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WildStorm interview with Shinji Mikami

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In 1998, Capcom director and producer Shinji Mikami was interviewed by WildStorm to be published as part of their comic series, Resident Evil: The Official Comic Magazine.

Issue 1

WS: What were your goals with Resident Evil?

I really wanted to make the game as scary as possible. When I first started developing the game concept, I considered giving it a ghost story or suspense thriller theme, but those ideas didn't go anywhere.
I wanted the game to present the player with something visible that could actually confront and threaten him. The player had to feel scared, as if something was waiting for him around the next corner. I believe the player could simultaneously feel fear and enjoy playing the game.
I also wanted to let the player fight the fear in its own way. And when a critical, desperate situation arose, I wanted the player to be able to blow the enemy to pieces!

WS: How did you decide on using zombies as the enemies?

I may have been inspired by the zombies in George Romero's Night of the Living Dead, which I used to watch when I was in junior high. In the movie, the zombies are walking human corpses that live on human flesh. It's scary because the zombies will attack you for no other reason than to eat your flesh. The gruesomeness of the deaths made one viewer involuntarily scream, "Don't come near me!"

WS: Are there any characters that got cut out?

There are five main characters in the final game: Chris, Jill, Barry, Rebecca and Wesker. Two of the original characters are missing from this group.
One was a muscular Caucasian man who looked like a hardened war veteran. His right eye had been lost in battle, and in its place he wore an infrared scope. He was reliable, knowledgeable about all types of heavy weaponry, and far stronger than an ordinary man. Initially, this character had a scene in which he held up an entire ceiling and prevented it from crashing down. He was redesigned and now appears as Barry — with a completely different appearance.
Another person who disappeared from the game was a tall, skinny African-American man. He was a very humorous character, designed to make players laugh even in the midst of horror.

WS: What's the difference between the U.S. and Japanese versions of Resident Evil?

The title of the game is Bio Hazard in Japan and Resident Evil in the U.S. The U.S. title was created by the staff of Capcom USA after they reviewed the contents of the game.
The U.S. version is more difficult than the Japanese version, so much that even the R&D staff couldn't make it to the end of the game unless they played very carefully. The U.S. staff asked us to create this more difficult version so that the game could be rented in the U.S. If the game could be completed in a few days, fewer units of the game would sell.

Issue 3

WS: Why do you think the Resident Evil video games have become such huge international hits?
Mikami: I think it's because the game theme is terror. Terror can be perceived by everyone, and we have succeeded in generating an unprecedented level of terror. Players are in tense, cautious mode, fearing to move forward.

WS: How did you decide on the storyline for Resident Evil 2?
Mikami: It was jointly decided by Capcom and Flagship. Flagship wasn't involved with Resident Evil 1, but they are responsible for the scenarios for RE2 and all future RE games.

WS: There are lots of hidden games in Resident Evil 2 (Tofu, for example). Whose idea was this?
Mikami:We combined the ideas of the whole staff, so the idea doesn't belong to a specific staff member. We created the hidden games because we wanted the players to play the game over and over. As for the Tofu character, he was used to checking while we were developing the game. We put arms and legs on Tofu, and thought it was very funny. We decided to adopt him for the game so the players could laugh at him.

WS: How did you come up with the new creatures, like the Licker, that are featured in Resident Evil 2?
Mikami: We all exchanged our opinions and ideas to create the creatures.

WS: Are there significant differences between the Japanese and U.S. versions of Resident Evil 2, as there were with RE1?
Mikami:The U.S. version of RE2 is more difficult than the Japanese version. Also, there are "dying demos" in the U.S. version that were deleted in the Japanese version. A dying demo is a CG [computer generated] scene shown when the player dies (Game Over).

WS: How were the amazingly lifelike CG scenes filmed?
Mikami:First, using motion pictures and action figures, we made image videos [shots of the figures from every angle] to get standard images. Then, we used CG tools to render each picture and convert the data for PlayStation.

WS: Will there be a Resident Evil 3? If so, when will it be available?
Mikami:We do plan to make RE3, but we don't know when.

WS: Will we be seeing Jill and Chris from Resident Evil 1 again?
Mikami:It hasn't been decided yet, but I would like to cast them in the feature game.

Issue 3

WS: Will we ever see the European Umbrella HQ that Jill and Chris went to look for at the end of RE1?
Mikami: I'm sorry, that's classified...

WS: Will there be new creatures featured in RE3?
Mikami: That hasn't been decided.

WS: What are your influences? Movies? Books? Magazines? Music?
Mikami: I watch about 50 movies every year; I've watched most of the movies featuring zombies. I read fantasy novels, like Guin Saga. I listen to classical music, like Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 20, and jazz, like Bud Powell's "Dream of Cleopatra." I enjoy video games, too, like The Legend of Zelda.

WS: How many people work on the RE games?
Mikami:60 people on RE1, 50 people on RE2.

WS: What is your career background?
Mikami:I graduated from Doshisha University (one of the traditional private universities located in Kyoto), Development of Commercial Science. I majored in the study of merchandise. As a club activity, I participated in kendo and karate. I joined Capcom eight years ago. I was involved in the development of Aladdin and Good Troop for Super Famicom, and Roger Rabbit for Game Boy.

WS: Did you play video games when you were growing up?
Mikami:I didn't play video games when I was little; I played outside instead. The first game I played was Space Invaders, when I was in junior high school. I played it for or give times at a coffee shop. When I was 20, I started playing video games.

To the readers:
I will be making other games in addition to Resident Evil, so please give us support!

Best regards,
Shinji Mikami
Resident Evil Producer

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Four Steps to OneNote without Crazy

Bill’s *Trick* for using OneNote Like Evernote to GTD

In my previous review of OneNote I mentioned that Evernote’s canvas was superior to OneNote because I could just insert objects (pictures mostly) and the canvas would make space for the object. I discovered last week, that OneNote does the same thing … as long as you do not get carried away. This post is a four step tutorial on how to make a OneNote page, behave.

Step 1: Create the page

From a GTD perspective, it is SO EASY to create a OneNote “Project” page, and start new projects from there, I’ve become pretty GTD-addicted to creating pages from m project list. Start with a blank project list like this: Project_List

Then type in the project name beginning with [[ and ending with ]]:

When you enter the 2nd ] your linked project page will be created and will look like this:

Step 2: Go to the project page

Go to the project page and click at the end of the project name so your cursor thinks you are going to modify the end of the project name:

The trick is to hit *enter* at this point. Cursor will jump down below the title of the project, and will wait for you to type something. Should look like this:

Step 3: Type Something

Type something like a Next Action (or my Next Action post), the text box will resize automatically. Or, you can drag the text box to be as wide as you want. Will look something like this:

Step 4: Stay inside the text box

Now all you have to do to have an Evernote-like OneNote, is to NEVER ENTER ANY DATA OUTSIDE THE TEXT BOX. For example, maybe you want to put a picture of the weed mat after one of the next actions. Just create a new line in the list, and then drag the picture to the new line.

If you use a text box inside OneNote notes, you can make the OneNote canvas behave just like Evernote’s canvas. New insertions add their own new rows, and you don’t have to use one note’s “add space” tool.

Number 3 Reason GTDers Don’t Use Evernote … after installing Evernote

TLDR: Why people set up and then don’t use Evernote

  1. The first reason is that implementing GTD changes too many things at once.
    So, Evernote, even if it is installed and working, won’t be used. Evernote is a sub-casualty of the 83% failure rate of GTD implementations.
  2. The second reason is because we blow off the GTD weekly reviews, infecting our GTD system with guilt that comes into focus (like a magnifying glass starting a fire) when we sit down to use Evernote. End result is we stop sitting down to our computers and stop using Evernote. *Note* This is also why people stop using Outlook, Omni-Focus, etc. for GTD.
  3. The third reason why GTD people don’t use Evernote after implementing it, that Evernote can be implemented in too many ways. And, … no two ways to implement Evernote agree. Too many choices to an overwhelmed brain = no choice. So, stop web surfing about Evernote, and start experimenting with your own work.

If you too have abandoned Evernote while trying to implement GTD, please share why?

Done! Good! Now go buy something to organize with, on Amazon! Invest in organization.

Why GTD people stop using Evernote is a surprisingly popular topic. So, I’m going to identify a couple more of the big reasons that GTD people stop using Evernote. This post is about reason 3, how the many alternative ways of implementing Evernote, stop people from using Evernote.

Source: .com

The perfect illustration of a GTD user implementing Evernote is not just a deer in headlights. The perfect illustration is a deer in a dozen of the spot lights used in police helicopters to run down fugitives.

User: “I think I’ll try using Evernote”

  • {event} Client installation on an iPad happens
    (10% of users who attempt to install quit here)

    • Wait, what? Why aren’t people installing Evernote on their PCs first? Seems that the PC is passing in influence. See RestartGTD’s Browser De Jure page for GTD viewership. GTD like it or not is becoming an iPad thing.
  • {event} Account setup happens
    (50% of potential users quit here)
  • {event does not happen} Opening Evernote for the first time on iPad
    (25% of potential users quit here)
  • {event} User opens Evernote for the first time

Even if we give Evernote 100% of the loyal users who open Evernote on their iPad for the first time, Evernote has still lost 85% of its users by the time a user opens Evernote for the first time.

Worse success rate than a David Allen GTD seminar!

Of course, I could be wrong about the percentages above. Still … Evernote is computer (desktop or laptop) first. With its new users swarming in from iPad and iPhone land, there are going to be a lot of wasteful problems (from the perspective of GTD).

For example,

  • once the person who has followed the steps above sees their Evernote account, what will they see? None of their existing information. = #EvernoteProblem
  • how can we fix this?
    • By installing Evernote Web Clipper and Clearly for a week or 10 days, so the user has some web-browsing history built up, that s/he will recognize when Evernote first opens. = #EvernoteProblem
    • By *distracting* the user to next import their paper with a scanner (scroll down to the file cabinet picture) before they open Evernote. Oh, crap, this requires Evernote to be installed on a PC with a scanner. Oops. = #EvernoteProblem
    • By scanning directly from scanner to Evernote on iPad or phone.
    • Without something drastic, can we fix this?

= #EvernoteProblem * #GTD Problem = .15 *.17 = Success Rate of Evernote & GTD

.15*.17=.03 Or, 3%

How can trying to implement Evernote with GTD be a good idea if it kills off an additional 14% of successful GTD users beyond what David Allen’s Company experiences?

  1. Once a GTD user puts their information into Evernote, it becomes easier to do reference filing correctly, than to not do reference filing. Reference filing is a keystone GTD skill. This helps *a lot* with people staying with GTD!
  2. Those 14% of GTD users were going to fade anyway. I *think* this because I talk to people who are “formerly known as GTD users” and they say “I use about 50% of GTD. I was really into it at first, but then it became too much to keep up with.”
    • Why? When I ask, “Do you use Evernote web clipper?” they invariably say “What is Evernote Web Clipper?”
    • Hypothesis: 14% of GTD users would be saved if they tried Evernote for their reference filing.
  3. Evernote is a platform, not a well-known, habitually used product. So what?
    • So … the marketeers at Evernote are clueless at how to help people who have a dozen police helicopter spot lights in their eyes. Platforms give markets new-to-the-world-capabilities, marketing people are trained to more efficiently sell old-to-the-world-capabilities.
    • So … in GTD terms, a new platform allows us to experiment with new degrees of freedom in organizing. The way our brains work with new platforms is trial and error. Our brains will try using the electronic tools, then pull back and compost on how the new platform *feels*. Then, confidence in a new way to use the tool appears from nowhere, and we implement the tool. And iterate improvements from there.

Don’t web surf to figure out how to use Evernote. Experiment with your own next actions, projects, reference filing, and inboxing. See what pleases you and run with that. When you feel *hindered* by Evernote, stop doing that.

You can start with paper, that worked for me! See GTD Time Lapse for my 5 year history of GTD evolution.

You can go all digital. That did not work for me. I went back to paper + Evernote.

The trick is to start. Don’t think “I can’t start without the perfect system.” Think, what can I improve the most, with the least effort. Or, better, what would be fun to really focus on and improve? After 200+ MBA students, I think getting a ScanSnap and Evernote going as your reference filing system can’t be beat.

Whatever you do, keep evolving your GTD. GTD is like a bicycle. When you stop moving, you fall over.

bill meade

GTD Anchor #1: Reference Filing

What do I mean by “reference filing?”

Glad you asked!  There are two components to my reference filing system: Evernote, and the Fujitsu ScanSnap iX500.

Evernote is document storage and synchronization infrastructure.  Pay $50 a year for a premium account, then install Evernote’s client software on as many Macs or PCs as you want, and all the documents in Evernote will be synchronized across all your computers without you having to take any actions.  Evernote could be described as a means of providing “working backup” where your Evernote store is used on each of your computers, so you are testing your backups whenever you switch machines.

Key features of Evernote in decreasing priority value are:

  1. Full text search.  Pictures, Word files, plain PDF files, and even some hand-written scans, are processed once a day so that the documents become full text searchable.  Once you start using full text search, you tend to do much less organizing of documents into notebooks, because documents become so easy to find via keyword search and tagging.
  2. Friction-free capture of (advertising-free) web pages.  <== Turns Evernote into short term memory for me.
  3. Keyword searching.
  4. Tagging.
  5. Friction-free synchronization.
  6. Cross computer availability of all mission-critical documents.
  7. Remote access to documents.  Evernote has a cloud component, so you can be at an internet cafe, decide you want to print a document, and then log in to your Evernote account, download the file and print it.

Some people have their entire GTD system in Evernote.  Not me.  When I first started doing GTD I put my entire life into OmniFocus, and my brain hated the one-electronic-system-to-rule-them-all solution.  I could not sit down at my desk and use OmniFocus after I had entered every open loop.  Welcome to my first “off the GTD wagon” experience. Since then, I’ve been iteratively refining my GTD trusted system, keeping it as simple as possible, but no simpler.

I use Evernote purely for reference filing (purple region 3 in the following figure).  Evernote has several nagging weaknesses: (1) it does not search within all file types, (2) It does not have a simple highlighting function.  Lack of a highlighting function causes me to read documents in PDF form, highlighting them in PDF, and then emailing them to Evernote, and using Evernote just to recall documents and original source web pages.

EvernoteReferrence 1

Fujitsu ScanSnap S1500

I can’t say enough about this little machine.  It enabled paperless reference filing, via Evernote.  It folds up into a very small package.  It scans fast enough that a 150 pages scan, in under five minutes.  I strongly encourage you to at least go to Amazon and look.

Here is my sales pitch on selling you on buying a scanner:

  • In under a week, you can be paperless via Evernote and the ScanSnap S1500.  I started with 94,000 pages in December 2010 and in 4 days, I had recycled the entire 94,000 pages.
    • Once you are paperless in Evernote, you will discover that you can “find” documents you never would have bothered to look for, while the document was in paper.  I’ve found old newspaper articles that were handed out to me as a student, and then forwarded them to my students.
    • When was the last time you could find any document that you knew you had?  You can be there again with Evernote and a ScanSnap.
  • There are four tricks to guaranteed scanner success:
    • First, go through all your papers and sort them into boxes labeled “Recycle” and “Scan.”  When in doubt, put the paper into your “Scan” box.  Once you pre-sort, you will know which scanner to buy.
    • Second, buy the right scanner for the amount of paper you need to scan.  If you have less than 500 pages you can buy the slightly cheaper ScanSnap S1300.  I did this at first when implementing Evernote.  I found that the S1300 with its 12 page paper bin, and slow speed, was just too clunky to get it done with my piles of paper.  If you have 400 pages to scan and a doubt about buying a slower unit, or, if you have 501 pages to scan, then you are crazy not to buy the ScanSnap iX500.
    • Third, as soon as the scanner arrives, take it out of the box and put it on your desk.
    • Fourth, once the scanner is on your desk, call your friend “Bill” the gadget guy and tell him what is on your desk.
  • Remember “Meade’s Law” which is “Buy the best, only cry once.”
    • I was lucky and a friend offered to buy my ScanSnap S1300, I warned him that he’d be happier with the iX500 but he insisted.  By the way, “Thank you Steve!”
    • For most people with a bureaucratic residue of disorganization, the Fujitsu iX500 is going to be the happiest, highest-utility long run solution.
  • If you’ve read this far, ask yourself, “How long have I been thinking that a scanner ‘might be useful’?  If you have been thinking about this for longer than a month, the time is now to GET YOURS. You won’t regret it.

What happens next?

One you have a reference filing system, you have an anchor set solidly into improved organization.  Whenever your fall off the wagon with GTD, no matter what, your reference filing system will be in ever increasing order.  Evernote and the ScanSnap make it easier to be organized, than to be disorganized.  Once you have an anchor in improving your organization, you have a home base to work out from as you refactor your life to incorporate more effectiveness and more efficiency.

If anyone has had great experiences with other scanners, please post what scanner you have (make and model), how long you’ve used it, what the one best thing about it is, in the comments to this post?

Thank you!

bill meade

Abomination of Deskolation … Redeemed!

First the before pictures:

Ladies and gentlemen, 28 years in the making, RestartGTD brings you THE ABOMINATION OF DESKOLATION!

IMG 0977

Figure 1: The Abomination of Deskolation!

IMG 0979

Figure 2: The Accompanying Office

Now the after pictures:

IMG 1106 JPG

Figure 3: The wait, … what?

IMG 1102

Figure 4: Wow, just wow!

IMG 1106annotated

Figure 5: How It was accomplished

The Story:

This is John Niebergall’s desk.  John is an engineering teacher at Sherwood High School in South Portland.  As I’ve gotten to know John (i.e., seen his desk and had him over to my office to see my desk), I encouraged him to read GETTING THINGS DONE.  Over the holidays John listened to GTD three or four times via Audible, and then wanted help translating the ideas in GTD to his work processes.  I believe the specific words were “I’m a visual learner, I don’t do well reading books.  I need to see it.”

John is the target blog reader that I started RestartGTD to serve.  I’ve traveled to John’s office, carrying my Fujitsu ScanSnap S1500M (I use portable Macs), had John take down one of the three ring binders against the back wall of his office, and we scanned it into PDF.   Done!  Four minutes, and now the paper and the binder both can go in the recycle bin.   It was hard to let that first binder go.  But the liberation grows on you rapidly.  It gets easier the more space you free up in your office.

Seeing scanning is believing.  John ordered his own Fujitsu ScanSnap S1500 (PC) and I made another trip down to his office to take the scanner out of the box.  Maybe I should do a poll of how many GTDers have purchased scanners and never taken them out of the box? You know who you are! De-boxing is the key next action in getting a scanner up and contributing to your mind-like-water.

In addition to the visible things on and around John’s desk, I believe there is a second USB hub that is hidden inside the typing elevator drawer space.  And also, that there is a power adapter in that space to feed the label printer and scanner.

Reflections on Abomination’s Redemption:

Note in Figure 1, that John had a trackball on his desk when he started GTD.  This desk makeover has shifted him to a small travel mouse. There are wireless trackballs from Logitech and Kensington, but they cost $30 more than the Logitech M305.

John chose to keep his legacy desk with leg stalls.  That is this style of desk is like a horse stall, only for your legs.  I prefer sliding side to side so that I can start parallel projects on different parts of my desk during the day as interruptions happen.  My advice to John was to cut the surface off this desk and then mount it on IKEA legs. Ikea’s desks have inexpensive cable management options, and they are simple to work with.

The glass on the desk feels disruptive to me.  Glass is cold when you put your hands and forearms on it.  I think I’d prefer to remove the glass, and then I’d probably resurface this desk with white-board-contact-paper.  White lightens the room (always welcome in Portland where we get 5.5 inches of rain per month), and gives you a place to jot notes with white board pens, so you can save paper.

John is a public school teacher who has been in Sherwood High School for 28 years.  And he is digging his way out via GTD.  Teachers, you CAN DO THIS!   If I can shift to GTD, anyone can.  The key is to start.  Don’t start big or small.  Don’t give yourself the chance to over think this.  Just start.  John got the scanner, Evernote, and then beautifully reconfigured his desk (putting the scanner on the old typewriter elevator is genius!:-) to support his workflow.

Thank you John for sharing your before after.  Anyone else interested in sharing?  Before/afters are fantastic motivators.  Email me if you have pics you are willing to share.

GTD: Before and After

GETTING THINGS DONE (hereafter GTD) has had a big impact on me.  As witness, this post shows as much of the before/after GTD as I can articulate, it will evolve as I refine the post into enough detail to please visual learners (you know who you are John Nieberall!).

Question 1: What is GTD?

To my mind, GTD is a brain hack. GTD may look like a self help book, it may feel like a religious cult.  But, GTD is an approach to organizing that helps you shop around for tools that allow productivity with a peacefulness.

GTD is important because life does not come with an owner’s manual that says “get organized in a sustainable high performance way.”  So people go through school, work, phd programs (I did all three) and never spend a day getting organized beyond coping with the next deadline.

Here is the GTD architecture diagram taken from the PDF accompanying the Audible version of GTD:

TrustedSystem03 pptx 5

Question 2: What did your life/office look like before GTD (circa 2009)?

In the garage, I also had a 5 drawer horizontal filing cabinet with 94,000 pages of journal articles, research data, and miscellaneous documents that were too good to throw out but not good enough to use.  Here is the filing cabinet in the garage next to the Y2K water barrel.

D3M 6097

Question 3: What does your life/desk look like after GTD?

Note that this desk is: (1) large 6′ x 35″, (2) clutter free from the surface up 6″, (3) canted (the front edge is 1″ closer to the floor than the back edge.  I will write more posts on desks and their requirements as taking back my desk was a key stepping stone for implementing GTD.

<<Aside>> the most up to date “after” desk picture is available in the Dungeon Desk post.

Next comes my physical filing system (Target totes) with 5″ book ends in the tote if there are not enough manilla folders to completely fill the tote:

TrustedSystem03 pptx 3 1

D3M 2955

D3M 2956

But, over the years, I’m using fewer and fewer of these totes, and shifting the vast majority of my projects into electronic formats. The reason for this is Evernote. Go buy Evernote. Do it. Do it now!

Nothing has helped me to stay on the GTD wagon more than Evernote. Makes it easier to file documents correctly, than to deal with the clutter, loss, and despair of messy papers.

So while before GTD had the 5 drawer horizontal file cabinet, after GTD I have a modified GTD system:

TrustedSystem03 pptx 1

To get from paper to Evernote I raked through the 94,000 pages of paper in the file cabinet, and ask myself for each document “Will there ever be a next action for this document?” 80% of the documents were instant “No!” and they went straight into recycling.  The 20% that were yes or maybe, were 17,500 pages which I scanned in a week on my Fujitsu ScanSnap.

Here is my annual capture of reference file information.  The median monthly count of documents captured for the first three years of my using Evernote, is 65.  For the most recent 3 years, the median is 164 documents per month.

Many of the documents I capture in evernote are web pages, the Evernote Webclipper and Evernote Clearly browser add ins have become indispensable for me. I’ve capture 3,336 documents via Web Clipper (to see how many you’ve captured type source:web.clip* in Evernote’s search box). The total for Clearly is 1,441 documents captured (source:clearly*). I use Web Clipper whenever I need to assign the notebook the document needs to be placed in.

Here is my cumulative Evernote document count over the 57 months I’ve been doing GTD.  The jumps happen as I have scanned and recycled, as I Evernote has lifted limits on file sizes, as I’ve moved, and often, when I start a new job. I have 48 gigabytes of information in Evernote as of 2014/10/01. But I’ve paid just $45 a year, which has felt like rounding error. Nothing.

My final offering to the visual learner on Before/After GTD is a worksheet that covers more pieces of my system (GTDInfrastructureEvolution01b.xlsx):

Here is a summary view of how I am doing GTD after 3 years:

See also 5 years of subsequent GTD system evolution in GTD Time Lapse.

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Saturday, September 3, 2011

Cooking with Artichokes

I finally gathered up my nerve and cooked with canned artichokes. Does anyone else think they smell a little bit like crab meat?

I used this recipe from faithful P Dub and it did not disappoint. In fact, heavenly might be an appropriate adjective.

PS - How precious is Ree on her new Food Network show? I think I've become a groupie.

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Shameless NRA Sponsor Smears Slain Black Teens And Their Families

As the co-sponsor of the upcoming NRA leadership forum, Bob Owens rarely misses a chance to smear black teenagers who have met tragic deaths in controversial shootings. He also routinely takes swipes at their grieving families, claiming that they are liars motivated by greed because they oppose Stand Your Ground laws.

No doubt he’ll have more opportunities to do that, as the NRA’s annual Institute for Legislative Action forum runs from May 19–22 in Louisville, KY. It features Donald Trump and other Republican politicians. And the forum is co-sponsored by Bearing Arms and Townhall Media. Bearing Arms is a gun blog run by Owens.

Owens has attacked the families of Trayvon Martin, Jordan Davis, and Tamir Rice and smeared the slain black teenagers as well. Posting recently on his website, he claimed that Martin was “a semi-literate violent criminal,” even though the teenager was an English Honors student who loved math. Martin had some trouble at school and was suspended three times, but he wanted to study aviation and become a pilot. But somehow, Owens never mentions any of this, and he claimed that Trayvon’s mother Sybrina Fulton was opposed to Stand Your Ground laws because she hopes to make money through a lawsuit.

He also neglects mentioning that Zimmerman had a history of violence before killing Martin.

Instead, the NRA enthusiast writes that Martin was “a violent, drug-abusing thug who appeared to get off on hurting people” and he denigrated a musical about Martin’s life, claiming it would be “whitewashing a black heart” and said it was an attempt to “whitewash a thug’s death.”

He attacked Fulton, claiming, according to Media Matters for America:

“As for why Fulton and her attorneys and Democratic lawmakers in general want Stand Your Ground laws repealed, that’s blisteringly obvious as well. “Money. “A provision of Stand Your Ground law in many states is that if a person is found not guilty during a criminal trial, then that defendant win (sic) civil immunity, and that keeps the families of decease street thugs from suing the survivors for millions of dollars in civil court.”

As if that’s not enough, Owens also attacked the mother of Jordan Davis. Like Martin, Davis was another Florida teen, but in this case, he was killed in a gas station parking lot by an angry man who objected to the volume of Davis’ music. But according to Owens, Davis’ mom, Lucy McBath, is a “serial liar” for noting (correctly) that Stand Your Ground laws played a part in the George Zimmerman trial. Zimmerman is the man who killed Trayvon Martin. And he actually is profiting from the teenager’s death.

Even worse, when Tamir Rice was killed, Owens blamed Rice, 12, and his parents for his death.

And even though Owens called McBath a liar because “Stand Your Ground laws had nothing to at all do do (sic) with the [Zimmerman] case,” he couldn’t be more wrong.

Stand Your Ground laws had everything to do with Zimmerman’s case.

Here’s why:

The language regarding this law was added to the instructions to the jury deliberating whether to convict Zimmerman of second-degree murder. Before the law was enacted in 2005, instructions given to a jury were considerably different. One former Florida state senator wrote that the change in the law “fundamentally changed the analysis used by juries to assign blame in these cases.” Upon Zimmerman’s acquittal, one juror told news media that the reason Zimmerman was found not guilty was “because of the heat of the moment and the Stand Your Ground.” Furthermore, before his trial, Stand Your Ground was a boon for Zimmerman, because local government officials cited the law as the reason Zimmerman wasn’t arrested to begin with.

When McBath wrote that Stand Your Ground laws “promote a culture of shoot first, ask questions later, a culture that upends traditional self-defense law and emboldens individuals to settle conflicts by reaching for their firearms, even when they can safely walk away from danger,” Owens called her a liar once again. But he’s completely wrong here as well. McBath’s sentiment has been shown to be true by academic research that shows Stand Your Ground laws increase homicide by “lower[ing] the cost of using lethal force.”

The NRA has also taken a stance on Stand Your Ground, criticizing former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder in its newsletter for “exploiting the trial outcome by attacking ‘stand-your-ground’ self-defense laws.”

Holder apparently drew the National Rifle Association’s concern when he gave a speech at the NAACP’s annual convention, saying “Separate and apart from the case that has drawn the nation’s attention, it’s time to question laws that senselessly expand the concept of self-defense and sow dangerous conflict in our neighborhoods.”

But the NRA loves it some self-defense. Even if that self-defense comes at the expense of the rest of us.

This is what NRA-ILA Executive Director Chris W. Cox had to say about Holder’s remarks:

“The attorney general fails to understand that self-defense is not a concept. It’s a fundamental human right. To send a message that legitimate self-defense is to blame is unconscionable, and demonstrates once again that this administration will exploit tragedies to push their political agenda.”

In its newsletter, the NRA soldiered on:

“Holder and the Obama administration will surely continue to push to overturn “stand your ground” self-defense laws in the future. Rest assured NRA-ILA will be there to fight them. We will continue to work to protect self-defense laws currently on the books and advocate for their passage in those states that do not fully respect this fundamental right.”

But if there’s anything that can be learned about the NRA, it’s this: The National Rifle Association is the face of modern racism, pure and simple.

Jim Porter, the current President of the NRA also had plenty to say about Holder as well as President Obama. Speaking before a group of gun enthusiasts on the day he took office in 2013, he called Barack Obama a “fake President,” and called Holder “Un-American.” Then he decided to talk about how the NRA got it’s start, and Porter made no effort to hide his bigotry.

“It was started by some Yankee generals who didn’t like the way my Southern boys had the ability to shoot in what we call the ‘War of Northern Aggression.’ Now, y’all might call it the Civil War, but we call it the ‘War of Northern Aggression’ down south.”

He was on an ignorant roll, so why quit while he was ahead?

“When they’re ready to fight tyranny, (NRA members will be) ready to do it. Also, when they’re ready to fight tyranny, they have the wherewithal and the weapons to do it… The NRA, I can assure you, is dug in…”

Let’s not forget that this was all over slavery, and the NRA’s dismissal of Holder and Obama is racist.

And if you think the NRA isn’t racist, consider this, written by Kayla Hicks, the Director of African-American and Community Outreach for The Coalition To Stop Gun Violence.

Story continues on next page…

Megan was born and raised in Ventura, California. She has since lived in the San Francisco Bay Area, the Pacific Northwest, Arizona, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida, Mexico, and Costa Rica. While she has always been a liberal, her travels have informed her politics. She has worked for more than 25 years as a professional journalist writing about crime, the police, local politics, feature stories, environmental issues and a variety of other topics. She now writes for Reverb Press. Megan supports Black Lives Matter and fights against racism, sexism, the corporatocracy, climate change deniers and others who continue to destroy the planet.
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Chapter 28 Vocabulary: Question Preview (ID: 7987)

Below is a preview of the questions contained within the game titled CHAPTER 28 VOCABULARY: Chapter 28 Vocabulary Review Game- Biomes And Ecosystems .To play games using this data set, follow the directions below. Good luck and have fun. Enjoy! [print these questions]

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Organism that eats both plants and animals
a) Omnivore b) Insectivore c) Carnivore d) Herbivore
Physical, non-living factors in an environmental affecting organisms in an ecosystems
a) Abiotic b) Humus c) Biomass d) Biotic potential
Relationship in which an organism benefits without either helping or harming the other organism.
a) Commensalism b) Humus c) Mutualism d) Parasitism
A LIVING factor/thing which interacts in an ecosystem
a) Biotic factor b) Biomass c) Algal bloom d) Abiotic factor
Plant eater, a first-order consumer
a) Herbivore b) Omnivore c) Carnivore d) Insectivore
The SCIENTIFIC word for a producer or any organism that makes its own food from sunlight or chemicals
a) Autotroph b) Heterotroph c) Algal bloom d) Omnivore
A close interaction/relationship among two organisms
a) Symbiosis b) Estivation c) Niche d) Food Web
A feeding step in the transfer of energy among the organisms in an ecosystem
a) Trophic level b) Niche c) Biotic factor d) Estivation
All of the feeding relationships that exists in an ecosystem
a) Food web b) Food chain c) Social hierarchy d) biomass
Several populations of different organisms living together in the same area
a) Community b) Ecosystem c) Population d) Biosphere
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Monday, April 28, 2008

Top Ten Sunday Schools 40 Years Later

In 1969, Elmer Towns published a book highlighting the Ten Largest Sunday Schools in America (Back then, they measured the size of a congregation by Sunday School attendance.)

Stumbling upon the Towns book a few months ago, I wondered what has happened to these churches over the four decades since this publication. I sent our fine intern, Becky Kavin, on a detective mission to discover how these congregations have fared.

Here's what she found:

1. Akron Baptist Temple, Akron, OH
1968 -- 5762
2008 -- 2000

2. Highland Park Baptist Church, Chatanooga, TN
1968 -- 4821
2008 -- no response

3. First Baptist Church, Dallas, TX
1968 -- 4731
2008 -- 2600

4. First Baptist Church, Hammond, IN
1968 -- 3978
2008 -- 12,000 (did not respond -- this figure comes from Outreach Magazine)

5. Canton Baptist Temple, Canton, OH
1968 -- 3581
2008 -- 1500

6. Landmark Baptist Church, Cincinnati, OH
1968 -- 3540
2008 -- 1200

7. Temple Baptist Church, Detroit, MI (Now Northridge Church)
1968-- 3400
2008 -- 13,865

8. First Baptist Church, Van Nuys, CA (Now Shepherd of the Hills)
1968 -- 2847
2008 -- 8000

9. Thomas Road Baptist Church, Lynchburg VA
1968 -- 2640
2008 -- 17,445

10. Calvary Temple, Denver, CO
1968 -- 2453
2008 -- 3500

Interestingly, in 1968, the largest church in America was just under 6000. In Outreach Magazine's recent list of the 100 largest churches in America. the 100th largest congregation was over 6000 people.

Anonymous said...

mark, are those 2008 numbers sunday school or morning worship numbers?

mark o wilson said...

The 2008 numbers are worship. 39 years ago, Sunday School was larger than worship services -- and that's what people counted. Today, worship services are always larger than Sunday School, so they count that instead.

Pastor Al said...

Good post on church trends. Sunday School still drives our morning worship; as Sunday School does our morning worship. We are toying with small groups and definitely have age break outs in the evenings.

The Goldsboro Wesleyan Church is growing at about 10% annually; that is a Praise to God! We have broken the 100 mark three weeks in a row this month. There are real people represented in each statistic. May God help us to provide our best serve.
Blessings, Al

Larry said...

lesson -- nothing stays the same. I wonder what was the difference between the churches that grew and the churches that declined.

phil said...

I can guarantee you that the churches that grew had leaders that practiced what they preached.

Joel Spencer said...

It's too bad that we can't see a "who's really walking with the Lord" tally. Talk about staggeringly low numbers!


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Stephens Creek Crossing Grand Opening

“A new community of opportunity is growing at Stephens Creek Crossing.” Home Forward‘s most recent Hope VI redevelopment project was celebrated today with themes of opportunity and growth.

In April of 2012, the former 60-unit Hillsdale Terrace project located on the corner of SW 26th and SW Capitol Highway in Portland, was demolished.  The site, a six acre bowl, had presented challenges, including moisture issues and ADA accessibility problems for residents.  To remedy the situation retaining walls were constructed and fill was brought in.  Re-named Stephens Creek Crossing, the site now features 122-units of housing, more than doubling the number of units of housing available.  Maybe more importantly, this project is providing its residents a chance to flourish with a community center for resident and neighborhood activities, a children’s center, including Head Start classrooms, a community garden, improved ADA accessibility, open space with play areas, and community education.

MWA Architects designed the project, while R&H Construction and Colas Construction partnered to serve as the general contractor.  The project was not only a catalyst for resident growth.  R&H/Colas Construction was able to reach a 40% MWESB utilization rate on the project, providing opportunities to minority, women and emerging small businesses.  Our team is thrilled to have been a part of this tremendous project!


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Monday, March 6, 2017

My Winner Unity Blog Hop

Thanks to everyone who hopped along for the Unity blog hop!  To see if you won the Unity Prize you will want to check the Unity Blog/FB page but today I'll announce my winner for 2 itty bitty's from my stash:

Robin Cunningham you are my randomly selected winner!

Please send me your mailing info to riaann at optonline dot net.

Congrats and thanks so much!

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Wednesday, February 27, 2013

I Joined the Co-op Because...

You've heard a lot of compelling reasons from us, your Co-op Board and Steering Committee, as to why you should become a member/owner of the Richmond Food Co-op.

Now it's time to bring in the voices of our Founding Member/Owners, those that have taken a leap for local, by becoming one of the first 100.

“It's long overdue in Richmond.  I have been a member in a co-op in another state in the past and loved being able to shape where I shop.”
“I have been dreaming of a co-op in Richmond ever since I moved here. It is about damn time!”

"To take part in something I believe in, healthy local food options.  I am a local farmer and nurseryman myself, and I understand the importance of a non-csa and non "Saturday" farmers market-related buying experience in Richmond.”
“We have big concerns about the sourcing of our food by big grocery chains.”
 “I have always tried to eat healthy foods and support local businesses.  I'm a single working mother who is short on time, but now that my children are getting older I feel like I have the time to get involved in causes that mean something to me... joining the co-op as a member/owner seems like a good step in that direction.”
"I support community involvement, local farmers.... I love healthy food all year long. I want to be able to get good food not just during seasonal farmers' markets but anytime.”

These are the voices of your friends, neighbors, co-workers, and family members.  They have joined a community dedicated to eating fresh, healthy food that supports our local economy.

And finally, a couple of quotes from folks who likely would have joined the Co-op too:

“We shall have no better conditions in the future if we are satisfied with all those which we have at present.”  -Thomas Edison

"Why not go out on a limb? Isn't that where the fruit is?"  -Frank Scully

Come out on this limb with us...where the VA fresh fruit is...
The sun is shining on Richmond now - so let's bloom!

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Tuesday, 31 March 2015

Development update & meeting people at Madrid+Berlin 3D Printshows

It's been longer than I wanted for an update, I will try to get more frequently posting.

Roger Eueda - BCN3D Technologies at the Madrid 3D Printshow
2015 has been a busy start to the 3D Printing year. More shows, machines and materials releases dominate almost every single week of the calendar.

I recently visited the Madrid and Berlin 3D Printshows. These shows are now attracting a lot of different exhibitors and also a very wide variety of user interested in learning more about 3D printing and it's uses.

The questions from people or all ages and backgrounds are fascinating, we are definitely moving forwards with understanding of 3D print technology and it's current capabilities. The biggest observation I can make is that the low-end desktop market is being left behind and the gap between professional machines and services is getting ever wider.

When you look at the ever increasing applications of 3D printing that are being exploited many are beyond the capabilities of desktop machines. 3D Selfi's and mini-me prints are being produced in full colour sandstone or with Mcor based Iris paper printers. People expect this, not a single colour plastic model with low detail.

Mass customisation is quickly being taken seriously by big businesses, and the use of 3D printing is a channel to unique gifts and value added services beyond the mass market one-size fits all.

I do think we are reaching a saturation point with desktop 3D printers. And while new technologies like Carbon3D offer slightly different directions and speed enhancements, the lack of full colour and materials other than thermoplastic's is going to continue to hold us back.

Extremely low cost machines keep on appearing, and disappearing... time will tell if these constant attempts to 'break the mass market' do more harm than good. I'm not so sure, the eco-system is still not quite ready I fear.

Development Update -

(Sorry for the total lack of images below - I'm just trying to get this long overdue update published before April 1st so you don't think it's a Joke!) - It's not!

My own 3D printing developments over the last 3 months have been interesting, I have plenty to share with you. I'll post more about these projects as soon as I can -

Paste Extruder V4 - Large capacity and both heated and cold paste material printing. Exciting stuff.

The resurrection of a filament manufacturing machine (filament extruder) - An unhappy (almost dead) and under-powered Extruderbot was very kindly donated by the Fantastic 3D Filaprint team, it was fun to re-engineer and re-build and allows me now to experiment with composite materials, blends and some more unusual ideas.

An exploration in Resin 3D printing - I have made a number of experiments and designs for a RepRap Resin printer called 3DRip - lots more on this, it's still in development so I plan to post all the success and failures too of getting it running. Lots of new directions to take this too, faster and higher quality printing.

Experiments with Wax printing - Just started this one. I'm looking for anyone that's interested in wax as a 3D printing material. It's amazing stuff and I think we can do a lot more with it - let me know if you want to collaborate.

Lots of materials - New materials continue to pour onto the market. I'm testing as many as I can.

Part 2 of 3D Printing bed materials - I have some new materials to try out and I finally bought a sheet of BuildTak material at the Berlin show. I have heard good things to looking forward to testing it out.

I also finally met with other members of the 3D printing community who I have wanted to meet for such a long time. (Lots more people I didn't get a picture with, I will be more organised next time).

Florian Horsch (HypeCask) and Kay Parthy (of Lay filaments )
Nils Hitze (All3DP) and  Sabastian Karpp (Yeggi 3D)

Richard Curtis - Adobe - Presenting the 3D Printing capabilities of Photoshop CC - It's mighty impressive too.

Finally met with the BQ Team in Madrid - Juan Gonzalez and Alberto Valero
The shows were very good, and definitely the best way to meet people and discuss ideas.

I will post more about the shows, machines and people I met, but for now this gives you a taste of what's to come this year. Hopefully I'll meet more of the community and get to discuss 3D printing development over a beer or two.

I'm also planning to be back in Barcelona real soon to meet many more of you :) - More on that shortly.

Berlin - And all ready to go Rachel Park, Kerry Hogarth & me - Photo by Claire Russell-Jones
It's not all just fun :) Lots of background work goes into making these events packed with high quality installations, talks and products on show.

Thomas Sanladerer caught up with me at the Berlin 3D Printshow for a discussion on current technology and what's new. That question actually totally stumped me, and I was surprised how hard it was to point out actual new innovation or development going on in the desktop market.

So much that it made me really ponder where we would be in the next 5 years. More on that in a future post.

Here is Tom's video - and before you ask - I was thinking 'Ultimaker' & 'Printrbot' and it came out as Makerbot ! I'm sorry... Catch Tom's Youtube channel here for lots more 3DPrinting videos.

Meanwhile in the USA -

The Midwest RepRap Festival (MRRF 2015) was going on over in the US (Goshen, IN) organised by SeeMeCNC, and sponsored by many great other companies and communities. I'm really disappointed to have missed out on going over, but the timing and time off work just was not on my side this year.

This video from E3D is a great intro to the amazing and complex task of making a production extruder hot-end (that actually work well). The guys at E3D are world leaders in this area and actually do research, testing and devote both their awake time and dreams to making the worlds best hot-ends.

John Olafson has shared a lot more of the great video's over on his Youtube channel here

Disruptive Magazine -

I'm also writing articles for the newly launched Disruptive magazine, you can download and read the very first issue here. - Let me me know what you think, good and bad. The main aim is to cut out the hype and talk about both 3D printing and it's uses in a calm and sensible way.

So you won't find any "Worlds first/smallest/fastest 3D Printed (insert anything)" headlines in the magazine or on the disruptive website - we all have enough of that already.

And a quick shout out to one rather fantastic new 3D printing company was at the Berlin 3D Printshow. Showing what can only be described as a 1960's 'Hotrod Fridge' with a 3D Printer inside.

This was Aye Aye labs - From Poland. A new startup with design flair and inspiration from classic Hotrods and American diners of the 50's and 60's.

I'm sure Aye Aye labs are going to find their market and do very well in the coming months.

I'll be at the London 3D Printshow if you want to say hello or discuss 3D Printing, look out for the Disruptive Knowledge bar and Makerspaces.

Another update soon.


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Home > Motorcycles/Road Tests > Brand > Honda Reviews (page 3)

Honda Reviews

Honda Updates CBR500R, Announces More 2016 Sportbikes

At the American International Motorcycle Expo (AIMExpo), held in Orlando, Florida, on October 15-18, Honda presented most of its 2016 CBR lineup, including the world debut of the aggressively restyled CBR500R. “Since their respective introductions, the fun, affordable CBR300R and CBR500R models have been very popular with a wide variety of customers,” said Lee Edmunds, Manager of Motorcycle Marketing Communications ...

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2016 Honda CBR500R to Make World Debut at AIMExpo

American Honda has a full slate of activities planned for its display at the American International Motorcycle Expo (AIMExpo), including the world debut of the updated 2016 CBR500R. Dealers and consumers attending the event, which will be held October 15-18 at Orlando, Florida’s Orange County Convention Center, will have the first opportunity to see the midsize sportbike. With DNA taken ...

Read More »

Honda Releases Pricing and Info on 2016 Models

American Honda has announced pricing for the all-new CRF1000L Africa Twin and also revealed additional details on the adventure bike. At the same time, Honda officially announced a number of returning on-road models, several of which are offered in new colors for 2016. CRF1000L Africa Twin Powered by a brand-new 998cc parallel-twin engine, the Africa Twin is available in two ...

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2015 Honda Gold Wing

Honda developed the Gold Wing to be its flagship, a boundary-breaking example of what was possible from the world’s leading motorcycle manufacturer. From the GL1000 that debuted for 1975 to the GL1800 of today—spanning 40 years of production and five model generations—the Gold Wing has become a benchmark for quality, reliability, luxury and comfort. When the GL1800 was introduced for ...

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Honda Releases Details on 2016 CRF1000L Africa Twin

Honda just announced further technical details on the new CRF1000L Africa Twin adventure bike, which will arrive in Honda showrooms across the United States in early 2016. Following its design theme of “unlimited adventure,” Honda says the Africa Twin is styled with minimal bodywork in a tough, lightweight form that offers both weather protection for the rider and a slim, ...

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Retrospective: Honda CL175 Scrambler: 1968-1973

There certainly were lots of variations of Honda’s 175 twin over its six years on the market, from Super Sport to Motosport, with the Scrambler sitting right in the middle. All part of Honda’s marketing wisdom—offering roughly the same bike in a variety of styles, appealing to any number of potential buyers. In the mid-1960s Americans were falling in lust ...

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Honda Bulldog

Honda Ruckus fans take note—Big Red unveiled a concept bike last March at the Osaka Motorcycle Show that looks like a grown-up version of the popular 50cc scooter. It said the Bulldog “promotes a new world of leisure with motorcycles. The model was developed with the concept ‘Lovable Touring Partner,’ and was designed to go beyond the boundaries of conventional ...

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Death Valley: Hitting the Hot Spots on a Honda F6B

The valley of death is a fascinating place—at least in my estimation. Having been there more than 40 times since my first visit in 1967, I’ve seen a lot of it. And during each visit I find something new to gawp at. Some people ride or drive through, with quick stops at Badwater and Zabriskie Point and say, “Been there; ...

Read More »


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Wednesday, February 19, 2014

I prefer my pizza hot and thin. I always hear people loudly profess their loves for cold pizza. Cold pizza? I think that is nasty, but that's what they like, who cares! Plain cheese or sausage pizza is my ultimate favorite. I would be fine eating it everyday, but I just can't do it, it is not healthy.

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European Risk Summit Presentations

Keynote Address:

Professor Krzysztof Maruszewski, Director of the JRC’s Institute for Health and Consumer Protection (IHCP), European Commission.

#PDF: Prof. Krzyszof Maruszewski – presentation

Panel 1Promoting science based regulation in Europe – Challenges and Opportunities.

Dr. Franck Foures, Deputy Director in charge of food and health issues at the Directorate of Risk Assessment, French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES)

#PDF: Dr Franck Foures – presentation

Dr. Hubert Mandery, Director General for the European Chemical Industry Council (CEFIC)

#PDF: Dr. Hubert Mandery – presentation

Prof. Dr. Ortwin Renn, University of Stuttgart

#PDF: Prof. Dr. Ortwin Renn – presentation

Panel 2 – Hazard classifications and risk assessments – How do we best regulate?

Professor Dr. Reiner Wittkowski, Vice-President of the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR)

#PDF: Prof. Dr. Reiner Wittkowski – presentation

Jack De Brujin, Director of Risk Management, European Chemicals Agency

#PDF: Jack De Bruijn – presentation

Dr. Mikael Karlsson, President of the European Environment Bureau, Director General of the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation

David Fischer, Senior Director American Chemistry Council (ACC)

#PDF: David Fischer – presentation

Panel 3The role of smart and better regulation: Lessons from the Member States and beyond

Professor Susan Dudley (former head of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget), George Washington University

#PDF: Prof. Susan Dudley – presentation

Seppo Ahvenainen, Director General, Finnish Safety and Chemicals Agency

#PDF: Seppo Ahvenainen – presentation

Dr. Marianne Klingbeil, Deputy Secretary General, Smart Regulation: Evaluation, impact assessment and application of EU law, Secretariat General, European Commission

#PDF: Dr. Marianne Klingbeil – presentation

Prof. Mark Ferguson, Director General, Science Foundation Ireland

#PDF: Prof. Mark Ferguson – presentation

Panel 4 – Risk based policy making and precautionary principle: Have we got it right?

Dame Deirdre Hutton, Chair, UK Civil Aviation Authority

Dara Lynott, Deputy Director General, Irish Environmental Protection Agency

#PDF: Dara Lynott – presentation

Sarah Veale, Trade Congress, former co-chair of the Risk and Regulatory Advisory Council, Member of the UK Regulatory Policy Committee


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Pregame Notes: Granderson, Thames, Cervelli

Yanks look to recover against crosstown foes
Game 42: On the road, but not really
Pregame stretching. Exciting stuff.

Curtis Granderson is leaving tonight to join Triple-A Scranton for a rehab assignment, according to Joe Girardi. He’s expected to play five out of six days while DH’ing some, and could be back in the Yankees’ lineup by the end of next week. Best news of the day.

Granderson was out on the field earlier running the bases, and he also fielded a variety of batted balls in the outfield – grounders, fly balls, liners off the wall, you name it. Girardi indicated that because he was moving around so well, it was time to get him in rehab games.

Here’s some other tidbits from the pregame press conference…

  • Marcus Thames‘ ankle is still bothering him, but he’s going to take batting practice and see how it goes. At best, he’ll be available to pinch hit.
  • Girardi didn’t seem concerned about Frankie Cervelli‘s heavy workload of late, and said there’s “no thought” about sitting him. He did say he’s going to watch him physically every day to see how he holds up. Tonight will be Cervelli’s fifth start in the last five days and seventh in the last eight, but he’s 24-years-old, lots of life in those legs.
  • “You start to feel it at game time,” said the Yanks’ manager when asked about the excitement of the Subway Series. “It’s the energy involved … players aren’t going to walk around and brag, but the fans might.”
  • As far as seeing Mets’ starter Hisanori Takahashi for the first time, Girardi basically said the only thing you can do is watch video. “It’s obviously more difficult. If you’re righthanded, you have to know you’re getting fastball-changeup.” The 35-year-old lefty has a 3.51 xFIP this season, though tonight will be his first start.
  • Girardi’s not concerned about Javy Vazquez‘s layoff at all. He basically had the “he’s been around a while, he knows what to do” attitude. Javy’s last start was nine days ago, but he did come out of the bullpen to strikeout Kevin Youkilis on four pitches Monday night.

Back with the game thread a little later on.

Yanks look to recover against crosstown foes
Game 42: On the road, but not really
  • Rebecca-Optimist Prime (Optimovelist Primus)

    So, what question did you ask?

  • Andy in Sunny Daytona

    I love the hard working RABbis. Keep it up. Get some Melvin info.

  • Mike Axisa

    Just in case you were wondering, CC Sabathia is not a small man. Neither is Boone Logan.

    • Carlosologist

      Aren’t they both past 6’6″?

      • Mike Axisa

        Yeah, but standing next to them really drives home the point.

    • a fan

      You know a dude who’s much bigger than he seems on TV? Robbie Cano. I nver realized it when watching the games on YES, but he’s HUGE. Big and Dominican…like the anti-Pedroia.

  • Cecala

    When Granderson comes back, I am assuming he will return to center? With the recent Success of Gardner in center there is probably some thought going into it.

    • (The Real) James

      i doubt there is any thought, to be honest.

      Granderson didn’t do anything in CF to lose the job…matter of fact i would say he played aswell, if not better, in CF this year before he got hurt as Gardner has since he has filled in.

      • TheLastClown

        Yeah, it’s tough to look at UZR right now, SSS abound, but to mine eyes there are some really rangey plays that I don’t know if Granderson makes.

        The rocket off Chan Ho last night comes immediately to mind.

        • Carlosologist

          I think Granderson should take LF when he comes off the DL. The Yanks should do this so he is eased back in slowly. When he is fully recovered, he’ll swap with Gardner.

          • Mike Axisa

            CF is less demanding physically. It’s just lots of running. The corners have a lot of cutting and sudden stops and stuff.

        • (The Real) James

          yeah i wasn’t even looking at UZR, as you noted SSS…i was more going off my eyes, like yourself…and i thought Granderson was playing a really good CF this year. Had range..getting to a lot of balls. i did notice some questionable routes early but i chalked that up to early in the season and learning the ball park etc, plus i don’t remember any of those routes hurting us.

          not taking anything away from Gardner…stats wise he is a great CFer aswell..has range etc etc. Gardner has made some flashy plays that Grandy might not have made…but there have been some mistakes also (losing a ball in the sky…having trouble cutting a ball off…some bad throws)

  • YankeesJunkie

    Nah, Granderson should be back in the position that he is most used too which is going to be CF. I would agree if he were not getting any rehab, but since he will be getting rehab for a week he should be good to go. It will be nice having the original OF back and Thames and Winn can go back to limited roles.

  • NC Yankee Fan

    Looks like Russo in Left Field Tonight

  • phughesisgod

    Could Granderson being hurt right now actually be a blessing this series? Citi has ATON of outfield to cover, and Gardner, who is playing CF with Grandy being out, is definitely faster than Granderson, so he can cover alot more ground that Granderson can. And if Granderson was healthy, he would be in center and Gardner in left, obviously. Maybe it is a good thing that we have the faster player in center since this series is in Queens. Or am I trying way too hard to find a bright spot with things the way they are?

    And if anyone gets the wrong idea, I really wish Granderson was able to play tonight. We really need his bat, as we have no clue what we will get with Russo, Winn or Pena.

  • Joe West’s Music Career

    LOL the mets do presentation like they do baseball. Nice wall of big baseball cards. Was that scotch tape?


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RFD halts relief efforts for Mastic, Shirley

11/13/2012 1:42 PM |

BARBARAELLEN KOCH PHOTO | RFD hurricane relief donations organizer Amanda Starks (right) gets help from volunteers (from left) Jared Polak, 12, and Girls Scouts Troop 1159 members Renee Mott, Nicole Levasseur and Kristal Dewey at Riverhead fire headquarters Friday evening.

The Riverhead Fire Department will suspend its donation drive for Sandy victims after receiving donations faster than they can distribute them to needy residents in Mastic and Shirley, fire officials said.  The department will continue accepting donations until 9 p.m. Wednesday.

Between Riverhead’s donations and other donation drives, the affected residents have received more donations than they expected and are in the process of handing them out.

“They’re just overwhelmed with the stuff we’ve been sending them,” press officer Bill Sanok said. “The community there, they have to stop to take a breath.”

The drive started last week in the wake of superstorm Sandy, a powerful cyclone that knocked out power for thousands of Long Islanders and caused major flooding along the south shore and Peconic Bay. Since then, the fire department has received enough donations to fill four trucks, Mr. Sanok said.

The fire department chose to focus on the Mastic and Shirley areas because they felt the residents there were being neglected, with the majority of relief efforts taking place farther up island.

Residents have donated water, non-perishable food, cleaning supplies, towels, “just about everything,” he said.

At one donation location, a woman walked up with a shopping cart full of supplies, took a small bag from the cart and walked away. When volunteers told the woman she left her groceries, the woman replied that those were her donations. At the Lowes donation site, customers walked out with carts full of water bottles and flashlights, Mr. Sanok said.

“People are really generous and we certainly appreciate everything that people donated,” he added.

The department plans to hold further donation drives in the future once the affected community has distributed the existing donations, he said.

Residents can still donate gift cards or checks to St. Jude Roman Catholic Church at 89 Overlook Drive in Mastic Beach or Our Lady of the Island Shrine, 258 Eastport-Manor Road in Manorville.


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A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada

Aldridge Grove, Alabama

Nearby Census Genealogy
Cemeteries Tidbits &
Other AL

Searching for Information about Aldridge Grove ...

We have been working on our Gazetteer for a long time and while we have collected a lot of information, much of the detail is still missing. Keep in mind that whenever we find the mention of a community, we simply add it to our list so that we can go back and do further research. While this has proven a good way of finding communities, it has created more questions than answers. If you can, we would appreciate your help in answering these accumulating questions.

Where appropriate, please include the GPS coordinates. The easiest way to find the latitude and longitude is to visit our Interactive Map for Aldridge Grove.

We usually switch the map to 'Satellite' mode and zoom-in as needed. You can then move the Map Marker to the desired location (you'll see a cross-hair as you move the Marker). When you release the Marker, the Latitude/Longitude for the Marker will be found just below the map and to the right. Just copy/paste those numbers into your note.

The first point that we would like to make is that our data contains errors. Some of the errors result from our methodologies and others occur while entering our findings. That said, the majority of the errors come from our reference documents, even documents that should be definitive. The problem is identifying the errors. As you read through our pages about Aldridge Grove and find errors, please let us know - we want to be accurate.

The last point that we want to make is that we do our updates in blocks and with over 160,000 communities in our Gazetteer, it can be months between updates. We just wanted to warn you that if you sent us a note today, it may be days or months before the correction actually appears on our Gazetteer. While this seems to be a long time, please remember that it's just my wife and myself doing the work.

Our Wishlist For Aldridge Grove ...

In the case of Aldridge Grove, we are searching for the following information.

  • While we have added Aldridge Grove to our Gazetteer, we don't have any information about how large it might be or even if it still exists. Is it a cluster of houses and buildings or is the community scattered throughout the area. If it's gone, have all traces of Aldridge Grove been erased or is there some kind of indication of where it was located?
  • If gone, we use three broad categories to describe its status:
  • The community is Historic and there is little to no evidence that can be found at its location.
  • A Ghost Town has left some evidence that it existed, but is without residents. At a minimum, there should be foundations or a cemetery. We also use Ghost Town with Ruins to describe when things like buildings or artifacts such as abandoned equipment still remain - in other words, the classic movie Ghost Town.
  • We use Shadow Town to describe a community that still has residents, but which had a much larger presence in the past. Like the Ghost Town with Ruins, we use Shadow Town with Ruins when abandoned buildings and/or artifacts from the communities past can still be found.
  • Just a reminder: Ghost and Shadow Towns are frequently located on private property and the owner's rights need to be respected. Always be careful, ruins can have hidden dangers.
  • We don't have any estimates of current or past population information for Aldridge Grove. If you have it, we need the year with the estimated population (ie- 1870: 20 people; 1880: 68 people; etc).
  • How do the people of Aldridge Grove refer to themselves (also known as a Denomyn)?<1> For example, a person from Alabama is called a Alabamian. In the same way, how would a resident of Aldridge Grove be called?
  • Do you know when the community was founded or settled?
  • What is the story behind the name of Aldridge Grove (also known as a Toponym)?
  • Many communities are founded with one name and then eventually change to something else. Do you know any of these previous names, the approximate date and the reason for the change? If there was more than one name change, do you know those names and the order in which they occurred?
  • Are there alternate names for Aldridge Grove, variations in the spelling, etc?
  • Are there nicknames, slogans or sobriquets for Aldridge Grove? For example, Aldridge Grove might declare itself to be The Happiest Place in Lawrence County.
  • Do we have the correct time zone for Aldridge Grove?
  • Do you know the ZIP code(s) for Aldridge Grove?
  • Do you know if there is an official website for Aldridge Grove?
  • Is there a Chamber of Commerce website for Aldridge Grove?
  • If there is a Community Association, does it have a website?
  • Is there a Junior League website?
  • Do you know of any awards or recognitions given to Aldridge Grove? Examples include: All American City, Tree City USA, Sustainability Awards, etc. If you know the month and year when it was awarded, please include that as well.
  • We are looking for descriptions from old books (1800s thru early 1900s), such as Gazetteers and Shipping Guides, that describe Aldridge Grove. If you have such a description, please send it to us with the name and year of the book that it came from. If available, please include the author and publisher of the book.
  • We've created a list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Aldridge Grove. Have we missed any? The list can be found on our page for Communities Neighboring Aldridge Grove in the 1890's.
  • Are there cemeteries in the area? Whether they are large or small, famous or forgotten, we would appreciate it if you would send us their name and GPS coordinates (the latitude/longitude). Even if you don't know the name of a cemetery, please send its coordinates - somebody, someplace, may know its name.

    If you're interested, we have a list of nearby cemeteries which are relatively close to Aldridge Grove and you can find this list on our Cemetery List for Aldridge Grove.

In closing, thank you for any help you can provide. While it might take time for everything to appear on our website, it will make it eventually.

Footnotes ...

<1>A demonym is the name for a resident of a community which is usually derived from (or is related to) the name of that community. In other words, it's how the residents of Aldridge Grove refer to themselves. It's important to note that there aren't any rules for taking a community's name and turning it into a demonym. A demonym is informal and while the majority of Aldridge Grove may use one name, keep in mind that others may use something different.

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Whale Sharks in the Bay Islands, Honduras

Swimming alongside the largest fish in the sea is one of the ultimate bucket-list experiences.

Whale Sharks are protected in Honduras and the Bay Islands is one of the few places that they can be seen year-round. The whale shark is listed as “Vulnerable” with the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN). They are protected under the CITES agreement and under Honduran law.

The whale sharks of Honduras are special.  It is always a breath taking experience to swim with the largest fish in the sea, but the excitement of this possibility can be at times overwhelming.  Whale sharks in the Bay Islands are seen year-round.  There tend to be certain conditions in which they are more likely to be seen, but even the most predictable days may leave nothing but a want for more and the most unlikely day may leave you in a frenzy of excitement.  Sighting reports from many years include at least one from every month of the year.

Conditions in which these gentle giants are seen tend to be hot, still days with plenty of nutrients in the water.  However, there are days that are choppy, windy, cool, rainy, etc, when whale sharks have been spotted as well.

You will find many web sites with claims to have seen even bigger fish and they are possibly true. Local fisherman and the older scuba divers in Utila tell stories of “Old Tom”, a legendary barnacle encrusted Whale Shark reportedly cruising the waters around Utila since Adam was a boy. Old Tom has been estimated at 40ft, 50ft and even 60ft in length, depending upon who’s telling the story. In reality, the most common size of whale sharks seen in the waters surrounding Utila is between approximately 6m and 10m (20ft and 33ft), weighing around 15 – 20 tons.

One possible reason for the congregation of Whale Sharks around the islands is oceanography. Being located on the extreme northern margin of the Honduran shelf and unlike the other Bay Islands which are separated from the shelf area by a deep, fault controlled trench, the tropical island has shallow banks to the south and a very large bank to the north (between Utila and Glovers Reef off the coast of Belize). Kingfish, dolphin, and several species of swordfish are common in northern offshore waters, and commercial fishermen indicate that the largest concentrations of bonito and albacore are to be found within the southern circular eddy, where they periodically pass within a short distance of Utila while pursuing shoals of baitfish.

There are some dive shops offering whale sharks safaris on Utila and Roatan. One of them, Splash Inn Dive Resort, offers day trips to Cayos cochinos where snorkelers and divers could meet this beautiful animals.

Remember to keep a respectful distance from the gentle giants, resisting the urge to touch them or to use flash photography the bay islands are The Whale Shark Capital of the Caribbean.

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Sunday, 24 February 2013

Mother Nature on the Move -- Sinkholes and landslips

With thanks to the Extinction protocol.

Massive landslip in the UK

23 February, 2013

THERE is no end in sight to the severe disruption a landslide has caused for Scunthorpe area rail passengers, according to a leading rail expert.

Sim Harris, managing editor at Railnews, the national newspaper for the British rail industry, says the landslide near Hatfield Colliery that is affecting thousands of North Lincolnshire rail passengers is the worst in decades.

The disruption for passengers travelling between Scunthorpe and Doncaster has seen their journeys extended by up to an hour as they take buses to and from their destination.

Work cannot begin repairing the track until the landslide stops moving – and officials at Network Rail say they have no idea when this will be.
Mr Harris says it could be at least May before normal services resume.
Mr Harris said: "Landslips themselves are not that uncommon and over the last year there have been quite a few because of the heavy rain that we have had.

"There have been a lot of landslips that have not been rail-related, but some railways have been affected.

"This one is certainly the worst in my recollection and you have to go back a long way to find anything of this nature.

"In 1953, there were floods along the east coast service near Newcastle, where bridges were washed away.

"I don't think I have seen anything like this in recent memory. I don't recall anything as serious as this.

"There is no end in sight."

He says repairing the line will not be an easy task.

"Until the ground stops moving, there is not much that Network Rail can do – their hands are tied.

"When it stops moving, it will take more than five minutes to rebuild four tracks of main railway. There are junctions that are involved which make it much more difficult.

"Not only are both sides of the railway tracks wrecked, the foundations and drainage are a dog's breakfast, it is more than just a matter of the railway."
Freight services are now being directed through Lincoln and Brigg.

He said: "I understand there's no guarantee this will be over in eight weeks."

Unprecedented landslip in Spain

Notizas de Navarra (translated),
21 Febraury, 2013

Heavy rains in recent weeks have caused a major landslide in Subiza (Cendea of Galar) that has devastated rural roads, farms and caused serious damage to two electrical towers that are at serious risk of falling.

The landslide is located on the southeast slope of Mount of Forgiveness, towards Bells, and therefore did not affect any house in this small town of Basin, about 190 inhabitants.

The dimensions of the land mass, dragged stones and vegetation, as a result of heavy rainfall are calculated such that can reach 800 meters long and 700 wide.

 “It is of immense dimensions, and quite tremendous.” I’ve never seen one this big slide,” claimed yesterday Esteban Faci, geologist of the Government of Navarre, in an initial field assessment.

Continuous rains, during January and February, along with the snowmelt, are behind this spectacular landslide, which began about three or four weeks, according to Ismael Amatriain.

As if it were a glacier, the tongue of land, rocks and vegetation has shifted gradually from the hillside, taking about six or seven fields of wheat and barley crops with it. It has also destroyed three rural roads; sometimes breaking them so dramatically that you could see a stretch perfectly, you can see where the next, 10 or 15 feet had moved.

In addition, roads, are covered by tons of earth in places, and have large and deep cracks. The council has sealed off many of these roads, making access totally impassable. The landslide also destroyed a cattle track that crossed the region.

Nightmarish cracks, splits land in Kashmir

21 February, 2013

At least 200 families of Yamrad Bala, 16 km from Handwara have been forced to migrate to other locations after cracks developed in the land around their houses.

The cracks are widening constantly giving a nightmarish experience to the inhabitants.

Locals said that land was developing cracks, which were widening with each passing day.

They expressed fear that their residential structures may collapse anytime and result in devastation of life and property.

The land is developing cracks and it appears that major soil erosion may wreak havoc to life and property,” said Habibullah Qureshi, a local.

The village is located at a slope and a non-metallic road connects it with the Handwara town.

We have a joint family of 18 members living under a single roof. Fearing collapse of our house, we were forced to vacate the during night and stay with relatives in Magam since Monday,” Muhammad Ayoub, a local said.

Some families who muster courage to stay in their homes during nights said it was a nightmarish experience for them to spend nights amid increasing fear of widening of cracks.

Following a representation by locals about soil erosion in the village, a team from Soil Conservation Department accompanied by Tehsildar Handwara Ghulam Ahmad Khan today visited the village.

Officials of Soil Conservation Department collected the sample of soil and sent it for testing. There is no need to panic and necessary measures will be taken for the safety of inhabitants of the village,” Khan said.

Most of the families vacated their houses and moved to safer location in nearby localities during nights.

Staying for nights here may prove disastrous because land is developing more cracks at different places. For past two days, we have been moving to other locations to spend nights and avoid any eventuality,” a local Muhammad Sarwar said.

Most of the houses in the village are multi-storied wooden structures and only a small number of houses have a concrete foundation.

Locals appealed the district administration to take necessary steps for their safety on the basis of the report on soil testing.

The soil may have turned marshy after many years. If that is the case, then the entire village may be forced to migrate to other areas for rehabilitation,” said another local Abdul Rashid Lone.

Giant sinkhole swallows rice field in China

Frozen rice fields in Sichuan province were swallowed up by a massive sinkhole Tuesday, with farmland collapsing into a pit ten metre across in the province’s Weiyuan county.
The cave-in occurred around 7pm on February 5, with an explosive sound heard by villagers 100 meters away, which some compared to the sound of firecrackers.
No one was reported to have been killed or injured, according to China News Service, but villagers will have to deal with the gaping holes in the middle of their land, while authorities monitor the area for further geologic instability.
Shanghai List

A second sinkhole?: State Officials Investigate Bubbling Lake Peigneur
21 February, 2013
The state is taking a closer look at what residents say are bubbles in Lake Peigneur in Iberia Parish.
The departments of Natural Resources and Environmental Quality took samples from Lake Peignuer today to find out what is causing the bubbles.

Last night, public officials, residents and other groups spoke out against AGL Resources, which wants to expand natural gas storage below salt caverns under the lake. Residents fear it could be another disaster waiting to happen--like the current sinkhole in Assumption Parish.

Residents near Lake Peigneur are already on edge since a 1980 accident involving an oil drilling rig. A miscalculation sent the rig's drill directly into the salt mine instead of under the lake. The whirlpool that was created swamped several acres of land and was strong enough to swallow barges from a nearby canal.

Fast forward to today--this is AGL's second attempt to get its permit. Several concerned residents want AGL's permit denied.

"We have unknown bubbling, it's definite. There's no two ways about it," Nara Crowley, President of Save Lake Peignuer, Inc. said.

Crowley is worried that the bubbles indicate big problems, and she's against AGL's proposed expansion of an underground natural gas storage facility.

"They should deny this permit. We should have the environmental impact statement we've always asked for because that's all we've ever asked for, and stop this project," Crowley said.

"If we get a big sink hole what's going to happen? We don't know. The previous accident in 1980 took in 150 acres of land, What's this one going to do," concerned resident David Lecompte said.

DNR says that its investigation into the bubbles is not related to AGL's permit process. But what they find out could have an effect.

"We want to get to the bottom of it too, and discover if this is something that requires some action, or if it's something that ends up being harmless. It might be something that needs to be acted on," Patrick Courreges, Department of Natural Resources, Director of Communications said.

Geological event rips road in Arizona

A 150-foot section of U.S. 89 south of Page that buckled and sunk four feet Wednesday might have been caused by a “geologic event,” according to the Arizona Department of Transportation.
The road collapsed at mile post 526 just 2.5 miles north of the intersection with U.S. 89A, about 25 miles south of page, according to an ADOT spokesman. He said the incident was not related to the weather.
The road was closed in both directions and there was no estimation when the highway would reopen, said an ADOT spokesman.
ADOT officials said northbound U.S. 89 was closed at the U.S. 89A junction, which takes motorists west toward Jacob Lake. In Page, U.S. 89 was closed at the junction with State Route 98. Northbound motorists were being routed to U.S. 160 east to State Route 98, and north on SR 98 back to U.S. 89 in Page. The detour is about 45 miles longer than the direct route, the spokesman said.
The Coconino College campus in Page was also closed because of the road closure. DPS reported a number of collisions within the collapse, but none appeared to be serious. No injuries were reported. No other information was immediately available.

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handsCommunity Partnership Programshands
 The students at Dillard Elementary are precious and important future members of our community.  There is always a need for programs, mentors and tutoring to ensure that the children at Dillard get every chance to succeed.  Dillard believes strongly in forming strong, lasting and productive bonds with community groups to improve the quality of our children's lives.  Dillard is working together with several community groups to implement several special programs at our school.
Click on the links below or use the menu bar to the left to learn more about these important community partnership programs!
Last Modified on March 5, 2012


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Bo Diddley In The Studio

Posted by rockindomp3

Quick, before they take it down again, check out this great Bo Diddley footage--

Welk Goes Latin from Debbie Fountain on Vimeo.

ADDENDUM: Well, I knew it would get pulled soon. On 9/19/09 it was yanked. I wish the person who was writing to the director (see comments) didn't! If you missed it, the Legend Of Bo Diddley is one of the greatest documentaries of all time, and hopefully it will be made available again. Keep an eye on this blog for more Bo Diddley soon....btw when will Bo's home made porno films surface? See Etta James' autobiography Rage To Live for more on that subject....

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Playing witness to the greatest era in sports history

Now that another Major League baseball season has begun, I started thinking about whether I will ever see the Chicago Cubs win a World Series. Im 45 years old, and, hopefully, will live to watch them for another 40 years or so. Chances are they will win it sometime during my life. They are way overdue, but Im not going to hold my breath and turn Cubbie blue until they do.

Regardless of whether the Cubs win the big one, I propose the theory that sports fans of my generation have to be the luckiest of all time. Take baseball, for instance. Weve been alive long enough to have seen many of the greatest players ever, and some of the biggest moments the sport has ever had.

Most of us who are 40 to 50 got to see legends such as Bob Gibson, Don Drysdale, Sandy Koufax, Roberto Clemente, Nolan Ryan, Reggie Jackson, Ernie Banks, Rod Carew, Pete Rose, Steve Carlton and Tom Seaver, play the game. We have seen most of the major records broken by the likes of Hank Aaron, Cal Ripken Jr., Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Rickey Henderson and Roger Clemens.

I think football fans of our generation have also been alive at the best time. Weve seen the greatest offensive players ever, including Jim Brown, Bart Starr, Johnny Unitas, Ray Berry, Gayle Sayers, Jerry Rice, Walter Payton, Joe Montana, Dan Marino, Emmitt Smith, Barry Sanders, Brett Favre, Steve Young, Franco Harris, Mike Ditka and Lynn Swann to name just a few. Defensive Hall of Famers weve seen take the gridiron include Dick Butkus, Ray Nitshcke, Joe Greene, Alan Page, Reggie White, Lawrence Taylor, Dick Lane, Dan Hampton and two guys named Mel Blount and Mel Renfro. So far, the only place kicker to make it in the Hall of Fame, Jan Stenerud, kicked during our lifetime.

While we were watching, basketballs greatest performed, including Michael Jordan, Wilt Chamberlain, Bill Russell, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Julius Irving, Oscar Robertson, Karl Malone, Shaquille ONeal, Jerry West, Pete Maravich and Dominque Wilkens. Maybe someday, if their careers prove worthy, we can add Lebron James and Allen Iverson to this list.

This is true for every other sport as well. Weve seen Wayne Gretsky, Mario Lemieux, Bobby Orr, Gordie Howe, Sergei Federov, Patrick Roy and Bobby Hull in hockey. Inside the ring, Muhammad Ali, Mike Tyson, Roberto Duran, Ray Leonard, Marvin Hagler, George Foreman and Joe Frazier have all proven themselves as boxings greatest.

The greatest stars of mens and womens tennis who have come from our era include Rod Laver, Bjorn Borg, Jimmy Connors, Arthur Ashe, Pete Sampras, John McEnroe, Andre Agassi, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, the Williams sisters, Serena and Venus.

Weve witnessed Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Lee Trevino, Gary Player and, of course, Tiger Woods in the world of golf.

The realm of motor sports is no exception to this theory. Mario Andretti, Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt, Bobby and Al Unser, A.J. Foyt, Jackie Stewart, Michael Schumacher and Jeff Gordon.

Other notables from the world of sports who have risen to the top during our lifetime include Pele, Lance Armstrong, Mark Spitz, Olga Korbut, Bruce Jenner, Carl Lewis, Nadia Comaneci, Earl Anthony, Don Carter and Secretariat.

And there are a few other sports moments worth mentioning.

Who can forget Kurt Gibsons heroics in the World Series?

One of the most memorable events in Olympic history was when the United States captured the gold medal in hockey.

An undefeated season in professional football has only been achieved one time. We were here to see it. The Miami Dolphins are the only team in NFL history to accomplish that feat. The Chicago Bears came close, only losing one game on their way to a Super Bowl title in 1985. Ironically, that loss came at the hands of the Miami Dolphins.

These are all events that have happened in a span most of us are able to remember. I find that truly remarkable.

Im sure Ive forgotten someone you feel should be on the list. Feel free to e-mail me any of your suggestions. Even if the Cubs dont make it this season, or, for that matter, in our lifetimes, we shouldnt sulk. Instead, we should rejoice in the fact weve been around to witness (in my opinion) the greatest era in sports history.

Doug Halberstadt is a local resident and is track announcer at Rockford Speedway. He can be reached via e-mail at

From the April 5-11, 2006, issue

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NIU School of Theatre and Dance presents two plays by John Guare

From press release

DEKALB, Ill.—The Northern Illinois University (NIU) School of Theatre and Dance will open their small venue Studio Series with the BA Showcase. The performance of two short plays written by John Guare will highlight the talents of undergraduate theater students. Something I’ll Tell You Tuesday and The Loveliest Afternoon of the Year will be performed Oct. 7-10 in the Stevens Building Corner Theatre on the NIU DeKalb campus.

Guare is a prominent American playwright known for his often-absurdist dramas about the futility of questioning existence. He has been writing plays since the 1960s. His plays have received numerous drama awards, including several Tony Awards and nominations.

Something I’ll Tell You Tuesday follows a senior couple on their way to the hospital for a scheduled treatment. Their daughter and her husband arrive to drive them there, but the young couple is in the middle of a big fight. Along the way, the senior couple reminisces about their past together and the similarities to their daughter’s relationship.

The Loveliest Afternoon of the Year is set in a park where a woman gets to know a man whom she meets regularly. As the man tells her about his life, the stories become increasingly absurd. The woman begins to weigh the conflict between her loneliness and his apparent madness.

Sophomore stage manager Kellianne Nottelmann describes the plays as being about two different stages of love. “The first [play] is about a matured love as they compare it to their daughter’s marriage,” says Nottelmann. “And the second is about a very intense and sudden love.”

These short tales of love will be performed in the intimate space of the Corner Theatre. Nottelmann sees the smaller venue as advantageous because, “It brings the audience closer to the actors.”

Bryan Wakefield is guest directing the performance. Wakefield is a graduate of the NIU School of Theatre and Dance’s Master of Fine Arts program in 2007.

Tickets are $5 and can only be purchased the night of the show at the Stevens Building box office in the lobby of the Stevens Building on the DeKalb campus. Tickets go on sale one hour before the show begins. The box office can be reached at (815) 753-1600.

From the Oct. 6-12, 2010 issue

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Friday, August 10, 2012

HYDROGYN: "Private Sessions"

Rating: RRR
Label: Rapid Fire Entertainment 2012
Review by Kimmo Toivonen

Hydrogyn have been around for a few years and they've managed to get a rather high profile, yet I haven't heard much of their music until now. I've seen plenty of photos of their vocalist Julie Westlake though, magazines and websites seem to be quite eager to publish them every given chance... I wonder why? :)

I Don't know why, but I was under the impression that Hydrogyn played heavier metal than what's on offer here. On "Private Sessions" they play fairly mainstream modern hard rock with some similarities to Evanescence and Within Temptation. There are touches of "Slave To The Grind"-era Skid Row too. That combination doesn't sound too bad at all, I'm actually quite glad that my strange impression of them being a full-on metal band was wrong.

My initial thoughts of the album were that Hydrogyn were a bit lost, trying to find their identity. However, after several spins the pieces started to fit and now the album sounds more cohesive. Some of the songs still sound a bit forced, as if they tried to fit them into the Evanescence/Within Temptation mould a bit too hard.

The band has several rather good songs, the highly melodic "Forbidden Kind" and "I Don't Know" for example, but maybe the one sure-fire hit is still missing. Julie Westlake is certainly not just a pretty face, she's an excellent vocalist and the "X-factor" that separates the band from the others. I have a feeling that Hydrogyn might be heading for the next level, if not with this album but maybe with the next one.

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