took were honors and AP classes, and she is at a top university now (UC Berkeley). She keeps thanking me for how prepared she was to go into that difficult school… I credit Valley for the preparation she needed to get to that point in her life."
VCHS is known for our exceptional facilities and cutting edge programs, but these resources would be meaningless without the extraordinary faculty who pour themselves into the lives of our incredible young Warriors. We are blessed to attract faculty who have learned from some of the brightest minds in their fields and who use that level of knowledge, expertise, and innovation to inspire the great thinkers of tomorrow. As a community, we believe that the best educators are lifelong learners, so we are committed to continued professional development in educational best practices. As such, we are proud to say that 50% of VCHS teachers currently hold a master's degree, and 7% have a PhD.
Our faculty members understand that Christian education is not just a career; it is a calling. They realize the distinct privilege they have in fostering the spiritual growth of their students and take very seriously their role in helping young people discover their God-given potential. VCHS teachers integrate a biblical perspective into their standards-based curriculum, and also serve as Prayer Warriors, praying for a specific group of students by name throughout the year. The combination of our teachers' professional experience, educational training, and spiritual passion is what enables Valley Christian's Quest to produce lives of influence.