WARC-Identified-Payload-Type: text/aspdotnet

text:
Learn more
Calculate your risk
Calculate you risk.
Protect Yourself Now
SOLUS: Identity Theft Protection

SOLUS Identity Theft Protection Consumer Privacy Statement

At SOLUS, monitoring, protecting, and restoring your identity is our mission. We want you to be fully informed about how we use and protect your information. Please take a moment to review this privacy policy.

Information We Collect About You

If you are a customer, we collect certain information about you, such as your full name, primary residence mailing address, phone number(s) and email address as needed to provide our products and services to you. Credit card and/or checking account information utilized for processing payment is accomplished through a third party and is not retained by us. The above information is collected from the following sources:
  • Information we receive from you on applications or other forms;
  • Information we receive from you verbally;
  • Information about your transactions with us, our affiliates, or others; and
  • Information we receive from a consumer reporting agency.
We may use your personal information to:
  • process and administer your order for our products and services;
  • verify your identity and protect against fraud;
  • provide the products and services you request;
  • contact you about future SOLUS identity protection and insurance products and services; and
  • conduct quality testing and improve our products and services.
To Whom May We Disclose

We do not sell your personal information. We may disclose (applying to both current customers and former customers) the above information to our service providers who help us provide our products and services. We may also disclose that information:
  • In accordance with your express instructions or consent, or the express instructions or consent of your authorized representative;
  • For fraud prevention;
  • To carry out transactions requested by you; and
  • As otherwise permitted by law.
Information Used For Marketing

We may disclose the above information to companies that perform marketing services on our behalf or to other financial institutions with whom we have joint marketing agreements.

By responding to offers of products or services of our affiliates or non-affiliated third parties, you may be disclosing your personal information directly to them. Use and disclosure of your information by them in connection with their products and services is governed by their respective privacy policies. We do not control their use or disclosure of that information.

Consumer’s Right to Opt Out

If you prefer that we not disclose the above information about you to affiliated and nonaffiliated third parties, you may opt out of these disclosures. That is, you may direct us not to make those disclosures (other than those permitted by law). If you wish to opt out of disclosures to nonaffiliated third parties, you may email SOLUS at privacyoptout@solusid.com or call SOLUS Member Services at (877) 437-7644.

Additionally, under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), the Consumer Credit Reporting Companies are permitted to include your name on lists used by creditors or insurers to make firm offers of credit or insurance that are not initiated by you (“Firm Offers”). The FCRA also provides you the right to opt out, which prevents Consumer Credit Reporting Companies from providing your credit file information for firm offers. Through www.optoutprescreen.com, you may request to:
  • Opt-Out from receiving Firm Offers for Five (5) Years (electronically through this web site);
  • Opt-Out from receiving Firm Offers permanently (mail Permanent Opt-Out Election form, available through this web site); and/or
  • Opt-In and be eligible to receive Firm Offers. This option is for consumers who have previously completed an Opt-Out request (electronically through this web site).

If you choose to opt-out, you will no longer be included in firm offer lists provided by these consumer credit reporting companies. If you are not receiving firm offers because you have previously completed a request to opt out, you can request to opt in. For questions, call 1-888-5-OPTOUT (1-888-567-8688) or visit www.optoutprescreen.com

If you access our web site, we may use cookies. Cookies are small bits of computer code that we install on your computer. We use cookies to make your visit to our web site easier, and to collect information such as traffic, viewing and usage patterns, but only on an anonymous basis. For web site visitors who do not make purchases or sign in to our member area, our web server does not have access to personally identifiable information about you. It does not know your e-mail address unless you volunteer it. We place unique identifier cookies on the hard drives of those who sign on which are used to maintain the visitor “sign on” status for the duration of the visit, for one-time customizing/tailoring of your visit and for long-term storage of user preferences. We also use cookies to track the pages visited by a visitor so that we can deliver content based on the visitor’s profile (as provided by the visitor) and the visitor’s past activity on the web site. We collect click-stream data and HTTP protocol elements through access logs. This information is not personally identifiable and is used for web site and system administration including: research and development, user analysis and business decision-making. In addition, we may work with third parties who advertise on our web site or on whose web sites we advertise. We cannot control the cookies or other instruments those third parties may use to collect personal information.

Confidentiality and Security

We restrict access to the above information about you to those employees who need to know that information to provide products or services to you. We maintain physical, electronic, and procedural safeguards that comply with federal regulations to guard your information.

Restricted access

To access your personal information on our web site, you are required to select a user name and password. It is your responsibility to restrict access to your user name and password so that only you may gain entry to your personal information online.

Other Web Sites

You may access our web site through other web sites. We are not responsible for the collection of information by those other web sites, and are not bound by any policies or statements made on such sites. Other web sites, Internet search engines and marketing companies through which you access our web site may use persistent or session cookies and collect information such as traffic, viewing and usage patterns.

Children’s privacy

Our web site, and our products and services, are designed for use only by individuals who are 13 years or older. We do not knowingly solicit or retain information from individuals who are less than 13 years old. If you are less than 13 years old, please do not submit any personal information to us. In some or all cases, we may elect not to provide our products or services to anyone under 18 years old.

Changes to our privacy policy and other changes

We will not change these policies until those changes are posted on our web site. If you use our web site, you agree that we may notify you of changes to our privacy policy by updating our web site.

If we are acquired by another company or business, merge with another company or business, or complete a similar business transaction, your personal information may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will post notice of that transaction on our web site for a limited period of time.

Questions and comments

If you have questions or comments about our privacy policy, please contact us at the customer service number posted on our web site or provided in your materials.

Enroll By Phone: Call 800-640-0468
Member Login/Signup
  Already a member?  Login
  Become a member now:  Signup
  Not a member yet?  Learn more
Stay Informed
It's Free & you don't have to be a member.Stay informed with the latest identity theft information delivered right to your Inbox.


Content-Type: application/http; msgtype=response

WARC-Identified-Payload-Type: text/html

WARC-Truncated: length

WARC-Type: response

text:
Question: Ames Brothers Ltd ABL is a relatively small producer of

Ames Brothers Ltd. (ABL) is a relatively small producer of petrochemicals located in Sarnia. The common shares of the firm are publicly traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange, while the non-voting preferred shares are traded on the over- the- counter market. Because of the strategic competitive position of the firm, there was considerable recent interest in the shares of the company. During 20X6, much active trading occurred, pushing the price of the common shares from less than $ 8 to more than $ 20 by the end of the year. Similarly, the trading interest in the preferred shares pushed the dividend yield from 12% to only 9%.
Shortly after the end of 20X6, three other firms made public announcements about the extent of their holdings in ABL shares. Silverman Mines announced that it had acquired, on the open market, 32% of the common shares of ABL; Hislop Industries announced that it had acquired 24% of ABL’s common shares in a private transaction with an individual who had previously been ABL’s major shareholder; and Render Resources announced that it had accumulated a total of 58% of ABL’s preferred shares.
However, Silverman Mines and Hislop Industries are related. The Patterson Power Corporation owns 72% of the voting shares of Silverman Mines and 38% of the voting shares of Hislop Mines. There are no other large holdings of stock of either Silverman or Hislop. Render Resources is not related to Silverman, Hislop, or Patterson.

a) Has a business combination occurred in 20X6, with respect to ABL, as the term “business combination” is used in IFRS? Explain fully.
b) What implications do the various accumulations of ABL shares have for the financial reporting (for 20X6 and following years) for:
1. Silverman Mines
2. Hislop Industries
3. Render Resources
4. Patterson Power Corporation

View Solution:

Sale on SolutionInn
  • CreatedMarch 13, 2015
  • Files Included
Post your question

warcinfo:
robots: classic
hostname: ip-10-166-65-126.ec2.internal
software: Nutch 1.6 (CC)
isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2017-26
operator: Common Crawl Admin
description: Wide crawl of the web for June 2017
publisher: Common Crawl
format: WARC File Format 1.0
conformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf


text:
Question: Chesterfield County had the following transactions Prepare the entries first

Chesterfield County had the following transactions. Prepare the entries first for fund-based financial statements and then for government-wide financial statements.
a. A budget is passed for all ongoing activities. Revenue is anticipated to be $834,000 with approved spending of $540,000 and operating transfers out of $242,000.
b. A contract is signed with a construction company to build a new central office building for the government at a cost of $8 million. A budget for this project has previously been recorded.
c. Bonds are sold for $8 million (face value) to finance construction of the new office building.
d. The new building is completed. An invoice for $8 million is received and paid.
e. Previously unrestricted cash of $1 million is set aside to begin paying the bonds issued in (c).
f. A portion of the bonds comes due and $1 million is paid. Of this total, $100,000 represents interest. The interest had not been previously accrued.
g. Citizens’ property tax levies are assessed. Total billing for this tax is $800,000. On this date, the assessment is a legally enforceable claim according to the laws of this state. The money to be received is designated for the current period and 90 percent is assumed to be collectible in this period with receipt of an additional 6 percent during subsequent periods but in time to be available to pay current period claims. The remainder is expected to be uncollectible.
h. Cash of $120,000 is received from a toll road. This money is restricted for highway maintenance.
i. The county received investments valued at $300,000 as a donation from a grateful citizen. Income from these investments must be used to beautify local parks.

View Solution:

Sale on SolutionInn
  • CreatedOctober 04, 2014
  • Files Included
Post your question


text:
Question: Jolanta s Inc has a 700 000 8 percent bond issue that

Jolanta’s, Inc., has a $700,000, 8 percent bond issue that was issued a number of years ago at face value. There are now 10 years left on the bond issue, and the market interest rate is 16 percent. Interest is paid semiannually. The company purchases the bonds on the open market at the calculated current market value and retires the bonds.
1. Using present value tables in Appendix B, calculate the current market value of the bond issue.
2. Is there a gain or loss on retirement of bonds? If so, how much is it?

View Solution:

Sale on SolutionInn
  • CreatedSeptember 10, 2014
  • Files Included
Post your question


text:
Top 8 Tweets this week: How to Simplify Your Social Monitoring and more tips

Here’s my  Top 8 Tweets from last week. Enjoy and share to everyone! If you missed these cool tweets, you can follow me on Twitter

How to Simplify Your Social Monitoring [what do you use at the moment?]

5 Tips for Creating Pinterest Images That People Love to Share [loving Pinterest at the Mo’]

4 Ways to Profit From LinkedIn [some good tips here!]

Claim Your New Pinterest Business Page Today [I’ve claimed mine – have you?]

Is a Kick-Ass Blog Worth the Trouble? [great tips]

Be the best in the business after winning an Online Marketing Support from So Much Better

The Cleverest Ways to Use Dropbox That You’re Not Using [Love these tips]

The Five Fs blog: Christmas cupcakes from Pryces > thanks @kateab

Photo by: SEO Clerks

Last updated by at .

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

You may use these HTML tags and attributes:   <acronym title="">
      <q cite="">


WARC-Identified-Payload-Type: application/xhtml+xml

text:
Wednesday, February 10, 2016

W Gymnastics: OU Trio Sweeps Weekly Honors

For the second consecutive week, the trio of junior Chayse Capps, junior McKenzie Wofford and freshman Nicole Lehrmann of the No. 1 Oklahoma women's gymnastics team have swept the Big 12 honors, the conference announced Tuesday.

Capps was named the Big 12 Gymnast of the Week, while Wofford earned Event Specialist of the Week accolades and freshman Lehrmann received Newcomer of the Week recognition. This marks the first time since the Big 12 first awarded a newcomer honor in 2011 that the same three gymnasts have swept the same three awards.

The trio helped OU to impressive scores of 197.925 in a quad meet against TWU, No. 10 Auburn and Illinois State and a 197.900 on Sunday in a Big 12 contest with West Virginia. The two scores vaulted the Sooners to the No. 1 national ranking this week.

Capps put together a weekend for the record books, setting OU's program-best all-around score with a 39.775 on Friday night (the previous best was a 39.700). On beam, Capps recorded the first 10.0 of her career, which was the fourth in school history on the apparatus. She took at least a share of four titles on bars, beam and floor and in the all-around after scoring a career-best 9.975 on floor and a season-high 9.9 on vault in the meet. Capps also added a 9.9 on bars.

Against West Virginia, Capps followed with another strong performance, tallying a 39.625 in the all-around, her second-highest mark of the season. Capps claimed the beam title with a 9.95 and added scores of 9.85 (vault), 9.9 (bars) and 9.925 (floor) on Sunday. This weekend, all eight of Capps' event scores were at least a 9.85, including seven that were a 9.9 or better. Capps, moved into the No. 5 spot nationally in the all-around with a 39.443 average in her first season competing on all four events. She is also ranked No. 1 nationally on beam (9.914 average) and No. 24 on vault (9.854 average).

On Sunday, Wofford posted a season-high-matching 9.95 on bars in the anchor spot to snag the event title. Her score aided the Sooners to a 49.500 on the event, their second-best mark of the season. The McKinney, Texas, native also scored a 9.875 in Friday night's quad meet. For the fifth straight week, Wofford is ranked No. 1 nationally on bars with a 9.925 average and has scored at least a 9.9 on the event six times this season.

Lehrmann recorded four scores of 9.85 or better this past weekend in the Sooners' victories. She tallied a 9.85 on bars on Friday and a 9.875 on Sunday. With a 9.875 on beam, Lehrmann matched her career high in both of OU's meets. Against West Virginia, she helped OU to a season-high 49.425 on beam.

With the honors, the Sooners have now picked up 10 weekly conference accolades this season. The recognition is the second of the season for both Capps and Lehrmann and the fourth of the year for Wofford.

The Sooners (13-1 overall, 2-0 Big 12) will compete in the Perfect 10 Challenge at 6:45 p.m. CT on Friday, Feb. 12, inside Cox Convention Center in Oklahoma City. Other teams at the quad meet will be No. 12 Denver, No. 17 George Washington and Utah State. Tickets are available for purchase online.

///SoonerSports PR

Are you on Google+? Add +Oklahoma Sooners Blog to your Circle!
Share this PostTwitter sharePin ThisShare on TumblrShare on Google PlusEmail This


text:
Looking for Talented Bakers and Decorators

Here at SophistiCakes, we love what we do and we have fun doing it!  We are always looking for and hiring the best bakers, cake decorators, sales and support staff. Our dedicated team strives to achieve some incredible artistry with our scratch baking, and we share the knowledge so everyone is gaining in their baking skills. Join us Today!

We've Grown

We’re always looking for people with a passion for cakes! Sophisticakes Bakery is a small, family owned shop that specializes in cakes for all occasions. If you have experience in baking that is great, but motivation, work ethic and a smile is more important! If you’d like to learn about baking and cake decorating, our shop is a great place to be.

Kathleen Pawlicki, Chef and Owner

Kathy's love for baking and creating delicious desserts started at an early age with her mom in the family kitchen.  Years later, she developed her famous pound cake, and the legend was born.  In 2003, Kathy and her husband opened the doors to SophistiCakes in Drexel Hill, PA – the rest (as they say) is history.

Today, devoted customers come from all over Southeastern Pennsylvania, Southern New Jersey and Delaware for Kathy's delicious cakes, cupcakes and treats.  Under her expert guidance, the SophistiCakes team has won several awards, including the prestigious 'Best Wedding Cake' award in the Delaware County Times' Best of Delco, 2011.


text:
Tract F County Road 79 Truchas, NM 87578

Tract F County Road 79

Land: 3.24 acres (approx.)
Web #: 1092740
MLS ID: 201605774

For the discriminating buyer with a passion for the land the beauty and heritage of Northern New Mexico, this is truly a unique opportunity. A large, beautiful, diverse & secluded parcel of land in the Truchas area, which has an unobstructed view of the Pecos Wilderness & Truchas Peaks. Own your little piece of heaven on a 3 acre hilltop in the mountains of Truchas, with magnificent panoramic vistas and breathtaking views in all directions. This parcel's higher elevation location also give you the feeling you are on top of the entire Rio Grande river valley.

Victoria Markley

m: (505) 927-3229
o: (505) 982-6207

Exterior Features

Type of Property
Acreage / Lots

Mountain Views

This material is based upon information which we consider reliable, but because it has been supplied by third parties, we cannot represent that it is accurate or complete, and it should not be relied upon as such. This offering is subject to errors, omissions, changes including price or withdrawal without notice. EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITY


text:
NOTE: We only request your email address so that the person you are recommending the page to knows that you wanted them to see it, and that it is not junk mail. We do not capture any email address.

Enter multiple addresses on separate lines or separate them with commas.
(Link) 122916-morning-midwest-digest.html
(Your name) has shared this content with you from southeast FarmPress
(Your name) thought you would like to see this page from the southeast FarmPress web site.


text:
See I told you, this would help!

Coupon Abbreviations
  • SC = Store Coupon
  • MC = Manufacturer Coupon
  • SS = Smart Source
  • RP = Red Plum
  • PG = Proctor and Gamble
Coupon Terms
  • WYB = When You Buy
  • B1G1 = Buy One Get One Free
  • .75/1 = 75 cents off one item
  • .75/3 = 75 cents off three items
  • EXP = Expiration Date

Going Nuts? I can help you understand coupon terms and abbreviations

This post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure here.

Real vs Artificial Vanilla in the Organic Living Journey

Fall is in the air and pumpkin recipes are popping up all over my Facebook and Pinterest feeds. As fall baking flows into the holidays, our ovens may get a little more use than usual. A few months ago, we learned about organic vs. conventional spices. Organic spices are not only grown organically, they are also processed organically, without fumigation and irradiation. What about our vanilla extract? Shopping for vanilla, you’ll see a huge price range from a couple dollars to $15-30 for a bottle. What are you paying for? Does the higher price tag equal a better product? Should you prioritize organic vanilla?

Types of Vanilla

Vanilla Pods (Bean)

The fruit of the vanilla orchid. Contains the flavorful seeds inside a tough pod.

Pods are picked and then “killed” by being steeped in water or dried in the sun. Pods are then cured and fermented.

The whole pod may be used to flavor foods during cooking. The pod is also used in the making of natural vanilla extract.

Vanilla Extract

The vanilla flavors are extracted from the pod and stored in a liquid.

Vanilla pods or cuts are steeped in water and alcohol to extract the flavor compounds. The pods are removed before packaging the extract.

Liquid flavor extract.

Imitation Vanilla (vanillin)

Vanillin flavor compound synthesized and extracted from other sources.

Byproduct of the wood pulp (paper) or coal tar industries. Chemically produced and isolated.

Liquid flavoring added to recipes or commercially to manufactured foods, pharmaceuticals, and beauty products.

Real vs. Artificial

extract 1

Natural vanilla has over 250 unique flavor compounds contributing to the overall vanilla flavor. Artificial vanilla has just one: vanillin. When you buy a natural vanilla extract, you’re getting a completely different product than when you buy vanilla flavoring. In fact, vanilla flavoring isn’t made from the vanilla pod at all.

What’s the difference?

Natural vanilla extract is made by steeping the vanilla bean pods in water and ethyl alcohol, extracting the oils and flavors from the beans. If you want to get specific, true extract will have at least 13.35 ounces of vanilla beans per gallon of extract and the alcohol will be 70 proof. Sounds simple enough, right? It is. You can do this yourself at home and produce high-quality vanilla (in large quantities) for a fraction of the price! (Recipe below)

Artificial vanilla is a chemically synthesized byproduct of the paper industry or from coal tar. Not so easy to DIY. In taste tests conducted by Cooks Illustrated magazine, people couldn’t tell a difference between the flavor of natural vanilla and imitation vanilla when used in foods. Why?

When you cook or heat natural vanilla, many of those 250+ flavor compounds are lost. The vanillin flavor compound is not. (Vanillin is the only flavor in artificial vanilla.) Using natural vanilla in recipes that are not heated or adding the vanilla at the end of the cooking cycle will preserve the most flavor. With the significantly lower price of artificial vanilla flavoring, it has become the more popular choice for the food manufacturing industry.

Labeling Laws: Why your “100% pure” vanilla extract isn’t’ “pure” afterall

extract 2If you have a bottle of vanilla extract in the pantry, take a look at its ingredients. A bottle of McCormick’s 100% Pure vanilla extract may have a surprising ingredient listed: corn syrup. If it’s 100% pure as the label advertises, then why is there corn syrup there? The FDA’s labeling law states that the flavoring is “100% pure” if the only source of that particular flavor is the vanilla. Legally, your “pure” vanilla extract may contain: glycerin, propylene glycol, sugar, dextrose, and/or corn syrup.

Not all bottles of McCormick vanilla extract will contain corn syrup, because formulations and batches may vary. Regardless of the brand, check your ingredient label…always!

Health Benefits of Natural Vanilla

It’s no superfood, but vanilla does have some nice perks. The vanilla bean pod contains antioxidants, and up to 90% of those antioxidants are preserved in vanilla extract. Vanilla has also shown anti-inflammatory properties and liver-protecting properties in animal studies. At high doses, it has shown cholesterol-lowering abilities in studies.

Vanilla Flavoring Health Concerns?

Without a doubt, artificial vanilla is more processed than vanilla extract…but is it bad for you? A few studies have shown the potential for allergic reactions to vanillin. Other studies have shown that sensitive individuals may get migraines, triggered by vanillin. If you’re trying to avoid processed foods, skip the vanilla flavoring and stick with an additive-free vanilla extract.

Organic vs. Conventional

Certified organic vanilla beans (and vanilla products) will be free of synthetic pesticides, fertilizers, and herbicides. You will see a bit of a price difference in the organic vs. conventional vanilla beans and the extracts/flavorings, but shopping online will help reduce the price gap. I found ¼ lb (4 oz) of organic vanilla beans for $25 on Amazon.com (with Subscribe and Save), about the same price as the conventional beans!

If you’d like to buy an organic vanilla extract, there are plenty of good options available. At my local grocery store, I found a 2 oz bottle of organic vanilla for about $6, 4 oz for $10, and 8 oz for $20. You can save a few dollars on Amazon and buy a 4 oz bottle of organic vanilla extract for $7 ($1.75 per ounce) with Subscribe and Save. In comparison, the conventional vanilla extract was just $0.30 cheaper (4 oz size).

Boutique Vanilla Extracts

extract 3

Another price gap you’ll notice are the new “boutique” vanilla extracts selling for $15-30 per bottle. Vanilla beans can vary in price based on the grade or origin/source. Grade “A” vanilla beans are softer, more supple, and have a higher moisture content. Grade “B” beans are more dry and may be blemished or damaged. The grade of the bean is not indicative of the flavor, however. So, when you’re shopping to make extract, a grade B bean is fine. For cooking and slicing, a grade A bean may be easier to use.

Vanilla extract’s price may also be affected by the bean’s origin (Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, Uganda, Madagascar, etc.) and whether it is a single origin bean – meaning the whole batch came from the same farm. Vanilla extract sourced from Madagascar (Bourbon vanilla) has the most classic vanilla flavor, but an extract’s flavor will vary with the various countries of origin.

To the vanilla connoisseur, I’m sure the differences in grade and origin are all notable. But…even to the well-trained palate (referring to the Cook’s Illustrated taste-test), the taste difference is indiscernible between artificial vanilla and vanilla extract, let alone a boutique single-origin vanilla. Although I love special, unique “foodie” items, I don’t think I’ll be buying into the boutique vanilla market any time soon. If you’ve tried a boutique vanilla, is there anything I’m missing?

DIY Vanilla Extract

For the best-tasting and best-priced organic vanilla extract, make your own! I’ve been making my own vanilla extract for a few years now; it’s dead easy and fool-proof. All you need is some liquor, some vanilla beans, and time.

6 vanilla bean pods (about 1 ounce of beans)
8 ounces of 35-40% alcohol (about 70-80 proof) such as vodka, bourbon, or rum, organic or local if you can find i
Glass bottle or jar

  1. Slice the vanilla pod lengthwise and place in glass jar. (Cut pods into shorter lengths, if needed.)

  2. Cover pods completely with alcohol. Do not leave any of the pod exposed to air.

  3. Seal the bottle and wait. The pods should steep at least one month but may be left for longer. Flavor continues to develop and intensify over time. I wait 10-12 weeks to get a rich extraction.

  4. When the extract is ready, you may remove the pods or leave them in the alcohol.

Eventually, the pods will be stripped of their flavors, but you may continue to “feed” your extract with new pods. Want to reuse the pods after making extract? Let them dry and store in sugar to create a vanilla sugar!

DIY Vanilla Extract

Cost Breakdown
6 vanilla bean pods = $5.00
8 oz vodka = about $3

Total Cost: $8.00 for 8 oz ($1.00 per ounce)

Do you have to hurry up and replace your vanilla extract before baking? Probably not. However, you should consider starting up your own batch of homemade vanilla, ASAP! Start a large batch now and bottle some up as holiday gifts for teachers, hostesses, or friends. You can find decorative 2-4 oz glass bottles at a craft store or use small mason jars.

If you’re not up for making your own vanilla extract, check out the organic vanilla extract next time you’re shopping. The price gap isn’t huge and you can cut out some chemicals and pesticides. Always check the ingredients label and look out for any additives!

Have you made your own vanilla extract? Any other tips to share? Let us know!

This is part of an Organic Living Journey Guest Post Series now written by Mariana who has a mother’s heart and scientist’s brain.


text:
How a painful divorce became a musical comedy for Boca woman

Staff Writer

Boca Raton’s Amy Botwinick wants you to know that her self-help book about divorce has nothing to do with her work on “Divorce Party The Musical: The Hilarious Journey to Hell…and Back” coming to Fort Lauderdale’s Parker Playhouse Nov. 27 through Dec. 9.

“The play has nothing to do with the book,” explains Botwinick, a chiropractor-turned-writer. “Once I finished the book I was looking around thinking, ‘Ok, what can you do next?’ I always say I went from chiropractor to divorce coach. In the book I say to the reader that I made every mistake possible, so you learn from what I learned…the hard way.”

What she decided to do next was to take another approach to the subject matter of her 2005 book publishing “Congratulations on Your Divorce – The Road to Finding Your Happily Ever After.” Perhaps a comedy for the stage?

In 2009 she started writing the script, but she knew she needed help from someone with experience in the medium. Someone like Juno Beach’s Mark Schwartz, who produced the monster hit “Menopause The Musical.”

“I had it all in my head,” says Botwinick. “I was running around Boca trying to find someone to help and getting nowhere. So I was at a bar function, I mean a bar as in a lawyer bar, in West Palm Beach with my [second] husband Gary, who is an attorney. I don’t think we were married yet at the time. Everyone was talking lawyer stuff and I found myself in need of someone to talk to. I’m looking around and I see this guy with a ponytail. He looks cool, so I start up a conversation with him. When he told me what he did I immediately started to break out in a sweat. I kept thinking, ‘don’t throw up on him.’ ”

After recalling that he had seen her promoting her book on “The Tyra Show,” Schwartz put Botwinick in touch with director/choreographer/lyricist Jay Falzone, who wrote parody lyrics to Top 40 golden oldies for the show (“I wrote it and he shaped it,” says Botwinick).

The musical is about Linda who is facing a divorce after 16 years of marriage. Unable to move on, she eats her feeling, preferring large tubs of Chubby Hubby ice cream. Her sister Carolyn, cousin Courtney and college roommate Sheila stage an intervention with a weekend divorce party, which evolves from no-he-didn’t moral support…to girl-listen-up advice…to himbo ogling.

The show made a debut at West Palm Beach’s Kravis Center back in January to savage reviews but sold-out houses.

“We tightened it up,” says Botwinick. “It’s a much better show. It’s more cohesive. It has better lines. It was definitely good to get audience reaction. You don’t know what you have until you put it up there onstage.”

Also for this run at Parker Playhouse is new tour merchandise in the form of an “I Rub My Duckie” vibrating bath toy. The $30 pinpoint massager is billed as being for treating muscle tension (go to the website for two other vibrating toys: the Pocket Rocket and the Jack Rabbit).

“By the end of the show, women are dancing in the aisles and leaving with a smile on their face knowing they are not alone,” adds Botwinick. “And our concessions are a tongue-in-cheek nod to that.”

“Divorce Party The Musical”

When: 8 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday; 1 and 7 p.m. on Sunday

Where: Parker Playhouse, 707 N.E. Eighth Street (Holiday Park) in Fort Lauderdale

Cost: $31.50 to $39

Contact: 954-462-0222 or

Copyright © 2017, South Florida


text:
Banksy art installation at a South Beach hotel

Newly open Riviera South Beach Hotel features Banksy art. The renowned British-born artist’s abstract artwork is all over the tiling throughout the property. Set squarely in the Art Deco district, the new hotel consists of 160 guestrooms and suites, with many overlooking the ocean.
Copyright © 2017, South Florida


text:
South Gate

  • (323) 563 - 8813
  • (323) 563 - 1646

We Work For You!

We work hard to provide our clients with the most positive real estate experience possible. A vital part of today's real estate industry is technology, and to that end we provide our clients with state-of-the art web tools and marketing. It's just one of the many things that has made us one of the most respected real estate companies in our service area!

Real Estate Solutions

In today’s real estate market, you need to work with a real estate professional you can trust. Our sales professionals are dedicated to providing the absolute finest service and expertise possible. Whether you are buying or selling your primary residence, a second home, or relocating to a new neighborhood, we can help make your home ownership dreams come true.

To aid you in your home buying or selling process, our website offers a wealth of information about the home finding and buying process, please take a look or feel free to contact us with any questions you may have.


text:
THINGS got spooky at Coleg Gwent as students attended a fright night fundraiser.

Zombies, ghosts and vampires thrilled at a Halloween prom at the Cross Keys campus.

Rhys Hutchings from Newport’s Goldie Lookin’ Chain opened the event, which was held in aid of Children’s Hospice Ty Hafan.

Theatrical make up students transformed guests with frightening face paint as the party got under way in the theatre.

Independent Living Skills (ILS) students and the college’s voluntary drama group Shine who organised the event, were joined by friends including Olympic torch bearer Lyn Hull, an ambassador from Ty Hafan, local school children and students from across the campus.

ILS Tutor Victoria English said: "Students are relishing the chance to dress up for the prom and to raise as much money as they can.”

“Ty Hafan is a cause close to our hearts, as the brother of one of our students receives amazing support from the charity.”

A raffle and cake sale was also held and a limousine donated by Co-operative Funeralcare Risca provided a backdrop for pictures.


text:
Talkin' cotton

Wet weather kept producers out of the field last week, according to Dr. J. C. Banks, OSU Extension state cotton specialist. “Heavy rains normally cause a problem with crusting when they occur prior to emergence, but last week we had light showers almost daily, and soil temperatures stayed above 60 degrees,” he said.

“This allowed the cotton to germinate and emerge without having to push through a heavy soil crust. On Friday and Saturday, most of the cotton planted the prior week had emerged. We need warm and dry weather to continue planting in the longer season areas.

“If this week is warm, it is time to start planting dryland cotton. Moisture conditions are excellent and we need to take advantage of the good soil conditions and temperature. If tillage is needed prior to planting, it needs to be shallow and the seed needs to be placed into firm soil. If planting will be in or near small grains that are maturing, be aware that as soon as the plants dry down, thrips will move to the young, green cotton as soon as it emerges.

“In these areas, an in-furrow or seed treatment insecticide should be used. I have already noticed high numbers of thrips coming out of drying wheat. If not controlled, they can cause early season stress which will result in later fruiting and reduced yields”

Chris Sansone, Texas A&M Extension entomologist at San Angelo, and Todd Baughman, Texas Extension agronomist at Vernon, have similar reports on general growing conditions across the Texas Rolling Plains. “Wet weather has put cotton planting, all spring planting, on hold until the ground dries. Soil temperatures are adequate, so once it does dry all producers will be planting. Early planted cotton will have to be replanted due to soils sealing due to rainfall or fields going under water for a few days.

“Approximately 1,500 acres of wheat was damaged in the Southern Rolling Plains by hail, but severe weather missed most of the area. Corn and grain sorghum are making good progress in the Southern Rolling Plains, although wireworms have caused some problems in grain sorghum fields in isolated areas.”

Talkin’ Cotton is a feature of NTOK Cotton, a cotton industry partnership, which encourages increased cotton production in the Rolling Plains of North Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas. For more information on the cotton scene, check out, and

Hide comments

  • Allowed HTML tags:

Plain text

  • No HTML tags allowed.
  • Web page addresses and e-mail addresses turn into links automatically.
  • Lines and paragraphs break automatically.


text:
Ten Little Witches

Written by Nancy Krulik

Reviewed by Shelby G (age 9)

Ten Little Witches in the Sabrina book series is a really good book. Harvey, Sabrina's mortal friend gets a mysterious invitation to a party in the "other realm." When they get there, a prank is pulled and Sabrina decides to get to the bottom of it. At the end, a family is reunited and the prankster is found. This book doesn't have any lessons or morals, it's just entertaining.

I really liked this book because it was just something fun to read. The way the author put it, I felt like I was there, watching it happen. The Charmingly's (a couple also invited to the party) are probably my favorite characters because they seem like really friendly people who I would like to meet. In the book, Bunny Cabot seemed like a rich, pretty, blonde but at the end turns out to be a person who knows about science and has brown hair and glasses. The thing that is unique about the book is that it is part of the Sabrina the Teenage Witch series. There is a similar plot to the books because something bad happens, Sabrina fixes it. When I read this book I felt like I was a witch myself.

I recommend this book because it's a good way to use your imagination. The plot has so many twists and unusual happenings, that it kept me interested and you will be to!

Shelby G is a student in Mrs. Appell's 4th and 5th Grade Class


text:
Helping Spalding cancer sufferers look and feel better

Have your say

Women with cancer can lose so much more than their health.

As a result of the treatment they might lose their hair, their eyebrows and lashes, and their skin can dry out and become sensitive.

Jo Esdale (left) and Michelle Parker. Photo: SG241115-107TW

Jo Esdale (left) and Michelle Parker. Photo: SG241115-107TW

Understandably, that can lead to women losing their body confidence and feeling less willing to go out.

Now health and wellness enthusiast Jo Esdale – who runs Essential Well-Being – is planning to run free masterclasses to educate women in that situation about what they can do to help themselves look and feel better.

They are being run for the charity Look Good Feel Better and will be held at Jo’s new clinic at 9 London Road, Spalding.

The first one is being held on January 15 and the clinic will provide all the gentle, mineral-free products used during the class and give participants a trial size to take away – it is up to them if they would like to buy more.

Jo, who will be leading the sessions with clinic manager Michelle Parker, says Look Good Feel Better is currently running workshops in hospitals in Peterborough and King’s Lynn. However, she says: “What I don’t like about that is you have to go to the place where you are getting chemotherapy.

“The chemotherapy changes your skin completely, makes it feel dry, sore, sensitive and uncomfortable and if you use your normal products it can make your skin even more sore.

“We’ll talk to women about how to care for their skin, and give them nutrition, exercise and make-up advice. We’ll teach them to recognise their eyebrow shape and re-create it naturally.”

Jo has been helping women to look and feel better since she joined the industry in 1990, first working at home until she moved into the Vine Street clinic three years ago.

Since then the team has grown, prompting the move to the former bed and breakfast premises.

The larger premises will allow the clinic to extend the range of treatments and therapies on offer and a courtyard garden will allow space for summer out-of-doors workshops.

Contact the clinic on 01775 249425 for more information about the masterclasses.


text:
We are pleased to feature a new work “What’s Underneath” by New York artist Kristie Koll. This beautiful work started with hope, moved in a new direction and found a surprising way to come full circle. The art and her process tell a lovely story about persistence and being open to change.

What’s Underneath
Acrylic and tracing paper on canvas
30″ x 48″

” ‘Hope does not disappoint’ from Romans 5:5 is where this painting began and is hidden in the early layers. This passage contains a promise that I continually need reminding of. As I worked on the painting, it moved away from the original direction and was gessoed over and started anew. Still some of the earlier work showed through. The layers with tracing paper and blue acrylic was highly intuitive and straight from my soul or center.

“What I found most interesting is this piece had the most conscious scripture and focused prayer and was the work 90% of people engaged with in a recent open studio event. They stepped into it as if they could see the hope through the layers of tracing paper and gesso.”
-Kristie Koll

Romans 5:5
“And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.”

Seeing Ms. Koll’s beautiful work reminds us that the Bible can surprise us in unlikely ways. It’s possible to be inspired by the Bible to start a new work and then find yourself moving in a completely new direction. What’s underneath can influence what floats to the surface.

Visit www.KristieKoll.com to learn more about adventures that take her from Legos to acrylics and back, San Francisco to Siberia and now Long Island City where she never loses hope.

Find something interesting? Consider Donating.

Tagged with:

Filed under: New WorksVisuals


text:
Author: Sorting Last Post on Top ↓ Message:
4/20/08 12:43 A

My SparkPage
Send Private Message
Not only am I new to this group, but I'm also new to the whole college scene. I will be a college freshman in the coming fall and I have seen what the freshman 15 has done to my friends. I'm hoping to prevent that from happening to me next year.
It would be really great to hear advice from you guys

Page: 1 of (1)

Report Innappropriate Post

Other College Survival Team Introduce Yourself to Team Forum Posts

Topics: Last Post:

Thread URL: http://www.sparkpeople.com/myspark/team_messageboard_thread.asp?board=-1x592x14186340

Review our Community Guidelines

x Lose 10 Pounds by August 5! Sign up with Email Sign up with Facebook
By clicking one of the above buttons, you're indicating that you have read and agree to SparkPeople's Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and that you're at least 18 years of age.


text:
Chemical Evidence German Lab to Analyze Samples from Syria

Samples collected by UN chemical weapons experts in Syria have been brought to Germany for analysis, according to a German newspaper. The information comes as Russian President Vladimir Putin says he will not rule out military action against Syria.

Samples the UN team collected in Syria were sent to laboratories around Europe to check them for traces of poison gas.

Samples the UN team collected in Syria were sent to laboratories around Europe to check them for traces of poison gas.

A German military laboratory is reportedly analyzing evidence collected by UN inspectors in Syria to determine whether chemical weapons have been used in the civil war there, a German newspaper reported on Wednesday.

The Scientific Institute for Defense Technologies (WIS) in the small town of Münster, about 70 kilometers (43 miles) south of Hamburg, is the only large-scale German institute that researches defense against nuclear, biological and chemical warfare. The Munich-based Süddeutsche Zeitung reported that the institute had received samples of concrete and textiles collected in Syria to search for traces of poison gas.

There was no immediate confirmation of the report because the locations of the analyses were meant to be kept secret. However the WIS is one of several labs across the globe associated with the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, one of the main collaborators in the UN investigation.

Photo Gallery

6  Photos
Photo Gallery: Two Million Flee Syria
Germany is one country that has avoided holding the Syrian government responsible for the use of chemical weapons in the civil war. Analyzing samples taken from Syria at a German laboratory could thus provide a greater perception of objectivity in the investigation, which the UN has promised would be independent and accurate.

The investigation's mandate is limited to determining whether chemical weapons were used at all in Syria -- not which side in the war used them.

Putin Does Not Rule Out Military Action

The 20 UN inspectors arrived in Syria on Aug. 18, tasked with investigating three sites of alleged chemical weapons attacks. On Aug. 21, rebels reported a massive chemical attack east of Damascus that is believed to have killed some 1,400 people. The Syrian government has denied responsibility for the attack, but initially refused to allow the UN team to visit the site. Permission was finally granted five days later -- after the area had been massively shelled. Western nations accused the government of trying to destroy evidence of the chemical attack.

The full analysis of samples from Syria was initially expected to last up to three weeks. But UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has asked the team to speed up its work.

The United States has led international calls for an attack on Syria in retaliation for the alleged chemical attack. The greatest hindrance to those calls has been Russia, which has blocked any action against Syria in the UN Security Council.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that he would not rule out agreeing to military intervention in Syria if there were proof that Syrian government forces had used chemical weapons. However the limited mandate to the UN investigation means such proof could remain elusive. The United States and Great Britain have both partially released intelligence reports they say prove the Syrian government's guilt, but that evidence has been dismissed by Syria and its allies.

"We have no data that those chemical substances -- it is not yet clear whether it was chemical weapons or simply some harmful chemical substances -- were used precisely by the official government army," Putin said in an interview with AP and Russia's First Channel.

acb -- with wire reports

Discuss this issue with other readers!
Share your opinion!

All Rights Reserved
Reproduction only allowed with the permission of SPIEGELnet GmbH

Die Homepage wurde aktualisiert. Jetzt aufrufen.
Hinweis nicht mehr anzeigen.


text:
Man commits suicide after wife accidentally kills his mother

A Zimbabwean man who works as an office administrator at Kana Mission hospital in Gokwe South has killed himself after his wife drove their family pick-up into the house killing his mother and a visitor. The deceased, Delani Ngwenya who reportedly committed suicide on Sunday, January 29, 2017, is said to have recently bought the vehicle and decided to teach his wife how to drive.

But his wife accidentally rammed into the family house killing her mother in law and a visitor.

According to a source who witnessed the tragic scene, he said Delani who couldn't withstand the loss of his mother hanged himself after the wife mistakenly stepped on the accelerator instead of the brakes while he was teaching her to drive.

'It is said that Delani recently bought a car and was teaching his wife to drive and upon reaching his home yesterday afternoon she mistakenly stepped on the accelerator instead of the the brakes thereby driving straight into the house where Delani’s mother, a visitor and his father were sitting, 'Mrs. Ngwenya, Delani’s mother and Mrs. Chamunorwa the visitor died on the spot and Delani could not stomach the loss thus he hanged himself,' he said.

Source: Zim News

Jefferson Obuseri

No comments:

Post a Comment


text:
Arrow-right Camera

Writing your own obituary may sound morbid

Sun., Aug. 7, 2011

But it’s opportunity to celebrate your life while developing ideas for future

Paula Davis was 55 when she and her husband closed their auto-body repair business.

Davis looked for a job. Employers told her she was dead in the water – no college degree, no experience they could see, though Davis had acquired plenty in the auto-body business: bookkeeper, hirer and firer of employees, customer relations professional.

Then she heard Heritage Funeral Home needed a bookkeeper. She applied and got the job.

And for the past decade, Davis has enjoyed an amazing new life as a funeral director.

She is now on a mission to encourage people to write their own obituaries, long before they need them.

Summer is a great time to get started, Davis says. Families are gathering for reunions. Older members can fill in family-history blanks and provide colorful anecdotes about your early life.

You don’t have to call it an obituary, if the word sounds too morbid.

Davis calls it “your life story.” You can, too.

•   •   •

On a recent Friday morning, Davis – dressed in a black business suit with a gold antique starburst pin – faced her audience. About two dozen older men and women sat in her obituary-writing class at Corbin Senior Center on Spokane’s North Side.

“The best time to write your own obituary is when you are not only alive but healthy,” she said. “You can have the last word.”

The women and men in the room remember when most newspapers employed obituary writers. A person’s life story was treated the same as a news story: just the facts, ma’am.

The obituaries were written at no charge to the family, though they could pay for an additional classified ad obit. In the past decade, most newspapers have switched to a classified-ad option only, which leaves the just-the-facts newsroom out of the process.

Classified obits cost money. For instance, a Spokesman-Review obit can range in price from about $150 to as much as $1,000, depending on length and how many days it runs.

On the plus side? You can say whatever you wish about yourself.

Families need obituaries to disseminate to other outlets, too, such as funeral home websites and college alumni magazines.

“Don’t put off writing your own life story because it seems too big to finish,” Davis told the class. “You don’t have to worry about finishing it. But you can get started.”

The class members belonged to a generation of folks reluctant to brag about themselves or include specific, but telling, personal details.

This autobiographical writing isn’t a problem for their children and grandchildren immersed in social media. On Facebook, for instance, people list their lunch items or share what happened on a first date.

Davis handed out several obituaries as examples of adding some social-media spice to an obit.

George “found great pleasure in teaching an untold number of people how to pick tree-ripened peaches.”

Lloyd had “some of the finest restored Model As and Ford V-8s, and the cleanest workshop where he could display them.”

James, who played football in the 1930s, “earned spending money from an ardent football fan who paid him $1 for each touchdown he made.”

Edna’s “approach to health defied logic but seemed to work for her. Maintaining that smoking protected her from germs was but one aspect.”

To get to the specific details, Davis says, write three sentences – or even just three words – that best describe you.

Davis, who has almost completed her own obituary, shared one of her sentences: “I never met a stranger.”

Others who know Davis describe her with this word: “Translator.”

•   •   •

Louis Davenport of Davenport Hotel fame died July 28, 1951, God rest his soul.

Lovers of the hotel gathered recently at Riverside Memorial Park to pay their respects at Davenport’s grave.

As Davis waited for the guests, she said that some grieving family members arrive at her office, obituary notes scribbled on the back of envelopes.

“You spend days planning a birthday party or a vacation,” she said. “And then all of a sudden a death occurs and you have three or four hours to get this obituary written because we have to get it to the paper.

“If you have to start from square one, that is not enough time. It’s so tragic after it’s run to have someone call us and say, ‘We left Aunt Sally out, and we couldn’t spell Monique’s name.’

“Well, Aunt Sally is mad. Monique is upset. A death should be a celebration of someone’s life and not a time of (stress).”

After the walk to Davenport’s simple grave, the visitors sat down to Davenport coffee cake, baked by Davis, along with fresh fruit and tea and coffee poured from silver pots.

Tom McArthur, a communications consultant and Davenport Hotel historian, applauded Davis’ write-your-own- obit crusade.

“Everyone’s story has a beginning, middle and end. We all have the same end,” he said.

“Paula is a great translator. She makes sense of the language of death.”

Writing – in advance – the words you’ll leave in death can help you change your life now. In a roundabout way, this happened to Davis.

As she settled into her job at Heritage Funeral Home, she noticed that education is listed on a person’s death certificate. She didn’t want hers to read “some college.”

She returned to Eastern Washington University in 2003 and finished a degree in 2006 in interdisciplinary studies.

A fact that will be included in the obituary Davis has written – long before she needs it.

Click here to comment on this story »


text:
Kumar joins India's Lord's elite

2014-07-19 16:56
Bhuvneshwar Kumar (AP)

London - Bhuvneshwar Kumar became only the twelfth India bowler to take five or more wickets in a Test innings at Lord's on Saturday.

Kumar's return of six for 82 against England on the third day of the second Test also represented his Test-best bowling figures in what was the 24-year-old's eighth match at this level.

Fast-medium bowler Kumar's haul was also only the third time an India bowler had taken six wickets in a Test at Lord's after Amar Singh (six for 35 in 1936) and left-arm spin great Bishan Bedi's six for 223 in 1974.

Kumar was the second India player this match to mark his Test debut at Lord's with a major individual performance after Ajinkya Rahane made 103 in the tourists' first innings 295.

Both Rahane and Kumar will now have their names inscribed on the Lord's honours boards that record all those who've either scored a century or taken at least five wickets in an innings in a Test at the 'home of cricket'.

Below is the complete list of India bowlers who have taken five or more wickets in a Test innings at Lord's:

1936 Amar Singh 6-35

1946 Lala Amarnath 5-118

1952 Vinoo Mankad 5-196

1957 Ramakant Desai 5-89

1967 Bhagwath Chandrasekhar 5-127

1974 Bishan Bedi 6-223

1982 Kapil Dev 5-125

1986 Chetan Sharmam 5-64

1996 Venkatesh Prasad 5-76

2007 Rudra Pratap Singh 5-59

2011 Praveen Kumar 5-106

2014 Bhuvneshwar Kumar 6-82

Read more on:    cricket

What To Read Next

Read News24’s Comments Policy

24.com publishes all comments posted on articles provided that they adhere to our Comments Policy. Should you wish to report a comment for editorial review, please do so by clicking the 'Report Comment' button to the right of each comment.

Comment on this story
Comments have been closed for this article.
Live Video Streaming
Video Highlights
Sport Talk

Love 2 Meet
Sport24 on Twitter

Follow Sport24 news on Twitter

The pride of England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland have combined once again to form the British & Irish Lions. Their mission? Victory over the world champion All Blacks in their own back yard. How will their three-test series pan out? Stay glued to Sport24 to find out!

Latest blogs

Who should open the batting alongside Dean Elgar in SA's four-Test series against England in July?

Twitter Follow Sport24 on Twitter

Facebook "Like" Sport24's Facebook page

WIN Enter and win with Sport24!

BlackBerry Stay in the loop on your BlackBerry

RSS Feeds Sport news delivered really simply.

There are new stories on the homepage. Click here to see them.


WARC-Identified-Payload-Type: application/rss+xml

text: College Basketball at Clayton Hanson newsfeed Player news for Clayton Hanson from College Basketball at en Copyright 2016, Sports Reference LLC Sports Reference LLC 316 73 Sports Reference Logo 3/25: Badger of Honor- Roles Reversed After 10 Years: Wisconsin vs North Carolina NCAA Tournament Rematch Alando Tucker, Kammron Taylor, Mike Wilkinson, Sharif Chambliss, Clayton Hanson and Zach Morley, or in other words, the last Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball team with significant minutes against a Roy Williams North Carolina team in the NCAA Tournament. If Wisconsin vs North Carolina in 2... 2015-03-25 20:36:56


text:
Free Shipping

On all orders $45 and up

Los Angeles Kings Marcel Dionne CCM Team Color Premier Jersey

Item # CG-7268A-5B3-MDILAKPU
Free Shipping on All Orders $45 and Up
Estimated Delivery Dates ( click here )
Leaves Warehouse in 2-3 Business Days
You'll honor one of the game's all-time greats every time you wear this Heroes of Hockey Jersey from Reebok. Features embroidered team logo with applique twill on chest and where applicable on shoulders plus layered twill player name back and sleeve numbers. Double layered Air Knit shoulder construction for comfort and durability and CCM embroidered patch on the back. Officially licensed by the NHL.

Approximate chest measurements: M=38/40, L=42/44, XL=46/48 2X=50/52
Officially Licensed Product By: Reebok


text:
Great News

We are delighted to announce that Daniel Rankin formerly of 99 Springtown Camp has been re-united with his family after 45 years of separation.

Are visitors to the website may remember that ran a campaign to try and discover the whereabouts of Daniel after we were contacted by Tommy Rankin Daniels Brother. This is what Tommy said in his email.

Daniel Rankin?Last known at location: 1961

Where is Daniel Rankin?
My name Is Tommy Rankin and I am looking for my brother Daniel. I have not seen or spoken to Daniel for nearly 30 years.I have searched for him on a number of occasions but to know avail.I am hoping that one of the visitors to may be able to help me to find my brother
I have just been looking at your online map of Springtown Camp, I used to live around the G8 - G18 area back in 1947 - 1960 and moved to the C25 - C21 area. My memory is a bit vague as it has been in the region of 45 years since I have been back to Springtown Camp.
I used to live at #99 Springtown Camp (The Rankin Family).My father's name was also Daniel Mother was Mary. My Brothers & Sisters are:- Joan, Martha, Annie, Patricia & Bridget and my youngest brother is Daniel (who I have been trying to trace for years but without success) and my oldest brother is Billy who left home when I was very young.
I was approx 12/13 years old and Daniel would have been about 7/8 years of age when we went to the Termonbacca Home.

We stayed there for about 6 months. And were then sent to a home Dhu Varren which was on the Portstewart Road in Portrush. (Apparently the home is no longer there).
I believe Daniel was fostered out to the farm in Co. Derry directly from Termonbacca. Not absolutely sure if he went to the other home in Portrush?
I am fairly sure that the farm Daniel went to was in Co. Derry and he would have been about 7/8 years of age.?I do know that he was fostered out from the Orphanage to a farm but do not know the address. This is when I very last saw Daniel

If I can remember anything else in the meantime I will add it to this page here at the Abscent Loved ones area.You can contact me directly at, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or email hugo at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

With the help of ex Springtowners who phoned and emailed the website.I followed up certain leads that were given to me and over a two or three week period I called at various addresses were i hoped to contact people who could help me in the search for Daniel.Unfortunately each time I drew a blank as has happened to other campaigns that were launched to find Daniel in the past.I then went too the the Termonbacca Home up at the back of Creggan were Tommy and Daniel were resident for about 6 months as children in the early sixties.Termonbacca is no longer a home but now is a place of retreat.They directed me two the sisters of Nazareth in Bishop Street in Derry.The sisters of Nazareth were responsible for running Termonbacca at the time. There I met with a very kind sister who listened to my story.After a second meeting she told me that if the dates I had given her were correct then they would most likely have information on Daniel.She then told me quite rightly, that the only people who could have access to this information would be Daniel's family and could only do so in writing .I passed this message on to Tommy and and told him that was at his and his familys disposal for any future help they may require.?That was around November 2007 and I did not hear from Tommy again until yesterday when they emailed me the marvelous news of Daniel being located. They also mentioned a charity organization called adoptni who were primarily involved in finding Daniel.??The full story of Daniel's re-union will be told here on in the coming days with photos from the happy occasion.I would now like to wish the Rankin Family on behalf of all the former residents of Springtown Camp and on behalf of all the thousands of visitors to a wonderful re-union.


text:
HarperCollins Catholic Gift Bible-NRSV (Bonded Leather)

HarperCollins Catholic Gift Bible-NRSV Cover Image
By Harper Bibles (Manufactured by)
Usually Ships in 1-5 Days

The New Revised Standard Version is recognized in scholarly circles as the most accurate translation into English of the original Hebrew and Greek texts and is the most commonly used translation by the global Catholic Church.

This special Catholic edition includes:

  • The Catholic Scriptures with inclusive language
  • Imprimatur
  • Anglicized text
  • Special lightweight Bible paper
  • Introductory materials for every book
  • Timeline of Catholic Church and world history
  • Concordance to help readers find specific words and passages
  • Sixteen page map section
Product Details
ISBN: 9780061451850
ISBN-10: 0061451851
Publisher: HarperOne
Publication Date: February 19th, 2008
Pages: 1424
Language: English


text:
Republican legislators weary of welfare cheats and waste are pushing an array of measures in the Legislature to cut food stamp benefits, restrict where recipients can use benefit cards and require drug testing before residents can collect assistance.

GOP leaders advocating the changes say that some Minnesotans have become too dependent on the cash payments and that this may be their best chance, while holding legislative power at the Capitol, to rein in such spending. The drive reflects similar efforts over the past year in state Capitols across the country by GOP majorities to impose new rules and limits on welfare benefits.

"We want to help you, but if you don't want to help us help you, we're not going to waste our time and money on you," said Sen. Sean Nienow, a Republican from Cambridge, who is among the leaders in the push to restrict the state's benefits.

The proposed changes are feeding a furious debate at the Capitol.

State officials and advocates for the poor say the recent recession made more Minnesotans dependent on assistance as they try to get back into the workforce. Cutting back the benefits, they say, could force more Minnesotans to slip into deep financial despair, sending more children onto the poverty rolls.

"This is a population of hardworking single parents, mostly women," said Julie Kizlik, program director for Employment Action Center's Welfare to Work Programs. "They don't want this life for their children. They're working two part-time jobs, sometimes three ... It's disheartening that [the Legislature] continues to single out this part of the population that's already facing extreme barriers and extreme challenges."

At a recent legislative hearing on the issue, protesters chanted, "You are killing our children! You are killing our children!"

Cicely Thompson startled lawmakers at the hearing when she held up her 5-month old daughter. "My child is not an animal!" she shouted.

Earlier this month, one newly elected GOP legislator, Rep. Mary Franson from Alexandria, compared Minnesota's food stamp program to feeding animals. She later apologized.

Thompson, a graduate student, said she relies on food and medical assistance from the state to support her family while she works an unpaid internship required for graduation. "All I want to do is survive, and for a while, it felt like we weren't going to be able to do that," said Thompson, who estimates the family earned $45,000 a year before the recession hit, her husband's family business folded and she decided to go back to school.

Republicans insist their proposals are not designed to harm hardworking Minnesotans who have hit a rough patch. Several Republican legislators said they campaigned on a pledge to reduce waste and fraud, and now they are in a strong position to honor it.

"My intent isn't to harm people or services," said first-term state Rep. Kurt Daudt, a Republican from Crown who is spearheading welfare overhaul proposals in the House.

Last year, Daudt pushed a change to forbid welfare recipients from using their electronic benefit cards to buy tobacco or alcohol. This year, he's pushing proposals to restrict how long families can collect benefits and to forbid people from using their benefit cards in far-away states. Daudt also wants to change the income requirements, so someone earning $10.90 an hour would no longer qualify for assistance.

'As little abuse as possible'

Daudt acknowledges that he does not believe welfare fraud is common but said he continues hearing from people who said they had seen incidents of suspected fraud and waste.

"I think the percentage of misuse and abuse is low," he said. "I think you have to have to make sure there's absolutely as little misuse and abuse as possible."

In an average month, 42,500 Minnesota families rely on state benefits and food assistance, according to the state Department of Human Services. Traditional welfare benefits account for a small fraction of the state's multibillion-dollar human services budget, about $101 million a year, plus $240 million in federal support.

A family of three -- two adults and one child with no other income -- receives $532 in cash assistance and $473 in food support, amounts that have not changed since 1986. Most recipients collect benefits less than two years.

Human Services Commissioner Lucinda Jesson warned legislators that restricting benefits now could tip even more families into dire poverty at a time when the number of impoverished children has grown by 62 percent between 2000 to 2010.

"The majority of people [in the Minnesota Family Investment Program] do not fit a pattern of fraud, abuse and misuse," Jesson wrote recently. "They are working, but at very low-income jobs. They have serious health problems which limit their ability to hold a full-time job. They are new mothers. Or they are recently unemployed as a result of our challenging economic times."

Tatika Williams, a 43-year-old mother of three, lives a few blocks from the Capitol. Unemployed since July 2010, she supported her family on $272 a week in unemployment benefits.

"I wish they could come into my household for a couple of months before you tell me what's plenty," said Williams, who has no car, which limits her job search. "You need to walk in my shoes. They've never been where I've been."

Minnesota is among a number of states looking at clamping down on cash welfare benefits. It is one of 24 states debating drug testing for some forms of public assistance, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Four states -- Florida, Arizona, Missouri and Utah -- have welfare drug test laws. Also, 22 states have bills that would restrict the use of benefit cards, and 13, including Minnesota, have proposals for photo identification on benefit cards.

Republicans are plowing ahead with their initiatives, even though DFL Gov. Mark Dayton is likely to veto them.

"I campaigned saying I would work on welfare reform," said first-term Sen. Paul Gazelka, R-Brainerd, who is pushing a proposal to double the waiting period for new residents seeking benefits. "We spent the last year trying to get our feet on the ground. This year, we can try to get some of these things passed."

Jennifer Brooks • 651-925-5049


text:
Third-graders Curtis Hatcher, left, and Kashawn Pierce read Tuesday at the FAIR school, operated by the West Metro Education Program, in Minneapolis. FAIR schools were started to promote integration across school district lines.

Kyndell Harkness, Star Tribune

Senior Jordan vonMandel played guitar during choral practice on Tuesday at the FAIR school in downtown Minneapolis.

Kyndell Harkness, Star Tribune

Minneapolis has second thoughts on integration

  • Article by: STEVE BRANDT
  • Star Tribune
  • January 24, 2012 - 11:22 PM

Minneapolis schools have taken the first formal step toward pulling out of the metro area's oldest voluntary integration effort, but school leaders say they still might change their minds.

Concerned about whether the program's two schools achieve their goals, the school board voted Tuesday to give notice of withdrawal from the West Metro Education Program (WMEP) before a Feb. 1 deadline. That's required under the program's rules if the board decides after more study to leave after the next school year.

WMEP, a cooperative of 10 suburban districts and Minneapolis, formed in 1989. It operates two schools, in downtown Minneapolis and Crystal, that promote racial integration across district lines. It also conducts teacher training and student programs intended to improve intercultural skills.

The pullout notice is designed to preserve the district's options while it studies whether the two integration district schools (known as FAIR) foster integration and student achievement. A pullout decision likely would be made by next fall when families begin choosing schools for 2013-2014.

"We don't know where it's going to go," said board Chairman Alberto Monserrate. "We will actually take the time and look at this in a thoughtful way."

The Minneapolis action raises questions about whether the two schools would continue without Minneapolis and whether city students would stay in them. It also comes at a time of metro-wide uncertainty about racial integration. A task force is studying how to replace the current metro interdistrict integration efforts, which the state will end in mid-2013.

Conflicting views

"Giving a notice like this is destabilizing," Theresa Harris, a parent of two FAIR students, said before the vote. She urged board members to conduct the study before giving notice of their intent to withdraw.

Kevin Bennett, principal of the WMEP' two arts-focused schools, expressed confidence that parents would stick with the schools even if Minneapolis opts out. So did WMEP's board chairwoman, Helen Bassett, a Robbinsdale school board member, noting that state aid follows where students enroll.

The board tiptoed up to a pullout once before, in 2009, when former Superintendent Bill Green declared that the two schools had failed to produce the integration sought. But the board tabled the idea after parents and groups supporting integration efforts opposed a pullout.

The Star Tribune reported in 2007 that a majority of students going to the suburban school from Minneapolis were white and most suburban students coming downtown were minorities, the opposite of what was supposed to happen.

Since then, the schools have been reconfigured under a common principal, with K-3 students starting downtown, going to Crystal for grades 4-8, and then returning downtown for high school.

The two schools are attended by 1,052 students. The suburban FAIR is 56.5 percent white; the downtown school is 63 percent minority. Bennett said 94 percent of FAIR's mostly minority third-graders tested as proficient in reading last year.

The school board's resolution states that it remains committed to integration but aims to conserve its money by backing strategies that best achieve social and academic equity.

© 2017 Star Tribune


text:
Kimberly Magdeleno, 4, got a whooping cough booster shot on Thursday as she was held by her mother, Claudia Solorio, at a health clinic in Tacoma, Wash. That state’s governor, Chris Gregoire, has opened an emergency fund to help contain a whooping cough epidemic. In Minnesota, health officials have recommended that everyone get a booster shot as pertussis cases here also have soared.

Ted S. Warren, Associated Press

An empty bottle of Tetanus, Diphthera and Pertussis (whooping cough) vaccine.

Rich Pedroncelli, Associated Press

Whooping cough cases soar; experts call for booster shots

  • Article by: Warren Wolfe
  • Star Tribune
  • July 19, 2012 - 10:57 PM

A startling spike in the number of whooping cough cases, in Minnesota and across the nation, has prompted state officials to urge that all Minnesotans consider getting booster shots for the disease.

Nearly 400 cases have been reported in Minnesota since June 30, pushing the year’s total to 2,160 and making 2012 the worst year for pertussis since vaccines came into wide use in the 1950s.

Nine children have died of the respiratory disease this year nationwide, though no deaths have been reported in Minnesota, state health officials said on Thursday.

Pregnant women and people around infants should be vaccinated as soon as possible because infants are most at risk from the disease, said Claudia Miller, an epidemiologist at the Minnesota Department of Health.

“We’re not sure exactly what’s going on, but with the cases so far, we’re seeing the highest numbers since the 1940s and ’50s,” she said. “And we’re only halfway through the year.”

Nationally, nearly 18,000 cases have been reported — twice last year’s total and at a pace to be the highest since 40,000 cases in 1959, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Thursday.

Beside Minnesota, major outbreaks have shown up in Wisconsin, Washington, New York, Kansas and Arizona.

In the past, whooping cough season generally came in late summer and fall, but it has become essentially year-round in recent years, Miller said.

Whooping cough moves in cycles, with Minnesota cases typically ranging between 200 and 1,500 cases a year.

This year, state officials recorded 600 cases by early May — the same total as for all of 2011. That soared to nearly 1,760 by June 30 and 2,160 now. Since the 1950s, the record was 1,571 in 2005.
The disease is spread via droplets coughed by infected people and often begins with coldlike symptoms. It usually can be treated effectively with antibiotics.

Infants, however, may not cough and instead suffer episodes of apnea and difficulty breathing — “very alarming to parents,” Miller said.

Mystery increase

Whooping cough, or pertussis, has been on the rise nationally since the 1990s, though total cases still remain far below the hundreds of thousands of cases that were common in years before the 1940s.

Federal health officials recommend that children get vaccinated in five doses, with the first shot at 2 months and the final between ages 4 and 6. A booster shot is recommend at about age 11.

With vaccination rates still fairly high, health investigators are trying to figure out what’s causing the increase. Theories include better detection and reporting of cases and some sort of change in the bacteria causing the illness. But one theory holds that the vaccine’s effectiveness is wearing off sooner than expected.

The vaccine that was given to children for decades was replaced in the late 1990s following concerns about rashes, fevers and other side effects. While the new version is considered safer, it may not be as effective for the long term, Miller said.

“We’re seeing more cases here and nationally among vaccinated older elementary school children who ought to still be protected,” she said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Warren Wolfe • 612-673-7253

© 2017 Star Tribune


text:
Jen Jamar played with a sling-shot monkey with her 2-year-old son, Levi, before bedtime at their home in Robbinsdale.

Twin Cities mom bloggers still writing

  • Article by: Julie Pfitzinger
  • Special to Star Tribune
  • January 25, 2013 - 2:32 PM

In this fast-paced age of Twitter and Facebook, the idea of a “mom blog” might start to seem a little bit old-fashioned, but three Twin Cities mom bloggers firmly believe that all these forms of social media can peacefully coexist and often enhance one another. More important, blogging continues to fulfill the goals they set for themselves when they first began posting their thoughts online several years ago.

“My blog really started as a personal journal,” said Jen Jamar, a single mom from Robbinsdale who writes “Life With Levi” about her 2-year old son. “I saw it as a way to connect with other moms in the natural parenting community on topics like cloth diapers and breastfeeding. From there, I realized I just really wanted to talk about us and our life.”

Jamar, whose blog attracts 15,000 to 30,000 unique visitors per month, said her “sweet spot” is women age 25 to 34, who make up 70 percent of her regular readers. A business analyst by day, Jamar has cultivated ongoing partnerships with several large companies, such as Maytag, that she regularly promotes on “Life With Levi.” It’s a common marketing strategy that family-friendly companies use, although Jamar insists that she doesn’t want her site to be all about products.

She says she occasionally “overshares,” and often posts about her own social life.

“I also have a Facebook page, and that’s probably the place where I interact more often with readers because it is a quick way to respond to comments,” she said. Although Jamar has a Twitter account, she doesn’t spend much time on it now.

Friendship and weight loss

Liz Paul, of Eagan, started a blog seven years ago: “Random Thoughts of a Lutheran Geek.” She’s also on Twitter and sends out more than 20 tweets per day, allowing the opportunity for “a continuation of my voice” when she isn’t able to blog.

Now the mother of a 4-year old, Paul said the focus of her mental energy has changed and her attention has shifted somewhat to contributing to another blog called “PriorFatGirl,” where she charts her 80-plus pound weight loss (and other contributors write about theirs).

“The first blog is a real part of me. It helped me to process my thoughts and reflect during challenging times in my life, “she said. Paul, who also works in church ministry, spends about five hours a week on her blogs and recently posted on both forums questioning her future in blogging, but has since realized she’s not ready to give anything up yet.

“I’m still writing to process my own journey, but I’m also trying to figure out which direction to go,” she said, adding that she has developed close friendships with many readers who originally found her online.

Kids, lots of them

At first glance, it would be hard to imagine that Margaret Berns, of Eagan, would have a moment to put together a sentence, much less weekly blog posts. As the mother of seven children, ranging from newborn to 15 years old, she also home-schools four of her children. The two oldest attend a local school. However, her “Minnesota Mom” blog, which she started six years ago, has become a valuable way for her to document daily life with a big family.

“For me, the blog is about sharing my story with other like-minded moms,” Berns said. “I consider it a Catholic home-schooling blog, but I have many readers who aren’t Catholic or home schoolers.”

Now that her children are getting older, Berns has “pulled back” on the stories she shares with the 1,000 readers who check in daily.

“I don’t talk about anything without the kids’ permission, but if they say something funny, I’ll say, ‘Please let me put that on the blog,’ ” she said with a laugh. “But I respect the fact that the older they get, the stories are theirs and not mine.”

While she has also made several friends through her “Minnesota Mom” blog — in some cases traveling to other states to meet up — she considers her blog to be an online archive for family memories, a hobby she compares to “scrapbooking without the mess.”

Julie Pfitzinger is a West St. Paul freelance writer.

© 2017 Star Tribune


text:
No immediate ruling on Michigan's gay marriage ban

  • Article by: ED WHITE
  • Associated Press
  • March 7, 2013 - 11:28 AM

DETROIT - A judge said Thursday that a lesbian couple seeking to jointly adopt children made a "compelling" case that Michigan's gay marriage ban violates the U.S. Constitution, but he wants to wait for guidance from the Supreme Court before deciding whether to throw it out.

U.S. District Judge Bernard Friedman heard arguments from the two Detroit-area nurses who filed a lawsuit last year attacking a Michigan law that prohibits them from jointly adopting children because they're not married. At Friedman's suggestion, they expanded their challenge to the gay marriage ban approved by 58 percent of Michigan voters in 2004.

But Friedman said he would benefit from seeing how the U.S. Supreme Court handles cases involving a gay marriage ban in California as well as the federal Defense of Marriage Act. Arguments are scheduled later this month in Washington.

An immediate ruling in Michigan "would not be fair to either side," Friedman said while holding court in front of students at Wayne State University law school.

"They're going to give us something to hang our hat on," he said of the Supreme Court.

Assistant Attorney General Joseph Potchen said the two women, Jayne Rowse and April DeBoer, are doing a "wonderful job" raising three young adopted children. But he said the Legislature or the ballot box, not a federal court, is the appropriate forum for their opposition to laws that affect same-sex couples.

"That's what democracy is all about," Potchen told the judge.

But an attorney for the women, Carole Stanyar, said "fundamental constitutional rights" can't be settled by popular vote.

With same-sex marriage, civil unions and joint adoption prohibited in Michigan, gays and lesbians in the state are treated as "second-class citizens," Stanyar told the judge in arguing the ban violates the Equal Protection Clause in the U.S. Constitution.

"Same-sex relationships are no different than heterosexual," she argued. "They're grounded in love, commitment. ... This is the defining civil rights issue of our time, the last remaining group in our society denied equal protection."

Potchen told the judge that Michigan's defense mostly rests on a 1971 case in which two men were denied a marriage license in Minnesota. The U.S. Supreme Court declined to take an appeal, so the result has stood and has been cited for decades as critical precedent across the country.

Friedman suggested it was a strong argument. But its value could change depending on how the U.S. Supreme Court settles the California same-sex marriage case.

Rowse, 48, has two adopted sons, and DeBoer, 41, has an adopted daughter. If either woman died, the other would not be instantly recognized as the legal parent of the remaining children under Michigan law, even if instructions were spelled out in a will.

After the hearing, Rowse said she would have preferred an immediate decision from the judge but can wait.

"We've waited over a year at this point," she said. "Another few months won't make a difference."

Follow Ed White at

© 2017 Star Tribune


text:
United States' Jocelyne Lamoureux scores in the second period as Canada's Lauriane Rougeau defends during an exhibition hockey game Friday, Dec. 20, 2013, Grand Forks, N.D. (AP Photo/Grand Forks Herald, Eric Hylden)

Big brawl marks end of U.S. women's hockey win over Canada + video

  • Associated Press
  • December 21, 2013 - 10:48 AM

GRAND FORKS, N.D. — Jocelyne Lamoureux took exception to Brianne Jenner's late run at Josephine Pucci, setting off another fiery round in the U.S. women's hockey team's rivalry with Canada.

Lamoureux nailed Jenner with an illegal bodycheck and, seconds later, Lamoureux, sister Monique and U.S. teammates Hilary Knight, Gigi Marvin and Kacey Bellamy were brawling with Canada's Jenner, Melodie Daoust, Jocelyne Larocque, Meaghan Mikkelson and Vicki Bendus.

"I think we came in and defended our teammates, did what we had to do," Jocelyne Lamoureux, a former University of North Dakota star playing in her home rink, said after the Americans' 4-1 victory Friday night in the pre-Olympic exhibition game. "It's always going to be heated (against Canada). The intensity is always going to be there."

Here's video of the brawl:

The teams play again next Saturday at Xcel Energy Center.

The referees handed out 10 fighting majors and a string of other infractions after the melee with nine seconds to play. The two teams also fought in October late in a game in Burlington, Vt., with all 10 skaters squaring off late in the third period. They had another big scrap in 2010.

"I'm not a proponent of fighting in hockey, but I am a proponent of standing up for yourself," U.S. coach Katey Stone said. "We will not be pushed around."

The Lamoureux sisters, Knight and Brianna Decker scored for the Americans.

Emotions began boiling over midway through the third period after a pair of roughing penalties against Decker and Canada's Meghan Acosta-Marciano.

"We're prepared to play whatever game we have to play," Stone said. "We'll go hard, we'll play clean, but if the game gets out of hand we'll manage that as well."

Young girls in the crowd cheered wildly as Jocelyne Lamoureux was led to the penalty box. The Grand Forks native recalled watching as youngster when the U.S. women's team played a game at the arena before the 2002 Olympics.

"I remember thinking, this is where I want to be and this is what I want to do," Lamoureux said. "So if I can do that for someone else and our team can be an inspiration for some of these little girls that came out here tonight, then that's pretty cool."

Haley Irwin scored for Canada.

Kevin Dineen, fired last month as coach of the NHL's Florida Panthers, directed the Canadian team for the first time after taking over for Dan Church.

"It was up and down," Dineen said. "We had some good spurts and we fell off. Moving forward, we'll look for a little more consistency out of this group. Certainly there's some skill out there."

Church resigned Dec. 12, hours before the two teams met in Calgary, Alberta, saying he felt others lacked confidence in his ability to lead the country to a fourth consecutive gold medal.

The teams will meet again Dec. 28 in St. Paul, Minn.

© 2017 Star Tribune


text:
Spezza lifts Senators to SO win over Penguins

  • Article by: DAN SCIFO
  • Associated Press
  • April 13, 2014 - 9:55 PM

PITTSBURGH — Jason Spezza scored in the shootout to help the Ottawa Senators beat the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday night and finish the season on a five-game winning streak.

The teams were tied 2-2 after two periods and didn't score in the third or overtime.

Spezza, who scored the lone goal in Ottawa's win Saturday against Toronto, stopped at the circle during his shootout attempt, stickhandled around goalie Jeff Zatkoff, and scored. Kyle Turris added a goal in the shootout for the Senators.

Ottawa goalie Robin Lehner stopped Beau Bennett and Jussi Jokinen to seal the win.

Turris scored his 26th goal in regulation, and Mark Stone had his fourth for Ottawa, which will miss the playoffs for the second time in six years and first since 2011.

Jokinen scored on the power play in regulation, his 21st of the season, and Lee Stempniak added his 12th for the Penguins, who rested captain Sidney Crosby and several others for their final game before the playoffs.

No. 1 goalie Marc-Andre Fleury sat out along with Brandon Sutter, Matt Niskanen, Robert Bortuzzo and Deryk Engelland.

Pittsburgh will face Columbus in the first round of the playoffs.

It will be the first postseason meeting between the teams, separated by a four-hour drive. The perennial-contending Penguins have lots of star power and three Stanley Cup titles. Columbus, during its first season in the Eastern Conference, secured its second playoff berth and first since the 2009 season.

Despite missing the finale, Crosby won his second scoring title — topping Anaheim's Ryan Getzlaf.

Crosby, who finished with 36 goals and 104 points, outscored Getzlaf by 17 points to win the Art Ross Trophy for the first time since the 2006-07 season, his second in the NHL.

The seven-year gap is the second-longest span between scoring titles.

Pittsburgh hopes to have former NHL MVP and two-time scoring champion Evgeni Malkin back for the playoffs after he missed the final 11 games of the regular season because of a foot injury.

Malkin skated with teammates Chris Conner (foot) and Joe Vitale (upper body) on Sunday, but Penguins coach Dan Bylsma didn't say whether they would be ready for Wednesday's playoff opener.

Jokinen opened the scoring Sunday with a power-play goal with 5:14 left in the first period. His centering pass deflected off Eric Gryba's skate and trickled between Lehner's pads.

Turris tied it later in the period, scoring in the final seconds of a power play when he sent a shot past Zatkoff from the left faceoff dot.

Stempniak put the Penguins ahead 2-1 when he tipped Bennett's shot behind Lehner at 5:16 of the second.

Stone tied it with Ottawa's second power-play goal at 17:14 from the top of the crease, whacking in a rebound of Patrick Wiercioch's point shot.

NOTES: The Penguins played their fourth straight overtime game. ... A Penguins player has won the scoring title in 15 of the last 26 seasons. ... Crosby and Malkin are the fourth set of teammates to win multiple scoring titles while playing together and the first since Boston's Phil Esposito and Bobby Orr between 1969-75. ... Ottawa scratched Jared Cowen, Matt Kassian and Mika Zibanejad.

© 2017 Star Tribune


text:
Facing eviction, 89-year-old smoker plans to move

  • Associated Press
  • April 21, 2014 - 10:35 AM

MILFORD, Ohio — An 89-year-old woman is preparing to move out of her home of the last 10 years because it has gone smoke-free and she won't give up cigarettes.

Beulah "Billie" Toombs faces eviction after her apartment building's management deemed her noncompliant with its new smoke-free policy, The Cincinnati Enquirer ( ) reported. A smoker for about seven decades, she doesn't think she should have to quit to stay in her home.

"This is my home, and I think you do can do whatever you want to in your home," she said.

The management of the low-income senior apartments where she lives announced the smoke-free policy more than a year ago. Residents were allowed one year of smoking with some conditions.

When the policy kicked in this year, neighbors reported Toombs' smoking. A regular apartment inspection this month found cigarette butts and ashtrays in her unit.

A message was left Monday for management of the building, AHEPA 127 apartments. The Enquirer reported that a manager earlier declined to discuss the situation.

Toombs' daughter Mary Ann Burgoyne said warning letters confused her mother.

"My mom is getting older, and this is causing her so much stress," said Burgoyne, who said she went to the building manager in hopes of finding a compromise.

"We just want my mother to be left alone," Burgoyne said.

The senior apartments are subsidized by a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development program. A HUD spokesman said there is a strong housing toward non-smoking apartment buildings.

"Building owners do not like smoking," said HUD spokesman Brian Sullivan. "There is the stink, the risk of fire, and you can never get that smell out."

Toombs has been looking for a new place and thinks she has one lined up, The Enquirer reported. Soon, she will pack up her belongings, including her ashtrays.

A neighbor, Shirley Day, said she doesn't like the smell of smoking.

"I wish she would quit," Day said of Toombs. "I like her, but I love the policy."

© 2017 Star Tribune


text:
Effectiveness of whooping cough vaccine is studied

  • Article by: WILSON RING
  • Associated Press
  • July 28, 2014 - 8:39 AM

MONTPELIER, Vt. — Scientists and public health officials are studying a Vermont whooping cough epidemic to determine if the current vaccine is less effective against a new strain sweeping the country.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Vermont Health Department are examining the records of 854 people, ages 4 to 19, with confirmed or probable cases of pertussis from late 2011 into early 2013.

They are also examining a control group of 2,500 people from the same age group and the same area who did not get sick. They want to compare their vaccination history against those who did contract whooping cough.

"Since 2010 in the U.S., we have documented some genetic changes in the circulating strains of pertussis," said Patsy Kelso, an epidemiologist from the Vermont Health Department. "We don't know how much or whether the changes in pertussis are impacting vaccine effectiveness."

Whooping cough, also known as pertussis, is a highly contagious disease that can strike people of any age but is most dangerous to children. Its name comes from the sound children make as they gasp for breath. In rare cases, pertussis can be fatal.

For several years, scientists have noted a dramatic resurgence of the disease. In 2012, pertussis cases were up in 48 states, and outbreaks were particularly bad in Colorado, Minnesota, Washington, Wisconsin and Vermont.

Vermont saw 18 cases of whooping cough in 2010, 94 cases in 2011, 645 in 2012 and 114 in 2013. So far this year there have been 29 cases, Kelso said.

The pertussis vaccine is known to lose its effectiveness over time. Nevertheless, Kelso emphasized that children should still get the five-shot series of pertussis vaccine between 2 months and before starting school. Public health officials are now recommending that teenagers, women in the third trimester of each pregnancy and adults get pertussis boosters.

"We still strongly recommend vaccine," Kelso said. "Vaccinated people can get pertussis, but there is good data from some recent studies that people who have been vaccinated have less severe disease."

The new strain doesn't appear to make people sicker than the earlier strain and isn't more contagious. But the CDC-led study is an attempt to determine if the vaccine used now is less effective against the new strain.

"We rushed to do this study in Vermont after we saw this change," CDC epidemiologist Stacey Martin said.

In 2010, less than 10 percent of whooping cough cases in the U.S. involved the new strain, while in 2013, more than 90 percent of the cases were from the new strain.

"To have that happen so quickly across the entire U.S. is something that we needed to better understand," Martin said.

After the information is gathered, the CDC will analyze the data. The results are expected this fall and could have widespread implications, Kelso said.

"It's a really neat project that's going to potentially teach us a lot," Kelso said.

© 2017 Star Tribune