Zhejiang Provincial Museum

We have been in Hangzhou all of this time but have never made it to the Zhejiang provincial museum which borders West Lake on the Bai Di. The museum is three floors which chronicle over 7000 years of history in this region! We saw everything from replicas of the first wood houses made with primitive tools to the military costumes from the Warring States period and a Texaco Oil Co. sign from the turn of the century. Quite a diverse collection! After a quick visit to the museum, we hopped a boat to the West Lake islands on this balmy day - gorgeous in every direction!Hydrangeas greeted us upon landing on the island, "Three Pools Mirroring the Moon". We let the boys stay up until midnight last night playing a computer game with our friend Danny, and they were grumpy today. Even though they were tired, they made me a scrumptious French Toast breakfast this morning for Father's Day. However they really wanted to stay home but we dragged them out anyway, so here I am headlocking the two grumps. Jack perked up after awhile and played with his sister on the boat. A flower shot for Sue to paint when she gets home in 2 weeks! One of the boys spied this snake swimming rapidly through the water. Yikes! Our four kids... Peter, Sophie, Jack and our newly adopted son Danny, also another teacher at Jiliang. He comes over and plays network PC games with the boys and they LOVE it! Looking across one of the pools at "Three Pools Mirroring the Moon" island. A family picture, looking back across West Lake. All of the kids, including Danny, got up in the tree for this shot... Jack was the first to find the tree and climb it - he loved it up there! This is the same scene as is on the 1 RMB bill, so it's well known all over China! The lily pads were all blooming in the three pools. Jack loves hopping around across these doorways. He's all arms and legs these days! And finally Sophie, who's favorite activity is to be outdoors running at top speed. The island is good for that as there are no cars and it wasn't too crowded today!

Lisa's 2nd ear activation.

Lisa went in yesterday to have her new imlant activated. The activation went well. The second ear actually started more advanced than the first ear had started out. (And if you remember, the first ear really started out better than our expectations. )Now there is a still a lot of work to do for the new device to catch up to the same level the first one is at now... She has really come a long way to the good for her hearing.
Anyway, this bit of video you see here is her first number test with the new ear. Lisa does really well, only misses one number. But this will give you a glimpse of what it is like when they work to calibrate the hearing implant device.Thanks for praying so faithfully.Tom & Lisa

PTR patch 3.1.2 build 9889: Juggernaut, Auriya's cats nerfed

Filed under: Warrior, Patches, News itemsA small new build was pushed to the patch 3.1.2 PTR today. The majority of the changes were relatively minor, but one is headline-worthy: the Arms Warrior talent Juggernaut now gives your next Slam or Mortal Strike an additional 25% chance to critically hit if used within 10 sec, down from 100% chance. Forum posters have been asking for a Juggernaut nerf quite vocally recently; they ought to be pleased with this one. Warriors also got a second small nerf: the Glyph of Rapid Charge is being changed from a 20% cooldown reduction (3 seconds) to a 7% reduction (1 second).
Other changes included some small tweaks to the Ulduar encounters Iron Council and General Vezax. Auriya's cats took a good hit from the nerf bat, with the damage from their Savage Pounce ability being cut in half. Finally, Priests' Divine Hymn, which was completely reworked in patch 3.1, had its bonus healing to affected targets nerfed from 15% to 10%; I never use the spell, so I don't much care. PTR patch 3.1.2 build 9889: Juggernaut, Auriya's cats nerfed originally appeared on WoW Insider on Mon, 11 May 2009 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Fantasy-World Organizing

Are you comparing your home or office to those you see in magazines or catalogs? Thanks to Cool Mom Picks, I just read the following wise words about "org porn" on Buttoned Up. The people quoted, Alicia and Sarah, are the site's founders, who are also the authors of Everything (Almost) in Its Place.“Org porn is that glossy, airbrushed fantasy world where everything is pristine, serene and perfectly in order, sort of Playboy, but with chore charts and name-plated cubbyholes,” said Sarah Welch. “It’s everywhere you look these days: in magazines, coffee table books, advertisements, and TV shows. ...“Don’t get us wrong, gazing at beautiful images of meticulously organized rooms, perfectly displayed collections, color-coordinated closets, flawless family schedules, pristine kitchens, tidy mud rooms, and picture-perfect work spaces can be titillating – even meditative. There’s a reason we call it ‘org porn,’” said Alicia Rockmore. “But when they become the primary yardstick by which you measure your own general state of organization is when it becomes unhealthy. An airbrushed land of perfect organization cannot be sustained in this messy, unpredictable world called real life.” And there's the same kind of issue in the time management realm, as Abagael MacAskill writes. She's a homeschooling mom, but similar unrealistic expectations plague many parents - and non-parents, too. I head off to the first of a day full of seminars directed at every conceivable aspect of homeschooling. At the first seminar a woman who is the mother of seven, speaks on organizing your house and your day, while simultaneously educating your children. As I walk away at the end I marvel at how she makes her own bread, volunteers at three or four charities weekly, crosses the country 6 months out of the year giving lectures on this topic, AND still manages to educate her seven children to genius status. I have two children at home and sometimes none of us make it out of our PJs by three in the afternoon and my sink is always full of dishes. ...Homeschoolers are under scrutiny by everybody - the media, the government, the school district, extended family and even sometimes the neighbors. Because of this constant judging I think as homeschoolers we tend to overcompensate and present an unreasonable picture of perfection to the world of what homeschooling is like. Then we begin to believe it ourselves. Since it is not really perfection and never will be on this side of heaven we have set ourselves up for disappointment, failure and burnout. So many of us see examples of people who seem to cope perfectly - they have time for everything, their homes are perfectly organized all the time. I don't know anyone like that in real life.Related Post: Organizing on TV: Illusion vs. Reality[Picture from The Container Store]

kileochale2

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The Big influenza gamble: A look at 1918, 1976 and today’s flu scare

Bill Dalton
May 07, 2009
On Sept. 27, 1918, the Andover Board of Health closed all schools, the library, and the movie theater. Church services were voluntarily discontinued. These actions were taken because of the Great Influenza Epidemic of 1918-19. The Board of Heath reported 1,503 cases of influenza in 1918 and 25 people died. The Andover Townsman reported 341 new cases in one week. In 1919, there were 274 more cases, but the Board of Health was too busy dealing with the epidemic to file a report and no deaths were stated. (The towns population was 8,000.) In Lawrence, open air hospitals were set up in tent villages. In Massachusetts, 45,000 people died.
The Great Influenza was one of the worst events in human history. Twenty million Americans were infected, 20 percent of the population. It killed 675,000 of those people, 10 times more Americans than died in World War I. Half the American troops who died in the war died of the influenza. Worldwide, between 20 million and 100 million died, with 50 million being a widely quoted number. More people died from the Great Influenza in one year than died from the Black Death (Bubonic Plague) during the Middle Ages.
The mortality rate for the annual flu is 0.1 percent. Last year, the flu killed about 34,000 worldwide. That was a normal year. The mortality rate during the Great Influenza was 2.5 to 5 percent. Not only was that influenza much more contagious than ever, it killed a high percent of the people infected. The 1918-19 Influenza came in three waves. The first wave was relatively benign; the second wave was deadly; and the third wave was benign.
Virus mutation rate calculations are for scientists, but rapid mutation is what makes viruses so dangerous. Simply stated, viruses go through countless generations and mutations during the time it takes humans to go through a single generation.
(H1N1) Influenza A, formerly called the Swine Flu is now causing concern. The 1918-19 was an H1N1 virus, but within the designation H1N1 are large numbers of variations. Some variations are harmless, some will make you sick, and some will kill you.
We had a Swine Flu scare in 1976, and it affected a presidential election. That year, a small number of soldiers at Fort Dix were diagnosed with Swine Flu. One died. Acting with the recommendation of the Centers for Disease Control and with Congressional approval, President Gerald Ford implemented a Swine Flu program that included the vaccination of 40 million Americans. Three elderly people died shortly after being vaccinated and the media assumed a connection. Public outcry stopped the vaccination program. Today we know that there was no scientific connection between those deaths and the vaccinations. However, after the vaccinations were stopped, as many as 500 people developed Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS), a serious neurological disorder. Up to 25 of these people died. GBS is rare and can be caused as a response to a vaccination.
Before large scale vaccination programs are begun, experts predict the number of health issues that will be caused by the vaccine. It is a risk/reward analysis: how many people will be hurt as compared to how many will be helped by the vaccine. With flu vaccinations, it is predicted that one person in a million will get GBS. The 1976 Swine Flu Vaccine had an abnormally high 500. (That may have been a statistical anomaly, or something unique in the vaccine, or a heightened awareness of the side effects caused by media attention, or a combination of all of these.)
President Ford was criticized for overreacting to the Swine Flu. This overreaction may have played a role in his defeat by Jimmy Carter. In 1979, I was at the Kennedy School, and we studied the 1976 Swine Flu Crises. The important part of the discussion was not about whether Ford had overreacted but whether the perception that hed overreacted might cause future Presidents to underreact in similar situations.
The predictable cries that the government, the media, and we are overreacting began several days ago. Part of my full-time job involves risk management. Besides insurance (which is really shifting risk rather than managing it), risk management means that you do things that cost time and money to prevent people from getting hurt and assets from being destroyed. The trouble with risk management is that you cant always quantify whether you had the desired results. In other words, you dont know what problems you prevented.
This is a high stakes game, folks. If I were betting money, Id bet that this will all blow over, and maybe laugh about it. However, Im in favor of overreaction as opposed to underreaction when the stakes are so high.
Postscript. As the paper goes to press, it appears more than likely that the latest flu is no more dangerous than an ordinary flu. However, the government will have to make a decision as to whether it manufactures a vaccine for this new strain of influenza or whether it keeps on with its plans to manufacture a vaccine for the routine annual flu. There may not be enough capability to manufacture both, but that could change. Remembering that this H1N1 may be able to remake itself into a deadly second wave in time for the colder weather and flu season, like the H1N1 of 1918-19 remade itself, the stakes remain very high.
AndoverTownsman.com

Caitlin Sarubbi rings The Opening Bell

Via NYSE.com
Brooklyn, NY’s Caitlin Sarubbi is a rising star in the adaptive ski-racing world with a goal of medaling in the 2010 Paralympics Winter Games in Vancouver. Caitie is 19 years old, and was born with Ablepharon Macrostomia that left her without eyelids and visually-impaired. Caitlin, for the past three years, has maintained excellent grades while training and competing at the national level to qualify for the U.S. Adaptive Ski Team (USAST). Caitie achieved both her scholastic and skiing goals. She is currently attending Harvard University as a pre med undergraduate, in addition to being named to the United States Adaptive Team. (Source www.CaitlinSarubbi.com)
About the Adaptive Sports Foundation (ASF)
The Adaptive Sports Foundation is a non profit organization located at Windham Mountain in Windham, New York. The ASF provides over 2800 lessons annually to individuals with cognitive or physical challenges. The ASF has 205 volunteer instructors and six full time staff members, eight of whom serve as Adaptive and Alpine educational staff members for the Professional Ski Instructors of America. The Adaptive Sports Foundation is a member ski school of the Professional Ski Instructors of America and the American Association of Snowboard Instructors, an official Red Cross Provider, a chapter of Disabled Sports USA and is recognized as the largest adaptive sport program on the east coast. The ASF is among the leading adaptive sport programs in the country. (Source: Adaptive Sports Foundation)
To learn more about the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games, please visit www.usparalympics.org
Post from: GerritsenBeach.net

Cars That I Have Owned

I stole this idea from XL a long time ago. If there were any money involved I supposed I might owe him some, but since there isn't ... thpppppt!I've had a lot of cars in my lifetime. And since this is my blog and you can't stop me, I'm going to tell you all about every single one of them in annoying detail.1971 Olds 98This 20 foot long rolling living room was my very first car. It was dark metallic blue, except for one brown fender resulting from my brother intentionally smashing the car before giving it to me. The back seat was as big as a standard couch and the front was just as good. All it needed was a TV and a bathroom and I could have lived inside comfortably. It also had a 455 cubic inch engine rated at 360 horsepower and 500 ft/lbs of torque, and came with the optional posi traction rear end. It was fun learning to drive with a car that would spin both rear tires non-stop until you decided to let off the pedal, but it was hell on gas.My brother never forgave me for inheriting the car, which had been Mom's, then his, then after much abuse and drug hauls, it became mine. So after I had had the car for only a year, he convinced My Father that he 'needed' that car, in addition to the car he already had, and that I should have to get something else. Dad loved my brother, unlike the way he felt about me, so he was more than happy to yank it from me and give it back to the son who had ripped the fender off on a tree trunk just because he was so angry that he was having to give the giant land yatch to me and get something new, something which Dad paid for, and something which was much cooler than the tired old Olds.While all of this was going on, My Father had miraculously begun to notice that for 12 long years I had worked my ass off in school and done very well. He promised to buy me a car for graduation as a reward for working so hard and doing so well. He set a price range for used cars and said I could choose what I wanted as long as it was cheap. I chose a 1971 Camaro and found one for the exact price he had set as my limit. But what he bought instead was a coworker's wife's car, a car that looked like nothing I had ever seen before and which I initially thought looked like a weird, warped Chevelle.1971 Chevrolet Monte CarloIt was horseshit green, underpowered by a 2-barrel carburetor, and a complete unknown to me. I had never seen one of these cars before in my entire life, let alone ever wanted one. But it had bucket seats and a console shifter, which was pretty cool. Also, it only had 2 doors instead of 4, a step in the right direction. And it was entirely the correct color, with no primer black replacement panels or a mismatched junkyard fender like the Olds had. All-in-all it was better than I had expected from My Father, considering how little he thought of me.I drove it for 3 years before wiping out in a rainstorm and tearing up the front end pretty badly while on my way to physics lab at the university. It was going to take me quite awhile to fix it while simultaneously going to school, so I needed something else in the meantime. My Dad had bought a car that he had originaly intended for me to drive when my brother took the Olds, but I hadn't wanted it at all because it looked like raggedy rusted ass. Dad was hooked on it and bought it anyway. But he didn't really need it. When my Monte Carlo was temporarily out of service, he loaned it to me. It was yet another car I had never seen or even heard of before.1969 Buick WildcatIt had belonged to a 98 year old woman whose son had to take it away from her because she had rammed it into her own house without realizing it and then backed it down her driveway, up the neighbor's driveway, and run over their fence, all without having the slightest idea that she had done anything wrong. She was a shit driver. And it was a huge tank of a car. And also it had apparently been underwater at some point, as we later discovered.It had a 430 cubic inch high compression engine, bucket seats, and a console shifter. It only had 67,000 original miles on it. It still had the original 2-ply 70-series tires it had come off the assembly line with. It looked like hell, but it would scream like an angry bitch when you stepped on the gas. Every time I pulled up next to another driver in a Mustang GT or an IROC Camaro, they would look over at the car, which sat about 4 inches off the ground, as you can see in the picture, sneer at the scripted 'Wildcat' on the fender, and then attempt to race me when the light turned green. This was in the early '90s when an IROC Camaro or Mustang GT was the fastest thing on the road and yet still fairly anemic. I quickly learned that the smelly old Wildcat could blow the doors off any IROC without half trying. The Mustang GTs gave it a better challenge, but not much, and never beat it. In fact, I never lost a race in the Wildcat to anything.It was rusted, ragged, painted by me in my dad's garage using an air compressor and lacquer paint, and smelled like mold inside. I did everything I could for the car, switching it from the used crude oil that my father would pour into it after draining it from his other cars (I shit you not) to Mobil 1 20W-50 fully synthetic oil. The rings were shot and whenever I pushed the pedal down, along with the screaming, knocking, '60s big block roar, there would be a huge cloud of gasoline vapor spewing from the tailpipe, creating a blinding toxic haze behind me. Also, every race used exactly 1 quart of crude oil, which meant that I had to watch the oil level very carefully. Once I switched it to the good stuff the oil burning situation improved dramatically, but rings that are shot are still rings that are shot, no matter what oil you pour into the engine. The windshield leaked whenever it rained, pissing on my leg as I drove. And the ball joints were shot, too, so I went through a set of tires every three months or so.I learned to mount my own tires using a bead breaker and 2 tire irons and was pretty damn good at it before long. I discovered that Super Shops, located nearby the house, sold a lot of new tires. They didn't have any use for the old tires they pulled off the musclecars they were installing the new tires on, so they just threw them into the dumpster. A friend of mine worked there and would call me whenever they threw out a really good set of low-profile performance tires so I could go get them. The Wildcat started off with a set of shit 2-ply tires, but quickly ended up in Eagle GT 60-series performance radials, which lowered it so much that I frequently bottomed out and scraped the frame on the road whenever I crossed a bridge or train tracks.The car was a blast, but it was a mess. In the end, it was unsaveable, needing a total frame-off restoration just to deal with the rust and worn out suspension. And ultimately, it wasn't mine to keep. At least, not yet. Eventually Dad wanted it back. Meanwhile, the Monte Carlo was still under reconstruction. So I had to buy another substitute.1976 Buick SkylarkIt was sitting in a sell-it-yourself lot with a sign saying 'needs timing chain'. It was only $200. It was something I would never have bought under normal circumstances, but I was desperate and still in school. And I had already put a timing chain in the Wildcat, so I knew how much of a huge pain in the ass it was, but also that I could do it. So I bought it.It was a Nova-clone, built on the same half-frame and unibody design as the Chevy Nova. It had a 260 cubic inch V8. It made 140 horsepower. It had air shocks and was jacked up in the back. The tires were skinny and the hubcaps were wire spokes. It was maroon and gay-looking. But once I put on a new timing chain it ran ... well, it ran. The motor had a tick. It just ticked constantly. I don't know why. Nothing was broken. It just ticked.Once again, I had a car with bucket seats and a console and a funky push-button shifter. There were fishing poles in the back seat. I don't know why the previous owner left them there. I guess he didn't want to fish anymore.My friend at Super Shops called me around the time I had just gotten the car running to tell me that a pair of superwide low-profile tires had just landed in their dumpster. Once I yanked the tall, skinny tires off the back wheels and replaced them with the big-assed, superwides, the car took on a whole new look. It suddenly had an aggressive stance. It was slower than a drunken turtle, but it looked like a bad-ass motherfucker. The same drivers in the musclecars that wanted to race the Wildcat, only to get their asses handed to them along with 2 big lungfulls of smelly toxic smoke, didn't want anything to do with my Skylark. It was all show and no go, but it was enough as long as no one was willing to challenge it to a race. And most importantly, it got me to class.I had the car about a year, I guess, when a guy from Seattle turned in front of me in his big-assed Toyota luxury car. And he just stopped there, with his car blocking both lanes heading that direction, and stared at the curb in front of him. I don't know what kind of Toyota it was. It was the biggest Toyota car I had ever seen. And it was cutting me off without leaving me anywhere to go to avoid it. So I hit it. I hit it so hard that I knocked it completely out of the road and up the curb, where it landed, minus both back wheels, perfectly parked in the grass. Unfortunately, the damage it did to my Skylark was pretty extreme. And the insurance company totalled it.Once again, I needed a temporary ride. My brother called. He had a car I could get for $100 and a bag of weed. I didn't have any weed. So he settled for just the $100.1973 Mazda RX3 WagonI didn't even know there was such a thing as a Mazda RX3. In fact, I didn't know that Mazda had even existed in 1973, but apparently they did. And apparently they made an RX3, available in coupe or stationwagon, too. It had the same rotary engine that all Mazda RX models have. It also had a 4-speed manual transmission, the first car I had ever owned without a V8 engine and with a manual transmission. It had a smashed front fender. I had been doing extensive bodywork on my Monte Carlo, so I was fairly experienced by this time with hammering out dents. Much to my surprise, I was able to push the giant dent out of the Japanese fender using nothing more than the palm of my own hand. The ease with which the fender folded in my hands did nothing to inspire confidence in me, but at least the dent was gone.The 1973 RX3 had a funny quirk. It seems that it had been the subject of multiple recalls when new. There had been a problem with the rotary engine blowing up when revved too high. It wasn't Mazda's fault. It was the new car owners revving the engines to the moon, which it would easily do. Nevertheless, the exploding motors had hurt Mazda's reputation, so they had recalled the cars twice to 'detune' them. In the end, they ended up with an engine that wouldn't blow up, but backfired through the exhaust every single time it was turned off, blowing the muffler clean off the car. Mazda's solution to this backfiring problem was to recall the car a third time and run a separate pipe along the full length of the exhaust pipe just to allow the engine to backfire without exploding the muffler.I shit you not.The car was fun. Except for the night I hit a concrete barrier mysteriously installed on Interstate 565 where it served no purpose and was almost impossible to see after dark. I hit the barrier while merging onto I565 at a speed of about 65 mph. My car launched over the barrier, completely leaving the ground while in mid-turn, and landing on 2 wheels in the middle of the interstate. I had the wheel turned hard to the right in order to stay on the road. I was maintaining the 2-wheel stunt ride as I found myself looking down at the very edge of the asphalt where the road ended and the grass began. If I slipped one inch further to the left I would slide across the grass and into the oncoming interstate traffic. So for what seemed like an eternity I drove along on this tightrope, travelling at 65 mph, and still up on 2 wheels. It was probably only a few seconds, but it felt like 10 minutes. I was finally able to straighten the car out and bring it back down onto all 4 wheels again.There was a lot of traffic behind me, but no one wanted to pass. Everyone was driving along behind me with a look on their faces like a circus audience wondering "what the hell is he going to do next?"Aside from this one pants-pissing, heart attack experience, I had no problems driving the car. It was fun and useful and got about a million miles per gallon compared to most of my previous cars. It was the first Japanese car I had ever owned and was more like a go-kart to me than a real car. But it was reliable. It never broke down on me, even after the Speed Racer-like jump I had accidentally subjected it to. And sometimes, when I was in a bad mood or just feeling like a redneck, it was really funny to pull into a parking lot and turn off the car, only to have it backfire and scare the living shit out of every single person in the general area.Let me make this clear, when this car backfired it sounded like a .38 caliber handgun being fired right next to you. It was loud. Even when you knew it was coming it still made you jump.I hadn't had the car even a month when my mother came to me, telling me about how my oldest sister had gone through a divorce and needed a car and would I give the car to her for the same $100 I had paid for it? I really needed more money than that, but I knew my sister needed something to drive. So I agreed to the deal.My sister didn't have the car for any longer than I had when she told my father that the car was a huge embarrassment, which it was. It's not bad enough to be 30 and getting a divorce, having to move with your kids to your parents house to go back to college, only to be stuck driving a funky little car that sounds like it's exploding every time you turn off the ignition. So my father traded her his Cadillac and he took the Mazda.Dad LOVED the Mazda. He LOVED going to the gas station and pulling in right in the middle of all the other drivers who had stopped for gas, turning off the ignition, and watching everyone leap out of their pants when the bomb went off. He laughed his ass off every time. It was the best toy he had ever received and he made the most of it.Meanwhile, my brother had another car to sell me.1973 Toyota CorollaMy brother had pulled it from a ditch for a drunken friend. It turned out to be the same friend who had put the Mazda RX3 into a ditch, causing the crumpled fender that I had repaired using only my bare hand. It was $200 and only needed a few minor tweaks before being safe enough to drive. My brother gleefully informed me that it had Amsoil fully synthetic motor oil in it and therefore "you don't ever need to change the oil!"It was another 2-door, 4-speed manual with the big 1.6 liter engine, the largest offered that year by Toyota. It was orange-ish. Upon closer inspection it became obvious that it was painted with a brush. And housepaint. It also had a strange brown cable running out the rear passenger vent window and into the trunk. This turned out to be lamp cord which was mysteriously being used to power the taillights. Why it wasn't run under the rear seat and through the trunk was a question I never got to ask, but I always wondered.The car had 80-series tires on it and looked like it could go off-roading without any trouble. I could bark the tires shifting from 1st to 2nd, 2nd to 3rd, and on rare occasions when shifting from 3rd to 4th gear. I'll be honest, I drove the shit out of this car. I viewed it as nothing more than a toy, like a motorcycle with a roof and doors, and I treated it accordingly. The only motorcycle I had ever owned was a Suzuki dirt bike, and that's how I drove this car. One afternoon, while racing to Dynamics class at the engineering building, I jumped a grass median, sending the car flying through the air and into the middle of an intersection, in order to beat the light before it could turn red. I bounced into the intersection like the Dukes of Hazard in the General Lee, and then intentionally whipped it hard around the turn in a heavy skid, before flying across the campus lawn to the parking lot of the engineering building. And the little car had no problem with that at all. It didn't offer the slightest complaint.The longer I drove this little Toyota go-kart, and the more I jumped it and slammed the gears, and spun it around in the dirt, all without breaking a single part or being stranded a single time, the more I began to respect the shit out of the car. It was awesome!And about the time I realized what a cool little toy it was, a guy in a Nissan minitruck hit me head-on in rush hour traffic. It was his fault, but nevertheless the frame was bent and the car was totalled.I sold the car for $175, still running and still driveable, but in need of about $500 in frame and front end repairs.Again I needed a car. Again my brother appeared just in the nick of time with a mysterious bargain car he had gotten from a mysterious friend.1974 Dodge PolaraFor $50 and my Gibson SG-1 electric guitar, this Blues Brothers tank was all mine. It was a car that rednecks had banned from smash-up derby competitions along with the stationwagon version of the same car because it was totally indestructible and thus declared 'unfair' for their smash-up contests (I am dead serious.)While I was in college and driving this car, the city had been doing construction on a section of road near some government housing projects. There were big orange and white striped barrels filled with sandbags lining the road where the construction was going on. Late at night, the ghetto children liked to push those barrels out into the middle of the road, forcing people to stop and move the barrels, only to get attacked and robbed by the oppressed little future-Obama supporters.I had to work late every Friday night. I usually drove through this area of ghetto fun at 2 a.m., often finding the barrels blocking my way. I was disinclined to stop and move them while oppressed 'protected class' individuals fired guns at me, so I just rammed the barrels down and drove on. Other than leaving some orange paint on my bumper it did no damage to the car at all (thank God I didn't have fucking 'crumple zones' or air bags!) This became a weekly game for me and the ghetto Obamas, but I always won, smashing lots and lots of barrels.The car had brakes that would quite literally slam your face into the steering wheel if you weren't expecting them. You could stop this 4600 pound monster on a dime. I hadn't had the car for even a full year when my brother got stoned and spray-painted obscenities all over it, which he claimed was "to piss off his neighbors." Once he sobered up I forced him to either repaint the car or give me another one. He happened to have a Chevy belonging to a friend that was parked in his front yard that he said I could take for $50 and my Dodge. I took the deal and he took the Dodge out trail-riding with his friends. They jumped it, hit trees, even shot it. The car didn't die until he jumped it enough times that he broke a ball joint on the front suspension and had to limp home, where he oddly chose to park the damaged vehicle on his front lawn. His friends then took hammers and bats to the body and tried to smash it. All they managed to do was to break the windows. After that he says he towed it to a friend's land where they all got high, shot it, and burned it, before pushing the flaming remains over a cliff. Idiot.1974 Chevy Caprice ClassicAnother $50, my Dodge, and 2 months of damned hard work to figure out what the hell was wrong with the car, and it was my daily cruiser. I drove this thing for years, even taking it to Atlanta in rush hour traffic for a job interview in Norcross, Georgia, just on the outskirts of Atlanta. It rode better than My Mom's Cadillac, but it only had a 2-barrel carburetor and single exhaust, which made it hard for the 400-cubic-inch small block engine to breathe properly. Also, the car had been down in Florida for a number of years, giving it some salty sea air rust here and there. It was pea-green, and not a pretty deep green either, but a faded, pale pea green that was apparently popular with the same '70s people who wore pea-green suits and wide ties. I liked the car, but it had been mislabeled by GM as having a 350 and the resulting chaos of a few 350-specific parts being installed on the little 400 drove me insane. So I sold it to a friend. He pulled the engine, laughed at me for selling him an awesome potential racing motor without realizing it, and then he stuffed it with fabulous new high performance parts before sticking it into his Firebird. He junked the body. It was a waste, really, to trash such a nice car. But what can you do? Time marches on.1977 Pontiac Trans AmWhile I was in college, my father maintained an iron grip on my life, controlling as much as he possibly could for reasons that made sense only to him. I wasn't even allowed to pick my own car without his OK. Meanwhile, my brother, who could do no wrong in his eyes, had taken a car Dad had given him and traded it in for a piece of shit 1977 Trans Am. The car was jacked up in the back, had a giant snorkel-style hood scoop in place of the original shaker, and a cracked 350 engine in it. My brother wasn't very mechanical, so after rigging the cracked engine enough to drive it a bit, he convinced me to buy it from him. Yes, I was a fool to take the deal, but I had been trying to figure out a way to get something like this and without my brother helping me get around my father, there simply was no way.I cleaned it up, straightened it out, pulled the cracked 350, and installed a highly modified 400 in it. But the more I worked on the car, the more I realized that it wasn't going to work for what I wanted. There was just too much wrong. So I stumbled on another car and made a swap.1978 Pontiac Trans AmI bought a 1978 black Trans Am with a solid body and working, non-cracked 350 in it and took it home, lying to my control-freak of a father that I was getting paid by a friend to work on his car for him. I brought the white piece-of-shit Trans Am over, too, and swapped the good 400 out of the white car into the black one, and the 350 from the black car to the white one. I got both cars running fine, and then began doing other work on the black car.Around this time, my brother asked if he could buy back the white Trans Am. I was glad to sell it to him. He took the car, promising to pay me in installments. But he never did. He pulled the engine, saying he was going to install an Olds 455 he had lying around, but he was lazy and couldn't figure out how to finish the job. Eventually he dumped the now engineless car back on me without paying me a dime. We have not been friends since.In the meantime, I was hired for a job in Memphis, TN. When I arrived in Memphis, my coworkers, upon hearing that I had a 1978 black Trans Am, advised me that my shiny black musclecar would last about a week before it was stolen and never seen again. I didn't much like this idea, so I sold it back in Alabama, along with a storage unit filled with enough parts to build a 2nd one, all of which would be worth a fortune today.1981 Datsun/Nissan 200SXA lawyer owned this car. It was his first purchase upon graduating from law school. He rear-ended a pickup truck and mangled the front end a little bit. The insurance company totaled it. He had a special sentimental feeling about the car, so he wanted someone to fix it. He went looking for a poor college student (me) who would be willing to take it for free upon the condition that they fix it and drive it. I was glad to do so.For years I drove this thing to class, and after graduation, to my jobs, with a silver body and a white front clip I had purchased at a junk yard. After moving to Memphis, I drove it 400 miles with a blown out head gasket before I was able to get it to a mechanic, who expressed utter amazement that the car survived and didn't crack or warp the head.After the blown head gasket adventure, I drove the car back and forth between Memphis and Rocketown (200 miles each way) for almost 2 years before a black lady in a Ford Escort cut me off in front of the university where I had graduated years before. I couldn't stop and I t-boned her. She reacted by going berzerk, like something you'd see on Maury Povich or Oprah, throwing her hands in the air and moaning and crying. After 30 minutes of screaming and wailing, she admitted that she had just canceled her insurance because it was too expensive (high risk policy) and didn't have any insurance. While the police officer was filling out an accident report, she admitted something about there being an outstanding warrant on her for an unpaid ticket. The officer mumbled something about arresting her, but then forgot. Several months later my insurance told me that despite the extremely minor level of damage, they were totaling the car and taking it away to be crushed. Those cold blooded bastards! It had 174,000 miles on it with plenty of life left. I drove the shit out of that car and it never gave me a problem.1988 Nissan minitruckI was so impressed with my Nissan 200SX that when the insurance bastards took it away from me, I went looking for another Nissan. I knew I needed a pickup, for various reasons which included both the shitty roads in Memphis as well as my coming marriage to my then-girlfriend who would then be moving up to Memphis and have lots of crap to haul. My middle sister drove a pickup and advised me to make sure I got one with an extended cab, so I went looking for a used Nissan with the same engine and transmission my car had had, and an extended cab. It wasn't easy to find, but I finally did. I had actually been looking for a white one, having done enough body repair work to know that white doesn't show scratches and dings nearly as much as darker, shinier colors. But my choices were limited and black was all I found available. So black it was.I bought this truck with 120,000 miles on it. It had few options and wasn't exactly what you'd call luxurious. But I was driving about 100 miles a week back and forth to work, plus an additional 400 miles per week going back and forth between my apartment and my future-wife's apartment in Rocketown, Alabama, where she was attending college. I needed gas mileage, reliability, and a vehicle capable of surviving the horrifically shitty roads in Memphis, Tennessee. This was perfect.Today, the truck is sitting in my driveway with 260,000 miles on the odometer. It has hot start issues, a broken waterpump, a radiator damaged by the failure of the waterpump, has been sideswiped by a drunk in Walnut, Mississippi, t-boned by a manager at Autosuck in the AutoSuck corporate headquarters parking garage, rear-ended by a Dodge Neon on the 240 loop in Memphis, rammed a stump hidden in tall grass at Shelby Farms park, sideswiped by a full-sized Chevy van in Redneckville, Tennessee, repeatedly vandalized by a drug-dealing police informant boy I call 'Yo G', and hauled a shitload of mulch for My Wife.When fixed and running properly, this vehicle serves as our spare car. We figure it has earned the rest from daily driving after all that it has been through.1970 Chevrolet ChevelleIn high school I had very coldly and logically determined what the perfect musclecar for me would be. I had narrowed it down to a Buick GS455, Pontiac GTO with 455, Olds 442 with 455, or a Chevy Chevelle SS454. But all these cars cost a freakin' fortune, so I had ruled them all out, setting my sights instead on a 1977 or '78 Pontiac Trans Am by virtue of them coming already equipped with everything that I might have to add via aftermarket to a lesser car. At the time, the Trans Ams were far cheaper and easier to find.My Trans Ams came and went and by now I had a house with my own garage where I could lock away my prized musclecar if I needed to. Living in Memphis, of course, I very much needed to. I had long before sold my Trans Am, so the garage held my old Monte Carlo. But then a friend told me about a guy in my old hometown with a 1970 Chevelle SS454 that he might be selling. I went to take a look.The guy with the car came outside to find me and my friend looking the car over in his driveway. "What the hell are you doing?" he asked. I had assumed my friend knew him. The car didn't have a "For Sale" sign on it, so how else would my friend have known about the car or that it was for sale? As it turned out, my friend did not know the man, and no one seems to be able to recall how he knew the man was planning to sell it. But he was. "I haven't told anybody that I was going to sell it. That's the damnedest thing. See, I have this friend, he's richer than shit. He's got a dragstrip in his backyard that doubles as his landing strip for his airplanes. He has all kinds of classic musclecars. He wants me to sell this to him so he can cut it up and tub it out and make it purely into a dragster. I'd really rather not see that happen."We talked, discussed what I wanted the car for, settled on a price, and I bought it. Today it sits in my garage, leaking transmission fluid on my floor since the day I got it. But it'll roast the rear tires any time I want and at almost any speed I'm willing to throw it down and gun it. That's all I want, at this point. I don't do much with it and I should probably sell it. But for now, sitting safely tucked away in my garage, is a car I never thought I'd have.I won't say exactly what I'm driving currently, except that I like it and it gets me where I want to go. It has 4-wheel-drive and a brush guard, and it's made of steel, not plastic. It has no airbags or crumple zones, like a real man's truck. And it's a lot more comfortable to ride in than my old Nissan. I've already been sideswiped by a woman in an SUV in Cherokee, Alabama, only to discover thanks to her than no one makes the passenger-side mirror for this truck anymore and the generic replacement sucks ass. I've never owned a truck like this before, but I think I have gotten rather used to it.So, what about you? What cars have you owned in your lifetime?Welcome to Memphis - the ass of Tennessee

Stop Me Before I Cook Again

Gumby Fresh Gari N. Corp, in his inimitable style, straightens out The New York Times (and, we must admit, us) as to the conclusions reached in yesterday's short article regarding the status of CitiField bonds. And, while he's at it, he does a little compare-and-contrast between the Mets' situation, and that of the Nets. There are plenty of scenarios under which the Mets bonds' underlying rating might be downgraded, particularly if the New York economy stays in the doldrums and the stadium does not generate as much revenue as it should. But let's remember this is a popular franchise in a large city with a very patient fanbase that gets plenty of excitement in September, if not in, ahem, October. Don't try and pretend that any Nets financing could get a rating like this as easily. I love the Mets, but they're a bit trashy. Compared to the Nets though, the Mets are that really classy lady in the black dress and pearls that fronts the Lexus dealers' adverts. Yes, that classy. ... Before anyone says (not that they will, this is hardly a popular blog with the pro-stadium crown, well it's hardly a popular blog at all, what with the infrequent postings and paucity of stimulating subjects, but you get my drift) that the preceding might be construed as a clean bill of health for the business of New York sports, please read the bit about the Mets' resilient brand, and note also that the Mets attracted new financing from the one standing bond insurer (Assured Guaranty) for a small amount for a pretty much complete stadium for a solid team. It won't do the same for the Nets. The New Jersey Nets are the Typhoid Mary of High Finance, and no-one wants to eat their delightful cooking. article

The Law of Leadership

It's better to be first than it is to be better.Many people believe that the basic issue in marketing is convincing prospects that you have a better product or service.Not true. If you have a small market share and you have to do battle with larger, better-financed competitors, then your marketing strategy was probably faulty in the first place. You violated the first law of marketing.The basic issue in marketing is creating a category you can be first in. It's the law of leadership: It's better to be first than it is to be better. It's much easier to get into the mind first than to try to convince someone you have a better product than the one that did get there first.You can demonstrate the law of leadership by asking yourself two questions:1) What's the name of the first person to fly the Atlantic Ocean solo? Charles Lindbergh, right?2) What's the name of the second person to fly the Atlantic Ocean solo? Not so easy to answer, is it?The second person to fly the Atlantic Ocean solo was Bert Hinkler. Bert was a better pilot than Charlie-he flew faster, he consumed less fuel. Yet who has ever heard of Bert Hinkler? (He left home and Mrs. Hinkler hasn't heard from him since.)In spite of the evident superiority of the Lindbergh approach, most companies go the Bert Hinkler route. They wait until a market develops. Then they jump in with a better product, often with their corporate name attached. In today's competitive environment, a me-too product with a line extension name has little hope of becoming a big, profitable brand. The leading brand in any category is almost always the first brand into the prospect's mind. Hertz in rent-a-cars. IBM in computers. Coca-Cola in cola.After World War II, Heineken was the first imported beer to make a name for itself in America. So four decades later, what is the No. 1 imported beer? The one that tastes the best? Or Heineken? There are 425 brands of imported beer sold in America. Surely one of these brands must taste better than Heineken, but does it really matter? Today, Heineken is still the No. 1 imported beer, with 30 percent of the market.The first domestic light beer was Miller Lite. So what is the largest-selling light beer in America today? The one that tastes the best? Or the one that got into the mind first?Not every first is going to become successful, however. Timing is an issue-your first could be too late. For example, USA Today is the first national newspaper, but it is unlikely to succeed. It has already lost $800 million and has never had a profitable year. In a television era, it may be too late for a national newspaper.Some firsts are just bad ideas that will never go anywhere. Frosty Paws, the first ice cream for dogs, is unlikely to make it. The dogs love it, but the owners are the ones who buy the groceries, and they think that dogs don't need an ice cream of their own. They should be happy just to lick the plates.The law of leadership applies to any product, any brand, any category. Let's say you didn't know the name of the first college founded in America. You can always make a good guess by substituting leading for first. So what's the name of the leading college in America? Most people would probably say Harvard, which is also the name of the first college founded in America. (What's the name of the second college founded in America? The College of William and Mary, which is only slightly more famous than Bert Hinkler.)No two products are any similar than twins are. Yet twins often complain that the first of the two whom a person meets always remains their favorite, even though the person also gets to know the other one.People tend to stick with what they've got. If you meet someone a little better than your wife or husband, it's really not worth making the switch, what with attorneys' fees and dividing up the house and kids.The law of leadership also applies to magazines. Which is why Time leads Newsweek, People leads Us, and Playboy leads Penthouse. Take TV Guide, for example. Back in the early fifties the then-powerful Curtis Publishing Company tried to field a television- listings magazine to compete with the fledgling TV Guide. Even though TV Guide had only a minuscule head start, and despite the awesome strength of Curtis, the Curtis publication never really got off the ground. TV Guide had preempted the field.The law of leadership applies equally as well to hard categories like automobiles and computers as it does to soft categories like colleges and beer. Jeep was first in four-wheel-drive off-the-road vehicles. Acura was first in luxury Japanese cars. IBM was first in mainframe computers. Sun Microsystems was first in workstations. Jeep, Acura, IBM, and Sun are all leading brands.The first minivan was introduced by Chrysler. Today Chrysler has 10 percent of the car market and 50 percent of the minivan market. Is the essence of car marketing making better cars or getting into the market first?The first desktop laser printer was introduced by a computer company, Hewlett-Packard. Today the company has 5 percent of the personal computer market and 45 percent of the laser printer market.Gillette was the first safety razor. Tide was the first laundry detergent. Hayes was the first computer modem. Leaders all.One reason the first brand tends to maintain its leadership is that the name often becomes generic. Xerox, the first plain-paper copier, became the name for all plain-paper copiers. People will stand in front of a Ricoh or a Sharp or a Kodak machine and say, "How do I make a Xerox copy?" They will ask for the Kleenex when the box clearly says Scott. They will offer you a Coke when all they have is Pepsi-Cola.How many people ask for cellophane tape instead of Scotch tape? Not many. Most people use brand names when they become generic: Band-Aid, Fiberglas, Formica, Gore-Tex, Jello, Krazy Glue, Q-tips, Saran Wrap, Velcro-to name a few. Some people will go to great lengths to turn a brand name into a generic. "FedEx this package to the Coast." If you're introducing the first brand in a new category, you should always try to select a name that can work generically. (Lawyers advise the opposite, but what do they know about the laws of marketing?)Not only does the first brand usually become the leader, but also the sales order of follow-up brands often matches the order of their introductions. The best example is ibuprofen. Advil was first, Nuprin was second, Medipren was third. That's exactly the sales order they now enjoy: Advil has 51 percent of the ibuprofen market, Nuprin has 10 percent, and Medipren has 1 percent.The fourth brand that entered the market was Motrin IB. Even though it has the powerful prescription name for ibuprofen, Motrin's market share is only 15 percent. (Keep in mind that Advil was introduced with a "Same as the prescription drug Motrin" theme.) And note the generic substitution. Consumers use Advil as a generic term. Rarely do they use the word ibuprofen. Even an M.D. will tell a patient, "Take two Advil and call me in the morning."Also consider Tylenol, the first brand of acetaminophen. Tylenol is so far ahead of the No. 2 brand that it's hard to determine who is No. 2.If the secret of success is getting into the prospect's mind first, what strategy are most companies committed to? The better-product strategy. The latest and hottest subject in the business management field is benchmarking. Touted as the "ultimate competitive strategy," benchmarking is the process of comparing and evaluating your company's products against the best in the industry. It's an essential element in a process often called "total quality management."Unfortunately, benchmarking doesn't work. Regardless of reality, people perceive the first product into the mind as superior. Marketing is a battle of perceptions, not products.So what's the name of the first brand of aspirin? The first brand of acetaminophen? The first brand of ibuprofen? (Hint: Substitute leading for first and you'll have the answers to these three questions.)Charles Schwab bills itself as "America's largest discount broker." Are you surprised that the Charles Lindbergh of the discount brokerage business is Charles Schwab?Neil Armstrong was the first person to walk on the moon. Who was second?Roger Bannister was the first person to run a four-minute mile. Who was second?George Washington was the first president of the United States. Who was second?Thomas' was the first brand of English muffin. What was second?Gatorade was the first sports drink. What was second?Sponsored By: Brand Aid

How Much Abuse Can One Danish Braid Take?

When I saw this month’s challenge, I was pretty excited.. not only were 2 very lovely people (Kelly of Sass & Veracity and Ben of What’s Cooking) hosting this month, but they had chosen a recipe I’d always wanted to try – DANISH. Seriously, when you get a good Danish, is there anything better? Buttery layers, soft and gooey and always filled with GOOD STUFF!So lemme tell ya’ll.. I’m sure you’ve seen quite a few Daring Baker challenge posts already today and some of you might even be a lil a-scared. Well don’t be. And I’m going to tell you why. I beat the ever-lovin’ shit out of this dough and it STILL gave me a flakey, buttery, delicious end product. Seriously. A few of us got together a few weeks ago to bake the braid.. and well, I was doing this and that and running here and there ultimately running out of time during the day to even shape, fill and proof my braid. So I had this rectangular slab of dough, chock full of fine European butter – what the hell do I do now? The gals suggested I go ahead and freeze it until I was ready to bake. And that I did.. so there’s the first injustice (INJUSTICE NO. 1!) committed against my dough.And then the same bunch got together last Sunday to bake the garlic knots, so I decided I could take on the braid at the same time. HAR! I crack myself up! Like I can even walk and chew gum at the same time.. but I’m going to take on not one but TWO yeast breads at the same time? hahahahahahaa! They don’t call me the Queen of Dorks for nothin’ yanno?INJUSTICE NO. 2 – someone who cared about her dough would have taken it out of the freezer the night before, placed it gently in the fridge and allowed it to slowly thaw out over night. Well I did care! But I’m a moron! I forgot to take it out of the freezer the night before so at 6 a.m. on Sunday morning I placed it on my counter. :PHow could ANYONE neglect that face???? *chomp* *chomp* I could eat him with a spoon! Okay so garlic knot making ensued.. and it was fun and I chit chatted and behaved myself and showed off wedding photos of myself and Becks.. *cough* and then I excused myself from the chat so that I could give some attention to my son, Nigel, as he was acting as if he never gets any loving from ANYONE.. poor lil neglected puppy (yeah right). Mmm hmm.. ‘kay well I laid down on the sofa in our office and he hopped up and we played and cuddled and told each other that we loved each other and HELLO- next thing I knew? It was 3 hours later. I had fell asleep. Gah.So my dough had sat out on the counter of my relatively warm kitchen for approximately SIX HOURS. Oops.. I believe we’ll present that as INJUSTICE NO. 3. *sigh*Well as ya’ll can imagine after my nap, I couldn’t be bothered with the task of shaping, filling, proofing and baking my braid – so I threw it back in the fridge. May it please the court – INJUSTICE NO. 4!Next morning.. I sheepishly peeked into my fridge fully expecting my dough to be bent over with cheeks spread giving me the full moon – but no.. it laid there obediently. So now I’m thinking that it’s being nice while in the fridge but when I try to roll it out, it’ll act up and be all sorts of bitchy – it’ll go all elastic on my ass.Huh. It didn’t.I cut it in half and it rolled out nicely.. it stayed in place and didn’t shrink up on me.. it laid still while I filled it and cut the fringe for the braid – and it wasn’t even its fault that it looked so NOT like a braid when I was through (I managed that all by myself, thankyouverymuch). It didn’t rise all too much.. actually it was kinda more like a quasi-braided filled pancake than anything else, but again, I blame myself on that one – I don’t think I should have rolled it so thin.And the reason I blame myself is because after I cut out a dozen squares from the 2nd half of the dough and shaped them into hilarious looking single pastries, I had this huge honkin’ blob of scraps left-over. I was just picking it up to throw it away (INJUSTICE NO. 5!) when I realized that was an awful lot of expensive European butter to be throwin’ away so I said, “fakk it” and I rolled it all out again, grabbed a couple handfuls of brown sugar and dumped it down the middle, sprinkled on some cinnamon and then took about a ¼ c. of butter and threw lil blobs of it here and there – braided it all up and allowed it to proof. I got a nice puffy lookin’ braid by the time I was ready to bake.. after it came out of the oven I whipped up a quick glaze of powdered sugar and super strong coffee and drizzled it all over the top. it was flippin’ gorgeous. I was shocked!!!Soon it was time for the first taste and I shite you not, kids! It was HEAVENLY – the best out of the 3 uses of this dough. And it was a MISTAKE! hahahahahahaa! Damn.But keep in mind, although rather flat – the first braid was buttery and flakey and tasted wonderful. The lil pastries were actually quite cute and they turned out very flakey.. and then the cinnamon braid was stupendous – after all of the bad, bad things I’d done to this dough, it still kicked some arse! So if mine turned out this well.. you have no excuse not to try it yourselves!Now think about this.. you’ll get through the whole procedure without any injustices to your dough, because ya’ll are way more talented than I am. Imagine how much more fabulous yours will turn out! Now that’s my kinda dough! :)Start clickin’ on that blogroll.. you’ll find more than enough AWESOME posts to inspire you to make your own Danish Braid before the month is over… :)xoxo

Charlotte Bobcats Team Report

Despite their improved ball movement the second half of the season, the Charlotte Bobcats still finished last in scoring at 93.6 points per game. They've improved as shooters and in creating easy shots for each other, so the next step is creating more possessions. The Bobcats finished the season ranked 27th among 30 NBA teams in both rebounding and turnovers. When you keep giving the ball away and are poor at getting it back, it's challenging to create the extra possessions that raise your scoring average. Coach Larry Brown is probably more concerned with the poor rebounding than the overage of turnovers. Center Emeka Okafor (10.1 rebounds per game) was one of just six NBA players to average double-figures rebounding this season, but he doesn't get much help. Brown isn't happy with his team's turnovers (15.6 per game), but he doesn't see all turnovers the same. He's fine when Boris Diaw attempts a daring pass that could have led to a teammate's lay-up. But the careless turnovers, particularly those at mid-court, not only sacrifice possessions, they lead to easy baskets at the other end for the Bobcats' opponents. Diaw led the Bobcats in turnovers at three per game, and Raymond Felton wasn't far behind at 2.8. Rookie point guard D.J. Augustin seems a safer passer at 1.7, but he didn't do a lot of playmaking the second half of the season, after suffering an abdominal strain that essentially turned him into a spot-up jump shooter. Backup center DeSagana Diop is really the only Bobcat with much capacity to up his rebounding. Vladimir Radmanovic has height at 6-10, but he's much more an elongated small forward (think Hedo Turkoglu) than someone who can be counted on to rumble in the lane. SEASON HIGHLIGHT: For the second time in three seasons, the Bobcats swept the Los Angeles Lakers. They've now won five of six against the Western Conference's premier franchise and the last of those victories, at home March 31, extended a late-season playoff run the first time this team has played consequential games in April. TURNING POINT: The season's first four months, the Bobcats were good about minimizing losses to bad teams. But the last six weeks, with the playoffs at stake, they lost road games to the Minnesota Timberwolves, Washington Wizards and Oklahoma City Thunder. That knocked them out of the playoff hunt with four games to go.NOTES, QUOTESBobcats director of player personnel Buzz Peterson is returning to college coaching at Appalachian State, where he got his first head-coaching job. It was no secret that Peterson missed coaching greatly, so much so that coach Larry Brown considered moving Peterson to the bench to keep him on the staff. Peterson will stay with the Bobcats through the draft before returning to Boone, N.C.With the third-best record among non-playoff teams (35-47), the Bobcats have just seven chances in 1,000 of winning the No. 1 overall pick in the May 19 draft lottery. Most likely, the Bobcats would end up selecting 12th overall in the June 25 draft. They have never won a top-3 pick in the lottery process.Bobcats majority owner Bob Johnson told the Charlotte Observer he "absolutely" would never move the franchise out of Charlotte, but is receptive to selling majority control to Michael Jordan. Jordan is now one of 19 minority partners in the ownership group, and has oversight of basketball operations. Earlier, the Observer quoted sources as estimating that the Bobcats might lose roughly $35 million over the next two seasons. The Bobcats are not alone in losing millions in this economy. The question is whether an upgraded roster will raise attendance and revenue next season.QUOTE TO NOTE: "I always tease that he has an 'A' in stretching, Pilates and yoga. I'd like him to have an 'A' in basketball." Bobcats coach Larry Brown, on how he admires C Emeka Okafor's conditioning regimens, but would like him to work more in the offseason on basketball skills.ROSTER REPORT MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Gerald Wallace's numbers weren't dramatically better than in past seasons, but he benefited greatly from Brown's coaching. He plays smarter and more precisely at both ends. He cut down on the gambles for steals that compromised teammates defensively and took fewer bad shots early in possessions. MOST DISAPPOINTING PLAYER: Everyone was relieved when Adam Morrison was dealt to the Los Angeles Lakers in early February. He melted under the pressure of being the third overall pick, and asked for a trade. Vladimir Radmanovic didn't have a great season, in exchange for Morrison, but he made as many big shots in a week as Morrison had the previous three months. FREE AGENT FOCUS: The major issue is point guard Raymond Felton's restricted status in July. D.J. Augustin was drafted as insurance against losing Felton, but he's been more effective as a shooter than as a distributor. F Sean May's contract also expires, but it seems unlikely the Bobcats would tender him a $3.6 million qualifying offer, as little as May has played this season. PLAYER NEWS:C Nazr Mohammed has made it clear that if the Bobcats don't plan to play him, he wants to be elsewhere. The problem is the remaining two seasons and approximately $13 million left on Mohammed's contract. Trading him, particularly in the current economic climate, without taking back a similarly bad contract, will be quite a challenge.G Dontell Jefferson is under contract, unguaranteed, for next season, which could be one more reason to doubt Sean Singletary's future with the Bobcats. Jefferson is 6-5 to Singletary's 6-0, and coach Larry Brown prefers his third point guard to be tall. Also, the Bobcats can avoid paying Singletary some guaranteed money if he's cut before September.F Boris Diaw will have a busy summer playing for the French national team. He'll have just a couple of weeks break between the end of his responsibilities with the national team and the start of training camp in Charlotte.C DeSagana Diop has a flawed offensive game, and coach Larry Brown has suggested Diop work some this summer with former NBA player Derrick Coleman on developing more low-post scoring skills this summer. It doesn't help that Diop shot just 27 percent from the foul line as a Bobcat.F Sean May has lost about 45 pounds since mid-summer and hopes to be back with the Bobcats. He plans to spend most of the summer in Charlotte, improving his conditioning.F Vladimir Radmanovic finished the season in a deep shooting slump. He was 12-of-40 from the field in his last six games, five of them Bobcats losses.F Juwan Howard looks like he can still be effective. Denver might regret not re-signing him, after waiving him in the early season to facilitate the trade that brought Chauncey Billups to the Nuggets. MEDICAL WATCH:G Raja Bell (calf strain) missed the last six games. Once the Bobcats were eliminated from the playoff race, there was little sense in pushing the injury in the final three games.

Nice visit with Muggs

As you may know, The Muggs were first colleagues of ours in Cote D'Ivoire, then were colleagues of us in Mali. They served in such a key role as business managers for us and our other colleagues. They served also in several creative ways in evangelistic ministries, in fact our study room model was partly inspired by their success with their marche study room. Incedentally, they were on a trip from Colorado, all the way to Detroit, and stopped to have coffee with us on the way. They have a good car with a bad starter. So... where 2 or 3 missionaries are gathered, someone has to push their car!! So we pushed their car to get it started so they could get on their way... It really brought back Africa memories... :DAnd we were well familiar with how to do a push start!Anyway, pray for them as they are now in the USA, and seeking Gods' next step for them.They will be GREATLY missed in Mali... But we know God will use their open and willing hearts wherever he puts them....Btw- Countdown to Lisa's activation....Thursday & Friday this week. Be in prayer as we see what we'll have as a starting point towards her hearing journey to regain full hearing again.Thanks for sticking with us in prayer. Your visit today meant a lot to us... :DTom & Lisa

Houston Astros Team Report

INSIDE PITCH Astros hitting coach Sean Berry, who had a cancerous kidney removed Friday morning at the Methodist Hospital of Houston, was released from the hospital Monday. Berry's right kidney was removed by Dr. James Goldfarb, a renowned urologist. "Thank you for all the messages of support," Berry said. "I would like to especially thank Dr. James Muntz (one of the Astros' team physicians) and Dr. James Goldfarb and everyone at The Methodist Hospital for their expertise and professionalism. "I also greatly appreciate the understanding and first-class actions by the Astros organization in helping myself and my family through this difficult time. I will be back soon." In Berry's absence, third-base coach Dave Clark is helping with the hitting coach's duties. Berry is expected to return to work with the Astros in two weeks.NOTES, QUOTESRHP Jeff Fulchino was optioned back to Class AAA Round Rock on Sunday. He had posted a 5.91 ERA over two stints with the club. With his demotion the Astros moved back to 12 pitchers and 13 position players after going to 13 pitchers and 12 position players on Wednesday.IF Jason Smith, who was 0-for-21 before he was designated for assignment on Thursday, was re-signed on Sunday to help back up in the infield. 1B Lance Berkman has been out because of a sore wrist.RHP Brandon Backe, who has been on the disabled list with a strained left intercostals muscle, threw six scoreless innings Friday in a rehab start for Class AA Corpus Christi. He threw 82 on Friday for the Hooks. "It's more or less like I'm in spring training again trying to build my arm up to 100 pitches," he said. "It's a slow process."C Humberto Quintero (strained right shoulder) went 0-for-3 in a rehab assignment for Class AAA Round Rock, and barring any setbacks, he will rejoin the team Tuesday in Colorado.BY THE NUMBERS: 1 Astros ace righthander Roy Oswalt, who was 10-2 after the All-Star Break last year, earned his first victory of the season Sunday, May 10. QUOTE OF NOTE: "Obviously I have to be worried. We're in May. We're almost on May 15 and we're still struggling. This guy (Lance Berkman) is one of the best hitters in the game. And, yeah, I am a little worried about him." Manager Cecil Cooper, after dropping Lance Berkman to fifth in the lineup.ROSTER REPORTC J.R. Towles was optioned to Class AAA Round Rock on Monday, an off day for the Astros. Towles hit .182 (2-for-11) in four games, three starts, after being recalled April 25. C Humberto Quintero, who suffered a strained right shoulder on April 24 when he was smashed by Milwaukee's Mike Cameron in a collision at the plate, will be activated off the disabled list and join the Astros in Colorado for the start of a three-game series against the Rockies on Tuesday. He was 1-for-10 during his four-game rehab assignment at Class AAA Round Rock.1B Lance Berkman, who missed the entire three-game series sweep against the Padres because of a sore left wrist, might be ready to return to the lineup Tuesday for the start of the three-game series against the Rockies at Coors Field. Berkman has not played since he was 0-for-5 with four strikeouts Thursday against the Cubs.RHP Felipe Paulino will start Tuesday against the Rockies. Paulino struggled in the bullpen after being put there after posting a 2.55 ERA over three starts. "I feel more comfortable in the starting rotation, but I was trying to do 100 percent in the bullpen, too," he said. "I'm ready to do whatever they want."C Ivan Rodriguez went 4-for-4 with a home run and a triple Sunday in the Astros' 12-5 win over the Padres. MEDICAL WATCH: 1B Lance Berkman (sprained left wrist) sat out May 8-10. He is day-to-day. RHP Roy Oswalt (bone bruise on right index finger) left the May 5 game. He expects to make his May 10 start. C Humberto Quintero (strained right shoulder) went on the 15-day disabled list April 25. He began a rehab assignment May 8 with Class AAA Round Rock, and he is expected to be activated May 12. RHP Brandon Backe (strained left side muscle) went on the 15-day disabled list March 27. He began a rehab assignment with Class AAA Round Rock on April 27, and he moved his rehab to Class AA Corpus Christi on May 3. He could return to the Astros in late May. RHP Jose Valverde (strained right calf) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to April 27. He had fluid drained from the calf April 30 and May 1, and he might be out until early June. RHP Doug Brocail (torn left hamstring) went on the 15-day disabled list May 4. He is out at least a month, and if he ultimately requires surgery, he would miss the rest of the season. INF Aaron Boone (open-heart surgery on March 26) went on the 15-day disabled list March 27, and he was transferred to the 60-day DL on April 10. He was uncertain whether he'd resume his career. ROTATION: RHP Roy Oswalt LHP Wandy Rodriguez LHP Mike Hampton RHP Brian Moehler RHP Felipe Paulino BULLPEN: RHP LaTroy Hawkins (closer) LHP Wesley Wright RHP Geoff Geary LHP Tim Byrdak RHP Chris Sampson RHP Jeff Fulchino RHP Alberto Arias RHP Russ Ortiz CATCHERS: Ivan Rodriguez Humberto Quintero INFIELDERS: 1B Lance Berkman 2B Kaz Matsui SS Miguel Tejada 3B Geoff Blum INF Jeff Keppinger OUTFIELDERS: LF Carlos Lee CF Michael Bourn RF Hunter Pence OF/1B Darin Erstad OF Jason Michaels

What? I'm too OLD!???

I believe nearly everyone can relate to being told that they are too old for something. It happens all the time as we age. We become a certain age and then someone younger than us or perhaps more mature than us tells us that we are too old to be doing whatever we're doing. They tell us to grow up---even if some of us are already grown up...

As a kid, I always liked taking trips to the bank with my mother because the nice lady who worked the window would give out lollipops to us kids if she saw us in the back of the car. My siblings and I always made sure that the lady saw us by waving at her in the window or poking our heads out over the front seat of the car. She'd smile at us and walk away. We knew it was candy time. She'd return to the window with three lollipops. These weren't any normal lollipops. They were special bank lollipops with a ring handle and extra sugariness. It was hard to find them anywhere else. Well, about a year ago at age 18, I was making a withdraw at the drive-thru bank window. For some reason, the teller was taking longer than normal. She was new. She came to the window and told me it would just be another minute. I asked her, "You don't happen to have any lollipops do you?" She smiled and said, "Don't you think you're a bit too old? We need to save them for the kids."

What??? Since when have lollipops been just for kids!? I felt like the dopey rabbit in those 'Trix' commercials. I looked at her and said, "No, ma'am. I'm never too old for lollipops." Then, I gave her one of my fake smiles. She walked away and came back with an envelope. No lollipop and I wasn't about to ask twice, so I drove off annoyed that someone, yet again, told me I was too OLD for something. Someone once told me that I was too old to drink juicy juice out of a box. EVERYONE knows juicy juice tastes best with a sippy straw!

La grippe porcine grippe A, un danger pour l’humanité ?

La marche de l’homme bloquée par un porc « Si l’histoire est effectivement, comme la définissait Walter Benjamin, non pas une longue marche de l’humanité vers le progrès mais plutôt une montagne de ruines qui monte au ciel… » — Enzo Traverso, « Rationalité et barbarie », in L’histoire déchirée. Essai sur Auschwitz et les intellectuels. Éd. du Cert, 1997. «Pour Sylvie» van der Werf, de l’Institut Pasteur (…) “c’est un virus nouveau contre lequel l’ensemble de l’humanité n’a pas d’immunité.” (…) Le virus pourrait devenir “beaucoup plus dangereux”, selon l’OMS. AFP, 27 avril 2009. Voir aussi : • Institut de veille sanitaire (France) • Center for Disease Control (USA) • Organisation mondiale de la santé (OMS)

Write More, Write Less

When: Thu Jan 15, 2009 6pm to 8:30pm CST Where: DePaul Universitys Rolling Meadows Campus Meadows Corporate Center East Tower 2550 W. Golf Rd., Suite 255 Rolling Meadows, IL
Event Status: confirmed
Event Description: Join STC Chicago on Thursday, January 15, at the DePaul University campus in Rolling Meadows (east of Woodfield mall), for our first chapter program meeting of 2009. Our speaker, Joe Welinske of WritersUA, will present "Write More, Write Less: Embracing the Value of Crafted Words and Images". While the word "content" is a good shorthand for words, audio, and images, it unfortunately can move us farther away from the core competency of developing good information. The theme of this presentation is that documentation teams are often spending too little time writing well -- and at the same time spending too much time writing little-used information. Research and professional observation suggest that not enough time is being put into crafting text to be exactly the right text for a particular context. And writing resources for doing "agile" user assistance would be more readily available if writers would prioritize topic writing based on user need. "Writing More" while "Writing Less" can result in better utility for users and can reduce the need and load on the overall documentation development process and content management. Technical communicators of all backgrounds will benefit from this thought-provoking presentation. About the Speaker Joe Welinske is the president of WritersUA, a company devoted to providing training and information for user assistance professionals. The WritersUA Conference for Software User Assistance draws hundreds of attendees each year from around the world to share the latest in user assistance design and implementation. The free content on the WritersUA web site attracts more than 20,000 visitors each month. Joe has been involved with software documentation development since 1984. Together with Scott Boggan and David Farkas, Joe authored two editions of the popular and pioneering book Developing Online Help for Windows. He has also taught courses on developing online help at the University of Washington, the University of California at Santa Cruz, and Bellevue (WA) Community College. Joe received a B.S. in Industrial Engineering from the University of Illinois in 1981 and an M.S. in Adult Instructional Management from Loyola University in 1987. About the Meeting A catered buffet (with non-alcohol beverages) is included with registration. There is no bar on campus. The presentation will start at 7 p.m., with check-in at 6 p.m. Registration deadline: 8 p.m. Friday, January 9, 2009. For prepaid online registration, the rates are: $30 for STC Chicago members $40 for non-members $15 for full-time students (with confirmation from their schools) $120 for a table of 6 After the deadline, you must register at the door and must pay by cash or check only. The rates for registration at the door are: $40 for STC Chicago members $50 for non-members For more information or to register, visit www.stc-chicago.org.

One Veggie Star

Snowed under. Swamped. Buried. So describes my work situation at the moment. If you will give me a “Get Out of the Kitchen Free” card, then I will give you the recipe for a very simple Moroccan salad. Moroccans are masters at concocting salads in which one solitary vegetable is the headlining act. Radishes, green peppers, and tomatoes, for example, can all get the star treatment. The recipe below features zucchini, and is one of the many dishes I learned from the cook who introduced me to Moroccan cuisine. Lemon-tart and garlic-tinged, this salad tastes even better the next day. Warm Zucchini SaladServes 4 as a salad3¼ cups / 500 grams zucchini (a.k.a. courgette, baby marrow), very thinly sliced1½ teaspoons / 7.5 milliliters ground cumin2 teaspoons / 10 milliliters sweet paprikaPinch of cayenne¼ teaspoon / 1¼ milliliters salt2 cloves of garlic, minced1 tablespoons / 15 milliliters olive oil2½ tablespoons / 37.5 milliliters fresh lemon juice2 tablespoons / 30 milliliters vegetable broth (you can use water)Handful minced fresh parsley, plus more for garnish Steam the zucchini until it is tender. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, whisk together the ground cumin, paprika, cayenne, salt, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, vegetable broth and parsley. Add the steamed zucchini and place over medium heat. Cook for five minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature. Note: You can also boil your zucchini with a pinch of salt until tender, and use reserved cooking water in place of the vegetable broth. Tags: zucchini, salad, Morocco, North Africa, recipe, Field to Feast, food blog, Africa

The Times Transfer Bulletin: United accept £80m bid for Ronaldo

THE NEWSManchester United have accepted a world-record £80million offer from Real Madrid for Cristiano Ronaldo. United have given Real permission to talk to the Portugal winger and the deal is expected to be completed before the end of the month. Ronaldo's contract at United runs out in 2012 and the Premier League champions decided to allow him to leave after the 24-year-old made it clear that his heart was still set on moving to Spain. Oliver Kay, our Football Correspondent, says the sale of Ronaldo leaves United with a problem: "They will have to replace him with not one but two new players: a brilliant winger and a prolific goalscorer." Who should Sir Alex Ferguson spend the money on? Have your say. Chelsea's summer transfer plans have taken a blow after they were quoted a £65m asking price by Bayern Munich for Franck Ribery. Sergio Aguero, the Atletico Madrid striker, and David Villa, the Valencia forward, are also on Chelsea's radar in the event that they fail to lure the Frenchman to Stamford Bridge. Fulham have entered the race for Stephen Hunt, the Reading midfielder. The Premier League club watched Hunt play for Ireland against Bulgaria last weekend.Fraizer Campbell has indicated to Hull that he will join them when he returns from England Under-21 duty at the European Championship. The Tigers have agreed to pay Manchester United £6m for the forward, who has been in contract talks.Amaury Bischoff could be about to leave Arsenal for Paris Saint-Germain, just one year after the midfield player joined from Werder Bremen when he was out of contract. The 22-year-old made his debut as a substitute against Wigan in the Carling Cup in November.Lyons have declared their interest in signing Patrick Vieira from Inter Milan. "This season, [coach] Claude Puel regretted not having a leader," Jean-Michel Aulas, the Lyons president, said. "Patrick has this charisma that can create the conditions for Lyons to be more ambitious."------------------------------------------------THE RIVALSDrog will snub City - The SunDidier Drogba has reneged on his plan to leave Chelsea and will reject an offer from Manchester City. A source said. "The player wants to stay."Gary Jacob's verdict: This is likely. Over the past 18 months, Drogba has repeatedly suggested he is unhappy at Stamford Bridge, but he has had a change of heart and is set to sign a new contract. His current deal has a year left on it. Rating: 8/10It could be Blues for Pirlo - Daily MirrorAndrea Pirlo, the AC Milan midfielder, has said that his proposed move to Chelsea could still happen despite the sale of Kaka to Real Madrid.Gary's verdict: Chelsea hope to rejuvenate their ageing midfield and the 30-year-old Pirlo does not fit the type of player they want. At best it would represent a short-term solution but more probable is that it is wishful thinking on Pirlo's part. 6/10Arjen scrap - The SunReal Madrid have put Arjen Robben up for sale for £7m, with Manchester United, Manchester City and Liverpool interested in the winger.Gary's verdict: A contact of mine in Madrid says Real are looking to sell Robben because he has suffered a lot of injuries though they are likely to ask for more than £7m. Liverpool and Tottenham are the most likely suitors as both are looking for a left winger. 6/10Barca rob Job - The SunRobinho has stunned Manchester City by revealing that he wants to join Barcelona. "The whole world would love to play there," he said.Gary's verdict: Robinho would certainly be interested in a transfer. He wanted to accept an offer from Chelsea in January when Luis Felipe Scolari was in charge but City refused to sell. And Barca would be interested in signing him but they won't match his exorbitant wages at City. 5/10Dunne on his way - Daily MailSunderland, Stoke and Tottenham will bid for Richard Dunne after Manchester City made him available for £5m.Gary's verdict: After an indifferent season from Dunne, the club have put him up for sale, not least because they also hope to bring in a new centre-half - possibly Matthew Upson. Tottenham showed interest in him last summer but they have since signed Vedran Corluka. Dunne will not join Stoke so Sunderland is his most likely destination of the three. 7/10Hammers hope to hijack Sturridge deal - Daily MailGianfranco Zola will make a bold attempt to persuade the Manchester City forward to join him at Upton Park rather than go to Chelsea.Gary's verdict: West Ham might try that but Sturridge's transfer to Chelsea is almost completed. As I understand, they and City are currently discussing a compensation fee for him as he is out of contract but under 23 and therefore cannot join them on a free. 6/10Rovers want spark of Zoro - Daily MirrorBlackburn will revive their interest in Marco Zoro, the Ivory Coast defender playing for Benfica.Gary's verdict: Sam Allardyce is likely to try to buy a central defender with the money from the likely sale of Roque Santa Cruz. Zoro, who was on trial at West Ham last summer, is a realistic option. 7/10------------------------------------------------GUIDE TO THE TRANSFER WINDOW Deal or no deal - silly season is here againThe window promises to leave managers, chairmen, agents and supporters in a daze, so read our basic guide to how deals are brokered Undisclosed fees, transfer payments and loan deals explained Graphic: the anatomy of a transfer from start to finishThe quintessential middleman - all your questions answered about agentsTransfer terminology: what "I'm their player until told otherwise" really means ------------------------------------------------HAVE YOUR SAY"As a life long fan of West Ham, albeit from a distance, I'm interested to know your thoughts about their future under Gianfranco Zola. Do you see them as content with mid-table finishes or wishing to improve and strive for a European place? Given their recent history I was pleased with their final position this season and feel that they would do well to finish as high next season unless they make a few good additions over the summer."PatrickGary Jacob: It has been a pleasure watching Zola's West Ham, compared with some of the sterile football of the previous two seasons. It was a difficult decision for the Icelandic owners to appoint a Chelsea great, but they took advice, including Tony Gale, and he has been excellent. Zola and Steve Clarke, his assistant, are highly ambitious. They won't settle for mid-table, but competing for a European spot could be harder next season. There are at least eight teams potentially with stronger squads: the so-called big four, Aston Villa, Everton, Tottenham and Manchester City.As much as Zola said he wanted to finish seventh to claim a European spot this season, it was a blessing in disguise that they never qualified. Injuries to a few key players towards the end of the season showed the shallow depth of a sizeable squad. It is time to trim and bring in better players. Zola and Gianluca Nani, the technical director, have their work cut out in attracting players without a large transfer budget. They will have to raise some money by selling players, so look for Luis Boa Morte, Julien Faubert, Calum Davenport, Nigel Quashie and Matthew Upson to be sold this summer. Nani has scouted several players in Italy and I expect that they will try to sign a several players on loan. They want a back-up goalkeeper, a right back, and two forwards.This week, the club was effectively repossessed by the banks that lent the Icelandic owners the money and it awaits to be seen how the asset company that now owns West Ham will run the club. The company claim that they have a three-year plan, but personally, I believe they will sell as soon as they get a decent offer. You have to remember that the asset company has creditors too, and so it may be better to sell for a certain price than risk looking for a higher price, and the club's value plummeting if they were relegated. This change in ownership will affect Zola's transfer kitty. The asset company are unlikely to want to invest much, if any money, in the club, which will be asked to balance their budget. It's comparable to a bank repossessing a house and renting it until the market improves to sell: the bank will try to put just enough money into the house to maintain it's condition."Are Sanli Tuncay and Sylvain Distin plausible signings for Liverpool? And will any club take a chance on Stewart Downing?"PhilGJ: I don't think that Tuncay is good enough for Liverpool. He would be a squad player at best at Anfield. Distin is more realistic and would be inexpensive, not least because he has one year left on his contract at Portsmouth. If Liverpool were flush for money this summer, I'd suggest that they would try to sign Upson from West Ham, but money is tight. They want to sign Glen Johnson and a winger."With Spurs being unusually quiet by their standards so far this close season and rumours being a bit flaky at best, who do you see them signing this season? With Harry Redknapp in charge activity will be inevitable, but does he need to sell first before he buys as he stated? Is Ruud van Nistelrooy a genuine target?""DanGJ: As I mentioned last week, when Redknapp says "I'm looking for one or two free transfers" as he has done, he really means "I want to shake up the squad and bring in five or six". Harry likes big squads, which gives him choices, and he likes his players. Maybe for his benefit, he will take an opportunity to criticise previous transfer strategy, albeit sometimes correctly.Tottenham's net spend in the summer window starting from 2004 is: £12.1m, £5m, £12.15m, £29.6m, £-10m. In January, they spent around £42m net and the club gave warning that they would have raise transfer money this summer by selling players. Expect the following first team players to be available for transfers: Darren Bent, Roman Pavlyuchenko, David Bentley, Kevin-Prince Boateng, Dorian Dervitte, Gilberto, Giovani dos Santos, Alan Hutton, Jermaine Jenas, Didier Zokora and Tom Huddlestone. On top of that, several youth players may leave for a nominal fee.I expect Redknapp to sign a combative midfield player, two forwards (one of whom is aggressive and one in the John Carew mould), a left winger and possibly another centre back (depending where they see Corluka playing in future. He wants to play centre back but has played right back for them).Ask Gary Jacob a question relating to transfer gossip at your club and he'll return his verdict.E-mail: sport@timesonline.co.uk

We're Number One! Yay?

Forbes Magazine just released their annual list of the most expensive places to live in the United States. Guess who tops the list? Ah yes, Los Angeles. Home of the crazy.
Here's the full list:
Forbes: Top 20 America's Most Overpriced Cities
- No. 1: Los Angeles, Calif.
- No. 2: Chicago, Ill.
- No. 3: Miami, Fla.
- No. 4: New York, N.Y.
- No. 5: Providence, R.I.
- No. 6: Riverside, Calif.
- No. 7: Long Island, N.Y.
- No. 8: Cleveland, Ohio
- No. 9 (tie): Newark, N.J.
- No. 9 (tie): San Diego, Calif.
- No. 11: Philadelphia, Pa.
- No. 12: Portland, Ore.
- No. 13 (tie): Tampa, Fla.
- No. 13 (tie): Memphis, Tenn.
- No. 15: Orlando, Fla.
- No. 16: St. Louis, Mo.
- No. 17: Jacksonville, Fla.
- No. 18: San Francisco, Calif.
- No. 19 (tie): Warren, Mich.
- No. 19 (tie): Boston, Mass.
[Taken from this article, opens in a new window]
I don't know whether to feel proud or to hide beneath my desk. I think I'm just going to have some coffee and think about the orange I'm having for dessert tonight when I get home, I picked it from my tree, the very last orange of the season. I let it stay on the tree as long as possible to see how big it would get. It's huge!
One perfect California orange. Well worth the price of admission.
Have a great weekend!!