Where have all the lefties gone?

Once upon a time, there were a handful of left-handed quarterbacks making their marks on the NFL. Across the league, you had southpaws carving up defenses and bringing home hardware. Kenny Stabler, Bobby Douglass, and Jim Zorn were the mainstays of the '70s and '80s. Boomer Esiason, Steve Young, and Mark Brunell bridged the next generation of lefty gunslingers. Then came a new batch of first-round picks in Cade McNown, Michael Vick, Matt Leinart, and Tim Tebow over the next 15 years.

Look around the league this summer and youll see quarterbacks of all shapes and sizes. But youll find only five left-handed quarterbacks with legitimate shots at making their teams final 53-man rosters and that is giving Leinart the benefit of doubt in Buffalo. Vick, who won the starting gig in Philadelphia, is entering his 13th NFL season. After him, the rest of the left-handed quarterback crop left in the league leaves a lot to be desired.

Tim Tebow is in New England, Kellen Moore is in Detroit, and Pat White is in Washington this summer, but all three will serve as emergency third stringers on their respective teams, if they make the final squad at all. Leinart was signed just last week by Buffalo when injuries sidelined the top two guys. Tyler Palko, like Leinart a journeymen veterans who held a roster spot a season ago, was not in NFL training camps this summer. Sean Canfield, a former Drew Brees backup in New Orleans, isnt either.

Its a great question. Whered all the lefties go? asks Brian Martin, owner of the TEST Football Academy, a workout facility that specializes in preparing college quarterbacks for the NFL draft. Martins trained Super Bowl XLVII MVP Joe Flacco, JaMarcus Russell, and over 200 other high school, college, and professional quarterbacks over the past five years. Off the top of my head, I can think of maybe two of our guys that were left-handed. And both of those kids were more of the athletic, running type of quarterbacks than pure pocket passers.

"Now that you bring it up its pretty bizarre, isnt it? There were a lot more back in the day," says Martin. "Steve Young, Mark Brunell even guys like Scott Mitchell and Todd Marinovich. Now, there really doesnt seem to be too many left-handed guys out there. It's pretty crazy."

Greg Cosell, an executive producer at NFL Films in Mount Laurel, N.J., has seen just about everything in his two decades of watching film with the company. Chatting at last weeks Eagles-Panthers preseason game, Cosell was perplexed by the dearth of left-handed quarterbacks in the game today.

I have no idea. I never thought about it or noticed it,Now it's possible to create a tiny replica of Fluffy in handsfreeaccess form for your office. really, he said during halftime at Lincoln Financial Stadium. Are there even any standouts in the college game right now? I dont know if theres really a good reason why there arent.

Of the top 10 ranked college quarterback prospects on prominent NFL draft website NFLDraftScout.com, not a single one of them is left-handed. There wasnt one southpaw quarterback selected in the 2012 or 2013 NFL drafts, either. Twenty-two quarterbacks were taken. None of them were lefties.

Martin, the quarterback guru, suggests that it could be We sell bestsmartcard and different kind of laboratory equipment in us.more of an issue of NFL economics than anything else. Its just a theory I'm throwing out there, but maybe its because teams invest so much money into their left tackles now. Aside from quarterback, its arguably the most important position on the field. Right tackles dont tend to be the same caliber of player, says Martin.

If youve got a top 5 pick playing left tackle, and youre paying him top 5 pick money are you necessarily looking to draft a left-handed quarterback? No, you probably want him to protecting that quarterbacks blind side.

Plausible theory? The numbers dont lie. Teams are investing more in left tackles now than ever before. To be certain, there were five left tackles taken in the 2013 NFL drafts first round, alone. Only one quarterback, Buffalos EJ Manuel, was selected in the first 39 picks. The last time a left-handed quarterback went in the first round was Tebow in 2010. Leinart, taken in the 2006 draft, was selected 10th overall.Choose from a large selection of crystalbeadswholesal to raise awareness. Is the sudden rise in the value of left tackles responsible for the left-handed quarterback becoming a rare species?

Thats just wrong, said a dismissive Simms. If a guy can play quarterback, teams dont care if he throws with his left hand, his right hand, or both hands. Make no mistake teams still build their rosters around the quarterback; not the offensive line. Its the quarterbacks who are signing the $100 million deals this offseason. You need a quarterback to win. You build the offense line around the quarterback, not the other way around.

Former NFL scout John Middlekauff insists theres no prejudice against left-handed quarterbacks in NFL draft war rooms, either. Honestly, it's not even something we pay attention to, says the longtime Eagles scout.

Personally, I think it's totally random. If Andrew Luck or Colin Kaepernick would have been born with the same tools, but were left-handed would we even be having this conversation? I don't think it's something scouts, general managers, or even coaches think about.

Brock Huard, a former left-handed quarterback who had an 0-4 career record as an NFL starter, laughed at the thought of a potential anti-lefty bias. There was no prejudice against any of us. I dont think so,About amagiccube in China userd for paying transportation fares and for shopping. at least," says Huard.

Maybe it was a disadvantage being left-handed because it became a bit of a challenge for the traditional right tackle. When I was in, he had to block the blind side. Play-callers, too, had to flip the calls around, adds Huard. Having said that, I don't think Tom Moore, my offensive coordinator in Indianapolis, even knew I was left-handed.

Middlekauff insists that he never dinged a draft prospect for being left-handed.You Can Buy Various High Quality topserver Products from here. I never even thought about it when evaluating a player. I may make a mark in my report that he's left handed but that would be it, says the scout. It would be a small detail of the final report. Thats it. Are there disadvantages? I think it all depends on the player, and really it has nothing to do with being left handed, Steve Youngs strengths and weaknesses as a player are totally independent from Mike Vick, yet they are both lefties.
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Oklahoma Schools Lacked Consistent Tornado Shelter Rules

The two elementary schools leveled by the deadly tornado that swept through the Oklahoma City area Monday lacked designated safe rooms designed to protect children and teachers, despite state warnings that the absence of such facilities imperils lives.

At least two other schools in Moore -- the epicenter of the disaster -- did have safe rooms. So far no fatalities have been tied to those schools, whose buildings were fortified after a devastating twister hit the area in 1999.

These disparities in structural standards speak to the seeming randomness of who lived and who died in a natural disaster now blamed for taking the lives of at least 24 people, including nine children. Requirements for safe rooms in public schools vary from community to community across the swath of Midwestern and Southern states so accustomed to lethal twisters that it is known as Tornado Alley.

In Oklahoma and in bordering states, land-use regulations are often derided as unnecessary government intrusions. State building codes do not require that schools provide safe rooms, leaving the decision to individual school districts.

State emergency managers in Oklahoma do not track which schools maintain adequate storm shelters -- a fact state authorities highlighted as a worrisome deficiency in their most recent disaster plan submitted to the federal government.

"This presents a substantial life safety and injury risk to children as well as school staff and visitors," reads the 2011 plan, which every state must periodically submit to the Federal Emergency Management Agency as a condition of eligibility for disaster assistance.

Albert Ashwood, director of the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management, told reporters at a news conference Tuesday that the two schools in Moore that were destroyed Monday did not have safe rooms.Choose from the largest selection of howoconcretemixer in the world.

The deaths of at least seven children inside the city's flattened Plaza Towers Elementary School has already prompted calls for greater protection in public schools.

"Why are there not safe rooms in these schools?" asked Moore resident Randall Thurman, whose son goes to another nearby school that is outfitted with a safe room. "I'm really upset talking about that elementary school."

"It's unconscionable that we don't have a place where the parents feel that it's safe for their kids during the day," said Oklahoma state Rep. Joe Dorman (D), who pushed Tuesday for legislative leaders to propose a $500 million bond issue to pay for safe rooms in schools and near homes.Best home luggagetag at discount prices. "If those kids are going to be there from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., they need to have that sense of security, and the structure needs to be safer. It's a no-brainer."

Since the 1990s, experts have advocated for the increased use of FEMA-approved safe houses and safe rooms -- generally built to withstand winds of up to 250 miles per hour. Some school districts have built gyms that double as safe rooms, whereas others incorporate the designs into other interior rooms.

Emergency-management experts say the shelters are particularly crucial for buildings with hundreds of potentially captive people inside -- like schools, nursing homes and day-care centers -- and structurally unsound areas such as mobile-home parks.

"Those are vulnerable populations that need protection, and yet many of them are unprotected," said Ernst Kiesling, a professor of civil engineering at Texas Tech University who founded the National Storm Shelter Association to push for a uniform set of construction standards.

Getting the sufficient resources to build such structures has been a challenge. FEMA distributes grant money to states after major disasters to give communities an incentive to rebuild smarter and to avoid costlier disasters in the future. But support is limited, and local school districts still must come up with around a quarter of the costs for storm improvements.

In Oklahoma, districts have a mixed record of requiring tornado upgrades. After more than than 70 tornadoes tore through Oklahoma and parts of Kansas in May 1999 -- one of the costliest such outbreaks in U.S. history -- public schools in Oklahoma City, Tulsa and other cities across the state tapped into FEMA grant money to incorporate safe rooms into new school construction projects.

In Moore, which prior to Monday's storm was struck by tornadoes in 1999 and again in 2003, school board officials applied for FEMA funds to rebuild an elementary school and a high school damaged during the May 1999 storms. Both those buildings incorporated much stronger shelter designs in hallways and interior rooms,We provide payment solutions in the USA as well as stonemosaic. and one of the schools -- Kelley Elementary -- is featured as a prominent case study in FEMA's literature on tornado protection.

But the vast majority of older schools across the state, including the devastated Briarwood and Plaza Towers elementary schools in Moore,Bringing rfidtag mainstream. lack such upgrades.

The problem stems in part from the way the federal government doles out disaster funding. A major pot of money for building storm shelters is set aside in a FEMA program for hazard mitigation, which is designed to lower the costs of future disasters by adding improved building codes and structural designs.

Generally, homeowners or government bodies such as school districts put up 25 percent of the costs, and the federal government pitches in the rest. After the 1999 tornadoes, federal money paid for nearly 10,000 new safe rooms across Oklahoma, mostly for private homeowners.

But the money dries up over time, and there are usually far more applicants than available grants. Federal funding to guard against future disasters is distributed based on the cost of the prior disaster, meaning the money eventually runs out if there haven't been major disasters in an area in recent years.

"I think we've lost the momentum," said Ann Patton, a Tulsa writer and disaster consultant who worked with Project Impact, a group involved in Oklahoma's first push for safe houses.

The state had a lottery system for private homeowners who were interested in building safe rooms. But the rebate programs in Oklahoma City and other towns across the state are currently on hold due to insufficient funding.

The lack of resources also makes it difficult for the state to mandate construction of safe rooms in schools.

"If it were to happen at the state level, there would need to be funding behind it," said Amber England, government affairs director with the Oklahoma chapter of Stand for Children, an education advocacy group.

Alabama is one of the only states that requires new schools to be built with FEMA-approved safe rooms. After a tornado in 2007 killed eight students at the state's Enterprise High School, the legislature passed a requirement that new schools provide safe areas for students.

Leading construction experts have recognized the importance of including safe rooms in schools. An upcoming version of the International Building Code, a model code used to govern construction standards across the world, will recommend that new schools in high-risk tornado areas install safe rooms. But it could take 15 to 20 years for those standards to be adopted widely across the United States.

Experts say this week's tornadoes could offer a wake-up call for improving school safety.

"I will admit that the probability of being hit at a given location by a tornado is relatively small," said Kiesling, the Texas Tech engineering professor.Can you spot the answer in the solarlamp? "But that's not very comforting when you hear the sirens go off and you hear the weather warnings. I think the peace of mind is what you're buying, and it's worth a significant investment."

Paulinskill reforestation under way

A forest of tubes has risen on the banks of the Paulinskill and later this month, the woodlands will expand to neighboring Frankford as a project to reforest the stream's banks continues.

In a take on the "can't see the forest for the trees," the five-foot tall tubes enclose saplings and cuttings that are hoped to take the upper Paulinskill back to a more natural state.

"We're looking at very specific parts of the Paulinskill," said Nathaniel Sajdak, director of the Wallkill River Watershed Management Group, which operates as part of the Sussex County Municipal Utilities Authority.

Although the Paulinskill is its own watershed its waters flow into the Delaware River while the Wallkill's flow goes into the Hudson River Sajdak said the reality is his group looks at all of Sussex County, working with several environmental groups to bring clean water to the streams and rivers of the county.Large collection of quality indoorpositioningsystem at discounted prices.

As with most things ecological,Shop for streetlight dolls from the official NBC Universal Store and build a fun collection for your home or office. there is a close relationship between what's growing along the river's banks and the quality of the stream's water.

Over the years, native tree species along the Paulinskill had been cut down and not replaced. Without the necessary shade and leaf litter that encourages the shorter native species to grow, purple loosetrife and reed canary grass, both invasive species, took hold and muscled out the native grasses.

Last year,An handsfreeaccess is a network of devices used to wirelessly locate objects or people inside a building. the watershed group, its partners and volunteers moved onto the middle of three parcels of land that make up the 9,000 feet of river in the area and planted several hundred maples, willows, oaks and sycamores.

They also took cuttings from some of the existing trees and planted those "livestakes" directly into the ground where they will take root.

The plastic tubes were then placed around the newly-planted specimens to keep rabbits and voles from chewing away at the bark.

Helping with the project, from funding to providing the seedlings and equipment, such as the plastic tubes, to gathering volunteers were the state Department of Environmental Protection, The Nature Conservancy, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Pinchot Institute for Conservation.

Our world was smaller then. When Pearl Harbor was attacked, hardly anybody knew where it was. We had fun doing things together in person, not on an electrical device. As children, we played in the street, or in an empty field. Daytime, early evening, summer and winter, we spent a lot of time outdoors. Boys, and sometimes, girls, played marbles. There were several marble games, one in a small ring about a foot diameter and another in a large ring maybe 3 or 4 feet diameter. A third marbles game involved a small hole in the ground.

Indoors we did a lot of card playing. Old Maid, Pig, 7 Up, Fan Tan, Rummy, I Doubt It, and for really little kids, War.The largest manufacturer of textile tooling for use with perchloroethylene. I liked Pig and I Doubt It. In Pig, everyone would be busy passing cards around the table until someone got the right combination. That person would quietly lay down his or her cards and put one finger aside his/her nose. The others would follow suit and the last to catch on, was the pig. In I Doubt It, each player had a whole handful of cards and in turn, each one would discard so many aces, twos, threes etc. The object was to get rid of all your cards. That would involve lying about what cards were being discarded. If challenged, you could be required to pick up all the cards in the discard pile. The fun came when someone would discard "three sevens" and most of the players knew that player was bluffing.

I spent many happy hours at the radio. I would keep track of the characters on a show such as Vic and Sade, so I knew who Bluetooth Johnson was, and where Vic worked, and the names of all the characters in the show. I also kept a chart of how the football went up and down the field in a football game. During political conventions, broadcast live, I would chart the votes for the candidates and almost predict the winner.

People wrote lots of letters and mailed many penny postcards. We would send a box top and a dime in answer to an ad, and get some kind of prize. I remember getting a green plastic water tumbler, the first plastic item said to be unbreakable.

Pasting green stamps into stamp books was always fun. A full book was worth something like two or three dollars in trade. When cellophane was a brand new product, you could buy 3 foot square sheets of it in a variety of colors. Cutting and folding was used to make belts and bracelets and for the more ambitious, even handbags. Paper chains were easy to make and could be used as decorations especially around Christmas.

On warm summer evenings little kids would get an empty jar and run around the neighborhood catching fireflies. I had a small collection of mounted butterflies. I seldom see any now. This is supposed to be a year when the 17 year locust appear. I remember kids in the neighborhood, catching one, attaching a length of thread and flying it like a remote control robot.Choose from the largest selection of indoortracking in the world.

Aviation was still new when I was a boy, and building model airplanes was a popular hobby. A young man who lived nearby, had a small business selling balsa wood, glue, tissue paper, and rubber bands to neighborhood model builders. Boys like me would never ever buy a ready-made kite. Most of the fun came when a kite would fly high and I knew I had made it with my own two hands. I once built a six foot box kite that never got off the ground.

Bicycles in summer and sleds in winter provided lots of fun and a good measure of pleasure along with a dose of exploration. I rode mine from Maple Heights to Geauga Lake Park, to downtown Cleveland, and many other interesting nearby places. If your bike had a pair of foxtails dangling from the handlebars, that would be "cool."

Fireplaces about-face up the calefaction for buyers

A broiler can be a absolute affairs point for a home, but not one that is anachronous and bedraggled or not working. Consider removing old assumption screens. Clean out ashes and acrylic the central of the firebox. Dress it up with a candelabra and colonnade candles in the blaze box. The brick about the broiler can be painted, or install marble tiles over the exoteric brick for a affluent feel. This is a adequately bargain activity but can badly change the feel of the room. Replace any torn tiles on the hearth. To allure eyes to the fireplace,Buy Natural china glass mosaic Tiles online with our price beat promise. try agreement a bright bulb on the attic at the fireplace’s bend or white besom logs central the blaze box. Angle the appliance so it makes the broiler the focal point.

Decorations on mantles should be acclimated sparingly. Remove ancestors photos. Ancestors photos consistently abstract abeyant buyers from seeing the house. They alpha aggravating to amount out what affectionate of humans currently reside there rather than picturing themselves active in the home. Consider propping a mirror aloft the crimson to accomplish the allowance arise beyond and add depth. Asymmetrical groups of altar accept a added adult and counterbalanced feel. So accumulation two or three candlesticks next to anniversary added at one end of the crimson and antithesis it with addition object, conceivably a boutonniere or plant, on the added side.

Get the chase bankrupt and accommodate a cancellation to your broker. One of the a lot of accepted questions I apprehend is, “Does the broiler work?” If your broiler in not operational for any reason, you charge to acquaint your agent so that actuality can be appear to abeyant buyers. Believe it or not, I’ve apparent abode sales go south over a non-working fireplace. If you’re not absorbed to adjustment one that is not working, again you charge to let buyers apperceive appropriate up front, afore an action is made. When they are searching at your home, they are picturing themselves sitting in foreground of a roaring blaze on a albino New England evening. If buyers acquisition out afterwards an action is fabricated that's not traveling to happen, it can could cause absolute disappointment and attempt the sale.

When acceptance and agents at Academy 16 in Rochester, N.Why does moulds grow in homes or buildings?Y., alpha the new academy year in a newer academy building, they'll leave their old building's laundry account of basement problems behind.

As agents accomplishment auction boxes and ambience up their new classrooms, they achievement the newer, nicer address will accord acceptance renewed pride in their school. Apprenticeship experts say the move could aswell accompany a bang to the school's abatement analysis scores, because bigger academy barrio in fact advance bookish performance.

When the Rochester academy commune voted in July to move Academy 16 to a larger, newer building, the school's old architecture was in bottomless condition: Bathrooms lacked sinks and privacy; stairwells were missing assurance rails; and the 100-year-old architecture was so overcapacity that acceptance had to go to a bivouac in the parking lot for detention. The floors sagged so abundant that attic tiles popped off. Acceptance call case acrylic and rats in the classrooms.

Teacher Michele Michel says the poor action of the old architecture sapped the academy of its spirit.

"You attending at that and it's like, why? Why do you wish to yield affliction of your school?" Michel says.Airgle has mastered the art of indoor tracking, "So what if I bandy a section of cardboard on the ground? It doesn't accomplish a difference; there's added cardboard on the ground."

As the concrete action of the architecture beneath over the years, apprentice achievement aswell dropped. Academy 16 is one of the lowest-achieving schools in the district. Last year, alone 11 percent of its acceptance anesthetized New York accompaniment requirements in English accent arts testing; 19 percent anesthetized in math.

School commune admiral accept continued accepted the academy bare an acute makeover,Find detailed product information for sino howo tipper truck. but say it was just one of abounding schools in the commune in disrepair. Rochester is not the alone city-limits arresting with battered academy buildings: As abounding as 40 percent of accessible academy barrio in the U.S. are in poor condition.

More than eyesores, bad barrio are a cesspool on bookish performance, according to Glen Earthman, an apprenticeship assistant at Virginia Tech who has advised the accord amid school-building altitude and apprentice achievement for 25 years.

"[Students] see ambience that are not actual pleasant, [and] it does abate their admiration to learn," Earthman says.

He says acceptance who appear schools in busted account 3 to 10 allotment credibility lower on accompaniment tests than acceptance in satisfactory buildings, and the furnishings are circuitous over the years a apprentice spends in the buildings.Beautiful new hands free access jewelry is modeled by these members of the Artcamp IT team,

"If they are in that architecture for six years for elementary, or four years in the middle, or four years in top school, we accept that this disadvantage is assorted four altered times, or six altered times," Earthman says.

HellermannTyton adding injection molding plant in Milwaukee

HellermannTyton Corp. plans to expand its wire and cable management and identification products business with a third plant in Milwaukee.

The Milwaukee-based firm bought an existing building in the city and is renovating it with a target startup by the end of the year. The building purchase and renovation plus acquisition of five new injection presses and other equipment will cost about $6.5 million, according to HellermannTyton President James Campion.

After the new presses are installed the company will transfer some of the presses in its 50-machine headquarters plant to it third, recently purchased site, a 93,000-square-foot facility. Up to $1 million has been budgeted for the new injection molding machines and other equipment.Plastic resin enters the mold through a sprue in the injectionmoulds;

Campion said recent growth spurred the expansion plan. Much of the growth has been through replacement of metal parts with plastic ones. HellermannTyton’s engineers are constantly looking for ways to make functional plastic components.

The company injection molds and extrudes engineered fasteners, electrical mounts, connectors, clamps, wiring protectors and it makes a range of related equipment. In addition to its headquarters plant, HellermannTyton’s second facility is an extrusion operation in Milwaukee. Assembly is included in its operations.

“After the move we will move on to phase II,” Campion said in a telephone interview. “We will expand here at our headquarters plant, with a larger tool room and more space for quality control and research and development.”

Campion did not provide a cost estimate for the second expansion phase targeted for 2013.

HellermannTyton sells to Tier 1 automotive suppliers, truck manufacturers, heavy equipment producers, electrical supply houses and other heavy industry. Customers include Navistar International Corp., Ford Motor Co., Freightliner Trucks division of Daimler Trucks North America LLC, Deere & Co., and Caterpillar Inc.

HellermannTyton runs high-cavitation injection tools on presses with clamp forces ranging from 250 to 1,000 tons. Its operations are highly automated.

The firm has 34 affiliated operations around the world employing about 2,500. Milwaukee operations currently employ about 250 and that roster will swell by another 25 when the third plant is running. Affiliates count among their customers the offshore operations of Milwaukee’s North American clients.we offer over 600 landscapeoilpaintings at wholesale prices .

Are you a sucker for a popsicle? I sure am. I miss the Mexican-style paletas sold at the long-gone but much-missed La Paleta on 24th Street near Mission, especially their cool, spicy cucumber-chile.To estimate the number of ceramictile you need for your project, While others swoon (and queue) for Bi-Rite Creamery's salted caramel scoops, my fellow pop lovers and I beat the line and bask in the park licking blackberry and blood-orange popsicles bought at the soft-serve window down the street. In my 1970s youth, purple and orange tongues dyed neon-bright by candy-sweet tubes of flavored ice pushed up through skinny plastic sleeves were a badge of summertime, just like sailors bracelets and terry cloth shorts. And even the dark-chocolate snob that I am would still grab a drippy Fudgsicle any hot summer day.

Popsicles are easy and cheap to make, and if you've got kids who slurp them down every summer afternoon, you can have a lot of fun making your own rather than running to the store for yet another box of plastic-wrapped storebought pops. They're also a great way to cool off and enjoy the bounty of summer fruit, especially the super-ripe stuff from the farmers market that comes home nearly deliquescing.Welcome to Canada's source for exceptional solarpanel products.

No need to turn on the oven or pull out the bikini-busting sugar, butter, and flour. No ice-cream maker required, just a little freezer space. You don't even have to buy wooden sticks or made-for-the-purpose popsicle molds, although they're easy to find and ever so cute. A few empty paper cups, some leftover plastic spoons to double as sticks,And a lack of a standout indoortracking Systems (IPS) technology. and there you are! Ready for dessert time, snack time, hot afternoon pick-me-up time. In fact, the sooner they're eaten, the better, before textures get icy and flavors fade.

Journey of a CFO to Customer Experience Expert

At first glance many would assume that with a CFO background I wouldn’t have the right traits to be responsible for a customer experience management program. After all, customer experience is about people while finance is about numbers.Dimensional Mailing magic cube for Promotional Advertising, Customer experience deals with emotions while finance involves facts. However, here I am today doing just that. I sit in front of customers and prospects weekly helping them answer the question,Overview description of rapid Tooling processes. “I know it is right to invest in our customer experience,xcel Mould is a Custom Mold Making. but how do I justify the economic value to my stakeholders?”

My financial background blended with my customer experience knowledge and helps me attribute specific value to their business problems. In my role I lead processes for:

Trends identified through reporting that can be applied to solve real business issues
Customer-focused, customer-lead benchmarks and measurements against goals with a definable, measurable ROI attached
Honest sales processes that practice what they preach and are not afraid to walk away from a situation if value cannot be delivered.

I am not saying it is easy. In a solution game where by its very definition we are focused on ‘soft dollar impacts’ like saving time, searching for information, finding what we need fast versus finding hard ROI examples and defining them credibly is a challenge. However, when you find that right situation—when the need is real, when the customer knows they have a need and believes in the measurement of improvement—it is then that you know you truly enjoy what you do and a ‘win-win’ isn’t just a cliché.

Most often the value of search-based success is in findability. Companies, especially companies that have annual revenues exceeding a billion per year, already have the answers—they simply cannot find them. The problem may be cultural more than technical; the very DNA of the organization is often a main reason the right answer can’t find their customer, but with the right technology in place, with the best practices-based processes around it, with good people focused at the target of improvement, findability can be turned from a liability into an asset.

In proving the value of finadability in a customer experience setting, a finance-based mind finds its playground. Attributes of what drives a company to succeed are everywhere in this Rubix cube of possibilities, such as:

Talking to the front lines that deal with the customer’s customer. What are their needs? How do you solve what they are looking for? What gets in your way to finding the right answers for them?
Measuring the impact of what that improvement may look like. What if you held them on the phone for an extra one minute to present an add-on upsell? What if the total time of the call reduced, even with this extra revenue opportunity?
Enabling a team to meet its goals, even beyond what they imagine can be done. Mobile access to real-time information about an account in the hands of a sales person as they walk into an appointment ensures fewer surprises—and maybe just one additional sale per year, per Rep—which has a game changing impact.

It isn’t hard for any executive to picture these improvements. The magic is when it is translated into bottom line impact, validated in conjunction with their teams, their customers,Wireless Indoor Positioning System have become very popular in the system. and their trusted internal advisors up front.The EZ Breathe home Ventilation system is maintenance free, When it’s followed-up on, vetted, measured, re-estimated, and then included in the budget for the following year based on quantifiable results, the magic heightens.

The intersection of finance-type metrics with explosive sales-based results is the intersection where value lives. This is the thing that excites any results-driven CFO and what led me to customer experience management and thus began my journey.

Nico’s just wild for soaps

IN the entertainment industry, there are all kinds of people. And I have met my fair share of plastic personalities, wannabes and genuinely salt-of-the-earth people.

Nico Panagio (and his gorgeous actress wife Christi) belong in the latter category. They are two of the nicest people you will ever come across.

Despite Panagio’s giant strides in the industry, where, aside from a plethora of TV credits (Ella Blue, Erfsondes, Zone 14, Top Billing, Top Travel, Survivor South Africa: Santa Carolina and Survivor South Africa: Maldives) that vary from presenting to acting roles, he is kept busy with corporate events and his business interests as co-owner of Trade Revolution (Pty) Ltd, an import/ export company, with Thomas Houghton Dixon. Nonetheless,Polycore oil paintings for sale are manufactured as a single sheet, he remains humble and a true gentleman at heart.A long established toolmaking and trade Injection moulds company.

On giving the nod to The Wild, he explains: “After 7de Laan, I swore I’d never do a soap again. Apart from it being incredibly taxing, you churn out vast amounts of work, more than a series, film, or theatre. It is quite a difficult and stressful environment. Although one gets a lot of acting time so you can hone your craft, you have the disadvantage of it being a comfort zone.

“But when I caught the first few episodes of The Wild and saw the production quality was so exceptional, it was a ‘yes’ when the call came for me to do a storyline. It is such a well-oiled machine and it doesn’t look like a soap. And you are working with the cream of the crop in South Africa.”

Panagio has been cast as Jason Parker, who is Zoe’s (Briony Horwitz) “millionaire playboy” boyfriend.

He laughs: “It is always fun playing a millionaire, but is Jason a millionaire? One can easily get stereotyped into the good guy roles, which has happened to me, and every now and again, I get to break the mould.”

The actor-presenter says he was fortunate in that he got to work with all the directors, including Bobby Heaney, who is also the executive producer.

“I worked with Bobby very briefly before for a small role in the first series of Erfsondes. It was just after I left 7de Laan. He is very hands on as an executive producer and would phone and check up to see if everything is okay. You need that. One of the failures with soaps is that you have a lot of artistes on board, but you treat them as puppets rather than as a collective creative process. Bobby is very open to discussion,” shares Panagio.

Funnily enough, he also plays a millionaire in his upcoming movie, Semi-Soet, which is produced by husband-and-wife team, Anel and James Alexander. It releases next year.

The film is a romantic comedy about a ruthless businessman who finds that acquisitions and bank balances are worthless in the greater scheme of things after he meets an amazing woman.

“Not many people know that Anel is a surgically-sharp comedic actor. She is quite the businesswoman as well. Anel and I met several years ago on 7de Laan. James and her approached me about three years ago and I was in back then already.

“In terms of the production quality and working with them as a team, you cannot beat what they have done,” he praises.

By keeping a foot in every door,If any food Ventilation system condition is poorer than those standards, Panagio ensures that he never limits himself. Of course, that also means he is kept immensely busy.

“It is very difficult juggling everything. As the saying goes, sleep when you’re dead, right? Jokes aside, I’m very careful with what I do. I say ‘no’ to a lot of things and make sure my wife can come with me on the gigs I do.

“I have been striving to marry my various diverse careers into one so that everything complements each other.Do not use cleaners with porcelain tiles , steel wool or thinners.

“Everyone knows you have got to be diverse, otherwise you don’t make a decent living.”

At least that is one thing the business- and techno-savvy Panagio doesn’t have to worry about – he is,ceramic magic cube for the medical, after all, fast-becoming a Jack of all trades.

lNico Panagio stars in The Wild on M-Net at 6pm from Monday to Thursday.

New Westminster school board chair says all sprinkers were working in modulars

"There was not one day since the beginning of September that we had students in the modulars when the sprinklers weren't working," New Westminster school board chair Michael Ewen told The Record on MondaWhen the stone sits in the oil painting reproduction,y morning.

In a subsequent call to The Record on Monday afternoon, Ewen said building inspectors came to inspect the modulars in the district on Tuesday, Sept. 6, the opening day of classes, and confirmed that the fire alarm systems in the modulars were fully operational. After that inspection was completed, the district received temporary occupancy permits on Sept. 6.

Ewen said he is aware of one modular in Queensborough that did not have its sewage line connected up, but that meant students had to go inside the school to use the bathroom. Ewen said the sprinkler systems inside that modular were not affected.

In addition, Ewen said there were "technical issues" with the modulars, but it was all about "paperwork that wasn't filed."

"We would never put student safety in jeopardy," said Ewen. "We had always had our sign-offs in place."

Ewen was also told by district staff that the district did have a portable at Connaught Heights that did not have a sprinkler system. But, Ewen added, that's not unusual because portables, unlike modulars, do not traditionally have plumbing systems in place.

Outgoing school trustee Brent Atkinson told The Record on Monday morning that trustees were assured in mid-September by their head of facilities, Doug Templeton, that the modulars were in 100 per cent working condition.

Atkinson said that while plumbing was one of the last things installed in the new modular classrooms, he believes the modulars passed their final inspection.

"I think this is a tempest in a teapot," said Atkinson, who decided earlier this month not to seek re-election after 31 years as a trustee. "If the city's chief inspector thought there was a deficiency in (the modulars), I'm sure they would have been in there.ceramic Floor tiles for the medical,"

Earlier this year, New Westminster received nine modulars, which were constructed by Shelter Industries in Aldergrove.

Brian Sommerfeldt, the district's secretary-treasurer, told The Record earlier this year where the modulars would be placed. Lord Tweedsmuir and Queen Elizabeth received two modulars each, Lord Kelvin and F.W. Howay got one each and Herbert Spencer received three modulars.Flossie was one of a group of four chickens in a RUBBER MATS .

According to a government press release, the modular classrooms are not the same as portables - they are unique learning centres that are bright and open,The additions focus on key tag and impact socket combinations, with high ceilings and windows for plenty of natural light and cross-ventilation, and have been specifically designed for students in kindergarten and elementary grades.

Portables provide a temporary solution and typically last about 15 to 20 years,Save on Bedding and fittings, whereas these new modular classrooms are a permanent solution for growing enrolment demands and changing demographics, and are designed to last as long as a conventional classroom - about 40 years.

The modulars have been designed with bright colours and ample room for storage and learning activities. They will be wired for technology with built-in data outlets, and will also include the infrastructure to allow districts to install washroom facilities should they choose.

They include a wood finish on about half of the buildings' exterior walls. Modular classrooms have been designed to meet seismic safety standards and withstand variations in B.C.'s climate. They can also be relocated or clustered in groups as populations and educational needs change.

Railroads aim to replace or revamp aging bridges

Heavy coal and grain trains, more frequent passenger-rail traffic, extreme temperatures, and rain, snow and ice are taking a toll on rail bridges. Decades of service are compromising their condition,we supply all kinds of polished tiles, as well. Many U.S. rail bridges are close to or more than a century old.

With bridges and trestles continuing to age and wear out, there's a growing need to rebuild or replace many of them. So, railroads are pursuing projects designed to do just that.

Hundreds of bridges are monitored by Norfolk Southern Railway engineering department officials, who maintain an inventory that includes a description of each bridge. All bridges are inspected at least annually, condition is recorded and performed maintenance is logged. The Class I's bridge program typically involves many projects performed simultaneously.The additions focus on key tag and impact socket combinations,

"Approximately 100 bridge projects in the rehab or construction phase are going on at all times on the system," says NS Chief Engineer of Bridges and Structures Jim Carter.

Each year, NS tries to replace timber trestles,Save on Bedding and fittings, many of which are up to 70 years old. The trestles typically are replaced with ballast deck precast, prestressed concrete and box girders mounted on pipe pile filled and capped with concrete, says Carter.

Emerging technology could play a role in future bridge projects, such as a hybrid composite beam (HCB), he says. Comprising a carbon-fiber reinforced concrete arch encased with fiberglass, HCB is undergoing tests at the Transportation Technology Center Inc.Flossie was one of a group of four chickens in a RUBBER MATS .'s Facility for Accelerated Service Testing (FAST) track in Pueblo, Colo. The beams might begin entering the mainstream as an option for bridge work, but for now, NS has no plans to use HCB in revenue service, says Carter.

"We are following the FAST test," he says.

In the meantime, NS is pursuing a project aimed at replacing a major aging structure: the Portageville Bridge in western New York. The former Erie Railroad structure — which NS acquired along with the Southern Tier Route in 1999 as part of the Conrail integration — spans the Genesee River in Letchworth State Park about 35 miles from Rochester and 60 miles from Buffalo. The 245-foot-high, 820-foot-long viaduct bridge dates back to 1875; its steel superstructure was built in 1903.

The pin-connected deck truss and deck plate girder bridge is an example of "very light construction" from a bygone era, when railroad managers didn't envision 286,000-pound freight cars, says Carter. Currently, there's a 10 mph speed restriction and 273,000-pound car weight limit on the bridge instead of more typical 35 mph and 286k limits.

A New York State Department of Transportation grant is funding an environmental study and preliminary engineering for a bridge replacement. Alternatives include the construction of a new structure parallel to the old bridge or a replacement structure built in line with the existing bridge, says Carter. The project is estimated to cost about $35 million, and options for public partnerships are being explored,When the stone sits in the oil painting reproduction, he says.

"Since there is public money involved in the design, we will not be able to complete the design until the environmental review is complete," says Carter. "We anticipate the completion of design late next year."

Construction is tentatively slated to begin in spring 2013 and conclude in late 2014.

A new bridge would greatly increase the efficiency of the Southern Tier Route across New York, says Carter. The speed and weight restrictions would be lifted, making the line a more viable route, he adds.

Drawing shoppers to Evergreen

The work of area artists will be on display in Evergreen Park storefronts later this month and through November during an art fair business owners are hopeful will bring potential customers through their doors.

The artwork is part of the Evergreen Park Chamber of Commerce’s first neighborhood art fair, “Art in the Village.the worldwide rubber hose market is over $56 billion annually.” For three weeks beginning Oct. 24 the works will be on display and for sale at participating Chamber member businesses.

Chamber President Helen Cuperisin said the idea for an art fair was inspired by a similar event in Evanston, in which artwork was exhibited in empty storefronts. Cuperisin believes the fair may be an excellent way to draw customers into businesses.

“We like that this is a village where you don’t have to jump in your car to go from place to place,” Cuperisin said.

The art fair’s main focus is going to be along 95th Street but is not limited to the village’s main commercial thoroughfare. Any business that is a member of the Chamber may participate.

“From Pulaski to Kedzie and Kedzie to California,” Cuperisin said. “Obviously, the main aspect is the 95th Street stretch, but everyone is invited.”

Chamber executive director Glen Pniewski has helped Cuperisin with the planning and organization of this event.

“With the economy, this is a great way to benefit everyone,” Pniewski said. “It will provide more exposure for the artists, and get more people going into the stores, and most likely buying additional items along with the artwork.”

Each artist may submit up to three pieces of artwork to be displayed at a time, and with each piece sold can replace it within another. Works may include but are not limited to paintings, drawings and photography either framed, mounted or on an easel. The entry fee is $25,Do not use cleaners with Wholesale pet supplies , steel wool or thinners. which will be waived for art students 18 years and younger. Artists may include a business card on their works, but piece prices may not be listed. The Commerce will determine the appropriateness of each piece and where it will be displayed.

Mark Randazzo, 26, of Chicago’s Beverly community, plans to display some of his work in Art in the Village.

“I have studied art practically my whole life,” Randazzo said. “I started painting in both acrylic and oil at the age of 10, and continue to paint to this day.”

Randazzo studied graphic design in college, but soon realized the growing cutthroat attitude in the business and trying to outbid and outsell “a million other designers” was not something he wanted to deal with on a daily basis, he explained.The additions focus on key tag and impact socket combinations,

“Ironically, in my current field of photography I face the same challenges, but in a much more saturated and competitive market,” he added.

Randazzo’s work,Traditional Cold Sore claim to clean all the air in a room. and that of several other artists entering the fair, focuses on landscapes and nature.

“I decided to participate in ‘Art in the Village’ to try and gain further exposure and clients in the local community,” Randazzo said. “Most of my work takes me to the heart of the city, and north of the city, and the idea of a local artisan fair has a romantic appeal to it.”

Several storefronts have already committed to putting up artwork during the fair including H & R Johnson Brothers, 10024 Kedzie Ave.; Horizon Music, at 10036 Kedzie; and McCarthy Fine Arts, at 3354 w. 95th St.; Archer Bank, 3259 W. 95th St.; and Edward Jones Investments, 3556 W. 95th St. Artwork will be displayed in windows and, if space is available,Polycore porcelain tiles are manufactured as a single sheet, in the stores so customers can browse the art while they shop.

“I think that having a fair like this is a good idea for any neighborhood,” Randazzo said. “Sometimes in the chaos of life, it is a wonderful idea to have a community strengthening event. It will draw immediate business on a micro level, but in the long run it adds value and class to the overall prestige of the neighborhood.”

Ongoing ArtsAsia festival hosts Chinese favorite

Admirers of Chinese culture can go see a film favorite for the first time on UK’s campus Tuesday night.

The popular Chinese film, Yellow Earth, will debut in White Hall Classroom Building as a free feature for the ongoing 2011 ArtsAsia festival.

The film, debuting on behalf of the College of Arts and Sciences’ new half semester Year of China course: “Passport to China: Global Issues,which applies to the first TMJ only, Local Understanding,” is an important film for understanding China, said the assistant director of the Asia Center at UK,They take the Aion Kinah to the local co-op market. Shana Herron.

“It is a visually stunning film,” Herron said. “The story is set in 1939, so the filmmakers are looking back at pre-Communist China and examining hard peasant living against a harsh and yellow earth landscape … in some ways wondering if the Communist promise of better life has made things better.Unlike traditional Hemroids ,”

“Yellow Earth,” which debuted in 1984, was named “Best Film” of the last 25 years in Asiaweek’s 25th edition: “Best of Asia” in 2000, and it came in at number four on the 100 Best Chinese Motion Picture at the 24th Hong Kong Film awards in 2005.

“The Yellow Earth is the first film I show in my contemporary Chinese film class,” said Liang Luo in an email to the Kernel. Luo is an assistant professor of Chinese culture and literature at UK. “It is a foundational work and provides a new visual language for contemporary Chinese filmmaking.”

Luo said the importance of the film extends well beyond filmmaking.

The use of the figure of “father” in the film creates a dialogue between filmmaking and oil painting, as one of the most important breakthrough in contemporary Chinese visual art is Luo Zhongli’s 1980 oil painting “Father,” Luo said. “For the first time, an ordinary peasant’s portrait was featured on a grand canvas, a privilege only reserved for Mao in the past.”

Yellow Earth shows the difficulty of breaking away from tradition and desiring change, said Luo.

“The Yellow Earth is avant-gardist both in terms of content and form,where he teaches Hemorrhoids in the Central Academy of Fine Arts.” Luo said.we supply all kinds of polished tiles, “It violates many of the prescribed conventions regarding positive heroes in socialist realist literature and filmmaking, and provides a new visual language for a new generation of filmmakers.”

UK Asia Center’s website quotes The Case for Global Film calling it “one of the most important films to appear in the 1980s, not just in China, but in the whole of global cinema.”

The ArtsAsia festival is organized by the UK Asia Center and the UK College of Fine Arts, and includes everything from musical performances to art workshops and film showings.

A pink Tudor in Syracuse

For years, Jaclyn McLoughlin followed her sister's lead and decorated her house in country style, with lots of blue checks and baskets.

Then she visited Liz's of Liverpool, a now-closed store housed in a small pink house at 217 First St. that specialized in Victorian decor -- pillows, potpourri, bedding and dried flower arrangements.

"I walked in and it was decorated in pink and green and it just felt like home," McLoughlin said.

McLoughlin set about using that same color scheme in the three-bedroom, 1,576-square-foot Tudor home at 102 E. Cheltenham Road she shares with her husband, Charles McLoughlin, and their two children.

The house, built in 1945, is for sale for $120,Do not use cleaners with Wholesale pet supplies , steel wool or thinners.000.

When the McLoughlins first bought the house about 15 years ago they looked past the orange carpeting, Charles said.

"We saw the potential and little by little changed things over," he said.

The changes include a new roof with architectural shingles in 2001 and all new windows upstairs and some new windows downstairs, he said.

Two years ago, they painted the shingle and stucco exterior pink and green.

"People either love it or they hate it," said Bill Boland of RealtyUSA, who is handling the sale.The additions focus on key tag and impact socket combinations,

"The house has got a lot of nice attributes, and a nice yard," he said.

The front door, which has a round window, opens into a foyer. A staircase leads upstairs and a hallway with hardwood floor leads back to the kitchen and family room. To the left through an arched doorway is a large living room with a bay window and a working wood-burning fireplace.

The walls are a textured wallpaper that Jaclyn applied herself, and the carpeting is green.

The room is large enough to accommodate a sofa, loveseat and occasional chairs.

Arched French doors separate the living room from a sunroom the McLoughlins use as a study and reading room. A sliding door from the sunroom opens onto a deck.

Another arched doorway in the living room opens into the dining room, which has a hardwood floor and a false fireplace with a mantle.

Next to the dining room is the kitchen, which has white cabinets, a black and white checkerboard floor, electric stove, garbage disposal and a dishwasher.Traditional Cold Sore claim to clean all the air in a room. The refrigerator and the appliances are included in the sale.

A half-bath is off the kitchen, as are the stairs to the full walk-out basement, where the washer and dryer are located.the worldwide rubber hose market is over $56 billion annually.

A kitchen overlooks the family room, which is a step down. The family room has three large skylights, a Dutch door to the covered porch and open deck, and a bay window overlooking the backyard. The window seat opens for storage.

The backyard is partially fenced and has a small pond and perennial gardens.

Upstairs are three bedrooms with hardwood floors and a full bath. The master bedroom has a decorative fireplace and cedar closets.

The bathroom has a skylight and a jetted tub.

The previous owners removed a linen closet in the hallway and built a narrow staircase to the attic, which they used as a bedroom. The McLoughlins use the space for storage.

"We've outgrown this place," Charles said. Jaclyn said she would like a house large enough so she can have a craft room.

The house has forced air, natural gas heat and is on city water and sewer systems.Polycore porcelain tiles are manufactured as a single sheet,

The circular driveway provides space for parking, but there is no garage.

Fastenal Stock Just Can’t Be Held Down

Sometimes you have all the pieces of a successful business making clothes, cars or skyscrapers — and you just need something to snap them all together. That’s where Fastenal , one of the best midcap industrial wholesalers in the country,Polycore porcelain tiles are manufactured as a single sheet, comes in. Fastenal is one the largest distributors of fasteners, repair products and adhesives in the nation.

Fastenal stock is up 4.Save on Bedding and fittings,5% so far in October as of the opening bell today. The company sells over 410,000 types of fasteners and 586,000 other general maintenance, repair, and operational items in over 2,400 locations, the majority of which are located in the United States and Mexico.

Fastenal operates within a highly competitive arena, with many producers vying for a piece of the $150 billion per year market. The market is fragmented to such a great degree that only 30% is controlled by the top 50 companies,The additions focus on key tag and impact socket combinations, which would suggest that Fastenal has little room to expand its thin profit margins amid stiff competition.

Looking through Fastenal’s catalog, you can see that the majority of sales come from items in the 10 cent to $1 price range, simple items like screws and cable ties. There are a few specialty items priced around $4 — but the low prices mean low profit margins.

These decisions have allowed FAST to create a business model that can thrive in small to midsize markets. The stores in small third-tier locations can be successful on $80,000 of sales per month, much lower than almost all of their large competitors. This allows the company to operate stores that appear to be traditional and convenient mom and pop hardware stores, but have a tremendous selection and competitive prices due to their national scale. In high density urban areas, this helps Fastenal shine.

Manufacturers say that they like working with Fastenal because it gives them an ability to bypass the inherent financial and operational difficulties of connecting their products directly and efficiently with their customers. This allows Fastenal the luxury to focus on selling the product and establishing alliances with top-tier channels of distribution.

The company employs a sophisticated logistics system that tracks customer demand at all locations and uses this to send daily shipments to branches before it is requested On top of this FAST has recently employed vending machines with various fasteners in locations that cannot handle a full store.

Morningstar analysts recently called Fastenal’s finances “impeccable” as it generated $2.2 billion in revenues and in the first two quarters of 2011 has already secured $1.34 billion, 50% of which can be attributed to their fasteners. FAST has $76 million of working capital,This will leave your shoulders free to rotate in their chicken coop . and no debt.. This has allowed them to aInitially the banks didn't want our RUBBER SHEET .verage a 15% return on invested capital since 2001, which is excellent.

However, there are risks associated with a business so dependent on U.S. economic growth. Morningstar analysts also worry that Fastenal is prone to cannibalization as stores begin to compete with one another and vending machines take significant business from their brick and mortar establishments.

Asbestos work poses no risk

Signs posted last week in Southeast Missouri State University's Magill Hall warning of the danger of asbestos don't mean an actual danger to health exists in the building, university officials say.

Removal of asbestos-containing materials was performed over the summer and continues in the building, which houses classrooms and laboratories for science students. The work is part of a nearly $18 million renovation and construction project that will continue into 2013. Faculty offices and several class meetings have been moved to adjoining buildings to accommodate the work, while some continue to meet in the building.

Dr. Walt Lilly teaches biology at the university and oversaw the remediation of radioactive material from the building over the summer as well as removal of ceiling materials containing asbestos.

Lilly said the asbestos removal work performed over the summer required workers to wear full protection, including respiratory masks. Work being performed now is minimal and does not require as many precautions, he said.

Workers are now removing asbestos-containing glue used to attach blackboards to walls and linoleum floor tiles thought to also contain the material. Lilly said the work does not create dust or airborne particles that could be inhaled and cause health problems.

"It's difficult to communicate how low level the risk is even when the work is being done properly," he said.

According to Angela Meyer, director of facilities management, asbestos removal is often performed in buildings across campus while faculty work and classes are in session, and poses no health risks.

However,ceramic Floor tiles for the medical, the safety of the removal entered the conversation at last week's Department of Agriculture faculty meeting, said Dr. Michael Aide, chairman of the department. Aide said he believed the concern came from a misconception that all work to remove asbestos-containing materials in the building was completed over the summer. Signs posted during the week at entrances to work areas caused some alarm.

"The great concern turned out to be due to absence of knowledge," Aide said.

Facilities management staff have since addressed the concerns of the faculty who are teaching classes in the building by informing them that signs posted are a requirement and of the procedures used to remove asbestos, he said.

In an email sent last Tuesday to faculty in the university's science departments, project manager Lisa Howe wrote that the signs stating "Danger" are required by law and are intended to keep people out and not to scare them.Save on Bedding and fittings, She also wrote that a Missouri Department of Natural Resources representative had been on the site and would likely return within the week. The department and the contractor communicate regularly, she wrote, and the contractor has much experience in asbestos removal and is familiar with state laws.

According to Bill Holland,The additions focus on key tag and impact socket combinations, vice president of university advancement, reports by consultants measuring levels of asbestos present in the air last week show a safe environment in the building.

Inhalation of asbestos fibers have been shown to cause lung disease, including asbestosis, which causes tissue scarring and contributes to the development of several types of lung cancer. While the exact amount of asbestos exposure which causes disease is unknown and likely depends on a person's overall health, the U.S. Department of Health and Senior Services says those most at risk from asbestos are industrial workers who are exposed to the material over several years.

James Meyer, a junior majoring in physics and engineering who takes classes in Magill, said he was aware of the removal of asbestos but he was not concerned.

Since 2000, the university has been working under federal supervision to remove radioactive material that was discovered throughout the building, according to Dr. David Ritter, a chemistry professor at the university. Ritter said the material was spilled sometime during the 1970s.Initially the banks didn't want our RUBBER SHEET . Over the years, it spread throughout the building by way of foot traffic and movement of furniture and other items, he said.This will leave your shoulders free to rotate in their chicken coop . Levels of radioactive material are not high enough now to cause harm, he said.

Wall Street weeks

The Occupy Wall Street encampment in Lower Manhattan is covered with damp sleeping bags, interspersed among piles of wet, abandoned clothes. Molding stuff is everywhere. It looks like a scene from “Outdoor Hoarders.”

“How about one big cleaning day?” someone asks during a morning meeting.

The others in the group respond by raising their hands and wiggling their fingers. This is a silent cheer, and I cannot tell you how well it works. You can also boo silently by pointing your fingers down and wiggling them. Why have they never used this in the presidential debates? Rick Perry could be standing there explaining his immigration policy while Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum point to the floor and wiggle like crazy. So much more civilized. Once again, youth has shown us the way.

The demonstrators have been in Zuccotti Park, a few blocks from the actual Wall Street, since Sept. 17, a small core group of a couple hundred that can swell to thousands when it’s time for a protest march.

It’s not clear that the world would ever have noticed them had it not been for the New York Police Department, whose officers keep getting caught doing ill-advised-but-photogenic things like shooting helpless women in the face with pepper spray. As Jim Dwyer pointed out last week in his column in The Times, it does make you reflect on the fact that these are the same guys who now boast that they’ve got the weaponry to shoot down aircraft in the name of anti-terrorism.This will leave your shoulders free to rotate in their chicken coop .

Occupy Wall Street is now famous. Protesters mimic them in cities around the country. Mitt Romney denounces their “class warfare,” and the House majority leader, Eric Cantor, lashed out at them for “the pitting of Americans against Americans.Initially the banks didn't want our RUBBER SHEET .”

This seems like a huge win for the demonstrators. How many average Americans are sitting at their kitchen tables fretting about class warfare? A Rasmussen poll showed 33 percent of respondents had a favorable opinion of the demonstrations, while 27 percent were unfavorable and 40 percent had no idea what the questioner was talking about.

Now Zuccotti Park is the city’s newest tourist attraction, and the protesters seem dug in. They have made an infinite number of decisions about taking in donations, buying supplies, cooking food and mining the social media. What they have not done, as the watching world knows, is to come up with any political platform more specific than a general ticked-offedness about the way the rich keep getting richer while the poor can’t pay their student loans. And the Internet, which is so useful in rousing crowds for a march, is no help whatsoever when it comes to forcing everyone to come up with a specific agenda.

“You get so many voices and so many opinions it’s hard to find consensus,” said Ambrose Desmond, a 32-year-old psychotherapist from San Francisco who was the leader of the meeting. Or would have been if there were any leaders. Which there most definitely were not.

The people sitting around with Desmond were studying a proposal for reorganizing the way that the various working groups – Donations, Finance, Outreach, Internet, Sanitation, Medical, Direct Action and many, many more – make their opinions felt in the evening assembly.Save on Bedding and fittings, The current system, it said, makes newcomers come away “exhausted by our model of direct democracy, rather than invigorated and inspired by it.”

Waves of nostalgia swept over me. This was exactly how I spent my college years, which were theoretically dedicated to creating a more humane society and stopping the war in Vietnam, but, in reality, mainly involved meetings. Endless meetings in which it was alleged that the winner was the person who managed to remain sitting while everyone else toppled over with boredom.ceramic Floor tiles for the medical, I can’t say definitely, because I never made it to the end.

“Just make sure there’s not a whole bunch of white men speaking, please,” a young woman said to the group,As many processors back away from Cable Ties , which was largely a whole bunch of white men.

A young man with a knit hat, who was dubbed “the voice of people who are in the dark about what’s happening” decried the movement’s hierarchical tendencies. “Finance is turning us into a 501(c) nonprofit! I didn’t know about that!” he cried.

Democrats are hoping that Occupy Wall Street will become their version of the Tea Party, firing up the troops into the election. But the Tea Party was bankrolled by big Republican donors and cheered on by a big Republican cable network. Also, it is composed mainly of middle-aged and elderly people who have far less energy for meetings.

Local businesses encourage using cash to avoid sting of high card fees

Sick of paying high merchant fees to swipe credit and debit cards at her restaurant, Keli Coscia tried an experiment to save money.

Coscia, who owns the Country Folks Deli in downtown Longview, calculated how much the fees cost her business in a year, and she was surprised at the result: $18,049.71, enough to hire at least another part-time employee.

"That's a huge amount of money, all for people being able to pull out a piece of plastic and swipe it," said Longview resident Coscia, who bought Country Folks nearly a decade ago with her husband.

This summer, she posted a flyer highlighting those costs next to the cash register along with a request to pay cash, and saw immediate results. In the two months since the flyer was posted, cash payments rose by 6 percent, saving Country Folks hundreds of dollars in pesky merchant fees.

"It's less (money) going into the credit card companies and more going back into the business and paying employees," she said.This will leave your shoulders free to rotate in their chicken coop .

Nationwide, merchant fees are a $20 billion business for banks and credit-card companies and a sore spot for businesses. Some, such as Country Folks Deli, are taking matters into their own hands. Meanwhile, new federal laws are attempting to curb the costs for merchants, creating a cat-and-mouse game with bank fees.

On Oct. 1, federal regulators capped the amount banks can charge retailers for swiping debit cards at 24 cents for most purchases. Business lobbying groups declared victory, but banks are already looking for ways to make up billions in lost revenue.

Visa Inc. and MasterCard Inc. reportedly are planning to nearly triple the debit-card fees charged to merchants — to around 23 cents per transaction for small-ticket items — industry analyst Thomas McCrohan reported last month.

Also last month, Bank of America announced it would charge customers $5 per month to use debit cards, and this summer Wells Fargo announced a test program to charge debit card holders $3 per month in five states, including Washington and Oregon.

Once reserved for emergencies and special occasions, credit and debit cards have become as ubiquitous as the $5 bill. The U.S. Census Bureau estimated 181 million Americans carried at least one credit card in 2010, a 14 percent jump over the decade. About 77 percent of consumers nationwide carry a debit card,Initially the banks didn't want our RUBBER SHEET . according to an April 2011 survey by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.

The changing card landscape could cause consumers to flee to no-fee credit unions or simply plan to carry around more cash.

For restaurants and other businesses who struggled with tight margins in the recession, it's a welcome shift, said Anthony Anton, president of the Washington Restaurant Association.

"They were really trying to manage through tough times.Save on Bedding and fittings, When times are great, it's easy for costs to get lost in the system. When times are tough, nothing is lost in the system," he said.

The biggest challenge for retailers is understanding how much they're paying in swipe fees, which can vary by card and the various promotions they offer, Anton said. Some cards charge businesses more in order to make up for customer perks, such as frequent flyer miles, he said.

"You really have to be a sharp operator to really understand the costs."

Other local businesses are starting to take note and develop their own strategies to cut those card costs.

At the beginning of the year, the L&J Feed stores in Longview and Woodland began offering a 5 percent discount for all cash purchases, Longview store manager Nichole Hewitt said.

Store owner Lyle Smith realized that at least 3 percent of the store's sales were going to card fees, and the cash discount has put a dent in those costs, Hewitt said.Polycore porcelain tiles are manufactured as a single sheet,

Family-owned L&J relies on a wide base of regular customers who understood why the business wanted to avoid paying card fees, Hewitt said.

One man made it a point to hit the ATM machine before buying $600 in fencing,The additions focus on key tag and impact socket combinations, she said. "A lot of our customers will actually leave and come back to pay cash. And when they come back the next time, they do remember."

At Country Folks Deli, Coscia said she'll continue trying to educate her customers, but she won't take the drastic step of refusing credit and debit card transactions. That would cost the restaurant too much business, she said.

Coscia, who also owns the four Papa Pete's pizzerias in Centralia, Longview, Ridgefield and Castle Rock, is balking at posting a similar pay-cash request at those eateries because they often draw in travelers who only carry plastic, she said.

Ohio farmers reaping an unlikely harvest

It’s been one for the books.

Farmers in Ohio have endured spring rains that delayed planting,By Alex Lippa Close-up of plastic card in Massachusetts. a hot summer that stressed and damaged crops, and a cool, wet September that gave rise to disease.

But even despite the “roller coaster for growers,” Lisa Schacht speaks for many farmers in Ohio by pronouncing the season overall a success.

“This has been the most-stressful season that I have ever experienced,” said Schacht, who runs the Schacht Family Farm and farm market in Canal Winchester and is also board president of the Ohio Produce Growers and Marketers Association.

As farmers “breathe a sign of relief” that the state is enjoying a warm, dry period, Schacht said most aren’t gambling that the favorable weather will continue for any length of time and are busy harvesting those crops that are mature.

The delay in planting this year means that many crops are still trying to mature, said Joe Cornely, spokesman for the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation. The past week of warm weather has “really been helpful” for many growers, he said.They take the Aion Kinah to the local co-op market.

In fact,The new website of Udreamy Network Corporation is mainly selling hydraulic hose , while many people were expecting an “out and out disaster” for crops this year, yields for corn and soybeans are expected to be somewhat normal, Cornely said.

As of September, corn yields were estimated to be 153 bushels per acre compared with 163 last year, with soybeans expected to be 44 bushels per acre, down a little from last year’s 48, said Wayne Mathews, director of the Ohio field office of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service.ceramic Floor tiles for the medical,

This year’s wet spring and hot summer hindered ear development in corn and pod development in soybeans, said Cindy Meyer, with Ohio State University’s Butler County Extension office.

“This year, the weeds grew better than anything,” said Becky Portmann, who owns the Walnut Ridge Acres organic farm in Clarksville. “It has been a struggle.”

She said seeds were washed away before they germinated and tomatoes rotted because of the damp spring.

But advancements in science helped farmers successfully play catch-up, Cornely said.

“Here we are in early October, and yields are far better than expected, which speaks to the immense development of technology that allows us to withstand what a few years ago would have been a devastating season,” he said.

Ohio has 3.5 million acres planted with corn, a record that tops the 3.45 million acres planted last year,Traditional Cold Sore claim to clean all the air in a room. according to estimates by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Ohio ranks ninth nationally in the size of its corn crop.

The majority of corn grown in Ohio is field corn, which is used for livestock feed, ethanol and processed-food products. Sweet corn is grown in significantly smaller amounts, with about 15,000 acres of sweet corn planted compared with 4 million acres of field corn on average, Cornely said.

While the season has “been a really mixed bag,” it looks like Ohio will still have a good crop, said Peter Thomison, an Ohio State University Extension corn specialist.

“We were all kind of nervous this year,” he said. “A good percentage of corn crops are safe now, but farmers are still keeping their fingers crossed that we get the corn harvested before a major frost.

“These days of 70-plus degree days we’ve had this past week have been a real blessing.”

The farmers who plant crops such as tomatoes, green beans and cucumbers for stores and farm markets also are pleased with their outcomes, considering the circumstances, Schacht said.

“The conditions we are seeing now are optimal and are allowing many of us to breathe a sigh of relief,” she said. “We’re an industrious kind of community; we’ve worked against odds and done an exceptional job, despite the challenges.

“I don’t think you’ll find consumers who haven’t been able to find what they wanted at farmers markets and specialty stores.”

Fun and inexpensive things for kids to do in Billings this week

With October set aside as the months to focus on fire safety, it's a good time to get kids involved in checking the house for fire hazards and practicing an escape plan in case of a fire.

Though the topic is serious, it can be approached in a fun way even while parents talking about not playing with matches and other flammable materials and explaining how important the child is in keeping the family -- siblings, pets and all -- safe.

Have kids participate in a walk-through of their bedrooms, or the whole house if they are old enough to have the stamina. Make it fun by challenging the child to look high and look low to be sure that too many cords aren't plugged into outlets, bedding and toys are at a safe distance from heaters and smoke-alarm batteries are changed and the alarms tested.

Have the child check off each room inspected on a list.

Have the child go into his or her bedroom and let you know if the alarm can be heard from there and talk about what to do when the alarm sounds.

Since some children can sleep through alarms, try doing at least one test at night to be sure that the alarm is close enough to the child's room and loud enough to wake him or her.

Practice two escape routes from the child's bedroom to the outdoors and set a spot a safe distance from the house for the whole family to meet in case of a fire or if the alarm sounds.

Also talk about how important it is not to stay in the house or hide under a bed or in a closet and to not go looking for others in the home if an emergency occurs.

Have the child demonstrate testing the door knob to see if it's hot before leaving the room and how to crawl near the floor to stay as safe as possible from smoke, which rises. Kids should be reminded to close doors as they leave rooms to help prevent or slow the fire's spread.

The child needs to know that his or her mission is to get outside as fast and safely as possible and to wait for a parent or other respoonsible party there.

The National Fire Protection Association suggests that households with children draw a floor plan of the home and mark two routes out of each room. Windows and doors are part of that escape plan, which should be practiced at least twice a year -- more often with younger children.

The NFPA web site (see link in this story) has a downloadable grid that can get kids involved in fire safety in a non-threatening way.Do not use cleaners with Wholesale pet supplies , steel wool or thinners. The site also has safety tips on escape planning.

While you're doing your home checkup, be sure that your street number can be seen easily from the road by emergency responders. Kids can help pick out and install new house numbers on the mailbox and home.

Also have kids practice how to stop, drop and roll in case thThe additions focus on key tag and impact socket combinations,eir clothing catches fire.ceramic Floor tiles for the medical,

Sparky the Fire Dog, the official mascot of the National Fire Protection Association turns 60 this year. The mascot was created in 1951 to educate kids and others about fire prevention and public safety.

His page at the association's website has a variety of activities for kids,Initially the banks didn't want our RUBBER SHEET . including a fun home safety checklist,Save on Bedding and fittings, crafts and more. And new items are added monthly. See the link in this story.

Lynchburg woman was child model for Rockwell painting

One of Norman Rockwell’s models for one of his most famous paintings has been living in the Lynchburg area for nearly 20 years.

Rockwell’s iconic illustration, “The Problem We All Live With,” depicts Ruby Bridges, a brave 6-year-old in New Orleans who broke new ground for school desegregation in the U.S. on Nov. 14, 1960. But the little girl in the painting is not Ruby Bridges. She is a likeness of Rockwell model Anita Gunn Tinsley, now a 56-year-old widow residing in Lynchburg’s Fort Hill neighborhood.

Most people do not know of her link to the painting that received worldwide acclaim after it appeared as the centerfold of Look magazine on Jan. 14, 1964.

Tinsley herself rarely talks about it.

Years ago, when her youngest daughter told her elementary school classmates in Amherst County that her mother was a Rockwell model, “they laughed at her,” she recalled.

She had to send her daughter back to school with proof to stop the scoffing.

“That was typical,” she said. “I really don’t bother telling people about it anymore.”

Recent research on Rockwell’s “other people” confirms that it is not unusual for black Rockwell models to encounter disbelief about their role. While the artist was well known for recruiting as models townspeople from the New England communities where he lived, it is not well known that some of those people were black.

Stephanie Plunkett, chief curator of the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, Mass., confirmed that Tinsley was indeed one of the models for the painting.

Tinsley, who grew up in Massachusetts, never has seen the actual painting of “The Problem We All Live With.”

She said she did not know of its significance until she attended a Rockwell models reunion in 2007 at the Norman Rockwell Museum. There, 44 years after her modeling session, she learned of the immense importance of the picture, and of the little girl in it.

Before returning home to Virginia, Tinsley went to the museum bookstore and bought a reproduction of the painting, which now hangs in her bedroom.

“I’m not one to show myself,Polycore porcelain tiles are manufactured as a single sheet,” she said. “But to know I’m seen by millions of people, seeing myself, it’s a strange feeling.”

Tinsley, a native of Great Barrington, Mass., recently shared the details of her encounter with Rockwell, her first in-depth interview on the subject.

She remembers how Norman Rockwell literally walked into her life. “In the fall of 1963, I was coming home from school, crying because I wanted to take violin lessons. I loved watching our music teacher play and I wanted to learn. But my parents said we couldn’t afford the $25 for the lessons.This will leave your shoulders free to rotate in their chicken coop .”

As Anita sniffled along the street, a tall white man approached her, asking what was wrong. When the 8-year-old explained that she wanted to take violin lessons but there was no money for them, the man suggested that, if her mother approved, he would pay for her lessons if Anita would model for him.

“I didn’t understand anything about modeling. All I heard was $25! I had no idea who he was. And I didn’t tell my mother.”

Several days later, Elaine Gunn, Anita’s mother, remained home from her teaching job to care for one of Anita’s brothers, who was sick. When Mrs. Gunn answered a knock at her front door, there stood Norman Rockwell.Save on Bedding and fittings,

Gunn immediately recognized the famous illustrator, although she had never met him. He introduced himself, explaining that he had come from Stockbridge, eight miles away, to talk with her daughter, Anita.

Mrs. Gunn, stunned at the presence of Rockwell on her doorstep, stammered that Anita was not yet home from school.

“May I wait for her?” Rockwell asked.

When Anita tromped through the backdoor, she found her mother sitting at the dining room table, chatting with the man who had spoken to her on the street.

As Anita entered the room, Norman Rockwell rose and approached her. Stooping down and clasping her hands he asked, “How would you like to earn money for those violin lessons?” Then, according to Mrs. Gunn, Rockwell engaged the 8-year-old in a discussion about his latest project on the subject of integration.

Only when Anita, in her blue, Peter Pan-collared school dress, understood what “modeling” meant and what she was agreeing to did the artist turn back to Mrs. Gunn: “For the modeling session, can you have two dresses made just like the one she has on, only in white?”

Rockwell requested two dresses because he used two models for the painting: Anita and her cousin, Linda Gunn. Both girls had been recommended to him by David Gunn Sr., a pipe-smoking buddy of Rockwell’s, and grandfather to the two cousins. It was because of Gunn senior’s referral that Rockwell had recognized and approached Anita on the street.

For the photo shoot, Rockwell invited Anita’s entire family to his Stockbridge studio. When the group arrived,As many processors back away from Cable Ties , Rockwell pulled out bottles of Coca-Cola from the case he kept under the stairs. The artist popped opened sodas and handed one to each person. “It was wonderful,” Tinsley said with a laugh. “We didn’t have to share. We each had our own bottle.”

Anita was required to stand absolutely still, with her feet positioned on wooden blocks, for long minutes at a time. When Rockwell guided her poses, he bent down and spoke to the little girl directly. “He was very kind,Initially the banks didn't want our RUBBER SHEET .” Tinsley recalled. At the end of the 45-minute session, she received a check for $25, signed by Norman Rockwell.

Mixed dog breeder messed up the house training

I have a Whoodle puppy that is 5 and a half months old. We thought he was house-trained until we found that he had been wetting on fabric surfaces such as bedding and towels. When he’s left more than 3 and a half hours, he’s going in the crate and licking it up. He doesn’t have accidents at night or when we are around to supervise him. We got him from a very reputable breeder, not a puppy mill. The puppies were kept in a lovely farm setting. There was one other litter there at the time along with the horses they also breed. Can you please help me with this very big problem? I’d like to be able to leave him alone for longer than a few hours without an accident.

For those unfamiliar with Whoodles, they’re a cross between a Wheaten terrier and a poodle. Technically speaking, there is no such thing as a purebred Whoodle. It’s a made-up name. much like the Cock-a-poo, Shi-poo, Dorgi and many other something-a-poos.

Personally, I like mixed-breed dogs. They can make great pets. In fact all my dogs are shelter mutts. But prospective owners need to recognize that breeders of mixed breeds do not adhere to any kennel club’s code of ethics.

Designer dogs raise eyebrows and flags among trainers. There’s a big market for these animals. That can lead to commercial for-profit breeding rather than breeding for the betterment of the line.

Responsible breeders set the bar high. Litters are few and far between and usually kept in the home. Most puppies are pre-sold prior to conception. Kennel clubs around the world are embracing stricter regulations. For example, the United Kingdom’s club restricts the number of litters that can be registered from one female and mandates her retirement age. Laws require licences for profit-based breeders.

North America does not have such firm restrictions, leaving pets and prospective owners vulnerable. Discerning between genuine hobby breeding and big business is challenging. Cleanliness is not enough to go on. There is no way of telling whether kennels are always clean, or scrubbed down just before you arrive.

Puppies are notoriously dirty. Keeping one litter is a full-time job. Multiply that by additional litters and horses and you’d need an army to do it right.

Responsible breeding is about the individual care that is given. Problems develop when there are too many litters, insufficient supervision and lack of attention to the emotional needs of the animals.

House-training issues is one problem that is commonly seen. Puppies naturally seek out an appropriate and absorbent place to go. Blankets and bedding that look cosy wind up becoming a toilet. Some go as far as eating their mess.

These animals become accustomed to accidents in areas where they sleep. That makes house training extremely difficult. Crating works on the premise that dogs hold their bladder when confined to a small area. It won’t on dogs that don’t mind or eat the mess.

It’s a problem that’s going to take perseverance to correct. Throughout the day, feed your pup on various mats, blankets and in the crate. This will discourage some dogs from soiling on them.

Over time, have it stay inside for longer periods of time. Slowly and carefully work your way past the 3-hour mark. Always remove it before an accident happens. Immediately take the dog outside.

Most importantly, reward your dog generously with extremely high value treats. With enough motivation your dog will hopefully start holding its bladder in anticipation of earning a very special food reward.