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Ex-Nigerian Soccer Star Okafor Kills Self In North Texas

LITTLE ELM (AP) – Uche Okafor, a defender on two Nigerian World Cup teams and a stalwart player for the Kansas City Wizards in the U.S., committed suicide this week at his North Texas home, authorities said Friday. He was 43.

Okafor’s body was discovered Thursday afternoon by his wife in their house in Little Elm, a town about 30 miles northwest of Dallas, Detective Oscar Hinojosa said. The Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office said Friday that he hanged himself in an upstairs hallway.

A friend who could not reach Okafor called Ifeyinwa Okafor, the former star’s wife, police said.

“She was at work and she came home and found him,” Hinojosa said.

Okafor played on the 1994 Super Eagles team that won the African Cup of Nations.

Nigeria reached the second round of the World Cup that year and again in 1998, with Okafor on the team both times. He didn’t play in 1994 and played in one match in the first round in 1998, a 3-1 loss to Paraguay after they had beaten Spain and Bulgaria. He didn’t play in the second-round loss to Denmark

“We are totally shocked by the news. Uche Okafor was a great player who represented his country at the highest level,” said Musa Amadu, acting secretary general of the Nigerian Football Federation.

Okafor was with the Wizards from 1996 to 2000, playing in 119 regular-season games and seven Major League Soccer playoff games. His professional finale came on Oct. 15, 2000, when Kansas City beat the Chicago Fire for its only MLS Cup championship.

When Okafor retired before the 2001 season, he was one of only three Kansas City players to have competed every season since the Wizards’ inception in 1996, the team said.

“I’m terribly sad to hear of his passing,” said Ron Newman, Wizards manager from 1996 through 1999. “He was a big, strong guy, but he was very pleasant and I found him to be very professional. He was just an absolute gentleman.”

“I wouldn’t like to be on the wrong side of him if I was playing against him,” he said. “He took no prisoners. But he was fair in everything he did; fair play and good guy. If he knocked you over, he’d pick you up and dust you down.”

Kerry Zavagnin, an assistant coach with Sporting Kansas City — the Wizards changed their name last year — played with Okafor during Kansas City’s championship season.

“I’m shocked and saddened,” he said. “He was a great teammate and most importantly, he was certainly a great man. This is a sad loss for all of us.”

(© Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

One Comment

  1. Ben-Collins Uwaezuoke says:

    This remains a very sad tale. We were proud of Uche and the rest of the squad that brought soccer glory to my countryin the early 90’s. If only we had gone past Italy in that holy day of the world cup, Nigeria could have lifted that trophy. Anyway, my heart goes out to his family and I pray that our good God, in His infinite mercy, will show him forgiveness and receive his soul for eternity.

  2. Shamgar says:

    I grievously extend my condolence to the family of Uche Okafor. May his gentle soul rests in perfect peace

  3. izuogu says:

    uche is an igbo man why bros but why kill yourself. you are an abomination to the igbos.may y soul go straight to hell. izuogu london.

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Court Rules Against Anna Nicole Smith’s Estate

WASHINGTON (AP)  – The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled against the estate of Anna Nicole Smith in the latest chapter of the long-running saga over whether a Texas billionaire’s alleged promise to give millions from his $1.6 billion estate to his young Playmate wife trumped a will that left his fortune to his son.

The high court ruled that a bankruptcy judge’s decision giving millions to Smith from the estate of oil tycoon J. Howard Marshall was decided incorrectly because those judges do not have the constitutional right to reach outside of bankruptcy cases into a probate case.

Chief Justice John Roberts said in a 5-4 decision that the Constitution gives lifetime tenure to federal judges during good behavior and without diminution of salary.

52250125 81 Court Rules Against Anna Nicole Smiths Estate

The Life of Anna Nicole Smith

Bankruptcy judges “enjoy neither tenure during good behavior nor salary protection,” Roberts said. “We conclude that, although the bankruptcy court had the statutory authority to enter judgment on Vickie’s counterclaim, it lacked the constitutional authority to do so.” Smith’s real name was Vickie Lynn Marshall.

Federal bankruptcy judges are appointed and can be removed by judges on the U.S. Appeals Court and their salaries are linked to that of federal judges. Bankruptcy judges serve 14-year terms.

The family of E. Pierce Marshall, son of J. Howard Marshall, cheered the decision.

“J. Howard’s wishes were always perfectly clear: He gave Anna Nicole Smith approximately $8 million in gifts during his lifetime, and those gifts were all that he intended to give her,” said Eric Brunstad, the Marshalls’ lawyer.

The convoluted dispute over the elder Marshall’s money has its roots in a Houston strip club where he met Smith. The two were wed in 1994 when he was 89 and she 26. Marshall died the next year and his will left his estate to his son and nothing to Smith.

Smith challenged the will, claiming that her husband promised to leave her more than $300 million above the cash and gifts showered on her during their 14-month marriage. A Houston jury said Marshall was mentally fit and under no undue pressure when he wrote a will leaving nearly all of his $1.6 billion estate to his son and nothing to Smith, a decision that has been upheld by the federal appeals court.

Smith moved to California after Marshall’s death and then filed bankruptcy in Los Angeles, alleging in federal court filings that her husband promised her a large share of the estate. A bankruptcy judge awarded her $475 million from Marshall’s estate, with a federal judge reducing that amount to $89 million in 2002.

Smith had wanted the courts to accept that ruling. But the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in in San Francisco appeals court threw the bankruptcy court ruling out, saying a bankruptcy judge could not rule on the probate case.

Roberts agreed with that decision, and was joined in his judgment by Justices Antonin Scalia, Anthony Kennedy, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito.

Justice Stephen Breyer wrote the dissent for himself and Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan.

A federal bankruptcy court “plays a critical role in Congress’ constitutionally based effort to create an efficient, effective federal bankruptcy system,” Breyer said. “At the least, that is what Congress concluded. We owe deference to that determination, which shows the absence of any legislative or executive motive, intent, purpose or desire to encroach upon areas that Article III reserves to judges.”

This decision could throw a large number of cases being handled by bankruptcy courts into the federal courts, Breyer said, noting that there were almost 1.6 million filings in bankruptcy court compared to a federal district court docket of around 280,000 civil cases and 78,000 criminal cases.

“Under these circumstances, a constitutionally required game of jurisdictional ping-pong between courts would lead to inefficiency, increased cost, delay and needless additional suffering among those faced with bankruptcy,” Breyer said.

Roberts acknowledged the long-running nature of the case, quoting from Charles Dickens’ novel “Bleak House” in the opinion: This “suit has, in course of time, become so complicated, that … no two … lawyers can talk about it for five minutes, without coming to a total disagreement as to all the premises. Innumerable children have been born into the cause; innumerable young people have married into it;” and sadly, the original parties “have died out of it.”

The younger Marshall died in 2006 and Smith died of a drug overdose in 2007. Smith’s daughter, Dannielynn Birkhead, was named Smith’s heir in 2008. The girl’s father, Larry Birkhead, and attorney Howard K. Stern are in charge of the estate.

The case number is Stern v. Marshall, 10-179.

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)

One Comment

  1. Gumby Rules says:

    So, where is all that $$ now?

    How much ended up in the pockets of attorneys?

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orthopedic pain management

Defence Authority Marina Club

Defence Authority Marina Club - DHA KarachiWhere in Karachi can you escape from the mad traffic, crowded places and eating joints, spilling with people and nagging beggars. The place to be is; where tranquility and serenity reins supreme. The exquisite ambience of the creek that bathes northeasterly shoreline of DHA, this is where Marina Club is housed to provide its member the facility of keeping their personal yachts, boats and indulge in other water sports activities.

Marina Club located at Gizri Creek was established in 1991. The Club was primarily founded to facilitate and encourage water sports activities. The Club started with modest activities. Over a period it has established a name to be reckoned amongst the leading Club in water related sports. For membership of Marina Club, it is mandatory to own a boat which is registered with Mercantile Marine Department (MMD). The boat should be parked at Marina Club.

On the menu of Marina Club, is all romance. A place where you can’t help falling in love with nature. Around sunset, sitting in the open is a breath-taking scene of the mangroves, and you can see fluttering of the sailboats or hear the purring sound of a motorboat that is transiting in the creek. As a bird watcher you can see the herons, flamingo, seagulls seeking their bounty from the slushy shore for marine life. Soon after sunset, you can gaze at the starry night, with the only noise that of your own breath in the background. All this takes the stress out of your hard days work, and a prescription not known to any doctor or apothecary.

  • Catering / Dining Facility
  • Boat Parking Area
  • Boat Washing Point
  • Lowering & Hoisting Facilities
  • Concrete Floating Pontoons for Berthing
  • Workshop for maintenance and repairs of Members’s Boats
  • Fuel Pump for Fueling of Members’ Boats
  • Jet Skis
  • Parasailing
  • Skiing
  • Sailing
  • Snooker Room
  • Storage Hanger for Sports Gear

Address: Zulfiqar Street # 1, Phase VIII, DHA Karachi.
Phone: 021-35842015, 021-35841891, 021-35842231, 021-35842253
Fax: 021-35842258
Email: mail@damarinaclub.com
Website: www.damarinaclub.com

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  • Illusionist

    Illusionist is a Wizard passive ability, unlocked at character level 27. Cooldowns of Archon...

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Re: Question about blog links

There is, but if people have it in their MOBILE siggy, it will post in every post like a regular response
Tashauna~~proud wife to my trained boo-boo fixer and mama to 4 boys on earth (Jordan-01/15/08, Logan-12/16/09, Connor-05/17/11)...and finally our rainbow Jackson (11/24/13)! and two in heaven ^i^ (10wks-11/12 and 4 weeks 2/13)
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Main Menu

Tag Archives | Cheese Racing Association

…Cheese racing looks like fun?

Cheese Racing

Cheese Racing is a sport that was pioneered back in 1997, when someone discovered that processed cheese slices thrown on the BBQ will actually boil inside of their plastic pouches, inflating the bag and baffling the mind.

The rules are simple:

  • Each player throws a slice of cheese onto the BBQ.
  • The player whose cheese fully inflates first wins!

The CRASS (Cheese Racing Association) has a full set of rules, but if you follow those two, you’ll pretty much guarantee a fair fight.

Also, though their have been zero fatalities so far from cheese racing, you must keep in mind that this is an extremely dangerous sport, and not one that should ever be attempted indoors.

Gentlemen, start your cheese slices!

[Cheese Racing]

[Via: The Presurfer]


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Dig It! Gardening Tips for Dogs

Dig It! Gardening Tips for Dogs
a book for when your dog gardens too, too much!

Buy the Book!

Monday, May 31, 2010

All Out of Books!

I sold two copies of 'Dig it!' last week, a good thing, yes?

Maybe not - I've completely sold out of 'Dig it! Gardening Tips for Dogs'! Now I have to make a decision - do I do another print run, or do I relax and just cruise through life without the stresses and strains of book distribution?

I'll leave the decision up to my followers and interested others. The book is fun and funny, the illustrations are terrific, and connecting with other dog lovers is always great.

But the cost! The worrying! Please give me some feedback and help me make my decision!

It all adds to the joy and strain of self-publishing. Fun, fun, fun!

Monday, May 24, 2010

Winter Drives the Dogs Inside

The cooling weather means the dogs don't want to go outside. It would be good if they'd do useful things inside, but no such luck!

We have mice in the house again, but the dogs don't catch them. Our traps catch the mice and occasionally one of the dogs will pick up the dead mouse still trapped and take it somewhere.

Most of the time though, the Pharaoh Hounds sleep on the sofa. Nena, our Schnauzer spends more time outside, but then, she's got a double coat with a woolly under layer of fur.

It's fun watching them when something wakes them up. Noe woofs, then the others go mad barking, with no idea what set the first woofer off. Such fun! Cats will never be able to give that sort of fun.


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    The Real World (リアルワールド/ 現実世界 Riaru Wārudo/ Genjitsu Sekai), also known as Human World (人間界...

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Herbivory often has a negative effect on plants. However, there is a growing number of examples, primarily in terrestrial ecosystems, where herbivory causes an increase in plant size, growth rate, and/or reproductive output. In marine ecosystems, the positive effects of herbivores on macroalgae are not as well studied, although limited evidence exists for herbivore-induced increases in macroalgal growth rates via 2 mechanisms: nutrient addition via grazer defecation, and epiphyte removal. In this study, we examined the effects of grazing by the mud snail Ilyanassa obsoleta on Ulva lactuca, the dominant bloom-forming macroalga in many New England estuaries. We found that the presence of I. obsoleta had a significant positive, rather than negative, effect on U. lactuca. Through caging experiments, we established that this positive effect was not due to fecal nutrient inputs from the snail. Similarly, snail contact in the absence of grazing did not affect U. lactuca growth rates. In contrast, grazing by I. obsoleta significantly reduced the microalgal cover on heavily fouled U. lactuca blades, indicating that snail herbivory of microalgal films likely facilitates U. lactuca growth. Our study demonstrates the surprising, positive effect that an abundant herbivore can have on the growth of a macroalgal bloom species.


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Home » Archive by Category "Microsoft"

Setting up an Excel Workbook? What Should Be Avoided.

Let’s imagine that you are able to create a Microsoft Excel workbook from scratch. You want to set it up for long-term, future success, right?

If the amount of data is going to grow over time, you need to think a few steps ahead to make sure that you are “future-proofing” how you will work with your workbook and the data. There are some easy steps you can take to ensure that the workbook is effective now and for the long term.

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Advanced Formatting Ideas for Microsoft Word

If you work in Microsoft Word, formatting is critical to help get your ideas across and improve the readability of your projects. While even novice users utilize formatting options, more experienced Microsoft Word users can take advantage of a range of advanced formatting options.

Advanced formatting allows you to do unique things in your word documents to ensure that your work stands out from the crowd more efficiently than ever before.

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Excel Developer Tools – Checkbox Controls

One of the more popular form controls is the checkbox. The checkbox form control is a simple control that you can use when you want to assign a Boolean (true or false) value to a cell. In other words, when you check the box you can assign one value, but when you un-check the box you assign another value.

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Revive your Career: Get Certified

In today’s fast paced life and technocentric learning modules, there are many different options to gain more training. One way to propel your career is to get a new certification.

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What Learning Style Is Best For You?

For working professionals of all talents and industries, learning new skills is a worthwhile investment. It keeps your resume fresh, your offerings relevant, and your pricing competitive. Many in-demand skills today have to do with technology, programming, media, and marketing, which can augment just about any educational background or career goal. And the great thing about those fields is that they can be mastered in a variety of formats. But how do you choose which learning style is right for you?

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Business Administration Certification – Get Started!

With new small businesses coming on to the scene daily, it can be intimidating for any entrepreneur to jump into the fray. There are many skills that you need to know in order to be successful in today’s tech-savvy marketplace, and it’s hard to know where to start. For most companies, from the design sector to the financial sector, there are several key software programs that must be mastered for maximum efficiency and workflow. Luckily, you can get all the training you need to launch your own business right from the comfort of your own couch!

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Monster Fight

Game Description:

Best monsters game ever! Select your monster and difficulty as you battle against multiple monsters ready to kick your butt.
A new game suitable for children of all ages.
If you like games of monsters, dragons and dinosaurs ... this is your game!
Start playing the game now! We hope you would love this game, enjoy free play new game on Dinosaurgames.me. Thank you for play!

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In game.

Tags: Other Robot & Animal

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Wednesday, 15 April 2009

Why Can't I Retire.

Men say they look forward to retirement,
To relax and generally potter,
Spend an hour or two in the garden
Then down the pub they might totter.

Perhaps start to read War and Peace,
No time to do it before.
But it's just an excuse to nod off,
War and Peace is a terrible bore

Maybe start on those shelves soon,
They've been put off for to long.
But a woman dreads the event,
Something is sure to go wrong.

About twelve o'clock he will say
"What's for lunch, something I can do"?
He knows you'll have done it already,
Because lunch is down to you.

It seems to be a fact of life
When men retire they really do,
A housewives work is never done
It's mostly DOWN TO YOU.

Jill West.

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Saturday, December 10, 2011

Citizen Obama Makes a Health Care Decision

What if Barack Obama were just a normal citizen? A normal, taxpaying schmoe like you and me. These are his stories. These are the travails of Citizen Obama.

Mr. Obama, I'm sorry to say that your wife's mother is suffering from some serious ailments.

We'll need to do an extensive battery of tests. Her white blood cell count is elevated, which could mean a variety of things.

Also, it appears she needs a hip replacement.

Doctor, thank you. Even though this is family, I don't want you to go to extraordinary lengths.

You know what? We should cut costs.

It pains me to say this, but don't do any tests.

Don't give her that expensive drug. It treats a rare disease and is very expensive. The last thing I'd want to do is run up costs for other Americans.

No, she's getting up there in years, and according to Ezekiel Emanuel's "Complete Lives System", she's consumed enough of our precious community health care resources.

No, we're not going to go to the Cleveland Clinic, Johns Hopkins or some other top-notch facility.

Who am I to demand cutting-edge treatment? Those extra tests? Cutting-edge drugs? No, we don't want any of those.

And look. She's 79, for heaven's sake. Forget about the hip replacement.

She can handle it, she's tougher than nails.

Look, bottom line: just give her some painkillers.

It's just the progressive thing to do.

Jim - PRS said...

Quite Rightly said...

A scenario one doesn't have to face if one is named Obama but is (curiously) exempt from Obamacare.

Now, if Mom-in-Law had a stroke in the middle of the night and needed brain surgery to stop the bleeding, unlike the rest of people age 70+, she wouldn't have to settle for, ahem, "comfort care."


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Fog Creek Software
Discussion Board

experience with PIVOTAL??

Hi there.

I am trying to convince a friend that running with the pivotal CRM is a bad thing....

I must admit that I have not used it extensively, but the bit I have seen of it I do not like.

Throw in the £1000 seat licence, and I think he can do better.

Has anyone had experience with this piece of software??

Friday, July 04, 2003

Two words tapiwa: run away.  I know two large organizations with heavy investments in Pivotal that have moved off of it.

Friday, July 04, 2003

*  Recent Topics

*  Fog Creek Home


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    Every individual unit has a class. Their class determines their weapon proficiencies...

  • Ninja (Disgaea 2)

    Ninja is one of the humanoid classes in Disgaea 2: Cursed Memories. They are unlocked by passing...

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The View From Your Window Contest: Winner #123

Andrew Sullivan —  Oct 9 2012 @ 1:00pm

A reader writes:

The rolling forested hills, mist, and giant construction project look like southern China. I'm guessing the outskirts of Shenzhen, which is still working on expanding its subway line.

Lilongwe, Malawi? The Chinese have made and are making enormous investments in the infrastructure of African nations, on a scale that should be alarming to the West.  In these no longer isolated parts of the world, quality modern urban design updates and enhances the European fabric from another era. Stade des Jeunes, home of the Civo United Football Club, is one example of such contributions, and its current renovation seems to have produced one of the better looking stadiums.  This window view of the construction site could have come from the seventh floor of the nearby Crossroads Hotel.  The one problem is that the area around the stadium is more densely urban and developed than your photograph suggests, but perhaps more buildings are merely obscured by the fog.  I can't be certain because I haven't set foot on that continent in 40 years.

I believe that's the Nissan International Stadium Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture we are looking towards from across the Tsurumi River.  But from which building?  Even Google Maps seems to have only Japanese names for the buildings.

This is a view of Wörtherseestadion in Klagenfurt, Austria, with fog shrouding the Alps in the background.

Arena Recife under construction for World Cup 2014, in Recife, Brazil?

Perhaps the Stockholmsarenan/Tele2 Arena? The balloons outside the window are Sweden's national flag colors. From there a quick search of "Sweden stadiums, retractable" gave many lists. There are several. This one looked most like your picture. Sorry no time this weekend for further research. This will have to do!

Another nails the correct city:

Ljubljana, Slovenia? I got there by recognizing the obvious – that this is a soccer/football stadium (or something similar), likely in a eastern Europe (from the architecture of the building from which the picture was taken). Staring at the image a bit, it's clear that the stadium would not have a big enough capacity to justify all the parking spots around it unless it was sunken. So I googled "sunken stadium" and pretty quickly ended up with this stadium. I'm going to work some more on the exact location within the building, but I wanted to lay down a marker in case I get too caught up in work. I'm still smarting from not considering Vanuatu two weeks ago – the only island in the world I didn't look at (I'd passed it over since I thought it was flat) – so it's nice to get one.

This week's VFYW was a toughie, but I lucked onto the answer within about half an hour. The image clearly shows a soccer stadium with some kind of building or other concrete structure surrounding it. Page 6 of the results of a Google image search for "football stadium concrete plaza" included this picture, a smallish stadium with an unbroken rectangular canopy and light posts. The picture came from this story on the new Stožice Sports Park in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia, and I knew after a couple of exterior shots and the description of the adjacent "multi-purpose sports hall" that I'd found it.

Google Maps shows all the features in the photo: the soccer stadium, the "cutouts" in the sports hall, the garden allotments, and the curving junction behind, with the photo showing a view from the southwest. Based on the alignment of elements, it appears the photo was taken from the complex of high-rise buildings at 75 Vojkova Road – specifically, the northernmost building of the four. From the height, I'll guess a 9th-story window.

Slovenia is the most prosperous Balkan country, owing in part to it having the earliest and most bloodless break from the former Yugoslavia, and are full EU Eurozone members. I mention this because it makes it all the more surprising they would build such a hideous concrete monstrosity for their national sports complex – the stadium and arena (barely visible in the left edge of the window) host the Slovenian national soccer and basketball teams, as well as the capital's major professional clubs. It looks as though Tito built it forty years earlier!

So I googled "sunken stadium" and pretty quickly ended up here:

It's a view of the sunken Stožice Stadium in Ljubljana, seen from roughly the 17th floor of the building shown on the following images located along Vojkova cesta, probably at #77 (hard to get the exact address – the pictures below are much more accurate)

I got there by recognizing the obvious – that this is a football (soccer) stadium. I initially thought, because of the overall height on the structure and the unfinished look of the surrounding area, that it was in the middle of construction, which made me think immediately of Brazil and all the stadium construction they're doing for the 2014 World Cup. But a quick inspection of those venues did not match anything. So I looked at the image more carefully and concluded that it was more likely in eastern Europe (from the architecture of the building from which the picture was taken) and, more importantly, that the only way the stadium could be big enough to justify all the parking built around it, while being so apparently short was if it were sunken.

A quick look at Google Maps made it clear that the photo was taken from this block of apartments overlooking the park to the south of the stadium:

As to exactly how high, it looks like it was taken pretty high up. I tried various ways to estimate the height and always get it somewhere around 15-20 stories high. So I'm going to go in the middle of that and say 17 stories up, or around three stories from the top, or this window:

Another also guessed the 17th floor of the Vojkova Apartments. But the winner this week, by the skin of his teeth, was the reader who guessed the floor closest to the exact one – the 15th:

Just heard about your contest last week, and have spent a hundred hours on looking back at games 1 through 50 so far.  My wife is now upset, but she is the one who told me about the contest.  This is generally really really hard. I found this stadium while searching for Brazilian soccer stadiums and a picture of the Stozice sports complex came up in Ljubljana Slovenia.  The hard part was deciding exactly which building and what floor.  The building has to be one of the towers of the Vojkova cesta complex of buildings.  Either 75 or 77, I'm going with 77 which is the far right building looking from the stadium.  It is a window just to the left of the balcony and I'm going to guess 14 stories up.

Hopefully winning the book prize will make her less upset.


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Saturday, May 17, 2008

Stories of Bicycle Commuting from Mayor Nutter and Mike Dorn

DSC05445, originally uploaded by Philly Bike Coalition.

Given the high gas prices, there has been a lot of discussion lately in Philadelphia about creating new incentives for everyone to bike to work. So when Mayor Nutter takes to the road for Bike to Work Day, he of course travels with security, wearing a florescent shell and a smile.

But when Mike Dorn bikes to work at Temple University after dropping off books at the Van Pelt Library on the University of Pennsylvania campus, he has to cross the Girard Avenue bridge across the Schuylkill River. The trolley tracks that run down the center of Girard Avenue make it particularly difficult to transition safely to the left lane before turning left towards North Thirty-Third Street. With the trolleys running once again on Girard Avenue, the tracks are now smoother.

Riding across the bridge at 8:45 am of April 20, 2008, while transitioning to the left land my bike tire caught the trolley groove and threw me face forward. I caught myself with my outstretched right and left hands but still bounced my chin on the pavement. I was wearing gloves due to the coolness of the morning, but unfortunately no chin padding. Today I am still on the mend, after having eight stitches removed from my chin, but still wearing the flexible cast on my right hand.

I don't know what can be done about the trolley tracks around the city but they sure are a hazard for cyclists! I, for one, am not planning on biking from Penn to Temple again anytime soon.

I wish you all the best with your own adventures in urban mobility. By safe and have fun!

Matt said...

As a fellow disability studies faculty and bike commuter I can sympathize with your situation. I took my position at the University of Idaho a couple of years ago so I could sell my car and commute by bike. Moscow is the perfect little commuter town...only 25,000 people when school is in, which means only 15,000 people in the summer after the students clear out. Still, I was hit by a car last year and ended up with a broken arm and dislocated shoulder...thank God for assistive technology! I got so used to my voice command PC interface that I still use it a lot. Anyway, thanks for your comment on my last post on my blog. DS in Idaho is kinda slow in coming. We're a very stingy state when it comes to spending on higher ed or any social programs for that, we're running things off a shoestring here. We still have massive issues with diversity in general here in Idaho, let alone discrete content areas like womens studies or disability studies. But there are still a few of us carrying the DS flag here...we're making slow, but sure, progress.

Mike Dorn said...

Hi Matt - It was so great to hear about your efforts at the University of Idaho. And it is interesting to hear your story of rehabilitation from your bicycle accident. After mine, I thought I was going to have to use Dragon Naturally Speaking, but as it turned out it was easier for me to type with my left hand and one finger on my right.

We are entering an interesting period here in Philadelphia. Everywhere there are suggestions that people are interested in dusting off their bicycles and taking to the streets. Yet the very real resistance of drivers to granting equal rights and fair share of the pavement is going to scare many back off of the streets. Others are dissuaded by the experiences of their friends and co-workers. Learn more about these issues in Philadelphia from Brian Howard's editorial letter in this week's Philadelphia City Paper.

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Friday, June 10, 2011

Real pension reform with Adachi's plan

I was pleased to sign the petition to get Jeff Adachi's pension reform on the city's ballot yesterday. There are people gathering signatures at supermarkets all over the city. Be sure to ask them for the pension reform petition, since they often have petitions on other issues.

Adachi's argument for his plan:

My reform plan would save taxpayers between $93 million and $143 million a year according to the city controller’s office.  By City Hall’s own admission, the Politicians' Plan[Mayor Lee's plan] will only save $56 million in the fiscal year 2012-2013. Meanwhile, the City will be paying nearly a half billion dollars in pensions. From there, the gap between the money saved by the Politicians' Plan and the money owed by the City only gets greater. And the greater the gap, the greater share the Politicians' Plan demands of taxpayers.
Responsible pension reform requires that the burden is shared equally by City employees and taxpayers. If the City contribution to the pension fund goes up, then both City employees and taxpayers should pay more. If it goes down, City employees and taxpayers can pay less.
The Politicians' Plan is not responsible pension reform. At a certain point in their plan, every dollar needed to cover City employee pensions is paid for by taxpayers and not by City employees. This means that your taxes will go up at the same time that funding is being taken away from services like MUNI, parks and elderly care. That’s not fair to the taxpayers of the City or to the people who depend on these services every day.
The Politicians' Plan was crafted in a back room by the same people who got us into this mess. Last time they cut side deals that resulted in a $170 million bonus being paid to retirees in 2011 despite the $360 million budget deficit. Taxpayers didn’t just have to cover the cost of pensions and a stock market crash, they also had to pay extra for a pension bonus hidden in the 2008 ballot initiative.

At 5:04 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

However, Supervisor Sean Elsbernd slammed Adachi’s pension reform measure as likely being illegal during an editorial board meeting with The San Francisco Examiner.

At 5:19 PM, Blogger Rob Anderson said...

He should try telling it to a judge.

At 6:30 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Adachi's campaign lied to voters to get enough signatures to qualify for the ballot. Read the SF Chron article on it here:

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Wednesday, February 25, 2015

This Mornings Playlist

1. Moonlight in Vermont - Frank Sinatra
2. Toxicity - System of a Down
3. Alone Again - Dokken
4. Feel it All Around - Washed Out
5. Confetti - The Lemonheads

Andre 3000 Hits Nail on the Head with Jimi Hendrix Portrayal

I was incredibly excited to see the new Hendrix biopic Jimi: All is By My Side despite the fact that I’ve never really been a huge Jimi Hendrix fan.  The film takes on the musicians early years, from being discovered by Keith Richards girlfriend in a club to signing on with his manager, ex- Animals bassist Chas Chandler.  Taking place entirely between being discovered and when he departs for the Monterey Pop Festival, the film offers an intimate look at the controversial artists early days as he navigates the music world, forms his backing band The Experience, and straddles the stresses of new fame, success, and love.  Many have called the film fictitious largely because of its portrayal of Hendrix’s relationship with girlfriend Kathy Etchingham.  The film often shows Hendrix taking a violent turn and even brutally beating Etchingham in a jealous rage.  Etchingham insists however that their relationship was wonderful and without such incidents.  While the movie lacked any actual Hendrix tunes because of issues with the estate, I felt it almost worked to the films benefit.  We get to view the myth that is Jimi Hendrix before he was anything besides a great guitar player.  His improvisational, bluesy guitar solos and intricate fret work take center stage as Outkast’s Andre 3000 captures the quiet, introverted man in his element long before “Purple Haze” graced the world’s collective eardrums.  Andre’s performance stands out as the brightest part of the film.  Many of the scenes attempt to encapsulate a feeling showing only Hendrix and his guitar alone in a room together as if there is nothing and no one else in the world.  We delve deep into his psyche as the viewer experiences the struggle felt by Jimi as he tries to maintain his opinions of the world and his music while attempting to break into the mainstream; all without sacrificing his creative license.  Showcasing many early live performances, including one attended by Paul McCartney and George Harrison right after the release of Sgt. Pepper in which Hendrix decides to take a risk and play the title track, not two days after the album dropped.  It’s moments like this that the film hits its stride and truly displays the charisma and genius of one of rock’s greatest artists.  History tells us the rest.

Wednesday, February 11, 2015

Florence is Back!!!

Welsh indie-pop princess Florence Welch is back at it with her band the Machine as the group looks ahead at a new album and plenty of touring throughout 2015.  The new album, a follow up to 2011's "Ceremonials" is still very hush hush but Flo and Co. have recently released a music video for one of the new tracks entitled "How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful".  The band is set to play several large festivals this summer before playing a group of shows in Europe.  Pay attention though because as soon as the album is officially named and announced, you know World Tour dates will pop up shortly after and since garnering so much attention over the last several years tickets will go fast.  For now, check out the video for the new song below.

New Song by Florence and the Machine

Today's Playlist

1. Super Vixen - Garbage
2. Pathetic - Blink 182
3. Dissolve - Classics of Love
4. Time to Pretend - MGMT
5. Yellow Ledbetter - Pearl Jam
6. Imitation of Life - R.E.M.
7. Every Day is a Winding Road - Sheryl Crow
8. Woman - Wolfmother
9. Mermaid - Swearin'
10. City's Full - Savages

Fury - More Character Study than War Film

The new Brad Pitt WWII drama Fury was underwhelming and not what I expected which left me feeling betrayed by its all-star cast.  The film centers on Staff Sergeant Don “Wardaddy” Collier played by Brad Pitt who commands a Sherman tank crew of five members.  They are all hardened war veterans and have been fighting the Germans since the North African campaign.  Now the crew of Fury (the name of their tank) is pushing into Germany during the final days of WWII in 1945.  The beginning of the film sees the addition of a new member to Collier’s squad, a young typist named Norman Ellison who has never seen a tank, let alone a battle.  Ridiculed by the rest of the crew, young Norman faces an uphill battle to earn the respect and acceptance of the war weary soldiers.  This ends up being almost the entirety of the plot which was both surprising and disappointing.  While the realism that director David Ayer tries to achieve is successful, I found myself wanting a more decisive storyline.  The film does a great job showing the brutality and darkness of war.  The crew of Fury has faced so much hardship and yet still has a long way to go as the war winds down.    Their love of each other is matched only by their hatred of the SS.  The crew, particularly Sgt. Collier despises the SS and takes any opportunity afforded him to kill every last one, regardless of whether they have surrendered or not.  In fact one of the earliest lessons Norman is forced to learn is that you don’t hesitate when it comes to killing the Germans.  Hesitation leads to death because in war you either kill or be killed.  This is one of the largest overall themes that is explored throughout the course of the film and calls into question the morality of many of the crew member’s actions.  In a way, the viewer is Norman.  Thrown into this situation suddenly and forced to react.  We have the same feelings he does in the beginning and as the film progresses we start to not only understand why the crew’s actions are necessary, but also why they are the way they are.  After seeing so much death and destruction, it’s difficult to face your enemy and have any sympathy or remorse.  While the film acts as an interesting character study of each of the men, it doesn’t have a whole lot of substance otherwise.  With the exception of taking a small town, fighting an enemy German tank, and the final push to defend a strategic crossroads, the film didn’t have any big WOW moments.  The point is to focus on the men; to try and see through their eyes.  The best part of the film for me was the simple fact that it was about tanks.  You never see WWII movies on the subject.  It’s always airplanes, naval ships or individual soldiers.  Rarely do we have such a detailed look at the lives of tank crewman and that was without a doubt the most interesting aspect of the film.

Wednesday, February 4, 2015

Five New Artists To Watch This February

If you're ever looking for a fast way to find some brand new music by up and coming artists, SPIN does a great monthly list which gives you a quick snapshot of five new bands releasing new music.  The list offers a brief description of the band/artist and lets you know what they sound like.  It also lists similar artists/sounds/styles to give you a great idea as to how the music will sound.  Of course the best way to find out is to listen for yourself.  Each artist has a link to one of their songs right on the list.  This months choices include an electronic music DJ named Alison Wonderland (great name), an ex-Massachusetts DIY punk rocker who does a fabulous stripped down cover of Blink 182's "M+M's", and a one man folk band with more instruments than fingers.  Rounding out the list is a fuzzed out punk duo from LA with a new tape (that's right tape) out this month entitled "Almost Famous" and an experimental psych rock solo project by ex-Monotonix guitarist Yonatan Gat.  Give all the artists a listen and read more about them in the link below.

Five New Artists - February 2015

Oscar Noms are In!!

It's that time of year again folks.  The month where everyone anxiously awaits the decisions of the esteemed Motion Picture Academy of America as they decide who made the best films of 2014.  While the nominations this year have drawn criticism from many, the lineup is most definitely a strong set of films.  I'm thrilled that Wes Anderson is finally getting his rightful recognition as The Grand Budapest Hotel is tied with Birdman with nine total nominations, more than any other film.  The nods include Best Picture and Best Director.  Other notable films up for awards include The Imitation Game, Richard Linklater's masterpiece Boyhood and the the Stephen Hawking biopic The Theory of Everything among many others.  Check out the full list of nominations in each category below.

2015 Oscar Nominations

Duxbury Native Juliana Hatfield Drops New Music This Month

Local alt-rock goddess Juliana Hatfield has recently reformed her early 90's alternative outfit The Juliana Hatfield Three and it's not just to cash in on a reunion tour.  Following in the footsteps of fellow early 90's rockers Sleater-Kinney, Hatfield and her bandmates Todd Philips and Dean Fisher are releasing a new album this month.  Already slated as one of the most anticipated albums of the first half of 2015, the group has released three songs from the upcoming LP.  Listen to the latest tune "Wood" below.

"Wood" by The Juliana Hatfield Three


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Fish Rock Cave

Location: South West Rocks
State: NSW
Diver Qualification: Advanced
Average Depth: 16mtrs
Max Depth: 24mtrs
Directions: One of the local dive shops.
Description: The craggy island of Fish Rock is no indication of the splendor that lies underneath. At 120 metres long, and well known as one of the largest ocean caverns in the southern hemisphere, FISH ROCK CAVE has attracted divers worldwide. Enter the deep end of the cave at a depth of 24 metres where thousands of bullseyes hang suspended. Swim into the tunnel entrance over huge wobbegong sharks and a large bull ray resting on the bottom. You’ll pass by clusters of live cowry shells, a large Spanish dancer, bryozoan lace coral and sea cucumbers to name but a few.

Ascend up one of the two vertical chimneys with only your torch light piercing the darkness, and see the many glowing eyes from hundreds of painted crayfish following your progress. At the right time of year, giant cuttlefish lay their eggs in the cave and the huge male is a spectacular sight with his colours flashing. Pop up into the bubble cave for a quick chat before emerging into the light zone.

The shallow end usually stops people in their tracks. The deep blue opening is a vision people have seen in many photographs, magazines and books and it still doesn’t prepare them for the spectacular beauty. Silhouetted in the opening are thousands of bullseyes, gorgonian coral fans, trumpetfish, black cod and many other species of fish. During the months of April through to November, the occasional grey nurse shark is also silhouetted in the opening making it a photographers paradise. There are also nudibranchs, bright orange zooanthids, moray eels and anemone and clown fish....and all this before emerging.
Access Type: BOAT
Average Visibility: 20mtrs


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Three Churches / One Parish

Religious Education

The goal of religious education at Divine Mercy is to help turn hearts and minds to Jesus so that we may know, love, and serve God more every day.

New Members: Adults who are interested in learning more about the Catholic faith or who are interested in joining the Catholic Church should contact Theresa Conley about the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (or R.C.I.A.) program. Through R.C.I.A., we work to explain the teachings of the Catholic Church, help adults grow in their relationship with Jesus, and answer questions in an easy-to-understand, friendly way. There is no commitment for those attending these sessions, and anyone may discontinue the program at any time.

R.C.I.A. might be for you if . . .

  • you’ve never been baptized but realize the need for God in your life
  • you’ve been baptized in another Christian church but want to learn about the Catholic Tradition
  • you were baptized in the Catholic Church but never received the Sacraments of Eucharist or Confirmation and you wish to become a full participant in the life of the Church
  • you are married to a Catholic and attend Mass but you aren’t sure what your next step should be to be able to participate more fully
  • you’ve ever asked yourself “why do Catholics do that” or “what do Catholics believe about this?”

Already Catholic? Join the team. Be a sponsor. Pray for us. Get involved!

Our Diocese

Connect with the Toledo Diocesetoledo

Contact Us

417 North Main Street
Paulding, Ohio 45879
p (419) 399-2576
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Framing Travel Photos with Upcycled Maps

Framing Travel Photos with Upcycled Maps

Among my “upcycle” supplies, I’ve hung onto various maps and atlases Katie and I picked up on freecycle when we made this woven basket from folded maps.  I’m glad I still had a few to make a decoupage frame highlighting the North Carolina beach we’ve visited for many years.

I started with a couple of cheap frames from A.C. Moore ($3 each). Luckily, I found many maps showing the same coastline. I figured out where best to position the location on the frame and then cut out the image leaving about an inch margin all around.

Then, I used a small paint brush to apply mod podge to the frame and underside of the map. I folded the edges around the sides and smoothed them down as I went. I also cut the paper at an angle in the corners so the corner folds would look nice and neat.

I put sections featuring the region all around the perimeter of the frame. After applying mod podge liberally over the entire frame, the vintage maps took on a nice patina and added some nostalgia.

I’m sending the frame as a thank you gift to my friend’s Sara’s parents who own the house and live year-round in the Midwest. The children in the photo are their two grandchildren, Liam and Belle.

I even found a few more maps showing the same coastline and towns, so I can make another map frame for Sara. This project might also work well for couples so show where they met, wed, honeymooned, that kind of thing. It’s a fun, easy craft that commemorates in a lovely way the places we hold dear.

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  1. Came over from RoadKill Rescues – what a great idea. TYFS.

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Posted by on May 7, 2014 | 1 comment

Supply List: Surprise Teachers’ Lounge Makeover

Supply List: Surprise Teachers’ Lounge Makeover

Yesterday, we shared the background on the surprise makeover for the teachers’ lounge at Mount Vernon Community School. The project was truly a community effort with parents, neighbors, and local businesses pitching in time, money, and support. Today we thought we’d share some more photos and a source list for all the materials.

Our budget was limited for this project, so we were very thankful the following local businesses pitched in to cover some of the cost:

We tried to repurpose as much as we could (tables, cabinets, sofas), but also added some new items to the room:

The list continues…

Some of our favorite elements of the room were the DIY projects here and there. One of our parents made the fabulous geometric print curtains with fabric purchased from Fabric Guru. The curtains are lined and were sized to fit the existing curtain tension rods.

The upper kitchen cabinets were basically empty, so we decided to treat them as a focal point by taking off the doors, lining the interior with contact paper, and using the cabinets as bookshelves. The colorful baskets hide tea bags and sugar packets. Some of the books were donated by parents, others were purchased at the Friends of Duncan Library Book Sale, conveniently going on next door the same day we were working.

Parents also donated stacks of magazines, displayed on a rustic old ladder which just so happened to be sitting in someone’s garage, unused.

You can’t tell from the photos, but we also made a point of getting rid of the bulky trash cans throughout the room. Since the base cabinets in the kitchen area were practically empty, we turned one of them into a trash storage area. There’s one for waste and one for recycling.

For playful wall art in the workroom, another parent painted a few blank canvases and an entire wall with chalkboard paint. She hand wrote inspirational quotes with chalk pens. In these photos, you also get a peek at the vivid paint colors we used for the bathrooms (one teacher noted that they no longer look like gas station bathrooms — all it took was a coat of paint and some decluttering).

And finally, paint. Picking a grey paint is a daunting task. One of the volunteers brought over a sample of a paint color used in her house, Sherwin Williams Agreeable Grey. When we first tried it out it had a slight lavender hue, but once it dried, it was certainly an agreeable grey and perfect for the room. We also gave all the trim and baseboards a fresh coat of white paint.

We hope you enjoyed reading about this project as much as we enjoyed working on it! If you have any questions about the materials used, please feel free to use the comment section below.

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  1. Katie — Thanks for doing such a wonderful job putting this summary together!

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Posted by on Mar 15, 2017 | 1 comment

Cabin Camping in Shenandoah

Cabin Camping in Shenandoah

This past weekend, my family took a trip to a primitive cabin outside Shenandoah National Park, one of many cabins owned and operated by the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club (PATC). Despite really cold temperatures, we had a great time and enjoyed slow-cooked meals, games played by candlelight and peace and quiet away from cell phones, Internet and other modern distractions.

We left Alexandria on Friday afternoon and hiked 1/2 mile up a steep trail to Morris Cabin. My kids had never been cabin camping (or camping at all for that matter) so I was a little nervous how they would handle it. Fortunately, as soon as they saw the cabin from the trail, they were instantly in awe and couldn’t wait to get inside.

The cabin, built in 1927 by Wayman Morris, has four rooms: a kitchen/dining room, living room, separate bedroom and a sleeping loft. It’s primitive, meaning it has no electricity or running water, but it has everything you really need.

Since it was so cold, we all decided to sleep in the main living room near the wood stove.

The cabin sleeps 12 and extra mattresses are kept in a screened cage (to protect from mice) in the loft.

Through the main living room, you enter a spacious kitchen with a second large dining table, a sink that drains outside (no running water though), an antique wood cook stove and cabinets with dishes and utensils.

The exposed beams add rustic charm and the skylight provides much-needed additional light during the day. Make sure to bring candles for evening card games.

It was fun to cook on the wood stove, although it took a really long time to heat up. We cooked French toast, faux sausage links and scrambled eggs for breakfast on Saturday and vegetable fajitas for dinner. On our first night, we cooked hot dogs and baked beans in a fire pit outside.

The back door leads to a covered porch with an array of old tools and an area to chop wood. The code of the cabin is to chop more wood than you use. Much of our afternoon on Saturday was spent gathering logs and branches for firewood. Everyone helped.

Past the shed, you’ll find the privy and a natural spring which runs through an old claw-foot tub. If you have a water purifier, you can drink the water. Otherwise it’s just good to have for washing dishes and hands. I imagine if you visit in the summer, a dip in the tub would be quite relaxing, but the temps during our visit barely rose above 40 degrees.

Wayman Morris grew corn and raised horses on the land up and down the mountain. I’m guessing he used this now abandoned barn, just up the hill, for his horses.

The cabin is one of six on the property known as the Vining Tract, named after Dr. and Mrs. Rutledge Vining who sold the land to PATC in 1981. Trails connect all the cabins, providing lots of opportunities for exploration, with stunning views of the Piedmont below.

Rental rates vary by cabin — Morris was only $35/night. You do have to be a member to rent their cabins (except the ones inside Shenandoah National Park) but the membership fee is only $40/year. I’d recommend purchasing their cabin book for $15 so you can browse the options — it includes a regional cabin map, floor plans and interior photos, plus handy instructions for operating a wood stove and other “survival” tips.

All members of our family had an incredible time and we’re already browsing the cabin book for our next adventure.

1 Comment

  1. Thank you for posting photos of this cabin! We have been members of PATC for years but never made it to this particular cabin. We always have a great time and the kids look forward to it every year.

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Davey Grant vs. Roland Delorme added to UFC Fight Night 37

A bantamweight scrap between Davey Grant and Roland Delorme has been slated for the UFC Fight Night 37 fight card on March 8, 2014, according to UFC officials Monday.

Grant (8-2) was a finalist on TUF 18, falling to Chris Holdsworth via second-round submission on the reality show.

Delorme (9-2, 1 no-contest) is 3-1 (with one no-contest) in his five UFC fights. He lost to Alex Caceres via split decision at UFC 165 on Sept. 21, 2013.

A light heavyweight showdown between Alexander Gustafsson and Jimi Manuwa will be the main event.

Full Story Via MMA Fighting – All Posts

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Friday, April 1, 2011

Garmin-Cervelo's special weapon for Flanders

Normally I don't repost articles here, but I ran across this cutting news on one of my favorite race news sites, (sometimes it's down, so be sure to check back later).

Brugge, Belgium: Jonathan Vaughters announced today that his Slipstream-Cervelo team was going against its sponsorship and will race Sunday's Tour of Flanders on vintage Alex Singer "constructeur" bicycles.

"I came across a copy of Bicycle Quarterly and almost immediately realized this is what would give us that critical advantage on the bergs of Flanders", Vaughters said during a brief press conference. "All these years riders have struggled to overcome the cruelties of these steep, cobbled climbs, and until now it never occurred to us that maybe, just maybe the cobbles didn't need to be so cruel. It turns out for all the research and development done by us and our sponsors, the answer was worked out more than a half-century ago. If only we'd looked behind instead of forward, we'd have seen it."

Thor's 2004 Singer
Thor Hoshovd's vintage Singer

Unfortunately due to the long lead times for Singer bicycles, Vaughters and company had to look at existing stock to get them to the starting line of this year's spring classics. "Luckily there's a close to seven decade history of Singers, so by scouring Craigslist we were able to supply the team." Each of the team's eight starters will be on one of the classic rigs, with no spares. "These bikes were built to last, to provide decades of service under any condition. One bike per rider is plenty."

"Flanders, and to an ever greater extent, Roubaix, is an exercise in chaos. Team cars fight for position to service riders. Riders take insane risks to be in position for the feed zone. With these bikes, none of this is necessary. With front racks and custom Garmin-Cervelo bags we're having hand-sewn by Chrome, riders can carry everything they need for the day from the start line. And with 42mm 650B tires, flats are extremely unlikely. As a result the team cars can take the Autostrada directly to Aankornst (the finish). On the road we'll need only a motor scooter for communications."

But what about the sprint? Surely the woefully inadequate (by 2011 standards) bottom brackets on the narrow-gauge steel Singer frames would collapse under Thor and Tyler's enormous power.

"The Singers plane well", Vaughters replied.

Vaughters then revealed the new jersey the team was going to premier at the race: a wool Garman-logo'ed jersey with plain black, wool shorts.

"Obviously, riding these bikes with synthetic fabrics would be, well, just wrong. Plus, we wanted to take advantage of wool's superior thermoregulation."

obligatory data
simulation data

Liquigas riders suffering on the Koppenberg due to stiff carbon frames with skinny tires (CyclingNews)

Wow -- I'm changing my pick for Sunday's race right now. Cancellara? Boonen? Sagan? Fuggetaboutit. All of the road vibration dissipated in their muscles through their stiff frames and skinny tires will render them useless to the Garmin Cervelo attack at the end of 270 km of the worst roads Belgium can deliver.

djconnel said...

good blog DJ! I think that a definition of "plane" may be in order for non-BQ readers :)

NadiaMac said...

Preceding comment made by me. Someone was signed on on my computer


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The Dragonlance Nexus

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Upper Dhaxalder Delving

Article written by Gerrin

The Upper Dhaxalder Delving was a network of mines located under the Garnet Mountains and they were mined by the Kayolin Dwarves. These mines produced iron ore that was shipped to Garnet Thax along the Gem River.

  • A World in Stone p. 100

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This article has been viewed 1,038 times. It was added on December 14, 2006, and was last modified on December 14, 2006.

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Dog Health

What To Do If A Snake Bites Your Dog

grass-snake-379025_1920Even though people live in a more urban world today than how they lived before, there are still a lot of snakes around. Only Alaska and Hawaii can claim that they do not have native venomous snakes. It is estimated that about 15,000 dogs get bitten by poisonous snakes every year. Between 70 to 80 percent of those bites occur around a dog’s face and head. This would indicate that those dogs bitten must have been bothering a snake. In the United States most snake bites to dogs are by rattlesnakes.

There are at least nineteen types of poisonous snakes in the United States of America which include rattlesnakes, copperheads, water moccasins and coral snakes. Most of these snakes can be found from Florida northward and to points west.

If your dog is bitten by a snake, the chances are that he will recover from it. If he is bitten by a poisonous snake, even if the bite is from an Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake or a coral snake it is estimated that about 80 percent of the time your dog will recover. However, your dog’s recovery will depend on several factors which are listed below.

*  Where is your dog bitten
*  What type of snake bit him
*  What’s the size of your dog
*  How many times is your dog bitten
*  How old is the snake
*  How bad is the bite
*  How much venom is injected

However, not all snake bites are the same. A glancing bite may not inflict much venom but 3 to 4 bites would cause a dog to react a lot worse than if he was bitten only once. Chihuahuas and St. Bernards that get bitten by rattlesnakes will have different reactions to the bite. If a Chow Chow gets bitten by a snake, his reaction may not be too bad because the snake would get a mouth full of hair.

If your dog is bitten by a snake and you act quickly, you could save your dog’s life. Doing the following will help your dog until you can get him to a veterinarian and it will also help the veterinarian to know what to do to treat your dog.

1. If possible, try to identify the snake by looking at its size, color and patterns. Listen to hear if there is a rattle. It will help your veterinarian to know what type of snake bit your dog. However, whatever you do, do not get too close to the angry snake.
2. Check your dog for bite marks. It’s possible that the snake bit him more than once.
3. If your dog is bitten on the leg, use a piece of your shirt or any piece of fabric available to make a quick tourniquet. Snugly tie the tourniquet on the leg above the bite but not too tight. What you want is to slow down the venom from spreading towards the heart. Once the venom reaches his heart it will be pumped all over his body.
4. Immediately take your dog to your veterinarian or to an animal hospital. Try to keep your dog calm all the way to the veterinarian.

Many dogs get bitten by snakes when you take them for a walk, go running or go hiking in areas that are unfamiliar to them especially if you take them in wooded areas. You can prevent them from getting snake bites by keeping them leashed. Remember that dogs are very curious and want to explore every where.

As much as possible, keep your dog from exploring holes in the ground, woodpiles and any other place where a snake may be hiding. It is much safer to use pathways rather than wandering through the woods because it’s easier to see a snake.

Because rattlesnakes can come out at night, you should be very careful when you take your dog for a walk at night. Always be on the alert and if you hear a rattle keep your dog at your side while you locate the snake and move away slowly.

If your dog insists in exploring a hole, call him back and get him to ignore the hole. His curiosity can get him in a lot of trouble if a snake is in there.

There is a training program where dogs are taught to avoid snakes. This training program is a bit strenuous because it involves exposing dogs to snakes by using an e-collar. When the dog goes near the snake he gets a buzz from the collar. Usually, harmless snakes are used to do this type of training. Some trainers use Diamondback Rattlesnakes to train dogs specifically to learn to avert rattlesnakes. Therefore, dogs that get this type of training usually avoid snakes. So, if you want your dog to avoid snakes you can have him trained to be snake-proof.


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Page 9: Dogs for Sale with Spayed

(121 - 135 of 49,881)
  1. * Male American Eskimo mixture * Approx seven years old * Approx fifteen pounds. * House broken * Crate trained * Okay with oth... ·2 hours ago on
  2. Meet Evelyn, an wonderful Sheepdog mixture pup. Currently in Colorado awaiting her forever home! If you are interested in meeting this pr... ·2 hours ago on
  3. ·2 hours ago on
  4. Rory is a stunning purebred border collie with the kind of good humor given to small kids . We think if he could talk, he would probably ... ·3 hours ago on
  5. Link is an easy-going, laid-back gentle giant, weighing about 120 lbs. At 8 yrs of age, Link (a mastiff-bullmastiff) was abandoned at a b... ·3 hours ago on
  6. This lovable girl is nice with other dogs, people , children, is looking for a new home. Loves to cuddle ·3 hours ago on
  7. Hello! My name is Bow. I am a five month old Beagle Heeler mixture. I was born in foster care, adopted out, and sadly returned because my... ·3 hours ago on
  8. This little nugget is ten weeks old and just about as precious as it gets. Foster mom says he is a playful little guy that loves to play ... ·3 hours ago on
  9. Meet Dayton a Male Pomeranian Mixture that we estimate to be around 1 yrs old. He is very new to us but so far his foster says this attra... ·3 hours ago on
  10. Hi, I'm Braveheart! I'm a little shy but have a huge heart. It doesn't take long for me to warm up to a person, and the quickest way to b... ·3 hours ago on
  11. We received a heartbreaking call for help from a volunteer who found this poor momma. She had found momma in a field alongside a busy hig... ·3 hours ago on
  12. Welcome Captain to Paws Up! He is an energetic and active 1-year-old labrador mixture. He is great with children and dogs. He loves to pl... ·4 hours ago on
  13. Lucky is a very wonderful and energetic young man (3 mons old) who would love to grow up with some kids looking for a new friend. He is c... ·4 hours ago on
  14. Available-Urgent: Oakley has tested positive for heart worms and will need treatment. ·4 hours ago on
  15. Remy is such a exquisite little guy! He is a happy, fun loving fellow who likes everyone. Remy is approx 5 mnths old (3/21) and is doing ... ·4 hours ago on

Safety Tips
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To learn more, visit the Safety Center. Report suspicious listings by clicking on .


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Friday, December 19, 2008

One of our readers wants to know more about the AKC Breeder of the Year awards. This award recognizes breeders who have made outstanding contributions to the health, temperament and quality of purebred dogs. For every Best In Show winner we enjoy, there is a breeder who has spent years working on the improvement of their chosen breed. Last Sunday, at the glamorous venue of the AKC/Eukanuba National Championship, Joan Savage of Banks OR was named the 2008 AKC Breeder of the Year Award.

Joan Savage
2008 AKC Breeder of the Year

Joan Savage has produced eight generations of more than 60 AKC champions with her Stagedoor English Setters. The latest was CH Stagedoor Rock It Man, the number one English Setter for 2006 and 2007. Among his most prestigious wins was Best in Show at the 2007 World Show in Mexico.

In addition to the previously mentioned Lilian Ostermiller, other breeders recognized by the AKC for 2008 are:

Kathy and Julie Jones
2008 AKC Breeder of the Year, Hound Group

In the Hound Group the winners are Kathy and Julie Jones, aka "The Basenji Sisters", of Reseda CA, who established their Jasiri – Sukari Basenjis in 1983. To date, they have bred 74 AKC champions and have champions in seven countries who have won BIS in four countries.

Miriam Stamm
2008 AKC Breeder of the Year, Terrier Group

In the Terrier Group the award went to Miriam Stamm of Kalamazoo MI, of Anstamm Scottish Terriers, the oldest Scottish Terrier Kennel in the US. The first Anstamm champion was produced a remarkable 60 years ago, Anstamm Scotties include the top Scottish Terrier sire in history, CH Anstamm Happy Venture, who has 90 champion offspring to his credit.

Luke and Diane Ehricht
2008 AKC Breeder of the Year, Toy Group

In the Toy Group, Luke and Diane Ehricht of Monclova OH were recognized. Although Luke and Diane had separately owned Shih Tzus since the mid 1970s, they didn’t establish Hallmark Jolei brand until their marriage in 1992. A Hallmark Jolei has been AKC’s number one Shih Tzu for each of the last five years, including 2008’s number one Shih Tzu, CH Hallmark Jolei Surfer Girl.

Eleanor and Bob Candland
2008 AKC Breeder of the Year, Non-Sporting Group

The Non-Sporting Group winners are Eleanor and Bob Candland of Lake Elsinore CA. The authors of the ubiquitous book, A New Owner’s Guide to Boston Terriers, have operated El-Bo Boston Terriers since the mid-1960s, producing over 100 champions, including the top Boston Terrier in history, CH El Bo Rudy Is A Dandy.

James and Sheree Moses
2008 AKC Breeder of the Year, Herding Group

In the Herding Group, the AKC recognized James and Sheree Moses of Carrollton GA. James Moses is the most recognized face in German Shepherds, winning over 1000 total BIS including 201 by CH Covy Tucker Hill's Manhattan, the 1987 Westminster BIS winner. Jim and Sheree, as Kaleef German Shepherd Dogs, are the breeders/owners of the top-producing dam in the history of the breed, Kaleef's Valle ROM.

We all owe our gratitude to these remarkable people who have given our beloved sport so much. They have our admiration and thanks for giving us some of the best dogs we have ever seen.


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Fr. John Antony, JCL

Immaculate Conception Church - Fort Smith

Our Lady of the Ozarks Shrine - Winslow

Administrator and Chaplain

Trinity Junior High School - Fort Smith

Adjutant Judicial Vicar of the Interdiocesan Tribunal of Second Instance

Province of Oklahoma City

Birthday: July 12, 1969

Ordination: May 25, 1996

* Also fluent in Spanish


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Thursday, April 29, 2010

The Doc Fix

This is the most succinct discussion of the so-called doc fix (change in the standard growth rate for Part B payments) that I have seen from Ezra Klein's blog. He both gets at what the SGR is, sets it in some context compared to other recent legislation, identifies the fact that addressing it has been delayed many times since 1998 (true bipartisanship!) and how it is not a persuasive means of attacking the reform bill just passed. Rep. Ryan was welcome to bravely lead the charge to fix the SGR back when Republicans controlled the House, Senate and White House.

In fact, it would be a great chance for the President to gain some cred on spending/deficits by proposing a long term SGR fix and paying for it. If you are looking for suggestions, wrap up some more med mal reforms, the estate tax along with this and go from there.

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Deficit Commission Meets

for the first time April 27, 2010. Expectations seem to be fairly low for what they will achieve since there is no mechanism to preference their recommendations with respect to congressional action. There was such a commission in the works that appeared poised to pass against some powerful Democrats wishes, but 7 Republicans who had supported such a commission early during this current Congress changed their mind in January, 2010 and it died by a 53-56 vote (because everything takes 60 votes in this Congress. However, the problems with the long term structural deficit (meaning the degree to which the ins don't match the outs over time after the economy is roughly normal) are immense and will not get better without strong action. Erskine Bowles, co-chair of the commission says his mother urged him not to touch Medicare. His quote in response sums up what we have to do.

"We have to touch Medicare. We have to touch Social Security. We have to touch Defense. And we have to take a strong look at revenue."

The TARP and the Recovery Act, are all irrelevant to this, meaning that even if we hadn't had those or even if we hadn't had a terrible recession, we would still be sunk long term if we don't have some large reforms, mostly because the baby boomers had fewer children than their parents.

Some good background material here. And if you are sick of talking about health policy but ready to talk about the deficit.....Medicare and Medicaid are at the heart of the deficit issue. Social Security as well, but it is a much simpler program and since benefits are indexed to inflation, it cannot grow at 2-3 times overall inflation like a health care program can (and has been doing for 3 decades).

Monday, April 26, 2010

The main reason that the U.S. spends so much money on health care is prices....meaning how much is paid per unit of care. Here is an interesting article about medical tourism. Good old fashioned shopping won't work for some types of care, but for others it could. It will be interesting to see if the trend toward medical tourism increases, and whether providers (mostly hospitals and health systems) have to began to respond to the competition.

Friday, April 23, 2010

Long Term Care and CLASS Act

The Woodrow Wilson School of Public Policy Quarterly has a bit on a paper I did on private long term care insurance and the use of genetic markers as underwriting tools. The CLASS Act is one of the parts of the new reform law that will need a great deal of policy making to implement the law well. I will be writing about that in the next weeks.

I haven't been blogging much...end of the semester back log. But, one great bit of news: I got tenure!

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

More on malpractice

WSJ blog on a study that they say shows that fear of malpractice suits leads doctors to do more test, etc. They note that CBO looked at the savings that would amount from national application of a mix of tort reforms....a $54 Billion reduction in the deficit over 10 years, or around a 0.2% decrease in total health spending due to lower malpractice insurance premiums and a 0.3% decrease in total health spending that would result from reductions in defensive medicine and increases in tax receipts. The tax receipt increase ($13 Billion over 10 years of the $54 Billion deficit reduction that CBO projected) would occur because if health spending slows, then rate of growth of insurance premiums would slow, and wages would rise since employers view compensation in totality [meaning wages and benefits]). An increase in wages is taxable, while an increase in health insurance premiums paid by an employer is tax free income. You can stump your friends at the next cocktail party with that of the ways tort reform would reduce the deficit is via increased tax receipts.

The $54 Billions savings is substantial as compared to what CBO scored as expected 10 year deficit reduction for the health reform bill (~$138 Billion/10 years), but far lower than they estimates often used by proponents of tort of reform, in political discourse. Roughly speaking, add a zero if making a Republican stump speech....

It should be noted that the study on defensive medicine noted by the WSJ blog is based on a survey whereby doctors are asked about the non-medical reasons for doing a given test. They asked doctors** why they did things, and focused on non clincial reasons to order tests, here focused on cardiac catherization procedures. 24% said fear of malpractice was a non clinical reason to order a test, while 27% said belief their colleagues would order a test influenced them (a new take on peer pressure). 5 of the 598 doctors surveyed said they commonly or frequently ordered more cardiac cath procedures to increase 'financial stability' of their practice.

So, there are multiple explanations or motivations for what is termed defensive medicine. I have written that malpractice reform is needed, but as a step 1 toward a patient safety based system. However, more stringent malpractice reform is needed if we will substantially address the rate of health care cost inflation because any attempt to alter the practice of medicine to slow cost inflation will be met with the retort from docs 'what are malpractice?' From a policy stand point, we must do more because: (1) it will result in lots of savings (I suspect CBO is about right here; it is big or small depending on your perspective); (2) because it is a route to more comprehensive patient safety/quality improvements (most definitely); and (3) it will remove an easy cultural out for the medical profession when discussing payment rates and movement toward paying based on quality/value. Note that it is certain that there are both overpaid and underpaid doctors (across speciality, geography, and skill)....the aggregate effect on payment to doctors as class is ambiguous. The distributional effects would likely be huge. Most everyone will say they want to move toward pay being based on quality/value, but I suspect alot of the providers (docs, hospitals, health systems) either don't mean it, or don't understand what it would mean for the revenue.

**If you did a survey of professors, you would find out that we are smarter than you think we are, you should listen to us more, and we are very underpaid.

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

A Culture of delusion

Writing columns in the Raleigh (N.C.) News and Observer about health reform has been been harder than I thought it would be, but also more interesting. The columns are to the right side of the blog page. I have had the privilege of interacting with many people whom I never would have met had it not been for my writing in the paper, and gotten to speak with many people and groups.

One of my bottom line conclusions from all of this is that there is a certain delusional quality to what many of us think about health care, especially as it relates to costs.

When I go and talk about reform with groups, I tend to focus on the unsustainable nature of the system. By unsustainable, I mean we can't keep doing what we are doing, it will bankrupt our nation. As I talk through various sets of slides and numbers that illustrate this, there are always knowing nods of agreement. Indeed, it is hard to find someone who won't assent to the notion that we spend too much and that we must do something about it. Then comes the delusional part.

If you talk about things that could slow the rate of cost inflation, low and behold the people who think we spend too much really don't think that at all. Or at least they don't want to do anything to slow the rate of cost inflation. End the tax exclusion of employer paid benefits? That is a tax increase, I work hard for my benefits! Develop lists of procedures that Medicare won't pay for under certain situations? Why that is rationing of care, don't you love your grandmother! And on and on and on.

David Leonhardt has a nice article running through this cultural delusion in the U.S. We say we want to slow the rate of cost inflation, but don't like any of the things that might actually reduce spending. It turns out we want a magic solution, like a ride at Disney World. Not the reality that a dollar of saving is either a dollar of reduced care and/or a dollar of reduced revenue for someone.

One answer that Leonhardt suggests is focusing on the quality side. It turns out that there is lots of evidence that the most expensive thing is not always the best thing. We certainly seem to start with a belief that it is, and efforts to focus more on quality of life improvements and life extension would actually lead to spending reductions in some areas.

I have done some work showing that hospice reduces Medicare expenditures in the last year of life. This is a case whereby people who are in a very difficult situation and are imminently dying choose hospice, a choice the literature says improves quality of life both for patients and their families. And actually saves Medicare a bit of money. Focusing only on end of life or last year of life costs will not be enough, in part because it is not clear when the last year of life began until it ends. More generally, we need to move toward providing patients and providers and payors with information that helps us purchase health care that is productive. By productive, I mean care that increases life span and/or improves quality of life. The reality is that a great deal of what we spend doesn't meet either of these criteria. In the abstract, many will say, ok lets do that. But, once we start to try, they will go insane.

However, we have to do this. We have to take it on head on. There are many policy changes needed. Most importantly, we need a cultural conversation and change that doesn't demonize even asking the questions.

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

More on Donald Berwick

President Obama's nominee for the head of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Policy types are excited and encouraged about him in this role, and the job typically exists and is carried out in the minutiae of the health policy world. Given the passage of reform, his confirmation hearings in the Senate will be far more public, and he doesn't have experience as a politician, as Kathleen Sebelius, a former Governor who is now the Secretary of Health and Human Services has. There is lots of detailed policy making to be done at CMS, and hopefully the confirmation hearings will get going soon.

Monday, April 5, 2010

Gaming in Mass?

Austin Frakt covers the Boston Globe's look at gaming of the individual mandate....basically jumping in when sick but defying mandate when not. Here is his follow up today on this topic. This is an important issue, though since Mass is at 97% cover, it can only be so big of a problem. However, it is something to pay attention to in the roll out of the national reform....I for one, would be for strengthening the individual mandate based on the notion that if we are going to try it, lets try it.....with it being an individual mandate.

Frakt has other interesting stuff on whether we should have a repeat of the Health Insurance Experiment (HIE)....or whether a series of smaller observational studies would be money better spent. I think I would go with more observational studies. One problem with randomized trials of policy implementations is that while the internal validity is high (does x cause y), the external validity is often low (will this finding hold across settings, generally be applicable).

Medicaid, going forward

The new health reform law expands insurance coverage in a relatively new manner (expanding the number of persons purchasing their own insurance) and an old way (Medicaid expansions). Medicaid is the federal/state program that covers low income persons. It is really two programs, one that covers primarily pregnant women and kids (about 6 in 10 beneficiaries) and another that covers elderly and disabled persons who have become impoverished paying for long term care (mostly nursing home care). The 6 in 10 beneficiaries consume about 3 in 10 of the program dollars, primarily because most kids and pregnant women are relatively healthy; the long term disabled and elderly in nursing homes are the really expensive patients, and are among the most vulnerable members of society.

The long term care system, or which nursing home care is a part, has many problems, and the health reform law passed addresses this for future generations with the CLASS provisions. However, there is little that can be done in the short or medium term about Medicaid being the payor of nursing home care of last resort.

However, the reform law has substantially expanded the number of persons covered by Medicaid for acute care services (doctor, hospital, etc), by around 16 Million in 2019. This article lays out many of the issues related to relatively (as compared to other payers) low reimbursement rates that Medicaid pays. In the short run, the reform law increases payment rates especially for primary care, but after 2015 this costs will shift to states. [There is a general cost share formula between the federal gov't and states based on poverty in given states; in California, it is 50/50; in Mississippi, it is around 82% federal; in NC it is around 65% federal].

Medicaid has financed important health services for persons who would likely have gone without them, or who would have gotten them later when they were sicker. But, it has a stigma as you would expect with anything often referred to as 'poor people's insurance' and the relatively low payment rates mean that some physicians are unwilling or unable to treat Medicaid beneficiaries. The relative attractiveness of Medicaid payment differs from locale to locale depending upon alternative payment sources available, but it seems clear that there is much work to be done to either make Medicaid a more 'acceptable' payor, or seek a way to transition persons to other sources of insurance.

Over time, I would see it as a worthy goal to seek to end or at least reduce the size of acute care Medicaid (again, kids, pregnant women, lower income workers) and move them into private insurance markets, with premium support. This is where the functioning of the exchanges is so important. Will there be robust competition amongst insurance companies that will drive down premiums? If yes, then it would make it relatively easier to transition persons from Medicaid into private insurance. We have a great deal riding on getting the exchanges up and working well, and for consumers to actually embrace purchasing their own insurance.

If the exchanges work well, it would provide a way to open them up over time to those with employer based coverage, increasing choices, and perhaps to begin transitioning at least some persons from Medicaid into private health insurance purchased through exchanges.

Thursday, April 1, 2010

What if there were no 3rd party payers?

Recently I have had some interesting exchanges with a few docs on various topics. A composite theme of these conversations are the bad aspects of third party payment (anyone other than the patient paying is third party, whether Medicare, private insurance, Medicaid, etc.). A couple of docs have said we would be better off with no third party payers. Leaving aside the fact that you would expect insurance to develop anytime there was a risky situation of note (uncertain probability of a bad thing happening, with the cost of the bad thing being potentially catastrophic), what would happen if we had no third party insurance, focusing on the market for physician services?

Revenue flows to doctors would decline. There is a tremendous moral hazard effect of having third party insurance, especially as insurance has morphed away from indemnity style coverage toward fixed co-pays. Moral hazard is typically viewed as only bad, but in another sense the degree to which it is good or bad depends on how much extra health is purchased/produced by the extra care. But, bottom line is that with no insurance, revenue flows to doctors would be lower.

Expenses of doctors would decline. If there were no third party insurers, then a doctor practice would have lower administrative costs because they wouldn't have to deal with billing/collecting from insurance companies. They would have to deal with billing/collecting from patients, and doctors would have to determine policies. If people had to pay in full up front, docs would provide less care, but would have no billing/collecting headaches. At the other end of the spectrum, if docs set up payment plans and the like with patients, then you would have more administrative costs; not as compared to today, most likely, but as compared to only treating when payment is made up front.

The effect of a world without insurance on net income to physicians is ambiguous. Revenue would be lower, but so too would be the cost of doing business, with the net impact being unclear. My hunch is that the net income to doctors as a class/group of people would be lessened, but there would likely be tremendous distributional impacts across specialities and across geographical locations. There would likely be tremendous competition among docs to be the providers for persons with means, and for certain specialities and providers of care that was not understood to be discretionary. Other docs would probably be very lonely.

What would the impact be on patients and health? This really depends on how much health care currently provided is unproductive in the sense that it produces no benefit....with benefit defined as a longevity extension and/or improvement of quality of life however measured or defined. And further it depends on whether the reduction in the aggregate amount of care provided would occur solely or mostly in the non productive health spending. If you look at the aggregation of health spending in the U.S. in a year, you find that 50% of the population consumes only 3.2% of the total health spending (2006 figure). So, for half the peoople in a given year, having no insurance would have very little impact. [Of course, over the course of your life, almost no one remains in the low spending group for their entire life, since everyone dies and most are sick before doing so]. At the other end of the spectrum, 1% of the population uses 21.2% of the total spending, so the impact on this group would be profound, and they would certainly use less care than they would with third party insurance. It is hard to imagine that this group would not be harmed, but that is still ambiguous and depends upon what proportion of the care they receive is productive, in whatever way you want to define that term. And 1 in 10 people use around two-thirds of the total health spending in a given year, so the large impacts on patients, in a given year, would be highly focused on a relatively small group of people, who would disproportionately be elderly.

The effect on total health spending? We would spend much, much less on health care than we currently do if we had no third party insurance. In the 1930s the U.S. spent about 2% of GDP on health care, and health insurance was quite rare. Today it is over 17%. Also rare in the 1930s were therapies that clearly extended life span and improved quality of life. As these developed, so too did the drive to expand insurance. And vice-versa, almost certainly when thinking about things from an innovation standpoint. Replaying the 1970s-90s without Medicare (about 6 in 10 elderly were uninsured in 1964; the market had decided) would undoubtedly have seen much lower rates of heart revascularization and the innovation of same, for example.

It is unimaginable that we have no third party insurance. However, the thought experiment of no third party payment is useful to imagine how things would be different without insurance, and to set the problems of the current system in context of the (different) problems we might have with no health insurance.


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Clean Unable 46, Brother All in one Printer

Our all in one printer, Brother MFC-240C had a problem and for some reason it stopped working. Every time I turn on the printer it shows on the LCD “Clean Unable 46” error message. What the LCD suggests is to read the User’s Guide for further troubleshooting. That didn’t help me at all because it stated in the guide, probable causes are 1. The machine has a mechanical problem and/or 2. A foreign objects such as paper clip or ripped paper is in the machine. Their solution is to “Open the scanner cover and remove any foreign objects inside the machine. If the error message continues, disconnect the machine from the power for several minutes and then reconnect it.” I followed the instructions and did a total clean over. I used q-tips, glass cleaner, cloth to remove the dust that could be interfering for the printer to work, apparently to no avail it still ain’t working.

I googled it and finally I found the answer to my problem. All you need to do is to reset the purge counter. These steps worked in MFC620CN/420CN/410CN/210C/240C and FAX2440C model.

To reset purge counter

1) Enter machine maintenance mode (on MFC240C all four photo/copy/fax/scan lights flash in maintenance mode). Care is needed in maintenance mode, otherwise critical settings may be inadvertently corrupted.

FAX models with numerical keypads: Press the Menu/Set, *, 2, 8, 6 and 4 keys within two seconds. (if you fail to complete the correct key sequence within two seconds, press the Stop key to try again).

Other (non-FAX) models: Press the Menu/Set and Black Start keys. Next press the “up arrow” key four times to enter the maintenance mode).

2) Press the 8 then 0 keys in the initial stage of the maintenance mode to call up the machine’s log information list (function code 80).

3) Press the Black Start key several times to scroll through the log information list to reach the purge counter. The purge counter is the 25th item in the list.

4) Press the 2, 7, 8, and 3 keys in this order to reset the purge count to zero.

5) Press the Stop/Exit key to return to the initial stage of the maintenance mode.

6) Press the 9 key twice to return to the standby state.