In a much discussed article in the new online publication Religion & Politics Journal, New York Times religion reporter Mark Oppenheimer offers an enthusiastic endorsement of Jon Stewart's coverage of religion on "The Daily Show," which Stewart hosts on Comedy Central. "Jon Stewart may not be a believer," writes Oppenheimer, "but he is one hell of a teacher."
This is an interesting claim -- and a ridiculous one. Stewart is hilarious, and I consider his show to be must-see TV. My wife and I watch it every night that it is on, discuss it with our adult children, and bemoan its absence when the show is on break. But Stewart does not qualify, in any sense, as a "teacher" of religion.
He does cover religion extensively, and his coverage is very funny for the same reason it is funny when he takes on political subjects. In his monologues and skits, he is a master of puncturing pretense and skewering inconsistency. He looks for the absurd in religion and, without much difficulty, finds it. Unconstrained as he is by political correctness, the Mormons with their unfamiliar theology are an easy target for him; so too are the Catholic hierarchy and its approach to contraception and papal authority; so too is the Muslim and Jewish obsession with the Middle East; and so too are some of the apparently bizarre rituals of the Jewish tradition .
As a religious person, I know that some of this humor comes at my expense, but I love it nonetheless. Even if it's not always "fair," it serves as a corrective to the self-righteousness to which religious people so frequently fall prey. It also serves as a welcome reminder of how people outside the religious world see us. To an outsider, removing a foreskin or refraining from eating pork may indeed seem weird.
I also recognize that it is simply a good idea for people to laugh at themselves from time to time. As a liberal in both the political and the religious realms, I know that I have some inconsistent, imprecise, do-good ideas, and it is funny when comedians and satirists point that out, even if their words may occasionally offend my sensibilities. To the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, which engages in screeching attacks on Stewart, my advice would be: Lighten up. I am also quick to acknowledge that the Jewish community, endlessly sensitive to the possibility of anti-Semitism, is often the American religious group least able to laugh at itself. Imagine that Trey Parker and Matt Stone had written a play entitled "The Book of Judaism," dealing not with Mormon youth but with black-coated Hasidic youth. How would we Jews have responded to that?
Nonetheless, it is a real a stretch to see Stewart as a teacher of religion. True, his interviews on religious matters, as on everything else, are always civil; see, for example, his discussion with Mike Huckabee. But the fact is that while he avoids anger and bitterness, his jokes and skits on religion have a mocking, dismissive tone. As an ethnic Jew, Stewart does not appear to have a religious bone in his body, and his jokes -- even at their most hilarious -- are the jokes of a man who cannot imagine what religious belief and observance look like and feel like. Those who are funniest about religion are usually those who have experienced religion's absurdities from within, and who laugh at religion even as they retain some affection for it (and perhaps even a measure of belief). That is why Stephen Colbert, a practicing Catholic, is funnier about religion than is Stewart -- a point hinted at by Oppenheimer in his article.
Trey and Stone, in "The Book of Mormon," are wickedly funny and a bit cruel about Mormon theology, and they remind us of the role that ego plays in motivating even the most traditional believer. At the same time, their musical is suffused with an appreciation for the vitality, exuberance and altruism of Mormonism -- and of all religions at their best. This is precisely what Stewart's comedy is lacking.
Oppenheimer suggests that Stewart's show will help skeptics and the uninitiated to talk about religion. I doubt it. Hearing Stewart's mocking and dismissive tone, skeptics and the uninitiated are likely to walk away with a mocking and dismissive tone of their own. So let us accept Jon Stewart for what he is: a national treasure who is a very, very funny man. But if it is religious teachers that we are looking for, let us look somewhere else.
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Lady Gaga cancels Indonesian show after threats
Lady Gaga canceled her sold-out show in Indonesia after Islamist hard-liners threatened violence, claiming her sexy clothes and provocative dance moves would corrupt the youth.
The controversy was a blow to the predominantly Muslim country's reputation for combining free speech and democracy with a mostly moderate brand of the faith.
Fans were devastated, despite the promoter's offer of full refunds. Some accused police - who refused to issue a permit over concerns about security - of buckling to the will of a small group of thugs.
The planned "Born This Way Ball" concert has been on-again-off-again from the start.
But on Sunday, it was final, said Minola Sebayang, a lawyer for Big Daddy, the promoter of the June 3 show.
"It's unfortunate," he said. "But with threats if the concert goes ahead, Lady Gaga's side is calling it off. This is not only about Lady Gaga's security, but extends to those who will be watching her."
Indonesia, a secular nation of 240 million, is often held up by the U.S. and others an example of how democracy and Islam and can coexist. In many ways they are right. Since emerging from dictatorship just over a decade ago, sweeping reforms have resulted in direct elections, while vastly improving human rights and freeing up the media.
But a small extremist fringe has become more vocal - and violent - in recent years, attacking Christians and members of other religious minorities, transvestites, atheists and anyone else deemed immoral.
The most notorious group, Islamic Defenders Front, called Lady Gaga a "messenger of the devil" and vowed to turn out at the airport by the thousands if she tried to step off the plane. Others said they bought tickets so they could wreak havoc from inside the 52,000-seat stadium in the capital, Jakarta.
Police responded by denying the necessary permits. Then, after public outcry, they said they'd reconsider - but only if Lady Gaga agreed to tone down her act.
Instead, she pulled the plug on what was supposed to be the biggest stop on her Asian tour.
Michael Rusli, head of Big Daddy, promised "Little Monster" fans full refunds.
But that provided little consolation to people like 25-year-old Johnny Purba.
"This only shows to the world how weak security forces are in this country, how police are afraid of a bunch of hard-liners," he said.
"Gaga's two-hour show will not hurt Indonesian Muslims. For God's sake, she is not a terrorist!"
Around 50 others, dressed up like the pop diva, performed a mob flash dance at a shopping mall in Jakarta to some of her biggest hits.
Hard-liners, however, were ecstatic.
"This is a victory for Indonesian Muslims," said Salim Alatas, one of the leaders of the Islamic Defenders Front. "Thanks to God for protecting us from a kind of devil."
The controversy was a blow to the predominantly Muslim country's reputation for combining free speech and democracy with a mostly moderate brand of the faith.
Fans were devastated, despite the promoter's offer of full refunds. Some accused police - who refused to issue a permit over concerns about security - of buckling to the will of a small group of thugs.
The planned "Born This Way Ball" concert has been on-again-off-again from the start.
But on Sunday, it was final, said Minola Sebayang, a lawyer for Big Daddy, the promoter of the June 3 show.
"It's unfortunate," he said. "But with threats if the concert goes ahead, Lady Gaga's side is calling it off. This is not only about Lady Gaga's security, but extends to those who will be watching her."
Indonesia, a secular nation of 240 million, is often held up by the U.S. and others an example of how democracy and Islam and can coexist. In many ways they are right. Since emerging from dictatorship just over a decade ago, sweeping reforms have resulted in direct elections, while vastly improving human rights and freeing up the media.
But a small extremist fringe has become more vocal - and violent - in recent years, attacking Christians and members of other religious minorities, transvestites, atheists and anyone else deemed immoral.
The most notorious group, Islamic Defenders Front, called Lady Gaga a "messenger of the devil" and vowed to turn out at the airport by the thousands if she tried to step off the plane. Others said they bought tickets so they could wreak havoc from inside the 52,000-seat stadium in the capital, Jakarta.
Police responded by denying the necessary permits. Then, after public outcry, they said they'd reconsider - but only if Lady Gaga agreed to tone down her act.
Instead, she pulled the plug on what was supposed to be the biggest stop on her Asian tour.
Michael Rusli, head of Big Daddy, promised "Little Monster" fans full refunds.
But that provided little consolation to people like 25-year-old Johnny Purba.
"This only shows to the world how weak security forces are in this country, how police are afraid of a bunch of hard-liners," he said.
"Gaga's two-hour show will not hurt Indonesian Muslims. For God's sake, she is not a terrorist!"
Around 50 others, dressed up like the pop diva, performed a mob flash dance at a shopping mall in Jakarta to some of her biggest hits.
Hard-liners, however, were ecstatic.
"This is a victory for Indonesian Muslims," said Salim Alatas, one of the leaders of the Islamic Defenders Front. "Thanks to God for protecting us from a kind of devil."
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Somali Farmers Rejoice at End of Militant Tax
The farmers in Afgoye, a town on the outskirts of Mogadishu long controlled by Islamist militants, didn't even wait to clear away the bullet casings from last week's battles before filling up trucks with produce to drive into the capital.
Farmers here are rejoicing at the taking of Afgoye by African Union peacekeepers on Friday after three days of fighting because they will no longer have to pay up to 50 percent of their crops in "taxes" to al-Shabab militants. The military operation marked the AU's biggest success in Somalia since the peacekeepers pushed the militants from the capital Mogadishu last August.
Since Afgoye's fall, dozens of vehicles carrying fresh fruits and vegetables have traveled from the farm town into the Somali capital, which last year experienced the region's worst famine in 18 years. The famine was declared over in January.
Some farmers hope they will be able to produce more crops now that the insurgents have been driven out. Tractors were already out in the fields this week, plowing more land. The farmers say hope has returned and they aim to plant sorghum, maize, bananas, mangos and other items.
Mohamed Hussein said he hoped to grow and sell more lemons since he would not have to pay such high taxes anymore. He recalled life under al-Shabab's strict rule as he supervised lemons being loaded onto vehicles at his store.
"We waited for this for a long time because we were the most affected," he said, looking out of a speeding car carrying bananas. "They took 50 percent. Many of us gave up farming. I hope the army's presence will soothe the town."
During the years when the town was under militant rule, many people soured on farming or fled the region. Even as crop production fell, hundreds of thousands of Somalis flooded into Afgoye from Mogadishu, seeking an escape from the years of fighting in the capital.
The taking of Afgoye is the latest success against al-Shabab militants. After African Union forces primarily from Uganda and Burundi pushed out the insurgents from Mogadishu, Kenyan troops began pressuring al-Shabab from the south and Ethiopian troops pushed in from the west.
The three-pronged offensive has given the African coalition the best chance in years of taking back control of Somalia to allow some nascent form of government to begin providing services.
Militants have increased bomb attacks as the territory they control shrinks.
On Tuesday al-Shabab fighters ambushed the convoy the Somali president was traveling in after he visited Afgoye, said Lt. Col. Paddy Ankunda, spokesman of the African Union military force. The attack was repelled and the president safely returned to Mogadishu, he said.
UNHCR said on Tuesday that 14,000 people fled Afgoye over the last week, and that 10,000 have reached Mogadishu, where the aid community is providing assistance.
Nur Saney returned to Afgoye over the weekend after two years of life in Mogadishu. He had fled his farm because of the high taxes and on Sunday he was back on it, clearing weeds.
"I hope for better days ahead," he said.
Still, many in this agricultural town worry that irregularly paid government soldiers may become the next illegal tax collector.
Abdikarim Yusuf Dhagabadan, the chief of Somalia's armed forces, told reporters he has warned soldiers not to take money from citizens.
Farmers here are rejoicing at the taking of Afgoye by African Union peacekeepers on Friday after three days of fighting because they will no longer have to pay up to 50 percent of their crops in "taxes" to al-Shabab militants. The military operation marked the AU's biggest success in Somalia since the peacekeepers pushed the militants from the capital Mogadishu last August.
Since Afgoye's fall, dozens of vehicles carrying fresh fruits and vegetables have traveled from the farm town into the Somali capital, which last year experienced the region's worst famine in 18 years. The famine was declared over in January.
Some farmers hope they will be able to produce more crops now that the insurgents have been driven out. Tractors were already out in the fields this week, plowing more land. The farmers say hope has returned and they aim to plant sorghum, maize, bananas, mangos and other items.
Mohamed Hussein said he hoped to grow and sell more lemons since he would not have to pay such high taxes anymore. He recalled life under al-Shabab's strict rule as he supervised lemons being loaded onto vehicles at his store.
"We waited for this for a long time because we were the most affected," he said, looking out of a speeding car carrying bananas. "They took 50 percent. Many of us gave up farming. I hope the army's presence will soothe the town."
During the years when the town was under militant rule, many people soured on farming or fled the region. Even as crop production fell, hundreds of thousands of Somalis flooded into Afgoye from Mogadishu, seeking an escape from the years of fighting in the capital.
The taking of Afgoye is the latest success against al-Shabab militants. After African Union forces primarily from Uganda and Burundi pushed out the insurgents from Mogadishu, Kenyan troops began pressuring al-Shabab from the south and Ethiopian troops pushed in from the west.
The three-pronged offensive has given the African coalition the best chance in years of taking back control of Somalia to allow some nascent form of government to begin providing services.
Militants have increased bomb attacks as the territory they control shrinks.
On Tuesday al-Shabab fighters ambushed the convoy the Somali president was traveling in after he visited Afgoye, said Lt. Col. Paddy Ankunda, spokesman of the African Union military force. The attack was repelled and the president safely returned to Mogadishu, he said.
UNHCR said on Tuesday that 14,000 people fled Afgoye over the last week, and that 10,000 have reached Mogadishu, where the aid community is providing assistance.
Nur Saney returned to Afgoye over the weekend after two years of life in Mogadishu. He had fled his farm because of the high taxes and on Sunday he was back on it, clearing weeds.
"I hope for better days ahead," he said.
Still, many in this agricultural town worry that irregularly paid government soldiers may become the next illegal tax collector.
Abdikarim Yusuf Dhagabadan, the chief of Somalia's armed forces, told reporters he has warned soldiers not to take money from citizens.
Monday, May 28, 2012
Morgan on hot streak
The announcement of the final U.S. Women’s Olympic roster on Sunday afternoon took some of the suspense out of the friendly later that evening against China. The match changed from being an audition for players hoping to make the team, to a showcase for the squad that will most likely start when the Olympics get underway in July.
This 18-player roster looks very much like the same squad that finished second in the 2011 World Cup, but Sunday we saw a glimpse of how one player’s role has changed dramatically in the past year. Alex Morgan put on a show, scoring a pair of goals and setting up another in the US’s 4-1 victory at PPL Park on Sunday night.
Morgan looked every bit like the most dangerous player on the field, showing off her speed, strength, tenacity and deadly finishing ability.
This isn’t exactly breaking news. Morgan has spent the past year building on the momentum of her inspiring performances at the 2011 World Cup, where she came off the bench late in games and scored some of the most important goals of the tournament. So far in 2012, counting Sunday’s virtuoso performance, Morgan has tallied 13 goals and eight assists in 12 national team matches. Mind-blowing numbers for a 22-year-old player on a stacked U.S. team.
Her super sub days are over. Morgan is taking her game to new heights, and as scary as it sounds, her form on the field is matching up to the growing hype surrounding her off the field. She is more than just a pretty face drawing interest from corporations trying to capitalize on her combination of beauty and skill. Morgan is a bona fide superstar in the making, as her form since last summer’s World Cup has shown.
Sunday’s game was the kind of game U.S. fans — and her teammates — are quickly growing accustomed to from Morgan.
“After that experience at the World Cup I think she came back stronger than ever,” U.S. captain Christie Rampone said of Morgan. “She wanted that starting spot and she earned it. She continues to work every day and she’s getting stronger and stronger and I’m looking forward to seeing her at the Olympics.”
Rampone helped set up Morgan’s most impressive moment of the night when the veteran centerback lofted a perfect long pass that Morgan ran onto, out-muscling a China defender before hitting a perfect strike from 18 yards out, making it 3-1 in the 50th minute.
Morgan fell short in her bid for a hat-trick, but capped her night with an assist when she sent an excellent long throw-in to Abby Wambach that the veteran striker finished from close range to make the final score 4-1.
The US started things off slowly, with China jumping out to a 22nd-minute lead by capitalizing on some shaky team defending from the home side. The Americans eventually settled down and took control, tying things up in the 34th minute when Morgan sent a curling shot past the China goalkeeper.
That goal settled the US down, and a China own goal just two minutes later gave the Americans the lead for good.
“We struggled a little bit in the first half and we turned it around in the second half,” Sundhage said. “The halftime talk was good with the players.
“We haven’t played a lot of games, and it’s a little bit of a concern,” Sundhage said. “The more games you play the better it is, and this game was very important for the fact we could pick it up in the second half.”
This 18-player roster looks very much like the same squad that finished second in the 2011 World Cup, but Sunday we saw a glimpse of how one player’s role has changed dramatically in the past year. Alex Morgan put on a show, scoring a pair of goals and setting up another in the US’s 4-1 victory at PPL Park on Sunday night.
Morgan looked every bit like the most dangerous player on the field, showing off her speed, strength, tenacity and deadly finishing ability.
This isn’t exactly breaking news. Morgan has spent the past year building on the momentum of her inspiring performances at the 2011 World Cup, where she came off the bench late in games and scored some of the most important goals of the tournament. So far in 2012, counting Sunday’s virtuoso performance, Morgan has tallied 13 goals and eight assists in 12 national team matches. Mind-blowing numbers for a 22-year-old player on a stacked U.S. team.
Her super sub days are over. Morgan is taking her game to new heights, and as scary as it sounds, her form on the field is matching up to the growing hype surrounding her off the field. She is more than just a pretty face drawing interest from corporations trying to capitalize on her combination of beauty and skill. Morgan is a bona fide superstar in the making, as her form since last summer’s World Cup has shown.
Sunday’s game was the kind of game U.S. fans — and her teammates — are quickly growing accustomed to from Morgan.
“After that experience at the World Cup I think she came back stronger than ever,” U.S. captain Christie Rampone said of Morgan. “She wanted that starting spot and she earned it. She continues to work every day and she’s getting stronger and stronger and I’m looking forward to seeing her at the Olympics.”
Rampone helped set up Morgan’s most impressive moment of the night when the veteran centerback lofted a perfect long pass that Morgan ran onto, out-muscling a China defender before hitting a perfect strike from 18 yards out, making it 3-1 in the 50th minute.
Morgan fell short in her bid for a hat-trick, but capped her night with an assist when she sent an excellent long throw-in to Abby Wambach that the veteran striker finished from close range to make the final score 4-1.
The US started things off slowly, with China jumping out to a 22nd-minute lead by capitalizing on some shaky team defending from the home side. The Americans eventually settled down and took control, tying things up in the 34th minute when Morgan sent a curling shot past the China goalkeeper.
That goal settled the US down, and a China own goal just two minutes later gave the Americans the lead for good.
“We struggled a little bit in the first half and we turned it around in the second half,” Sundhage said. “The halftime talk was good with the players.
“We haven’t played a lot of games, and it’s a little bit of a concern,” Sundhage said. “The more games you play the better it is, and this game was very important for the fact we could pick it up in the second half.”
Sunday, May 27, 2012
Justin Bieber pays $6.5 million for Calabasas home
The price that first-time homeowner Justin Bieber paid for his new digs in Calabasas has wended its way into the public record: $6.5 million.
Set on 1.3 acres in a gated community, the 10,000-square-foot main house is described as "transitional French" in style. Features include a high-ceiling foyer, library, a movie theater with stadium seating, a wet bar and a wine cellar - just what every 18-year-old pop singer needs. Including a guesthouse, there are seven bedrooms and eight bathrooms. A swimming pool and expansive lawns are among outdoor amenities.
The recent high school graduate, who catapulted to stardom through YouTube videos, has recorded the albums "My World 2.0," "Under the Mistletoe" and "Believe," and sold more than 15 million copies. At the middle of last month Bieber had more than 20 million Twitter followers.
His North America "Believe" tour will stop at Staples Center in October. He performed his single "Boyfriend" on "The Voice" this month.
The house, which was built in 2005, had been listed at $8.75 million. Among the previous owners was Eddie Murphy's former wife Nicole Murphy, who sold the property last year for $5.515 million.
After several years of on-again, off-again marketing and repeated price drops - during which its owner's personal turmoil was widely publicized and her affairs placed into the hands of a conservator - the Studio City house of Britney Spears has been sold for $4.253 million.
The pop star's house had been priced as a high of $7.9 million in 2008 and was most recently listed at $4.466 million. Spears paid $6.75 million five years ago for the Italian Renaissance-inspired villa.
The home, built in 2001 in a gated neighborhood, has five bedrooms and six bathrooms in about 7,453 square feet. Features include marble, hardwood and mosaic tile floors, carved millwork, maid's quarters and a three-car garage. The master bedroom has a fireplace, a loggia and dual bathrooms. The landscaped grounds of more than a third of an acre include a swimming pool and a gated motor court.
Spears, 30, released her first album, "Baby One More Time," in 1999 and rose to become one of the bestselling artists in the country. She released her seventh studio album, "Femme Fatale," last year and joins "The X Factor" as a judge this year.
"Chinatown" writer Robert Towne has listed his estate on the Westside at $12.995 million.
Built in 1926 and designed for grand entertaining, the restored English country-style mansion and guesthouse have seven bedrooms, nine bathrooms and 10,000 square feet of living space. The nearly three-quarter-acre property is wooded and includes a swimming pool, a rose garden and a spice garden.
Towne, 77, won an Oscar for original screenplay in 1975 for the film starring Jack Nicholson about land and water rights disputes. He wrote the screenplays for "Days of Thunder" (1990), "Mission Impossible" (1996) and "Mission Impossible: II" (2000).
Public records show he bought the property in the 1980s for $2.495 million. Towne is selling because he is ready to downsize. He plans to stay in the Los Angeles area.
Los Lobos guitarist and singer Cesar Rosas has sold his house in Walnut for $1.425 million.
The 3,906-square-foot home sits on nearly an acre in the hills. Built in 2008, it features a panoramic view of the San Gabriel Valley, four bedrooms and four bathrooms.
Public records show Rosas bought the house the year it was built for $1.405 million.
The Grammy-winning East L.A. band played at the Greek Theatre this month during the inaugural Los Lobos Cinco de Mayo Festival.
Rosas sold because he bought another home in the area. The 57-year-old also plays with Los Super Seven.
A 1928 Tudor once owned by Broadway star Mary Martin is on the market in Bel-Air at $10.5 million.
Nicknamed the Peter Pan House for the role the former resident played, the two-story-plus-basement house sits on about an acre with a guesthouse and swimming pool. Features include leaded-glass windows, half-timbered details and a gabled roof. The house has a library-study, a breakfast room, seven bedrooms and five bathrooms.
Martin, who died in 1990 at 76, also was known for stage roles in "South Pacific" and "The Sound of Music." The singer and actress was the mother of actor Larry Hagman.
Action film screenwriter Skip Woods has put himself where the action is in L.A. - the bustling Hollywood Hills West area - with the purchase of a hillside house for $2.004 million.
The sleek contemporary, built in 1951 and extensively updated, features a dramatic two-story entry with a skylight and chandelier, high ceilings, walls of glass, a bar, a fireplace, four bedrooms and three bathrooms. A deck off the master suite has city views. A glass-walled deck over the driveway creates a carport. The swimming pool cabana includes a bar, flat-screen TV and a kitchen.
Set on 1.3 acres in a gated community, the 10,000-square-foot main house is described as "transitional French" in style. Features include a high-ceiling foyer, library, a movie theater with stadium seating, a wet bar and a wine cellar - just what every 18-year-old pop singer needs. Including a guesthouse, there are seven bedrooms and eight bathrooms. A swimming pool and expansive lawns are among outdoor amenities.
The recent high school graduate, who catapulted to stardom through YouTube videos, has recorded the albums "My World 2.0," "Under the Mistletoe" and "Believe," and sold more than 15 million copies. At the middle of last month Bieber had more than 20 million Twitter followers.
His North America "Believe" tour will stop at Staples Center in October. He performed his single "Boyfriend" on "The Voice" this month.
The house, which was built in 2005, had been listed at $8.75 million. Among the previous owners was Eddie Murphy's former wife Nicole Murphy, who sold the property last year for $5.515 million.
After several years of on-again, off-again marketing and repeated price drops - during which its owner's personal turmoil was widely publicized and her affairs placed into the hands of a conservator - the Studio City house of Britney Spears has been sold for $4.253 million.
The pop star's house had been priced as a high of $7.9 million in 2008 and was most recently listed at $4.466 million. Spears paid $6.75 million five years ago for the Italian Renaissance-inspired villa.
The home, built in 2001 in a gated neighborhood, has five bedrooms and six bathrooms in about 7,453 square feet. Features include marble, hardwood and mosaic tile floors, carved millwork, maid's quarters and a three-car garage. The master bedroom has a fireplace, a loggia and dual bathrooms. The landscaped grounds of more than a third of an acre include a swimming pool and a gated motor court.
Spears, 30, released her first album, "Baby One More Time," in 1999 and rose to become one of the bestselling artists in the country. She released her seventh studio album, "Femme Fatale," last year and joins "The X Factor" as a judge this year.
"Chinatown" writer Robert Towne has listed his estate on the Westside at $12.995 million.
Built in 1926 and designed for grand entertaining, the restored English country-style mansion and guesthouse have seven bedrooms, nine bathrooms and 10,000 square feet of living space. The nearly three-quarter-acre property is wooded and includes a swimming pool, a rose garden and a spice garden.
Towne, 77, won an Oscar for original screenplay in 1975 for the film starring Jack Nicholson about land and water rights disputes. He wrote the screenplays for "Days of Thunder" (1990), "Mission Impossible" (1996) and "Mission Impossible: II" (2000).
Public records show he bought the property in the 1980s for $2.495 million. Towne is selling because he is ready to downsize. He plans to stay in the Los Angeles area.
Los Lobos guitarist and singer Cesar Rosas has sold his house in Walnut for $1.425 million.
The 3,906-square-foot home sits on nearly an acre in the hills. Built in 2008, it features a panoramic view of the San Gabriel Valley, four bedrooms and four bathrooms.
Public records show Rosas bought the house the year it was built for $1.405 million.
The Grammy-winning East L.A. band played at the Greek Theatre this month during the inaugural Los Lobos Cinco de Mayo Festival.
Rosas sold because he bought another home in the area. The 57-year-old also plays with Los Super Seven.
A 1928 Tudor once owned by Broadway star Mary Martin is on the market in Bel-Air at $10.5 million.
Nicknamed the Peter Pan House for the role the former resident played, the two-story-plus-basement house sits on about an acre with a guesthouse and swimming pool. Features include leaded-glass windows, half-timbered details and a gabled roof. The house has a library-study, a breakfast room, seven bedrooms and five bathrooms.
Martin, who died in 1990 at 76, also was known for stage roles in "South Pacific" and "The Sound of Music." The singer and actress was the mother of actor Larry Hagman.
Action film screenwriter Skip Woods has put himself where the action is in L.A. - the bustling Hollywood Hills West area - with the purchase of a hillside house for $2.004 million.
The sleek contemporary, built in 1951 and extensively updated, features a dramatic two-story entry with a skylight and chandelier, high ceilings, walls of glass, a bar, a fireplace, four bedrooms and three bathrooms. A deck off the master suite has city views. A glass-walled deck over the driveway creates a carport. The swimming pool cabana includes a bar, flat-screen TV and a kitchen.
Thursday, May 24, 2012
'Montauk Chronicles' Claims Time Travel, Mind Control, Aliens At Camp Hero
Montauk, N.Y., is a picturesque, oceanside resort community on the tip of Long Island, where the rich and famous have fun in the sun. Montauk is also known for Camp Hero, a decommissioned Air Force base.
Conspiracy theorists and people who say they have spent time there claim Camp Hero was once used for bizarre, secret experiments that included mind control, time travel and contact with extraterrestrials. All of these claims are presented in "Montauk Chronicles," a new movie that has its world premiere Friday in the resort town.
While the movie features interviews with real people, much of the film centers around dramatic recreations of events they claim happened to them.
"When you walk through the area, you see this giant, imposing radar tower that still stands," said Christopher Garetano, executive producer, writer and director of "Montauk Chronicles." "Above ground, there are also huge doors, or bunkers, cemented and sealed into the sides of several hills in the forest area."
Throughout the wooded park area are what appear to be manhole covers -- capping passages that lead where?
"These obviously go down into something," said Garetano, pictured left at Camp Hero. "Some people claim that these are entrances to underground tunnel systems that ran beneath the military base that would supposedly bring you to the actual entrance of the facility."
Camp Hero's roots are traceable to the Revolutionary War, when it was a facility to test military cannons. During World War II, the base was an important coastal defense against potential Nazi intrusions.
"Montauk Chronicles" tells the story of three men, Alfred Bielek, Stewart Swerdlow and Preston Nichols, who claim they were involved when Camp Hero reportedly became an underground site for scientific experiments and atrocities.
"At first I didn't believe their stories," Garetano told The Huffington Post. "These men have not benefited financially -- they didn't gain anything from this, and they've endured ridicule as they maintained their story."
Bielek, a retired electrical engineer who recently died, told of being part of the legendary Philadelphia Experiment in 1943, in which the U.S. Navy is said to have tried to make a destroyer undetectable to radar.
The way Bielek's story unfolded, the Navy test ended in disaster, causing the ship to supposedly travel through time. He maintained that he was recruited in 1970 to work on mind control and time travel projects at the Montauk secret facility.
"Alfred claimed he was a programmer who designed sequences where kidnapped boys were experimented on to become psychic spies and he said he was part of these psychic manipulations," said Garetano.
Nichols, like Bielek, was an electrical engineer. He says he worked with Bielek at the Camp Hero location and that he also saw extraterrestrials there.
"We had the little grays and larger grays as well as a variety of reptilian beings," said Nichols. "The large grays didn't want anything to do with me. ... When I entered a room, they would leave."
Conspiracy theorists and people who say they have spent time there claim Camp Hero was once used for bizarre, secret experiments that included mind control, time travel and contact with extraterrestrials. All of these claims are presented in "Montauk Chronicles," a new movie that has its world premiere Friday in the resort town.
While the movie features interviews with real people, much of the film centers around dramatic recreations of events they claim happened to them.
"When you walk through the area, you see this giant, imposing radar tower that still stands," said Christopher Garetano, executive producer, writer and director of "Montauk Chronicles." "Above ground, there are also huge doors, or bunkers, cemented and sealed into the sides of several hills in the forest area."
Throughout the wooded park area are what appear to be manhole covers -- capping passages that lead where?
"These obviously go down into something," said Garetano, pictured left at Camp Hero. "Some people claim that these are entrances to underground tunnel systems that ran beneath the military base that would supposedly bring you to the actual entrance of the facility."
Camp Hero's roots are traceable to the Revolutionary War, when it was a facility to test military cannons. During World War II, the base was an important coastal defense against potential Nazi intrusions.
"Montauk Chronicles" tells the story of three men, Alfred Bielek, Stewart Swerdlow and Preston Nichols, who claim they were involved when Camp Hero reportedly became an underground site for scientific experiments and atrocities.
"At first I didn't believe their stories," Garetano told The Huffington Post. "These men have not benefited financially -- they didn't gain anything from this, and they've endured ridicule as they maintained their story."
Bielek, a retired electrical engineer who recently died, told of being part of the legendary Philadelphia Experiment in 1943, in which the U.S. Navy is said to have tried to make a destroyer undetectable to radar.
The way Bielek's story unfolded, the Navy test ended in disaster, causing the ship to supposedly travel through time. He maintained that he was recruited in 1970 to work on mind control and time travel projects at the Montauk secret facility.
"Alfred claimed he was a programmer who designed sequences where kidnapped boys were experimented on to become psychic spies and he said he was part of these psychic manipulations," said Garetano.
Nichols, like Bielek, was an electrical engineer. He says he worked with Bielek at the Camp Hero location and that he also saw extraterrestrials there.
"We had the little grays and larger grays as well as a variety of reptilian beings," said Nichols. "The large grays didn't want anything to do with me. ... When I entered a room, they would leave."
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Solar greenhouse built in student's memory
All their lives, the Maisonneuves lived by their own code of sustainability.
They ate organic food. They powered their homes with solar electricity. They even used cotton diapers on their children.
They represented healthy living so that's why it was such a surprise when their eight-year-old daughter Karyne was diagnosed with cancer.
When she died from complications with her treatment in 2006, Carl and his wife Mary Lou knew they wanted to dedicate themselves to the environmental ideals their daughter held so dear.
On Wednesday, the family showed off the culmination of their two-year project -- a new solar-powered greenhouse classroom at Gisele Lalond high school in Orléans, where all four of their children attended.
Entitled Project Karyne, for Mary Lou, the greenhouse is a way to preserve the memory of her daughter.
"After Karyne died, the teachers here at the school asked if they could do a fundraiser," she said.
"And we said that would be alright, but we'd kind of like to do something for the environment."
It first started by selling garden leaf bags to raise funds, then grew to building a wind turbine and finally the greenhouse.
The community rallied behind the project, with dozens of construction companies and volunteers throwing their weight behind the building.
The greenhouse boasts innovative technologies including solar water and air heating systems, a rainwater recovery system and geothermal air conditioning system.
Students helped plant and grow vegetation for the greenhouse's first season as well as build a mosaic stone countertop to work on.
"I'm studying environmental studies, so this really ties it all together and it's been a great experience just to have this amazing project and to talk about it with other people," said Elyse Maisonneuve, who has worked on the project with her family since the beginning.
At the unveiling ceremony, the French public school board thanked the Maisonneuves for their hard work and offered $35,000 to help pay for the rest of the construction to be finished by fall 2012.
"Elyse, Marc and Paul, your little sister shines in our hearts this morning," said French public school board director Edith Dumont.
"Carl and Mary Lou, thanks for everything. Your Karyne touched us, she inspired us, she guided us, and she'll never be forgotten."
They ate organic food. They powered their homes with solar electricity. They even used cotton diapers on their children.
They represented healthy living so that's why it was such a surprise when their eight-year-old daughter Karyne was diagnosed with cancer.
When she died from complications with her treatment in 2006, Carl and his wife Mary Lou knew they wanted to dedicate themselves to the environmental ideals their daughter held so dear.
On Wednesday, the family showed off the culmination of their two-year project -- a new solar-powered greenhouse classroom at Gisele Lalond high school in Orléans, where all four of their children attended.
Entitled Project Karyne, for Mary Lou, the greenhouse is a way to preserve the memory of her daughter.
"After Karyne died, the teachers here at the school asked if they could do a fundraiser," she said.
"And we said that would be alright, but we'd kind of like to do something for the environment."
It first started by selling garden leaf bags to raise funds, then grew to building a wind turbine and finally the greenhouse.
The community rallied behind the project, with dozens of construction companies and volunteers throwing their weight behind the building.
The greenhouse boasts innovative technologies including solar water and air heating systems, a rainwater recovery system and geothermal air conditioning system.
Students helped plant and grow vegetation for the greenhouse's first season as well as build a mosaic stone countertop to work on.
"I'm studying environmental studies, so this really ties it all together and it's been a great experience just to have this amazing project and to talk about it with other people," said Elyse Maisonneuve, who has worked on the project with her family since the beginning.
At the unveiling ceremony, the French public school board thanked the Maisonneuves for their hard work and offered $35,000 to help pay for the rest of the construction to be finished by fall 2012.
"Elyse, Marc and Paul, your little sister shines in our hearts this morning," said French public school board director Edith Dumont.
"Carl and Mary Lou, thanks for everything. Your Karyne touched us, she inspired us, she guided us, and she'll never be forgotten."
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
Fatherly signs with Penn State
It was a rainy day early in the week prior to the District 4 Class AAA Championships, and while some may have looked outside at the continuous drops of rain and called it a day, Rachel Fatherly remained in Williamsport High School and went to work.
Her coach had a plan for her to master her spin in the discus, so there was Fatherly looking like a top spinning round and round and round. She said she did 70 spins that gloomy day and it has been that type of work ethic that has transformed Fatherly into a high school freshman with potential into a Division I signee.
The Williamsport school record holder in the discus and shot put made her college choice official Monday morning by signing her national letter of intent to attend Penn State in the fall.
"Ever since I was younger I wanted to be a Nittany Lion," said Fatherly, "and it was like a dream come true."
Penn State's coaches, facilities and location furthered the point home to Fatherly.
Fatherly, who won the Penn Relays high school shot put in April, said Penn State has a strong throwing program and she was able to build a relationship with the coaches.
"The coaches are really nice," said Fatherly. "Personality was the key and I like that a lot."
Fatherly competed at Penn State this past winter at the Pennsylvania Indoor Track and Field State Championships, so it's a place that brings some familiarity. The hour that separates the State College campus and her home in Williamsport was also a plus. Fatherly wanted to remain close to home and Penn State gives her the opportunity while still allowing her to compete nationally against the best of the best.
Fatherly's parents and brothers have been big influences on the Williamsport senior. Her mother typically watches her daughter throw with notebook in hand tracking the competition and her father watches intently from a chair.
It all added up to Penn State being the "perfect place" for Fatherly, who broke a 16-year District 4 Class AAA record in the discus on Saturday at Athens with a throw of 140 feet, 9 inches..
Before she dons the blue and white, however, Fatherly will represent Williamsport at a PIAA-sanctioned event one final time this weekend at Shippensburg. The four-time District 4 Class AAA champion and three-time PIAA placewinner in the shot put will get another opportunity to win her first PIAA gold medal on Friday morning and the three-time district discus champion will return to the throwing area on Saturday afternoon for the discus. She is the top seed in both events.
Her coach had a plan for her to master her spin in the discus, so there was Fatherly looking like a top spinning round and round and round. She said she did 70 spins that gloomy day and it has been that type of work ethic that has transformed Fatherly into a high school freshman with potential into a Division I signee.
The Williamsport school record holder in the discus and shot put made her college choice official Monday morning by signing her national letter of intent to attend Penn State in the fall.
"Ever since I was younger I wanted to be a Nittany Lion," said Fatherly, "and it was like a dream come true."
Penn State's coaches, facilities and location furthered the point home to Fatherly.
Fatherly, who won the Penn Relays high school shot put in April, said Penn State has a strong throwing program and she was able to build a relationship with the coaches.
"The coaches are really nice," said Fatherly. "Personality was the key and I like that a lot."
Fatherly competed at Penn State this past winter at the Pennsylvania Indoor Track and Field State Championships, so it's a place that brings some familiarity. The hour that separates the State College campus and her home in Williamsport was also a plus. Fatherly wanted to remain close to home and Penn State gives her the opportunity while still allowing her to compete nationally against the best of the best.
Fatherly's parents and brothers have been big influences on the Williamsport senior. Her mother typically watches her daughter throw with notebook in hand tracking the competition and her father watches intently from a chair.
It all added up to Penn State being the "perfect place" for Fatherly, who broke a 16-year District 4 Class AAA record in the discus on Saturday at Athens with a throw of 140 feet, 9 inches..
Before she dons the blue and white, however, Fatherly will represent Williamsport at a PIAA-sanctioned event one final time this weekend at Shippensburg. The four-time District 4 Class AAA champion and three-time PIAA placewinner in the shot put will get another opportunity to win her first PIAA gold medal on Friday morning and the three-time district discus champion will return to the throwing area on Saturday afternoon for the discus. She is the top seed in both events.
Monday, May 21, 2012
Designing Space to Safeguard Food Retail
While retail is taking hit due to the financial downturn and competition from online shopping, there is one sector that is proving to be extremely popular: food retail.
Due perhaps in large part to the current ‘foodie’ trend, spurred on by television shows like Iron Chef, Master Chef and the Naked Chef, there is a growing sector not simply interested in buying mundane groceries, but is also looking to high-end food supplies and food court dining.
This need is being catered to by the food retail sector, with interior designers finding the mix of design and food a highly palatable recipe for success.
Taking home top honours in Retail Design at the 2012 Australian Interior Design Awards is the Canadian food retailer fitout for Loblaws Maple Leaf Gardens by design practice Landini Associates.
Jurors say the project, and the barrage of developments seen this year in the same vein signal ‘a resurgence of interest in food and design, particularly within food courts.’
The winning project, Maple Leaf Gardens market by Landini Associates, features an interior of complexity and richness; a market without the mess, say the jurors.
“The food produce on offer is the hero of the space and enables customers to communicate with food providers and producers, which is an essential part of an intelligent and meaningful shopping experience,” they say.
The design, with its open plan layout and low customer/employee separating benches, maximise what makes food shopping stand a part from other retail sectors – the human experience. When we buy food from a deli or specialist grocer, communication about the products is encouraged and product samples are offered, turning a mundane shopping trip into a food experience.
“Signage, colour and texture are used with control and deliberate intent. This is a massive, beautiful marketplace,” say the jurors. “The designers are to be congratulated on what they have achieved in North America and are encouraged to undertake similar projects in Australia.”
Designers The Uncarved Block are taking on that challenge in Australia, receiving a commendation at the aforementioned interior design awards for their development of the Galeries Victoria food courts in Melbourne Central.
Jumping on this high-end foodie trend, the designers took the drab out of food-court design and instead created a boutique food-court environment. This includes the use of bespoke design elements and a natural, warm colour palette and beautiful mosaic art installations. The designers encourage communication through the implementation of long bench tables, creating a space to share.
The design offers everyone from all different demographics a chance to share in the boutique food experience.
Perhaps that is the strong appeal of food retail and why designers are finding so much success working in this sector: food is non-discriminatory. It appeals to everyone, everywhere, at any time. The joy of the dining experience should not be limited to only those who can afford it and industry members willing to offer that experience to the masses are reaping the rewards.
Due perhaps in large part to the current ‘foodie’ trend, spurred on by television shows like Iron Chef, Master Chef and the Naked Chef, there is a growing sector not simply interested in buying mundane groceries, but is also looking to high-end food supplies and food court dining.
This need is being catered to by the food retail sector, with interior designers finding the mix of design and food a highly palatable recipe for success.
Taking home top honours in Retail Design at the 2012 Australian Interior Design Awards is the Canadian food retailer fitout for Loblaws Maple Leaf Gardens by design practice Landini Associates.
Jurors say the project, and the barrage of developments seen this year in the same vein signal ‘a resurgence of interest in food and design, particularly within food courts.’
The winning project, Maple Leaf Gardens market by Landini Associates, features an interior of complexity and richness; a market without the mess, say the jurors.
“The food produce on offer is the hero of the space and enables customers to communicate with food providers and producers, which is an essential part of an intelligent and meaningful shopping experience,” they say.
The design, with its open plan layout and low customer/employee separating benches, maximise what makes food shopping stand a part from other retail sectors – the human experience. When we buy food from a deli or specialist grocer, communication about the products is encouraged and product samples are offered, turning a mundane shopping trip into a food experience.
“Signage, colour and texture are used with control and deliberate intent. This is a massive, beautiful marketplace,” say the jurors. “The designers are to be congratulated on what they have achieved in North America and are encouraged to undertake similar projects in Australia.”
Designers The Uncarved Block are taking on that challenge in Australia, receiving a commendation at the aforementioned interior design awards for their development of the Galeries Victoria food courts in Melbourne Central.
Jumping on this high-end foodie trend, the designers took the drab out of food-court design and instead created a boutique food-court environment. This includes the use of bespoke design elements and a natural, warm colour palette and beautiful mosaic art installations. The designers encourage communication through the implementation of long bench tables, creating a space to share.
The design offers everyone from all different demographics a chance to share in the boutique food experience.
Perhaps that is the strong appeal of food retail and why designers are finding so much success working in this sector: food is non-discriminatory. It appeals to everyone, everywhere, at any time. The joy of the dining experience should not be limited to only those who can afford it and industry members willing to offer that experience to the masses are reaping the rewards.
Sunday, May 20, 2012
MW3 Content Collection 2 Review
And with Modern Warfare 3’s 2nd instalment of extra maps and goodies due to arrive on May 22nd, the good folk at Activision really are spoiling us.
A whole bundle of Warfare goodness will soon be in our mitts. 3 standard multiplayer maps, 2 spanking new Spec Ops missions and 4 smaller maps for the all new Face-Off game mode make up what is without doubt a veritable feast for avid ‘Codders’ to get their teeth into.
The 3 standard maps bundled into this release wear the name badges, Sanctuary, Foundation and Oasis. The former two surfaced last month as an Elite membership drop while the latter makes it’s debut here.
The good news is all three sit on the right side of decent.
Sanctuary is a sizable location for all your team excursions, it’s very easy on the eye with it’s mountaintop setting and carved rock good looks and is also a joy to play. Despite being a fairly big map it also holds a wealth of team work and tactical opportunities for those more in tune groups out there to take advantage of.
Foundation is much tighter affair. Set amid the iron and dust of a disused concrete factory the map plays at a heartbreak pace. Little time to think and nowhere to hide Foundation is a fantastic map for the run and gun gamer to practice that fine art. Towers hold sniping potential but you’ll have to be on your toes to stay alive. It’s a weaker map than Sanctuary and certainly looks a lot less appealing but thanks to the high tempo it will surely find a place in many a gamers heart.
Now to Oasis and thankfully with this newest of the standard MP maps there’s not a hairy eyebrow or recycled guitar riff in sight, no, this is a much more interesting release than anything the Gallagher brothers have put out in a while.
Oasis takes place in a seriously flash Dubai hotel, you know one of those places where the stolen dressing gown you’ve accidentally placed in your luggage upon departure becomes the most expensive item of clothing in your wardrobe……….no?…. Just me then…anyway, I’ll probably never know how one of these places functions as a hotel but as a venue for raining down a hail of gunfire upon your enemies it works a treat. The killing grounds are large enough for some good old cross courtyard shootouts while within the walls there are a nice number of claustrophobic corridors and close combat opportunities to lap up. It’s another solid performer in what is fast becoming one of the strongest collection of maps seen in a Call of Duty game since Call of Duty 3, and I’m seriously biased towards that old gem so I don’t say that lightly.
Onto the beachside location of Getaway then. Here we find ourselves within the sort of luxurious beachside holiday home I imagine most of the Activision employees own. The building is also a window cleaners nightmare with glass as far as the eye can see (which, when there’s glass everywhere is actually quite far.) Getaway is a run and gunners dream though, the use of so much glass means there’s little cover available and you’ll find small reward from taking a stealthy approach. The map looks great and plays just as well. Personally I didn’t notice any locations that were used for a team to try and bed in and take advantage of, rather, matches here became a compete high octane bullet fest until the final Kill cam rolled. Love it.
The final of the 4 is my own personal favourite. Aground, set amid a long rusted shipwreck and craggy features of the unforgiving Scottish coastline is an absolute beauty. This map feels slightly larger than the others, to the point in fact where having a good sniper on the team can prove a real bonus, but still maintains a high pace. There are places where teams can attempt to hold up and keep the enemy at bay but equally the potential to flank the holding team is very evident. Aground looks superb and plays like you always hope a map will, beautifully thrilling from start to finish.
So that takes care of the maps now let’s quickly look at the Spec Ops missions so I can get back to some Face Off action, and no, that has nothing to do with removing my make-up. I only wear that on Wednesdays.
With this collection comes a couple of fresh Spec Ops missions to get to grips with.
Iron Clad and Kill Switch can both be played either solo or in co-op. Iron Clad takes place in Hamburg and tasks you with clearing a path for a tank by placing C4 charges along it’s route while also dealing with a multitude of heavily armed enemy forces. Kill Switch meanwhile requires one player to infiltrate a Russian Comms station and detonate an EMP. One player heads into the fray on foot while the other takes up position on an overlooking bridge armed with that trustiest of weapons, the sniper rifle. Both missions are decent and, as ever, ramp up the fun in co-op play but make no mistake unless you’re seriously into your Spec Ops missions these two are merely the nibbles next to the real meat of this release, that being the maps.
All in all we have another triumph for Activision and there DLC. There’s just so much to be getting on with, new maps to discover, new modes to sample and new missions to embark upon. Everything seems polished and unrushed, each map has the power to deliver top notch gameplay and none, so far, have become stale. Keep ‘em coming!
Member of the TiX team, borderline obsessive gamer and mocker of motion control. Published Freelance Journalist with work in print and online....can often be found on Xbox LIVE as "BaseAllstar" , will also often be heard calling for a medic....Northern monkey boy living in Cornwall....Looking forward to Halo 4, the next gen of consoles and something to drag me away from Football Manager....Pleased to meet you.
A whole bundle of Warfare goodness will soon be in our mitts. 3 standard multiplayer maps, 2 spanking new Spec Ops missions and 4 smaller maps for the all new Face-Off game mode make up what is without doubt a veritable feast for avid ‘Codders’ to get their teeth into.
The 3 standard maps bundled into this release wear the name badges, Sanctuary, Foundation and Oasis. The former two surfaced last month as an Elite membership drop while the latter makes it’s debut here.
The good news is all three sit on the right side of decent.
Sanctuary is a sizable location for all your team excursions, it’s very easy on the eye with it’s mountaintop setting and carved rock good looks and is also a joy to play. Despite being a fairly big map it also holds a wealth of team work and tactical opportunities for those more in tune groups out there to take advantage of.
Foundation is much tighter affair. Set amid the iron and dust of a disused concrete factory the map plays at a heartbreak pace. Little time to think and nowhere to hide Foundation is a fantastic map for the run and gun gamer to practice that fine art. Towers hold sniping potential but you’ll have to be on your toes to stay alive. It’s a weaker map than Sanctuary and certainly looks a lot less appealing but thanks to the high tempo it will surely find a place in many a gamers heart.
Now to Oasis and thankfully with this newest of the standard MP maps there’s not a hairy eyebrow or recycled guitar riff in sight, no, this is a much more interesting release than anything the Gallagher brothers have put out in a while.
Oasis takes place in a seriously flash Dubai hotel, you know one of those places where the stolen dressing gown you’ve accidentally placed in your luggage upon departure becomes the most expensive item of clothing in your wardrobe……….no?…. Just me then…anyway, I’ll probably never know how one of these places functions as a hotel but as a venue for raining down a hail of gunfire upon your enemies it works a treat. The killing grounds are large enough for some good old cross courtyard shootouts while within the walls there are a nice number of claustrophobic corridors and close combat opportunities to lap up. It’s another solid performer in what is fast becoming one of the strongest collection of maps seen in a Call of Duty game since Call of Duty 3, and I’m seriously biased towards that old gem so I don’t say that lightly.
Onto the beachside location of Getaway then. Here we find ourselves within the sort of luxurious beachside holiday home I imagine most of the Activision employees own. The building is also a window cleaners nightmare with glass as far as the eye can see (which, when there’s glass everywhere is actually quite far.) Getaway is a run and gunners dream though, the use of so much glass means there’s little cover available and you’ll find small reward from taking a stealthy approach. The map looks great and plays just as well. Personally I didn’t notice any locations that were used for a team to try and bed in and take advantage of, rather, matches here became a compete high octane bullet fest until the final Kill cam rolled. Love it.
The final of the 4 is my own personal favourite. Aground, set amid a long rusted shipwreck and craggy features of the unforgiving Scottish coastline is an absolute beauty. This map feels slightly larger than the others, to the point in fact where having a good sniper on the team can prove a real bonus, but still maintains a high pace. There are places where teams can attempt to hold up and keep the enemy at bay but equally the potential to flank the holding team is very evident. Aground looks superb and plays like you always hope a map will, beautifully thrilling from start to finish.
So that takes care of the maps now let’s quickly look at the Spec Ops missions so I can get back to some Face Off action, and no, that has nothing to do with removing my make-up. I only wear that on Wednesdays.
With this collection comes a couple of fresh Spec Ops missions to get to grips with.
Iron Clad and Kill Switch can both be played either solo or in co-op. Iron Clad takes place in Hamburg and tasks you with clearing a path for a tank by placing C4 charges along it’s route while also dealing with a multitude of heavily armed enemy forces. Kill Switch meanwhile requires one player to infiltrate a Russian Comms station and detonate an EMP. One player heads into the fray on foot while the other takes up position on an overlooking bridge armed with that trustiest of weapons, the sniper rifle. Both missions are decent and, as ever, ramp up the fun in co-op play but make no mistake unless you’re seriously into your Spec Ops missions these two are merely the nibbles next to the real meat of this release, that being the maps.
All in all we have another triumph for Activision and there DLC. There’s just so much to be getting on with, new maps to discover, new modes to sample and new missions to embark upon. Everything seems polished and unrushed, each map has the power to deliver top notch gameplay and none, so far, have become stale. Keep ‘em coming!
Member of the TiX team, borderline obsessive gamer and mocker of motion control. Published Freelance Journalist with work in print and online....can often be found on Xbox LIVE as "BaseAllstar" , will also often be heard calling for a medic....Northern monkey boy living in Cornwall....Looking forward to Halo 4, the next gen of consoles and something to drag me away from Football Manager....Pleased to meet you.
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Phosphorous may have been on hot beach rocks in CA
Beach rocks that caused a California woman's shorts to catch fire and severely burn her legs and hands appeared to be coated with phosphorus, but it was unclear how the flammable chemical got onto the stones found near a military base, authorities said Thursday.
"We have never been aware of anything like this before," said Denise Fennessy, assistant director of Orange County's environmental health division.
Field tests indicated the phosphorus was found on two rocks from San Onofre State Beach that will be submitted to a state-certified laboratory for verification, Fennessy said.
A naturally occurring mineral, phosphorus is found in oxidized form in rocks, but in its pure elemental form can burn when exposed to air. Phosphorous compounds are used in everything from flares to fertilizer.
Coast Guard and fire officials, however, said they never heard of local beach rocks igniting.
"I spoke directly to the paramedic on the call," said Capt. Marc Stone of the Orange County Fire Authority. "He's worked 27 years as a paramedic and specifically on the beach areas, and it's the first time he's ever seen anything like this."
The beach where the rocks were found is near the Camp Pendleton Marine base and an offshore island used as a live firing range. A nuclear power plant is also in the vicinity.
Camp Pendleton spokesman Capt. Barry Edwards said there was no evidence that military training aids were involved in the discovery, but the base will cooperate with investigators if asked.
Five other rocks became cross-contaminated with the substance, possibly when the chemical reaction occurred, Fennessy said.
The children of the 43-year-old woman who was injured collected the seven rocks Saturday from San Onofre State Beach near the border of Orange and San Diego counties, a popular surfing beach nicknamed Trestles for its location near a railroad bridge.
The children took the rocks home. Hours later, the woman, whose name was not released, scooped them up from the floor of her San Clemente home and put them in the pocket of her cargo shorts, where they either caught fire or became hot enough to set fire to her clothing, Stone said.
The rocks were small and smooth. One was greenish in color and another had rusty orange streaks, Stone said.
"She actually had flames coming off of her shorts," he said. "She did a stop, drop and roll maneuver ... that was unsuccessful because of the amount of heat coming out of her pocket."
The smoke set off smoke alarms and firefighters arrived to find her husband hosing her down with a garden hose to cool off her burns.
She suffered third-degree burns to her leg, and she and her husband had second-degree burns to their right hands from trying to get the rocks out of the pocket, Stone said. The woman remained hospitalized.
"We have never been aware of anything like this before," said Denise Fennessy, assistant director of Orange County's environmental health division.
Field tests indicated the phosphorus was found on two rocks from San Onofre State Beach that will be submitted to a state-certified laboratory for verification, Fennessy said.
A naturally occurring mineral, phosphorus is found in oxidized form in rocks, but in its pure elemental form can burn when exposed to air. Phosphorous compounds are used in everything from flares to fertilizer.
Coast Guard and fire officials, however, said they never heard of local beach rocks igniting.
"I spoke directly to the paramedic on the call," said Capt. Marc Stone of the Orange County Fire Authority. "He's worked 27 years as a paramedic and specifically on the beach areas, and it's the first time he's ever seen anything like this."
The beach where the rocks were found is near the Camp Pendleton Marine base and an offshore island used as a live firing range. A nuclear power plant is also in the vicinity.
Camp Pendleton spokesman Capt. Barry Edwards said there was no evidence that military training aids were involved in the discovery, but the base will cooperate with investigators if asked.
Five other rocks became cross-contaminated with the substance, possibly when the chemical reaction occurred, Fennessy said.
The children of the 43-year-old woman who was injured collected the seven rocks Saturday from San Onofre State Beach near the border of Orange and San Diego counties, a popular surfing beach nicknamed Trestles for its location near a railroad bridge.
The children took the rocks home. Hours later, the woman, whose name was not released, scooped them up from the floor of her San Clemente home and put them in the pocket of her cargo shorts, where they either caught fire or became hot enough to set fire to her clothing, Stone said.
The rocks were small and smooth. One was greenish in color and another had rusty orange streaks, Stone said.
"She actually had flames coming off of her shorts," he said. "She did a stop, drop and roll maneuver ... that was unsuccessful because of the amount of heat coming out of her pocket."
The smoke set off smoke alarms and firefighters arrived to find her husband hosing her down with a garden hose to cool off her burns.
She suffered third-degree burns to her leg, and she and her husband had second-degree burns to their right hands from trying to get the rocks out of the pocket, Stone said. The woman remained hospitalized.
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Artist Johnathan Roberson-Beery Sculpts His Part for a Nuke-Free World
Last week, the Federation of American Scientists presented its Reykjavik Award to Rose Gottemoeller, Acting Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security, and Dr. Sidney Drell, Assistant Secretary for Arms Control, for their work towards a nuclear-free world.
The award itself is impressive, a good-sized bronze piece sculpted in the form of a mountain, meant to help promote and achieve a world without nuclear weapons.
Then there's the artist who created it: Laguna Beach's own Johnathan Roberson-Beery.
Roberson-Beery collaborated with FAS Senior Advisor Les Dewitt in the making of the award. Dewitt was inspired by a quote from former Senator Sam Nunn: “We must chart a course to higher ground where the mountaintop becomes more visible.” He wanted to create an award that would show how eliminating nuclear weapons from the world was like climbing a mountain, which takes stages.
“He didn’t have much of an idea of how a sculpture capturing this metaphor would look or what format it would take. He knew he liked the color and size of the Heisman trophy, but that’s where he left off and expected me to breathe life into the concept,” Roberson-Beery says.
Roberson-Beery began by drawing a mountain similar to the Paramount logo, but quickly realized that the drawing looked too lumpy and uninspired. With the idea of difficulty and challenge in mind, he chose to create the mountain as a craggy and rocky monolith of stone. He imagined ancient layers of granite peeling away from each other, where cold icy sheets of stone would jut up into the clouds above.
"I wanted it to have movement, direction and facets,” he says.
What started out as an artist searching to create a sculptural award for a client soon became much more to Roberson-Beery. Rather than just constructing a plain mountain sculpture, the artist created a symbolic award that recognized the achievements of individuals working towards the goal of nuclear disarmament.
Roberson-Beery’s passion for art started when he was very young.
He received inspiration from his parents, who both had an interest in art. Although his father was an engineer, he also created oil paintings. His mother would take him to museums and galleries.
Throughout high school, Roberson-Beery found his talents in drawing and illustration, which later led to his fascination with sculpture in college.
"I took a bronze casting class, and I knew that I had found a medium I loved,” he says.
From 1986 through 1991, Beery studied sculpture at Cal State Long Beach. At the time, the head of the sculpture department was Steve Werlick, who encouraged his students and helped them learn the process at the foundry.
“During that era, the department was focused on figurative artwork," Roberson-Beery remembers. "I learned to love it, and still to this day I find myself in the company of sculptors who attended the school then, many of them still successfully doing figurative artwork."
From 1994 through 1998, Roberson-Beery became a sculptor for Greneker in Los Angeles, participating in projects such as a maiden figure for the Caesars Palace Forum Shops to sports relief panels for Disney Cruise Line’s ESPN sports bar. Between 1998 and 2000, he sculpted projects as a contractor for places such as Trevino Studios in La Habra to 16 Penny Studios in North Hollywood.
Later projects included two public park projects in the Bay Area. He and his wife Lisa combined bronze and ceramic sculpture, custom-designed glass tile mosaics, and community painted ceramic tile to produce two creative park environments.
In Laguna Beach, Roberson-Beery worked on a project for Dr. Gary Arthur, the owner of Health in Balance, which included two custom fountains, a mangaris wood bench, and granite and mosaic work. Dr. Arthur’s logo was interpreted in bronze in several areas.
One of his specializations is in figurative and abstract sculpture and bas-relief hangings.
“I like surface, texture, volume and how objects interact with light and shadow,” Roberson-Beery says. “I enjoy how figurative works become a focus of attention, and how abstract elements can create visual interest, rhythms and harmony in spaces.”
As for bas-relief, he is attracted to the combination of the illusion of space that a drawing or painting creates, as well as the volumetric interpretation of form. And he likes how they can be hung.
Roberson-Beery had the opportunity to create a portrait bust commission for the mayor of Kishiwada, Japan. The Mayor Nishida bust was a work that had a special connection to the artist.
“When a client is absolutely taken by the work you’ve created for them, when the work reaches a deep place in the person they were created for, when it’s been possible to make a connection and fully transmit the creative vision with the client and understand what they are looking for, there’s a celebration to be had for all involved,” he says.
The award itself is impressive, a good-sized bronze piece sculpted in the form of a mountain, meant to help promote and achieve a world without nuclear weapons.
Then there's the artist who created it: Laguna Beach's own Johnathan Roberson-Beery.
Roberson-Beery collaborated with FAS Senior Advisor Les Dewitt in the making of the award. Dewitt was inspired by a quote from former Senator Sam Nunn: “We must chart a course to higher ground where the mountaintop becomes more visible.” He wanted to create an award that would show how eliminating nuclear weapons from the world was like climbing a mountain, which takes stages.
“He didn’t have much of an idea of how a sculpture capturing this metaphor would look or what format it would take. He knew he liked the color and size of the Heisman trophy, but that’s where he left off and expected me to breathe life into the concept,” Roberson-Beery says.
Roberson-Beery began by drawing a mountain similar to the Paramount logo, but quickly realized that the drawing looked too lumpy and uninspired. With the idea of difficulty and challenge in mind, he chose to create the mountain as a craggy and rocky monolith of stone. He imagined ancient layers of granite peeling away from each other, where cold icy sheets of stone would jut up into the clouds above.
"I wanted it to have movement, direction and facets,” he says.
What started out as an artist searching to create a sculptural award for a client soon became much more to Roberson-Beery. Rather than just constructing a plain mountain sculpture, the artist created a symbolic award that recognized the achievements of individuals working towards the goal of nuclear disarmament.
Roberson-Beery’s passion for art started when he was very young.
He received inspiration from his parents, who both had an interest in art. Although his father was an engineer, he also created oil paintings. His mother would take him to museums and galleries.
Throughout high school, Roberson-Beery found his talents in drawing and illustration, which later led to his fascination with sculpture in college.
"I took a bronze casting class, and I knew that I had found a medium I loved,” he says.
From 1986 through 1991, Beery studied sculpture at Cal State Long Beach. At the time, the head of the sculpture department was Steve Werlick, who encouraged his students and helped them learn the process at the foundry.
“During that era, the department was focused on figurative artwork," Roberson-Beery remembers. "I learned to love it, and still to this day I find myself in the company of sculptors who attended the school then, many of them still successfully doing figurative artwork."
From 1994 through 1998, Roberson-Beery became a sculptor for Greneker in Los Angeles, participating in projects such as a maiden figure for the Caesars Palace Forum Shops to sports relief panels for Disney Cruise Line’s ESPN sports bar. Between 1998 and 2000, he sculpted projects as a contractor for places such as Trevino Studios in La Habra to 16 Penny Studios in North Hollywood.
Later projects included two public park projects in the Bay Area. He and his wife Lisa combined bronze and ceramic sculpture, custom-designed glass tile mosaics, and community painted ceramic tile to produce two creative park environments.
In Laguna Beach, Roberson-Beery worked on a project for Dr. Gary Arthur, the owner of Health in Balance, which included two custom fountains, a mangaris wood bench, and granite and mosaic work. Dr. Arthur’s logo was interpreted in bronze in several areas.
One of his specializations is in figurative and abstract sculpture and bas-relief hangings.
“I like surface, texture, volume and how objects interact with light and shadow,” Roberson-Beery says. “I enjoy how figurative works become a focus of attention, and how abstract elements can create visual interest, rhythms and harmony in spaces.”
As for bas-relief, he is attracted to the combination of the illusion of space that a drawing or painting creates, as well as the volumetric interpretation of form. And he likes how they can be hung.
Roberson-Beery had the opportunity to create a portrait bust commission for the mayor of Kishiwada, Japan. The Mayor Nishida bust was a work that had a special connection to the artist.
“When a client is absolutely taken by the work you’ve created for them, when the work reaches a deep place in the person they were created for, when it’s been possible to make a connection and fully transmit the creative vision with the client and understand what they are looking for, there’s a celebration to be had for all involved,” he says.
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Grim effort to ID massacre victims
Authorities struggled Monday to identify 49 bodies without heads, hands or feet to gain clues into the latest in a series of massacres from an escalating war between Mexico's two dominant drug cartels.
There were signs that many innocent people were being caught up in the mass killings.
More than 24 hours after the gruesome discovery, officials had yet to identify any of the mutilated corpses found near the northern industrial city of Monterrey. None of the bodies examined so far showed signs of gunshots, Nuevo Leon state security spokesman Jorge Domene told Milenio television.
Though it was unclear who the victims were, it was the fourth massacre in a month.
Mexico's interior secretary, Alejandro Poire, said Monday that all those incidents resulted from the fight between the Zetas gang and the Sinaloa Cartel, which have emerged in the last year as the two main forces in Mexican drug-trafficking and other organized crime.
Some victims in earlier body dumps have turned out to be bakers, bricklayers, even students - anyone who could be snatched off the streets in mass killings that one captured gang member said were designed to "cause terror."
Poire would not respond directly when asked if innocents have increasingly become targets.
"We don't have proper identification of the dead," he said. "We have to leave that to the investigation."
"We have to look deeper ... to know the motives or who could have been the victims of violence," Poire added.
The 43 men and six women found Sunday were dumped at the entrance to the town of San Juan in the municipality of Cadereyta about 105 miles southwest of McAllen, Texas.
Graffiti around the town of 4,000 people mark it as Zetas territory, including "100% Zeta" painted on a stone arch welcoming visitors where the bodies were dumped and "Z's" painted on the home of San Juan's priest.
There have been 74 killings in the first four months of this year in Cadereyta municipality, compared with 27 over the same period in 2011 and seven in 2010, according to figures from Nuevo Leon state prosecutors.
The massacre follows the discovery of 14 men left in a van in downtown Nuevo Laredo on April 17, and 23 people found hanged or decapitated in the same border city May 4.
Eighteen dismembered bodied were left near Mexico's second-largest city, Guadalajara, last week. Among the nine people identified in that attack were bricklayers, waiters and at least one student. None had criminal records.
Drug violence has killed more than 47,500 people since President Felipe Calderón launched a stepped-up offensive when he took office in December 2006. The campaign has seen the two cartels emerge as Mexico's two most powerful. At least one of the two drug organizations is present in nearly all of Mexico's 32 states.
There were signs that many innocent people were being caught up in the mass killings.
More than 24 hours after the gruesome discovery, officials had yet to identify any of the mutilated corpses found near the northern industrial city of Monterrey. None of the bodies examined so far showed signs of gunshots, Nuevo Leon state security spokesman Jorge Domene told Milenio television.
Though it was unclear who the victims were, it was the fourth massacre in a month.
Mexico's interior secretary, Alejandro Poire, said Monday that all those incidents resulted from the fight between the Zetas gang and the Sinaloa Cartel, which have emerged in the last year as the two main forces in Mexican drug-trafficking and other organized crime.
Some victims in earlier body dumps have turned out to be bakers, bricklayers, even students - anyone who could be snatched off the streets in mass killings that one captured gang member said were designed to "cause terror."
Poire would not respond directly when asked if innocents have increasingly become targets.
"We don't have proper identification of the dead," he said. "We have to leave that to the investigation."
"We have to look deeper ... to know the motives or who could have been the victims of violence," Poire added.
The 43 men and six women found Sunday were dumped at the entrance to the town of San Juan in the municipality of Cadereyta about 105 miles southwest of McAllen, Texas.
Graffiti around the town of 4,000 people mark it as Zetas territory, including "100% Zeta" painted on a stone arch welcoming visitors where the bodies were dumped and "Z's" painted on the home of San Juan's priest.
There have been 74 killings in the first four months of this year in Cadereyta municipality, compared with 27 over the same period in 2011 and seven in 2010, according to figures from Nuevo Leon state prosecutors.
The massacre follows the discovery of 14 men left in a van in downtown Nuevo Laredo on April 17, and 23 people found hanged or decapitated in the same border city May 4.
Eighteen dismembered bodied were left near Mexico's second-largest city, Guadalajara, last week. Among the nine people identified in that attack were bricklayers, waiters and at least one student. None had criminal records.
Drug violence has killed more than 47,500 people since President Felipe Calderón launched a stepped-up offensive when he took office in December 2006. The campaign has seen the two cartels emerge as Mexico's two most powerful. At least one of the two drug organizations is present in nearly all of Mexico's 32 states.
Monday, May 14, 2012
Cars of the Future Will Be Computers on Wheels
A handful of people have seen the car of the near-future, and it looks suspiciously like a lunar land rover. Or a plane. Or a driverless vehicle. Take your choice.
At auto shows and tech conferences around the globe, prototypes of whiz-bang cars offer a visual narrative into what to expect on the nation's streets a decade from now. Some already are in production; others will be shortly, carmakers say. But in technology Relevant Products/Services laboratories and engineering facilities worldwide, the imaginings don't stop there.
By 2030, city streets will teem with small, driverless cars whose wireless Relevant Products/Services capabilities direct traffic flow smoothly, rendering traffic lights unnecessary, car designers and automotive visionaries say. The cars themselves will be made of collapsible, lightweight material, allowing them to be tucked into the tiniest parking crevices.
Cloud computing will enable riders to work or play games during their commutes while listening to their favorite music as chosen by the car, says Kevin Dallas, general manager of Microsoft Windows Relevant Products/Services Embedded. The software giant is working with Ford, BMW and others to make vehicles more connected.
For years, we've heard predictions about the cars of the future and seen them depicted in pop culture from the writings of Jules Verne to TV's The Jetsons. But advances in wireless communications and battery technology have made what once was a far-off idea a near-reality, says Mark Boyadjis, senior analyst at market researcher IHS Automotive, an industry consulting firm.
Changes in transportation infrastructure and policy, coupled with technology advances, could make this all possible in the not-too-distant future, say auto executives, analysts and scientists.
Within 20 years, not as many people will own cars. In fact, they will share them, Boyadjis predicts.
The future took a step closer to reality this year when Nevada became the first place anywhere to issue license plates to self-driving cars, allowing Google, Mercedes-Benz and General Motors to further develop and refine robo-driving on the state's 25,000 miles of road.
"It will be a different kind of automotive experience," Boyadjis says. "But for it to take shape, we need a seismic change in people's attitudes toward cars and early adoption of technology (by) consumers, automakers and infrastructure."
There are indications that as an array of personal and information technology enters the mainstream in cars -- from parking-assist aids to navigation systems to voice Relevant Products/Services control -- drivers are slowly warming to the idea of letting the car do more on its own. Indeed, many drivers say they would pay $3,000 for self-driving technology, according to J.D. Power and Associates.
At auto shows and tech conferences around the globe, prototypes of whiz-bang cars offer a visual narrative into what to expect on the nation's streets a decade from now. Some already are in production; others will be shortly, carmakers say. But in technology Relevant Products/Services laboratories and engineering facilities worldwide, the imaginings don't stop there.
By 2030, city streets will teem with small, driverless cars whose wireless Relevant Products/Services capabilities direct traffic flow smoothly, rendering traffic lights unnecessary, car designers and automotive visionaries say. The cars themselves will be made of collapsible, lightweight material, allowing them to be tucked into the tiniest parking crevices.
Cloud computing will enable riders to work or play games during their commutes while listening to their favorite music as chosen by the car, says Kevin Dallas, general manager of Microsoft Windows Relevant Products/Services Embedded. The software giant is working with Ford, BMW and others to make vehicles more connected.
For years, we've heard predictions about the cars of the future and seen them depicted in pop culture from the writings of Jules Verne to TV's The Jetsons. But advances in wireless communications and battery technology have made what once was a far-off idea a near-reality, says Mark Boyadjis, senior analyst at market researcher IHS Automotive, an industry consulting firm.
Changes in transportation infrastructure and policy, coupled with technology advances, could make this all possible in the not-too-distant future, say auto executives, analysts and scientists.
Within 20 years, not as many people will own cars. In fact, they will share them, Boyadjis predicts.
The future took a step closer to reality this year when Nevada became the first place anywhere to issue license plates to self-driving cars, allowing Google, Mercedes-Benz and General Motors to further develop and refine robo-driving on the state's 25,000 miles of road.
"It will be a different kind of automotive experience," Boyadjis says. "But for it to take shape, we need a seismic change in people's attitudes toward cars and early adoption of technology (by) consumers, automakers and infrastructure."
There are indications that as an array of personal and information technology enters the mainstream in cars -- from parking-assist aids to navigation systems to voice Relevant Products/Services control -- drivers are slowly warming to the idea of letting the car do more on its own. Indeed, many drivers say they would pay $3,000 for self-driving technology, according to J.D. Power and Associates.
Sunday, May 13, 2012
Jazz Shrines Fest, ALJO, Great Night in Harlem
The Harlem Jazz Shrines Festival continues its shower of eclectic swinging vocalists and musicians. On May 11 at 7 p.m., don’t miss Gregory Generet and Tony Award winner Chuck Cooper, the music of Johnny Hartman and words of the renowned author Ralph Ellison at the Gatehouse (150 Convent Ave. at 135th Street).
Brooklyn-born vocalist Generet, whose debut CD, “(re)Generet-ion,” which was recorded on his own label Monsieur Music, received quite an amount of buzz from critics in 2009. The album was recorded with his wife, “Law & Order” actress Tamara Tunie, who is directing this program.
The singer has worked with Mike Renzi, Laurence Hobgood, Eric Reed and Onaje Allan Gumbs. Generet performs somewhat regularly on the Upper West Side at Smoke Supper Club and has a small residency at the Metropolitan Room in Manhattan. His current CD will be distributed nationally by Mosaic Records later this year.
Cooper is a veteran of Broadway and has had numerous television and film roles. Together, he and Generet will blend their talents, delivering their interpretations to the music of the velvet-voiced Hartman and the words of Ellison, author of “Invisible Man” and “Going to the Territory.”
“Blazing Tongues: The Singers & Writers of Lenox Lounge” is part of Harlem Stage’s Harlem Stride series.
For eight decades, the world-famous Apollo Theater has been the premier showcase for African-American music, from vaudeville to blues, jazz, R&B, soul, salsa, gospel and hip-hop. One of its most popular, longest-running shows that began in the 1940s was “Jazz à la Carte,” a variety show produced by owners Frank Schiffman and Leo Brecher, featuring MC Ralph Cooper and the Benny Carter Orchestra, which opened the series.
Last year at the inaugural Harlem Jazz Shrines Festival, presented by the Apollo Theater, Harlem Stage and Jazzmobile, the “Jazz à la Carte” series was revived by trombonist, composer and arranger Wycliffe Gordon.
On Saturday, May 12, at 3 and 8 p.m., Gordon returns to the Apollo for two swinging sets of the legendary revue and variety show.
This year’s edition is a pulsating potpourri of musicians and dancers, with director-choreographer Kenneth L. Roberson; dancer extraordinaire Maurice Hines, who will serve as master of ceremonies; tap dancer Savion Glover; the Juilliard Jazz Orchestra; gospel-tinged vocalist Theresa Thomason; pianist and Cole Porter Fellow Aaron Diehl; trumpeter Philip Dizack; trombonist-vocalist Natalie Cressman; and the Apollo Dancers.
Magic Johnson Theaters Harlem USA is the place to be on May 13 from 4-7 p.m. for those Latin heads who hung out at the Carlton Terrace, Concourse Plaza and the Hotel Diplomat, swinging and twirling to the salsa sounds of Eddie Palmieri and Tito Rodriguez.
Additional guests for the evening include poet and curator Angel R. RodrÃguez Sr.; Tony Award winner Lin-Manuel Miranda; and turntablist DJ Logic. Spoken word artists include Sandra MarÃa Esteves, Tato Laviera, Odilia Rivera Santos, Caridad “La Bruja” De La Luz, Circa ’95 (PattyDukes and RephStar) and Christopher “Chilo” Cajigas.
The arrangers for the two-night engagement include O’Farrill, Todd Bashore, Adam Kromelow, Jason Lindner, Adam O’Farrill, Jay RodrÃguez and Bill Ware.
On May 17, all subways will undoubtedly be filled with jazz enthusiasts and ardent supporters of the Jazz Foundation of America as they make their way to the world famous Apollo Theater for the organization’s 11th annual “A Great Night in Harlem” gala concert to benefit the Jazz Musicians’ Emergency Fund.
The evening will raise money to assist countless elder jazz and blues musicians in crisis across the country. The organization has a very small but effective staff who work directly with the musicians to solve their problems, whether its buying food, paying rent or mortgage, legal services, medical care or employment. This is one of the most effective nonprofit organizations in the country.
This year’s concert is working to raise $1.6 million, which is not an outlandish amount when one considers how many jazz and blues musicians there are in need. The foundation is carrying on the jazz and blues tradition by helping our elder musicians to continue their craft by touching human souls with their music.
Brooklyn-born vocalist Generet, whose debut CD, “(re)Generet-ion,” which was recorded on his own label Monsieur Music, received quite an amount of buzz from critics in 2009. The album was recorded with his wife, “Law & Order” actress Tamara Tunie, who is directing this program.
The singer has worked with Mike Renzi, Laurence Hobgood, Eric Reed and Onaje Allan Gumbs. Generet performs somewhat regularly on the Upper West Side at Smoke Supper Club and has a small residency at the Metropolitan Room in Manhattan. His current CD will be distributed nationally by Mosaic Records later this year.
Cooper is a veteran of Broadway and has had numerous television and film roles. Together, he and Generet will blend their talents, delivering their interpretations to the music of the velvet-voiced Hartman and the words of Ellison, author of “Invisible Man” and “Going to the Territory.”
“Blazing Tongues: The Singers & Writers of Lenox Lounge” is part of Harlem Stage’s Harlem Stride series.
For eight decades, the world-famous Apollo Theater has been the premier showcase for African-American music, from vaudeville to blues, jazz, R&B, soul, salsa, gospel and hip-hop. One of its most popular, longest-running shows that began in the 1940s was “Jazz à la Carte,” a variety show produced by owners Frank Schiffman and Leo Brecher, featuring MC Ralph Cooper and the Benny Carter Orchestra, which opened the series.
Last year at the inaugural Harlem Jazz Shrines Festival, presented by the Apollo Theater, Harlem Stage and Jazzmobile, the “Jazz à la Carte” series was revived by trombonist, composer and arranger Wycliffe Gordon.
On Saturday, May 12, at 3 and 8 p.m., Gordon returns to the Apollo for two swinging sets of the legendary revue and variety show.
This year’s edition is a pulsating potpourri of musicians and dancers, with director-choreographer Kenneth L. Roberson; dancer extraordinaire Maurice Hines, who will serve as master of ceremonies; tap dancer Savion Glover; the Juilliard Jazz Orchestra; gospel-tinged vocalist Theresa Thomason; pianist and Cole Porter Fellow Aaron Diehl; trumpeter Philip Dizack; trombonist-vocalist Natalie Cressman; and the Apollo Dancers.
Magic Johnson Theaters Harlem USA is the place to be on May 13 from 4-7 p.m. for those Latin heads who hung out at the Carlton Terrace, Concourse Plaza and the Hotel Diplomat, swinging and twirling to the salsa sounds of Eddie Palmieri and Tito Rodriguez.
Additional guests for the evening include poet and curator Angel R. RodrÃguez Sr.; Tony Award winner Lin-Manuel Miranda; and turntablist DJ Logic. Spoken word artists include Sandra MarÃa Esteves, Tato Laviera, Odilia Rivera Santos, Caridad “La Bruja” De La Luz, Circa ’95 (PattyDukes and RephStar) and Christopher “Chilo” Cajigas.
The arrangers for the two-night engagement include O’Farrill, Todd Bashore, Adam Kromelow, Jason Lindner, Adam O’Farrill, Jay RodrÃguez and Bill Ware.
On May 17, all subways will undoubtedly be filled with jazz enthusiasts and ardent supporters of the Jazz Foundation of America as they make their way to the world famous Apollo Theater for the organization’s 11th annual “A Great Night in Harlem” gala concert to benefit the Jazz Musicians’ Emergency Fund.
The evening will raise money to assist countless elder jazz and blues musicians in crisis across the country. The organization has a very small but effective staff who work directly with the musicians to solve their problems, whether its buying food, paying rent or mortgage, legal services, medical care or employment. This is one of the most effective nonprofit organizations in the country.
This year’s concert is working to raise $1.6 million, which is not an outlandish amount when one considers how many jazz and blues musicians there are in need. The foundation is carrying on the jazz and blues tradition by helping our elder musicians to continue their craft by touching human souls with their music.
Thursday, May 10, 2012
Create a Middle Eastern Inspired Dining Room
The Middle East region originally encompassed a huge land mass and is dated back to ancient times. Its origins are found in 10,000 BC where farming first developed the area of land arching from the Persian Gulf, the Tigris and Euphrates River in Iraq, through the eastern coast of the Mediterranean into Egypt. Because of this, you will find elements from many cultures represented in Middle East décor. Many of these elements come from Persia, Egypt and Asia. If you observe carefully, you will find Middle Eastern influences in American design by way of Roman and Greek influences as well.
The dining room is a great place to bring Middle Eastern style and culture into your home. Here are some ideas you can use:
Tables with Middle Eastern influences are large, dark and ornate. To re-create such a dining room table in your home, purchase an antique imported carved door and add legs and a glass top. Another common translation of a Middle Eastern table is to purchase an old iron fence, build a frame and legs for it and top it with glass. Look for on octagonal, round or star-shaped pieces from which to make your table. You can further embellish your table with gold details.
Chairs found in the Middle East are both beautiful and functional. They feature inlaid details also found in the orient. Look for traditional chairs for your room with Asian patterns and carving. You may want to purchase some neutral understated chairs as well as highly decorated chairs. This will prevent the room from becoming too busy. Instead of chairs, you can also purchase benches. It is OK to mix and match seating in this style.
For side tables and buffet tables look for ornate furniture in-laid with mosaic-like designs featuring bone, ivory, mother of pearl and woods of various colors. Over such pieces, hang large orate mirrors.
You can find distinctive table cloths imported from Syria to use as table coverings and wall hangings. You will find fabric decorated with embroidery in many colors. The tradition and knowledge of making these items has been guarded passed form mother to daughter for centuries. You will surely want such an authentic item in you Middle Eastern styled dining room. Today, these highly demanded cloths are machine made. To find such an item on the internet, search using the key word “Aghabani”. This is the traditional name for these tablecloths.
China for your dining room can include Egyptian influenced pottery, as well as Chinese porcelain. The colors can range from bright cobalt blue to white with gold and blue details.
To capture the atmosphere of a Middle Eastern Dining room, you should faux paint the walls of the rooms using Venetian plaster, or with the look of Venetian plaster. You can then make a border using the Middle Eastern symbols or Koranic Script.
If possible, add a fireplace to the room to provide an authentic atmosphere, heat and ambiance. If you cannot install a fireplace, use large pillar candles instead.
The dining room is a great place to bring Middle Eastern style and culture into your home. Here are some ideas you can use:
Tables with Middle Eastern influences are large, dark and ornate. To re-create such a dining room table in your home, purchase an antique imported carved door and add legs and a glass top. Another common translation of a Middle Eastern table is to purchase an old iron fence, build a frame and legs for it and top it with glass. Look for on octagonal, round or star-shaped pieces from which to make your table. You can further embellish your table with gold details.
Chairs found in the Middle East are both beautiful and functional. They feature inlaid details also found in the orient. Look for traditional chairs for your room with Asian patterns and carving. You may want to purchase some neutral understated chairs as well as highly decorated chairs. This will prevent the room from becoming too busy. Instead of chairs, you can also purchase benches. It is OK to mix and match seating in this style.
For side tables and buffet tables look for ornate furniture in-laid with mosaic-like designs featuring bone, ivory, mother of pearl and woods of various colors. Over such pieces, hang large orate mirrors.
You can find distinctive table cloths imported from Syria to use as table coverings and wall hangings. You will find fabric decorated with embroidery in many colors. The tradition and knowledge of making these items has been guarded passed form mother to daughter for centuries. You will surely want such an authentic item in you Middle Eastern styled dining room. Today, these highly demanded cloths are machine made. To find such an item on the internet, search using the key word “Aghabani”. This is the traditional name for these tablecloths.
China for your dining room can include Egyptian influenced pottery, as well as Chinese porcelain. The colors can range from bright cobalt blue to white with gold and blue details.
To capture the atmosphere of a Middle Eastern Dining room, you should faux paint the walls of the rooms using Venetian plaster, or with the look of Venetian plaster. You can then make a border using the Middle Eastern symbols or Koranic Script.
If possible, add a fireplace to the room to provide an authentic atmosphere, heat and ambiance. If you cannot install a fireplace, use large pillar candles instead.
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
A Reward for Decades of Waiting
THE Allyn Morris Studio, with its spiraling jungle gym of a stairway, is not an obvious choice for an octogenarian. But when Patricia Marks first stepped inside nearly a year ago, she didn’t want to leave.
Ms. Marks, now 84, had gone to an open house in this city’s Silver Lake neighborhood as a sightseer and, she recalled, “I was just awed.”
That night, she wrote her daughter an e-mail. “Life just isn’t fair,” it began.
“Here is the most modern of modern houses I’ve ever seen and loved,” she wrote, describing the turquoise mosaic tile, the compact state-of-the-art kitchen, the distant views of city lights, the proximity to her daughter’s family and the circular stairway that she felt, sadly, too old to sail down.
“I guess you can’t expect to have too many dreams answered,” she concluded. “At least, I’ve had the opportunity to see the Morris House, to know it existed.”
Her daughter, Michelle Marks, still can’t read that e-mail without tearing up. “I thought, this can’t happen: so close to something my mom’s always wanted,” she said recently.
Even as a schoolgirl in Los Angeles, Patricia Marks daydreamed about modern architecture. She doodled floor plans and remembers watching, spellbound, the construction of her new junior high school by Richard Neutra.
As newlyweds in 1954, she and her husband wanted a Case Study House, but couldn’t afford one. They ultimately found a 1920s Tudor, where they raised three children and where she remained for 51 years.
By the time she was widowed, in 2008, the property was too much for her. Yet none of the “sensible” alternatives her daughter proposed inspired her to move. So Michelle Marks and her husband offered to buy the Silver Lake house with her. “The idea of an 83-year-old living there may have seemed crazy,” her daughter said, “but if it was within my grasp to make this new start happen for her, I wasn’t going to let the opportunity go.”
The architecture, like her mother’s willingness to embrace it, was risk-taking. Allyn Morris, a modernist little known beyond local architectural circles, designed the 1,025-square-foot house as his workplace and bachelor pad. But before its completion in 1958 he had married, and in 1962, his son, Howard, was born, prompting the family to move.
Hidden from the street, the house reveals just its brick carport, until you cross the threshold into a three-story glass box anchored on a steep slope. The front door opens into the bedroom, a mezzanine overlooking a double-height living room.
Mr. Morris, who also studied engineering, reveled in mechanical and structural invention. The rear facade, double hung like a giant window, is hand operated with bright yellow counterweights on a bicycle chain. The bed cantilevers over a pedestal one brick wide, and rain flows inside by design, into a catch basin beneath the bottom tread.
When the young filmmaker who bought the house in 1995 and restored it put it on the market in 2011, he was intent on finding a buyer who would cherish the legacy of Mr. Morris (who died in 2009, at 87). The asking price of $659,000 attracted multiple bidders, but only the Marks family had a glowing reference from Michelle’s high school classmate: that same Howard Morris.
Even Patricia Marks’s possessions seemed destined for this house. The coffee table she built in the 1950s matches the blue mosaics. Her aqua midcentury dishes and her red Prius echo the building’s palette. The Saarinen chairs that never suited her old home fit in here.
And although the move startled some of her friends, she has thrived here, watching the moon through skylights over her bed, taking in the great outdoors from a cantilevered deck and awakening each morning in the house of her dreams.
Ms. Marks, now 84, had gone to an open house in this city’s Silver Lake neighborhood as a sightseer and, she recalled, “I was just awed.”
That night, she wrote her daughter an e-mail. “Life just isn’t fair,” it began.
“Here is the most modern of modern houses I’ve ever seen and loved,” she wrote, describing the turquoise mosaic tile, the compact state-of-the-art kitchen, the distant views of city lights, the proximity to her daughter’s family and the circular stairway that she felt, sadly, too old to sail down.
“I guess you can’t expect to have too many dreams answered,” she concluded. “At least, I’ve had the opportunity to see the Morris House, to know it existed.”
Her daughter, Michelle Marks, still can’t read that e-mail without tearing up. “I thought, this can’t happen: so close to something my mom’s always wanted,” she said recently.
Even as a schoolgirl in Los Angeles, Patricia Marks daydreamed about modern architecture. She doodled floor plans and remembers watching, spellbound, the construction of her new junior high school by Richard Neutra.
As newlyweds in 1954, she and her husband wanted a Case Study House, but couldn’t afford one. They ultimately found a 1920s Tudor, where they raised three children and where she remained for 51 years.
By the time she was widowed, in 2008, the property was too much for her. Yet none of the “sensible” alternatives her daughter proposed inspired her to move. So Michelle Marks and her husband offered to buy the Silver Lake house with her. “The idea of an 83-year-old living there may have seemed crazy,” her daughter said, “but if it was within my grasp to make this new start happen for her, I wasn’t going to let the opportunity go.”
The architecture, like her mother’s willingness to embrace it, was risk-taking. Allyn Morris, a modernist little known beyond local architectural circles, designed the 1,025-square-foot house as his workplace and bachelor pad. But before its completion in 1958 he had married, and in 1962, his son, Howard, was born, prompting the family to move.
Hidden from the street, the house reveals just its brick carport, until you cross the threshold into a three-story glass box anchored on a steep slope. The front door opens into the bedroom, a mezzanine overlooking a double-height living room.
Mr. Morris, who also studied engineering, reveled in mechanical and structural invention. The rear facade, double hung like a giant window, is hand operated with bright yellow counterweights on a bicycle chain. The bed cantilevers over a pedestal one brick wide, and rain flows inside by design, into a catch basin beneath the bottom tread.
When the young filmmaker who bought the house in 1995 and restored it put it on the market in 2011, he was intent on finding a buyer who would cherish the legacy of Mr. Morris (who died in 2009, at 87). The asking price of $659,000 attracted multiple bidders, but only the Marks family had a glowing reference from Michelle’s high school classmate: that same Howard Morris.
Even Patricia Marks’s possessions seemed destined for this house. The coffee table she built in the 1950s matches the blue mosaics. Her aqua midcentury dishes and her red Prius echo the building’s palette. The Saarinen chairs that never suited her old home fit in here.
And although the move startled some of her friends, she has thrived here, watching the moon through skylights over her bed, taking in the great outdoors from a cantilevered deck and awakening each morning in the house of her dreams.
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
The E-invoicing Portal: Every FD’s Crystal Ball
Probably the first thing that comes to mind is getting rid of paper and the tedium associated with manual invoicing. This is true of course, but e-invoicing can be so much more than just saving time and resources.
What if we were to say that, for accounts receivable professionals, e-invoicing (or e-billing) can both significantly improve relationships with your customers, reduce customer churn and improve cashflow. Would you be surprised? E-invoicing has many hidden benefits, and it is these benefits that reach out far beyond the day-to-day working of a finance department that we are interested in for the purpose of this article.
Firstly, in terms of accounts receivables what exactly is e-invoicing? E-invoicing is an online service that automates the outbound invoicing process.
E-invoicing goes further than e-presentment, which simply presents an image of an invoice electronically with no customer interaction. E-invoices can be delivered in a variety of different methods to the customer, who can then process them online. Most e-invoicing solutions are outsourced to specialist vendors who run scalable services that are fully vat compliant and integrate easily with existing ERP systems, whilst at the same time enhancing what these legacy systems can provide.
The online process is simple; a supplier dispatches his invoices from an existing ERP or legacy system/s, which are then validated and turned into compliant documents by the e-invoicing vendor and securely sent to the customer in the most appropriate way given their profile e.g. EDI, custom data, or via email. The customer can then login to a secure self service website, or e-invoicing/e-billing Portal, which is a 24/7 supplier branded environment where customers can view, query and access additional data formats, investigate supporting documents, approve invoices, make electronic payments and review their account status.
Research by independent e-invoicing research company Billentis suggests that an organisation can achieve 1-2% of its turnover by replacing paper invoices and automating the processes. However, achieving more in the longer term is a very real possibility and entirely measurable. So, here are the 4 long-term “hidden” benefits of receivables e-invoicing that every FD should recognise.
According to Billentis, the full cost of processing a paper invoice including all the time consuming tasks such as query resolution and credit control, is at least €11.10 per invoice. A major contributor to this high cost is the lack of a central repository for all AR data. There is no way to quickly find out if an invoice has be received, queried or paid. Finance directors often find themselves in a position of making blind decisions with little information about the bigger picture. This doesn’t happen with e-invoicing. The customer e-invoicing Portal, can be accessed by authorised users from anywhere with Internet access 24/7. So whether you are in London or Sydney, at home or away on business, you can gain real-time access to the status of your account receivable documents, all in one place.
Using the portal you can search for an invoice, view it and see if it has been queried or paid. if it has been queried you can resolve issues quickly by using the online query management tool. Supporting documents can also be attached, such as statements, customs and duty notes, timesheets and delivery notes, which make query resolution even quicker. Workflow tools can also be put in place to ensure that notifications e.g. for queries, are emailed to the correct person, or system, so that they can be dealt with quickly and efficiently. Billentis states that the end-to-end e-invoicing process costs a mere €4.70 per invoice, which represents a massive saving of 57%.
What if we were to say that, for accounts receivable professionals, e-invoicing (or e-billing) can both significantly improve relationships with your customers, reduce customer churn and improve cashflow. Would you be surprised? E-invoicing has many hidden benefits, and it is these benefits that reach out far beyond the day-to-day working of a finance department that we are interested in for the purpose of this article.
Firstly, in terms of accounts receivables what exactly is e-invoicing? E-invoicing is an online service that automates the outbound invoicing process.
E-invoicing goes further than e-presentment, which simply presents an image of an invoice electronically with no customer interaction. E-invoices can be delivered in a variety of different methods to the customer, who can then process them online. Most e-invoicing solutions are outsourced to specialist vendors who run scalable services that are fully vat compliant and integrate easily with existing ERP systems, whilst at the same time enhancing what these legacy systems can provide.
The online process is simple; a supplier dispatches his invoices from an existing ERP or legacy system/s, which are then validated and turned into compliant documents by the e-invoicing vendor and securely sent to the customer in the most appropriate way given their profile e.g. EDI, custom data, or via email. The customer can then login to a secure self service website, or e-invoicing/e-billing Portal, which is a 24/7 supplier branded environment where customers can view, query and access additional data formats, investigate supporting documents, approve invoices, make electronic payments and review their account status.
Research by independent e-invoicing research company Billentis suggests that an organisation can achieve 1-2% of its turnover by replacing paper invoices and automating the processes. However, achieving more in the longer term is a very real possibility and entirely measurable. So, here are the 4 long-term “hidden” benefits of receivables e-invoicing that every FD should recognise.
According to Billentis, the full cost of processing a paper invoice including all the time consuming tasks such as query resolution and credit control, is at least €11.10 per invoice. A major contributor to this high cost is the lack of a central repository for all AR data. There is no way to quickly find out if an invoice has be received, queried or paid. Finance directors often find themselves in a position of making blind decisions with little information about the bigger picture. This doesn’t happen with e-invoicing. The customer e-invoicing Portal, can be accessed by authorised users from anywhere with Internet access 24/7. So whether you are in London or Sydney, at home or away on business, you can gain real-time access to the status of your account receivable documents, all in one place.
Using the portal you can search for an invoice, view it and see if it has been queried or paid. if it has been queried you can resolve issues quickly by using the online query management tool. Supporting documents can also be attached, such as statements, customs and duty notes, timesheets and delivery notes, which make query resolution even quicker. Workflow tools can also be put in place to ensure that notifications e.g. for queries, are emailed to the correct person, or system, so that they can be dealt with quickly and efficiently. Billentis states that the end-to-end e-invoicing process costs a mere €4.70 per invoice, which represents a massive saving of 57%.
Monday, May 7, 2012
CFL's Bobby Jurasin, Geroy Simon stress football fundamentals
Bobby Jurasin and Geroy Simon share similar concerns as parents of football players.
They both worry about the possibility of injuries while their sons are involved in the game. Jurasin's youngest son, Wyatt, is a linebacker at his alma mater, Northern Michigan University. Bobby Jurasin, a hall of fame defensive end, played for the CFL's Saskatchewan Roughriders from 1986 to 1997. Simon's oldest son, Gervon, recently committed to play quarterback with the Army Black Knights of the U.S. Military Academy.
"Of course there is a lot of concern,'' said Jurasin, who was a guest instructor for the Don Narcisse All-Star Event at Mosaic Stadium on the weekend. "For my sons, it's all about choices. I'll be there if they want to ask questions and I'll answer them. I'll make sure they are informed about the risks and the rewards. Then it's up to them.''
Geroy Simon is heading into his 14th season with the B.C. Lions as a star receiver and he has been involved with minor football in British Columbia throughout that span. He feels the best manner to prepare youngsters for football is proper training. It's also an attitude he adopted while coaching his own children.
"The majority of people aren't going to have concussions and things like that especially if you teach them the right fundamentals,'' said Simon, who was also a guest instructor at the All-Star Event. "That's the reason why I coach the little guys back in B.C. If you teach kids the proper way to take on a block or tackle, you lessen the chances of them sustaining those kinds of injuries. It's important for professionals or those who have lots of experience in football to teach the proper way of playing football.''
Jurasin pointed out that football is evolving. When he joined the Riders in 1986, there were few 300-pounders on the offensive line. Now that is the average size of offensive linemen.
"These kids need to learn the grassroots of basic fundamentals,'' Jurasin said. "They need to learn how to tackle, how to hit and how to get into the proper stance.''
Injuries take place in football. Simon, 36, still feels that players at all levels have to play without the fear of being injured.
"You have to be smart,'' Simon said. "You can't lead with your head, no matter what position you play. If you do, you will have those types of injuries. If you see what you hit, then you won't have those types of head injuries. If you do things the right way, you lessen your chances of getting hurt.''
Jurasin, 47, battled through injuries during his all-star career with the Riders. A painful reminder of his playing days was a chronically sore right knee from the wear and tear of the game. He recently underwent surgery to have the knee replaced.
"It got to the point where I was getting it scraped every year, the cortisone shots and everything else,'' said Jurasin, who was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 2006 and the Riders Plaza of Honor in 2002. "The doctor said we could continue doing that, but he realized there was only one thing that could be done. He said that I was only 47 years old, but I told him that I needed to move now and not when I was 60. We came to an agreement and I had (the knee replacement) done.''
Jurasin still feels dealing with the football-related injuries were worth it.
They both worry about the possibility of injuries while their sons are involved in the game. Jurasin's youngest son, Wyatt, is a linebacker at his alma mater, Northern Michigan University. Bobby Jurasin, a hall of fame defensive end, played for the CFL's Saskatchewan Roughriders from 1986 to 1997. Simon's oldest son, Gervon, recently committed to play quarterback with the Army Black Knights of the U.S. Military Academy.
"Of course there is a lot of concern,'' said Jurasin, who was a guest instructor for the Don Narcisse All-Star Event at Mosaic Stadium on the weekend. "For my sons, it's all about choices. I'll be there if they want to ask questions and I'll answer them. I'll make sure they are informed about the risks and the rewards. Then it's up to them.''
Geroy Simon is heading into his 14th season with the B.C. Lions as a star receiver and he has been involved with minor football in British Columbia throughout that span. He feels the best manner to prepare youngsters for football is proper training. It's also an attitude he adopted while coaching his own children.
"The majority of people aren't going to have concussions and things like that especially if you teach them the right fundamentals,'' said Simon, who was also a guest instructor at the All-Star Event. "That's the reason why I coach the little guys back in B.C. If you teach kids the proper way to take on a block or tackle, you lessen the chances of them sustaining those kinds of injuries. It's important for professionals or those who have lots of experience in football to teach the proper way of playing football.''
Jurasin pointed out that football is evolving. When he joined the Riders in 1986, there were few 300-pounders on the offensive line. Now that is the average size of offensive linemen.
"These kids need to learn the grassroots of basic fundamentals,'' Jurasin said. "They need to learn how to tackle, how to hit and how to get into the proper stance.''
Injuries take place in football. Simon, 36, still feels that players at all levels have to play without the fear of being injured.
"You have to be smart,'' Simon said. "You can't lead with your head, no matter what position you play. If you do, you will have those types of injuries. If you see what you hit, then you won't have those types of head injuries. If you do things the right way, you lessen your chances of getting hurt.''
Jurasin, 47, battled through injuries during his all-star career with the Riders. A painful reminder of his playing days was a chronically sore right knee from the wear and tear of the game. He recently underwent surgery to have the knee replaced.
"It got to the point where I was getting it scraped every year, the cortisone shots and everything else,'' said Jurasin, who was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 2006 and the Riders Plaza of Honor in 2002. "The doctor said we could continue doing that, but he realized there was only one thing that could be done. He said that I was only 47 years old, but I told him that I needed to move now and not when I was 60. We came to an agreement and I had (the knee replacement) done.''
Jurasin still feels dealing with the football-related injuries were worth it.
Sunday, May 6, 2012
CT firm’s software cuts cost of filing
Remember that paperless society we were promised last century? Still waiting? Now a Connecticut company is moving the dream closer, one industry at a time.
Westbrook Technologies of Branford has developed a software approach that has changed the way a local aircraft company stores certifications, how California courts process transcripts and how an Arizona healthcare organization manages medical records.
“Organizations generate paper and electronic documents in vast quantities,” said Einar Haukeland, president and CEO of Westbrook Technologies.
“Employees save them in neat stacks on their desks, filed in alphabetized folders or not in any order at all. They do the same thing with electronic documents, data and images,” said Haukeland. “They file them away in folders on computers, often forgetting where they put them.”
Haukeland said many companies waste time and lose money trying to find documents for reference, business proposals and audits.
“With manual processing, a document comes in and can only be accessed by one person at each step of the process,” said Haukeland. “If there are related documents, such as a purchase order, delivery ticket, invoice or check for payment, it will be archived in different file cabinets.”
So instead of rummaging through rows of filing cabinets or hunting for misplaced folders, users can add, route, manage and share single documents or entire files from a central electronic storage location.
For Metals Testing Co. in South Windsor, document management software is more than just a convenient method of doing business. It’s the only way it can do business without shelling out big bucks for warehouse space.
The technology firm inspects and tests commercial and military aircraft, automotive and aerospace parts. The company is required to store Federal Aviation Administration certifications for aircraft parts indefinitely.
Robert Delisle, president of Metals Testing Co., said the firm would have to rent warehouse space if it didn’t have an electronic repository.
Since Standard Oil of Connecticut Inc. implemented its paperless data storage system a few years back, the Bridgeport-based energy company has become a model for efficiency.
Standard Oil’s three divisions — Standard Petroleum, Standard Security and Standard Insurance — rely on document management software and web-based system to simplify daily tasks and improve services for more than 38,000 customers throughout the state.
Westbrook Technologies introduced its Fortis system to Standard Oil to help rid the utility company of a cumbersome paper storage system that included two large warehouses and help streamline operations.
The utility company didn’t give up its warehouse space though. Instead of storing pulp, the facility is used to house extra materials and replacement parts.
Going paperless paid off for the utility company. Using the web-based Fortis system, Standard Oil has been able to control expenses, provide accurate and real-time account information to its technicians.
For a company that handles 30-plus customer billing discrepancies per day and makes 170,000 annual deliveries, Fortis can call up the proper documents in minutes, as opposed to the old system that took days, said Einar Haukeland, president and CEO of Westbrook Technologies.
Standard Oil uses Fortis to scan paper documents such as bills, service receipts and customer complaints and manages information on nearly 25,000 payments submitted to 11,000 company vendors.
Founded in 1991, Westbrook Technologies has made great strides in helping companies streamline office operations and improve productivity. Companies pay a licensing fee, which can start around $1,000 per user.
The company declined to talk more about fees or disclose revenues, citing competitive concerns. Haukeland said business is brisk again following the gloomy recession that started in 2008.
“The first quarter of 2012 was our best quarter in three years,” said Haukeland. “We expect it to keep improving. We tightened our belts during the recession like everyone else did and it was tough. But I think it’s going to be a positive year with a lot of activity.”
The company’s web-based services have helped more than 14,000 clients in the healthcare, finance, law, real estate, education and government industries capture, index and retrieve documents in seconds through full search capabilities.
The California court system started using the Fortis system this year to help it reduce the time it takes to file and process an appeal. The company’s software automatically compiles and prepares an appeal from the original case file and then electronically transmits it to the appropriate court.
Haukeland says his software saves the courts time and money by reducing paper consumption, storage costs and shipping fees in forwarding transcripts to the reviewing court. It also provides easy public access to volumes of court records.
Jon Langdon, director of research and development at Westbrook, said businesses rely on the software to provide their customers with self-serve information portals.
For example, the Department of Veteran Affairs allows active duty and retired service members to access their health records with a click of a mouse.
“During the economic recession, we saw a common theme across all industries, which was do more with less,” said Langdon. “Companies needed to become more efficient and productive. As we see a positive shift in the economy, companies are maintaining and expanding these initiatives.”
Westbrook Technologies of Branford has developed a software approach that has changed the way a local aircraft company stores certifications, how California courts process transcripts and how an Arizona healthcare organization manages medical records.
“Organizations generate paper and electronic documents in vast quantities,” said Einar Haukeland, president and CEO of Westbrook Technologies.
“Employees save them in neat stacks on their desks, filed in alphabetized folders or not in any order at all. They do the same thing with electronic documents, data and images,” said Haukeland. “They file them away in folders on computers, often forgetting where they put them.”
Haukeland said many companies waste time and lose money trying to find documents for reference, business proposals and audits.
“With manual processing, a document comes in and can only be accessed by one person at each step of the process,” said Haukeland. “If there are related documents, such as a purchase order, delivery ticket, invoice or check for payment, it will be archived in different file cabinets.”
So instead of rummaging through rows of filing cabinets or hunting for misplaced folders, users can add, route, manage and share single documents or entire files from a central electronic storage location.
For Metals Testing Co. in South Windsor, document management software is more than just a convenient method of doing business. It’s the only way it can do business without shelling out big bucks for warehouse space.
The technology firm inspects and tests commercial and military aircraft, automotive and aerospace parts. The company is required to store Federal Aviation Administration certifications for aircraft parts indefinitely.
Robert Delisle, president of Metals Testing Co., said the firm would have to rent warehouse space if it didn’t have an electronic repository.
Since Standard Oil of Connecticut Inc. implemented its paperless data storage system a few years back, the Bridgeport-based energy company has become a model for efficiency.
Standard Oil’s three divisions — Standard Petroleum, Standard Security and Standard Insurance — rely on document management software and web-based system to simplify daily tasks and improve services for more than 38,000 customers throughout the state.
Westbrook Technologies introduced its Fortis system to Standard Oil to help rid the utility company of a cumbersome paper storage system that included two large warehouses and help streamline operations.
The utility company didn’t give up its warehouse space though. Instead of storing pulp, the facility is used to house extra materials and replacement parts.
Going paperless paid off for the utility company. Using the web-based Fortis system, Standard Oil has been able to control expenses, provide accurate and real-time account information to its technicians.
For a company that handles 30-plus customer billing discrepancies per day and makes 170,000 annual deliveries, Fortis can call up the proper documents in minutes, as opposed to the old system that took days, said Einar Haukeland, president and CEO of Westbrook Technologies.
Standard Oil uses Fortis to scan paper documents such as bills, service receipts and customer complaints and manages information on nearly 25,000 payments submitted to 11,000 company vendors.
Founded in 1991, Westbrook Technologies has made great strides in helping companies streamline office operations and improve productivity. Companies pay a licensing fee, which can start around $1,000 per user.
The company declined to talk more about fees or disclose revenues, citing competitive concerns. Haukeland said business is brisk again following the gloomy recession that started in 2008.
“The first quarter of 2012 was our best quarter in three years,” said Haukeland. “We expect it to keep improving. We tightened our belts during the recession like everyone else did and it was tough. But I think it’s going to be a positive year with a lot of activity.”
The company’s web-based services have helped more than 14,000 clients in the healthcare, finance, law, real estate, education and government industries capture, index and retrieve documents in seconds through full search capabilities.
The California court system started using the Fortis system this year to help it reduce the time it takes to file and process an appeal. The company’s software automatically compiles and prepares an appeal from the original case file and then electronically transmits it to the appropriate court.
Haukeland says his software saves the courts time and money by reducing paper consumption, storage costs and shipping fees in forwarding transcripts to the reviewing court. It also provides easy public access to volumes of court records.
Jon Langdon, director of research and development at Westbrook, said businesses rely on the software to provide their customers with self-serve information portals.
For example, the Department of Veteran Affairs allows active duty and retired service members to access their health records with a click of a mouse.
“During the economic recession, we saw a common theme across all industries, which was do more with less,” said Langdon. “Companies needed to become more efficient and productive. As we see a positive shift in the economy, companies are maintaining and expanding these initiatives.”
Thursday, May 3, 2012
The cutting edge of enterprise tablet deployments
As has been well-documented, the popularity of the iPhone and iPad helped spawn the Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) movement that a growing number of companies have come to embrace -- grudgingly or with various levels of enthusiasm.
In my own reporting and elsewhere many IT managers have commented that there’s really no cost-savings to BYOD because it typically means the company has to support new devices it hadn’t planned to, which in turn means having to implement additional security and connectivity.
But some of the speakers at Tablet Strategy had a very different view. For example, while some consider the iPad’s lack of a USB port a negative, Dale Potter, Senior VP and CIO at The Ottawa Hospital, said it’s a definite plus from a security point of view.
“I wrote to Steve Jobs before the iPad 2 was released asking him, “For God’s sake, don’t put a USB port on that thing because I need to protect patient health records,” said Potter. The Ottawa Hospital is one of the largest academic, teaching health care institutions in Canada and has deployed thousands of iPads.
And according to Aaron Tantleff, Senior Counsel at the law firm Foley & Lardner, BYOD saves companies money. Foley & Lardner was one of the first major law firms to have a full BYOD policy and Tantleff said the payoff has been significant. “It’s been a huge money saver for us,” Tantleff said.
But Tantleff also warned that companies need to implement specific BYOD policies before letting employees use their devices to access corporate resources. For example, if employees are going to store enteprise data on their personal devices, they need to understand that IT and management could have access to all the information stored there (both personal and company data) depending on the policy and what technology's been implemented. Some programs let you segregate personal files and things like social media accounts so they're only accessible to the user.
Tantleff told me during a break between sessions that his company's BYOD program has been so successfu that each employee now gets a $1,500 allowance to buy the device(s) they want (capped at $3,800 for three years). BYOD saves companies money on training costs, he added, because “it’s the user’s own device, they already know how to use it.”
That view was echoed by Randy Nunez, Technical Expert for Mobile Computing Technologies at Ford. BYOD is happening because “people are coming to IT and saying this is what we want,” he said, noting Ford is able to save on costs because people are already trained on the devices and have purchased them on their own.
Nunez says Ford has experimented with different approaches to deploying tablets, both BYOD and IT-issued, with an emphasis on getting them in the hands of users quickly. For example, rather than spending a lot of time figuring out what mobile device management and other IT-oriented software should go on the device, Ford gave some users in the manufacturing division a kind of “zero footprint” iPad with a minimum of pre-installed software.
“It worked better for some groups than others,” said Nunez
For example, some of the users who had previously used Windows notebooks said they needed more storage than the iPad offered and USB ports. For others, who previously relied on clipboards, the iPad was a boon because it gave them more flexibility to access and share data. Ford did include software to let them access their desktop PC apps remotely which, among other things, let them print from the iPad.
In my own reporting and elsewhere many IT managers have commented that there’s really no cost-savings to BYOD because it typically means the company has to support new devices it hadn’t planned to, which in turn means having to implement additional security and connectivity.
But some of the speakers at Tablet Strategy had a very different view. For example, while some consider the iPad’s lack of a USB port a negative, Dale Potter, Senior VP and CIO at The Ottawa Hospital, said it’s a definite plus from a security point of view.
“I wrote to Steve Jobs before the iPad 2 was released asking him, “For God’s sake, don’t put a USB port on that thing because I need to protect patient health records,” said Potter. The Ottawa Hospital is one of the largest academic, teaching health care institutions in Canada and has deployed thousands of iPads.
And according to Aaron Tantleff, Senior Counsel at the law firm Foley & Lardner, BYOD saves companies money. Foley & Lardner was one of the first major law firms to have a full BYOD policy and Tantleff said the payoff has been significant. “It’s been a huge money saver for us,” Tantleff said.
But Tantleff also warned that companies need to implement specific BYOD policies before letting employees use their devices to access corporate resources. For example, if employees are going to store enteprise data on their personal devices, they need to understand that IT and management could have access to all the information stored there (both personal and company data) depending on the policy and what technology's been implemented. Some programs let you segregate personal files and things like social media accounts so they're only accessible to the user.
Tantleff told me during a break between sessions that his company's BYOD program has been so successfu that each employee now gets a $1,500 allowance to buy the device(s) they want (capped at $3,800 for three years). BYOD saves companies money on training costs, he added, because “it’s the user’s own device, they already know how to use it.”
That view was echoed by Randy Nunez, Technical Expert for Mobile Computing Technologies at Ford. BYOD is happening because “people are coming to IT and saying this is what we want,” he said, noting Ford is able to save on costs because people are already trained on the devices and have purchased them on their own.
Nunez says Ford has experimented with different approaches to deploying tablets, both BYOD and IT-issued, with an emphasis on getting them in the hands of users quickly. For example, rather than spending a lot of time figuring out what mobile device management and other IT-oriented software should go on the device, Ford gave some users in the manufacturing division a kind of “zero footprint” iPad with a minimum of pre-installed software.
“It worked better for some groups than others,” said Nunez
For example, some of the users who had previously used Windows notebooks said they needed more storage than the iPad offered and USB ports. For others, who previously relied on clipboards, the iPad was a boon because it gave them more flexibility to access and share data. Ford did include software to let them access their desktop PC apps remotely which, among other things, let them print from the iPad.
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Limiting Transit Options Limits Opportunities For Kids
Cecilia Latiolais is 22 years old. She graduated from the University of Michigan last year and now works as the membership coordinator at the Ann Arbor Hands on Museum. She walks to work and to the People's Food Co-op for her groceries and to volunteer at 826Michigan's downtown Ann Arbor office and just about anywhere else she needs to go from her home on the city's Old West Side. She does this because she doesn't own a car. She doesn't own a car because she can't easily afford one, doesn't really need one, and doesn't have much interest in owning one.
"Most of the time I find a car to be a hassle," Latiolais says. She's part of a growing trend, young Americans who have decided against auto ownership.
What Latiolais wants instead is to lend more of a hand to those who need it. She enjoys volunteering at 826Michigan, working with kids who take advantage of the non-profit's free events and workshops. However, she wants to work with these children more directly, through one-on-one tutoring and other mentoring opportunities.
What holds her back is the challenge of getting from Point A to Point B and back again. Point A is her home in Ann Arbor. Point B is the Ypsilanti area where much of the demand for tutoring resides.
"I'm limited in what I can do with 826Michigan because I can't easily get to Ypsilanti," Latiolais explains. "I can only volunteer for the programs downtown at the Robot Shop (826 Michigan's storefront headquarters) unless there are people going to an event I can ride with."
Latiolais can't afford her own car without putting great strain on her finances. Purchasing a car means dipping into her savings, taking out a loan, paying for gas, maintenance and parking. That adds up quickly for someone who makes little more than $20,000 per year. Latiolais can take buses from Ann Arbor Transportation Authority's fleet but she finds the system doesn’t have the reach and speed she needs to get to kids she wants to tutor on the east side of Washtenaw County. Her experience isn't unique in a place where many of the young people who need help live in one section and many of the young people who can and want to help them live in another.
"Not many people (who volunteer at 826Michigan) have cars - maybe a quarter of them," Latiolais says. "More people would love to go to Ypsi to volunteer but don't have the opportunity."
This isn't an indictment of AATA's effectiveness. The transportation system connecting Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti is renowned for its promptness, cleanliness and ability to accommodate many passengers. Where the system comes up short is in coverage. AATA is not a transportation authority that comprehensively serves Washtenaw County because it's not a transportation authority that represents all of Washtenaw County.
Often those who suffer from this situation are those who can do the least about it, young people who, more often than not, can't vote and are reliant on their own feet, public transit or adult people of means with personal transportation. These are usually the kids of working parents trying to participate in after-school activities, children who can ride their bikes to the end of the block but not over a freeway overpass, or young adults who have more time on their hands to do good than money in their pockets.
826Michigan runs into that last group more than its organizers would like. The non-profit helps support primary and secondary school students with their creative and expository writing skills, and helps teachers inspire their students to express themselves with words. The nonprofit services about 2,500 school-aged students each year thanks to more than 10,000 hours of volunteer time. 826Michigan's volunteer list has 1,700 names on it, but the organization's leadership estimates only about 450 people are active each year.
"We feel like we have a really rich resource in tutors here because of the University of Michigan," says Amanda Uhle, executive director of 826 Michigan. "Part of the problem is a lot of these tutors at the university don't have transportation. A lot of our programs take place in Ypsilanti, which isn't walkable from here. It makes it difficult to get our tutors where we want them."
"Most of the time I find a car to be a hassle," Latiolais says. She's part of a growing trend, young Americans who have decided against auto ownership.
What Latiolais wants instead is to lend more of a hand to those who need it. She enjoys volunteering at 826Michigan, working with kids who take advantage of the non-profit's free events and workshops. However, she wants to work with these children more directly, through one-on-one tutoring and other mentoring opportunities.
What holds her back is the challenge of getting from Point A to Point B and back again. Point A is her home in Ann Arbor. Point B is the Ypsilanti area where much of the demand for tutoring resides.
"I'm limited in what I can do with 826Michigan because I can't easily get to Ypsilanti," Latiolais explains. "I can only volunteer for the programs downtown at the Robot Shop (826 Michigan's storefront headquarters) unless there are people going to an event I can ride with."
Latiolais can't afford her own car without putting great strain on her finances. Purchasing a car means dipping into her savings, taking out a loan, paying for gas, maintenance and parking. That adds up quickly for someone who makes little more than $20,000 per year. Latiolais can take buses from Ann Arbor Transportation Authority's fleet but she finds the system doesn’t have the reach and speed she needs to get to kids she wants to tutor on the east side of Washtenaw County. Her experience isn't unique in a place where many of the young people who need help live in one section and many of the young people who can and want to help them live in another.
"Not many people (who volunteer at 826Michigan) have cars - maybe a quarter of them," Latiolais says. "More people would love to go to Ypsi to volunteer but don't have the opportunity."
This isn't an indictment of AATA's effectiveness. The transportation system connecting Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti is renowned for its promptness, cleanliness and ability to accommodate many passengers. Where the system comes up short is in coverage. AATA is not a transportation authority that comprehensively serves Washtenaw County because it's not a transportation authority that represents all of Washtenaw County.
Often those who suffer from this situation are those who can do the least about it, young people who, more often than not, can't vote and are reliant on their own feet, public transit or adult people of means with personal transportation. These are usually the kids of working parents trying to participate in after-school activities, children who can ride their bikes to the end of the block but not over a freeway overpass, or young adults who have more time on their hands to do good than money in their pockets.
826Michigan runs into that last group more than its organizers would like. The non-profit helps support primary and secondary school students with their creative and expository writing skills, and helps teachers inspire their students to express themselves with words. The nonprofit services about 2,500 school-aged students each year thanks to more than 10,000 hours of volunteer time. 826Michigan's volunteer list has 1,700 names on it, but the organization's leadership estimates only about 450 people are active each year.
"We feel like we have a really rich resource in tutors here because of the University of Michigan," says Amanda Uhle, executive director of 826 Michigan. "Part of the problem is a lot of these tutors at the university don't have transportation. A lot of our programs take place in Ypsilanti, which isn't walkable from here. It makes it difficult to get our tutors where we want them."
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